The attempted kidnapping of Marc Emery and two associates by the United States Government proceeds further in just a few days on Sep 16th with the start of extradition proceedings, which could take over 2 years, and cost enouph to rebuild several blocks of New Orleans.

Meanwhile the Canadian Government needs to know that people all over the world are watching this case. And ... if you feel like being an effective 21st century 'armchair activist', you can do it right now without hardly moving.

All you have to do is send send a friendly short email message to Canada's Minister of Justice IRWIN COTLER, hasseling him about the Marc Emery case, and encouraging him to end cannabis prohibition once and for all, what ever the American 'bossman' say.

If you have the energy, be really encouraging about the positive reforms in Canada regarding medical cannabis, and how Canada is known all over the world for being a friendlier place than the 'evil empire'.

The email address is: webadmin@.... Fax: 613-954-0811. Postal address: The Honourable Irwin Cotler, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, 284 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0H8.

Even easier option: get hold of your M.P., put them in the picture, and ask them to write the letter and send it for you, as they are paid for that kind of thing. Check out 'They Work For You'.

"They came for the cannabis users and I did not speak out, and then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for me".

European Parliament, Brussels, 13 September 2005:

All 730 Members of the European Parliament (M.E.P's) became 'in possession' of a bag of cannabis seeds on Tuesday (13th Sep), courtesy of the 'European Coalition for Just and Effective Drug Policies' (ENCOD), which represents 120 'grass roots' drugs action organisations throughout Europe.

The European M.E.P's were asked by ENCOD to talk to the Canadian Minister of Justice Irwin Cotler, in order to ask him not to extradite Marc Emery, a Canadian citizen who is wanted by the United States where he risks imprisonment for life for the sale of cannabis seeds. In Canada, the sale of cannabis seeds has not merited a single prosecution for many years. In some EU countries, it is not even an offence.

ENCOD also asked the M.E.P's to take action against the current escalation of the war on drugs, which it describes as a major threat to the democratic principles of free societies.

Additionally, ENCOD requested the Members of European Parliament to challenge the recently approved 'EU Action Plan on Drugs for 2005 - 2008'. According to ENCOM this 'action plan' does not draw any significant conclusion from the official evaluation of the 'European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction' (EMCDDA), which clearly indicated that EU drug strategies have had no favourable results whatsoever.

In spite of the recommendations of the European Parliament (formulated in the Catania report of 15 December 2004) and those of numerous experts, civil society organisations and local authorities, the new 'Action Plan' does not contain any significant innovative approaches what so ever.

According to ENCOD, drug policy has long been designed in a vacuum, ignoring the signals from the public and the parliament, that something is going very wrong. Ignoring in fact, what goes on right in front of them.

ENCOD has also invited the M.E.P's to participate in a common effort to create space for innovative drug policies such as have been put forward by local and regional authorities across Europe.

'News of the Weed' says: "If any of the M.E.P's don't want their seeds, we'll have them. E mail us, and we will send our address."

SIGN THE PETITION FOR A CHANGE IN EU DRUG POLICIES - 'European Coalition for Just and Effective Drug Policies'

Outside the U.S. Embassy, London, Sat 10th Sep: Despite wind and rain, and the prospect of being in one of the hottest places in Britain, plus never getting a VISA to the USA, cannabis campaigners in London joined others in nearly 40 cities worldwide today to protest at the threatened 'cannabis kidnappings'; the attempt by the U.S. government to extradite three Canadians, Marc Emery, Greg Williams, and Michelle Rainey, for selling cannabis seeds mailorder.

This is a minor charge in Canada, but it is a very different story in 'Gulag America' where they even have the death penalty for large scale marijuana production. Amnesty International has described U.S. jails as "inhuman". There are 600,000 people currently rotting in those 'inhuman' jails for cannabis possession right now.


Above: 'War on Drugs, Tug of War'. Be on the U.S. government 'Bush War'/DEA(LERS) side, or with 58% of the Canadian population who are against the extraditions and freedom for cannabis; you choose.


The U.S. government's 'Drug Enforcement Agency' (D.E.A.) website is a very bad website indeed. It is only worth reading to see how many lies and pieces of misinformation you can find. 'News of the Weed' is offering a prize to the person who can list the most, we lost count.

