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‘Swazi gold’: grandmothers in Eswatini growing cannabis to make ends meet
In the poverty-stricken kingdom, an older generation rely on growing marijuana to feed children orphaned by Aids epidemic
The Guardian (UK)
Thursday, September 2, 2021
In Nhlangano, in the south of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), the illegal farming of the mountainous kingdom’s famous “Swazi gold” is a risk many grandmothers are ready to take. In what is known locally as the “gardens of Eden”, a generation of grandparents are growing cannabis, many of them sole carers for some of the many children orphaned by the HIV/Aids epidemic that gripped southern Africa. Currently, there is only one legal Eswatini cannabis grower: the US-based Profile Solutions Inc has a licence to grow and process medical cannabis and hemp for a minimum of 10 years. But, despite the risks, the Swazi gold grandmothers do not want to join the legal market: “Legalising weed might be a threat to our market, as prices might drop. We want the current situation to remain in place.” -
‘Protect our local dagga strains from intellectual property theft,’ Parliament told
Durban poison, Rooibaard, Swazi Gold... What's your favourite? Researchers say the industry should be protected from exploitation and exclusion of locals
The Citizen (South Africa)
Wednesday, September 1, 2021
The Eastern Cape government is calling for the protection of the local cannabis industry in South Africa. Dohne Agricultural Development Institute research director Dr Mfundo Maqubela said in a virtual presentation to Parliament’s Justice and Correctional Services Portfolio Committee that there could be no cannabis industry if the local market is not developed. Last November, the Eastern Cape government embarked on a roadshow to gauge public sentiment about the draft bill. The bill in its present form has been accused of discriminating against people who did not have access to private spaces in which to grow their own cannabis, and it failed to make provisions on how growers could access seeds for cultivation. (See also: The poor must be included in SA’s cannabis industry boom, says Cosatu) -
We should hand out free heroin to drug users
The idea that abstinence works is more about our fear of drugs than it is about science
The Nation (US)
Wednesday, August 25, 2021
Let’s give out heroin, for free, to anyone who wants it. This is not a provocation meant to make you gasp or to elicit angry clicks—rather, it’s a proven strategy for reducing the harm of opioids that’s already in use in several countries across the globe. We face two drug-related crises in the United States. The first we can all agree on: Drugs are killing people at unprecedented rates. Over 90,000 people die each year from overdoses in the US, an amount that has quintupled since 1999. The second crisis is disputed, but no less deadly: Our drug policy leaves people to fend for themselves, while we waste time and resources. -
Safehouse takes its battle over a Philly supervised drug injection site to the U.S. Supreme Court
The move sets the stage for what could be the most definitive legal battle yet over the issue, but it’s one fraught with risk for supporters of such facilities
The Philadelphia Inquirer (US)
Thursday, August 26, 2021
Seven months after a federal appellate court delivered a major setback to plans to open the nation’s first supervised injection site in Philadelphia, the nonprofit behind the endeavor is returning to court seeking new audiences and advancing new legal arguments. Safehouse attorneys announced they had filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court asking it to weigh in on whether plans to open a site designed to prevent overdose deaths by allowing people to take drugs under medical supervision run afoul of federal law. An adverse ruling from the high court could set back their cause for years on a national level, even as some states have advanced legislative efforts to approve them. -
This overdose awareness day, activists will again hand out safe drugs
After tracking 900 drug users during three earlier events, advocates say their ‘compassion club’ model has resulted in zero overdoses
The Tyee (Canada)
Tuesday, August 24, 2021
In the midst of a federal election campaign, a group of activists plan to again hand out tested, untainted heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine in a push to put the need for regulated, wide-reaching safe supply on the agenda. The “compassion club” model the Drug User Liberation Front has been demonstrating since June 2020 can’t be found in any party platform. Eris Nyx, one of the founders of the Drug User Liberation Front, says that organized drug users, not politicians, have led the way in pushing for drug policy reforms in response to poisoned, unregulated drugs. (See also: Five ways to end the toxic drug crisis) -
