Yes You Can: Malta’s Reforms Secretary Says Cannabis Users Can Be Achievers After All
Julia Farrugia Portelli, the parliamentary secretary responsible for reforms, has denied insinuating that people who use cannabis cannot be achievers.
Farrugia Portelli, who has been entrusted with cannabis reforms, recently faced flak from cannabis users after she said in an interview that she disagrees with the term ‘recreational’ to describe the personal use of the plant.
“We should never talk about recreational drugs. The minute we start doing so, we’ll be losing the argument with regards the fight against drugs and the argument that our children must be achievers,” she said.
However, Farrugia Portelli told Lovin Malta that she categorically denied insinuating that people who smoke cannabis are non-achievers, arguing that the comment was taken out of context.
She said she is committed to the Labour Party’s electoral manifesto pledge to launch a national discussion on the possible legalisation of the plant. However, she said this must be preceded by an educational campaign among children and youths and that all stakeholders, including the pro-cannabis lobby group ReLeaf, have agreed to this proposal.
“It’s a fact that the use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs, including cannabis, by people younger than 21 can be detrimental to their development and can have serious consequences,” she said.
Farrugia Portelli said Malta will adopt the Icelandic model for drug use prevention, with unprecedented investment in sports, arts and culture so as to give youths a plethora of opportunities for pleasure and therefore make them less likely to resort to drugs.
A “harm reduction mechanism” will then be introduced for adult cannabis users, which will allow them to purchase the plant from safe channels instead of from the black market.
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