The WHO recommendations were initially
expected to be released at a meeting in Vienna
in December, but the announcement was
delayed for unknown reasons.
The proposals will next go before the UN’s
Commission on Narcotic Drugs, potentially
as soon as March, where 53-member nations
will have the opportunity to vote on accepting
or rejecting them.
A number of countries that have historically
opposed drug policy reforms, such as Russia
and China, are expected to oppose the change
in cannabis classification.
Other nations like Canada and Uruguay,
which have legalised marijuana in
contravention of the current treaties, are likely
to back the reform, as are a number of
European and South American nations that
allow medical cannabis.
It is not clear how the U.S. will vote. While
the country has historically pressured other
nations not to reform their own marijuana
policies, the reality of legalisation in a
growing number of U.S. states has made that
kind of pressure increasingly untenable in
recent years.
The Trump administration moved last year to
revoke Obama-era prosecutorial guidance
that generally urged non-intervention with
local marijuana laws.
But the president himself has voiced support
for letting states set their own cannabis
policies without interference, and attorney
general nominee William Barr said during his
confirmation hearing that he would not “go
after” companies relying on the now-
rescinded cannabis guidance.
Thus, it remains to be seen how the
administration
will
direct
its
UN
representative when it comes time to weigh in
on the proposed changes to marijuana’s status
under international law.
If the recommendation on CBD is adopted,
however, it could potentially have far-
reaching implications in the U.S. Last year,
the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
determined that CBD does not meet the
criteria for federal control—except for the
fact that international treaties to which the
U.S. is party could potentially be construed as
requiring it.
“If treaty obligations do not require control of
CBD, or if the international controls on CBD
change in the future, this recommendation
will need to be promptly revisited,” FDA
wrote, adding that the U.S. scheduling
placement of CBD should be “revisited
promptly” if international treaty obligations
changed.
Under the clarification being recommended
by WHO, no one would be able to argue that
CBD is globally scheduled.
The WHO’s new cannabis rescheduling
recommendations come in the form of a letter,
dated January 24, from the Tedros Adhanom
Ghebreyesus, the body’s director general, to
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomangell/2019
/02/01/world-health-organization-
recommends-rescheduling-marijuana-under-
international-
treaties/amp/?utm_source=TWITTER&utm_
medium=social&utm_term=Valerie%2F&__
twitter_impression=true