In making the ruling on Friday, it has allowed for the possession, cultivation and use dagga at home, for private use.
It has also ruled that Parliament must change sections of the Drug Trafficking Act, as well as the Medicines Control Act.
It has 24 months to do so.
The successful application to decriminalise dagga was driven by Dagga Party leader Jeremy Acton and Rastafarian Garreth Prince who argued on December 13 and 14 last year for the decriminalisation of the herb.
Acton, Prince, and 18 plaintiffs applied to the court for the Criminal Prohibition of Dagga Act (sections 4b and 5c), read with certain sections of Part III of Schedule 2 of the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act, to be declared unconstitutional.
Those sections make it a crime to possess a drug, unless it is for a variety of medical reasons. The Drugs and Trafficking Act defines what constitutes a drug.
They are also challenging the Medicines and Related Substances Act.
They submitted that the laws prohibiting dagga use are unfair, discriminatory, outdated, and applied disproportionately to black users.
The two have been helping people arrested for possession of dagga by obtaining a stay of prosecution, pending the outcome of their application.
Prince was arrested for possession of dagga in 1989, while a law student at the University of the Western Cape.
He paid a R60 fine and thought that was the end of it. When he graduated and applied to the Cape Bar to be admitted as an attorney, he was rejected because of the dagga conviction, and because he refused to apologise for it.
To Prince, using dagga was a religious choice as a Rastafarian. He unsuccessfully brought an application to the Constitutional Court to have it decriminalised for religious purposes.
He became a community legal adviser, but was arrested again in 2012 for growing dagga in his garden in Kraaifontein.
The Green Party in Zambia has an agenda to use Marijuana to help generate forex for Zambia
Of course in South Africa they have the capacity and ability to regulate marijuana use. However in Zambia they cannot simply hold a free and fair election. The police cannot simply Carry out their duties unless instructed by state house to arrest opposition. So how can you entrust such dunder heads to regulate marijuana use in Zambia.
Meanwhile in Zambia the whole cabinet has gone to open a beer plant…beer is costing the taxpayer heavily in lives and health care. The herb on the other hand could be a potential forex earner for all as the plant does not need expensive fertilisers…by the time we wake up the whole market will be saturated.
You are a useless Zambian. Still talking about elections – the past.
Even if you don’t like your past, history is there for clever people to learn and help them determine their future.
…unverified news..alot of fake news on internet these days….
IT IS AN APRIL FOOLS JOKE!
CAUGHT SLL YOU BLOGGERS WITH YOUR PANTS DOWN!
The Devil is at work:
Folly of the highest order, who told you this is a Devil and this white man with blonde hair blue eyes in a white robe with wings is an angel. Wake up from your docility …Marijuana is a potent herb capable of curing a lot of diseases and putting the real devil the Global Pharmaceutical firms out of business who are not in the business of curing diseases…even that Ebola created by US Army as a biological warfare ..had it not been for foreigners catching it you would still be dying today.
Wake up!!
Dagga, beer, cigarette none of these add value to human life.
Thus your misguided personal view…to others chamba.moba.fwaka.add value to commence, therefor to lives……
@6 DIFFERENTIATE ALCOHOL FROM SMOKING. ALCOHOL IS IN THE FOOD CATEGORY AND TAKEN IN CORRECTIVE AMOUNTS CAN ADD VALUE TO YOUR HEALTH. ALCOHOL IS DIGESTED IN THE MANNER OTHER FOODS AND DRINKS GET DIGESTED. INHALED SMOKE COMES OUT AS IT WAS INHALES CONFIRMING THAT IT IS NEVER DIGESTED. HOWEVER, IT JUST GOES TO CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE LUNGS. OTHER COSMETIC DISADVANTAGES ARE THAT THE MOUTHS OF SMOKERS REALLY STINK AND THEIR TEETH ARE REALLY MESSED LIKE NOBODY’S BUSINESS. THEIR FINGER AND FOOT NAILS ALSO GO YELLOWISH GREEN. THEIR CLOTHES STINK, TOO. THE HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS ARE THAT MOST SMOKERS ARE CARELESS. THEY THROW LEFTOVER SMOLDERING(sp) CIGARETTTES ANYWHERE AND DON’T ABOUT OTHER OXYGEN USERS INCLUDING KIDS AND BABIES.
Danger is how to determine the “right ” quantity. One can easily over step.
How about over using CAPITAL LETTERS and expecting people to take you seriously!!
Justification to totally muck up zambia. We will never earn forex from dagga. It is illegal to import into any country in the world. Drugs bring social problems look at mexico, columbia, peurto rico. Just open up the borders to every criminal element . We are finished already why not put another nail in the coffin.
Why have we lost our pride as a nation as a people
And beer is doing what? Beer is a healthy soft drink for under age drinkers …you are making Boers who can not even let you sit in the front of their pick up rich…if someone can invest $300m how much do you think is going out?
You are uttering total lies now Masalamuso. Legal cannabis is a multi-billion dollar industry in the USA. It is the laws that prohibit the use and trade of cannabis that have given rise to all of these societal ills in the first place. Where cannabis is legalised youth usage rates go down, crime goes down, employment goes up and more tax revenue can be generated. FACT. Oh and just by the way, the Netherlands exports cannabis to countries like Canada and Australia. Israel is also starting to export it. Jamaica is talking about doing the same as is Swaziland so please get with the program. I hope Zambia will legalise marijuana too soon if they know what is good for them.
Warning!
Warning! The Surgeon General warns
Cigarette smoking is dangerous, dangerous
Hazard to your health
Does that mean anything to you?
Then legalize marijuana, yeah
Right here in africa
I’m say it cure glaucoma
I man a de Bush Doctor
It might have been legalised for medicanal use but you will not import it. Alex dowding you are a clever man take 1 kg to australia, usa, uk and we will see you in about years. Are you aware thst the marijuana lgalised for medicanal use has a different thc content than the stuff you are on. U state youth crime rates down etc,, give us your reference not just your mouth flapping
Alex google MEDICINAL marijuana in australia, you will also find that RECREATIONAL use is illegal
Read the process required to to get permit for medicinal use. There is a market workd wide but its not the same as recreational. I apologize but i doubt if zambia has the ability or degree of supervision to control the growing of medicanal marijuana. Why are drug cartels caughtvsmuggling marijusna into australia, america, canada, uk.
It is not just about signing for the legalisation of marijuana and viola everything is sorted. It requires new regulations that can be enforced, investing in dealing with those addicted, delimiting between what is medicinal use or abuse, how much amounts to personal use, while still being able to punish large production, export and trafficking of the drug. Although the Netherlands, for example, is soft on ‘coffee shops’, it still has strict laws as to quantities that may be traded and use outside of these premises. In short, you need robust well planned and controlled processes. You still need harm reduction measures and punishing of those going against the objectives of drug regulation. If you cannot guarantee these measures, don’t attempt to ‘legalise’, as the consequences may be…
… dire and go against the grain of the ‘noble’ objectives.
Before,during and after Jesu. People everywhere smoked and continue to smoke …. Legal or illegal smoking will go on until…kaya who cares!
Okay…. Roll it.