• Work on the project is 'still ongoing', says Minister of Health

    The Minister refrained from indicating a date or deadline for the presentation of a concrete plan
    RTL (Luxembourg)
    Friday, February 26, 2021

    luxembourg cannabisWhile legalisation of recreational cannabis in Luxembourg is one of the current coalition's flagship projects, updates on its progress have been rather sparse. Answering a parliamentary question about the progress of the project, Minister of Health Paulette Lenert responded that the government was currently working on a regulatory framework that would protect people who come into contact with cannabis while keeping them away from the black market by making it "less appealing". Lenert, who was very vague in her statements, confirmed that work on the cannabis legalisation project is still ongoing. She did say that "intensive" exchanges between the different ministries had taken place and that the project had been "completed" and "optimised".

  • Morocco set to legalise cannabis production for medical use

    Parliament, where the moderate Islamist PJD is the biggest party, must still approve the plan
    Reuters (UK)
    Thursday, February 25, 2021

    morocco cannabis5Morocco plans to allow the farming, export and domestic sale of cannabis for medical and industrial use, a move it hopes will help impoverished farmers in the Rif mountains amid a growing legal global market. The bill, which the cabinet is expected to approve next week, aims to improve farmers’ incomes, protect them from drug traffickers who now control the trade in cannabis and gain access to the booming legal international market for the drug. The draft law envisages a national agency to monitor production, transportation and sales. The recreational use of cannabis in Morocco would still be banned.Cannabis is mostly grown in the northern Rif mountains, which in recent years have seen protests over economic inequality. (See also: Confirmed: Morocco will legalize cannabis next week)

  • Mexico could soon become the largest legal marijuana market in the world

    But activists say the law fails to address the widespread pain that decades of militarized enforcement have caused
    The Nation (US)
    Thursday, February 25, 2021

    mexico cannabis plant potAfter decades of strict drug policy, Mexico’s congress is expected to pass a federal law this year that would for the first time create a legal cannabis trade in the country—the Senate passed the bill in November, and the lower house is set to vote on it this spring. But many of Mexico’s marijuana proponents are still opposed: The bill would allow for a cannabis industry on terms that they say favor corporations, and would still impose fines and prison sentences on people without connections or power. If the current version passes, advocates ask, who would the law be for? Mexico’s cannabis market is projected to be worth $5 billion within a few years, according to the National Association of the Cannabis Industry. Canadian and US companies are ready to swoop in.

  • La légalisation du cannabis supervisée par une agence «placée sous la tutelle de l’Etat»

    Le ministère de l’Intérieur, auteur d’un projet de loi en ce sens, entend créer une Agence, placée sous «la tutelle de l’Etat»
    Yabiladi (Maroc)
    Jeudi, 25 fevrier 2021

    morocco flag cannabis2Le Maroc veut rattraper son retard sur les pays ayant légalisé la culture du cannabis à des fins thérapeutiques et bénéficier ensuite des recettes financière. Le marché mondial de l’usage médicinal du cannabis «a connu une forte évolution». La moyenne de croissance annuelle, selon certaines prévisions, «est de 30% au niveau international et 60% en Europe». La légalisation ne signifie pas automatiquement une généralisation de la culture du kif sur l’ensemble du territoire. Après la publication du projet de loi au Bulletin officiel, un décret ministériel limitera les zones où cette activité fera l’objet d’une autorisation de l’Agence nationale de réglementation les activités liées au cannabis. (Lire aussi: Projet de loi sur le cannabis: les paysans devront se constituer en coopérative)

  • Burt refuses to confirm warning from Governor over cannabis law

    The UK Government through Government House has confirmed support for Bermuda’s policy and legislation only so far as it does not contravene the UK’s international obligations
    Royal Gazette (Bermuda)
    Wednesday, February 24, 2021

    David BurtPremier David Burt refused to confirm whether he had held any discussions with the Governor on cannabis regulations approved by the House of Assembly last week. The Premier however maintained that the legislation, if approved by the Senate, could receive Royal Assent despite concerns raised in the House of Assembly. “If our regulations were modelled after what is in place in Canada – another realm of the commonwealth where the Queen serves as head of state – and those are acceptable there, I cannot possibly imagine why they would not be acceptable here.” He said: “We live in a time, a point and place where we can be free to make our own laws and Bermuda has a long tradition of internal self governance and that tradition, I expect in this case, will be upheld and respected.”

