Moh. Khory Alfarizi, Jakarta – A story of a mother fighting for the legalization of medical marijuana in Indonesia for her child's treatment recently went viral on social media.

The mother's efforts grabbed the public spotlight because she brought a big poster bearing the demand to the Constitutional Court in the middle of a car-free day (CFD) in Central Jakarta, Sunday, June 26, 2022.

"Please my son needs medical marijuana," reads the poster.

The mother named Santi was with her child who suffers from cerebral palsy. To date, the most effective treatment is to use cannabis seed oil.

Responding to the viral story, the Head of Public Relations at Jakarta Metro Jaya Police Senior Commissioner Endra Zulpan said the police carry out the mandate by complying with the existing law.

"The police are law enforcement officers who uphold the law. If people want to change the law, the authority is not with us, it's in the DPR (House of Representatives)," said Zulpan at Jakarta Metro Jaya HQ, South Jakarta, Monday, June 27, 2022.

Santi has been striving for the legalization of medical marijuana since 2020 by filing a judicial review of Law No. 35 of 2009 on Narcotics, particularly Article 6 (1h) and Article 8 (1) which bar her from having access to class 1 narcotics for her child's medical treatment. The petition was filed to the Constitutional Court.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1606422/jakarta-police-respond-to-call-for-medical-marijuana-legalizatio