• 9/7/99 - Pipe seller will fight ban
• 8/7/99 - NORML says Pipe Ban Will Create Harm
• 8/7/99 - Government Press Release
• 2/7/99 - NORML's submission to Ministry of Health
  
• 2/7/99 - Hempstore's submission to Ministry of Health

It appears that the ban itself will closely resemble the draft proposed in May. This made the importation and sale of specified paraphernalia (having one or more prohibited features) an offence that could result in imprisonment or a $5000 fine.

A public notice was issued calling for 'comments', particularly on the scope of the notice (what the ban should or should not cover) and a transition time for importers and retailers (to allow them to get rid of their existing stock). 41 submissions were received, mostly from paraphernalia retailers, importers and distributors, and also from some "political organisations" and individuals. You can read NORML and the Hepstore's submissions. There was "strong opposition" to the proposed time frame of 3 months to sell existing stock. Apparantly the Ministerial Committee on Drug Policy took into account the "reasonable nature of the request" to extend the time frame and they advised the Government to allow a 12 month period.

Here is the public notice that appeared in the Sunday Star-Times on the 9 May 1999. It is assumed that the Gazette Notice will be almost identical (except for the time frame).

A Gazette Notice is to be issued by 30 June 1999 to prohibit the importation and supply of cannabis utensils pursuant to section 22 (1A) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975. It is proposed that a transition period of three months be allowed before the notice comes into effect on 30 September 1999.

"Cannabis utensils" covered by this notice includes the following paraphernalia which may be used for administering cannabis and that have one or more prohibited features:

1. A bong
2. A hash pipe
3. A head pipe
4. A hubble-bubble
5. A hookah
6. A roach clip with a pincer or tweezer action
7. A water pipe

1. more than 2 holes
2. more than one inhalation hose
3. have provision for cooling smoke by drawing smoke through water
4. a metal or ceramic bowl
5. a gauze or wire mesh insertion placed in a bowl or an insertion made of material that is not designed or intended to be burnt or dissolved in the bowl.

Importers and Retailers requiring further information, or wanting to comment on the notice and its timing for introduction should contact:

National Drug Policy Team,
The Ministry of Health,
PO Box 5013
Wellington
Facsimile: 04 496-2340
Telephone 04 496-2095

The Government's stated intention by banning cannabis paraphernalia is to 'send a message' to teenagers that cannabis use is not OK, but we suspect their real intention is to 'send a message' to their own red-neck supporters and funders that they will be tough on drugs. This would be true to form for every conservative party in an election year.

The process is that people can lodge 'comments' with the Ministry of Health before June, which will be taken into account for the final Gazette notice. Even a cursory reading of the notice reveals many loopholes and ways to get around these regulations if they are implemented. I don't think these loopholes shouldn't be pointed out to the Ministry, because they might just think of ways to plug them!

The regulations apply to the specific classes of paraphernalia mentioned, AND that also have one or more of the prohibited features, ie a 'head pipe' would be banned if it has more than two holes, a metal bowl, or a gauze insertion in the bowl. A 'head pipe' would not be banned if it had only two holes, a wooden bowl and no gauze.

Pipes and bongs are used for their demonstrable effect in reducing much of the harms associated with the use of cannabis. As Parliament’s Health Select Committee’s inquiry into the mental health effects of cannabis concluded, the average cannabis user has little to fear from the moderate use of this herb, except the harms presented by the law itself.

The main dangers that cannabis presents are common to smoking any plant matter. Smoke of any kind is likely to be damaging to health, while the combustion of plant matter creates tars that may be carcinogenic. Other harms presented by smoking are the inhalation of hot air and gases, and solid particulates such as ash and unburnt plant matter.

Waterpipes and bongs filter out tars, ash and solid particulates, and cool hot smoke by passing it through water.

Waterpipes are used by smokers of tobacco, a myriad of legal herbs (such as damiana or valerian) as well as cannabis, but this notice will mean they all will not be able to use these harm-reducing devices. This measure does not distinguish between end use and assumes that anyone who uses a waterpipe must be using it for cannabis.

Pipes contain gauze in the bowl to minimise the amount of ash and solid particulates that enter the airways. Banning gauze insertions in bowls will maximise these harms for all smokers. Metal or ceramic bowls are used because they are not burnt with the plant matter, unlike wooden bowls. Banning metal and ceramic bowls will increase the amount of carbon inhaled by all smokers.

These measures will not automatically stop people from using cannabis, and will not stop smokers in general from using these devices, but it will drive their use further underground. People will make their own devices, and these could be potentially unsafe to use.

Banning the sale of these devices will risk the livelihoods of almost three hundred shops and their families. These people could not only lose their incomes but also their homes and their dreams of a successful business.

If the Government was truly interested in reducing the harms associated with using cannabis, they would be encouraging cannabis smokers to use waterpipes and bongs. That they are not shows that they really do not care about the health of these people, and more about getting things "out of sight and out of mind".

If they were truly interested in good public policy they would draft measures that are consistent with the National Drug Policy’s goal of harm minimisation and that are workable and effective in reality. That they haven’t shows that they do not care whether this measure actually works, but only that the Government is seen to send a ‘tough on drugs’ message in election year. This message is counter to the work done over the past ten years in fostering a ‘harm minimisation’ culture at the Ministry of Health and goes against the expert evidence given to the Health Select Committee’s inquiry.