EVEN WORSE is the website produced by the U.S. Government's 'National Institute on Drug Abuse'(N.I.D.A.). It has a tasteless design, but don't let that fool you; you are looking at power and influence. These are the people BEHIND the D.E.A! They are up to every dirty trick in the book. Watch out for these fundamentalists, they are active worldwide and are using every devious method at their disposal to fight a bogus 'War on Drugs', while supporting the biggest heroin producers in the world in Afganistan. Let them explain that to their kids if they have any.


Above: Cannabis Grandma gives Bush a right ticking off outside the Canadian Embassy where he was stalking for victims to kidnap.

Below: Bush finally gets the picture, gets some respect and joins the 'Cannabis Trust':


"Hey Guys, I've just had a cool idea! What the kids need is some cannabis education they can trust, not a load of baloney."


Meanwhile the global campaign to free all cannabis prisoners will continue to grow. Whatever the rights and wrongs of cannabis use, no one deserves jail for it, much less being kidnapped from your own country. It also costs poor tax payers all over the world a fortune, which would be far better spent elsewhere. Watch this space (and the many others).

America Bullies Canadians; Britain, or anywhere, could be next.

London 8th Sep:: A 'protest' against attempted extraditions for cannabis took place outside the U.S. & Canadian Embassies today.

A protest letter was also delivered to each Embassy in London for the attention of the Ambassador. The full text of letters of protest are posted below.

This was a prelude to the main protest event planned in London this Sat 10th Sep at Grosvenor Sq, London W1. 2.-5pm. Other protests are taking place in 36 cities worldwide on the same day.

The demonstrations are against the extradition of three Canadians to the U.S. for selling cannabis seeds, and the 'Bush War' which targets cannabis users at home and abroard.

latest world news: www.cannabisculture.com

london organisers: www.cannabistrust.com

To the Ambassador of the United States, London..

Dear Sir,

We are writing to you regarding the attempt by your government to extradite three Canadian citizens, Marc Emery, Greg Williams, and Michelle Rainey, to the United States to face charges related to the sale of cannabis seeds by mail order.

If these extraditions go ahead the victims will face very serious penalties in the United States for what is a relatively minor infringement of the law in their own country.

We believe this is an abuse of extradition treaties which are in place to bring serious criminals to justice for serious crimes.

Extradition treaties should not be used by any country to push their domestic social policies or the laws that inforce them, on citizens of another nation.

In this case your government is attempting to use extradition treaties to extend its very harsh and prohibitionist laws regarding the use and sale of cannabis in the United States to people living in Canada a nation that is developing a different, more human approach.

The people of Canada, and their government have largely rejected the theory that prohibition and harsh penalties is the way to deal with the use of cannabis, a recreational drug that is not addictive and has far less harmful effects than alcohol (with is addictive).

Canada has led the world in ending the unjustifiable ban on the medical use of cannabis. Their lead is being followed in most of Europe (including Britain) and an increasing number of nations throughout the world.

We would like to know why the United States government rejects science and continues to argue that cannabis has no nutritional or medical value. Many people believe your treatment of medical cannabis users in the United States amounts to a crime against humanity.

It is sad to see that the United States government stands out in its refusal to learn from the disastrous failure of cannabis prohibition as an effective social policy. Currently you have 600,000 people in prison for cannabis and prosecute about 700,000 people a year. It has been estimated that cannabis prohibition costs United States tax payers more that $10 Billion a year to enforce.
Your government has failed to accept that cannabis prohibition does not protect peoples health or safety in any way, and instead puts people, especially their young people in far more danger.

As citizens of Britain, a nation that has very close cultural and political ties to the United States, we are deeply concerned about this, and especially at your attempts to export your failed and ‘fundamentalist’ drug policies worldwide. We have friends and relatives in the United States and we know what is going on.

We believe that it is the policy of cannabis prohibition that creates a dangerous ‘gateway’ to the use of hard drugs, not the use of cannabis as your government continues to argue. Cannabis prohibition exposes people, most worryingly young people, to an unregulated and illegal market which often includes hard drugs. This market is dominated by criminals, when it should be run by buisness people operating under the law.

We therefore hope very much that your government will order an immediate end to these unjustifiable extradition proceedings, and that it seriously reviews its failed prohibitionist policies regarding the sale and use of cannabis, for the health of the American people and people everywhere.

Cannabis Education Research Trust

Please note: The display of the U.S. flag upside down is a legitimate signal of distress, not an insult to the flag or the American people.

