A man shows medical marijuana at a greenhouse in Mexico City on November 30, 2015 (AFP Photo/Yuri Cortez) |
Mexico City
(AFP) - Mexican health authorities issued Friday the first permit allowing four
individuals to grow and use their own marijuana for recreational purposes,
following a landmark Supreme Court ruling.
While the
permit opens a crack in Mexico's prohibitionist policies, the government health
watchdog Cofepris stressed that the authorization is limited to those four
people only.
The group,
part of the Mexican Society for Responsible and Tolerant Personal Use (SMART),
is pushing for full legalization of marijuana, arguing that it will help reduce
the country's relentless drug violence.
Their legal
victory has set a potential precedent for others to seek similar permits while
forcing President Enrique Pena Nieto and Congress to debate whether to change
the country's marijuana laws.
For now,
Cofepris underlined in a statement that under the current laws marijuana
"is still an illegal substance" and its cultivation and sale remain
forbidden.
But the
four SMART members -- two lawyers, an accountant and a social activist -- are
allowed to "sow, grow, harvest, prepare, possess, transport and consume
marijuana for recreational uses," Cofepris said.
They are
not permitted, however, to sell it to other people or use marijuana in front of
children, pregnant women "or people who do not give their consent."
The SMART
members say they have no intention of using marijuana. Their goal, they say, is
to force the government's hand.
While Pena
Nieto has repeatedly voiced his opposition to legalization, he has convened
experts to a national debate in several states between January and March to
decide potential new regulations.
Congress,
meanwhile, is discussing a bill that would legalize the import and consumption
of medical marijuana.
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