Jamaicans Take Charge Of 'Ganja Fest'

(Gleaner) AFTER A mere one-year partnership arrangement with the world-renown High Times Magazine, the local-based group Rastafari In Inity (RII) will be taking full control of the 2016 staging of the annual ganja festival, Rastafari Rootzfest, which will be staged from December 9-11 in Negril. "We are doing it with a total local flavour this year. High Times Magazine will not be a part of this year's staging," said Ras Iyah V, the CEO of RII and chairman of the Westmoreland Hemp and Ganja Farmers' Association. "This year, the event will be known as Rastafari Rootzfest Jamaica Ganja Cup." Last year, local ganja interests were overshadowed by the way the event was structured. High Times, which provided the majority of the financing, wanted the fest to revolve primarily around its trademark 'World Cannabis Cup', which was previously staged in Holland and the United States. Last year's event, which was the first ganja-related event staged locally since the softening of the ganja laws - the amendments to Jamaica's Dangerous Drugs Act, which became law on April 15, 2015 - was an overwhelming success as it attracted scores of local and international ganja interests to include investors, smokers, and enthusiasts.