 Location of Russia (dark green) | |
| Medicinal | Illegal |
|---|---|
| Recreational | Illegal |
Cannabis is illegal in Russia. Possession of up to 6 grams (or two grams of hashish) is an administrative offense, punishable by a fine or detention of 15 days. Possession of larger amounts is a criminal offense. [1] [2]
At the end of the 19th century, cannabis cultivation for fiber was one of the main sources of revenue of the peasants of Orel, Kaluga, Kursk, Chernigov, Mogilev and partly Minsk provinces of the Russian Empire. According to the Russian Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary , about 140 thousand tons of hemp were produced annually in the European part of the Russian Empire at the end of the 19th century, which accounted for about 40% of the production of hemp in Europe.
During dekulakization, large farms engaged in cannabis cultivation were fragmented into small (0.1-0.15 ha) plots, handling and capable of satisfying only domestic needs. A report at the beginning of the 1930s stated: "the cannabis industry of agriculture in the Middle Volga region, as well as in other cannabis regions of the USSR, is in a state of decline," seen in "shrinking of acreage, low yields, reduction in the commodity share of gross collections." [3]
The Great Soviet Encyclopedia of 1937 reported:
The socialist reconstruction of agriculture has dramatically changed the face of backward cannabis cultivation in the USSR. The unfolding Stakhanov movement in agriculture, in particular among the cannabis growers, provided higher yields of cannabis. 14.03. In 1936 a special meeting of the leaders of the party and government was held with the leaders in flax and hemp. A number of Stakhanovite-carpet-weavers were awarded orders of the Union. After 1934 the cannabis crops began to recover, and if in 1934 the cannabis sown area was 598,000 hectares, then its crops in 1936 occupied 680,000 hectares, amounting to 4/5 of the world's total area under cannabis. A decree of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and the Central Committee of the CPSU (b.) (March 1934) granted special privileges and advantages for hemp crops on homesteads, backyards and floodplains. Preparation of hemp fiber from cannabis in the USSR in 1933-34 reached 39.4 thousand tons and in 1934-35. - 44,9 thousand tons; production of hemp oil (from seeds) in the USSR in 1933 amounted to 5.0 thousand tons, and in 1934 - 6.3 thousand tons. [4]
Entering the 20th century, use of cannabis (largely as hashish) was confined to Russia's colonial acquisitions in Central Asia. In 1909, I. S. Levitov produced a pamphlet based on his studies in that region, noting that locals had used cannabis for six centuries or more, and that Russian colonists and cossacks had acquired the habit from the locals. [5]
In 1926 and 1928, the Soviet Union produced some of its earliest regulations to prevent "narcomania", focused on cocaine and morphine, but it was in 1934 that it banned the unauthorized cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy. [6] A direct ban on the illegal sowing or cultivation of Indian hemp was introduced by Article 225 of the RSFSR Criminal Code of 1960, [7] while hemp continued to occupy a significant place in the total volume of agricultural production. [8] While cannabis had been long used in Central Asia, it was not until the 1960s that the issue received much attention from the Soviet government due to increased press coverage of drug use. [9]
In modern Russia, per the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 93% of the nation's marijuana comes from Kazakhstan. [10]
A 1914 USDA report noted:
Hemp is cultivated throughout the greater part of Russia, and it is one of the principal crops in the provinces of Orel, Kursk, Samara, Smolensk, Tula, Voronezh, and Poland. Two distinct types, similar to the tall fiber hemp and the short oilseed hemp of Manchuria, are cultivated, and there are doubtless many local varieties in isolated districts where there is a little interchange of seed. The crop is rather crudely cultivated, with no attempt at seed selection or improvement, and the plants are generally shorter and coarser than the hemp grown in Kentucky. The short oilseed hemp with slender stems, about 30 inches high, bearing compact clusters of seeds and maturing in 60 to 90 days, is of little value for fiber production, but the experimental plants, grown from seed imported from Russia, indicate that it may be valuable as an oil-seed crop to be harvested and thrashed in the same manner as oilseed flax. [11]
In 2004 the drug policy of Russia was liberalized. [12] For various drugs, the amount that individuals could possess without facing criminal charges was revised upwards. [1] In particular, the possession limit for cannabis was set at 20 grams, so that less than this amount would be only an administrative offense with no threat of jail time. [13] Previously, possessing even a single cannabis joint qualified as a criminal offense. [13]
In 2006 Russian policy reversed again to lower the possession limits for various drugs, with the criminal limit for cannabis going from 20 g to 6 g. [1] Less than 6 grams qualified as an administrative offense punishable by a 5000 ruble fine or 15 days detention. [1]
