Germany: Parliament legalizes recreational cannabis
This Friday, February 23, the German parliament gave its final green light to the legalization of recreational cannabis, adopting a flagship law for the government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Despite everything, the text still gives rise to controversy and its application raises questions.
Germans gather during a demonstration in Berlin for the legalization of cannabis, April 2023. © NADJA WOHLLEBEN / Reuters
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This Friday, the Bundestag decided: from April 1, 2024, recreational cannabis will be legalized in Germany.
This was a central societal reform
of the German government
.
It took longer than expected to see the light of day: legal obstacles as well as heated debates and dissensions within the ruling coalition explain this delay.
“
Who is still going to go to a dealer to buy products of uncertain quality?
» In recent days, the Minister of Health has defended his bill tooth and nail from the podium of the German parliament, in the face of attacks from the right (CDU) and the far right (AfD).
For Karl Lauterbach, “
the current situation is not acceptable
”: the black market and crime are increasing, consumption among young people is also increasing significantly.
This reform should therefore make it possible
to fight more effectively against the black market, according to the government.
In a vote in the German parliament, the text was adopted by a vast majority of 407 votes in favor and 226 votes against.
German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach speaks to defend his cannabis legalization bill, in the Bundestag, February 23, 2024. AP - Serhat Kocak
50 grams of cannabis per person per month
From April 1, it will therefore be possible to have a maximum of three cannabis plants at home for personal consumption with a limit of 50 grams per person per month, or you will have to join by identifying with “a club”. specifies our correspondent in Berlin,
Pascal Thibaut
.
The production of cannabis on a larger scale,
still for non-commercial purposes
, will be authorized for the members of these “
cannabis clubs
”, a German specificity.
Up to 500 adults per month, and only members of these clubs will be authorized to consume their product.
These clubs will also be responsible for distributing cannabis seeds and cuttings to their members for home cultivation, up to a maximum of seven seeds or five cuttings.
As for individuals, a total of 25 grams per day – the equivalent of 75 joints – can be purchased, and 50 grams in total per month, through non-profit associations.
These measures only apply to those over 18 and the ban remains in force for younger people.
As explained by the Bundestag, information campaigns on the dangers of cannabis for adolescents will be put in place, and consumption remains prohibited near minors, schools, nurseries and sports facilities.
Third European country to legalize cannabis
With this new law, Germany adopts one of the most liberal legislations in Europe in this area, and follows in the footsteps of Malta and Luxembourg, which legalized recreational cannabis in 2021 and 2023 respectively. It becomes also the ninth country in the world to decriminalize the recreational use of this drug, also legal in some Australian and American jurisdictions.
The new text is a central promise of the government
but arouses controversy
, particularly from medical associations and the judiciary.
Doctors denounce, for example, the dependence created by cannabis, and others in the world of law, the impossibility of controlling its application.
On the political side, for CDU party MP Simone Borchardt, this law is “
a pole held out to every dealer
”.
The Greens, for their part, called for also “
legalizing hemp
”, a long-standing demand of certain factions of the party.
The number of Germans consuming cannabis is estimated at 4.5 million.
Despite everything, the latter seem rather divided on the question of its legalization: according to a YouGov poll published this Friday, 47% of those questioned are in favor of legalization, and 42% are unfavorable.
Read alsoGermany: the future liberalization of the cannabis market attracts investors
(
And with
AFP)
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