Cannabis at the UN: a tool to monitor each country's position

For the first time in history, governments around the world must take a clear stance on the issue of medical cannabis. The “CND Monitor” is a website dedicated to documenting the positions of governments around the world on this issue… and it reveals quite a few surprises!

Last year, a new chapter in the history of prohibition began when the World Health Organization (WHO) reversed its position, and publicly acknowledged (and based on several years of scientific evaluation) the usefulness and therapeutic potential of all hemp-derived medications. The recognition of the legitimacy of cannabis in medicine—already an unparalleled achievement since the global prohibition of hemp in 1961—must now be accompanied by recognition of the legality of cannabis in medicine.

That is what is scheduled to take place on March 4, when governments around the world will meet to decide on amending international law to incorporate the WHO’s conclusions. These conclusions recommend changing several provisions of the conventions on cannabis, including:

• (Recommendation 5.1) by removing cannabis from “Schedule 4” of the 1961 Convention, a schedule that lists plants and products for which an absolute ban is deemed legitimate. This would have no legal consequences, but would instead represent a symbolic victory for medicine and for the consistency of international law; ;
• (Recommendations 5.2, 5.3, and 5.4) by clarifying international law regarding cannabis and THC (which currently fall under a legal exception), and by removing duplicative provisions, archaic language, and other anomalies from the treaties; ;
• (Recommendation 5.5) by clarifying that: (1) the CBD Industrial use is not covered at all by international drug law, and by proposing (2) that the medications CBD containing less than 0.2% of THC may also be exempt from drug laws; ;
• (Recommendation 5.6) by paving the way for “Table 3”: an option that would allow countries already operating a medical cannabis program (Germany, Canada, Chile, Israel, the Netherlands, etc.) to regularize their status. This would not require any country to establish a medical cannabis program, but rather would legitimize existing programs.

Since March 2019, when the vote was postponed for a year, governments are meeting in Vienna to exchange views and try to reach a common approach—if not a consensus—on how to address these conclusions, which will certainly be landmark in nature but, above all and despite everything, are steeped in common sense and based on an unprecedented review of the specialized literature.

With just a few days to go before the final verdict, scheduled for the morning of March 4, the website CND Monitor was launched to track the positions taken by various countries (represented by their governments) within the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs, the body that sets global policies regarding hemp. In addition to the 53 countries mandated to vote on WHO recommendations on behalf of the international community (including quite a few French-speaking countries: Algeria, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Canada, France, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Switzerland, and Togo), all positions are compiled and will continue to be compiled as the situation evolves.

The CND Monitor, for example, reports on the Palestinian Authority’s statement. Palestine is not among the countries participating in the vote, but is taking this opportunity to express a desire for greater legislative autonomy on the issue of cannabis, complaining that “it is currently not possible to consider the legalization of cannabis and cannabis-related substances in the State of Palestine” —which is interesting, given that neighboring Israel is at the forefront of medical cannabis programs.

Although the United States“ position is not yet known, the CND Monitor provides insight into the reasoning behind the U.S. delegation’s stance and also contains a few surprises. For example, there is the acknowledgment that ”cannabis was listed in Schedule IV of the 1961 Convention without the benefit of knowing many of its components, such as THC and CBD, and their effects on the human body” —a historic admission that undoubtedly reflects shifting positions within the U.S. administration and may also foreshadow a change in classification within the Schedules of the U.S. Controlled Substances Act. 

Some countries are surprisingly supportive of certain WHO recommendations (Japan, for example, which has historically opposed any changes regarding cannabis), while others, conversely, stand out for their apparent opposition (such as Morocco or South Africa—countries where the use of cannabis for medical purposes is, however, traditional and has been documented in the literature for centuries).

On March 4, our representatives at the United Nations will take part in a historic moment for our planet. It is quite possible that governments will once again agree to postpone the vote until 2021. Nevertheless, the tide has begun to turn, and governments are now in a position where they must take a stand, justify their positions, and be accountable to their citizens. The CND Monitor will be there to track these policy decisions—and to preserve an online record of history as it is being made.

KRZ