Republic of Ireland urged to waive drug ban for seriously ill expatriate

Bottle_of_Smoke

The Irish government has been urged to show compassion by lifting a drugs ban on a seriously ill expatriate Irishman returning home to visit his family.

The man, identified only as Mr M in court documents, lives in the Netherlands, where his palliative care includes medicines containing cannabis — an illegal drug in the Republic. He was warned that if he visited Ireland he would be arrested on entry for possession of illegal drugs.

Mr M complained to the European Commission, which found the Republic had not breached any EU rules.

But, referring directly to Mr M, the Ombudsman P Nikiforos Diamandouros said: “Notwithstanding these findings, I have been deeply touched by your case.

“Although the law and institutions of the European Union are unable to provide a solution, I am not aware of anything that would prevent the Irish authorities from exercising discretion, on humanitarian grounds, to allow you to visit your family in Ireland.”

Read more: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/republic-of-ireland/republic-of-ireland-urged-to-waive-drug-ban-for-seriously-ill-expatriate-15137215.html#ixzz1Idnyr9EB

Nice touch by the ombudsman there with that comment. MS is such an awful condition I can understand why the man isn't willing to risk having his medication confiscated.

Although I am all for fully legalising cannabis I think medication containing cannabinoids could be catered for by a separate bill and should take precedence to legislation for recreational use. Perhaps now is a good time to legislate for medication with cannabis extracts being prescribed.

Its mentioned in another article this guy is preparing for euthanasia so looks like he hasn't long to live.

So even if legislation for medical cannabis is ruled out is it possible an exception could be made here? Surely if we release terminally ill convicted criminals on compassionate grounds this guy should be allowed take his medicine.

I'd say most Labour TDs would be willing to make an exception here, though Alan Shatter (FG) is Justice and equality minister at present.

Do you think an exception should be made for this guy, or would that be bending the law? Should we first enact medical cannabis legislation?

Would prefer if this thread stuck to this case and potential medical use of cannabis. To be honest I think legislation for recreational use is a completely different topic.

Sleepy

I don't see any valid argument against medicinal use of caniboids tbh.

Just think of the amount of alcohol used in sterilisation for example. I've never heard of anyone trying to release the alcohol from the swabs for recreational use.

Dave!

Sleepy wrote: »

I don't see any valid argument against medicinal use of caniboids tbh.

Just think of the amount of alcohol used in sterilisation for example. I've never heard of anyone trying to release the alcohol from the swabs for recreational use.

Now there's an idea...

haydar

I would be for legalising it altogether but especially for medicinal uses. I am reading a book at the moment on it and i didnt realise half of the medical benefits of cannabis!

Denerick

Its an extraordinarily petty and unjust piece of legislation.

I might as well go on the record here. I know someone with MS and I know he gave Cannibis 'a go'.

I have no right to prevent him from alleviating intolerable pain - and neither does anybody else.

Words can't express how stupid this all is.

calex71

While I would be in favor of it for this guy and 1000's of others who are in pain to be be able to use cannabis to help their pain etc. WHat I'd have issue with is if they said ok we'll just not prosecute these guys etc instead of making it available through a legitimate source for them. This would make drug dealers a necessity for those people, and I don't need to spell out the problems with that.

Being Ireland I could see that happening, given the half arsed legislation that's around for many other things

amacachi

Apart from the overall issue of legalising drugs it should be legal for anyone to carry drugs they have a prescription for whereever they go. ESPECIALLY in the free movement and free trade EU area...

Seckz Panther

If anyone watched the Brendon O Connor interview with Ming the other night, it was unreal to see everyone cheering for Flanagan when he said that if someone wants to smoke cannabis, it shouldn't be illegal for them to do so. The crowd went mental for it, the average age being around 35-45 I suppose. If that's the attitude of most Irish people to it, then within 20 eyars there's going to be some form of legalisation, definitely de-criminalisation

caseyann

No need to wave the ban just maneuver it so as people in his situation may be allowed to have it for his pain.

caseyann

amacachi wrote: »

Apart from the overall issue of legalising drugs it should be legal for anyone to carry drugs they have a prescription for whereever they go. ESPECIALLY in the free movement and free trade EU area...

I see holes in this,they can doctor these prescriptions.But if when they come here they provide a doctor here the proof of need.Then said doctor can fill up said prescription by authentication from their original doctor while that person is here.

Oh_Noes

Wednesday at 1pm outside the Department of Health

Hopefully there'll be a good turnout and some attention brought to the issue so we can have a proper discussion about Cannabis in this country for the first time.

raah!

Perhaps it's not a good idea to have slogans like "get up stand up" from a Bob Marley song (or from some other reggae thing perhaps) if your aim is medicinal use. Since this kind of thing is so strongly linked to recreational use, and a good campaign should aim to clearly mark out the difference.

I don't understand why it's so useful for medicinal purposes myself. And I've always wondered whether or not this medicinal campaign was all just a back door recreational use scam. Again, I'm massively ignorant when it comes to its medicinal perks, but this just goes to show that people should be careful in showing there is a difference, and to that end try to separate this from the types of protests for recreational use which are just a bunch of people smoking weed in the streets.

haydar

There is absolutely nothing wrong with recreational use either. It doesn't matter if its legal or not though because people will still smoke it but the medicinal values are massive.it doesn't really cure anything but can make illnesses' such as MS, MD, and cancer treatment more bearable. Instead we sell opium based medication which is only restricted in the last few months because they worked out it might be addictive! Well Done.

caseyann

Regular long-term use of cannabis can have some serious effects on the body. Some of these effects include decreased memory and learning abilities, altered patterns of growth and sexual development, bronchitis, emphysema and lung cancer. It can also be dangerous for people who have heart problems, as it speeds up the heart rate and causes it to work faster. For people who have a history of mental illness or emotional problems, regular cannabis use can make these symptoms worse. With consistent use of cannabis people can become psychologically dependent and experience symptoms such as cravings and anxiety if they cannot get the drug. It is also possible to become physically dependent on cannabis and to experience withdrawal symptoms such as sleeping problems, anxiety, irritability and loss of appetite.

Enough said!
http://www.hashish-center.com/hashisheffects.html
Anyone saying otherwise are addicted and delusional.
For medicinal use fair enough because monitored, for recreational hell no.

whiteonion

caseyann wrote: »

Regular long-term use of cannabis can have some serious effects on the body. Some of these effects include decreased memory and learning abilities, altered patterns of growth and sexual development, bronchitis, emphysema and lung cancer. It can also be dangerous for people who have heart problems, as it speeds up the heart rate and causes it to work faster. For people who have a history of mental illness or emotional problems, regular cannabis use can make these symptoms worse. With consistent use of cannabis people can become psychologically dependent and experience symptoms such as cravings and anxiety if they cannot get the drug. It is also possible to become physically dependent on cannabis and to experience withdrawal symptoms such as sleeping problems, anxiety, irritability and loss of appetite.

Enough said!
http://www.hashish-center.com/hashisheffects.html
Anyone saying otherwise are addicted and delusional.
For medicinal use fair enough because monitored, for recreational hell no.

Should we ban alcohol then?

caseyann

whiteonion wrote: »

Should we ban alcohol then?

I would and smoking aswell,so no point in saying that to me.

Ihaveanopinion

whiteonion wrote: »

Should we ban alcohol then?

Strictly speaking yes - its one of the most harmful drugs around. However centuries of use, part of our culture, part of our tax income, etc etc would make this impossible.

Don't get me wrong - love drinking a million pints - but if alcohol were legal and someone tried to convince reasonable people to legalise it, you'd have a very tough time