Cannabis in Lebanon

Cannabis in Lebanon is illegal for personal use, however its cultivation for medical use is now legal. Large amounts of cannabis are grown within the country, specially in the Bekka Valley, and consumed for personal use in private.[1]

Cannabis crops in the valley of Bekaa

Production

The production of hashish was prohibited in Lebanon in 1926, during the era of the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon.[2][3] However, the cannabis industry blossomed during the chaos of the 15-year Lebanese civil war (1975–1990).[4]

The cultivation of cannabis itself was forbidden in 1992, under pressure from the United States.[5]

By 2001 poverty had pressed many farmers to return to growing cannabis. By 2002, production had reached 37,000 acres: double what it was the year prior.[6] Later on, cannabis farms flourished during the Syrian civil war starting from 2011, as the government was more concerned about security issues.[7][8]

In 2018, the Parliament speaker Nabih Berry stated, "The Lebanese Parliament is preparing to study and adopt the legislation necessary to legislate the cultivation of cannabis and its manufacture for medical uses in the manner of many European countries and some US states",[9] as he told US Ambassador to Lebanon Elizabeth Richard according to Lebanon's official news agency.[10] This announcement came after the release of a five-year study by McKinsey & Company to boost economic development. With the world's third highest debt, proponents for legalization argued that fostering the marijuana industry could help to reform the country's economy.[11] Some growers that oppose the reform, such as Abu Jafaar of the Bekka Valley (Lebanon's most well known growing area), feared that government intervention will take revenue away from them and into the hands of politicians.[12]

Mature cannabis plants in the Bekaa valley

On 21 April 2020, the Parliament passed a law legalizing cannabis cultivation for medical use.[13] Lebanon became the first Arab country to do so.[14] Cultivation of non-psychoactive hemp was also made legal.[15]

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References
  1. Lebanon preparing to legalize growing cannabis, says House speaker / CNN, 18 July 2018, retrieved 2019-03-22
  2. Robert Connell Clarke (1998). Hashish!. Red Eye Press. ISBN 978-0-929349-05-3.
  3. France. Ministère des affaires étrangères (1925). ... Rapport sur la situation de la Syrie et du Liban ... Imprimerie nationale. p. 73. Par arrêté du Haut-Commissaire en date du 8 octobre 1925, la culture du haschich, qui était particulièrement intense dans la Békaa (Grand Liban), a été interdite à compter du ier janvier 1926.
  4. "Illicit cannabis farming thrives in Lebanon". BBC. 26 October 2016.
  5. Réalités. Spectacle du monde. May 1996. p. 354. Les Américains ne lâchant pas prise, le gouvernement libanais interdisait officiellement la culture du pavot et du cannabis en 1992.
  6. Martin Booth (16 June 2015). Cannabis: A History. St. Martin's Press. pp. 364–. ISBN 978-1-250-08219-0.
  7. "Lebanon's cannabis farms flourish while army looks away". Reuters. 20 May 2014.
  8. "Budding business: how cannabis could transform Lebanon". The Guardian. 18 July 2018.
  9. Lebanon to consider legalising medicinal cannabis / Aljazeera, 11 August 2018, retrieved 2019-03-22
  10. Qiblawi, Tamara. "Lebanon preparing to legalize growing cannabis, says House speaker". CNN.
  11. Hall, Richard (July 18, 2018). "Budding business: how cannabis could transform Lebanon" – via www.theguardian.com.
  12. Harvey, Adam (October 20, 2018). "Lebanese cannabis farmers fight against legalisation of the drug". ABC News.
  13. "Lebanon legalizes cannabis farming for medicinal use". April 21, 2020 – via www.reuters.com.
  14. "Lebanon becomes first country in the Arab world to legalise cannabis for medical use". April 21, 2020 – via www.thenational.ae.
  15. Jason Lemon (April 21, 2020). "LEBANON PASSES LEGISLATION LEGALIZING MEDICAL MARIJUANA CULTIVATION AS ECONOMY STRUGGLES AMID CORONAVIRUS FALLOUT". Newsweek.
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