Currently in Jamaica the use of Marijuana is illegal yet Cigarettes are legal.

I really don’t understand it, I’d love to know the government’s rational behind this. 

A cigarette (from the French word cigarette, meaning “small cigar”) is a small cylinder of finely cut tobacco leaves rolled in thin paper for smoking. ¹
“Tobacco is an addictive substance because it contains the chemical nicotine. Like heroin or cocaine, nicotine changes the way your brain works and causes you to crave more and more nicotine. This addiction to nicotine is what makes it so difficult to quit smoking.” –Be Tobacco Free
Cigarette smoking causes more than 480,000 deaths each year in the United States. This is about one in five deaths.²

Yet cigarettes are legal.

Marijuana is used as medication, for religious purposes for Rastas and as recreational use it does not harm the user.

Yet it is illegal.

It is used as a treatment for the for the following illnesses: Alzheimer’s, Arthritis, Cancer, Glaucoma, and more.³

Why is it really illegal?

There has been word on the street to decriminalize Marijuana in Jamaica but there are still people against the move, see an article on the topic here.

I asked some random Jamaican citizens their thoughts on the decriminalization of Marijuana and these are the responses:

“I like weed I hate cigars. Weed is from the earth, cigars are manufactured. There are so many benefits to herb and so many disadvantages to cigars…
 So many people in jail for herb possession, the government wasting tax payer money when there are so many more serious crimes to be tried. When you pree it… I understand why murder is a crime because you cya give life suh why you gonna take it… but why is herb seriously illegal?
 Suh yeah I seh legalize it… maybe put an age restriction like with alcohol.”

“Legalize it!”

“Well, me would like seh we can burn herbs freely, jus hope it nuh lose it’s value and people nuh over do the use of it.”

“I think people should be able to smoke weed without being prosecuted. However at their own discretion…Without forcing it onto people or exposing to unwilling persons, like smoking next to someone who doesn’t like it.”

“A long time dem must free up the herbs because you can’t ban what God create on his earth…It’s just a regular herb like the others, so what if we find a next herb to smoke. Are they gonna ban that as well?”

(See some words you don’t understand? check the Yaady Dictionary.)

I say that Marijuana should be legalized. If the use of cigarettes, which is hazardous, is left to our own discretion, let us decide if we want to use marijuana as well.

xShida