A Rapper Turned Member of Parliament Is Leading the Fight for Legalisation in Poland

On Monday 1 February, the member of parliament Piotr Liroy-Marzec presented a draft bill to legalise cannabis in Poland, a country where two thirds of the population are in favour of this measure according to a public survey published in July last year by the news agency PBS.

Liroy, as he is known in his artistic career, is a rap pioneer in his country who recently decided to get into politics - he has been in the role since October - as one of the candidates for the party Kuzik’15, a protest group that is opposed to the traditional powers.

The party emerged from nothing to become the third largest political force thanks to the vote of young people that are unhappy with the way power is shared. It bears the name of its founder, the Polish punk star Pawel Kukiz.

In order for the initiative presented by Liroy to go ahead in parliament, it needs the support of the conservative party Law and Justice, which obtained an unprecedented majority in the last general elections following eight years as the opposition party. 

At the moment, they have not said anything in relation to the matter; however the measure has supporters and opponents among the representatives of the central European country. Many were forced to announce their stance when, in 2015, a paediatrician from an important Polish hospital began to treat a child with medical cannabis, imported from Holland, and the treatment was successful.

“This draft bill reflects everything that I have said over the years, especially during the election campaign", stated Liroy. “I promised ill people I knew that I would do everything possible to put this draft bill on the table”.

Whether the measure now goes ahead does not depend too much on him; however it is the first step forward in a country that clearly wants to see the legalisation of medical cannabis.

Picture: Liroy