A prominent local church leader has warned that
Barbados must guard against any international pressure to
legalize marijuana.
Senator David Durant, one of the latest individuals to
give his word on legalizing marijuana in the country, said that
while he felt very strongly that the substance should not be
legalized, he believed that local authorities and policymakers
should not give in to any pressure from international
communities to allow Barbadians to use it freely.
He was delivering the feature address at the opening
ceremony of Issues In Alcohol Abuse Seminar,
hosted by the National Committee For The Prevention Of
Alcoholism And Drug Dependency in collaboration with
the Barbados Council For The Disabled, this morning at the
Barbados Workers Union, Harmony Hall, St Michael.
Senator Durant argued that marijuana’s insidious,
addictive properties, deemed it a high-risk substance,
especially for school-age youth and that during that critical
transitional stage, young people were highly curious
and experimental.
“Could we afford the ensuing consequences if
recreational marijuana use became legal? At this delicate
juncture in our social development, with all the current
attendant challenges, can we truly afford the lack of motivation
in classrooms, the antisocial and sometimes aggressive
behaviour, the associative increase in criminality, impaired
memory, infertility, respiratory infections, relational and
parental challenges? Can we afford this?
“Our physical bodies are not homogeneously designed; no
two are exactly alike. Therefore the impact of marijuana use on
different individuals is incalculable,” he said.
The church leader also called for the focus of national
policies and strategies to be focussed on helping affected
individuals regain control of their lives, as he stressed that the
youth, who were particularly vulnerable, must be encouraged
to channel their energies towards wholesome activities, in
which their talents can be maximized, since self-actualization
was key to the individual trying to recover from drug abuse.
“Let us focus on rehabilitation as opposed to overuse
of punishment. We in Barbados are not immune to these
disturbing trends. Drug and alcohol abuse is a global epidemic
of such proportions that no country is exempted; no race or
class has escaped its destructive tentacles.
“Its ubiquitous presence is not only a direct threat to the
stability and unity within families, but it is also a siege against
the potential and productivity of our human capital, our
strongest national resource. Hence, it offers a serious challenge
to the overall growth and productivity of our nation.
“As a small-island developing state battling this scourge
on our society, we find ourselves up against sophisticated
international criminals assisted by a renewed hi-tech world
system. What an intimidating combination! The fight has been
long and it has been hard, but, nonetheless, we must not quit!
We must not surrender; we will hold fast to the ideal of a
drug-free Barbados,” said Senator Durant.
He stated that in Barbados, there was no empirical evidence
in respect of alcohol abuse that could be truly given because
breathalyser testing on the island was not yet introduced.
“It’s about time we introduce this testing and save some
lives on our roads. Also, irrespective of the country, alcohol
abuse still continues to be a major factor in many fatal
accidents. In South Africa, it is said that 65 per cent of deaths
by vehicular accidents may be attributed to alcohol abuse.
“In the Americas, 80,000 deaths annually are caused by
substance abuse,” he added.
(AH)