Uruguay Passes Bill To Legalize Marijuana

Uruguay Passes Bill To Legalize Marijuana

A bill to legalize the consumption, distribution and production of marijuana was passed this Thursday through the Uruguayan House of Representatives. If it is approved by the Senate it will make Uruguay the first country in the world to completely legalize marijuana both in terms of consumption and in terms of production.

The bill has the support of the government formed by president Jose Mujica, who states that this measure can take important profits away from drug dealers while keeping people away from harder drugs.

Under the bill the state would be the only entity permitted to sell marijuana, even though potential buyers could grow up to six plants at their homes.

To buy the drug, consumers should be over 18 and register in a national database. They can then purchase as much as 1.4 oz per month from certain pharmacies.

The politicians backing the bill say that it is not meant to promote consumption but rather to take away some of the power drug cartels have gained.

While the traditional way of restricting the use of drugs is still popular among conservatives in most South American countries, certain politicians like former Mexican president Vicente Fox or Guatemalan president Otto Perez Molina have suggested that the legalization of marijuana could be a more productive way of dealing with the drug problem.

Posted by James Fried on Sunday August 04 2013, 3:42 AM EST. Ref: BBC. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0