Kenya’s High Court has dismissed a years-long petition seeking to allow Rastafarians to use cannabis for religious purposes, ruling that the community failed to demonstrate that the country’s drug laws violate constitutional protections for freedom of religion. Consequently, cannabis possession remains punishable by up to 10 years in prison under Kenya’s 1994 narcotics law, which Rastafarians argue has led to repeated police harassment. Although the court rejected the legal challenge, the judge acknowledged that widespread recreational cannabis use suggests the existing law may be overly punitive and called for broader public debate on future reforms. The movement holds particular significance in Kenyan history through its association with dreadlocks, once worn by Mau Mau independence fighters who resisted British colonial rule.
Africanews