Malta Becomes First EU Country to Legalize Cannabis
On December 14, 2021, Malta’s parliament passed a bill that made it the first EU country to legalize cannabis.
“And the ayes have it! The #Cannabis reform bill has just been approved at third reading stage.We are the change makers,” tweeted Owen Bonnici, Maltese Minister for Equality, Research and Innovation, who promoted the bill.
Most believe that the law will be in place in the small Mediterranean island-nation by the weekend. However, the Maltese cannabis industry will be heavily regulated. Adults 18 and older will be allowed to possess only up to seven grams of marijuana. They are also allowed up to four homegrown cannabis plants per household – similar to laws in Canada. (Manitoba has restrictions while Quebec opted out of allowing homegrown cannabis.)
The law decriminalizes cannabis, but imposes heavy fines for those who break the law. Those who possess over seven grams and up to 28 grams of cannabis face fines of €50-€100 (approximately $75-$150). Consuming cannabis in front of a child could be fined €300 and €500 (approx. $450 to $750).
Although Malta is the first EU country to legalize cannabis, that distinction comes with an asterisk. Technically, Luxembourg approved legislation to legalize cannabis, but has yet to officially legalize it. The Netherlands has long – and famously – tolerated cannabis use in coffeeshops. (Ironically, there is a movement now in Amsterdam to ban cannabis use.)
Germany’s new government also pledged to legalize cannabis. Currently, it is not illegal to consume cannabis, but it is illegal to buy it.
The First EU Country to Legalize Cannabis Had Challenges Along the Way – LPC
It wasn’t smooth sailing for the first EU country to legalize cannabis. Malta’s government face challenges along the way. The arguments are familiar to anyone in Canada. Those for it touted the benefits including economic benefits and the fact that it would help undermine the illegal cannabis market. Those against were worried about the health effects of cannabis and the moral implications.
However, Bonnici stated, the time was right for a softer approach to cannabis.
“There is a wave of understanding now that the hard-fist approach against cannabis users was disproportionate, unjust and it was rendering a lot of suffering to people who are leading exemplary lives,” he said. “But the fact that they make use on a personal basis of cannabis is putting them in the jaws of criminality.”
Others in the EU see it as inevitable, especially after the UN removed cannabis from its list of most dangerous drugs.
“The transatlantic winds of change that have been blowing in the Americas for a while have now reached the shores in Europe,” said Tom Blickman of the Amsterdam-based Transnational Institute. He added that legalization is in the best interest of protecting public health.
Malta may be the first EU country to legalize cannabis, but it most certainly won’t be the last. Even though countries such as the US are dragging their heels on cannabis legalization, it’s only a matter of time when legalized cannabis becomes the norm, not the exception.
Read the Original Story at the Washington Post
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