Dear cannabinophile friend,
You are invited to join the nomination for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize of the « Grand Bouquet Cannabique de Defenders of Human and Citizen Rights », in particular for the defense of the multiple uses of hemp, its culture, its distribution and consumption.
The « Grand Bouquet Cannabique » brings together all invited cannabis activists in a single, temporary collective, without any commitment other than that of being nominated together with other participants, as candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The purpose of this note is to inform you about :
- the organization of the campaign,
- the purpose of the nomination,
- the composition of the Grand Bouquet Cannabique,
- the procedure to validate your nomination,
- the recruitment of nominators,
- the possibilities to assure the success of the campaign.
We hope you accept the invitation to add your name to the « Grand Bouquet Cannabique » list.
With our best regards,
Éric Chapel (Founder of PAKA Chanvre’n Co), Farid Ghehiouèche (Founder of Cannabis Sans Frontières), Stéphane Karcher aka Kshoo (Co-founder of CIRC), Adriaan Bronkhorst (Co-founder of Drugs Peace Institute)
Introduction
Herewith comes the invitation initiated by PAKA Chanvre’n Co to join the Grand Bouquet Cannabique of Human Rights and Citizen Defenders, the Bouquet that we wish to offer on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the CIRC (Collectif d’Information et de Recherche Cannabique – Association Loi 1901), on October 14, 2021. The Bouquet was presented to the Norwegian Nobel Committee on January 31, 2021 and was nominated on this occasion for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize by the Drugs Peace Institute. This Grand Bouquet is designed as a living organism which can therefore grow: there is room for all cannabinophiles who are friends of CIRC and wish to participate.
We also present the Bouquet to our friends from the academic world and democratically elected representatives in National Parliaments and the European Parliament, who have been qualified by Alfred Nobel to nominate candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize. We will ask these nominator friends to join the Drugs Peace Institute and support the nomination of the Grand Bouquet for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize with a birthday greeting letter to the CIRC.
And then we work towards the Oslo Committee to award the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize to the Grand Bouquet Cannabique, that is, to CIRC and its friends, the cannabinophiles. A human bouquet representing the defense of the incredible plant Cannabis Sativa L. A gift of nature to humanity to be able to integrate into the natural balance of our environment. A plant that men throughout history have criminalized in order to take advantage of the imbalances that such a prohibition creates. A story of hubris and greed, man’s seizure of power over the fate of our environment, not as a responsible member of biodiversity but as master of a supremacist group of colonizers, be they called church, government or mafia. Which brought us the Anthropocene. Prohibition being the cause of the Anthropocene, it is impossible to propose a credible policy of sustainable development without ending the prohibition of psychotropic drugs. This is CIRC’s contribution for thirty years, spelled out in the fundamental requirement of the right to self-cultivation.
Véro Casamia tells us succinctly : “Cannabis saved my life, now I’m fighting to save cannabis.” Is cannabis going to save the world? The future will tell us whether man has been able to re-integrate himself with nature in time to be able to avoid his own elimination. Nicolas Trainerbees, the first beekeeper to succeed in training bees to harvest cannabis resin: “I am very optimistic about the future of the planet: I await the end of humanity with a smile.“ Fortunately cannabis helps us understand. #AuChanvreCitoyens!
1. The campaign
About us.
PAKA Chanvre’n Co is a group dedicated to promoting hemp and its derivatives. It aims to be a point where experience and knowledge of the pros of the profession can be compiled and shared. The group has its origins in the PAKA association, created in 1994. Its shop ‘Chanvre et Compagnie’ – the first militant grow shop in France – was opened in 1998 and closed in 2008 by the authorities. The group’s Facebook page was opened in 2013.
For the 2021 Nobel Campaign, the PAKA group works in collaboration with the Drugs Peace Institute (DPI – Netherlands) which has a long experience with the Nobel Prize nomination of drugs pacifists and reformers of prohibition policies, such as: Mauricio Mamani Pocoaca, Evo Morales, Ben Dronkers and John Marks, José (Pépé) Mujica, the Cannabis Social Clubs, the Mexican Huichols and, in 2020, Ms. Leila de Lima, senator in arbitrary detention for over three years for her opposition to organized extra-judicial executions under President Duterte in the Philippines.
The Drugs Peace Institute is responsible for the administration of the “Grand Bouquet Cannabique” project.
You can contact us at : nobel@drugspeaceinstitute.org
About you
Candidates for nomination are cordially invited to participate in the campaign at their own discretion and according to their own abilities. (see also under 6.)
« Put your weapon down » – Illustration by Gaël
2. The nomination
In addition to recognizing the political commitment of the candidates in favor of the social acceptance of Cannabis Sativa L. this nomination serves to sensitize the public opinion to the progressive integration of the use of cannabis in the society and to the positive contributions of cannabinophiles who contribute fully to the building of society. The current extremely blunt rhetoric of the French government about cannabis gives us hope that this nomination can also help rebalance government policy and prompt a reconsideration of the situation. As for the Prize itself, let’s be honest, the members of the Oslo Nobel Committee are chosen from the local political elite steeped in prohibitionist ideology, so it is unrealistic to assume that the Nobel Prize will be awarded. to a group of anti-prohibitionists. The usefulness of our collective initiative must therefore be sought in the publicity surrounding the nomination by personalities considered competent by Alfred Nobel to nominate, for his prize, activists for world peace (see 5.)
