DW Chronicle 1202 -- Hawai'i Legalization Bill, South Korea Drug War Claims Actor's Life, more...Table of Contents with Live URLs+lead article

[Bobbie Sellers]

Drug War Chronicle, Issue #1202 -- 1/17/24
Phillip S. Smith, Editor,psm...@drcnet.org
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/1202

A Publication of StoptheDrugWar.org
David Borden, Executive Director,bor...@drcnet.org
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition"

After 30 years we still have work left. Will you support it?
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/dec/21/what_are_we_after_30_years

Table of Contents:

1. SOUTH KOREA DRUG CRACKDOWN CLAIMS LIFE OF RENOWNED "PARASITE" ACTOR [FEATURE]
South Korea's policy of strict abstinence from drugs takes a toll.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/04/south_korea_drug_crackdown

2. HAWAII ATTORNEY GENERAL GRUDGINGLY OFFERS DRAFT MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION BILL [FEATURE]
The Hawaii attorney general's office opposes marijuana legalization but sees the writing on the wall.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/10/hawaii_attorney_general

3. BIDEN GRANTS PARDONS TO THOUSANDS FOR FEDERAL MJ CONVICTIONS, CLEMENCY FOR ELEVEN WITH DRUG CONVICTIONS, MORE... (12/22/23)
A Ukrainian rightist faction is blocking the signing of the just-passed medical marijuana bill, the Biden administration moves to expand access to naloxone at federal facilities, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/dec/22/biden_grants_pardons_thousands

4. BC HIGH COURT BLOCKS RECRIMINALIZATION OF PUBLIC DRUG USE, UFC ENDS WEED BAN, MORE... (1/2/24)
There is yet another hiccup in the effort to get Alabama medical marijuana dispensaries open, South Dakota's Republican governor commutes the prison sentences of a dozen people for using drugs, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/02/bc_high_court_blocks

5. AMA RELEASES 2023 OVERDOSE REPORT, UKRAINE LAWMAKERS APPROVE MEDMJ, MORE... (1/3/24)
Somebody in Washington state thinks people who smoke pot should not be hired in drug treatment positions, Iran hangs nine more people for drug convictions, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/03/ama_releases_2023_overdose

6. CA CANNABIS CAFE BILL REVIVED, NH DRUG CHECKING BILL PASSES HOUSE, MORE... (1/4/24)
A New York bill takes aim at unlicensed pot shops, the Honolulu city council approves an ordinance requiring that naloxone be on hand at bars and nightclubs, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/04/ca_cannabis_cafe_bill_revived_nh

7. HI AG RELEASES DRAFT LEGAL WEED BILL WITHOUT SUPPORTING, WI GOP LEADER FILES MEDMJ BILL, MORE... (1/8/24)
A Florida Republican lawmaker files a bill to cap THC limits in legal weed if voters approve an initiative, the new Thai government attempts to rein in recreational marijuana sales and use, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/08/hi_ag_releases_draft_legal_weed

8. KY MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION BILL FILED, AUSTRALIA POLL SHOWS SUPPORT FOR HOME GROWS, MORE... (1/9/24)
A new NORML report looks at marijuana expungements, a Kentucky bill that would legalize pot possession and home grows but not commercial sales is filed, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/09/ky_marijuana_legalization_bill

9. FAULTY ROADSIDE DRUG TESTS SNARE THOUSANDS, NJ GOVERNOR SIGNS PARAPHERNALIA BILL, MORE... (1/10/24)
A Rhode Island bill would temporarily legalize the possession, cultivation, and sharing -- but not the commercialization -- of psilocybin, a California bill is the first in the nation to target roadside field drug tests and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/10/faulty_roadside_drug_tests_snare

10. NJ & WA SEE HOME GROW BILLS FILED, ECUADOR STATE OF EMERGENCY OVER CARTELS, MORE... (1/11/24)
The US is set to send assistance ot Ecuador as it battles rampaging drug gangs, a medical marijuana expansion bill gets filed in Delaware, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/11/nj_wa_see_home_grow_bills_filed

11. DC COUNCIL APPROVES MEASURE TO PENALIZE MARIJUANA "GIFTING" SHOPS, MORE... (1/12/24)
A bill requiring warnings that medical marijuana users cannot own guns is moving in South Dakota, a pair of Alaska lawmakers file a psychedelic reform bill, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/12/dc_council_approves_measure

12. VT HOUSE APPROVES SAFE INJECTION SITES, NH LAWMAKERS PONDER MANDATORY MINIMUMS, MORE... (1/16/24)
The Department of Health and Human Services releases its full review of marijuana rescheduling, Oregon GOP lawmakers plot to undo drug decriminalization there, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/16/vt_house_approves_safe_injection

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1. SOUTH KOREA DRUG CRACKDOWN CLAIMS LIFE OF RENOWNED "PARASITE" ACTOR [FEATURE]
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2024/jan/04/south_korea_drug_crackdown

Noted South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, best known for his role in the 2018 Oscar-winning thriller/satire "Parasite," has become the most well-known victim of his government's fanatical war on drugs. On December 27, Lee, 48, was found unconscious in a car filled with carbon monoxide weeks after he was named as a suspected drug user. He died shortly later, leaving behind a suicide note.