To the Canadian Ambassador, London.

Dear Sir,

We are writing to you regarding the attempt by the United States government to extradite three Canadian citizens, Marc Emery, Greg Williams, and Michelle Rainey, to the United States to face charges related to the sale of cannabis seeds by mail order.

If these extraditions go ahead the victims will face very serious penalties in the United States for what is a relatively minor infringement of the law in their own country. Amnesty International says many U.S. prisons are “inhuman”.

We believe this is an abuse of extradition treaties which are in place to bring serious criminals to justice for serious crimes. Extradition treaties should not be used by any country to push their domestic social policies or the laws that inforce them, on citizens of another nation.

In this case the American government is attempting to use extradition treaties to extend its very harsh and prohibitionist laws regarding the use and sale of cannabis in the United States to people living in Canada a nation that is developing a different, more human approach.

This is a direct attack on the independence and sovereignty of Canada, and a recent poll shows that 58% of the Canadian people are against these extraditions.

The people of Canada, and their government have largely rejected the theory that prohibition and harsh penalties is the way to deal with the use of cannabis, a recreational drug that is not addictive and has far less harmful effects than alcohol (with is addictive).

Canada has led the world in ending the unjustifiable ban on the medical use of cannabis.

However the United States government rejects science and continues to argue that cannabis has no nutritional or medical value. Many people believe the treatment of medical cannabis users in the United States amounts to a crime against humanity.

It is sad to see that the United States stands out in its failure to learn from the disastrous failure of cannabis prohibition as an effective social policy. Currently they have 600,000 people in prison for cannabis and prosecute about 700,000 people a year. It has been estimated that cannabis prohibition costs United States tax payers more that $10 Billion a year to enforce.

The United States has failed to accept that cannabis prohibition does not protect peoples health or safety in any way, and instead puts people, especially their young people in far more danger.

As citizens of Britain, a nation that has very close cultural and political ties to the United States, we are deeply concerned about this and especially at U.S. attempts to export their failed and ‘fundamentalist’ drug policies worldwide. We have friends and relatives in the United States and we know what is going on.

We believe that it is the policy of cannabis prohibition that creates a dangerous ‘gateway’ to the use of hard drugs, not the use of cannabis as the U.S. government continues to argue. Cannabis prohibition exposes people, most worryingly young people, to an unregulated and illegal market which often includes hard drugs. This market is dominated by criminals, when it should be run by buisness people operating under the law.

We therefore hope very much that your government will reject these unjustifiable extradition proceedings, and encourages the United States to seriously review its failed prohibitionist policies regarding the sale and use of cannabis, for the health of the American people and people everywhere.

Cannabis Education & Research Trust, London

Over a five year period, THC4MS have sent over 33,000 bars of CannaBiz chocolate to bode-fide sufferers of MS. Everyone knew what THC4MS were doing. Everyone including the Police, Local Government, the Post Office and the MS community as a whole. A blind eye was turned at every opportunity. That blind eye was turned because THC4MS were doing nothing but good. The law itself turned a blind eye on several occasions! Good honest people helped whenever they could. Hundreds of well qualified doctors have allegedly "conspired" with THC4MS to help their patients. Thousands of good and honest victims of MS have had relief from the THC4MS product.

Click & Vote: Please sign the THC4MS petition now at www.petitionthem.com

Find out more at the THC4MS website.

PEACEFUL PROTEST outside Canadian and US Embassies, Grosvenor Sq, London, W1. Sat 10 September 2005. Meet in centre of Square (small park). 2pm - 5pm. Nearest tube: Bond Street.

The United States is attempting to extradite Marc Emery, editor of Cannabis Culture Magazine and two of his colleagues from Canada for offences related to supplying cannabis seeds by mail order.

Thease are relatively minor charges in Canada, but if these judicial kidnappings go ahead the Canadian 'pot hostages' face draconian penalties in the U.S. which they would not get in their own country. Amnesty International has described the US prison system as 'inhuman'.

Marc Emery is a leading cannabis activist and magazine publisher known internationally for his campaigning work. He has obviously been singled out for attention for political reasons.

Despite paying taxes on all profits from his seed buisness Marc is also being charged with ‘money laundering’, because he spent his seed profits on the campaign to end cannabis prohibition.

At very short notice, international protests have been organised for 10th Sep 2005, with protest events confirmed in 36 cities including London.

