Odisha News, Odisha Latest news, Odisha Daily - OrissaPOST
  • Home
  • State
  • Metro
  • National
  • International
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Feature
  • Timeout
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • IPL 2022
  • Sci-Tech
  • Others
    • COVID-19
    • Today’s Pic
  • Home
  • State
  • Metro
  • National
  • International
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Feature
  • Timeout
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • IPL 2022
  • Sci-Tech
  • Others
    • COVID-19
    • Today’s Pic
No Result
View All Result
OrissaPOST - Odisha Latest news, English Daily -
No Result
View All Result

Colombian leader sees opportunity in cannabis, but not cocaine

PTI
Updated: November 10th, 2021, 12:29 IST
in International
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare on Linkedin

Tel Aviv: Colombian President Iván Duque has high hopes for the medical marijuana industry in a country that has been waging a costly war against a different drug — cocaine — for decades.

But in an interview with The Associated Press during a visit to Israel, he said the promotion of cannabis for medical and other purposes is “a different story” than cocaine, which among other things is terrible for the environment.

“In order to plant one hectare of coca in Colombia, two hectares of tropical jungle are destroyed,” he said. “The other thing is that to produce cocaine you have a very high carbon footprint. You use a lot of gasoline, a lot of cement,” and processing chemicals get dumped in the forest.

There’s also the murderous drug kingpins — one of whom was nabbed just last month on a U.S. Warrant— cartel violence and the scattered remnants of the FARC rebel group who have fought on despite a landmark peace agreement reached five years ago.

But fresh from the U.N. Climate summit, where Colombia pledged to be carbon-neutral by 2050, and the opening of a Colombian innovation center in Jerusalem, Duque was keen to discuss how Colombia and Israel — self-styled “start-up nations” — could collaborate to make the world a better place.

“Innovation is probably the solution to most of our problems. Even those created by innovation, they will still need to be solved by innovation,” said Avi Hasson, the CEO of Start-Up Nation Central, which connects governments and international businesses to Israeli entrepreneurs, and which hosted Duque for a panel discussion Tuesday.

One opportunity is cannabis. July, Colombia lifted an export ban on dried cannabis flower. Duque said his country is looking to harness derivatives for everything from medical treatments and food production to cosmetics. “We’re seeing a lot of international investment coming to Colombia,” said Duque, who will be replaced following a presidential election next year.

Israel might be able to lend a hand. Medical marijuana was legalised years ago, and more than 100,000 Israelis — out of a population of over 9 million — are licensed users. Israel approved marijuana exports in 2019, becoming only the third country to do so.

Israel boasts more than 110 cannabis tech companies, mostly in the health sector, that have attracted nearly $350 million in investment since 2015, according to Start-Up Nation Central. Israel is also among the largest importers of medical cannabis flower.

Duque says there’s a difference between harnessing beneficial components from drugs and lifting prohibition completely.

“We’re not using cannabis for recreational purposes. We’re using it for medical purposes,” he said.

For Duque, who fashions himself a law-and-order conservative, standing up for cannabis in a country that has been the linchpin of the U.S.-led drug war for decades is more than a little out of character. He took office decrying how drugs “destroy” families and as president signed a decree banning possession of drugs in public spaces, challenging a ruling by the nation’s top court that allows Colombians to carry small amounts of marijuana, cocaine and other drugs.

He’s also committed to resuming aerial eradication of coca crops that are behind a record surge in cocaine production, although legal challenges and protests by farmers in remote areas have prevented him from realising that goal.

In the years since the peace deal, newly disarmed rebels have abandoned the remote areas where they sheltered for decades under the jungle canopy. Cattle ranchers, loggers, miners, subsistence farmers and criminal groups have moved into the void, according to a report earlier this month from the International Crisis Group.

Colombia lost 747,000 hectares (2,885 square miles) of forest during the four years that followed the 2016 peace deal — an area about 10 times the size of New York City, according to the National Institute for Environmental Studies. That compares to approximately 562,000 hectares (2,170 square miles) of forest loss in the four years leading up to 2016, when many parts of the country where the FARC was active were off limits.

Colombia is also among the most dangerous countries in the world for environment defenders. Some 65 were killed in 2020 alone, accounting for nearly a third of the global total of 227, according to Global Witness, a human rights group.

Duque defended his record on the environment, noting that he created the country’s first national anti-deforestation council, supported a bill increasing sanctions for environmental crime and has committed to zero deforestation by 2030.

At the U.N. Climate change summit in Glasgow, he promised to turn 30% of the country’s land into protected areas by the end of his administration. National parks and government-run reserves currently make up around 15% of the country’s territory.

He blamed the attacks on environmental defenders on the cartels, including the one led by Dairo Antonio Úsuga, a drug lord known as Otoniel whom Duque has likened to Pablo Escobar.

“One of the most dangerous criminals in the world, and especially in Colombia, who had ordered the killing of environmental leaders, was Otoniel, the kingpin we captured two weeks ago,” he said.

PTI

Tags: CannabiscocaineColombiaDairo Antonio ÚsugadrugFARCmarijuanaPablo Escobar
ShareTweetSendShare
Suggest A Correction

Enter your email to get our daily news in your inbox.

