Waatea News Column: Are Labour going to repeal racist cannabis laws or not?
There is a mad scramble after the cowardice of Labour’s decision to allow 51% of the electorate to criminalise the other 49% to seek decriminalisation of cannabis as a way to eliminate this racist drug law.
It is outrageous that the first step of the second term of a majority Labour Government was to allow the racist cannabis laws to remain despite almost 49% of the country calling for a legalised market!
Labour claimed they were simply enforcing the will of the referendum, but seeing as the referendum wasn’t binding, Labour are hiding behind majoritarianism to let them off the hook for a lack of leadership.
As many parts of the world shift to a regulated and taxed cannabis market, New Zealand risks becoming seriously out of step so decriminalization is now being hurriedly discussed in Parliament.
Even National feel compelled into this position.
You can’t seriously enforce a law that 49% of your population say should be legalised.
The good news of decriminalization is that it will stop the criminalization of Māori, the bad news is that decriminalization actually creates the worst of all worlds.
You don’t get the taxation for Government revenue to fund the drug rehabilitation programmes while enriching organised crime who face a lesser risk of caught users giving Police actionable evidence.
So the gangs get richer, the Government gets nothing and Māori will still be open to bias from Police writing out fines for being caught with cannabis.
So Police become revenue gatherers for a market the Government should be taxing directly instead of via the cops.
It is infinitely embarrassing that despite a majority, Labour are still paralysed on this issue.
First published on Waatea News.
Referenda are completely inappropriate tools for determining such a complex, nuanced matter as cannabis legalisation. And for that matter, end of life choices.
When will citizens assemblies assume a proper role in New Zealand governance?
Regular cannabis use increases the risk of developing a psychotic illness, such as schizophrenia. So you can’t pretend to care about mental health while at the same time be in favour of legalizing marijuana.
Regular car driving increases the risk of a fatal accident. So you cant pretend to care about car safety while at the same time be in favor of allowing people to drive legally. Because obviously if a percentage of people are dying on the roads, driving should be banned for everyone.
The Govt. position is truly pathetic. Whoever invited the US prohibitionist group SAM (Smart Attitudes to Marijuana) to speak in NZ, and subsequently gain an influential foothold in the debate by partnering with Family First, gets runner up in the pathetic stakes. Family First shared addresses and Tech with SAM and basically spent hundreds of thousands of dollars more on the NO campaign than was legally proscribed. Will anything be done about that?
John Key remember, ignored a referendum on asset sales, after 67% of voters said no to Nationals plans. Key responded with the middle finger.
Labour could be a lot more helpful to society than that! of course if they legislated regardless of the Referendum. Decrim is one thing, but as Bomber says is solves little by itself.
‘Because obviously if a percentage of people are dying on the roads, driving should be banned for everyone.’
Bloody Oath! Make Public transport free and get every other bastard off the road( then people could safely get as smashed as before global warming finishes us all).
The reason why repeal of Cannabis Prohibition is needed is because it would sort things out when it comes to the Cannabis situation in New Zealand is that it would dramatically bring down the price of Medical Cannabis and also it would make accessibility much easier to those who need it urgently, also it would allow the Green Fairies to openly operate.