Friends,
The local police raided a Coe Hill, Ontario doctor's office looking for illegal drugs. This is a true story about injustice happening right now in Canada, in our own back yard. Please read on, because your support is needed to spread the word & help raise funds immediately for legal costs. By April 7th, $20,000 is required for Dr. Rob's next hearing on April 14th if he is going to be properly represented by a lawyer. For long-term defenses, Rob and Mary need to raise at least $100,000. This story is about my family doctor, Dr. Rob Kamermans & his wife Mary.
News stories come and go. This doesn't mean the story has ended. You may recall the newspapers reporting about the very public arrest of a kind and caring doctor who supported his patient's use of medical marijuana as an alternative to traditional medical therapies. Four years without a trial; of patients being denied the full care of their beloved doctor; of confiscated patients records not being returned to their doctor's clinic, patient privacy & confidentiality infringed. That's a long time to be fighting an uphill battle - virtually alone - against powerful government and medical authorities. Do I have your attention ?
Why is fundraising necessary? The unfounded accusations and charges have limited Dr. Rob's ability to fully practice. Consequently, the number of patients remaining with their clinic has declined drastically. The Kamermans' livelihood has been destroyed; their savings have been drained. The unrelenting stress has has caused Mary's health to suffer, affecting her ability to work. Their insurance and legal funding through professional bodies has been cut off. Years of legal preceedings could continue before they both are cleared. They can no longer afford legal representation. Dr. Rob has been representing himself. The chance for several charges to be dismissed greatly increases if he is able to retain the expertise of a lawyer. Your donations are needed immediately in order for his lawyer to prepare for the next hearing scheduled for April 14th.
The issue is not about cannabis! The issue is about patients' freedom of choice regarding medical treatment and the injustice that resulted from a medical doctor making a bona fide medical program accessible to sick and suffering patients upon their request. While medical marijuana may not be everyone's choice of treatment, the healing properties of cannabis is common knowledge. One doesn't have to consult the myriad of the scientific and medical studies, which substantiate the safety and effectiveness of cannabis, to be aware that one of the best alternative treatments just happens to be medical marijuana. If the best alternative treatment were garlic, or lavender or milk thistle - these could have just as easily been the recommended alternatives!
The Hippocratic Oath states: "there is an art to medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon's knife or the chemist's drug." The Hippocratic Oath was a forerunner in its day; its core tenets so clear that it has been changed very little in hundreds of years. When guiding oaths like this one are applied to their fullest potential, pioneers in medicine are able to exercise reasonable latitude.
Then how did this injustice happen in Canada? Rob and Mary never set out to champion "a cause" or to become "advocates." Rob is a country doctor. Mary is a country nurse. They live and work in a small rural community where there are already too few doctors. In going about the day-to-day operation and caring for their patients suffering from cancer, pain, and other debilitating diseases, they responded to numerous patient requests for alternative treatments. Health Canada provided a medical marijuana program. Since Canadian doctors are authorized to give patients documentation to access this medicinal plant, why would any doctor think he or she could be arrested for utilizing this government program? Conversely, the police looked through a different lens, raided their clinic, arrested Rob and confiscated patient records which still have not been returned.
Sometimes in our lives, "the fire falls to us." At that time, we don't know it's significant, controversial, or detrimental to oneself. Picking up the torch is just the right thing to do. Four years ago few doctors had the courage to support patients in choosing non-traditional, alternative treatments. This remains true today. Rob and Mary picked up the torch, and to their detriment, unwittingly became the pioneers of an alternative medical treatment.
In Canada, we have a Charter of Rights & Freedoms. Supposedly, we are innocent until proven guilty. When our Prime Minister supports the legalization of cannabis, when a judge has made it law that patients can grow their own marijuana and when the Canadian laws will soon legalize recreational marijuana, how is it possible for this injustice to continue? How can this be happening in Canada? How can we allow this to happen? Worse than growing marijuana in our gardens is growing injustice in our own backyards, through silence and non-action. Are we really going to be spectators, or are we going to step forward to help two members of our community who chose the path of being open-minded, progressive and compassionate?
Rob and Mary are humble people, hesitant to ask for help. In fact, they aren't asking - we are. "Friends of Dr Kamermans", is a volunteer group of concerned citizens who support the legal defenses of and advocacy of the Kamermans. We ask for you to give any amount you are able to afford: $10, $25, $100, $1000. Together, we can do something to correct a serious wrong within our community.
How to donate? Please send a message of support by donating directly through this campaign, or if you would like to send a cheque by snail mail, please make it payable to Lewin & Sagara LLP, and note that it is for Dr. Kamermans. Mail can be sent to Lewin & Sagara LLP, 2173 Danforth Avenue, Toronto, On., M4C 1K4.
Other support? We ask you to share this with all your contacts, and please don't forget to like, comment & share our Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/Drkamermans/
Thank you, from "Friends of Dr Kamermans" or "Friends" for short!
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