Judge advises Dagga Party trio to stick to legal arguments

ous court cases regarding the illegality of dagga.

One of the applications was lodged by 54-year-old Maitland radio operator Pedro de Albuquerque and the other was lodged by two unemployed Robertson men, Janowan Enten Stevens and Gregory van Wyk, who have all been charged with the unlawful possession of and dealing in dagga.

The trio – all members of the Dagga Party of South Africa – want the court to order Justice Minister Michael Masutha and the director of public prosecutions to stay the prosecutions instituted against them. They pointed out in their papers that the word dagga originated from the Khoi word “dacha” which, they said, was the original name for the cannabis plant in southern Africa.

“This word was Afrikanerised by the authorities so that the phonetic ‘ga’, an expression of disgust in Afrikaans, was expressed in the use of the word,” they said.

However, it has become a “highly sensitive and stigmatised word” today and many are unaware of the health benefits associated with its use.

“Dagga seeds are not narcotic and contain up to 24 per- cent protein with all the amino acids necessary for human nutrition, and they contain omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids in a balance for human cardiac and mental health and functioning,” they said.

The men said they had been smoking dagga for years without harm and ate the plant and its seeds for health reasons, adding that “cannabis is a plant that has been used by homo sapiens for thousands of years, but only in the last 100 years has it become illegal”.

The men also submitted that policing the prohibition of dagga has cost taxpayers millions of rands, when those resources could rather be deployed where they are needed more. In addition, making dagga illegal ceded control of the substance to drug dealer, they said.

The legalisation of dagga would also pave the way for the development of the hemp industry, which would be of great economic benefit to the public, the men argued.

Judge Binns- Ward postponed the applications to September 16.