Rastas demand clarity on ganja law
... after accused freed in court, given back 70 pounds of weed
Published:Friday | June 20, 2025 | 12:12 AMAdrian Frater/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Prominent ganja advocate Ras Iyah V is calling on the Government to take urgent steps to ensure that police officers and judges fully respect and enforce the legal rights of Rastafarians to use ganja for sacramental purposes.
His comments come in the wake of a recent ruling in the Westmoreland Parish Court, where Ras Jermaine Jackson, a licensed sacramental ganja grower, was acquitted of charges relating to possession and dealing. The court also ordered the return of the 70 pounds of ganja that had been seized from him during a police raid on May 27 at his home in Negril.
Despite the victory, Ras Iyah V is deeply concerned about the ongoing harassment of Rastafarians by law enforcement.
“We have been having dialogue upon dialogue with the commissioner of police, with National Security Minister Horace Chang, with Justice Minister Delroy Chuck, with Culture Minister Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, and all that has been happening is talk,” said a frustrated Ras Iyah V, who once sat on the board of the Cannabis Licensing Authority (CLA).
“To be honest, some spaces have been recognised by the minister of justice as sacramental spaces, and individuals have been given documents giving them the right to carry herbs (ganja) legally, but Rasta is still facing illegal pressure from the police, so we want clarity on the matter,” he said.
Attorney-at-law Dr Marcus Goffe, who represented Jackson, successfully demonstrated that his client had the legal right to cultivate ganja through his affiliation with the Rastafarian organisation Herbs for the Pure. While Jackson’s case was dismissed, Ras Iyah V remains concerned about other Rastas who lack documentation but use ganja purely for religious purposes.
SACRAMENTAL RIGHTS
“I am concerned about those genuine Rastas who don’t have documentation. What about their sacramental rights … ? The Government needs to declare to the police that they should leave Rastafari alone … . That is in the amendment to the law from 2015 … . Section 10 of the amendment, which speaks to having just five plants, don’t apply for Rastafarians based on our sacramental rights,” he said.
He also criticised the judiciary, citing inconsistent rulings in similar cases.
“You have two recent cases – one in Trelawny and one in St James. Same charge: possession of and dealing in ganja. In one case, the judge threw it out, and in the other, a fine was imposed … . That is inconsistency. There is no clear standard, and that needs to be fixed because Rastafarian rights continue to be violated. Based on the law, Rastas should not even be brought before the court for ganja,” he argued.
Ras Iyah V has since written to Chief Justice Bryan Sykes, urging greater awareness of the law among judges and calling for structured dialogue with the Rastafarian community.
Turning to the police, Ras Iyah V said copies of the 2015 amendment should be visibly posted in all police stations.
“Same as how you have wanted men picture put up in all police stations, they need to put up the amendments as it relates to ganja so the police can acquaint themselves with it,” he said. “I had reason to take a copy of the amendment to the police station at Barnett Street in Montego Bay, and the officers there told me it was the first they were seeing it.”
He concluded: “We want to have the law clearly understood by all. We don’t want anything to be left up to the discretion of judges and the police … . The law is clear, so it must be enforced to give Rastas protecting against injustice.”