The following penalties apply to conviction for large-scale possession: [14]
In August 2022, the American basketball player Brittney Griner was sentenced to nine years in prison for smuggling 0.7 grams of cannabis oil into Russia in her luggage in February 2022. [15] She was released in December 2022 in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. [16]
Another American citizen, Marc Fogel, was sentenced to 14 years in prison in June 2022 for smuggling 14 vape cartridges and a small amount of cannabis flower into Russia in August 2021. [17]
In 2024, a German was arrested at Saint Petersburg Pulkovo Airport after Russian customs found gummy bear sweets containing cannabis in his luggage. Even small amounts of cannabis in this case can result in up to 7 years in prison. [18]
The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937, Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law 75–238, 50 Stat. 551, enacted August 2, 1937, was a United States Act that placed a tax on the sale of cannabis. The H.R. 6385 act was drafted by Harry Anslinger and introduced by Rep. Robert L. Doughton of North Carolina, on April 14, 1937. The Seventy-fifth United States Congress held hearings on April 27, 28, 29th, 30th, and May 4, 1937. Upon the congressional hearings confirmation, the H.R. 6385 act was redrafted as H.R. 6906 and introduced with House Report 792. The Act is referred to, using the modern spelling, as the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act. It was overturned in 1969 in Leary v. United States, and was repealed by Congress the next year.
Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of Cannabis sativa cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants on Earth. It was also one of the first plants to be spun into usable fiber 50,000 years ago. It can be refined into a variety of commercial items, including paper, rope, textiles, clothing, biodegradable plastics, paint, insulation, biofuel, food, and animal feed.
In the United States, increased restrictions and labeling of cannabis as a poison began in many states from 1906 onward, and outright prohibitions began in the 1920s. By the mid-1930s cannabis was regulated as a drug in every state, including 35 states that adopted the Uniform State Narcotic Drug Act. The first national regulation was the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937.
A drug policy is the policy regarding the control and regulation of psychoactive substances, particularly those that are addictive or cause physical and mental dependence. While drug policies are generally implemented by governments, entities at all levels may have specific policies related to drugs.
Cannabis is a plant used in Australia for recreational, medicinal and industrial purposes. In 2019, 36% of Australians over the age of fourteen years had used cannabis in their lifetime and 11.6% had used cannabis in the last 12 months.
Cannabis in Portugal is decriminalized, as a result of the decriminalization of all drugs in Portugal in 2001. Medical use of cannabis was legalized in 2018.
Cannabis in Wisconsin is illegal for recreational use. Possession of any amount is punishable by up to 6 months in prison and a $1000 fine for a first offense. A second offense is punished as a felony with up to 3.5 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine. At the local level, however, numerous municipalities and counties have decriminalized cannabis or lessened penalties for minor possession offenses. Medical use is legal only in the form of low-THC cannabis oil.
Cannabis in New York has been legal for medical purposes under New York law since 2016, and recreational purposes since 2021. As of 2022, recreational cannabis is for sale legally in the state, only through state-approved dispensaries.
Cannabis and hemp in Spain have a long and rich history. The plant has grown feral on the Iberian peninsula since prehistory and has been intensely cultivated, in particular for its fibres, throughout Spanish and Portuguese history.
Kentucky was the greatest producer of hemp in the United States during the 19th and 20th centuries, when it was the source of three fourths of U.S. hemp fiber. Production started to decline after World War I due to the rise of tobacco as the cash crop in Kentucky and the foreign competition of hemp fibers and finished products. In 1970, federal policies virtually banned the production of industrial hemp during the war on drugs saying all Cannabis sativa is a Schedule I controlled substance. Federal law under the Agricultural Act of 2014 allowed research back into hemp. Kentucky began production again with 33 acres in 2014. As of the 2016 harvest season, only two U.S. states other than Kentucky had over 100 acres (40 ha) in hemp production: Colorado and Tennessee. The first 500-acre commercial crop was planted in Harrison County in 2017, and research permits were issued for over 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) that year. The 2016 documentary Harvesting Liberty concerns the 21st century Kentucky hemp industry.