Decriminalisation of kratom hailed by rights advocates
A Thailand Development Research Institute study estimated that the decriminalisation will save authorities about 1.69 billion baht in prosecution costs
The Bangkok Post (Thailand)
Tuesday, August 24, 2021
The decriminalisation of kratom, long used as a herbal remedy but which some health regulators around the world have criticised as potentially unsafe, was welcomed by human rights advocates. Kratom is part of the coffee family, used for centuries in Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea for its pain-relieving and mildly stimulating effects. It has become increasingly popular in the United States. The change to Thai law means "the general public will be able to consume and sell kratom legally", government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said, while more than 1,000 prisoners convicted of offences related to the drug will be freed. (See also: Thailand legalizes kratom, popular plant-based painkiller) -
Drugs Commissioner: Possession of six grams of cannabis should no longer be a criminal offence
The offence should be considered a misdemeanour in future, Daniela Ludwig proposes
Berliner Zeitung (Germany)
Monday, August 23, 2021
The Federal Commissioner on Narcotic Drugs, Daniela Ludwig (CSU), advocates that in future the possession of cannabis up to a personal use limit of six grammes should be prosecuted nationwide as an administrative offence and no longer as a criminal offence. The amount of 15 grammes tolerated in Berlin, however, is "clearly" too high, Ludwig said. There, more young people smoke pot than anywhere else in Germany. Ludwig recommends that the CDU/CSU seek a compromise on the issue of cannabis with possible coalition partners after the federal elections. "It is clear that cannabis is not as dangerous as cocaine or heroin. It is also true that the issue must be about different, better sanctions and about relieving the police and the judiciary," she stressed. -
Socialdemokratiet mayoral candidate to legalise cannabis sales
Should she get elected in November’s council election, Sophie Haestorp Andersen plans to shake up Copenhagen’s established dealer scene
The Copenhagen Post (Denmark)
Friday, August 13, 2021
Socialdemokratiet’s leading mayoral candidate for Copenhagen, Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, has big plans concerning the decriminalisation of cannabis. Should the votes in the upcoming election this November be in her favour, she has vowed to use her position as mayor to take large steps forward in “the fight against criminality and uncertainty”, according to her Facebook profile. Andersen wants cannabis sales to be legal and regulated. Similar to Sweden’s approach to controlling alcohol consumption – the Systembolagetof in which people order in advance before buying drinks with a more than moderate alcohol content – she proposes that a governmental monopoly should be established around cannabis sales in Denmark. (See also: Christianites find no solution to eliminate cannabis trade) -
8,000 to be cleared after kratom's removal from narcotics list
From Aug 24, kratom is no longer a narcotic
The Bangkok Post (Thailand)
Thursday, August 10, 2021
More than 8,000 convicted people and suspects will be cleared of legal charges when kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) is removed from the narcotics list on Aug 24, Office of Narcotics Control Board secretary-general Wichai Chaimongkol said. Kratom (Migragyna speciosa) is a tropical evergreen plant with opioid properties and some stimulant-like effects. It had long been used in tradtional medicine but was declared a Class 5 narcotic under the Narcotics Act of 1976. The law was amended in 2021 to remove kratom from the list. The amendment was published in the Royal Gazette on May 26 and the removal of kratom from the narcotics list is effective from Aug 24. -
What do you do with a billion grams of surplus weed?
Cannabis legalization was supposed to be a licence to print money. Three years on, nobody is turning a profit
The Walrus (Canada)
Thursday, August 5, 2021
Back in 2018, during those months before Canada legalized recreational cannabis, things were good for the pot industry. Companies were being hyped as pioneers in “the green frontier” and “proof that money grows on trees.” Cannabis stocks were going ballistic, and three of the largest companies’ share values had each increased by more than 200 percent over the course of 2017—according to media outlet MJBizDaily, the Canadian Marijuana Index had risen by 117 percent in December of that year alone. Investors were not just making money, they were making money fast. Three years later, much of that hype has vanished, and now both industry and government are beginning thorough post-mortems of what is, and isn’t, working with pot legalization.
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