World War Weed: Plant Life

By Edward Williams and The Professor

The first full edition works of the World War Weed trilogy - its action packed, stacked with adventure, global in scope and completely uncensored.

 

The bulk of this anthology was compiled by 'the Professor' during five years as an international freelancer for Soft Secrets magazine. Plant Life is the freshly edited and only authorised collection of those works and contains several chapters of previously unpublished material. Real life stories of farmers, traders, users and smugglers from around the world are contextualised with a sociopolitical, economic, legal and historical narrative which is strongly rooted in the anarchist perspective.

 

From valleys and hills to streets and cells, cartels, cops and dollar bills, risks, rewards and curing ills, this book is cannabis revealed and should appeal to everyone. From the wisest of dreads to the straightest of heads, Plant Life: twas writ to be read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phantom Ant Publishing
• Release date: Aug 16, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215802755

Book preview

World War Weed: Plant Life

The Professor

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All rights reserved. This ebook or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

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Copyright 2023 Edward Williams

Smashwords Ebook Edition 2023

First published 2017

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Phantom Ant Publishing

Contents

Introduction

Morocco

Lebanon

South East Asia

South America

Central American and the Caribbean

Southern Africa

Himalaya

Bonus Material

Introduction

Stuck in Bangkok, depressed, frazzled and having just bailed out on an attempt to integrate myself into the 'honest' world of work, I was at a loss for what to do with life. The idea of selling my time on this earth for a paltry wage or salary had never appealed, but what else could I do? I'd given up smoking weed for the six short weeks of my teaching career, a decision which had, more than likely, contributed to my feelings of uninspired redundancy. Being an English teacher was cool, it had been great to immerse myself in the analysis and education of my native tongue and teaching the students was fun but working conditions were awful and I seemed to be spending vast chunks of time stuck in concrete urbanity with nothing to do but breathe smog. Six weeks in, after I got settled, the boss told me to take a corporate class on the other side of the city. It involved a one hour each-way commute through Bangkok's lunchtime rush hour. Unpaid. In the middle of my busiest day. I refused. She demanded. I quit. It was time for a smoke, and a re-evaluation of life.

Writing had always appealed, ever since childhood. To read a good book is to re-perceive the world and every good book one reads evolves one's perception and understanding of everything. Just like a magic mushroom trip. Words are revolutionary, evolutionary and, when spelled correctly, they can even be magical. With a fresh degree in International Relations I was politically and discursively confident, I'd also made a point of studying and practicing the art of writing a little, but I was fully aware that earning a living from the craft is hard graft and only the luckiest few get to carve their path to literary wealth and prominence. How could I stand out from the crowd? I have to write about a subject I have knowledge and experience in, it has to come from my heart, it needs to be culturally and politically relevant... Weed!

With an eighteen year habit and having already spent a good few months in Morocco's Rif Mountains, I cobbled together an academic-style essay that discussed all the variables affecting the quality of Moroccan Hashish, then emailed it to the editors of five different cannabis magazines. One got back to me, Cliff Cremer from Soft Secrets:

We'll give you four hundred Euros for it. Where are you? What else can you do? Can you do me an article on dealing in Bangkok?

No worries. I spent a growing season in Laos as well, I can write that up for you if you want...

Two weeks, eight thousand words and thirteen hundred euros later, I'd pocketed enough money for a flight home and found myself with an exciting new direction in life – this guy liked what I wrote and paid enough to subsidize me traveling around the world on a weed tour. Well, the flights at least. So, where would I most like to go and probably never would if it wasn't for being able to write a story about the cannabis there? Lebanon. Nowhere else entered my mind. Red Leb was famous, the Bekaa Valley notorious and Beirut was a city that had fascinated me since childhood. Circa 2011, Syria, its neighbour, was spiraling into a very uncivil war and Lebanon itself had been without a functioning government for nearly two years. Was it now or never?