Lee came to the attention of authorities after allegations that he used drugs, including marijuana and ketamine, with a night club hostess. Lee claimed that the allegations were part of a blackmail plot (https://nypost.com/2023/12/27/news/what-are-south-koreas-drug-laws-parasite-actor-lee-sun-kyuns-suicide-comes-amid-strict-crackdown/) aimed at him and publicly apologized for "causing immense disappointment" and said he was "sorry for my family, who are enduring extreme pain at this moment."

He nonetheless underwent at least three separate police interrogations, including one lasting 19 hours just days before his death. He also suffered professional consequences after coming under suspicion, being dropped from a film (https://pagesix.com/2023/12/27/entertainment/parasite-star-lee-sun-kyun-dropped-by-film-project-before-apparent-suicide/) in October after the allegations against him went public.

Lee found himself wrapped up in conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol's crusade against drug use after Yoon promised last spring (https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/12/113_349286.html) that his government would "join all forces to win the war on drugs," following another pair of sensational drug arrests. He launched a new drug investigation department at the Supreme Prosecutors Office and staffed it with 840 people.

"Harsh investigations are necessary to punish drug criminals," Yoon said (https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/12/113_349286.html). "Efforts should also be given to rehabilitation treatment to help them return to society at the earliest possible date," he added.

Those hundreds of new drug cops have made a difference. Police arrested (https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2023-12-18/national/socialAffairs/Drug-arrests-at-alltime-high-but-impact-questioned/1938654) more than 17,000 people on drug charges in the first 11 months of 2023, a whopping 39 percent increase over the same period in 2022 -- and 2022 was a record year for drug arrests. More than a thousand arrested were teenagers, a 300 percent increase over previous years.

The current antidrug campaign is a deepening of the "war on drugs" Yoon declared upon coming to office in 2022 as he warned that drugs were becoming more accessible nationwide. And it extends beyond the state, with celebrities leading "just say no" campaigns on social media and talk shows devoting entire episodes to antidrug programming.

It has engulfed other celebrities (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/28/world/asia/lee-sun-kyun-korea-drug-policy.html) beyond Lee. Former K-pop boy band singer G-Dragon was under weeks-long investigation for public drug use until police dropped the case last month after he came up negative on repeated drug tests. Still, his image no longer adorns BMW Korea online ads. And actor Yoo Ah-in, star of the 2018 film "Burning" and the 2021 Netflix series "Hellbound," faces trial after testing positive for propofol, marijuana, ketamine, and cocaine. He has already been cut from the second season of "Hellbound" and has lost advertising work with several South Korean retailers.

This has all been fodder for sensationalist media, and that coverage could have contributed to Lee's death in a country that holds the highest suicide rate among developed nations, said Kang Youn-gon, a media communication professor at Seoul's Chung-Ang University.

"Lee faced some allegations but they haven't been formally verified. But the media has been assertively reporting about Lee's private life… and I think that's something wrong," Kang said (https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/parasite-actor-lee-sun-kyun-found-dead-aged-48_uk_658c0c2be4b014ec45a2d015).

Lee's lawyer, Seongcheol Park, accused the police of violating rules about the public release of information, adding that Lee had tested negative in multiple drug tests and that police did not take his blackmail claim seriously.

"The process was insulting and humiliating to him, even though there was no evidence that he had taken drugs, Park said (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/28/world/asia/lee-sun-kyun-korea-drug-policy.html). "While it's true that drug investigations are necessary, it's a problem when they go too far and don't follow procedures and protocols."

Drug use or possession can garner a penalty of six months to four years in prison, while dealing or trafficking can lead to a sentence of up to 14 years. South Korean officials say that a tough approach is necessary to keep drug use under control, but they have plenty of critics.

"When you look at data and you look at the harsh penalties that have been in place for decades now, they haven't worked," said Gloria Lai (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/28/world/asia/lee-sun-kyun-korea-drug-policy.html), a regional director for the International Drug Policy Consortium, an organization that promotes evidence-based drug policies around the world. "And the cost on people's lives is huge."

"Cracking down with these harsh punishments and unreasonably long years of imprisonment is not going to be effective" in reducing drug use and overdose deaths, said Hyeouk Chris Hahm (https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/28/world/asia/lee-sun-kyun-korea-drug-policy.html), a professor at the Boston University School of Social Work. "And we know that from the history of the US."



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bobbie sellers - a retired nurse in San Francisco

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