Related Posts

Indonesia lifts ban on cooking oil export as supply improves

May 19, 2022

Putin’s daughter Katerina’s lover is called Zelensky

May 19, 2022
Russia-Ukraine war

Ukraine war could soon cause global food crisis that may last for years

May 19, 2022
Twitter conversation between Musk and his mother on death goes viral

Musk will now vote for Republicans as conservatives return on Twitter

May 19, 2022

Global stock markets fall amid concern over rising prices

May 19, 2022

UK inflation rate hits 40-yr high as energy bill soars

May 19, 2022

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

OrissaPOST epaper Sunday POST OrissaPOST epaper

Click Here: Plastic Free Odisha

Plastic Free Odisha

IMT Pharmacy College-Puri

IMT Pharmacy College students call for a Plastic Free Odisha. Have You Joined the movement? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Puri SCS College Students

Puri SCS College Students support a plastic free odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Bridge school students

Bridge school students support plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Haratiya Bidyaniketan School students

Haratiya Bidyaniketan School students of Alipur, Bari support a plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Swaraj Barik, Actor

Swaraj Barik calls for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website www.orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Miteish Khimji,Entrepreneur

Miteish Khimji supports a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Nayagarh Girls’ High School

Nayagarh Girls’ High School students support a plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Utkal University Journalism Department Students

Utkal University Journalism Department students call for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website www.orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Archita Sahu, Actress

Archita Sahu support a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Sundargarh Public School students

Sundargarh Public School students support a plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

CRPF 127 Battalion, Bhanjanagar

CRPF 127 Battalion, Bhanjanagar supports a plastic free Odisha. Do you?   *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Unit III Bharat Scouts and Guide

Unit III Bharat Scouts and Guides team call for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Akash Dasnayak, Actor

Akash Dasnayak, Actor supports a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

BJB Autonomous College-Bhubaneswar

BJB Autonomous college students support a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Bhubaneswar Bar Association Lawyer Liberty Trust

Bhubaneswar Bar Association Lawyer Liberty Trust supports plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Members of All Ride Bicycle

Members of All Ride Bicycle supports a plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Sports Person Sradhanjali Samantaray

Sports Personality Sradhanjali Samantaray support a *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your Photos/Selfie (with fingers ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Sabyasachi Mishra, Actor

Sabyasachi Mishra calls for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website www.orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Anubhav Mohanty, Actor

Anubhav Mohanty supports call for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website www.orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Actor Sritam Das

Actor Sritam Das supports a plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Govinda Poddar-Odisha Ranji Team Captain

Govinda Poddar, Odisha Ranji Team Captain  calls for a Plastic Free Odisha. Have You Joined the movement? *Visit our website ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Gandhi College Plus III science students of Khandagiri, Bhubaneswar

Gandhi Plus III science students of Khandagiri, Bhubaneswar support a plastic free Odisha. Do you?   *Visit our website orissapost.com. ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Olympian Anuradha Biswal

Olympian Anuradha Biswal supports a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

High school students of Sambalpur district

High school students of Sambalpur district support plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Bargarh Ranapratap High School students

Bargarh Ranapratap High School students support plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) ...

October 2, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Deepak Kumar-Actor

Deepak Kumar support a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Padmashree Aruna Mohanty-Odissi Dancer

Padmashree Odissi Dancer Aruna Mohanty calls for a Plastic Free Odisha. Have You Joined the movement? *Visit our website orissapost.com. ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

D.A.V Public School-Kalinga Nagar

D.A.V Public School Students, support Plastic free Odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post ...

August 30, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Students of Tulasipur Saraswati Sishu Vidya Mandir, Cuttack

Students of Tulasipur Saraswati Sishu Vidya Mandir, Cuttack call for a Plastic Free Odisha. Do you support the movement? *Visit our ...

August 29, 2018
Plastic Free Odisha

Ratikant Mohapatra,Odissi Dance Director

Ratikant Mohapatra support a plastic free odisha. Do you? *Visit our website orissapost.com. Like,Share,Subscribe,Recommend our Facebook Page Orissapost(@OrissaPOST.Here.Now) *Post your ...

August 30, 2018

Archives

Editorial

Buffalo Killings

People pay their respects outside the scene of a shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York. (Photograph: Matt Rourke/AP via theguardian.com)
May 18, 2022

The US as also the rest of the world are now busy dissecting how an 18-year-old white man could kill...

Read more

Shireen Abu Aqleh

(AP Photo via aljazeera.com)
May 17, 2022

Rarely does a journalist get the respect and recognition that Al Jazeera’s Shireen Abu Aqleh, the 51-year-old Palestinian American journalist,...

Read more

Putin’s Problems

May 16, 2022

The irony of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine in February is that the enemy he wanted to...

Read more

Outdated Laws

May 15, 2022

The Supreme Court has put a stay on the sedition law, and the Union government has also said the prime...

Read more
  • Home
  • State
  • Metro
  • National
  • International
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Feature
  • Sports
  • Sci-Tech
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Career
Developed By Ratna Technology

© 2020 All rights Reserved by OrissaPOST

  • Home
  • Metro
  • State
  • National
  • International
  • IPL
  • Sports
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Feature
  • Opinion
  • Sci-Tech
  • COVID-19
  • Today’s Pic
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Career
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

© 2020 All rights Reserved by OrissaPOST