Cannabis and Cyprus

In February 2019, Cyprus appears to have legalized the cultivation and production of cannabis for medical research and medical use. It is unknown to me what the impact of this change in laws has been and how this has benefited the people of Cyprus.

Cannabis for recreational purposes reduces the need for cannabis for medical purposes as it serves as preventive medicine for the population thus reducing the occurrence of illness that warrant the use of cannabis for medical purposes. Therefore to have a truly positive impact on public health it is more important to legalize cannabis for recreational use, especially its home growing, than to legalize for medical use. Many US states have done the experimentation of cannabis for medical use and have come to the conclusion that it is safe to legalize for recreational use. Therefore there is no need for other places to delay access to the wider population for fears that recreational use legalization will cause widespread addiction, crime and a general degeneration of society.

 

On the other hand, prohibition of cannabis forces society, which needs a recreational drug to look to more dangerous drugs that become accessible through the black market. Synthetic drugs like heroin, methamphetamine and other amphetamine like substances (ATS), synthetic cannabinoids and novel psychotropic substances make inroads into society with the unscrupulous illegal drug traffickers pushing these dangerous and expensive drugs to make greater profits than what they would get selling cannabis. This is in addition to an increased abuse of easily available pharmaceutical drugs. This is clearly evident from the fact that during this time of cannabis prohibition over the last few decades, Iran and Afghanistan have emerged as hubs for  methamphetamine and heroin. Countries in the Middle East such as Syria have emerged as key sources of amphetamine like substances (ATS) such as Captagon. Countries like Morocco and Afghanistan cannabis have emerged as key sources of cannabis in its illegal state. In addition to this, the increasingly widespread abuse of pharmaceutical drugs has emerged as a major threat to the Middle East. The opioid drug tramadol is a classic example of this.

 

Cyprus is one of the Middle Eastern countries along with Israel, Morocco and Lebanon that has shown positive signs of legalizing cannabis. Boasting of a climate that cannabis can thrive in, Cyprus cannabis could become as famous as Lebanese hashish.

Cyprus has in recent times had collapses to its economy from crippling debts and financial meltdowns. Cannabis offers a way to sustainable economic recovery for the country. There are surely local varieties of cannabis that have grown in the native conditions of Cyprus over thousands of years. How far they have been preserved needs to be ascertained. Given the rapidly changing climate due to global warming, cannabis is an ideal crop for areas facing water stress. Not only can it sustain itself in tough conditions, the crop has multiple industrial, medicinal and recreational uses as is being evidenced in the US as cannabis legalization sparks a multi-billion dollar industry.

Cannabis in Cyprus can create jobs in the economy. It can become a signature produce for export to various parts of the world especially Europe which is in close proximity and has a huge demand in countries like Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Denmark, etc for quality sun grown cannabis which doesn't grow much there. Taxes from cannabis can be used to support farming, education and healthcare. Research into cannabis can be carried out at the levels of government, industry and universities. The cannabis industry can provide career opportunities as well as industrial applications of the plant to areas as diverse as construction, super capacitors, fabrics, paper and car bodies. Legal cannabis introduced in the country should, as in any other country of the world, boost agriculture, foster research, spawn multiple industries, increase tax collection, curb the black market, cut down the harms from more dangerous drugs like heroin and methamphetamine, boost tourism, to name just a few benefits.

It is a good step that the current government has taken in opening up to cannabis legalization. This needs to be taken forward to recreational adult use legalization to ensure that the medicinal herb reaches all who require it especially the poor, the aged and the sick who currently are dependent on expensive pharmaceutical medicines in the absence of universal natural medicine. A country like Cyprus taking the steps towards legalization could trigger a ripple effect among other countries in the Middle East, setting the foundation for a more sustainable and natural future, very possibly a peaceful one as well.

In December 2020,  the UN voted to remove cannabis from its most restricted Schedule IV category of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. It does, however, still remain in Schedule I, which is the least restrictive. This one move by the UN itself should be sufficient to bring about the recreational legalization of cannabis in every nation and an overhaul of national drug laws. 

It must be noted that in most places where cannabis legalization for recreational purposes has happened it took the efforts of the people who mobilized themselves through grassroots level movements to bring about this change. Left to lawmakers legalization would have been impossible, as the main interests of lawmakers concern the protection of the big industries opposed to cannabis such as pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals, medical, alcohol and tobacco. For something that truly benefits the people, the people themselves have had to make the change.

