From Iceland — Cannabis Rights Activist Smokes In Front Of Police Station

Cannabis Rights Activist Smokes In Front Of Police Station

Published August 2, 2012

A man seeking to have Iceland’s marijuana laws reformed smoked two joints with a few others in front of the Reykjavík police station. Police did not arrest him.
As reported, Örvar Geir Geirsson is a spokesperson for RVK Homegrown. Yesterday, he began what will be a ten-day fast, drinking water and eating only hemp seeds. He also intends to smoke 1/3 gramme of marijuana in front of a number of public institutions, choosing a different location each day. Örvar said he will most likely choose the residence of the president, Bessastaðir, as the final location.
Grapevine spoke with Örvar by telephone yesterday. He told us that despite his intended ten-day plan being reported by the Icelandic media, no media were present for the event nor attempted to contact him.
Örvar was overall pleased with the operation. He, and a few others who eventually joined, smoked two joints in front of the Reykjavík police station over the course of about half an hour. He was not arrested. “From this I’ve concluded that it’s legal to smoke weed in Iceland,” he said. “Or at least, to do so in front of the police station.”
Among the points of RVK Homegrown’s platform is the call for the law to differentiate between “hard” and “soft” drugs, to allow people to grow up to five cannabis plants for personal use, and to allow Icelanders to buy cannabinoid medication from Holland with a doctor’s permission. They contend that such measures, among others, would ease the court and penal system, and leave behind the “zero tolerance” policy adopted by other countries.
“I’ve had my door kicked down by the police over a gramme of weed,” Örvar said. “I’m not a bad guy. I’m not hurting anyone. I’m tired of being treated like a criminal for doing nothing wrong.”
Today at 16:20, he will smoke marijuana in the garden behind the parliamentary building. The general public is welcome to attend.

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