Are cannabis laws used for political repression in the Arab Spring countries?

Abstract

Four years after the dawn of the Arab Spring, its youth-driven nature is one of the most shared features in the countries affected. This letter addresses three North African countries—Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco—and the use of drug control laws to arrest young political opponents with cannabis offences in the post-Arab Spring era. Although disproportionate sentencing for drug-related offences has been a norm in these countries, using cannabis control is a new approach that directly targets the young democracy leaders of the Arab Spring, and where once opinion leaders and political activists would have been arrested under pretences such as disturbing the public order, they are now incarcerated for dealing or using cannabis. While there is no single pan-Arab approach to drug policy, Arab countries have a history of centuries-old drug use and introduced gradual prohibition early on 1. Egypt, for instance, was at the forefront of international drug control, especially during the pre-Single Convention era. It promulgated the first legislation prohibiting cannabis in 1879 2, and established the world's oldest drug control administration in 1929 3. Moreover, Egypt led the movement to add international trade in cannabis to the list of controlled activities under the 1925 Geneva Convention 2. Tunisia also has strict cannabis laws, punishing consumption and possession with 1–5-year prison terms without the possibility of using mitigating factors in sentencing 4. In Morocco, at the time of French and Spanish protectorates, a royal decree regulated production in the Rif and sales to a state company. The post-Independence government overturned this law and banned hashish altogether 5. Present-day penalties for possession range from prison terms of 2 months to 1 year 6. A striking feature these countries share is the use of cannabis control against young revolutionaries. Tunisian blogger and human rights activist Azyz Amami, considered a symbol of the Jasmine Revolution, was arrested for possession and intent to consume cannabis 7 weeks after he supported a group of youth accused of burning police posts. The rapper Kafon was also arrested for cannabis use, months before his song on social unrest and youth conditions became a hit 8. Abdullah Morsi, son of the ousted President Mohammed Morsi of Egypt, was sentenced to a year in prison for possession of two cannabis joints 9. In Morocco, Driss Boutarada and other February 20 Movement activists were arrested for cannabis consumption and trafficking offences 10. These are just a few examples that have attracted international attention, but many more exist. Nevertheless, our reading of the situation is that the Arab Spring has precipitated a debate on cannabis control in Tunisia and Morocco, because now the targeted youth have a political platform to call for reform. In Tunisia, the Al Sajin 52 Movement is calling for the reform of Narcotics Law 92–52, while in Morocco the Istiqlal Party tabled a bill to regulate the medical and industrial use of cannabis. These movements are starting a much-needed debate including civil society and youth, even if cannabis law reform is unlikely to change the norm of political repression against political opponents in these countries. The views in this letter reflect the views of the author and not those of his organizations.