In Lebanon, consuming cannabis is punishable by immediate imprisonment, unless you have the means to make arrangements. The increasingly recurrent technique: claim to be an addict and go to rehab rather than to prison.
In the world’s third largest hash producer, even a simple tourist can be sent to prison for half a joint (see the story Tripoli Express). And for the Lebanese, the sentence is often much heavier. R. recently told me that he had been raped in his cell, knife at his throat, after being arrested for possession of hashish. Detention can be completely arbitrary, ranging from a few days to several years. Having contacts in high places and money is the unofficial but most effective way of getting out. So those who can afford it often resort to the same strategy to avoid the bars: ask for a detox cure.
H., who went to a treatment center for other reasons, recalls: “Some people came in to supposedly stop smoking, in the midst of those who were going through something much more serious, they were completely lost and the others, bewildered”. For his sister A., it’s “just another absurdity of the country as far as hash is concerned, where everything is ultimately just a question of money.”
Cedar Rehab, one of the most reputed centers, high in the Hammana mountains, offers comprehensive programs and consultations, with a busy schedule of yoga and art classes, group therapy, to treat addiction and its long-term effects listed on its web page as: “weight gain from munchies, loss of interest in studies, work and hobbies, slowness and inability to solve problems, poor coordination, high heart pressure, paranoia and altered perception”.
Keeping up appearances seems to characterize a country where smoking cannabis is as common as it is dangerous. Beneath the surface, everyone knows and accepts the rules of the game, disillusioned and with little hope of change.
Ariel
