I am now registered to be able to purchase and possess up to two ounces of marijuana legally in Jamaica.
The registration process took all of five minutes and ended up costing me US$10.
The taxi ride to and from the dispensary where I was eventually registered and the hotel I was staying at took just over an hour at the cost of US$70.
The T&T Guardian visited Jamaica recently to be a part of the Jamaican Product Exchange (JAPEX) held at the Montego Bay Convention Centre.
Among the hundreds of delegates on the JAPEX trade floor was the Canna Culture Travel booth which was being run by Tobi King.
“Canna Culture Travel is a new type of company. We are a local DMC (destination management company) and we specialise in legal cannabis experiences in Jamaica,” King said.
“People are under the impression that it (cannabis) is legal here and it is not, it is only legal for medical use at this point, getting the card is very simple.”
On April 15, 2015, amendments were made to the Dangerous Drugs Act in Jamaica. According to the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Act 2015, possession of two ounces or less of marijuana is no longer an offence for which one can be arrested, charged and have to go to court and it will not result in a criminal record. However, the police may still issue a ticket to a person in possession of two ounces or less of marijuana and the person has 30 days to pay the fine.
Possession of more than two ounces of marijuana still remains a criminal offence and offenders can be arrested, charged, tried in court and if found guilty, sentenced to a fine or to imprisonment or both. The conviction will also be recorded on that person’s criminal record.
But Section 7 D (10) of the Dangerous Drugs Amendment Act 2015 provides an avenue for visitors to Jamaica to apply for an exemption for medical marijuana.
“Persons who do not ordinarily reside in Jamaica (for example, tourists or visiting Jamaicans who live overseas) may apply for a permit to allow them to lawfully purchase and possess up to 2 ounces of ganja at a time, for medical or therapeutic purposes,” a Fact Sheet prepared following the amendments by the Ministry of Justice in Jamaica stated.
“To obtain this permit, visitors will need to produce evidence that their use of ganja has been recommended or prescribed by a licensed medical practitioner in the country where they live. Alternatively, they can sign a voluntary declaration to confirm this. The permit is issued by Jamaica’s Ministry of Health, and a fee is payable,” the Ministry of Justice’s Fact Sheet stated.
Canna Culture has therefore utilised this to promote a legal cannabis experience in Jamaica.
The company offers a 420 Airport Transfer. 420 is a term that refers to the consumption of cannabis.
“When you arrive (at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay) you are greeted with a box that gives you everything you need for a 420 vacation and then we take you to a dispensary, it takes you 10 minutes to get your license and then you can purchase,” King said.
Included in the box are a lighter, ashtray and grinder. No marijuana is provided inside the box.
In order to legally purchase marijuana, persons have to go to one of the three dispensaries currently operating on the island. The dispensary in Montego Bay, known as the Island Strains Herb House, is located on the popular Hip Strip along Gloucester Avenue.
Island Strains, which is operated by Chris and Maria Gordon, opened its doors on August 5. The company is registered with the Cannabis Licensing Authority in Jamaica. When the T&T Guardian visited a sign was placed on the busy roadway outside the establishment letting people know what exactly is done inside.
Three customers were inside the office when the T&T Guardian entered.
In the corner of the office was a nurse dressed in uniform with a book titled “Cannabis Pharmacy” placed on the table in front of her. Before any transaction could be facilitated, the nurse has to ensure all customers can be recommended for medical marijuana. I handed her my T&T driver’s permit and told her of my issues with bronchitis and my bouts of anxiety. She nodded, deemed me medically fit and gave me a form to sign.
I took that form to the cashier who was five footsteps away, paid for the recommendation and was officially registered in the system. That registration expires in six months’ time, I was told.
On sale were various strains of marijuana, including pre-rolled ones.
As I left the office I was invited by staff at Island Strains to the 2727 Lounge which is located on the same compound.
I had heard the name 2727 Lounge at the JAPEX media breakfast the day before from Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association president Omar Robinson, as he outlined the benefits during his address.
“No visit is complete to Montego Bay without going to our Hip Strip, which is the life, the energy of the city. The Hip Strip features Margaritaville, which is for the young and the young at heart, the recently reopened Coral Cliff Gaming Lounge, and we have the 2727 marijuana lounge, and yes you can go and get your prescription and get your ganja ... I can say ganja minister?” Robinson said.
The minister Robinson was referring to was Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett, who was also on the head table.
When I entered the 2727 Lounge, several people with their JAPEX passes were already present relaxing at the seaside deck and bar.
“We recognise that people travel to fulfil their passions and our job is to build products around those passion points,” Bartlett had said during his address at the JAPEX media breakfast.
Bartlett said Jamaica has been reaping the benefits from tourism, with the sector being the only one to have grown consistently every year for the last 30 years. Last year alone the island brought in 500,000 new visitors, making it a record-breaking one for Jamaica. This year is set to surpass those figures, Bartlett said. So far for the year, Jamaica has brought in 2.9 million visitors and earned US$2.1 billion. Bartlett, however, said it was too early to determine exactly how many of those visitors could be attributed to the lure of medicinal marijuana use.
“What we are looking at, however, is the medical and that is very important, medical and neutraceutical aspect of marijuana, not the recreational and that is very important. So we will be able to have good numbers down the road as soon as the infrastructure for that is properly built up, so for now, we continue to grow on the basis of the experiential values of this wonderful destination much to the point that Omar made about how Jamaica has more attractions. In other words, there is more to do in destination Jamaica than all the English-speaking Caribbean combined and I say that without equivocation and that is a very good position to be in,” Bartlett said.
“So what a marijuana-infused experience will do is just to add value to what is already a very powerful array of experiences in Jamaica.”