This action demonstrates that the National Government and its Minister of Health Wyatt Creech care more about condemning cannabis users than they do about protecting their health.

1. Write to your own MP, freepost Parliament Buildings Wellington, or call them collect at Parliament 04 471 9999. We have prepared a sample letter that you can use to send to your local MP. NORML also have a list of New Zealand Members of Parliament and their opinions on marijuana law reform. What does your MP think?

2. Write to the Prime Minister Jenny Shipley, the Minister of Health Wyatt Creech or the Associate Minister of Health Roger Sowry (in charge of drug policy) telling them the points outlined above. Sample letter.

3. Call talkback radio or write to your local newspaper making the points mentioned above, or use our sample letter as a starting point.

4. Build a bong and send it to Jenny Shipley, Wyatt Creech or Roger Sowry. It's freepost if addressed c/- Parliament Buildings, Wellington. NORML have a guide to making a bong. Make it from ordinary household implements such as coke cans, the classic plastic bottle & garden hose bong, the old hippy toilet roll bong, the matchbox roach holder or whatever. Enclose a note telling them their ban won't stop you smoking pot if you choose to, and it won't stop you making your own bongs. Print out our sample letter and enclose that too if you want. Don't tell them who you are if you send a used bong!

5. Donate to the 'fighting fund' we are collecting to mount actions that will keep pipes and bongs legal. NORML and The Hemp Store are investigating possibilities for legal action and/or a publicity campaign, and we feel its only fair that pipe users, retailers and importers contribute to any actions we undertake that will benefit all.

NORML also have a list of New Zealand Members of Parliament and their opinions on marijuana law reform. What does your MP think?

Dear .............................,

I am writing to express my concern at your proposal to ban the importation and supply of certain drug paraphernalia, notably cannabis pipes and bongs. This move is contradictory to the Government’s professed goal of minimising the harms associated with cannabis use, and it is unworkable in reality.

The National Drug Policy is based upon the principle of harm minimisation, which is defined on page 23 as "an approach that aims to minimise the adverse health, social and economic consequences of drug use, without necessarily ending such use … The primary goal of this approach is a net reduction in drug-related harm rather than becoming drug-free overnight…".

As Parliament’s Health Select Committee’s inquiry into the mental health effects of cannabis concluded, the average cannabis user has little to fear from the moderate and responsible use of cannabis. The main danger that cannabis presents is potential pulmonary damage common to smoking any plant matter. Smoke of any kind is likely to be damaging to health, while the combustion of plant matter creates harmful tars. Other dangers presented by smoking are the inhalation of hot gases, and solid particulates such as ash and unburnt plant matter. You have already chosen to ignore the expert advice offered by the inquiry, and are now proceeding to make matters even worse. You should be implementing programs and initiatives to encourage the use of waterpipes and bongs by cannabis and tobacco smokers alike.

Pipes and bongs are used for their demonstrable effect in reducing much of the harms associated with the use of cannabis. Waterpipes and bongs filter out tars, ash and solid particulates, and cool hot smoke by passing it through water. Banning waterpipes will inevitably maximise these harms:

• Waterpipes are used by smokers of tobacco, a myriad of legal herbs such as damiana or valerian as well as cannabis. By banning all waterpipes you will cause more harm to all smokers. This measure does not distinguish between end use and assumes that anyone who uses a waterpipe must be using it for cannabis. You appear to be saying that smokers are unworthy of protection.

• Pipes contain gauze in the bowl to prevent ash, solid particulates and burning embers entering the airways. Banning gauze insertions in bowls will maximise these harms for all smokers. If gauze insertions become unavailable, users will turn to possibly dangerous alternatives such as aluminum foil, tin, or simply cut some gauze out of an old sieve. What information do you have about the types of toxins that are released from these alternatives when heated?

• Metal or ceramic bowls are used because they are not burnt with the plant matter, unlike wooden bowls. Banning metal and ceramic bowls but not wooden bowls will increase the amount of carbon inhaled by all smokers.

The Government contends that the sale of pipes and bongs sends a conflicting message to young people that may cause them to start using cannabis. I would like to see the evidence you have to support this claim. The real conflicting message that young people are receiving is the sanctioned sale of the killer drugs alcohol and tobacco while cannabis users are persecuted and vilified. At the same time that you are trying to ban pipes and bongs, you are talking of lowering the drinking age and making alcohol more available for teenagers. It is this hypocrisy that often makes cannabis use seem all the more attractive for many young people today. As Tuariki Delamere, Associate Minister of Health said last June in New York, politicians should not condemn young people for using marijuana, when they occasionally openly abused alcohol: "That sort of hypocrisy makes young people switch off, and you really can’t blame them."

The top priority of the National Drug Policy is to "enable New Zealander's to increase control over and improve their health by limiting the harms and hazards of drug use." I would like to see any evidence you have that supports banning pipes and waterpipes as a method of protecting public health in general and of reducing the "harms and hazards" to the health of cannabis users in particular.

Yours faithfully,