The Rastafarian Society of Kenya members have filed a petition in court seeking to legalize Bhang for sentimental use.
The society seeks to be allowed to use cannabis to connect with their creator either individually in what is known as ‘meditation’ which involves the smoking, eating, drinking, bathing or burning of incense.
Through their Lawyers Shadrack Wambui and Alexandar Mwendwa, the group says that the law is hostile and intolerant to persons professing the Rastafari faith yet we are in a new constitutional framework.
“The Petitioners present this Petition on their own behalf, in the interest of the members of the 1st Petitioner’s whose rights are violated or threatened in terms of Articles 22 (1), 2 (b) and (c)and 258 (2) (a) of the Constitution; All persons have an obligation to respect, uphold and defend the Constitution in terms of Article 3 of the Constitution; and persons acting in the public interest within the meaning of Articles 22(2) (c) and 258 (2) (b) and (c) of the Constitution,” read the petition.
They avers that followers of the Rastafari faith use bhang or cannabis by either smoking, drinking, eating, bathing and/or burning of incense for spiritual, medicinal, culinary and ceremonial purposes as sacrament as the ultimate of manifesting their religion as a Rastafari to meditate and or reason with others in order to connect with their God.
The group noted discriminatory statutory provisions in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act No. 4 of 1994 with how it creates Criminal law exceptions for possession of narcotics and in particular cannabis while leaving out use of Cannabis as a sacramental tool by people of Rastafari faith as a way of manifesting their religion and beliefs like other Religions do.
They claimed of being an easy targets of constant police harassment through unwarranted searches, arbitrary arrests, prosecution, convictions and persecution causing stigma, suspicion forcing Rastas to live in fear and in hiding.
“…petitioners assert that this Honourable Court should take judicial notice of the generic stereotype of Rastafari is that they just sit around smoking “pot” or cannabis/bhang/marijuana/holy herb/kushungpeng/tire/ndom/vela/gode/and or kindukulu not doing much else it’s evident that the pervasive stereotype of stoner Rastafaris is both an unwelcome, and unwarranted, misconception both by law and the society to treat them different from other dominant religions who practice and manifest their religions without impediment,” stated the petition.
The society now want the court to take judicial notice of the international treaties ratified by Kenya and the human rights standards that require equal protection and non-discrimination of all persons including on grounds of Religion and privacy of the person.