Pharmacists are also critical of the government`s plans for traffic lights. The president of the North Rhine Pharmacists` Association, Preis, warned against legalising cannabis for recreational use. He also justified this to the “Rheinische Post” by health risks. Medical cannabis is legal in South Africa. [105] Since the decision of the traffic light parties in the coalition agreement to legalize cannabis, there has been speculation about how the government intends to proceed concretely. The RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland has exclusively the key points for the planned legislative changes. An overview. According to the key points, it is envisaged to allow sales not only in licensed stores, but also in pharmacies. Thus, the black market could be better combated because of the wider supply, especially in rural areas, he says in the key points. “On the other hand, the black market shift would likely be stronger if recreational cannabis could also be acquired via the convenient and increasingly important online route,” he continues.
It will also be examined to allow “specialized stores with possibility for the consumer”. Carmen Wegge, the SPD`s rapporteur in the Interior Committee, criticised this optimistic forecast in an interview with ARD capital. “We must “refrain from saying that we will definitely be able to do that next year this summer,” Wegge said. Their prognosis is that cannabis will probably not become legal until next year, that is, in 2024 at the earliest. On 23 August 2006, Law No. 11.343 Nova Lei Antidrogas was adopted, which entered into force on 6 October 2006. This new law departs from the principle of zero tolerance. Instead of following a path based on the American system (escola americana) and criminalising illicit drug users, as has been the case up to now, we are taking a path more in line with European principles.
On June 9, 2022, the cultivation and possession of marijuana was decriminalized. However, smoking marijuana to the public is still considered harassment and can be punished with a three-month prison sentence and a fine equivalent to around 675 euros. [108] 4,200 people imprisoned for cannabis-related offences were released because cannabis was removed from the narcotics list. [109] The sale to persons under 20 years of age, pregnant women and nursing mothers was prohibited. [110] Criminal proceedings concerning the acquisition of small quantities of cannabis products in the order of “very small quantities” are generally abandoned by the Public Prosecutor`s Office on the basis of a 1994 judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court. The amount called the smallest amount is regulated differently in federal states. In North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, it is (in August 2013) 10 g of raw amount of cannabis. [13] Small amounts of cannabis are forfeited when found, but do not need to be tried in court. This rule applies only to occasional consumers, the interpretation of the decision is at the discretion of the judge or prosecutor and may depend on other circumstances of the individual case. If, on the basis of previous recruitments, there is the impression that the consumer is a long-term consumer, he cannot expect employment in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Constitutional Court.
Likewise, there must be no danger to others due to public consumption. In 1990, Lübeck judge Wolfgang Nešković called on the Federal Constitutional Court to legalize cannabis under the slogan “Right to intoxication”. So far, it has not responded to this request, but has instructed the Conference of Ministers of the Interior to set a national maximum limit for quantities of own consumption. So far, the full implementation of this measure has been neglected. Despite legalization, it should remain prohibited to advertise cannabis products. There is a general ban on advertising, it is said in the key points. “Recreational cannabis is sold in an outer packaging (plain packaging) without advertising design,” he continues. “Advertising purchase suggestions” at points of sale or on the Internet are prohibited. In Spain, the cultivation and consumption of cannabis is tolerated in cannabis social clubs, i.e. h., Members can grow cannabis together and consume it in clubs, but cannot pass it on to foreigners. However, Article 73 of the DPR (Presidential Decree) 309/1990 Testo Unico Stupefacenti (Uniform Text for Narcotic Drugs) also punishes possession of drugs if it is not intended for exclusive personal use: charges are therefore relatively frequent, even if only a small quantity is found and there are other indications of transmission (e.g. finding a scale, a material for packaging, Species).
The key points now stipulate, among other things, that the purchase and possession of a maximum of 20 grams of cannabis from the age of 18 is legal. In addition, cannabis is no longer classified as a narcotic. This law, which replaces the previous laws 6.378 and 10.409, stipulates, among other things, that the possession and consumption of illegal drugs are no longer considered a crime and that users can therefore no longer be sentenced to prison. Until now, Brazil has faced sentences of six months to three years in prison for drug possession. Instead, less repressive means can now be used to try to influence illicit drug users. In particular, warnings, supervision by social workers or the obligation to perform community service may be considered as means. Almost no traffic light promise has attracted as much attention as this one: “We are introducing the controlled distribution of cannabis to adults for recreational purposes in licensed stores.” This means nothing less than: smoking weed should be legalized in Germany. In Poland, medical cannabis has been legalized since November 1, 2017. However, it has only been available in pharmacies since January 2019. [69] On 19 January 2017, the Bundestag adopted a bill by the Federal Ministry of Health, so that since 10 March 2017[36] seriously ill people in need can obtain controlled cannabis by prescription, the costs being covered by health insurance companies. Doctors should decide on their own responsibility if cannabis therapy makes sense, even if there are other treatment options.
In order to ensure supply, the cultivation of cannabis for medical purposes in Germany must be made possible. Future cultivation is coordinated and controlled by a national cannabis agency, which is subordinate to the BfArM. The first harvest is expected in Q4 2020. [37] Meanwhile, demand is covered by imports, but this repeatedly leads to supply bottlenecks for patients (as of 2018). Nevertheless, self-cultivation remains prohibited. The exemptions of the Federal Opium Agency of the BfArM for the purchase of medicinal hemp products are therefore no longer necessary. [38] [39] The large number of commercial parties interested in approving cannabis products is considerable and can be seen in the contributions on the Internet. [40] [41] On November 6, 2012, the states of Washington (Washington Initiative 502) and Colorado (Colorado Amendment 64) legalized the private possession of up to 28 grams of cannabis by referendum. Meanwhile, recreational cannabis has also been widely legalized in Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, California, Oregon, Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and the Federal District of Washington, DC. [121] This increased the number of states where the drug can be legally possessed under state law to 19 plus Washington, D.C.
(as of May 2022). Under federal law, however, cannabis is still illegal. [122] Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) further stoked expectations in the Bundestag in May: “My personal goal is that next year we will be ready to sell the first legal joint.” On Twitter, he added: “It is realistically possible to implement the law by spring 2023.” There are now doubts about this. Berlin – The German government wants to legalize cannabis for the recreational market. According to Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, this will happen “during this legislature”. Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann is more ambitious. On Twitter, he wrote in May that it was realistic to implement the law by spring 2023. In the Bundestag, he said two months ago that he wanted to be “ready next year that we can sell the first legal joint”.
What is often overlooked in the often flippant debate over legalization (keyword “Bubatz”) is the legal aspect: cannabis entrepreneur Niklas Kouparanis sees three options for Germany. But what are the government and the opposition saying about this? Actions for one`s own consumption, e.g. cultivation, acquisition, possession and consumption itself, can in principle be sanctioned by a fine (fine) up to the legal maximum amount of Fr.