While the prohibitionists remain irrational about the subject, even people like Canadian Health Minister Rock seem to consistently underestimate the importance of the issue and the extent and urgency of the need for medical marijuana.

None of them seem to understand that they will not be able to keep honest tests on efficacy going for any length of time. The results will be apparent immediately. No ethical doctor is going to be able to continue delaying general use once efficacy is established.

There are two articles here. The second, from Reuters, gives a little background on Rock that I had not seen previously.)

March 3, 1999
From Canadian Press
By Jim Brown

ROCK AGREES TO MARIJUANA TRIALS

OTTAWA (CP) -- Health Minister Allan Rock has asked his officials to draw up a plan for clinical trials on the medical use of marijuana—and to figure out how a safe supply could be provided to those who might need the drug to ease pain.

"There are Canadians who are suffering from terminal illnesses, who are in pain or suffering from difficult symptoms, who believe that smoking medical marijuana can help with their symptoms," Rock said Wednesday.

But before the government makes a final decision it wants scientific evidence, not just anecdotal testimony, on whether smoking pot can help relieve pain.

"Clinical trials will help us develop that evidence in a calm, rational way," Rock said outside the Commons.

"I think Canadians support, on a compassionate basis, if someone is dying, access to a substance that could alleviate their symptoms."

(Marijuananews note: Do you have to promise to die right away?

Last Rites and a joint, the moderate prohibitionist position on medical marijuana!

Actually, Rock has made clear that he is also in favor of use by those with chronic disorders, such as intractable pain, and polls show that the Canadian public is overwhelmingly in favor of medical marijuana.)

Various lobby groups and individuals contend that marijuana can help ease the symptoms of multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, advanced AIDs and a range of other ailments.

Some users have clashed with the law after being arrested for possession, trafficking or growing pot. But many convictions have resulted in lenient sentences, and in some cases absolute discharges that left the person with no criminal record.

Rock, who has been wrestling with the problem for some time, announced his plan a day before the Commons was to debate a private member’s motion by Bloc Quebecois MP Bernard Bigras advocating legalization of marijuana for medical use.

The initiative has attracted two NDP MPs, Nelson Riis and Libby Davies, as co-sponsors. It is slated to be one of the few pieces of private member’s business that will come to a formal vote in this session of the Commons.

"Allan’s been talking about this for a long time, he feels strongly about it," said one insider. "And it’s always good to be ahead of an issue."
(Marijuananews note: He may be "ahead" the issue, but he is way behind the Canadian people and press.)
See
Canadian Health Minister Owes Medical Marijuana Activist Wakeford "An Apology
And Canadians An Explanation"

It was not clear how long the clinical trials might take, though officials say research projects of this kind typically go on for two to three years.

Only if the trials show marijuana is medically useful would the government go on to the next step—a formal decision on whether to allow full-time legal access to the drug for medical use.

"He doesn’t want a restrictive process that would deny access in compassionate cases," said one senior official.

The minister was careful to specify that the trials do not mean the government is moving toward wider legalization of pot for recreational purposes.

"I’ve asked officials to develop a plan for research," he said. "It has nothing to do with legalizing marijuana."

There has to be a way for individuals to get access to the drug on a compassionate basis while the trials go on, said Bigras.

(Marijuananews note: When Bigras introduced his bill he was quoted as saying that it could take three years to do the research, and he made no mention of immediate access.)
See
Quebec MP Wants Canadian Government To Study Medical Marijuana For Three Years --
Before Considering Stopping Arrests Of Sick and Dying;
And He Thinks He Is Really Bold And Progressive! With Friends Like These…

Terrence Stewart, chairman of the Canadian AIDS Society, called Rock’s announcement "a great step." But he quickly added the society will keep pressing Ottawa to take the next step and decriminalize the drug for medical use.

"Just providing the drugs under a clinical trial is not going to be the answer. We have to have a commitment from the government that they will see it through to the end."

Copyright: 1999 The Canadian Press (CP).

CANADA TO GIVE MEDICAL MARIJUANA CLINICAL TRIALS
March 4, 1999
From Reuters
By Randall Palmer

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian Health Minister Allan Rock said Wednesday he had ordered officials to develop clinical trials for the medical use of marijuana and to determine how to grant safe access to the drug.

Rock said this was not the first step toward the legalization of marijuana, but an opposition member of parliament, physician Grant Hill, immediately questioned whether it would not lead to more than pain relief.

Rock, a Liberal, told reporters, "There are Canadians who are suffering from terminal illnesses who are in pain or suffering from difficult symptoms who believe that smoking medical marijuana can help with those symptoms."

The debate echoed that in the United States, where voters in seven states and the District of Columbia have approved the medical use of marijuana but have been blocked by the federal government.

Many lobbying groups in Canada have pushed for the medical use of marijuana or for its full legalization, but opponents argue that the drug causes harm and is a steppingstone to harder drugs.

Hill, the health spokesman for Canada’s opposition Reform Party, said he could accept clinical trials but added, "It’s quite controversial because it could lead to other things."

"As a medical doctor, I treated young people who were habituated to marijuana, whose marks had suffered, whose lives were wrecked," he said.

Asked if he had smoked marijuana, the prime ministerial aspirant smiled broadly, and he refused to answer the question when pressed later.

"It has nothing to do with legalizing marijuana," Rock said, adding that he wanted to develop scientific evidence to determine whether anecdotal evidence of marijuana’s benefits could be backed up.

"What I’ve asked officials to do is to develop a plan that will include clinical trials of medical marijuana and also deal with some of the difficult aspects of this complex question, including criteria and access to a safe supply of this medical—or what would be a medical—drug," he said.