Green Party (綠黨) member Zoe Lee (李菁琪) on Tuesday said a survey presented by education groups that purportedly indicates 93.5 percent of Taiwanese are opposed to the legalization of cannabis use is misleading, as its questions were specially framed to receive responses opposing decriminalization.
During an interview, Lee said the online survey was conducted by the Action Alliance on Basic Education and the Common Good Taiwan Association, which commissioned Cheng Wei (鄭威), head of the Anatomical Pathology Department at Keelung Hospital.
Known as the “Weed Lawyer,” Lee is an advocate for the decriminalization of cannabis and takes on cases to defend people charged with its possession. She is also a legislator-at-large candidate for the Green Party.
Photo courtesy of the Action Alliance on Basic Education
The online survey results are not scientific, as the questions and issues were presented to elicit negative answers that the two organizations wanted to obtain, she said, adding that the survey was likely disseminated through the two organizations’ affiliated networks, and that there is no way to check which groups promote such surveys.
“If the survey targeted the older generation and conservative groups, then of course you would obtain very biased answers, with very high percentage opposing cannabis decriminalization,” Lee said.
The questionnaire included information taken from from US organizations presented misleadingly as facts, including the so-called effects of cannabis on fetuses, decline of intelligence among young people and how it could lead to the use of other drugs, although there are contrary medical evidence and observations, she said.
“On the other hand, if another organization designed a survey with fair questions and focused on getting young people participate, then it could get a result in favor of decriminalization,” Lee said.
Lee and other advocates said that Taiwan should join the decriminalization trend of developed countries, with Canada, Uruguay, Thailand, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, South Africa and many states in the US legalizing recreational or medical use of cannabis.
The poll results released at a news conference by the two organizations on Monday said that “93.5 percent of the public is opposed to the legalization of cannabis use” as the two organizations urged the government to implement more “anti-narcotic drug” education programs for schools.
Action Alliance on Basic Education chairman Wang Han-yang (王瀚陽) said: “When asked: ‘Do you agree that Taiwan should legalize cannabis?’ 36,011 respondents, or 93.5 percent, opposed it; with 1,970 respondents, or 5.1 percent, agreed with legalizing it, and 521 respondents, or 1.4 percent, had no opinion.”
The online survey received 38,502 online responses from Feb. 15 to March 1, Wang said.
“It is clear from the survey that the vast majority of people in Taiwan do not support legalized use of cannabis,” Wang said, mentioning news of Internet celebrity Weng Chuan-ming (翁雋明), popularly known as Joeman, getting arrested for smoking marijuana, then sharing a video apologizing.
“The incident got young people curious and they asked online: ‘Is smoking marijuana really harmful to one’s health?’ It seems most young people are not aware of cannabis’ dangers and that it is illegal in Taiwan... This shows that the government must enhance efforts to educate students on cannabis and other narcotic drugs,” Wang said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated