Trinidad and Tobago Vote to Decriminalize Cannabis
[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]O[/dropcap]n Dec. 11, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago’s House of Representatives officially decriminalized cannabis.
According to Cannabis Wire, officials from this Caribbean government approved the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2019, a bill which would effectively decriminalize cannabis. During the debate leading up to the vote, Faris Al Wari, the country’s Attorney General, said he wants to push the bill through the Senate before the end of 2019.
Another piece of legislation called the Cannabis Control Bill 2019 was also discussed, and would establish licenses for production and sales if passed. This bill was forwarded to a Joint Selection Committee of Parliament which will report to the Parliament in February 2020.
These are some of the first significant steps in Trinidad and Tobago towards a legal, regulated cannabis infrastructure. Trinidad and Tobago are included in CARICOM, a Caribbean organization that unifies 15 other island countries and helps control the local economy. So far, cannabis legislation within certain parts of the Caribbean community is still fairly new.
The Cannabis Control Bill would also establish a Trinidad and Tobago Cannabis Authority and would create “several types of licences for medicinal, therapeutic, or scientific purposes, such as Cultivator Licences, Laboratory Licences, Processor Licences, Retail Distributor Licences, Import Licences and Transport Licences. The Authority would also be empowered to issue Cultivator, Dispensary, Import, Export and Transport Licences for religious purposes.”
Minister of Health, Terrence Deyalsingh, who is also trained as a pharmacist, claimed during the discussion that it is important that additional steps be taken to regulate the use of cannabis for medical and pharmaceutical purposes. He stated that the Cannabis Control Act would only work if medical professionals were properly trained and ready.
Many were excited when Trinidad and Tobago first introduced cannabis bills, especially because there are still some beloved destinations that don’t even allow CBD.