After a month in Lebanon it was back to Morocco, then over to Latin America and the Caribbean: Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Guatemala, Mexico, Belize and Jamaica. Then South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, through Zambia to Malawi, Mozambique and back to South Africa before heading to Indian Kashmir and the Parvati Valley*. It was the mission of a lifetime, and widely documented in Soft Secrets UK between 2010 and 2014.

Four years, eighteen countries, a few infections and plenty of undercover cops, agents, rip offs, robberies, parasites, drink spikings and stolen computers later I arrived back in the UK. The challenge now was to put all my work into one comprehensive volume detailing the social, political, financial, legal and environmental impact of the global War Against Drugs, from the perspective of cannabis and the cultures and countries which have a particularly strong relationship with the plant. The hard work was done, all it needed was a hefty revision and editing.

Still, on returning home my health deteriorated rapidly. What started as a feeling that I just needed to eat, rest and exercise properly for a few weeks quickly turned into a full blown crisis combination of a bladder infection, prostate infection, kidney cysts, gall stones and an inflamed pancreas which all took three and a half years to fully diagnose and cure. I'd also suffered at least four different amoebic stomach infections in central America and Malawi and a double tic bite in South Africa in 2012/13. That's more than enough to kill a man three times over. It didn't, so here it is, finally: Plant Life

*There are many notable exceptions in the countries listed; Canada, the USA, the whole of Europe and Uruguay are all significant regions when it comes to the production and consumption of cannabis; Soft Secrets had journalists from Canada, the USA and Europe who could write far more knowledgeably about these regions than I and Uruguay didn't sprout into international cannabis relevance until I'd traveled a lot further north, hence their absence from this work.

it cost me all,

and a lot more,

but twas done with love,

so it will endure

With the legal status and scientific understanding of the cannabis plant advancing rapidly in many regions of the world some of the information in this book has dated, such as the plant's legal status in Colombia, Mexico, Belize, Jamaica and, most surprisingly, Thailand. All articles do though retain relevance as a sociopolitical snapshot in time and also serve to inform the reader about conditions in those countries with similar laws and in which many millions are persecuted for recreational use and prevented from receiving treatment each and every day.

Morocco

Moroccan Hashish 101

Morocco has long been one of the world's largest producers of hashish, or cannabis resin, and approximately ninety five per cent of Morocco’s hash comes from the province of Ketama. This is the province that dominates the Rif Mountains in the north of the country.

The Ketamese have always thought of themselves as being culturally, politically and economically distinct from 'Morocco' and ‘Moroccans’, so much so that they started fighting a separatist guerrilla war against the new state from the moment they were colonized by its inception in 1956. They fought fiercely for their independence, becoming a constant thorn in the side of the King until one day he offered them a deal – put your guns down, stop fighting us, accept my rule, taxes and money and you can keep your cannabis culture. These were the terms by which the Ketamese agreed to let their territory be absorbed into the Kingdom of Morocco.

In the years following the agreement cannabis culture flourished in Ketama, growing until it dominated the agriculture and economy of the region. Export and tourist trades grew up around it, and adventure seeking travelers and entrepreneurial criminals were drawn to the Rif from all corners of the world. Now, throughout Morocco and far beyond, the name Ketama has become synonymous with hashish.

Today Ketama still maintains its fearsome reputation. A visit to the region is not for the fainthearted or easily intimidated as kidnappings and extortion are common and harassment is guaranteed. The roads are dangerous. A lot of shady business goes on in these mountains: wholesale suppliers and dealers try to keep a low profile whilst young wannabes are out looking to scam some quick cash or make the connections that'll get them rich. There are a lot of needy cops, soldiers, townsfolk and business owners here too - a huge proportion of Ketamese families are earning their living directly or indirectly from the hash trade. This defining and enduring cultural relationship has led to the Ketamese becoming real masters of the plant, they’ve discovered the art behind the science of all things hashish and no other country in the world mass-produces such a pure cannabis product...

'When the winter brings a lot of rain, and the summers are long and hot, then you have the best years for hashish my friend. The big harvests come at the end of summer, before the nights get cold and wet, and then we dry the plants on the land, or on our houses, in the Sun.

