Feature: S. Africa faces dilemma over marijuana

To legalize or not to legalize marijuana is a question for South Africans.

Amid a heated debate on the issue, Head of the Cannabis Working Group, Andre du Plessis made headlines last week when lighting up dagga joint live on air while discussing the legalization of cannabis on a TV program run by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

Du Plesssis demands that South Africa government consider the legalization of cannabis for recreational and medical purposes.

He told Xinhua that the decriminalization of smoking the herb would be positive as it would also reduce the number of people who were imprisoned for smoking the "blessed herb".

"It's a God-given plant. It should be treated thus. You should be able to buy it in the store like you buy your cucumbers," he said.

Thousands of jobs would be created if marijuana is legalized, he added.

Use of cannabis has been illegal in South Africa. In practice, imprisonment is rare, although fines of 200 to 300 rand (20 to 30 U.S. dollars) are often meted out for possessing marijuana.

South Africans are divided on whether marijuana should be legalized. Although opposition remains strong, the call for legalizing it is growing. Recently, hundreds of people demonstrated in Johannesburg as part of a country-wide march in support for legalizing cannabis.

"What do we want? Legalization," shouted the crowd, puffing and puffing clouds of hashish smoke. The protesters were holding a banner which read: "Another drug policy is possible" and placards calling for "Marijuana for all".

"Legalization would mean less trafficking, better products and to some extend less crime," said a 39-year-old man who identified himself only as Thuso.

Although the Global Marijuana March is recognized in some parts of the world, including South Africa, proponents of the herb are still battling to get the green light for using marijuana for recreational and medical purposes.

But not everyone agrees with Thuso.

Sibanenge Dube, a middle aged man, called marijuana legalization "a bad idea".

"It takes our culture down the drain. A considerable number of people would smoke weed and I don't think it's a great thing for South Africa," he said.

Inkatha Freedom Party MP Mario Oriani-Ambrosini had vigorously lobbied for legalizing the herb for medical use before he died of cancer in 2014.

Hendricks Peterson, 50, another supporter for legalizing marijuana, said it was important to legalize cannabis because"it can be an affordable antidepressant for sport persons".

Some other people maintain that cannabis is a vital lifeline for terminally ill people.

"Do you know marijuana is the only thing that allows some epileptic children to survive?"asked a man who identified himself as Stuart.

A 52-year-old woman, Kholwani Mtshali, claimed she was HIV positive and suffered from a nervous breakdown.

"When I started smoking the weed, I now have appetite. I can eat and I'm much better," she said. "I am up on my feet again."

Mtshali said she had been drinking and smoking marijuana for the past 10 years. "I don't have to be secret about it", she told Xinhua, pointing at a two-meter-high marijuana tree at the back of her home garden.

"I lost my husband when my first born son was doing his matric. By selling the herb, I managed to send all my four kids to colleges," she said.

In the U.S., at least four states -- Colorado, Washington, Alaska and Oregon -- have legalized retail marijuana. Although voters in Washington, D.C., are also pushing for legalized recreational marijuana use, sales currently remain banned. Meanwhile 23 states have legalized medical cannabis.

According to a U.S. report, profits from marijuana are expected to be almost 11 billion dollars annually in all the states where marijuana is legalized. Endi