top of page

New Civil Disobedience

cannabis riksadvokat_edited.jpg

AROD Sends Cannabis to Police and Prosecutors to Demand Principled Review of Drug Policy

​​

​

The Alliance for Rights-Oriented Drug Policy (AROD) continues its fight for a human rights-based drug policy through civil disobedience. As part of our ongoing campaign to challenge arbitrary persecution and failures in leadership in the drug field, we have sent a symbolic amount of cannabis to key actors in the Norwegian justice system. The goal is to activate the right to judicial review and force a necessary debate on Sections 231 and 232 of the Penal Code, Section 89 of the Constitution, and Norway's obligations under human rights law.

​

This action is based on 30 years of documented debate on the legitimacy of the drug prohibition, where experts such as Johs. Andenæs, Nils Christie, and reports like NOU 2002:4 and NOU 2019:26 have pointed out serious deficiencies. We demand truth and reconciliation to restore trust in the rule of law, and the letters emphasize the need for an impartial assessment of drug policy – especially as more and more countries regulate cannabis to protect public health.

​

The Letters We Have Sent:

​

Letter to Police Chief Johan Brekke, Innlandet Police District (dated September 26, 2025): This letter praises Innlandet's previous efforts for legal security but challenges the district to take responsibility for a principled review following AROD's actions in 2023 and 2024. It includes a checklist to clarify the threat to the rule of law and attached documents showing the disputed premises of the drug prohibition.

​

​

Letter to First State Attorney Runar Torgersen, Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (dated September 26, 2025): The letter urges the Director of Public Prosecutions to intervene to preserve a liberal rule of law, focusing on failures in professional responsibility since 1994. It includes the same checklist and documentation showing the need for truth and reconciliation in the drug field.

​

AROD Sends Letter to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries: Demands Action for Regulated Cannabis Industry

On September 29, 2025, the Alliance for Rights-Oriented Drug Policy (AROD) sent a letter to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries addressed to Minister Cecilie Myrseth. The letter is a follow-up to our inquiry to the Prime Minister's Office dated January 22, 2025, where we requested preparation of a resolution in the Council of State to ensure Norway's international legal obligations in drug policy. The lack of response from the authorities now forces us to escalate the matter through civil disobedience, while emphasizing the enormous economic potential in a regulated cannabis industry.

​

Background for the Inquiry

​

For over 40 years, Norway's drug policy has been characterized by moral panic and arbitrary persecution, despite research showing that the drug prohibition has made things worse. Criminologists, historians, and legal sociologists have long demonstrated the scapegoating mechanism as the driving force behind the prohibition. Nevertheless, the Ministry of Justice has failed in its professional responsibility since the Penal Law Commission's report (NOU 2002:04), where the requirement for justification of punishment is not met. This was confirmed in NOU 2019:26 and the Drug Reform Committee's report, which describes the policy as characterized by "public panic," "misleading notions," and "misinvestment in punishment."

​

In the January letter, we asked the Prime Minister's Office, together with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, to propose a resolution to respect the Constitution and human rights. We pointed out that over half of Europe's population lives in countries that have regulated cannabis to protect public health, and that Norway's resistance to less intrusive measures threatens the rule of law. Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl and other politicians are disqualified in the case, as they prioritize the prohibition regardless of facts. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries was recommended as deputy minister in the Council of State, as it is the only one that has shown willingness to consider a legitimate purpose for the prohibition.

​

Despite several reminders, we have not received a response. This silence confirms a systematic deprioritization of rights-based jurisprudence, which has been identified by reports as a systemic problem, and in the letter to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, we emphasize that the ministry's silence means a betrayal of professional responsibility for the regulation of cannabis, on par with the Ministry of Justice's betrayal of decriminalization. AROD announces that we are taking civil disobedience further to force a debate. We are starting the process of building a brand and putting Norway on the map through regulated production of cannabis seeds, and we urge the ministry to take immediate action to avoid further lawless conditions.

​

Read the Letter in Full:

​

As more and more nations regulate the cannabis market to protect public health, no state can take for granted that the prohibition fulfils a legitimate purpose. Instead, a human rights analysis is needed to look at the rights of drug law violators, and several times AROD has brought cannabis to the Norwegian authorities to have this issue resolved before the courts.

 

Even so, all attempts to challenge the law have been met by a wall of silence. For more than a decade, even the European Court of Human Rights has shied away from its duty to deliver a verdict on this issue, and the right of 700 million citizens to a fair trial and an effective remedy has yet to be recognized.

​

Therefore, on the 16th of November, with five letters, AROD launched a new campaign of civil disobedience to assist the rule of law. Inside these letters, there is sufficient cannabis to get a case before the court, and time will tell how the Norwegian state will respond.

​

Will AROD be allowed to show a connection between drug policy and the arbitrary persecution of the past, or will the Norwegian state continue to ignore the evidence of human rights violations?

​

This letter to the Director of Public Prosecutions presents ARODs list of evidence, witnesses, and legal strategy:

​

​

​

​​​​​​​​​​​More letters of civil disobedience

​

​

​

​

​

weed pack.jpg

Previous Civil Disobedience

Case documents

The police has contacted AROD. The police did not want to think about legal issues that compromises the drug law, and this is our response to the police:

​

​

After this letter the police accepted ARODs terms. On 20 November 2024 therefore ARODs leader Roar Mikalsen testified to the police about the reasons for sending cannabis in the mail to politicians, and this follow-up letter details the duties of the police to investigate the connection to the arbitrary persecution of the past:

​

​

The prosecutor does not want to provide an effective remedy. Instead, the police want one day in court to ensure that the drug law escapes scrutiny, and this letter reminds the prosecutor of her duties to the rule of law:

​

On 25. November 2024 the case is ready for Oslo City Court. The police refuses to let the defense present evidence and the judge has accepted the request of the police. In response, AROD has appealed to the Supreme Court and filed a complaint against the prosecutor and the judge:

​

The process of the Oslo City Court was a travesty of justice as the defense was denied an opportunity to challenge the law. Here is the verdict:

Questions to the Minister of Justice

These are the questions that the Norwegian Minister of Justice must answer for drug prohibition to be continued. 

​

On this basis AROD challenges the law.

Norwegian

cover pdf justisminister.jpg

English

cover questions justice ministry 2024.jpg
bottom of page