MPs representing three political parties stood in the House of Commons yesterday in support of “Prince of Pot” Marc Emery.
Ontario Tory Scott Reid with Vancouver MPs Libby Davies (NDP) and Ujjal Dosanjh (Liberal) together presented a 12,000-signature petition asking Canada’s justice minister to refuse Emery’s extradition.
The Vancouver marijuana activist faces five years in a U.S. prison after agreeing in September to a plea bargain for one count of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.
Dosanjh, a former B.C. premier and attorney general, called Emery’s possible extradition “inherently unfair.” “Countries don’t usually extradite people to countries where they could face inordinate penalties,” Dosanjh said.
Davies had a number of concerns about Emery’s extradition and questioned what it meant for Canadian sovereignty. “It’s a question of upholding a Canadian position,” Davies said. “For upholding our own laws for Canadian citizens.”
In Parliament, Reid noted that Health Canada used to refer medical marijuana patients to Emery’s seed bank. He also said Canadian courts found that a $200 fine was appropriate for selling seeds, as opposed to the possibility of life in prison in the U.S.
Emery said he was pleased by the petition and said he has heard nothing but love and support from Canadians.
