As the world marked the annual 4/20 celebration, Rastafarian Council, Ghana, used the occasion to call for a shift in the global conversation on marijuana reform-from legalization to the complete abolition of prohibition.
In a strongly worded memo issued by Administrator Kofi Asante Mireku, the group criticized what they described as superficial reforms across Africa and the Caribbean.
Citing examples from South Africa, Jamaica, St.
Kitts, Barbados, and Antigua, RCG said measures branded as "legalization" or "decriminalization" have failed to meaningfully address criminalization or protect users' rights. "In Ghana, depenalization and non-custodial sentencing have still brought punishment," RCG stated. "The arrests and fines remain aligned with the framework of prohibition." The memo argues that legal categories-such as medicinal, industrial, recreational, and sacramental use-have fragmented the cannabis community and weakened the plant's holistic cultural and social significance.
