Institute for Social Drug Research (ISD), Ghent University, Belgium.
Int J Drug Policy. 2015 Feb;26(2):122-30. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2014.07.016. Epub 2014 Aug 1.
Cannabis Social Clubs (CSCs) are private organizations or clubs of users that produce cannabis for non-profit distribution to adult members to meet their personal needs without having to turn to the black market. CSCs can be found in many countries, but the term often covers very different empirical realities. Inspired by the Spanish CSCs and similarly taking advantage of a grey area in the Belgian cannabis legislation, Belgian cannabis activists set up the first Belgian CSC in 2006, and there are now at least 5 Belgian CSCs. The paper's main objective is to analyse the (internal) strengths and weaknesses and the (external) opportunities and threats of the model, as it exists today.
The paper draws on a review of international literature and qualitative data on the Belgian cannabis social clubs. Field visits and interviews were conducted with each club. We analysed membership application forms, cultivation protocols and contracts with growers, cannabis ownership certificates of members, information leaflets, the clubs' websites, and all media articles and documentaries on the clubs in the Belgian media.
The paper describes the membership criteria and house rules, the members' profile, the organization and protocols for cannabis production, the distribution of cannabis through 'exchange fairs', the administrative features of the clubs and their contacts with other CSCs and with local authorities, the drug sector and the media. Belgian CSCs seem not profit-driven, and operate as a system in which cannabis is not too easily available. The clubs have fairly direct control over the quality and the potency of the cannabis they distribute. The model offers important potential opportunities, in terms of economic advantages and monitoring consumption patterns. The main threats to Belgian CSCs consist of attempts to criminalize the model, the emergence of profit-driven clubs and systemic violence from criminal entrepreneurs. Weaknesses of the model relate to the unstable or transient nature of the clubs, the transparency of their operational procedures, the superficiality of their quality control strategies, and the risk of morphing into marketing enterprises.
The CSC model could be a safe and feasible option for policymakers to move a meaningful distance along the spectrum towards legally regulated cannabis markets without crossing over to full commercial availability. Governmental regulation could convert weaknesses and threats to the model into strengths and opportunities to ensure best practice. If authorities refrain from action, the model might dilute and evolve in a similar way as the Spanish CSCs did recently, with the establishment of large, commercial clubs.
大麻社交俱乐部（CSC）是由用户组成的私人组织或俱乐部，他们生产大麻用于非营利性分配给成年会员，以满足他们的个人需求，而不必转向黑市。CSC 可以在许多国家找到，但这个术语通常涵盖非常不同的经验现实。受西班牙 CSC 的启发，并同样利用比利时大麻立法中的一个灰色地带，比利时的大麻活动家于 2006 年成立了第一个比利时 CSC，现在至少有 5 个比利时 CSC。本文的主要目的是分析该模型目前存在的（内部）优势和劣势以及（外部）机会和威胁。
本文借鉴了国际文献综述和关于比利时大麻社交俱乐部的定性数据。对每个俱乐部进行了实地考察和采访。我们分析了会员申请表、种植协议和与种植者的合同、会员的大麻所有权证书、信息传单、俱乐部的网站以及比利时媒体上所有关于俱乐部的媒体文章和纪录片。
本文描述了会员标准和内部规则、会员概况、大麻生产的组织和协议、通过“交流集市”分发大麻、俱乐部的管理特点及其与其他 CSC 以及与地方当局、毒品部门和媒体的联系。比利时 CSC 似乎不是以盈利为目的，而是作为一个系统运作，在这个系统中，大麻不容易获得。俱乐部对他们分发的大麻的质量和效力有相当直接的控制。该模型在经济优势和监测消费模式方面提供了重要的潜在机会。对比利时 CSC 的主要威胁包括将该模式刑事化的企图、以盈利为目的的俱乐部的出现以及来自犯罪企业家的系统性暴力。该模型的弱点与俱乐部的不稳定或短暂性质、运营程序的透明度、质量控制策略的肤浅性以及演变成营销企业的风险有关。
CSC 模式可以为政策制定者提供一种安全可行的选择，在沿着向合法监管的大麻市场迈进的道路上迈出有意义的一步，而无需跨越到完全商业化的供应。政府监管可以将模型的弱点和威胁转化为优势和机会，以确保最佳实践。如果当局不采取行动，该模式可能会像最近西班牙 CSC 那样稀释和演变，形成大型商业俱乐部。
