NDP, Liberal, Conservative Politicians Petition to Stop Marc Emery's Extradition

[User]

Members of Parliament from three parties—Conservative, Liberal, and New Democrat—are poised to present petitions with thousands of signatures seeking to stop the extradition to the U.S. of Canada’s Prince of Pot, Marc Emery.

The politicians are Conservative MP Scott Reid of Ontario, Vancouver South Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh, and Vancouver East NDP MP Libby Davies, the Georgia Straight has learned.

“That’s correct,” Reid’s aide Mike Firth confirmed by phone from Ottawa. “We haven’t arranged a day yet. We’re still trying to get a day when the three of them will be available at the same time.”

Last summer, Emery entered into a plea bargain with American authorities that will likely see him thrown in a U.S. jail for at least five years for distributing marijuana seeds.

The petitions ask Conservative justice minister and attorney general Rob Nicholson not to sign the extradition papers of the Vancouver-based cannabis activist.

In a phone interview, Jodie Emery, Marc Emery’s wife, related that she and her husband met Reid at a Liberty Summer Seminar organized by the Ontario-based Institute for Liberal Studies.

“Scott Reid was there one year, and we talked to him and he understands that prohibition is a bad idea,” she said.

Emery also recalled that Reid told them his wife once used marijuana when she was undergoing a series of medical treatments. “She doesn’t need it anymore, I don’t think,” she said. “He said it helps with the nausea. So I guess he’s willing to say that he thinks this [the extradition] is wrong too. There are a lot of Conservative party members who said they don’t like this happening.”

Reid wasn’t available for comment.

By Davies’s estimate, the offices of the three MPs have received petitions signed by about 12,000 people who are opposed to Emery’s extradition.

She confirmed that her office is communicating with Dosanjh’s and Reid’s offices to pin down a day when they will bring the petitions to the floor of the House of Commons.

“I’m very happy that we should try and do it on the same day,” Davies said by phone from Ottawa. “You can’t necessarily do it one after the other because the Speaker recognizes you not necessarily in the order you want.”

In a separate interview, Dosanjh said that presenting petitions in the House is one of the duties of MPs.

Said Dosanjh on the phone from Ottawa, “Members from three different parties are doing it—it’s really a nonpartisan issue.”

In an interview with the Straight in December, after he was released on bail from the North Fraser Pretrial Centre, Marc Emery said that American authorities are out to get him because of the significant work he has done on legalizing marijuana.

Emery cited a media statement issued by then–U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration head Karen Tandy following his arrest in 2005. The release stated that his arrest was “a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement”.


NewsHawk: User: http://www.420magazine.com/
Source: straight.com
Author: Carlito Pablo
Copyright: 2010 Vancouver Free Press
Contact: Contact the Straight | Vancouver, Canada | Straight.com
Website: NDP, Liberal, Conservative politicians petition to stop Marc Emery's extradition to the U.S. | Vancouver, Canada | Straight.com

• Thanks to XEric420X for submitting this article

[flank]

This is awesome!! Finally some sign that my government and possible government parties aren't all political ass holes who just love getting their salad tossed by the states!

I hope this goes through and Marc stays in canada!

[free2blaze]

not only is the idea of extraditing Marc Emery to the US to face charges for selling marijuana seeds on the internet incredibly stupid but also incredibly unfair, he was permitted to operate his business in Canada, they did nothing about him until the US stuck there nose in to it, (a common thing for the US)
and being that Canada did nothing about him running this business they should be protecting him from the government thugs here in the US, JMO. I hope and pray he is not extradited to the US, even if he is jailed he needs to be in Canada with his wife, this is an example of the innocent victims of the US led war on drugs, FREE Marc Emery,

[michaelkaer]

This is just the first step. This shows that things can happen even in spite of the evidence given by dictator harper's administration. My fingers are crossed.

[XEric420X]

i don't know how i feel about this yet. I hope i'm not right, but i think the parties arn't REALLY trying to stop him from being extradited, just appear that they are to not look like the bad guys in the situation. my prediction is they put up a feeble attempt but in the long-run i think marcs fate has already been sealed. hopefully i am wrong about this.

[michaelkaer]

Marc has had luck on his side in the past, but now he has a solid number of people who are behind him on this one specific issue. I hope he can make it work for him or at worst make it look real bad for Harper and his gang.

[ledtester]

The fact that he was charged to begin with is a travesty to our legal system. Imagine how you guys would feel if the RCMP came down and charged 420 Mag. employees with something because that's exactly what happened with Marc.

[Caber1]

You guys got your wallets handy? The reason I ask is because I believe Marc has a snowballs chance in hell of seeing any help from the Conservatives in Ottawa.
I think you would be more likely to see Rob Nicholson drive Marc to jail.
We all know that they aided and abetted the DEA and the chances of them backing down now are somewhere between nonexistent and nil.
I know it ain't right what Marc is enduring , but I think the focus should be more on getting this government out of power and stopping them from turning our country into a police state.

[ledtester]

Originally Posted by Caber1

You guys got your wallets handy? The reason I ask is because I believe Marc has a snowballs chance in hell of seeing any help from the Conservatives in Ottawa.
I think you would be more likely to see Rob Nicholson drive Marc to jail.
We all know that they aided and abetted the DEA and the chances of them backing down now are somewhere between nonexistent and nil.
I know it ain't right what Marc is enduring , but I think the focus should be more on getting this government out of power and stopping them from turning our country into a police state.

Then I would urge you to get your friends out to vote because it's the reason Hittler Harper keeps staying in power.

[XEric420X]

Maybe the solution to the lack of interest of young people voting could be solved here... I bet the first party to support legalization or decriminalization, and have a decent campaign behind it will attract the majority of 19-25 year old voters who normally don't vote. the question is will it be net greater than how many older loyal voters they loose because of the bad stigma around marijuana.

[Caber1]

How about just a new party that isn't tied in any way to the old parties or their tired old rhetoric of same old, same old.
A party that isn't filled with religious nutjobs and intolerant rich folk.

The time is right. Not sure if there is anyone to fill the void.

[michaelkaer]

The focus here is Marc. He has been willing to put his life and liberty on the line for what he believes in. Nothing more can be asked of a man.

[Caber1]

He is one of a kind.

[newsisnoise]

pardon the tangent, but how many of you guys have voted for the Green Party, ND(P) or Marijuana Party?

[XEric420X]

correct me if i'm wrong, but don't the green party/ndp not support legalization? I have not voted for anyone, as there has been no elections since my 18th birthday.