Congressional Deputies Open to Marijuana Legalization Debate Victor Mayen - The News
go to original November 20, 2012

MEXICO CITY – Deputies in Congress agreed this week to open debate on the legalization of the production, sale and consumption of marijuana in Mexico. Their comments follow recent decisions by U.S. states Washington and Colorado to legalize the recreational use and sale of marijuana.

Democratic Revolution Party (PRD) Deputy Fernando Belauzarán Méndez presented a bill that would regulate marijuana and related products last Thursday. His proposal, he says, intends to minimize and repair the social problems caused by drug trafficking and to deny an important source of income to Mexican organized crime groups. Marijuana is the most consumed illegal substance in Mexico and the world, and is the greatest source of revenue for organized crime, he added.

Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) Deputy Roy Argel Gómez Olguín said, “It will be the people who will make the decision,” adding that creating jobs, stimulating investment in rural areas, improving youth support services and encouraging sports are the ways to reduce drug trafficking and consumption.

Results from the 2011 National Addictions Survey presented by the federal government in October show that marijuana use in the west of Mexico almost doubled in three years, rising from 0.7 percent to 1.3 percent. Rodrigo González Barrios of the PRD said that once citizens are informed, people should be able to express their opinion on the matter.

Public Security Committee Secretary Ana Isabel Allende Cano said it was necessary to obtain accurate data on how both Washington and Colorado will deal with marijuana consumption once legalization goes into effect.

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