Cannabis Development Council of SA chair and Rastafarian community elder Ras Gareth Prince is challenging the whole legal construct of government’s cannabis and hemp laws and plans and is seeking the support of the broader cannabis community in doing so.
Prince filed an urgent application in the Western Cape High Court on 14 April 2026, calling for a halt to cannabis arrests and seeking a far-seeking review of cannabis legislation which he says are flawed on constitutional grounds.
He’s suing eight organs of the state, in his personal capacity and in his capacity as a Rasta National Council (RNC) member and also as representative of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) Sandbox small farmers whose “right to grow hemp and official written promises to assist them have been violated and unfulfilled, respectively, by the State”.
Lawyers representing the respondents, which included the Ministers of Police, DTIC and Agriculture, sought to dismiss the urgency of the application, which Acting Judge Mnengwana denied. But he granted them more time to respond and gave the state a strict deadline to respond to the issues raised.
He set a return date for the parties to appear in Western Cape High Court again on Monday, 8 June 2026.
On 25 April 2026, Prince made an appeal to the broader cannabis community for a mass turnout at the court in central Cape Town on that date.
He has also launched a crowd-funding campaign through the Back a Buddy Platform to raise funds for his application. He hopes to raise R450 000 to cover the costs of the legal action.
The court process could take months to unfold, which has direct implications on the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act, which the Department of Justice is hoping to have passed into law this year.
On 21 April 2026, the Department’s Makubela Mokulubete told a ‘Multi Stakeholder Engagement on the National Drug Master Plan and Cannabis Policy Reform’, hosted by Students for Sensible Drug Policy International (SSDP), that he expected that the regulations will be tabled in parliament and promulgated within the next two months.
However, Prince’s application challenges key elements of the Act, is likely to have a knock-on effect on the legislative process and knock the Justice Department’s timetable off track.
The bottom line is that the Cannabis Act may not see the light of day for a long time to come, which means that cannabis will remain listed in the Drugs Act as narcotic until the application is resolved. .
Prince’s Motivation for Support:
This fight is rooted in culture, faith, and the pursuit of dignity and justice for cannabis users and rural communities. The Court has spoken. We return to make sure its promise is kept.
Donors will receive regular updates and information on the case from filing through to the courtroom on 8 June 2026 and beyond.
Budget — Total Goal: R420,000
Court filing, service and sheriff fees — R25,000
Legal research, drafting and expert witnesses — R150,000
IKS farmer travel and affidavits — R50,000
Hearing logistics — R35,000
Post-judgment community reporting — R30,000 Admin —
R50,000 Media production — R50,000
Social media amplification — R30,000
All funds held by Afristar Cannabis Lobby Group NPC in a dedicated ring-fenced account. The legal line includes fair remuneration to Garreth Prince. No hidden overheads.
Your donation unlocks this case in two stages — R200,000 gets us into court. R420,000 covers the full case: legal costs, expert witnesses, community affidavits, media and public education.
The Court ruled in 2018. The right remains hollow. Help us enforce it. Back the fight. Restore dignity. Unlock liberation and justice for cannabis users. One Love.
For more details on how to support Gareth Prince’s legal application, CLICK HERE,
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