‘Drugs are not bad because they’re illegal. They’re illegal because they are bad’ - PM

By Mata Press Service

If Canada were to legalize marijuana, as being advocated by four former Vancouver mayors, the impact at the border will cause a lot of trouble, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said.
“I don’t want to say they would seal the border. But I think it would inhibit our trade generally because they’re certainly not going to make that move in the United States,” said Harper at a meeting with representatives of the ethnic media in Vancouver.
“I think as a cross-border phenomenon this would cause Canada a lot of difficulty. I think the Americans would…cause us a lot of trouble at the border with the United States,” said Harper, reiterating that his government has no plans for the legalization of drugs.
Four former Vancouver mayors - Larry Campbell, Mike Harcourt, Sam Sullivan and Philip Owen – recently endorsed a coalition that wants to end pot prohibition which they blame for rampant gang violence.
They all signed an open letter to B.C. politicians that claims a change in the law will reduce gang violence and supported the position of the Stop the Violence B.C. Coalition, which released a survey showing most B.C. residents favour an end to the current marijuana laws.
“Among the most pressing issues is the contribution that cannabis prohibition has made to organized crime and gang violence. The Fraser Institute has estimated that B.C.’s illegal cannabis trade may be worth up to $7 billion dollars annually. This massive illegal market drives violence in communities throughout the province. New thinking, new policies and collaboration across party lines are required to protect our communities and make them safer,” the letter read.
We must move from a violent unregulated market to a strictly regulated cannabis market that is based on a public health framework. We believe a legally regulated market for adult cannabis use has the potential to reduce rates of cannabis use while at the same time directly addressing organized crime concerns by starving them of this cash cow. A regulated market would enable governments to improve community health and safety while at the same time raising millions in tax revenue.”
The time for action is now, the mayors concluded.
But Harper was not moved.
“This government doesn’t favour the legalization of drugs. We specifically have legislation before the House of Commons to increase penalties for those who traffic in drugs, those who try and make money by selling addictive products to our children,” said the Prime Minister.
“ Look, I know the drug trade is a frustration. I know it fuels a lot of criminal activity. But I think people, anybody is fooling themselves if they think that somehow the drug trade would become a nice business if it were legalized.
Drugs are not bad because they’re illegal. They’re illegal because they are bad. They are corrosive to society. They’re part of worldwide criminal and sometimes even terrorism networks and they do terrible things to people.”
The proposed legalization of marijuana also did not sit well with the majority of new-Canadians interviewed about the suggestion made by the mayors.
“I have seen the scourge of drugs…like shabu in the Philippines…I don’t want to see it in my new homeland,” said Filipino-Canadian Alex Miranda.
Ching Liang who moved from China to Canada last year said he does not understand the current laws pertaining to marijuana use.
“They say it is illegal but everyone smokes it openly anyways…so I don’t understand what they want to make legal,” he said.
The mayors letter also came in for some criticism by Canada’s so-called Prince of Pot, Marc Emery.
“It is a political irony that these former mayors, former presidents of Colombia, Brazil and Mexico, former governors, hundreds of other previously elected and now former officials throughout the world, along with hundreds of former police officers, all declare the war on drugs a counter-productive failure, a gift to organized crime and a threat to the stability of several nations, but none of them acted on this while in the political authority of their elected or appointed office, he wrote from a U.S. prison where he is serving time for selling cannabis seeds.
“There is an unfathomable disconnect between actually holding political office and doing the right thing when it comes to ending prohibition,” said Emery.