Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan is hopeful that the risk posed by the overcrowding of prisons across the country will serve as a catalyst for the swift amendment of the laws so that possession of small amounts of marijuana will not carry lengthy prison sentences.
“Well, there are some problems in relation to when we should bring that up. Not whether it should not come up, but when, and I hope all of these circumstances [are] going [to] push it,” Ramjattan said when asked what is causing the delay in changing the laws.
Under Guyana’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act, possession of 15 grammes and over of cannabis attracts a charge of possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking. Any person summarily convicted of that offence is liable to a sentence of at least three years but no more than five years in prison and a fine of at least $30,000 or the equivalent of three times the street value of the drug.
Ramjattan was asked to what extent
