SAVANNA-LA-MAR, Westmoreland — While a key stakeholder in the cannabis industry continues to call for an amnesty to regularise farmers operating outside the regulated sector, Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce Senator Aubyn Hill has sounded a cautionary note. He pointed to the complex international legal landscape in explaining his stance on the matter.

“I have to remind you all that ganja is a Schedule 1 drug. It’s the same thing as fentanyl, the same thing as cocaine. It’s in the same category as heroin. It is seen as a bad drug,” the minister stressed.

He was addressing a Westmoreland Chamber of Commerce and Industry meeting at the Hotel Commingle in Savanna-la-Mar on Wednesday. He gave a breakdown on the implications for international trade and travel.

“Even today, because it’s a Schedule 1 drug, if you fly in the airspace of the United States, you are illegal. You can be taken out. You see what happened to those guys out there in the sea? That can happen to a ganja plane flying in the airspace of the United States, legally,” warned the minister.

He further emphasised that strict compliance with international drug laws is essential to maintaining Jamaica’s standing in global trade.

Hill was responding to questions posed by Cannabis Licensing Authority (CLA) board member Verald Vassell, better known as Ras Iyah V. The Westmoreland ganja advocate — who served on the CLA board from 2016 to 2021 and returned in 2024 — has consistently pointed to the need for an amnesty to transition illicit farmers into the legal medical cannabis industry.

During Wednesday night’s meeting Ras Iyah V highlighted what he said was continued harassment farmers face at the hands of the police.

“As the minister in charge of the CLA, what are the plans? Because I know the regulation has been amended recently. But what are the plans, the road map, and if you can explain how this is going to work? Because, as for me, I see a certain approach that creates a glut in the market, and then there is no market… Can you explain what is the road map going forward to bring our ganja farmers from being considered illegal into the legal industry? Because most of these farmers have been out-financed,” stated Ras Iyah V.

RAS IYAH V…has consistently pointed to the need for an amnesty to transition illicit farmers into the legal medical cannabis industry (Anthony Lewis)

Acknowledging the concerns raised by the advocate, Hill outlined recent legislative changes aimed at easing operational restrictions for small-scale cultivators.

“Under my leadership with the permanent secretary and the people in the ministry, we changed the law. Because the very small farmer was constantly complaining of being put upon, [saying] they can’t get their things done. And we said, ‘Alright, you must have a fence of… five feet,” relayed Hill.

The minister pointed out that these regulatory adjustments provide greater flexibility for traditional farmers and workers trying to satisfy compliance requirements.

Addressing the issue of a market glut, Hill attributed the surplus to the initial surge of interest following the decriminalisation of cannabis.

“Understand that the glut that is developing is because when ganja was decriminalised, the euphoria that came around it encouraged people to go into it. Everybody was in it. There was one firm in Canada that seemed to have made a lot of money and then the thing collapsed. But that euphoria took a lot of people in,” the minister said.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Act, which came into effect on April 15, 2015, provisions were implemented for the possession and smoking of ganja; the use of ganja by those of the Rastafarian faith; and the use of ganja for medical, therapeutic, and scientific purposes.

“Our law allows people who use ganja for their religious practices to be exempt. But they have to go through a process,” explained Hill.

Regarding ongoing police enforcement, he noted that while adults are permitted to possess up to two ounces of ganja without criminal charges, the police must act whenever boundaries are breached.