As a country that is rich with a wild wilderness and sunny climates, it comes as no surprise that marijuana thrives profoundly over in South Africa. As a result, South Africa is one of the biggest and widely known producers of both cannabis and hemp. But just how familiar are you with the cannabis scene in South Africa? Do you know what the cannabis industry is like over there?
It is no secret that cannabis is widely popular in that country. With many people making use of the plant, one would think that it is perfectly legal to consume it unlimitedly in South Africa. However, that is not the case. While you can consider it “publicly accepted”, this makes it far from being fully legal. Let us take a closer look at what South Africa has to offer in terms of its cannabis industry.
HISTORY OF MARIJUANA IN SOUTH AFRICA
It is believed that South Africa was first introduced to the cannabis plant by early Indian traders. During this time, cannabis was slowly making its way around the world and early civilizations found numerous ways to make use of the plant. It was widely used in South Africa as a source of minerals and fibers. Additionally, the cannabis plant was also great for making industrial ropes, rugs, and other tools for living.
After a while, African people found out about ways to consume the plant in order to induce psychoactive and mental effects. With this, they started using the cannabis plant in traditions and other religious undertakings. Additionally, its pain-relieving effects were used to ease the body aches after a hard day’s work and lessen the pain during childbirth.
MARIJUANA IN SOUTH AFRICA TODAY
In South Africa, cannabis is unlawful. However, because of the very active underground cannabis industry, the nation is exerting a solid effort to lessen the measure and spread of weed and cannabis seeds in South Africa. Thus, many laws and policies focus on mitigating such as drug activities. Additionally, this isn’t limited to just marijuana. Other types of drugs are transported to and from South Africa via cartels so the government keeps a close eye on the drug scene in the nation.
The cannabis scene in South Africa is somewhat of a hazy area on the grounds that there are, in reality, great deals of them in the black market. Since marijuana consumption and cannabis seed cultivation isn’t actually lawful, there are no seed banks in South Africa. There are also no officially licensed weed dispensaries in the streets. However, since the nation has an atmosphere and the ideal climate for growing weed seeds, there are a lot of individuals who are developing plants and selling their own seeds. Some do it for personal consumption while others do it for unrestricted commercial purposes.
On the off chance that you are caught possessing cannabis seeds in South Africa in limited quantities, you will probably get an admonition or a fine. As defilement is very incessant in the territory, large sentences are seldom given for weed ownership. In any case, if a most extreme sentence were to be passed on for ownership, it may lead to up to 25 years of jail time.
In 2020, law enforcers do not particularly pay close attention to marijuana activities. This may be due to the legal and domestic issues regarding other more dangerous drugs. As a result, less priority is given to cannabis. It is actually very possible to acquire cannabis in South Africa as long as you know where to get them, For starters, tourists may attract suspicion so making a friend in the area is a good place to start.
LEGALIZATION MARIJUANA IN SOUTH AFRICA: IS IT POSSIBLE?
Many laws and bills have been passed that attempt to push the legalization of marijuana in South Africa. However, with the increasing issues pertaining to other drugs in the nation, both the medical and recreational use of marijuana seems to be a little far off. However, cannabis use is decriminalized for both medical and recreational purposes so it is safe to say that marijuana is alive and well in South Africa. As long as it is being used in private and away from public sight, then it may be perfectly safe. As of now, there currently aren’t any laws that have been passed to further the progress of cannabis legalization.
