An unprecedented coalition of 25 organisations like the New Zealand Medical Association, the Mental Health Foundation, the Public Health Association, the Maori Law Society, the Drug Foundation, Hapai te Hauora, and JustSpeak have called on drug reform citing health and societal issues while pointing out how racist our drug laws are.
The Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 hasn’t been significantly updated in 46 years and the level of knowledge we now have with drugs demands reflection.
Rewriting the law putting science at its centre would see a focus on rehabilitation and harm minimisation which would make an enormous difference to Māori communities because they bear the brunt of the war on drugs.
So what has been the Governments response to such an unprecedented call for action?
Bewilderingly Justice Minister Andrew Little has simply shrugged the call for reform off and has started a new referendum that will be required for any reform.
His argument is that last year’s cannabis referendum ties the Government’s hands-on decriminalisation and as such the status quo must continue, which is cold comfort to the many Māori who are disproportionately criminalised by our war on drugs.
The Labour Party have a Parliamentary majority, if they aren’t prepared to use it to end racist drug laws, what was the point of electing them in the first place.
First published on Waatea News.
Another massive arse-bite coming up for NZ Labour on this one. If the Green Party can get their shit together, there will likely be a return to a multi party MMP Govt. in 2023 and legalisation of Cannabis will happen.
Legalisation–need I say it?–will be especially good for Māori people, and give various start up businesses a chance and boost the non dairy economy.
Wtf drives Minister Little on this really? The Labour Caucus does seem more committed to maintaining neo liberal hegemony, and pandering to switch voters than anything else.
Jacinda is apparently waiting for “cross-party support”:
Collins pours cold water on JA’s hope
Where is the strong, decisive leader we had when Covid first arrived?
Has someone kidnapped her and sent a replacement?
We need that person back – the one who saw what needed to be done and acted on it without hesitation, none of this wait-for-consensus shilly shallying. Consensus only ever gives a watered-down version of what’s needed, if anything at all, and can tie up parliamentary discussions indefinitely.
Her response to covid was about taking more of our rights away, not giving us more rights to freedom. That’s the reason there is a disparity between her responses on covid vs cannabis. Ultimately it comes down to power, and her use of it through either hardcore action like lock downs or refusing to do anything meaningful to address our punitive drug laws, housing crisis, infrastructure defeceit and mental health issues.
Her response to covid was about taking more of our rights away, not giving us more rights to freedom.
It worked – It FREED us from future lockdowns which have plagued just about every other country. It was short term pain for long term gain – and again, it worked. It gave us the freedoms we now have, which other countries have not had.
However for the rest of your comment, yes. We are desperately in need of much stronger leadership now. It is a bit heartbreaking to see her constantly waiting to get approval from every last non-working braincell in NZ. Pitiful!! Tragic. …because they (Labour) are not going to get another opportunity like this – NOW is the time – It is all there in front of her – To TAKE ACTION! To do what she knows needs to be done.
And yet Labour are happy to let alcohol be sold on Easter yet alcohol is the root cause of many social issues and many health problems. We have bottle stores everywhere. The Greens and the Maori Party may be able to leverage some more vote and possibly more seats on these issues.
At the referendum I drew on what I heard at information nights and my own experience to vote NO and was happy with doing so. However when I see the list of those signing this request to change the law I acknowledge they are far more qualified than I
am to make this decision so would accept change . Andrew Little needs to show he can listen and not hide behind the referendum especially as it was so close .
And through the continuation of the war on drugs, thus “fear in a population”, though in their defence this government can’t be deemed terrorists because they haven’t acted on anything.
Extremely disappointing reaction by Little. Stop throwing important issues out to referenda, listen to people who actually know what they’re talking about and show a bit of fucking leadership.
Is it a racist drug law? I’d say yes; an european type metabolism can withstand a great deal of alcohol -why? – their collective digestive metabolism has been tuned to a wheat based diet over thousands of years. Indigenous peoples who have utilised a more natural diet, un-distilled plant nutrients as opposed to highly processed manufactured victuals cannot assimilate the types and amounts of alcohol being legally pushed on every corner.
Is it a classist drug law? I’d say yes again.(poor people are not allowed to grow their own weed are they?)
Is it a misogynist drug law?
Is it an ageist drug law?
Is it a speciesist drug law? Is it not a human right to be able to grow a plant which is held sacred by this planet?
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