We have lots of different plants here, three big ones; blonde Moroccan, red Mexican and Pakistani, but we make a new strain – Hardella. This is a combination of the blonde, red and Pakistani. We have to keep mixing the genetics or the plants grow weak and small. One year I grew seeds from Afghanistan, and I have friends who grow seeds people bring from Europe.

The blonde is traditional hashish de Maroc, when you think ‘hashish de Maroc’ this is the hashish in your mind. This has a smooth taste and easy high, like everything is good – not so strong, make you talk talk talk and give you good energy – one joint at the bottom of a mountain and you climb up high like the birds with super strong power! The red hashish es muy differente; it hits you strong, Bam! Right between the eyes, make you trippy, but no good for long effect. The Pakistani is strongest, one joint make you wanna eat and sleep all day. This is good for night time, or for junkies. But wait! Hardella! This is best hashish that come from Rif mountains in all of history! Hardella dobley zero zero make you high to the sky! She make you feel love for all the world and help you see many things, but the best quality hashish must always come from plants that have been dried and cured for one year – if you smoke hashish before it’s one year old it split your head in two, make you crazy!

For the best hashish we take the top half of the plant, because the bottom half gets dusty from the ground and wind. We stretch a fine screen around a metal bowl and put the plants on top of the screen, then we put it all into a plastic sack. We hit the plants gently with sticks, through the sack, like playing the drums, but fast and carefully so the hash breaks from the plant and falls through the screen. For the best hash you must be careful you don't hit too hard, and only for a short time, just a few minutes. This is Dobley Zero Zero my friend – the best quality, but for it to be really the best there is another trick, the time! Between four and six o’clock on the coldest mornings of the year the hashish is easiest to break from the plant, then you only need to hit the plants very gently and only the finest hashish falls into the bowl. When we have a good amount of Dobley Zero Zero we wrap it in plastic to keep the oils in the hash and we store it in a cool, dry place. We don't press it yet, good customers want to see the hash in this powder form so they can inspect it and test the quality.

From the blonde Maroc we make, mas o menos, one kilo of dobley zero zero hashish from one hundred kilos of dry plant. From the red Mexicano we get one and a half kilos and from the Pakistani we make two kilos – this is why farmers like to grow the Pakistani, she is not good to smoke every day but she is best for money, and super strong. And because hashish de Maroc is only one kilo from one hundred kilos now not so many people like to grow it - is good for smoking but not for money. Hardella is the same as Pakistani, two kilos. This is why Hardella is best – is like magic to smoke and the same as Pakistani for money. This is the first big year for Hardella, everyone from Europe already want this but lots of farmers still grow Pakistani, they will change soon.

When we finish to make the dobley zero zero we use the same plants again, but we hit them hard, for a long time, maybe ten or fifteen minutes. This is number two quality, we have lots of this, this is for big customers, for dealers. After we make number two quality we strip the flowers from the stalks and play the drums again for number three quality – this hashish is not so good, but it's good to mix with number two for big deals. At finish we have, mas o menos, eight or nine kilos of hashish from one hundred kilos of plant.

Then the flowers have no hashish left on them, so we separate the seeds for next year and chop the flowers up very small, this is Kief – we mix it with some tobacco and smoke it in long pipes. When you become an old man hashish is too strong so we smoke kief, but young guys like to get stoned and smoke hashish. If we want strong kief then we must only make two bashings of the plants, so the number three quality stays on the kief.

We plant two or three different crops in one year; one early, one normal and one late. This means if winter or summer comes early we have good plants, and if winter comes late we have super good plants! Some farmers use small chemicals but I no use chemicals on my farm, only shit from donkeys and chickens, and water from the mountain, and corn – one year weed, one year corn, this keeps the soil good – weed and corn love to grow together.'

At least that's how the Monkey Man tells it when he has the opportunity.

