Cannabis: Chese advocates ‘fake legalization’

Soon the end of the fine for smoking a joint? The Economic, Social and Environmental Council (Cese), an advisory body, decides on Tuesday in favor of the “sham legalization” of cannabis. This is what follows from the work carried out during the year by an interim commission chaired by Jean-François Nathan, adviser to the confederation of the CGT. The latter points to the “bitter failure of a policy followed for fifty years” to punish the use of this drug with a fine of 200 euros (150 euros if the amount is paid directly or within fifteen days).

Members of the commission interviewed many people, and also traveled to places, especially to the south of France. In recommending legalization, “the main goal is to be guided by public health goals,” said Florent Compin, Friends of the Earth’s spokesman in France and one of two speakers in the opinion. The recommendation also aims to “weaken and reduce as much as possible” the illegal traffic, even if “we know some of it will remain,” adds another co-rapporteur, Helno Eiri, former president of UNEF.

Cese especially starts with the observation that almost half of adults have already used cannabis during their lifetime, compared to about a quarter in the entire European Union. Specifically, legal businesses can see the light of day if they obtain a license and undergo “mandatory training for risk prevention and mitigation managers.” The sale will be prohibited to minors, and “any promotion or advertisement in favor of cannabis, and any free or promotional distribution” will be banned along the lines of the Evin tobacco law.

Macron’s various positions

However, Chese defends himself against filing an “appeal to smoke everything “, in the words of Jean-Francois Nathan. Such legalization “should be backed up by a policy of education, prevention and combat against all human trafficking,” he insists. As such, the body recommends “protecting minors as a matter of priority by developing policies to support and manage use, especially when they are problematic, and by prohibiting them from selling or provoking cannabis use.”

This opinion must be approved by all Cese members on Tuesday afternoon. This body of civil society actors plays a purely advisory role and the government is in no way bound to follow its recommendations. Emmanuel Macron himself has taken different positions regarding the legalization of cannabis. Minister of the Economy, he assessed in September 2016 at France Inter that the legalization of cannabis has “interests” and is a “form of efficiency” in terms of safety and combating “the financing of occult networks”. But last March, during the presentation of his re-election program, he said he “does not support” the legalization of cannabis.

Several foreign countries, including Canada and Uruguay, have already legalized the use of cannabis for “recreational purposes”. Malta was the first European country to take such a drastic step and should be followed by Germany by 2024. cannabis.