The issue of concern for people everywhere is the attempt to extradite non U.S. citizens for cannabis 'offences' to face harsher penalties than they would ever receive under the law of their own countries. It could be anywhere next. For anything.

Other issues are the 'Bush War on Drugs', the Afghan Heroin Scandal, and solidarity with US medical cannabis users also facing extradition to US prisons from Canada.

We will be advising the Canadian Government to retain their legal independence and their sovereignty as an independent nation, and refuse these extraditions. Canada has a good reputation in the world to uphold! According to a recent public opinion survey, 58 per cent of Canadians oppose Marc Emery's extradition to the USA.

We are calling on the US government to stop taking hostages in their failed 'War on Drugs' and end cannabis prohibition now. Currently over 700,000 Americans are prosecuted in the USA just for marijuana possession, costing over 10 billion dollars a year. Under U.S. law you can even face the death penalty for large scale ‘ganja’ cultivation, while their treatment of medical cannabis users is a crime against humanity.

Despite their total failure, the US is still attempting to export its drug policies worldwide, including Britain, with networks of DEA agents interfering in local politics, and causing problems. This seems to result in the increased use of heroin and crack cocaine where ever they go.

The DEA's 'fundamentalist' drug policy stubbornly flies in the face of scientific evidence, claiming that cannabis has no therapeutic or nutritional value. It is time they turned over a new leaf for the sake of the American people, and people everywhere.

"They came for the cannabis users and I did not speak out, and then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for me".

PEACEFUL POT PROTEST @ Canadian and US Embassies, Grosvenor Sq, London, W1. Sat 10th September 2005. Meet centre of Square (small park). 2pm - 5pm. Nearest tube: Bond Street.

Free The Pot Hostages Sep 10th CONTACTS:

London organisers: www.cannabistrust.com
World listings: www.cannabisculture.com
Latest news: www.newsoftheweed.com

DOWNLOAD London event flyer for printing and local distribution: freepothostages.pdf (A4 3up b/w 220k).

In a move that could bring them nothing but trouble, the American government has forced the Canadian government to arrest Mark Emery, founder of Cannabis Culture magazine, and are trying to extradite him to one of their concentration camps, along with two other Canadians, for selling marijuana seeds to Americans.

The extradition process could take anywhere from six months to two years. A court hearing regarding bail is due in Vancouver on Tuesday starting 10am. According to Cannabis Culture's website the Canadian authorities are trying to block bail for Mark which is very unusual for a non-violent offender. One of the others is now out on $25,000 bail which is unusually high.

The legal reasons for refusing an extradition order in Canada are:

(a) the surrender would be unjust or oppressive having regard to all the relevant circumstances; YES!

(b) the request for extradition is made for the purpose of prosecuting or punishing the person by reason of their race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, language, colour, political opinion, sex, sexual orientation, age, mental or physical disability or status or that the person's position may be prejudiced for any of those reasons. YES!

c) allowing it to go ahead would "shock the conscience" of Canadians. YES!

According to Neil Boyd, professor of criminology at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., "What's unusual about this case is that they are arresting a person for conduct that attracts very serious penalties in one country and potentially no penalties in Canada," Boyd said.

All three defendants were charged with conspiracy to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to distribute marijuana seeds and conspiracy to engage in money laundering. The distribution charges alone carry potential punishments of 10 years to life imprisonment.

Emery and two accomplices, Gregory Williams, 50, and Michelle Rainey-Fenkarek, 34, were arrested by Canadian authorities on a warrant issued by federal officials in Washington state. The Seattle-based office of the Drug Enforcement Administration led the investigation which started 18 months ago.

According to the Seattle Times, Mark Emery, known in Canada as the "Prince of Pot", was arrested on a U.S. indictment charging him with selling millions of dollars worth of marijuana seeds to customers throughout the United States. They are saying that at least 75 percent of his seed transactions involved U.S. customers.

Vancouver Police Department spokesman Howard Chow, is quoted saying the authorities likely thought there was a better chance of conviction and harsher punishment in the U.S.

In Canada being busted for selling pot seeds is a minor issue usually involving a fine of which Mark Emery has had many, although according to his Web site, he was most recently sentenced to 92 days in jail for trafficking and possession. In Britain marijuana seeds are legal as long as you do not mix them with water, earth and light in such a way that they grow.

