Sunday, April 06, 2014
THE UK's House of Lords has protested the impending ban on miraa, few days after MPs from the Labour party endorsed it despite admitting there is no evidence showing its harmful.
The khat ban is being introduced through the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (Amendment) No. 2 Order, which is an affirmative instrument.
According to a UK political blog, affirmative instruments can be approved or rejected by the Lords, but it cannot amend their content, hence the tabling of a 'motion to regret' by Baroness Smith of Basildon.
While this move cannot stop the ban, it attaches a statement of regret to it expressing concerns over the effect the ban will have on relations between the government and communities that use it and its economic implications to traders in Kenya.
The regret motion states: "this House regrets that Her Majesty's Government's plans for the introduction of the draft Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2014 do not include provisions for a 12-month review of the impact of the reclassification of khat(miraa) in view of the highly unusual community focus of its use."
The House of Lords has raised concerns over possibility of the ban being effected without giving the UK's Department for International Development time to work with Kenya's government to find ways of easing the implications of the ban on Kenyan economy.
The crop, mainly grown in Meru, is the economic backbone of that region with data from Horticultural Crops Development Authority showing that at least 559,948 kilograms of miraa were exported in year 2012 while the product's largest exporter Sakijo International said around 80 tonnes exported per week bringing in about Sh5.4 million per consignment.
There are concerns in the UK and in Kenya that banning the sale of miraa, would be counterproductive as it will lead to mass job losses among many young people and make them an easy target for al Shabaab recruitment.
Miraa traders in Kenya have accused local MPs of not lobbying enough against the ban. UK is the only remaining export market in Europe for miraa after Netherlands banned it in 2012
Source: The Star