MHM Magazine

20 | MENTALHEALTHMATTERS | Issue 6 | 2021 MHM of misconceptions about this decision. People don't realise the difference between legalising a drug and decriminalising it. Decriminalisation refers to the removal of legal limits or the abolition of criminal punishments. Individuals found in possession of modest amounts of cannabis for personal enjoyment won’t be prosecuted, or incur a criminal record or prison sentence as a result of their actions. A society may conclude that a certain act isn’t harmful, should no longer be criminalised, or is otherwise unfit for the criminal justice system to deal with. Decriminalisation doesn’t imply drug usage is unrestricted. Instead, it means that possessing tiny amounts of cannabis doesn’t result in a criminal record or a jail sentence for the offender. Drug legalisation is fully compatible with regulatory efforts limiting access to children, prohibiting use while driving or working in safety-sensitive positions, prohibiting use in specific locations or situations, controlling manufacturing and distribution methods (including taxation and labeling), and establishing purity and potency standards. Legalisation, in general, refers to the idea that the supply and possession of currently illicit drugs should be regulated in the same way as alcohol and tobacco are in most nations. Decriminalisation is frequently used to refer to a "half-way house" between legalisation and prohibition, in which, for example, possessing narcotics for personal use wouldn’t be a criminal offense, but would instead be treated as a parking ticket (SANCA, Position Statement, 2018). Following the verdict, the National Department of Health presented the Cannabis Private Purposes Bill to Parliament on August 24, 2021. The draft bill lays out guidelines for cannabis users at home as well as those who want to grow the plant. It also adds new penalties and measures for persons who have previously been convicted of cannabis possession. The draft bill specifies 'prescribed quantities' for personal use as well as cultivation. The following are the restrictions for private use: Unlimited seeds and seedlings; four flowering plants if you live alone, or eight if you live with two or more adults; 600 grams of dried cannabis if you live alone, or 1.2 kilograms if you live with two or more adults; 1.2 kilograms dried cannabis or cannabis equivalent per dwelling occupied by two or more adults. The bill also allows for the 'private' possession of cannabis in a public location, but only up to 100 grams. Has this verdict resulted in a decrease in cannabis consumption, as predicted by proponents of decriminalisation? The answer is emphatically no. Since the verdict, SANCA (South African National on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence) has seen a 14 percent increase in cannabis admissions from 2018 to 2019. SANCA conducted an internal dagga study that disproved many of the assumptions about cannabis use being harmless. The study, which included 711 individuals over two years (2019/2020), found that 35 percent of dagga users admitted for treatment were between the ages of 4 and 17. Dagga was described as a gateway drug by 65 percent of the service users. Cannabis is still the most often used substance by 28% of all service users admitted to all 31 SANCA treatment facilities. The combining of cannabis with other illegal drugs such as heroin or mandrax is a major worry, with 53 percent of service users in the survey mixing dagga with other illegal substances. In the previous reporting year, “white pipe’’, a mixture of cannabis and mandrax, grew by 6%, and dagga laced with heroin, also known as whoonga/ nyaope, accounted for 11% of all admissions. The study found that 71 percent of customers had health difficulties as a result of their frequent cannabis usage, 59 percent had decreased levels of functioning, and 59 percent had mild to moderate withdrawal symptoms when they tried to discontinue using cannabis. The study's findings reinforce the notion that cannabis is addictive and habit-forming. Cannabinoids produced by the flowering female plant before fertilisation are more powerful in cannabis sativa. THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol) are two well- known cannabinoids (CBD). The psychoactive effects that people are looking for are caused by THC.