Politics: Cannabis Left In Legal Limbo
Early this month Mexico’s highest court took an initial and decisive step toward ending the ban on the production and consumption of cannabis for recreational purposes by upholding the rights of four plaintiffs to produce it for their own consumption. This decision does not constitute what in common law would be regarded as a legally binding precedent, but with other people in the regulatory pipeline who already are requesting the same rights it probably won’t be long before the court establishes such jurisprudence. Lawyers specializing in such cases lament, however, that even if the precedent is set, individuals seeking to produce cannabis for personal use would still have to request permission from health officials unless other laws are changed. Moreover, an effort to bring existing law into line with the high court’s decision will entail changes to the General Law on Health as well as other regulatory steps.
President Enrique Peña Nieto responded to the ruling by calling for a national debate on how to treat cannabis. The results of such a consultation could be important if in fact they contribute to positive changes to existing laws and policies. But it seems unlikely that Congress will adopt new laws or regulations on the matter any time soon or at least as long as polls show most Mexicans remain opposed to the idea of legalization for recreational use.
A decision to liberalize such consumption would have only a minimal effect on organized crime, especially in lieu of the substantial legal reforms and regulations needed to assure that consumers could begin for the first time in 75 years to acquire cannabis from non-illicit sources.
Most of the relevant regulatory issues were in no way addressed by the Supreme Court ruling. Defining those rules is a task that will be up to members of Congress and federal government officials. There is a risk that out of fear they might be punished by voters, and that lawmakers and other officials will fail to assume this challenge and leave Mexico in the legal limbo of very limited court precedents combined with enormous regulatory voids that fail to deliver on the expected benefits and leave intact all the negative aspects of prohibition.
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