Let’s have a serious talk about drugs

ENAR

The cannabis debate never completely goes away in Lebanon. This is not surprising, given that the country is a major producer and consumer of the psychoactive plant. Everyone who is anyone has an opinion on the drug, usually expressed through impactless sound bites. The discussion was reignited on June 18 by an Internal Security Forces (ISF) Facebook post reporting a “drug bust” that led to the arrest of three teenagers, accompanied by a picture showing rollups, a plastic bag with a small amount of hash, and one joint. The post drew widespread mockery online, with comments from Facebook users thanking the police for “saving” them and making them feel much “safer.” Beneath the sarcasm,  the inadequacies of our drugs laws were duly exposed. Retribution or rehab? This viral ISF misfire was followed by an official, theoretically binding, circular issued by Attorney General Judge Samir Hammoud on June 26—World Drugs Day—urging