Campobello, a Canadian island where US customs prevent legal recreational use of marijuana

Nov. 20, 2019 por Isolda Barrera

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The 800 inhabitants of the small Canadian island Campobello are more than angry with their American neighbors, since Canada legalized marijuana for recreational use in June 2018.

After the announcement of marijuana being legalized, they’ve felt like they have lost their privacy, since all the mail they receive through the Canadian postal service is opened and thoroughly checked by US customs.

But why do neighboring custom agents have the right to check the mail of these Canadian citizens? In this case because of an annoying geographical technicality.

Campobello is part of the Canadian county of Charlotte, New Brunswick, but is connected by the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Bridge with Lubec, in the state of Maine, the easternmost tip of the continental United States.

Because of its location, the only way to easily get there is through Maine. Many of its residents have to cross the border daily to go to work in the mainland of New Brunswick, or even in Maine. Also, to buy food or other products not found on your island.

There they have become accustomed to crossing two borders to perform any daily task. But the conflict broke out after legalization for recreational use of marijuana in Canada.

The point is that the mail addressed to the residents of the island, technically leaves Canada and travels for more than an hour through Maine, USA, to enter the Canadian island territory again.

When the postal service trucks cross the border, they are stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers, and review each package and correspondence for the inhabitants of Campobello.

What are they exactly looking for? Marijuana that has been ordered to online stores that are managed by the government of the province to which the island belongs, because that product is illegal in Maine.

Customs and Border Protection argue that this practice is legal since they claim they are protecting the laws of the US territory. CBP officers have a broad search authority to ensure the safety and admissibility of all goods entering the United States. This includes the ability to inspect and search all persons, luggage and merchandise that arrive in the United States or transit through them.

Since this conflict broke out, not only do Canadians who inhabit the island suffer the violation of their correspondence, nor can they order any cannabis products, even if they are entitled, because the only authorized marijuana vendor in the province, stopped responding to online orders from the island, as well as other retailers from other parts of the country.

That is why in Campobello Island, although it is lawful to use marijuana for recreational purposes, there is no way to legally introduce it to that area, since the only way is to cross the border of its neighbor, where cannabis products are still illegal.

Of course, the inhabitants of this small island are not happy at all. They feel angry at this border conflict and in defense of their rights they have asked their government to resolve this situation that has isolated them much more from their country.

The inhabitants of this small Canadian island territory have demanded that their authorities establish a ferry service throughout the year or build a new bridge to the mainland to prevent US customs officials from opening their correspondence. Solutions that are quite expensive and have not yet had any pronouncement from the local or federal government.

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