Italy. MEDICAL CANNABIS NOW IN SICILY May 21, 2014 While the Italian parliamentary courts have been going through waves of back and forth motions on the legality of cannabis on the street level, the steady rise of Italian regions accepting medical cannabis is worth mentioning. Recently, a very notable region opened itself up to the many healing and therapeutic possibilities that have been offered to us by this amazing plant . . . Sicily. The island region off the southernmost tip of the boot gives Sicily a bit of cushion from the usual happenings in Rome and northern Italy. Its latest addition brings the total to eight of the 20 regions of Italy that have signed on to use cannabis and cannabis-derived pharmaceuticals for medicinal purposes. Given that Sicily is the land of the Sun (as well as the land of other less noteworthy influences), one might think that this is the rise of some free-wheeling scenario with makeshift store fronts doling out medical cannabis from the back door to the streets and to a few patients with shady permits; but that’s not the case. This whole operation is to be run only through legally accredited public and private hospitals and medical facilities. Furthermore, they must be given the personal stamp of approval from the governor of Sicily, Rosario Crocetta. “The order was not only founded upon the basis of recent Italian legislative changes regarding the use of cannabis, but also from the judgments of many authorities who have recognized that a number of ill patients, particularly those suffering from multiple sclerosis, had significant positive gains with the use of this substance. This particular civil and social value now puts Sicily at the forefront with other European regions,” said Crocetta. Sicily has a politically conservative reputation that’s usually the last to implement new or controversial issues, so they certainly raised a few eyebrows by adopting a medical cannabis policy. Although cannabis via the Mafia is readily available in its smokable form on Sicilian streets, to bring legal treatment to help those in need certainly is a step in a positive direction. There’s still a majority of the populace that hold’s onto strong negative connotations against cannabis dating back to the old days of “Weed Madness.” Regardless of how much light is being shed on the medical possibilities or what they see in the culture around them, it’s still viewed as a societal evil. So while the slow steps for all-around cannabis legalization in Italy drudge forward without the kind of progress that breaks barriers and pushes things into the stratosphere, the fact that cannabis is breaking onto the scene and showing its healing side is one way that the people of Sicily can see the many benefits of cannabinoid-based pharmaceuticals and the plant itself. By Anthony Herrold ireadculture/article-3810-medical-cannabis-now-in-sicily.html
Posted on: Sat, 14 Jun 2014 05:12:13 +0000
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