A petition to decriminalise cannabis in New South Wales has been launched with the backing of independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich, aiming to trigger a parliamentary debate later this year.
The e-petition, organised by long-time cannabis law reform campaigner Macciza Macpherson, needs 20,000 signatures by August 22 to be tabled in the NSW Legislative Assembly.
It follows the final report of the state’s parliamentary inquiry into the cannabis regulatory framework, which called for the removal of custodial penalties and the decriminalisation of cannabis possession.
Macpherson, a veteran of the cannabis law reform movement since 1979 and former National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) organiser, described prohibition as a “multi-generational tragedy.”
“This has costed the community billions of dollars and senselessly made criminals of hundreds of thousands of otherwise law abiding citizens,” he said.
“I started lobbying for my own benefit. Then I started doing it for my children. I am now doing it for my grandkids.
“Cannabis is a human rights issue and social liberties issue, exactly the same as sexuality or religion. The state has no position prohibiting it.”
He pointed to recent survey data, cited in the petition, which showed overwhelming public support for change.
According to the 2022/23 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 80% of Australians believe possession of cannabis should not be a criminal offence. The same report found more than 40% of people had used cannabis in their lifetime, and more than 10% had used it recently.
The petition argues that successive governments have repeatedly ignored community sentiment and official recommendations, and calls on the NSW Government to decriminalise the personal cultivation, possession and use of cannabis by adults.
“This will eventually get pushed through,” Macpherson added. “Whether it is a sensible and acceptable thing in my lifetime, I am unsure.”