3. The Grand Bouquet Cannabique (GBC)
The “Grand Bouquet Cannabique” is conceived as a set of flowers, made up of emblematic figures from different movements which, since the 1980s, have been defending the right to use, cultivate and distribute cannabis in France.
For the composition of the GBC, no discrimination between cannabinophiles seems acceptable to us on the basis of any preference for a subspecies of Cannabis sativa L. (race, variety, hybrid, use, mode of consumption, legal status, active ingredients or others. cultural distinctions…).
It is inconceivable that the plant that gives us our freedom of mind could be misused for the mutual discrimination of its users on the basis of its varieties and uses.
The diversity of the Grand Bouquet Cannabique can only increase its brilliance and splendor, and the inclusion of French or foreign cannabinophiles-activists, in particular from overseas departments and territories and from all the countries where French people have taken refuge, will strengthen its attraction.
4. Acceptance in civil disobedience mode
Your acceptance of the invitation to be nominated for this award is the cornerstone of the campaign as you are asked to do so in the form of a brief personal testimony to convince of the merits of your interventions as well as of the beauty and the qualities of cannabis. As this testimony can only present cannabis in a favorable light, your acceptance will be an offense under the Public Health Code. Although this offense disobeys the prohibitions of the law, it can be justified as civil disobedience, in accordance with the principles of freedom and equality enshrined in the French constitution. Although this offense could in principle lead to criminal prosecution, it is unlikely that a defense of cannabis before the Oslo Committee will motivate the French State to do so.
On a personal level, the honor bestowed by the nomination can serve as protection before authorities who certainly prefer not to make a fool of themselves. In the same vein, it is even possible to underline this civil insubordination character of your testimony and present it from the outset as characteristic of the whole group.
The Drugs Peace Institute intends to present your nomination with a paragraph that could read: »All of the nominees sincerely agree that they have no choice but to speak with the utmost praise and respect for the cannabis plant, so that it can only be presented in the most favorable light so that whoever wishes or needs it can learn about it and benefit with confidence of its multiple material, therapeutic and liberating applications « .
Candidates are invited to write a short elogy of cannabis, with a personal testimony, not exceeding 500 words, of their fight for the freedom to use, distribute and cultivate cannabis, including - personal details: a picture, surname and first name (s ) and / or alias, year of birth, country of residence or origin, training and professional activities, - a description of the most important activities carried out in favor of the normalization of the use of cannabis and, if applicable, of the attitude of authorities; this description does not need to be explained in terms of human rights but will describe in very direct terms the actual work carried out by the candidate and is preferably brightened up by assorted photos, - a description of the candidate’s motivation to lead this fight for the normalization of cannabis use, e.g. if this motivation is based on a belief, own life experiences, consumption, distribution or cultivation of cannabis, sudden inspiration, etc.
You’ll find at the bottom of this page examples of the testimonials received from the first 10 candidates.
5. Recruitment of nominators
According to the statutes of the Nobel Foundation, a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize is considered valid if it is submitted by a person belonging to one of the following categories
- Members of national assemblies and national governments (cabinet members / ministers) of sovereign states as well as current heads of state,
- University professors, emeritus professors and associate professors of history, social sciences, law, philosophy, theology and religion,
- directors of peace research institutes and foreign policy institutes,
- People who received the Nobel Peace Prize (European parliamentarians !)
The importance of a nomination may depend, among other things, on the number of people who present a nomination. The recruitment of these nominators is therefore an important part of our campaign. It takes place during the period from January 31, 2021, date of submission of the nomination by the Drugs Peace Institute till August 31st, 2021 end of the selection procedure and of the inscription of the nominators on the support list of the nomination.
It is recommended that candidates of the “Grand Bouquet Cannabique” help to recruit as many potential nominators as possible through their cannabis networks. First among French parliamentarians and university professors, then also potential nominators abroad, through networks of cannabinophile friends, more particularly in countries which have already legalized cannabis or are in the process normalizing.
An example of a letter for someone qualified to nominate a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize, or to invite such a person, can be downloaded here.
6. How to assure our success
Instead of undergoing the nomination as a mere honor for services rendered, we also use it as an instrument to further our goals. To measure the success of this campaign, it is therefore useful to keep these goals in mind :
- establish as a fact that an activist for social respect and the legalization of cannabis is an activist for human and citizen’s rights ;
- establish as a fact that, without hypocrisy, a cannabis user can only present cannabis in a favorable light.
The preliminary conclusion may be that the users themselves can determine this success.
You will find here the text of the nomination of the Grand Bouquet Cannabique sent to Oslo.
Candidate’s testimony
Béatrice Budin – Véronique Casamia – Jean-Pierre Ceccaldi – Alexis Chanebeau
Éric Chapel – Gaël Denhard – Jean-Pierre Galland – KShoo – Max – Ophélie Perdu – Laurent Sazy
