Malta legalizes the cultivation and use of recreational cannabis, a first in the EU

Malta became on Tuesday December 14 the first country in the European Union to legalize the recreational use of cannabis.

Raul ARBOLEDA AFP / File

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Malta became on Tuesday December 14 the first country in the European Union to legalize the recreational use of cannabis.

The Parliament voted by 36 votes against 27 a text which regulates the cultivation of limited quantities of cannabis at home and its consumption in the private sphere.

A risk reduction approach, according to the Prime Minister, which avoids resorting to traffickers. 

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Four feet of cannabis maximum between the pots of geraniums and not more than 7 grams of drug per user, of major age.

Beyond that, it is the fine: 100 euros for the possession of 7 to 28 grams of drug.

The law is more severe in the event of consumption in front of a minor, an offense punishable by 300 to 500 euros of fine.

Consumption in public is also prohibited. 

Maltese amateurs who do not have a green thumb will be able to obtain supplies from non-profit associations, authorized to produce and sell cannabis to their members. 

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Avoid trafficking

By authorizing and controlling the sale of cannabis, the government hopes to prevent users from ending up in the hands of traffickers.

It will also conduct information campaigns on this drug.

By adopting this law, Malta is just ahead of Luxembourg where cannabis will be legalized in 2022. Several other EU countries have already decriminalized the recreational use of this drug, and could move towards legalization.

Among them, the Netherlands, Spain and Germany. 

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