cannabis

  • colombia flag cannabisEn este punto de la historia colombiana no debe ser extraño para nadie que el nuevo Presidente de la República haya dedicado una gran parte de su discurso inaugural a tratar el tema de la política antidrogas en Colombia e internacionalmente, citando cifras y ejemplos, además de solicitar la cooperación internacional para darle un giro de 180 grados a lo que ya todo el mundo conoce como la “fallida guerra contra las drogas”. Gustavo Petro, alejándose de su discurso preparado, dijo: “Que nos quieren apoyar en la paz, nos dicen, una y otra vez, en todos los discursos. Pues cambien la política de drogas que está en sus manos, en el poder mundial, en las Naciones Unidas, el poder hacerlo”. Este es un claro y contundente llamado a que las naciones hagan su parte en cambiar tanto sus políticas locales como los tratados internacionales.

  • Pharmacists in Belgium can now make and sell products containing cannabidiol (CBD), one of the active ingredients in the cannabis plant. The Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products has stated that it is lifting the ban on pharmacies preparing and selling products with the ingredient. The agency made the surprise announcement in a circular letter. It is effective immediately, on a prescription basis only. Kelly Vidts, brand manager of the Fagron pharmaceutical company, told De Standaard that apothecaries who order cannabidiol will be able to use it in different ways. “Pharmacists can use it to make an ointment, oil or pills,” she said. (See also: Police shut down pop singer’s shop selling cannabis oil)

  • mexico legalizacion marihuanaGady Zabicky Sirot, titular de la Comisión Nacional Contra las Adicciones (Conadic), solicitó a los senadores integrantes de las Comisiones Unidas de Justicia, Salud y Estudios Legislativos aprobar un dictamen que “proteja a las personas por encima del dinero”, en materia de regulación de cannabis. Durante la reunión de las comisiones, que tuvo lugaren el Senado, Zabicky advirtió que el posible comercio de cannabis sativa permitirá a México entrar a un mercado mundial de “billones de pesos”, pero el gobierno debe privilegiar el acceso al cultivo seguro a pequeños campesinos, por encima de las grandes farmacéuticas. (Véase también: El titular de la Conadic apoya el uso lúdico de la marihuana)

  • switzerland cannabis3On 15 May 2021, an amendment to the Narcotics Act permitting pilot trials involving the controlled dispensing of cannabis for recreational purposes in Switzerland will come into force. The trials will provide a scientific basis on the advantages and disadvantages of controlled access to cannabis, and to provide a solid scientific basis for any future decision making on cannabis regulation. On 25 September 2020, Parliament passed an amendment to the Federal Act on Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances (NarcA). With its new article 8a NarcA the revised act provides a legal basis for conducting scientific pilot trials with cannabis that are limited in terms of both time and place. The amended Act enters into force on 15 May 2021 and will remain in effect for ten years.

  • legalizar uruguay 2013c“Alguien tiene que ser el primero”, decía en 2012 el expresidente uruguayo, José Mujica, cuando lo consultaban sobre la posibilidad de legalizar el mercado de cannabis en Uruguay y experimentar así una alternativa al prohibicionismo imperante. Tiempo después, en diciembre de 2013, el Congreso de su país aprobaba una ley que por primera vez en el mundo regulaba integralmente el mercado de cannabis para uso adulto o recreativo. Pasada una década se estima que el 51% de los uruguayos que fuma esta hierba lo hace dentro del circuito legal: la marihuana se vende en farmacias habilitadas, es posible cultivarla en casa u obtenerla en clubes cannábicos.

  • czech pirates regulationThe Pirates are fulfilling one of their pre-election promises. Pirates MPs prepared a bill on the legalization of cannabis in cooperation with the national anti-drug coordinator Jindřich Vobořil, an expert the government should trust. The amendment to the drug law wants to make it possible to legally grow up to five plants and keep with you up to 1,250 grams of dry matter. The legalization of licensed sales is also expected. Vobořil already said in June that he is discussing this fundamental change with Petr Fiala (ODS): “We agreed with the Prime Minister that there is a need to respond to the fact that in Germany they are planning to introduce a regulated cannabis market by the end of the year. There are around a hundred companies in the Czech Republic that would like to enter the hemp market. These companies could then export hemp.”

