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The cannabis sector, and marijuana users, can finally grow and get high in peace after President Ramaphosa has signed the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (CFPPA) into law.

This means adults who use, consume or possess cannabis for their personal consumption are no longer at risk of prosecution.

The act specifically deals with private use and allows those with previous convictions unrelated to drug dealing — in South Africa and the former homelands pre-1993 — to have their criminal records expunged automatically. Those convicted on the basis of the presumption of dealing in cannabis can also apply to have their criminal records expunged.

Last week, in announcing the enactment of the law, the Presidency noted that cannabis has been removed from the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act.

“This will further enable amendment of the Schedules to the Medicines and Related Substances Act and provide for targeted regulatory reform of the Plant Breeders Rights Act and the Plant Improvement Act, as well as other pieces of legislation that require amendment to allow for the industrialisation of the cannabis sector.”

Cannabis is now defined as ‘the flowering or fruiting tops of the plant, not the stems, seeds, branches or other biomaterial’, which are designated as ‘hemp’.

For their own usage, adults may possess cannabis in a public place, although they may not use it publicly. Nor may they use it near children or where the smoke is likely to cause a disturbance or nuisance to others.

Adults may also obtain cannabis from other adults, for private purposes – without any form of consideration (compensation, gift, favour, reward or benefit).

The definition of “private place” has evolved since the earlier draftings of the Bill. It now includes any building, house, room, shed, hut, tent, mobile home, caravan, boat or land, or any portion thereof, which the public doesn’t have access to as a right.

It goes even further by incorporating any part or portion of communal land, as defined under the Communal Land Rights Act, where cannabis cultivation is a custom or is allowed under the rules applicable to that land.

The justice minister will now be required to draft regulations guiding maximum amounts of cannabis; the conditions, restrictions, prohibitions and other requirements regarding the transportation of cannabis; the form a person’s written application for the expungement of a criminal record must be made; the certificate of expungement to be issued by the Director-General; and the manner in which the DG must submit certificates of expungement that have been issued, to the head of the Criminal Record Centre of the South African Police Service.

That’s quite a bit of drafting, the Justice Minister may need to have a spliff to get it done.

With cannabis now removed entirely from the Drugs Act, it opens the door to commercial investment in compliant businesses, particularly within the industrial cannabis space such as green energy, biofuels, sustainable, carbon-neutral building materials, paper, textiles, cosmetics, food and other commercial industrial uses.

Smoke ’em if you got ’em.

[source:dailymaverick]