So, as you heard, adults are allowed to be in possession of 10 grams of marijuana or less. You can smoke it in the privacy of your own home, or in your own yard. You are allowed to smoke it on someone else's premises, with the explicit permission of the owner of residence. If you do not have the permission of the homeowner, and you are caught smoking it, you can be charged. Also, you cannot take the drug with you unto the school compound. If you are caught, you will be warned and subsequent offenses will result in monetary fines.
And while the law relaxes the consequences of marijuana possession or consumption for adults, it's not the same thing for minors. The Attorney General was particularly forceful in making the point that minors caught in possession of the legal quantity of the drug, will be penalized. Here's how he explained the rationale behind that:
Hon. Michael Peyrefitte, Attorney General
"We are going to be very strict on minors. The government is not promoting the use of marijuana and especially we are not promoting it, we are not legalizing it at all. If you are a minor and you are in possession of marijuana, you will have to be detained. You have to be arrested. It's just that when you go to court, the court will say good, given this new piece of legislation you young man or young lady we are going to put you through a counseling program. In the coming weeks or days, the minister of police is going to set forth some regulations that would say what the appropriate counseling is, what is the appropriate guidance. Until then the juvenile court will use whatever measures they use currently to punish minors who have committed offences."
"If we notice that a minor is a repeat offender, he keeps getting caught with possession or smoking marijuana, then the minister will also make regulations as to how that person can go through some kind of drug treatment program or recovery program and we will bring the parents into this. We are saying if the government has to keep using resources, because you are not being a good parent and we keep having to counsel and treat your child for an addiction, we are going to have you foot the bill or some of the expenses for doing so, because you are to keep your children away from marijuana, from cigarettes, from alcohol, but we are making it extra stringent when it comes to the marijuana."
