The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) says it supports the legalization of cannabis for private, commercial and medical use in South Africa.
Presenting its submission on the Cannabis for Private Use Bill to parliament on Tuesday, May 24, the country’s largest trade federation is one of many parties due to submit submissions on the updated bill.
The bill, originally released for public comment in September 2020, outlines possession rules for home cannabis users and people who want to grow the plant.
Although the bill remains primarily focused on the private use of cannabis, Parliament has expanded the subject of the bill to:
- Plan commercial activities concerning recreational cannabis;
- Provide for the cultivation, possession and supply of cannabis and cannabis plants by organizations for religious and cultural purposes on behalf of their members; and
- Respect an adult’s right to privacy when using cannabis for palliative or medicinal purposes.
After the National Assembly approved these additions on March 31, the bill is now being considered in a second round of public participation meetings.
Although Cosatu said it generally supported the bill’s goals, it noted that there was still work to be done on the bill because it was “unrealistic and cumbersome” in some respects.
He added that some elements of the bill are still too restrictive and do not go far enough in decriminalizing cannabis use in the country – specifically highlighting the use of cannabis for religious purposes and the additional regulations imposed on surveillance. people who use cannabis.
Decriminalization
The original bill outlines possession rules for home cannabis users and people who want to grow the plant. It also introduces new offenses and provisions for people who have already received a criminal record for possession of cannabis.
The bill stipulates that an adult may, for personal purposes:
- Possess the prescribed amount of cannabis plant growing material;
- Grow the prescribed amount of cannabis plants in a private location;
- Privately possess the prescribed amount of cannabis in a public place;
- Possess the prescribed amount of cannabis in a private place;
- Privately possess the prescribed amount of cannabis plants in a public place.
The bill defines a “private place” as any place, including a building, house, room, shed, cabin, tent, mobile home, trailer, boat or land or any part of this one, to which the public does not have full access.
The bill also states that an adult person may, without exchange of remuneration supply to another adult or obtain from another adult, for their personal use, the prescribed quantity of:
- Cannabis plant cultivation equipment;
- cannabis plants;
- Cannabis.
Read: Tougher ‘transformation’ rules for South Africa get green light
Comments are closed.