`This was a drug party that had to be stopped,' officers say

Police detained 30 participants at the international Marijuana Day celebrations at Hayarkon Park in Tel Aviv yesterday, claiming the event was a drug party.
The detainees, including six of the event's organizers, were taken for questioning on suspicion of using drugs.

The organizers and MK Roman Bronfman (Meretz), who was supposed to address the crowd, blame the police for what they consider to be "brutal behavior" and "persecuting citizens."

Several thousand people attended the Tel Aviv event marking Marijuana Day, well short of the expectations of the organizers, who hoped a mass outing would have a broad impact on public opinion in favor of the pro-user movement.

The event would have gone practically unnoticed had it not been for the intervention of the Israel Police. In the early afternoon, shortly before Bronfman was scheduled to speak, the Yarkon District police decided to shut down a number of improvised stages set up for performances by artists.

According to the police, undercover agents were among those attending the event. When it became apparent that a large number of people were smoking marijuana or hashish, it was decided to crack down on the gathering.

"The smell of the party was evident at a distance," said Brigadier Aharon Ezra, commander of the Yarkon District. "We caught 30 people smoking marijuana and I decided this was a drug party that needed to be stopped. We will not tolerate a blatant public violation of the law."

Ezra added that police confiscated some 1.5 kilograms of marijuana and hashish. "We also got a chocolate cake with significant amounts of marijuana seeds," he said.

The police also confiscated the amplifying system that was to be used for musical performances and prevented Bronfman from making his speech.

The MK demanded that the police allow the event to continue, but to no avail. "The officers in effect sought to prevent me from speaking," he said. "This is an assault against the freedom of expression and the immunity of an MK. I intend to file a complaint with the minister of public security and the Knesset speaker. I am sorry that the police have turned a calm and peaceful event into persecuting citizens."
Bronfman's adviser, Dan Goldenblat, former spokesman for the Green Leaf party, said "this is the seventh time such a happening has taken place, and there has never been a problem. It seems that the buildup surrounding the event in the media and in the petition to the High Court of Justice resulted in the police action, despite the authorization given to the event by the court."

He added that the event was a picnic that was calm and not violent. "The organizers asked the crowd to keep the law and not use drugs and those who were caught were a small fraction of the crowd that came to the picnic. It is unfortunate that because of a tiny minority who may have smoked a joint the police crushed with brutality the rights of most of the people. The officers behaved brutally and like thugs and busted up the event," Goldenblat added.