Just as he stresses, quality is a huge issue in the drug business. It’s even hard to find good quality hash in Morocco once you’re outside the Rif Mountains. A lot of dealers use a range of pollutants to bulk the hash out before they sell it on to Joe Bloggs punter; this is one of the reasons the dealers like to buy it in its unpressed powder form, not only is it easier to check out the quality but it's also easier to corrupt. Added pollutants are a real problem; unscrupulous dealers will use almost anything to add extra weight to their hash – henna, coffee, sugar and dirt are the most common. Also, shit, plastic, shoe polish and anything else that looks even remotely like hash is used. This is why it’s important to buy powdered hash if you can, and to learn how to test it before you buy it.

Testing it is relatively simple when you know how. The best way is to put a small amount of the powder in the palm of your hand and run the flame from a lighter over it a couple of times. Good hash will bind together quite easily when it's exposed to a little heat. You can then press it in your hand and once you’ve got a solid little piece you’ll be able to run a flame over it and watch the oils bubble up on the surface. Good hash catches fire quite readily. Generally speaking, the more heat you have to put through it before it binds together then the lower the quality, but do bear in mind that if you’re trying to heat it up in the middle of winter on the side of a damp and freezing mountain it’ll take a bit longer than normal. If you want to get really technical you can take a x30 microscope along with you and analyze the trichome heads in minute detail, but the flame test is always the best and if you do take a mic you’ll probably just end up swapping it for a bit of smoke anyway.

If you’re ever lucky enough to be presented with a variety of strains and qualities somewhere then you’ll be free to concoct your very own mixture. Maybe you want a mix of blonde double zero and Pakistani double zero; or a pure strain mix of twenty per cent double zero and eighty per cent number two quality; or big batch of Mexican number two mixed with twenty five per cent henna and goat shit. The combinations are endless and the prices will vary accordingly but if you ever get the opportunity to sample some Dobley Zero Zero then allow yourself a quick smile, haggle hard and make friends with the guy who's got it cos commercial hash doesn't get any better than this.

Did you get all that? Just to summarize: the variety of seed, the freshness of seed stock, the whims of the seasons, the quality of the soil, the time of harvesting, the amount and type of fertilizer used, the temperature at the time of bashing, the number of bashings the plants have had, and the levels of natural and added pollutants will all affect the quality of the hash. Moroccan hash varies from year to year, valley to valley, farmer to farmer, batch to batch, and even from night to day, but once you get your head around a few of these variables the whole world of cannabis and the passion of its enthusiasts should all start to make a little bit more sense. It’s a bit like the wine industry, just a tad more exciting.

Moroccan Hash, Gun Battles and the Revolution

Being a major player in the international hash markets of the world has its advantages, especially for the Ketamese, but, like a few other economies of the day, the hash economy of the Rif has taken a bit of a battering over the last couple of years. Stories of army-orchestrated crop slashings, crop confiscations, and running gun battles between Riffians and the Moroccan state authorities were dominating conversations with and amongst the locals. What on earth was going on?

Rewind to the end of 2008. With Morocco keen to join Mediterranean free trade agreements and, potentially, Euroland, they have to be seen to be responding to pressure that the EU and US apply with respect to clamping down on the pot trade. The trouble with this is that the laws that give the Ketamese people the right to grow cannabis are royal laws as opposed to governmental laws. This means the government can't throw its weight behind any clamp down without the explicit say-so and support of the current king, Mohammed VI, but he'll be responsible for starting a separatist war in the Rif if he dishonours his predecessor's word and outlaws cannabis farming so, legally and politically, it's a bit of a sticky situation. Anyhow, in order to deal with the issue transparently and to let the Moroccan nation know what was going to happen, it was discussed live on TV in a series of debates chaired by King Mohammed VI himself. At the end of the debate it was decided that the laws of Ketama would be honoured, but the elements of the trade that were spilling out over the Ketamese borders into wider Morocco would be policed with zero tolerance.

