MARIJUANA ROOT OF REFUGEE ISSUE

An American citizen and his family who have made a refugee claim to stay in
Canada will have to wait six months for a decision on the case, says an
Alliance MP who attended much of the hearing process.

Langley-Abbotsford Alliance MP Randy White said Californian Steve Kubby
claims his inability to legally smoke marijuana - to alleviate medical
symptoms - amounts to political persecution in his own country.

After nine days of testimony heard in Vancouver over two months,
Immigration and Refugee Board adjudicator Paula Downes has reserved her
decision until the end of October.

The move further delays the pending hearings of "other Americans who have
made refugee claims using the same defence," said White.

Kubby, 56, once ran unsuccessfully for California governor. He moved to
B.C. in 2000 after being convicted on two counts of possession of a narcotic.

He faces up to four months in a California jail, claiming that him denying
medical marijuana amounts to persecution and cruel and unusual punishment.

However, White believes that Kubby was not successful in proving he is
persecuted in the U.S. But the case could set a precedent, said the MP.

"Mr. Kubby's argument is that he would be subject to criminal charges and
punishment for growing and smoking his marijuana in the U.S., but not in
Canada.

"If the IRB buys that argument, it will open the door to other Americans in
similar situations," said White.

Prior to the start of the hearings, Kubby told the Abbotsford News: "We are
excited about the opportunity to put the Police States of America on trial.

"We will provide smoking gun documents that will show a criminal group of
police, prosectors and judges who are violating a number of laws by meeting
secretly on public funds, to invalidate an initiative written and passed by
the people."

He referred to a 1990s California state vote that approved medial marijuana
use.

"Randy White is completely irrelevant to the hearings," said Kubby.

White said he has found evidence on the Internet of an "underground
railroad" that will bring marijuana users from the U.S. into Canada.

"They're lining up to come to Canada, the new medical-marijuana sanctuary."


Pubdate: Thu, 24 Apr 2003
Source: Abbotsford News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2003 Hacker Press Ltd.
Contact: editor@abbynews.com
Website: http://www.abbynews.com/