CEBU, Philippines - Dumaguete City was chosen as one of the five regional sites in the ongoing consultation being conducted about a planned congressional bill decriminalizing marijuana use, specifically for medical purposes.
A live streaming consultation on public policy forum of medical marijuana was conducted yesterday by the House committee on dangerous drugs, the main forum of which was done at the Asian Institute of Management in Makati City.
The other regional sites were the cities of Baguio, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Davao. The one in Dumaguete was held at the Salonga Law Center and the College of Law in Silliman University.
Salonga Law Center director Myrish Cadapan-Antonio said the consultative forum was to create public awareness about an ongoing proposal exempting from criminal liability the use of marijuana for medical purposes, including its use as pain relievers, and for use by persons with psychological disorders.
She said the proposed bill is not yet written while getting feedbacks nationally before lawmakers would decide to propose the same in Congress.
The Salonga Law Center wanted more consultation from experts including the general public, not just the live streaming consultation because the regional sites were allowed only 15 minutes to pose questions and querries.
Antonio suggested proponents to go around the country to get the real sentiments of the people, not just through live streaming, the signal of which was not so good anyway.
Antonio stressed this plan has to be looked into thoroughly not just from the stand point of legality and psychological aspect, but also from the perspective of societal concerns, especially that it is prone to abuse and that several communities nowadays are faced with the problem of the proliferation of illegal drugs.
In the US, 26 states are now using marijuana for medical purposes, but only one had legalized its use. In Amsterdam, use of marijuana is regulated for medical purposes with strict medical supervision, thereby, exempting the doctor and the patient from criminal liability. (FREEMAN)