The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended removing cannabis from a drug schedule almost two years earlier. The historic proposal had produced no international effect until yesterday. However, the proposal put to a vote on Wednesday was accepted by the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), described in the report's introduction as unanimous.

Martin Jelsma, director of the drugs and democracy program at the Netherlands-based Transnational Institute, told Marijuana Business Daily: “The medical cannabis wave has accelerated in recent years, but this decision will accelerate it further.”

Six recommendations were considered in the historic Vienna vote. Recommendation 5.1 passed with 27 votes in favor, 25 against and one abstention. The original account also describes the other five recommendations as unanimously accepted here, before detailing their rejection below.

What the vote means

Adoption of Recommendation 5.1 is symbolically important for medical cannabis. Because the decision amounts to CND recognition of its medical benefits, legalization worldwide could accelerate.

Expecting immediate legalization as a result would be too optimistic. The vote only endorsed the WHO recommendation, while whether to follow it depends on each country's domestic policy. Still, it could lead countries to review cannabis laws and open the way for research.

Turkey voted against!

WHO published its cannabis-related recommendations in January 2019. Member states took almost two years to analyze the consequences of accepting or rejecting them. The original article introduces the participating countries and their votes here.

Other recommendations

After approving Recommendation 5.1 on Wednesday, member states continued voting on the remaining proposals:

  • Recommendation 5.2, to transfer THC from the 1971 convention to the 1961 treaty, failed with 23 votes in favor, two abstentions and 28 against.
  • Recommendations 5.3 and 5.6 depended on approval of 5.2 and were therefore rejected without a vote after it failed.
  • Recommendation 5.6 concerned placing THC in Schedule III of the 1961 treaty.
  • Recommendation 5.4, proposing removal of “cannabis extracts and tinctures” from the 1961 treaty, was rejected with 24 votes in favor, two abstentions and 27 against. According to WHO's explanation, it was intended only to remove duplication, rather than “lower the level of control or narrow the scope of control of any cannabis-related substance.”
  • Recommendation 5.5 was rejected with six votes in favor, four abstentions and 43 against. This represented a missed opportunity to clarify the confusing legal status of CBD preparations containing traces of THC. The proposal was ambiguously drafted, and WHO's responses to member states' questions over the previous two years added to the confusion.

Canada's representative acknowledged that Recommendation 5.5 was “supported by scientific evidence, and CBD does not meet the criteria for international control under the drug conventions regarding the risk of abuse or dependence.”