02/10/2007 00:00:00
UK: Taking Cannabis Battle to London - Stuart Wyatt
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A campaigner from Plymouth says he is prepared to "chain himself to
Downing Street with a big fat spliff" to protest against the ban on
medicinal cannabis use. Stuart Wyatt, who says the drug is the only
thing which relieves the crippling pain he experiences from an
undiagnosed illness, plans to demonstrate in the capital alongside other
medicinal marijuana users from across the UK.
Mr Wyatt, 35, of Stonehouse, launched the website www.humedi.org.uk,
which calls for a public debate on the use of the drug.
He has lobbied the Government by letter, phone and email for 10 months,
but says he has been "ignored and persecuted".
The former musician now says he hopes more than 100 Humedi members will
gather in the capital to "severely embarrass" ministers. "I'm willing to
be arrested if it draws attention to the cause," he said.
"I've got nothing to lose. It's coming to the stage now where members of
the organisation I started are planning to go to London en masse and
hijack a famous London landmark within the Square Mile, and demonstrate
loudly."
He added: "If nothing else works, we're going to chain ourselves to
Downing Street with a big fat spliff."
He said the event would take place in the next couple of weeks if the
Government did not respond, but he will not reveal the specific date or
location of the event for fear of intervention by the authorities.
Use of the Class C drug is prohibited in the UK, and people who use it
for health reasons, such as Mr Wyatt, risk prosecution alongside
recreational users.
Mr Wyatt says he is convinced of cannabis's medicinal benefits,
insisting he wants to make Gordon Brown realise that "the issue is not
going to go away and neither am I".
He said: "For the past two years I have been distributing herbal
cannabis through the postal system to benefit medicinal users, and will
continue to do so until the Government makes this much-needed medicine
available to those who need it."
Humedi is short for Humanitarian Medicinal Distribution and is a
non-profit organisation.
If available, Mr Wyatt uses between 3.5g and 5g of cannabis a week,
which he eats or inhales through a vaporiser, but says he has been
prevented from doing so by a "massive UK drought". He says without the
drug he can't sleep, experiences sharp pain all over his body, bladder
weakness and shaking.
Medicinal users "feel like we're being tortured on a daily basis", he said.
"Gordon Brown said in his keynote speech that he's there for everyone in
the UK and wants everyone in the UK to reach their full potential, but
how can I do that when I feel like I've been strapped to a rack?"
Mr Wyatt has booked a 17-seater minibus to take protesters to the
capital. Anyone wishing to join the demonstration can log on to
www.humedi.org.uk
http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/
Source:
http://www.ukcia.org/news/shownewsarticle.php?articleid=12878
Author:
Plymouth Evening Herald via UKCIA
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