  • cannabis plastic bagLegalizing marijuana would bring the Czech state between CZK 650 million and CZK 1.8 billion in tax revenue, according to an analysis commissioned by the Pirate Party, which was presented on Wednesday. The study proposes various options for regulating the marijuana market, including mandatory registration of users. The register would make it possible to regulate the amount per month that can be purchased, or to check that the age of shoppers is over 18. It also aims to regulate the black market and restrict minors’ access to cannabis. The Pirate Party plans to present the study to its government coalition partners next week. (See also: The legalization of cannabis would bring in up to 1.8 billion, the Pirates claim)

  • spain mmm2019El grupo de Unidas Podemos considera un "punto de partida" para trabajar en la regulación de la marihuana la respuesta parlamentaria del Gobierno adelantada por Público. En ella, el Ejecutivo anuncia que la puesta en marcha de programas de uso medicinal del cannabis "se tomará, en su caso, ponderando la evidencia que exista sobre su eficacia terapéutica y los efectos adversos" de su uso. Sin embargo, la formación morada va mucho más allá y está preparando una propuesta de ley de uso integral (terapéutico y recreativo), que actualiza la que ya presentó al final de la anterior legislatura y que espera poder consensuar con el PSOE, su socio de gobierno.

  • poland cannabisThe distribution and use of cannabis for medical purposes became legal in Poland in 2017. By 2021, doctors across Poland were writing roughly 3,000 marijuana prescriptions a month. But how many monthly prescriptions go to patients who really need medical marijuana, and how many to others faking illness in order to gain access to cannabis? "That's hard to say," explains Andrzej Dolecki, chairman of the Free Hemp movement, one of the oldest organizations in the fight for the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana in Poland. "Rules for medical cannabis are very liberal, not because politicians designed them that way but because of their amateurism." (See also: Polish activists advocate for cannabis legalisation)

  • Public Security Minister Amir Ohana signaled support for easing enforcement of laws against marijuana use. Ohana, whose ministry oversees the police, was responding to a High Court of Justice petition urging the court to annul the criminalizing of recreational marijuana use and possession. “The stance of the incoming public security minister is… to minimize harm as much as possible to [otherwise] law-abiding citizens who have offenses linked to the drug,” the ministry’s response said. It also said Ohana intended to appoint a team to weigh a more lenient policy toward recreational marijuana use.

  • A former chief inspector has said he believes that over a third of drug stop-and-searches by UK police are used “as an excuse to harass people”, after an analysis showed that officers are using the powers as a pretext to punish or exert control, rather than to find drugs. Despite a 2011 decision to rein in stop-and-search because so many Black and Asian people were being targeted, the tactic is back on the rise after a surge in knife crime. There was a sharp jump in the number of searches between 2017/18 and 2018/19, from 250,000 to 384,000. Despite the coronavirus lockdown, that figure has skyrocketed in London, increasing by 103 percent in the year up to May of 2020. (See also: As a police officer, I know stop and search is really about power)

  • The Drug Law Enforcement Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ghana Police Service has recently uncovered hundreds of acres of farmland dedicated to the cultivation of plants suspected to be Indian Hemp. The enclave is located behind the Tome Mountain at Peki in the South Dayi District of the Volta Region. With the help of a drone, the location which initially looked like a small enclave was discovered to be so vast and hidden such that it would have been difficult to detect and assess. A visit to the site revealed hundreds of farmlands dedicated to the cultivation of the substance as far as the eyes can see.

  • gustavo petro presidenteLa política de drogas “Sembrando Vida Desterramos el Narcotráfico” 2023-2033 que presenta el presidente Gustavo Petro en Cauca ha recibido comentarios positivos y también críticas de distintos sectores por las inconsistencias y vacíos detectados. En comparación con los enfoques punitivos predominantes en el pasado, la política formulada reconoce explícitamente que la “guerra contra las drogas” fracasó a nivel mundial, lo que exige transformar sustancialmente las premisas que criminalizan a los pequeños productores de plantas prohibidas, a los consumidores de drogas y mantienen en un segundo plano los enfoques de secuencia debida y derechos humanos también incluidos en instrumentos de Naciones Unidas. (En contexto: Los detalles del borrador de la política de drogas de Petro, que costaría 18 billones de pesos)

  • El 25 de agosto de 2009 la Corte Suprema de Justicia declaró la inconstitucionalidad del artículo Nº14 de la Ley de Estupefacientes Nº 23.737, que reprime la tenencia de estupefacientes para consumo personal. ¿Qué significa ese fallo once años después? A pesar de haberse cumplido 11 años del histórico fallo y de que mucha agua ha corrido bajo el puente, los especialistas en los temas de políticas de drogas sostienen que nada ha cambiado. Por el contrario, las causas contra consumidores o pequeños expendedores minoristas se multiplican en los Tribunales y el número de personas presas por estas razones creció exponencialmente sin que esto afecte en manera alguna a las verdaderas redes organizadas.

