Litzman on cannabis legalization bill: We can’t bow to public pressure

Housing Minister Yaakov Litzman says fellow ministers are bowing to public pressure by advancing a bill to legalize cannabis use, which he voted against it.

“It’s a dangerous drug and we can’t lend a hand to pressure from the public. If someone needs it as medicine they can get it through a prescription,” Litzman, who heads the United Torah Judaism party, is quoted saying by Hebrew media.

Jerusalem Affairs Minister Rafi Peretz says that while he supports reforms to ease sick people’s access to medical marijuana and decriminalize cannabis use, he opposes full legalization.

“I demanded to make sure the state doesn’t abandon youths to the world of drugs. It begins with marijuana and ends with harder drugs,” Peretz writes on Twitter.

According to the Kann public broadcaster, UTJ and fellow ultra-Orthodox party Shas haven’t committed to backing the bill, though its sponsors expect them to obey coalition discipline.