Guyana not ready for commercialization of marijuana

Aug 28, 2015 Letters

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Dear Editor,
Clairmont Lye, former project director of the Electoral Assistance Bureau (EAB) in a letter a few weeks ago (“We should be growing hemp on an industrial scale”, July 7) called for the legalization of marijuana. Citing several countries where it has been legalized, as well as our strategic geographical location, favorable soil pH level, and potential financial gains, Lye further argued that Guyana should cultivate large scale production to take advantage of the global demand for marijuana.
While it is true that several countries (like Jamaica,, Ecuador and US) have decriminalized small amounts of marijuana for medicinal use, it would be a mistake for Guyana to enter the “marijuana trade” at this time for a number of reasons: many countries still oppose its globalization, marijuana has many documented negative effects, it is considered a “gateway” to more serious drugs like cocaine and heroin, and Guyana is plagued with too many societal vices to take on additional problems related to the drug trade.
The drug trade (narco-trafficking) in Guyana, like violent crime, which blossomed during the PNC era, but escalated to new heights during the PPP government, now threatens the very fabric of our society. Narco-trafficking or the drug trade involves a) the production and manufacture of drugs, b) sophisticated money laundering techniques to hide the income earned from the illicit drug trade, and c) the use of precursor chemicals used to manufacture  illicit drugs, all of which require global cooperation through an international regime on narco-trafficking to contain their proliferation. The most commonly used drugs in Guyana are marijuana (cannabis or “ganja”) and cocaine. Marijuana use is more widespread, but cocaine, given its higher market value, is a much more sought after commodity for international trade.
Over the years, GPF, CANU, and GRA reported drug-related seizures worth millions of dollars. The US International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, which profiles drug-related crimes around the world noted that “Guyana is a transit country for cocaine destined for the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, and West Africa. Cocaine originating in Colombia is smuggled to Venezuela and onward to Guyana by sea or air. Smugglers also transit land borders with Brazil, Venezuela, and Suriname. Cocaine is often concealed in legitimate commodities and smuggled via commercial maritime vessels, air transport, human couriers, or various postal methods. The influence of narcotics trafficking is evident in the country’s political and criminal justice systems. Traffickers are attracted by the country’s poorly monitored ports, remote airstrips, intricate river networks, porous land borders, and weak security sector capacity.”
Aside from the 1990 Narcotic and Psychotropic Drugs Act, several laws, including The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act, the Interception of Communications Act and the Criminal Law Procedure Act, were passed to enhance the investigative capabilities of law enforcement authorities and obtain convictions of drug traffickers. To date, however, the government has sought no prosecutions under these laws. In May 2014, the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) identified Guyana as a “money laundering and terrorist financing risk” after Guyana failed to amend its anti-money laundering laws, placing Guyana under targeted review by the Financial Action Task Force. The coalition government recently took actions to correct this problem. Weak enforcement measures, as well as endemic corruption within the police force make it difficult to carefully monitor this problem, much less limit its proliferation. Sophisticated organizational network and massive resources controlled by traffickers have the potential to corrupt even the most moral citizen. Guyana lacks a robust demand reduction strategy that adequately addresses drug rehabilitation. In addition, Guyanese deportees involved in drug-related crimes in the US continue to pose a security challenge.
Marijuana, which is widely cultivated in Guyana’s hinterland, consists of the dried leaves and flowering tops of the hemp plant, cannabis sativa. It produces sensations of intoxication and pleasure when smoked, chewed or drunk. The plant was used for treatment of hypertension, stomach pain, arthritis, glaucoma, as well as a muscle relaxant, and for relief of pain from rheumatism and menstrual cramps. In 1982, the US National Academy of Science concluded that cannabis and its derivatives (such as hashish and hashish oil) have shown promises in the treatment of glaucoma, asthma, seizures, nervous system disorders and nausea and vomiting resulting from cancer chemotherapy. However, potential long term effects of the drug use include euphoria, loss of memory, paranoid delusions, laughter, visual illusions, hallucinations, cancer, emphysema and bronchitis.
The Granger government should get ahead of the curve and address this scourge in our society. The United States, the largest consumer of illicit narcotics, has promised technical and material support to Guyana. Among other things, Guyana needs drug “sniffer dogs” at the airports, a pro-active DEA in Guyana and closer collaboration with the US and surrounding states to ensure that money laundering laws are strengthened and Guyana can access necessary resources needed to interdict traffickers.
Baytoram Ramharack

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