East Asia: Tokyo Metro Government Annoyed but Helpless Over Pro-Marijuana Mag

A Tokyo-based magazine that has repeatedly published issues referring to marijuana use and provided cultivation tips is drawing the ire of the Tokyo metropolitan government, according to a Japanese press report. The magazine is an irregular publication of Core Magazine, which also publishes a number of adult manga titles.

Three times in the last two years, the magazine has raised eyebrows among Tokyo metro police. In a 2007 issue, the magazine featured an article about how marijuana is smoked abroad. In March 2008, it carried an article called "The Reality of Cannabis Pollution," with detailed photographs of how marijuana is grown, as well as a DVD with more photos.

That earned the magazine the designation of a "harmful publication for juveniles" by the Tokyo metro government, which concluded that the article could lead readers to imitate the illustrated cultivation methods. That designation means that the magazine must be kept in a secure location in stores so minors can't see it.

At the time, the publishers played innocent, telling the metro government: "We failed to consider the content of the article. We'll be careful from now on."

But the mag came back with a December article detailing how to grow marijuana on balconies, and another DVD full of illustrative photos. Now it, too, has been designated a harmful publication, and the metro government has issued a "stern warning" to the publishers.

Again, the publishers acted apologetic. "The article was written by an outsider, and our check system dealt with it inadequately," they told the government. "We won't carry similar articles ever again."

While the magazine has been given a stern warning and seen its sale locations restricted, that is all the government can do under Japanese law, and that has officials grumbling. "It was extremely inappropriate for a magazine that juveniles can easily get hold of to carry such an article," said one official. "We took a countermeasure that we believed was best based on our ordinance. But we can't do anything further under the current Cannabis Control Law and our ordinances. All we can do for now is just trust the publisher's word, but that could be a cat-and-mouse game."

The Core magazine controversy comes as the number of marijuana charges being laid by Japanese police is hitting a new high. According to the National Police Agency, some 2,194 people were arrested for possession or cultivation from January through October of last year, putting the year on track for the highest number of pot arrests ever.

Among the arrested have been several sumo wrestlers, including Wakakirin, who got busted last Friday for possession. Police in that case said he told them: "I became interested [in cannabis] after reading about it in a magazine."