  • The problem with cannabis is that it doesn’t have a label: Andrew Bonello

    Andrew Bonello, president of pro-legalisaton NGO Releaf Malta, argues that our current approach is causing more harm than the drug itself
    Malta Today (Malta)
    Wednesday, February 24, 2021

    Andrew BonelloIn Malta the Prime Minister has announced a White Paper on a possible new drug reform. Andrew Bonello: "In general, the gist of what the Prime Minister is proposing – that he is considering allowing cultivation of a couple of plants; and that people should stop getting arrested for simple possession – was all broadly in line with what we suggested in our meeting with him on February 9." The right to grow is one of the most fundamental aspects of the whole reform. "You can control your own product, so there is no danger of the cannabis being adulterated with other substances; you don’t have to go out and deal with the criminal market to score; and so on." (ReLeaf Malta: A Maltese Legalised and Regulated Cannabis Market 2020)

  • Exclusif: ce que dit le projet de loi sur l’usage légal du cannabis

    Un décret du chef du gouvernement sera adopté plus tard pour circonscrire les superficies de la culture du cannabis à six zones à travers le royaume
    Le 360 (Maroc)
    Mardi, 23 fevrier 2021

    morocco flag cannabisLe360 a eu accès aux dispositions phares du projet loi sur usage légal du cannabis qui sera soumis au Conseil de gouvernement du jeudi 25 février 2021. La première législation du genre au Maroc n'autorise pas encore l'usage récréatif de cette substance. Le projet de loi sur la légalisation de l'usage légal du cannabis prévoit la création d'une Agence nationale spécialisée. Celle-ci sera la seule entité publique en charge de l'achat et de la vente de la plante à des sociétés l’utilisant pour des fins médicinales. "Cette agence nationale sera l'unique interlocuteur pour l'achat de la culture du cannabis auprès des paysans et la vente aux sociétés de transformation nationales et internationales installées au Maroc." (Lire aussi: Cannabis: comment l’Intérieur a coupé l’herbe sous le pied des partis)

  • New Jersey governor signs laws to legalize marijuana use, decriminalize possession

    Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law legislation setting up a recreational marijuana marketplace, decriminalizing cannabis and loosening penalties for possession
    Associated Press (US)
    Monday, February 22, 2021

    us nj cannabisLegislation to set up a recreational marijuana marketplace, decriminalize cannabis and loosen penalties for underage possession of the drug and alcohol was signed into law by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, more than three months after voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot to legalize adult use of the drug. The Democrat-led Assembly and Senate passed the last-minute measure to ease penalties on underage possession of both alcohol and marijuana to secure Democratic Gov. Murphy’s signature on legislation they had sent him in December. Murphy had earlier said he backed the legislation, but delayed signing for more than two months amid concerns that young people of color could still face arrests, running afoul of his goal of undoing the effects of the war on drugs in Black communities.

  • Les élections de 2021 relancent le débat autour de la dépénalisation du cannabis

    Le PAM et l’Istiqlal appellent à la mise en place de solutions économiques efficientes et de mesures sociales alternatives réelles pour permettre aux paysans de la région de sortir de la précarité et de l’illégalité
    Le 360 (Maroc)
    Lundi, 22 fevrier 2021

    morocco parliament cannabisLe dossier du cannabis revient sur le devant de la scène politique et médiatique à l’approche des élections. Des voix politiques appellent à la légalisation de cette plantation et à la mise en place de plans d’accompagnement des paysans vivant du cannabis pour les sortir de la précarité et de l’illégalité. Plus de 30.000 paysans seraient recherchés pour des accusations liées à la culture du cannabis dans les régions de Bni Sdate, Ketama, Bni Khaled, Taounate, Larache, Ouazzan et Tétouan. Ces paysans vivent dans la précarité et l’illégalité. Le débat autour de cette problématique, lancé en 2008, a été renvoyé à plusieurs reprises aux calendes grecques. Mais à l’approche des élections, le dossier revient sur le devant de la scène politique et médiatique. (Lire aussi: Osons !)

  • After 30-year jail sentence for cannabis users, protesters demand decriminalization

    Law 52 allows authorities to detain dissidents and protesters on grounds that don’t appear to be political
    Meshkal (Tunisia)
    Monday, February 22, 2021

    tunis protestA series of protests which began on January 15 in various cities and neighborhoods across Tunisia have largely focused on economic inequality and police repression. But recently, some of those protesting have revived an old demand of decriminalizing cannabis usage. One event appears to have pushed some to take up this demand again with renewed visibility in the streets and on social media: on January 21, 2021 a judge in El Kef handed out 30-year jail sentences to three young men for cannabis consumption in a public place. The high attendance at these protests may stem in part from widespread anger at the 30-year jail sentence. However, some of the recent street activism may be traced to planning going back even further, to six months ago, according to one organizer.

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