Government has added ecstasy to the list of psychotropic substances which are illegal to possess or use without a specific licence.
According to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) (Amendments of Second Schedule), Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) the scientific name of ecstasy is to be item 3A on the list of psychotropic substances making it a narcotic whose possession is strictly controlled by Guyanese law. The Order is a response to a recent spate of cases related to the possession and sale of ecstasy and a series of designer drugs which are not expressly prohibited by current legislation.
In September 2018 then Deputy Head of the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU) Lesley Ramlall noted that investigations had led to the discovery of the recreational drug ecstasy in five schools in Regions Three and Four.
The CANU official stressed that ecstasy was not only being used by youths but also by “affluent” persons in society. He explained that a lot of people use the drug for sexual enhancement and that use had trickled down to the school system.
He added that “more and more” synthetic drugs are coming into the country and the significant increase in it is noticeable.
One month earlier in August 2019, Darrel John, who faced a charge of possession of ecstasy was freed by Magistrate Leron Daly who concluded that the Guyana Police Force has failed to prove that the substance he had in his possession was indeed a narcotic.
Similarly in October 2019 Principal Magistrate Faith McGusty upheld a no-case submission made by on behalf of Samuel Bruce and Kelder Halley, who were charged with possession of ecstasy for trafficking In the submission attorney Bernard DaSilva had argued that the prosecution failed to establish that ecstasy was a prohibited drug in accordance with the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act.
These drugs also referred to as “controlled substances analogues” are synthetic creations chemically designed to simulate the impact of illegal substances such as opium, cannabis, heroin and cocaine.
In addition to presenting the Order, Minister of Home Affair Robeson Benn has also laid in the Assembly a bill to specifically criminalize the possession and use of these designer drugs.
The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) (Amendment) (No. 2) seeks to control the possession of new and emerging psychotropic substances otherwise referred to as designer drugs being abused especially by young people
Clause 2 of the Bill seeks to amend section 2 of the principal act by inserting a definition for “controlled substance analogue” and amending the definition of narcotic to include controlled substances analogues.
The explanatory memorandum notes that by this insertion, all new compounds of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances especially synthetic substances with a similar chemical and structural makeup and a similar or greater stimulant, depressant or hallucinogenic effect on the central nervous system to those substances currently prohibited by the principal act will be captured.
This will ensure that persons in possession of these substances will be charged and prosecuted accordingly, it said.
