6.27. To many officers, marijuana laws present as a no-win “War on Drugs” that drives violence. Some believe that prohibition encourages usage. The majority is of the view that removing prohibition/ the illegal status from the drug would markedly reduce crime and the associated violence. Given the enormity of the crime problem in the region’s nation- states, the suggestion of either decriminalisation, or legalisation is a welcome discussion for senor law enforcement officials. However, a concern raised by many is the response legalisation would evoke in the international arena given that international Conventions treat cannabis as illegal. Because of this, some believe a more prudent approach is decriminalisation. They also expressed concerns regarding the impact of drug use on young people. 6.28. Legislative reform on marijuana, in particular, removing criminalisation, is viewed by law enforcement personnel as positive legal policy, to sharpen their resolve against corruption and toward crime reduction, the containment of violent gangs and the derailment of transnational organised criminal syndicates. Many law enforcement officials in the Caribbean believe that the current volatile security task environment and its economic malaise are reasons enough for parliamentarians to seriously consider joining their Latin American counterparts in their drug law reform initiatives, not only in rhetoric, but also through public policy.
Stereotyping and Discrimination in Law Enforcement?
6.29. Perhaps the most compelling argument for change in the law is the clear evidence that cannabis/ marijuana laws are inconsistently and unevenly applied, with the poor, lower social classes and the marginalised, (in particular Rastafarians), being disproportionately targeted, arrested and convicted for cannabis use and possession, while the wealthy, although engaging in similar activities, are not addressed by the law. 6.30. This complaint was made in every forum in every country that the Commission engaged in and speaks to a deep and abiding sense of injustice about the legal regime entrenched in the minds of CARICOM peoples. 6.31. Given the well-documented social stratification patterns in the region, social class divisions are often related to race and ethnicity.169 Put bluntly, this means that the “poor and vulnerable” often translates into poor, black, male youth (often living in particular areas), who are much more likely to be charged than rich, middle-class white or mixed persons. In Belize, race and ethnicity assumed a particular focus, with Afro-Belizeans and the Garifuna self-identifying as being targeted by the police because of their ethnicity. Inequality, inherent biases and blatant discrimination, such as in the profiling done to identify marijuana users, are common complaints throughout the region. The Commission heard these Cannabis/ marijuana laws are inconsistently and accounts even from the many school unevenly applied, with the poor, lower social classes children who were interviewed and there and the marginalised, (in particular Rastafarians), being was a remarkable similarity in their disproportionately targeted, arrested and convicted for testimonies. In one Consultation, even cannabis use and possession, while the wealthy, some white participants spoke out on this issue, saying that “only black and brown” although engaging in similar activities, are not persons got locked up. addressed by the law. 6.32. The social injustice and waste that is produced from the current criminal law approach has not escaped the attention of law enforcement personnel. Interestingly, several of them who attended the Consultations confirmed this state of affairs. In one forum in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, when asked why this profiling was taking place, a senior police officer responded that poor young men smoked on the streets and were visible, whereas the middle and higher classes smoked behind closed doors and fancy clubs. These many young men have had their futures negatively impacted because of the consequent criminal records. Notably, it was reported by law enforcement personnel themselves, that the arrest of young, low income males for possession and use of the drug is an easy way for police offices to boost their arrest records. Roy McCree, ‘Race, Colour and Class in Caribbean Society’ in Shirley a Jackson (ed), Routledge International Handbook of Race, Class and Gender, Routledge, UK, 2015, p.233. 169
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