There has already been a spontaneous demo in an area of Vancouver known as 'Vansterdam' of about 100 people, but this could just be the beginning unless the Canadian authorities do the sensible thing and refuse to extradite the three Canadians to a country Amnesty International has said runs inhuman prison facilities.

Meanwhile the story is going international, and could turn into a public relations disaster for the American government and their so called 'War on Drugs'. Something like the McLibel case maybe, or hopefully worse.

Mark Emery is known all over the world for publishing his excellent 'Cannabis Culture' magazine and supporting campaigns all over the world to end cannabis prohibition. On several occasions he helped the Cannabis March and Festival in London. This move against him is politically motivated, aimed particularly at closing down Cannabis Culture magazine and ending the work of one of the most important campaigners against cannabis prohibition in the world.

Canada could also suffer from an international backlash ending their image as a relative oasis of freedom next to its totalitarian neighbor. But if Canada now holds up to their sovereign rights against the power of the United States, they will be international heros. It is their choice, although the pressure from the US will be massive.

Tommy Chong, one-half of the stoner comedic partnership of Cheech and Chong was shocked when told of Emery's trouble with the DEA as he used to live in Vancouver. "They're going to extradite him down to the [U.S.] for something that's not really a crime in Canada. If Canada goes for that, they really suck."

International phone lines have been buzzing as cannabis campaigners plan a global protest action for September 10th, if Emery and his two colleagues are not released. An international media campaign with demos targeting US embassies worldwide is being discussed.

Amnesty International is being asked to take on the case, making the three, 'prisoners of conscience'.

It is arguable that US policy towards cannabis users is genocidal because one of the internationally accepted definitions of genocide is any attempt to "obliterate the way of life' of someone.

Over 750,000 people a year are arrested just for marijuana possession in the USA, and if you get caught with over 60,000 marijuana plants you can get the death penalty.

They helped provide a service called 'THC4MS' that has delivered FREE home made cannabis chocolate to MS suffers all over Britain for the last ten years. In hard cash terms they may have helped save the NHS a million pounds a year, (thats £10 million so far), but you can't put a value on the human benefits of their work.

So what is their reward? A Knighthood from the Queen might be in order, but instead they are being being prosecuted for 'conspiracy to supply cannabis', and could be sent to jail for 14 years! "Guilty of intent to heal" more like. What a crazy world! How can this be in the public interest?

MS patients who use cannabis report a soothing of the painful muscle spasms and improved muscle coordination. Some are able to walk unaided when they were previously unable to do so. It also helps blurred vision, tremors, loss of bladder control, insomnia and depression.

The people 'THC4MS helped may now be forced to buy cannabis on the black market, or go without the benefits it gives. That means they may be in hospital again sooner, be more likely to be wheel chair bound, less likely to be able to work, and for some it may mean they will be dead sooner.

A Knighthood is not good enough for these THC4MS saints who give medical cannabis free to suffering people genuinely in need; the Queen should make them THCLORDS.

There is some surprise that the prosecutions are going ahead as their service had been running for 10 years, and was doing such good work. After the police raids which have resulted in the prosecution, one of the three now charged, Mark Gibson, told the Scotsman; "We were an open secret. We were sending to people from Orkney to Penzance."

On May 15th, Mark Gibson spoke in Trafalgar Square at the Cannabis Education Rally, organised by the Cannabis Trust. In his speech he called for an amnesty for medical cannabis users and suppliers. Now we need that amnesty even more urgently.

Has Britain gone mad? We know about 'reefer madness', but this is 'choco-madness'. These prosecutions should be stopped now 'in the public interest'. Britain can't afford to waste time and money like this.

One thing you can do to help is write to Charles Clarke, Home Secretary, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA. Ask him to look into this case, as a prosecution is surely not in the public interest. Please be sure to use that term "not in the public interest", because our legal advisors say this is a reason that allows the Home Secretary to intervene in such cases. ALSO send the same letter by e-mail to clarke@...

Our 'Medical Cannabis Users Guide', gives a lot more information about the many Uses of Medical Cannabis.

So remember, be nice and influence people: Write to Charles Clarke, Home Secretary, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA. And please ALSO send the same letter by e-mail to clarke@...

We hope never, but one day it could be you, or a friend or relative who is denied the medicine that works, mostly just to protect the profits of companies selling medicines that do not work.