More than four million Germans regularly use marijuana. Starting this Monday, April 1, they are allowed
to smoke it in public spaces
but always
more than 100 meters away
from places where minors move.
Some supporters of legalization demonstrated and smoked their first legal joints, after midnight, to welcome a reform they
had been waiting for for a long time.
From now on,
an adult will be able to buy 25 grams a day,
possess 50 grams
of marijuana at home, where they will also be able
to grow up to three plants
.
Cannabis clubs
are expected to begin operating in July
, where 500 registered members will be able to exchange their production.
The law copies much of the experiment that Uruguay began 11 years ago and that German government experts
consider successful.
Grancia Karl, reads a poster in gratitude to the German Minister of Health, Karl Lauterbach. Photo: Reuters
Some governments in the
conservative states
of southern Germany, however, have already announced that
they will make full use of the restrictions
allowed by law. “It will be chaos,” the president of the Christian Democrats, Friedrich Merz, predicted apocalyptically.
The rules
are numerous
and not everything is clear yet. Therefore, the controls can be complicated. At the moment only merchants can supply recreational cannabis until the clubs begin to operate.
Young people between
18 and 21 years old only have the right to light cannabis.
The police will theoretically have to control their consumption. Additionally, driver testing is not available.
Fight against traffic
Judges will now have to reopen
200,000 cases
due to the amnesty provided by the new law.
One of the German government's objectives is to better regulate drug consumption, but the intention is also
to fight trafficking and organized crime.
The experiences in other parts of the world have not been very successful, according to specialist Michel Gandilhon, member of the scientific orientation council of the International Crime Observatory and author of the book Drugs, illicit drugs and trafficking in France.
Marijuana smokers celebrate legalization in Berlin. Photo: John MACDOUGALL / AFP
“The objective is to take that market away from criminal organizations, that is, to weaken them. But what we see is that it can be subtracted in its entirety.
A black market will probably persist
,” says the expert.
“In Colorado, for example, a very liberal state in terms of legalization, 30% of the market is still in the hands of criminal organizations. However,
Mexican cartels have seen the criminal cannabis market decline
as it has been handed over to private companies. To balance, criminal organizations have taken advantage of
the opioid crisis
: we are seeing a return of heroin, so many organizations have resorted to heroin trafficking,” details Gandilhon.
In the rest of Europe
The recreational use of cannabis
is prohibited in the vast majority of European countries
. With its new legislation, Germany joins Malta (2021) and Luxembourg (2023), which apply a very strict framework on the amount of product that can be had at home.
There are also countries that have decriminalized recreational cannabis such as
Holland, Spain or Portugal.
The difference is subtle, but it means that consumers
cannot process it
.
Use legal, safer consumption. Photo: AP
In Spain there are consumer clubs tolerated by the authorities. The same goes for the famous Dutch
“coffee shops”
.
Contrary to what one might think, the retail sale of cannabis is tolerated, but its production and distribution are illegal.
In the rest of the European Union
, possessing cannabis for recreational use is prohibited
. The penalties imposed vary greatly: they range from a fine of 280 euros in Latvia to a maximum of
eight years in prison in Cyprus.
With RFI correspondents in Berlin, Pascal Thibaut and Sergio Correa, and in Brussels, Jean-Jacques Héry.