By Mwangi Githathu 
32m ago
Cape Town – The first draft bill in South Africa to legalise certain production and use of cannabis, which was approved by the Cabinet and is currently open for public submissions, has been described as encouraging prohibition.
Attorney Paul-Michael Keichel, who represented “dagga couple” Julian Stobbs and Myrtle Clarke, whose arrest in 2011 led to the September 2018 Constitutional Court judgment legalising personal use and possession of cannabis, said: “This bill is drafted by the Department of Justice, the same department that led the defence of the constitutional challenges and fought tooth and nail to hold on to prohibition.”
“I may not know the individuals behind the bill, but certainly we know they fought dirty in court and ultimately the judgment described their attempts to hold on to prohibition as singularly unimpressive.”
The discussion, hosted by the University of Pretoria,…