Vibrant debate on cannabis laws

BY ÁINE Ní BHRIAIN

Caitríona Ruane

The Ard Fheis debate on justice, drugs and community covered a vast range of issues, including legal reform, corruption, and drug and alcohol abuse.

Sinn Féin again called for the British and Dublin Governments to honour their commitments to the Good Friday Agreement and enact fundamental changes to the criminal justice system.

"The 26-County Govern-ment is in breach of the GFA," pointed out one delegate. "Five years on, all 'emergency legislation' remains on the books and the Special 'Criminal' Court remains operational.

"There can be no justice without human rights," added another emphatically. "Out of the 15 current states in the European Union, 13 have been found guilty of human rights abuses and that includes the 26 Counties. The only two not on the list were Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

"Justice and policing must be built on a foundation of human rights. We also have to continue to work on prison reform. We must ask ourselves why people are re-offending."

But perhaps the most animated and controversial debate in this section was about drugs.

While the Ard Fheis voted to support a motion which demands the updating and development of the Dublin Opiate Overdose Reduction Strategy and a review of methadone programmes in the city, it struck down a motion (221) which would have seen the decriminalisation of the possession of cannabis for personal use.

"Alcohol and drugs are not separate issues," said Monaghan's Carol Mary Frasier passionately. "Neither is alcohol and drug addiction a crime or illness. It is a mismanagement of life problems and needs to be treated as such."

Another delegate pointed out that young offender crime had jumped by 70% compared to last year, and argued that possession charges for cannabis was criminalising huge numbers of young people who would not otherwise find themselves before the courts.

"One young man told me he knew he would probably end up in jail," related the delegate. "But then he said that was all right as all his mates were already there. He had left school at 13 and still couldn't even read.

"All our children must be treated equally. A criminal record used to be something you tried to avoid getting. Now it means nothing. Huge number of our young people are forfeiting their future simply because they were caught smoking a bit of blow. Tax evaders aren't going to prison. Rich professionals who also indulge in cocaine don't end up with criminal records. They can afford the right lawyers."

In the end, motion 221 on the decriminalisation issue had to be counted several times. At one point, the chairperson declared the motion passed by eight votes and a recount was demanded. In the end, the motion was defeated by a margin of 82-63, but it promises to continue to be a controversial issue within the party.

The Ard Fheis was united however, in its calls for all EU legislation and policies to be human rights-proofed, and denounced the corrosive effect of emergency legislation on human rights, civil liberties and democratic life.

Sinn Féin also wants the immediate repeal of the Offences Against the State Acts 1939-1998 inclusive, the dissolution of the illegitimate 'Special' Criminal Court, reform of the inquest system, the automatic investigation of police misconduct by the Police Ombudsman and the Director of Public Prosecutions to be accountable for his or her decisions.