Hezbollah Agrees To Legalize Medical Cannabis For The Economy In Lebanon

Illustration of cannabis cultivation (Terre on Cannabis / Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Awareness of the benefits of marijuana is getting wider. The Middle Eastern country of Lebanon is now following a number of other countries that have already legalized the use of the five finger plant. The Lebanese government is aware that the power of cannabis must be transferred from the black market to the hands of the state.

Throughout illegalization, Lebanon has recorded a high rate of open use of cannabis in the fertile Bekka Valley. Parliament realizing the financial crisis in the country finally glanced at the benefits of using marijuana for the economy.

The government finally agreed to approve medical marijuana licenses. The decision was knocked on Tuesday, April 21. Launching Reuters, a senior lawmaker in Lebanon, Alain Aoun said: (Legalization) is really driven by economic motives, nothing else. Even though we understand the moral and social values that we uphold, today, to help the economy, we use marijuana.

He emphasized that the steps to legalize medical marijuana will bring more income to the government. Equally, the government can develop the agricultural sector. Therefore, legal marijuana cultivation is worth a try. "We don't want to speculate on numbers ... But let's say it's worth a try."

Hezbollah

This move faced stiff opposition from Hezbollah, the strong Shia Islamic group in Lebanon. However, after a long process of discussion, in the end Hizbullah came to terms with one voice in legalizing medical marijuana.

The idea of legalizing medical marijuana originally came from the consulting firm McKinsey which was financed by Lebanon in 2018. According to McKinsey, it is a boon for the country to produce high-quality medical products for export.

The illegal distribution of marijuana in Lebanon is indeed no small amount. It is a great potential which is then realized, if the state is able to divert control from the black market. Last month, the Lebanese police confiscated about 25 tonnes of marijuana to be smuggled into Africa.

For this reason, not wanting to continue to lose money, Lebanon began to control the power over the use of marijuana. Like other countries in the world that are starting to legalize marijuana for medical needs.