00:01Rastafarians in Kenya expressed their disappointment on Wednesday after a court refused to grant
00:06them the right to smoke weed on religious grounds.
00:09The community had been pushing Kenyan courts since 2021 to allow them to use the herb under
00:14the constitutional right to freedom of religion.
00:17In front of the High Court in Nairobi, some Rastafarians were trying to come to terms
00:21with their defeat.
00:23It was hoped, against all hope, that that decision would free the Rastafarian society
00:31of Kenya from the stigmatization that it has experienced over the years, from the frustration
00:37that it has also experienced over the years, and of course the frustrations that, you know,
00:44have often come with the arbitrary arrests, sometimes the illegal searches and intrusion
00:56to their privacy, so we had hoped that this will mark the end of it.
01:01In front of the judges, Rastafarians attempted to emphasize their use of cannabis in their
01:06religious meditations.
01:08friends, but the High Court said the community had failed to show that marijuana was a necessary
01:13part of their practice.
01:15We've been waiting for this judgment for a long time, and our disappointment is, it didn't
01:22have to be virtual.
01:23They could have just come and made the judgment while looking at us, we could have accepted
01:29that.
01:29Because we are humbled, we were waiting for any judgment that could have come through, so, it's
01:36a disappointment.
01:41During these six years, we have been persevering, and we will not lose hope.
01:45We will continue to pursue our rights, because when you see one door has been closed, we believe
01:50other doors have been opened.
01:58Under a Kenyan law, possession of cannabis is punishable by up to ten years imprisonment
02:02and a substantial fine.
02:03The community's lawyer said they would appeal Wednesday's decision.
02:07It has been closed.
02:08It has been closed for a long time.
02:09It would have been closed for a long time.
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