Listed below are articles taken from various media related to the above subject. Words in italics are the thoughts of your truly at the time of reading the article.    


'The House plenum on Friday voted into law a bill regulating the cultivation and distribution of medical cannabis.

The law regulates the import of cannabis seeds and plants, the cultivation, production, import and export of pharmaceutical cannabis and its use for research for medical purposes.

It also reportedly provides regulations for galenical preparations for medical or pharmaceutical production, and for free provision of medical cannabis to eligible patients.'
https://cyprus-mail.com/2019/02/15/house-passes-law-on-medical-cannabis/


Related articles
Cannabis and Funding for Education
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-funding-for-education.html

Cannabis and Job Creation
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-job-creation.html

The impact of cannabis on traditional competition
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-impact-of-cannabis-on-traditional.html

Cannabis and Equity
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-equity.html

Women and Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/women-in-cannabis-industry.html

The Medical Cannabis Industry
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-medical-cannabis-industry.html

Cannabis Markets
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-markets.html

Cannabis Pricing Revenue and Taxes
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-pricing-revenue-and-taxes.html

Industrial applications of cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/industrial-applications-of-cannabis_23.html

Cannabis Beverages
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-beverages.html

Cannabis and Wellness
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-wellness.html

Cannabis and the Media
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-media.html

Cannabis and the Food Industry
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-food-industry.html


Cannabis Biology
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-biology.html

Industrial Research on Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/industrial-research-on-cannabis.html

Cannabis Research in Universities
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-research-in-universities.html

Government Research on Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/government-research-on-cannabis.html

Working in the Cannabis Industry
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/working-in-cannabis-industry.html

Cannabis and Lebanon
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/05/cannabis-and-lebanon.html

Cannabis and Israel
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/05/cannabis-and-israel.html

Cannabis Opposition
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/05/cannabis-opposition.html

Cannabis Laws
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-laws.html

Cannabis and Crime
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-crime.html

Cannabis Advocacy
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-advocacy.html

Cannabis convictions and imprisonment
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-convictions-and-imprisonment.html

Cannabis and the Black Market
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-black-market.html

Cannabis and Law Enforcement
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-law-enforcement.html

Cannabis and Pharma Companies
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-pharma-companies.html

Cannabis and Youth
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/03/cannabis-and-youth.html

Cannabis and the Environment
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/cannabis-and-environment.html

Cannabis as an Agricultural Crop
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/cannabis-as-agricultural-crop.html

Cannabis as Medicine
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/cannabis-as-medicine.html

Cannabis for Recreational Purposes
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/cannabis-for-recreational-purposes.html

Cannabis and Research
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/cannabis-and-research.html

The Business of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-business-of-cannabis.html

The Economics of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-economics-of-cannabis.html

The Legality of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-legality-of-cannabis.html

The Politics of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-politics-of-cannabis.html

The Social Usage of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-social-usage-of-cannabis.html

No medicinal value?
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/02/no-medicinal-value.html

The Recreational Cannabis Consumer
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-recreational-cannabis-consumer.html

The History of Cannabis
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/the-history-of-cannabis.html

Cannabis and Politicians
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-politicians.html

Cannabis Tourism
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2019/04/cannabis-and-tourism.html

 

Cannabis and the Medical Industry

https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-medical-industry.html

 

With no scientific basis global drug laws are invalid
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/06/with-no-scientific-basis-global-drug.html

A Look At The NDPS Act 1985 From A Cannabis Perspective
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/08/a-look-at-ndps-act-1985-from-cannabis.html  

Cannabis usage in 19th century treatment of infectious diseases
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/03/cannabis-usage-in-19th-century.html

19th Century usage of cannabis as medicine by Indian physicians
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/03/19th-century-usage-of-cannabis-as.html

Cannabis and Sickle Cell Disease
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-sickle-cell-disease.html

Cannabis and Nausea
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-nausea.html

Cannabis and Insanity
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-insanity.html

References to medicinal cannabis in ancient texts
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/03/references-to-medicinal-cannabis-in.html

Cannabis and the Digestive System
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/03/cannabis-and-digestive-system.html

Cannabis and Cocaine
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-cocaine.html

Cannabis and Benzodiazepines
https://ravingkoshy.blogspot.com/2020/11/cannabis-and-benzodiazepines.html