There is a growing trend in Latin America
towards decriminalising the possession of small amounts of drugs. In the last
two weeks Mexico has enacted legislation decriminalising the possession of low
quantities of most drugs, and Argentina looks set to follow suit after a supreme
court ruling on marijuana last week. The issue has also shot to the fore in
electoral campaigning in both Chile and Uruguay. The two countries to buck the
trend are Colombia and Peru - the two largest coca and cocaine producers - who
are intent on re-criminalising possession. Some commentators argue that the
sea-change is an assertion of Latin America's independence from prescriptive US
policies. In fact it probably owes as much to the Obama administration's more
relaxed stance on the issue.
Argentina's supreme court
ruled unanimously last week that the arrest of five youths in the central city
of Rosario for possession of a few marijuana cigarettes in 2006 was
unconstitutional, as it contravened the right to personal freedom. It based its
verdict on a constitutional article stipulating that “The private actions of men
which in no way offend public order or morality, nor injure a third party, are
only reserved to God and are exempted from the authority of judges."
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