Basseterre: Ministries of St Kitts and Nevis attended the sitting of The National Assembly on February 8 in Government headquarters. Assembly had discussions on forthcoming amendments to various acts during the sitting and to bring new laws for the betterment of the country and its people.
Dr Terrance Michael Drew, Prime Minister, said that by presenting the Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) (Amendment) Bill, 2023, the judiciary should expunge the cases on the convicts who were booked for possession of a little amount of cannabis in the past.
PM Drew said, “the planning of this government is to support the cultivation and use of cannabis by adults in their private homes as their constitutional right.”
While talking in this context, PM Drew expressed that in the USA, if a young white boy is caught in possession of cocaine, they are treated gently as a patient and sent to the rehabilitation centre. Still, on the other hand, if a young guy is caught in possession of a spliff (cigarette of cannabis), that person is booked under criminal offence, which further spoils their future. No university allows them admission, and they can not apply for civil services.
Garth Wilkin, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, said that soon the parliament would bring clarity regarding the amount categorised as legal and illegal. The particular place will be marked where it can be grown and where it can not.
In the past, this amendment was not worked on seriously. After the new government of St Kitts and Nevis Labour Party has come into power and decided to present this long-standing amendment bill in the parliament, the government will also be paving the way for the emerging new medical cannabis industry. It will further help the farmers to get a license for the cultivation of cannabis and further sell cannabis for medical use.