Cannabis is illegal in Indonesia. Cannabis plants, all plants of the Cannabis genus and all parts of plants including seeds, fruit, straw, and processed cannabis plants or parts of cannabis plants including marijuana resin and hash are categorized as narcotics group. Drug offenders are subject to a minimum sentence of four years in prison if caught possessing it. Derivatives of medical and recreational cannabis are also illegal.
Cannabis in Italy is currently legal for medical and industrial uses, although it is strictly regulated, while it is decriminalized for recreational uses. In particular, the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use is a civil infraction. The possible sanctions for possession vary from the issuing of a diffida to first offenders, that is an injunction not to use the drug again; to the temporary suspension of certain personal documents for repeat offenders. Conversely, the unauthorized sale of cannabis-related products is illegal and punishable with imprisonment, as is the unlicensed cultivation of cannabis, although recent court cases have effectively established the legality of cultivating small amounts of cannabis for exclusively personal use. The licensed cultivation of cannabis for medical and industrial purposes requires the use of certified seeds; however, there is no need for authorization to plant certified seeds with minimal levels of psychoactive compounds.
Cannabis has been cultivated in Japan since the Jōmon period of Japanese prehistory approximately six to ten thousand years ago. As one of the earliest cultivated plants in Japan, cannabis hemp was an important source of plant fiber used to produce clothing, cordage, and items for Shinto rituals, among numerous other uses. Hemp remained ubiquitous for its fabric and as a foodstuff for much of Japanese history, before cotton emerged as the country's primary fiber crop amid industrialization during the Meiji period. Following the conclusion of the Second World War and subsequent occupation of Japan, a prohibition on cannabis possession and production was enacted with the passing of the Cannabis Control Law.
Cannabis in Latvia is illegal for recreational and medical purposes, but production of industrial hemp is permitted.
Cannabis in Ukraine is legal for medical purposes.
Cannabis in Alberta became legalized on October 17, 2018 following the coming into force of federal Bill C-45. Production, distribution and consumption of cannabis had been prohibited in Canada since 1923. While some other provinces distribute cannabis through publicly owned retail monopolies, Alberta allows private companies to sell cannabis at licensed retail storefronts and online. Private retailers must purchase cannabis from the provincial wholesaler, the AGLC. Originally, the Alberta government was the sole entity permitted to retail cannabis online within the province but as of March 8, 2022, private retailers are permitted to do so and the province has since exited the retail business.
Hemp paper is a paper variety consisting exclusively or to a large extent from pulp obtained from fibers of industrial hemp. The products are mainly specialty papers such as cigarette paper, banknotes and technical filter papers. Compared to wood pulp, hemp pulp offers a four to five times longer fibre, a significantly lower lignin fraction as well as a higher tear resistance and tensile strength. Because the paper industry's processes have been optimized for wood as the feedstock, production costs currently are much higher than for paper from wood.
The Cannabis Control Law of Japan, aka 1948 Law No. 124, is the national law of Japan concerning cannabis possession, cultivation, and transfer.
'FINOLA' is a low THC hemp variety from Finland that is primarily used to produce hempseed.
The cultivation of cannabis in Italy has a long history dating back to Roman times, when it was primarily used to produce hemp ropes, although pollen records from core samples show that Cannabaceae plants were present in the Italian peninsula since at least the Late Pleistocene, while the earliest evidence of their use dates back to the Bronze Age. For a long time after the fall of Rome in the 5th century A.D., the cultivation of hemp, although present in several Italian regions, mostly consisted in small-scale productions aimed at satisfying the local needs for fabrics and ropes. Known as canapa in Italian, the historical ubiquity of hemp is reflected in the different variations of the name given to the plant in the various regions, including canape, càneva, canava, and canva in northern Italy; canapuccia and canapone in the Po Valley; cànnavo in Naples; cànnavu in Calabria; cannavusa and cànnavu in Sicily; cànnau and cagnu in Sardinia.
