I was just as surprised by this headline as you were: marijuana isn’t already legal in Jamaica?
Despite the fact that government commissions recommended legalizing pot in 2001 and 2003, marijuana is still illegal in Jamaica. Of course, a sizable minority of Jamaica’s 2.6 million people are Rastafarians, many of whom use the drug as part of their religion and have long argued that it should be legal.
Jamaica’s courts, like those in the United States, are inundated with marijuana-related cases, but the Caribbean nation may face economic sanctions from the U.S. if they legalize the drug.
A seven-member government panel has recently been exploring the idea of drug law reform, and Jamaica’s Deputy Prime Minister says that their report and recommendations will be complete in the near future.
We’ll keep you posted, Trustafarians.
More here.