No smoking ... except for cannabis
Author: Canwest News Service, Edmonton Journal (CN AB), 03-28-08

BRUSSELS - Cannabis will be exempt from a Dutch smoking ban that comes into force in two months.

Restrictions on smokers in cafes and restaurants will not apply as long as cannabis is consumed neat, without tobacco. The exemption follows fears that many of Amsterdam's lucrative "coffee shops" would be forced to close if soft drug users had to smoke elsewhere.

Liberal Dutch policies, introduced in 1972, on the sale and use of cannabis have generated a trade valued at more than $6.1 billion Cdn a year. The coffee shops, which draw millions of tourists each year, allow users to buy cannabis over the counter and smoke it without fear of arrest.

2004 H.U.M.A.N.: Hemp Users Medical Access Network - Toronto Medical Marijuana