First step towards the legalization of marijuana in Mexico
First step towards the legalization of marijuana in Mexico
The Senate has passed a bill that decriminalizes the medicinal and recreational use of marijuana and paves the way for the creation of a legal market.
The Mexican Senate has passed a federal law that legalizes the cultivation, production, consumption, distribution, industrialization, and sale of marijuana under federal control. Mexico, one of the countries hardest hit by drug trafficking, takes a step forward to create a legal market, provided that it is also approved in the Chamber of Deputies on December 15. In the Senate, the proposal has been approved with 82 votes in favor, 18 against and seven abstentions.
The Mexican Senate approves the legalization of marijuana
The new law proposes reforms that will allow the possession of between six and eight plants per domicile, will authorize foods and derivatives with non-psychoactive cannabis, will grant licenses for planting, cultivation and harvesting, and will guarantee private consumption as long as there are no minors present. It will also allow the possession of 28 grams in people over 18 years of age. Even so, the law continues to contemplate penalties in case of possession of more than 200 grams and fines for carrying between 28 and 200. Its consumption will continue to be prohibited in work areas, whether public or private, and the sale can be carried out in authorized establishments.
Medical marijuana is also approved
As regards medicinal use, the bill indicates that it will be governed by the General Health Law. People over 18 years of age may consume, grow and carry marijuana with a permit issued by this institute.
For its part, the Movimiento Ciudadano party, which supported the initiative, assured that it is a step towards achieving a drug policy that abandons the use of the criminal justice system, which "criminalizes consumers and enriches traffickers." Indeed, the Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, came to power in 2018 with the defense of the legalization of marijuana and other drugs as a strategy to fight drug trafficking.