The highest court in the land has declared cannabis legal to consume and sell.
The Constitutional Court has ruled that the personal use and cultivation of dagga is no longer a criminal offence.
The Apex Court upheld a ruling by the Western Cape High Court that the possession and consumption of dagga was permissible.
“The right to privacy is not confined to a home or private dwelling. It will not be a criminal offence for an adult person to use or be in possession of cannabis in private space,” Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo said on Tuesday, 18 September 2018.
Parliament now has two years to change sections of both the Drug Trafficking Act and the Medicine Controls Act.
The matter had been brought to the Western Cape High Court by dagga activist and lawyer Gareth Prince, alongside Jeremy Acton, leader of South Africa’s ‘Dagga Party’ Iqela Lentsango.
The judgement reads: “This Court must invoke its powers under s 172 (1) (b) of the Constitution to order a suspension of the declaration of invalidity for a realistic period to ensure Parliament may correct the defect. In my view, a period of 24 months from the date of this judgment would be appropriate.
“The order also makes clear that the relevant provisions are only unconstitutional to the extent that they trench upon the private use and consumption of a quantity of cannabis for personal purposes, which the legislative considers does not constitute undue harm.”
Zondo did, however, emphasise that the use, cultivation and selling of dagga by minors, was still illegal.
Thabo Baloyi
t.baloyi@politicalanalysis.co.za
