For Italian hemp there seems to be no peace. After the steps forward made in the last legislature, with good measures taken toward light weed shop’s, cannabis in medicine and the approval of the framework law on industrial hemp (light weed), everything has changed since Matteo Salvini became minister of the Interior.
He who when in the 1990s called himself a Paduan communist and explained, “We relate to classic left-wing issues, from the strong state presence to the liberalization of soft drugs,” today, perhaps also to increase the clash with the M5S that has always been in favor of legalization, wastes no time in attacking Light weed in a continuous escalation.
The path had already been quite clear when he chose as deputy for anti-drug policies Fontana, who on narcotics has an approach that would have put even Nixon to shame when he launched the war on drugs in the 1970s.
But now he keeps raising the bar. Not even a week has passed since he had said that one out of every two light weed shop is devoted to dealing illicit cannabis, a serious statement unsupported by any real statistical data, that today he has gone so far as to say that he will close “one by one all light weed shops” and “I will ask that all cannabis parties be banned as well”; more than a political idea, a fine and good threat.
We cannot help but point out that these are absurd positions, especially given that they relate to a phenomenon as innocuous as light weed, which, if rightly supported by the institutions, could have become the flywheel for the growth of the entire sector.
A sector that should also be dear to the North League, which is linked to the territory, the land and farmers, which instead is opposed out of prejudice and used as an issue to heat up tempers in the election campaign.
We hope that the sector associations will react to these continuous unjustified attacks, showing that the Italian hemp sector is made up of honest people, who have invested money and time to create a sustainable economy that is growing all over the world.
The first reaction came from 5-star senator Matteo Mantero, who a short time ago had proposed a law for the self-production of cannabis: “If Salvini continues on this path the only ones to celebrate will be the drug dealers.“
Matteo Salvini was sued for defamation by the courageous owner of a light weed shop, as well as a mother, who reacted in this way to the Interior Minister’s recent stances.
“It’s not about courage, it’s about conscience,” the owner explained , stressing that she cannot understand how “a minister who is part of a party that stole 49 million euros, defames completely legal activities that bring in money and help create induced activities and jobs.”
According to the owner of the Weedoteca in Budrio, in the province of Bologna, there are numerous other traders who are following her lead, in turn suing the interior minister.
As we have already recounted, it all began during the election campaign for the European classes, when the right-wing, and Salvini in particular, raged against hemp, going so far as to say that “one out of every two light weed shops would be dedicated to dealing and that he would close them down one by one.
The purpose of this initiative, according to Jessica is that “people, instead of thinking about hemp with the old dogmas that have been instilled in us, start to inform themselves without being at the mercy of misinformation. Ours is a rallying cry, we are here by our hands all united and no one can afford to smear us and get away with it.”