  • colombia coca reguladaEn la última semana, se ha hablado mucho sobre el discurso del presidente Petro en la ONU. Más allá de revisar frase por frase, precisar algunos elementos y licencias casi poéticas que se dio el Presidente, el mensaje fue claro y contundente. Le dijo al mundo que Colombia está asumiendo desproporcionalmente los costos de la guerra contra las drogas y del cambio climático. Por lo tanto, hay que replantear las políticas en ambos temas. El paralelo tiene sentido por esta responsabilidad global y por qué la coca, aunque no es el motor principal de la deforestación, se expande en la selva y la política prohibicionista no resuelve la deforestación. La discusión global es necesaria, pero también la discusión nacional.

  • colombia coca cultivo¿Cuál es el futuro de la política de drogas de Colombia? Esta es una de las preguntas principales de cara a las elecciones de 2022. ¿Habrá cambios en la concepción nacional en términos de lucha contra el narcotráfico, consumo legal, intervención en los territorios y prohibicionismo? Para darle respuesta a esos interrogantes, la Universidad de los Andes dio lugar a un debate para que los precandidatos presidenciales expresen sus propuestas y visión de cómo sería una política de drogas en un posible mandato. De acuerdo con las declaraciones de los precandidatos, cómo abordar la política de las drogas sigue siendo el centro de la discordia entre las diferentes propuestas de los participantes.

  • portugal cannabis parliamentTwo political parties in Portugal, Left Bloc and Liberal Initiative, each presented proposals for adult-use cannabis legalisation. The outcome of the debate was an agreement that both Bills be sent to the Health Committee for a period of 60 days, during which public hearings can be made, amendments presented and negotiations carried out before the deciding vote occurs in Parliament. Both parties are essentially proposing that the cultivation, distribution, purchasing, possession and consumption of adult-use cannabis [plant or derivatives] should be legalised. “Self-cultivation” for personal-use would also be allowed if either Bill was passed, with a maximum of five or six plants permitted per home (Left Bloc proposes five plants, Liberal Initiative proposes six).

  • denmark cannabis flagDanish officials across five political parties have proposed a plan for an adult-use cannabis pilot similar to a program proposed in its capital city. Earlier this month, the proposal was presented in Danish Parliament instructing the government to start legislative work that will result in a bill that legalizes cannabis for five years. According to submitted documentation, that bill will look like one put forth in Copenhagen with sales at state-controlled outlets, and it’s legal for citizens to buy, possess, grow and consume cannabis for personal use. The proposed scheme would set up public outlets in municipalities wishing to join the program. Production would be legalized, and take place domestically in Denmark.

  • denmark cannabis flagA majority in the Citizens' Representation in Copenhagen voted yes to a proposal for a cannabis pilot project. The politicians voted for the municipality's administration to put together a proposal, which the government must decide on. The idea is to make Copenhagen an experimental city for the legalization of cannabis. There have been attempts to get legalization through for years, but successive governments have said no. Now the idea has again been given the green light. (See also:Today, a new proposal for the legalization of cannabis will be up and running in Copenhagen)

  • sa cannabis pondoland womenFor generations, people in South Africa's Eastern Cape have made their living growing cannabis. You might expect that as the country moves to legalise the crop, they would be first in line to benefit, but that is not necessarily the case. Cannabis, colloquially referred to as "umthunzi wez'nkukhu," or, chicken shade, is an intrinsic part of many rural communities in Eastern Cape's Pondoland and a vital source of income. "Cannabis is very important to us because it's our livelihood and source of income. Everything we get, we get it through selling cannabis. There are no jobs, our children are just sitting here with us." While cannabis might be a way of life for this community, growing it at this scale is illegal. There are more than 900,000 small-scale farmers in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces who have been growing cannabis for years.