Mustafa was a small-time farmer who lived just outside the province of Ketama in a small agricultural village. The first time we met he was well-dressed, fit, healthy, relaxed and proudly selling some of the finest hash on the planet, his own Paki/Afghan combination. His four kids were in school, the kitchen cupboards were fully stocked and the family was being looked after. Then came the first wave of the great repression, harvest time 2009:

The King, the army and the police, they come into the mountains and confiscate all our hash crop, everything, they pay us compensation and burn all the plants, people go crazy. They take my name so I cannot work on the farm anymore, if they come again and I am there then I go to jail, my village still runs the farm but this year we have no more quality like last time, I can still get you Mustafa quality but not for same price...

Mustafa's clothes were looking old, he hadn't shaved for a week or so and the stress of hustling was written all over his face.

Money is difficult now, I take my daughter out of school. If you want good quality I can get it for you, how much you want? Twenty dirham a gram...

This was up from twelve dirhams a gram the previous year.

The 2009 harvest seizures couldn't have come at a worse time for another farming family on the edge of the Rif; in summer 2008 Abdul, the old man of the family, broke his leg in a fall on the mountain. He needed an expensive operation that the family had been able to pay for courtesy of the previous year’s hash profits. After his operation the doctors put him on strong painkillers, these came with side-effects though, so the doctors prescribed him more expensive chemical medication to combat his nausea:

They take all our crops, everything. Compensation small, we need money for [my father’s] medication. Doctors no good, they make sickness and now we pay mucho dinero to make doctors sickness good. If we grow food is not much for money, now no hashish? Is crazy my friend, crazy - this is the Rif Mountains, this is Ketama, why they say we no Ketama? Government line on map is stupid, is wrong. Next year I grow hash anyway, 600 plants for this field, I must to look after my father and my family, but if police come... Insh'allah.

Courtesy of the televised debate, this repression had been expected by the farmers and, as drug purges go, it had been relatively civilized so despite all their bluster and thunder the families weren't too fazed by the drama. They'd survive, it’s not the first time they’ve had to deal with this sort of threat.

But then something totally unexpected happened the following spring - planting season 2010. Entirely unannounced, the cops and the army went up into the mountains of Ketama itself. They started arresting farmers who were planting new crops, they slashed and burnt any plants that were already growing and they raided stashes. It went off. The Riffians took up their guns, swords and daggers and, in some villages, they fought to keep the cops and the army off their land for days and nights at a time. Mustafa gave us a glimpse of what was going on with this story:

One of my good customers, he want some hashish, good Mustafa quality, so I have to go other village. In the daytime is dangerous with police on the roads so I go by taxi en la noche, the taxi he take me near to the village then I follow goat tracks. I hear guns - Pow, Pow! Bang, Bang! I go to my brother’s house but my brother fight with police for three days and three nights - the police want to stop the hashish but this is no good, is against the Kings law, but he stay quiet, where is the King? We want to speak with the King again, tell him to come to the mountains and speak with us if he wants peace... Yesterday I no sleep, but today I have good quality, you want the Mustafa quality? We still have the good quality in the mountain, twenty dirham a gram...

A lot of people were starting to panic over the spring time raids, one distressed soul put it like this:

Prices go up next year, maybe this is the end of hashish - if is the end of hashish then is the end of tourism, maybe this is the end of our lives!

But, was everything as it appeared? At first most people thought that the repression was token, to pacify the Western politicians and to grab a few headlines, this happens every five or six years to some extent but now the government were pushing a lot harder. Why were the royal laws being violated? Why were the Ketamese being punished for European tastes and demands? Were the authorities trying to gauge how far the locals could be pushed before they fought back? If they were, they got their answer very quickly because there’s no mistaking the message of ten thousand rounds fired at the national police.

Regardless of the methods and motivations of the clampdown the spring 2010 purge had two major effects: a lot of the planting was delayed until the last possible moment so the crop was late and small, despite it being a great year for growing in climatic terms. All this had other knock-on effects throughout Morocco and Europe as well; a list includes the familiar dent in supply and availability, a rise in the cost and, worst of all, a sharp rise in the quantity of adulterated product on the market.

Morad and his friends, from Casablanca, told us about the lengths they had to go to sort themselves out with a bit of decent smoke:

The hash in Casa was terrible last year (2010), so bad, so much henna; it was so bad me and five of my friends