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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Uruguay: Montevideo March Celebrates the Legalization of Cannabis
Ilovechile Sunday 04 May 2014 My wife Konomi and I are in Montevideo, on our way to Japan for a series of presentations and tree planting events. We were supposed to be relaxing a few days before the extremely long flight, but we found ourselves stressed to the max when we discovered that in order to connect to our flight from Sao Paulo we would have to leave the international transit lounge to get our boarding pass. This means passing through immigration, and even though only for a few minutes, we would need a visa to enter Brazil! How ridiculous is that? And with no way to get a visa at such short notice our entire plans for the trip were in jeopardy. We spent two days negotiating a way out of this that wouldn’t cost us an extra 4500 USD for new airline tickets from outside of Brazil. In the middle of the complications we got a message from a friend on Facebook saying there was to be a march through the city to celebrate the legalization and regulation of Cannabis which had passed through the Uruguayan Parliament the day before. We both agree: going to the march would be a great way to de-stress. After all such a march would surely be a tranquil event and as it was a nice day, a walk along Montevideo’s 22 km beach promenade would be very enjoyable, for it is a lovely city. And it was a story worth covering as many nations seem ready to relax their laws against the use of the Marijuana plant and adopt a system that can benefit from its wise use, growth and distribution. Almost daily are reports coming in from the massive taxes raised since legalization in the US state of Colorado. The first people we met on the way to the march through Montevideo were Chileans! They were easy to spot as they carried a small Chilean flag while waving a much larger banner. Free Marijuana, the banner said and soon we discovered that for those in the march it already was free. Havana sized joints (Marijuana cigarettes) were casually rolled in full view of those in cars passing by and for the media, which was out in force to cover the story related to Uruguay being the first nation to legalize and regulate the production, consumption and distribution of the plant that goes by many names, including hemp, grass weed, MaryJane, (MariJuana) herb and ganja. chile news, noticias chile Growers, seed vendors, consumers all were on hand to sample the many ways to use the Cannabis plant. The government has decreed that no more than six plants per household will be allowed and the movement, along with the government are working to ensure that it’s use is not abused and that it’s production be organic. Pharmacies will be legal distribution points for those people unable to grow their own. Consumers and growers will be registered and strains developed to maintain at least a THC content of fifteen percent (THC is the component in cannabis that gets people ‘high’). This is considered reasonable by those in the grass growing, weed consuming community. The march through Montevideo coincided with the Global March For Marijuana which saw large crowds gather around the world and nearby Argentina, where many people marched and called for its legalization. Certainly the global community of activists for the cause has taken the Uruguayan legalization to heart and have been empowered by this. The march along the promenade was indeed very tranquil, and not a police man did I see along the way or at the festival that followed. It was a lot of fun I must admit. Our facebook friend, whom we had previously not met, comes from Chile and goes by the name Goku Juggler. Goku delighted in showing his juggling skills even while smoking a joint with one hand and juggling three pins with the other, proved that focus and concentration can still be found even while under the influence of the plant. However this does not mean that it is advisable to work, study or operate machinery while under its influence. All this along the public promenade. CNN, AP, and the local and national media actually participated in the event by encouraging everyone to grind, roll, and smoke while being interviewed for their respective programs. It was so relaxed and the media seemed to enjoy their day out. A leaflet explaining the benefits and wise use of Marijuana was handed out to everyone at the event and was a very interesting and at times rather amusing read. In the leaflet were tips on how to smoke the weed, even going to the extent of explaining the amount of THC that gets you high, how to inhale to get the maximum benefit and a few things on not what to do. Included in this list was to not smoke with strangers, to do it with friends in a relaxed and safe environment. Don’t mix with tobacco, was another warning, as this could lead to cancer and don’t mix with alcohol. I think the fact that no alcohol was sold at the event ensured a safe and pleasant event and this was most likely why the police gave it such a low profile. The walk finished with a festival at a gorgeous site, a park sitting between a beach and a very high cliff dotted with exotic flowers and trees and I was reminded of the 1970 Isle of White Pop Festival where I went to watch Jimi Hendrix play. The atmosphere here in was very similar… peaceful, smokey and aromatic. We had a whole lot of fun, and from our minds slipped our airline ticket concerns. http://www.ilovechile.cl/2014/05/05/montevideo-march-celebrates-legalization-cannabis/109393
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