LEGALISING CANNABIS WHAT MIGHT IT LOOK LIKE? Words by Harriet Whittle
When going to vote last month, you might have noticed the Legalise Cannabis Party on your ballot papers. A joke? Perhaps not. In record results, the minority party picked up 2-7% of votes for the Senate in each state and territory. It also won two seats on the Legislative Council in the 2021 WA State Election. These results reflect both an increase in cannabis consumption in Australia, as well as increased support from the public for the legalisation of its recreational use. The Greens also strongly support cannabis law reform. These parties propose models of legalisation in which cannabis is regulated like alcohol and tobacco, as it has been in Canada since 2018, with a strong interest in harm minimisationespecially for young people. There is growing support for such a model from academics, policy-makers and doctors. The relationship between human beings and Cannabaceae has a rich and fascinating history. Humulus,or Hops, the plant used for centuries to flavour beer, is a member of the Cannabaceae family and therefore very closely related to the family’s more notorious and noso humble member: Cannabis sativa. Paleobotanists have dated the early cultivation of the hemp plant by humans to about 6,500 years ago, in Central Asia. It was carried by nomadic peoples across the globe, serving multiple 24
purposes that it is still used for today: fibres for rope and clothes, food (from seeds and oil) and for the psychoactive or medicinal purposes of consumption. Cannabis has ancient medicinal histories in India, Nepal, Mongolia, China, Afghanistan, Egypt and Turkey and as well as a cultural and spiritual significance across diverse regions. It appears in Ancient Rome and Greece too: with Herodotus writing of its use by the Scythian people in 4th century B.C. It was also reportedly used by Queen Victoria to combat her menstrual pain. In the mid-20th century, THC (or tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive element of the plant) was isolated by two scientists in Israel, including Raphael Mechoulam, a Holocaust survivor from Bulgaria. CBD (or cannabidiol) was identified in 1940, and is highly popular for its medicinal qualities. These are just two of 113 cannabinoids, which when consumed interact with our cannabinoid receptors. These receptors form part of a complex endocannabinoid system in our bodies, which regulates multiple major physiological processes. This doesn’t mean that our bodies were designed to consume cannabis, rather that the plant contains organic compounds that interact directlywith these systems, explaining the multitude of effects and uses of the plant for medicines. Cannabis is not a homogeneous species; it is grown in strains. Strains are bred
