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The personal cultivation of marijuana for medicinal and recreational is one step closer to being decriminalized in Chile after the House of Representatives passed a bill approving it on Tuesday.
The initiative amends the Health Code and Drugs Act, which punishes illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, with the aim of legalizing personal cultivation of cannabis for private consumption and decriminalize its cultivation and marketing for therapeutic purposes.
Its approval, which was voted in favor by 68 deputies with 39 against, means that Chile’s Parliament welcomes the idea of legislating a bill.
RELATED: Uruguay’s Legalization of Marijuana Makes Sense in a Senseless Drug War
The bill would allow the cultivation of up to six plants per household, therapeutic use by medical prescription, the and possession of up to 10 grams for private consumption without prior authorization.
The initiative was approved after a heated debate during which the right-wing opposition questioned the limits proposed for marijuana consumption, arguing that the move opens the door to drug trafficking.
Representatives of the ruling party, on the other hand, stressed the need to legislate on the matter and argued that the initiative seeks to regulate consumption, adding that its prohibition in fact encourages consumption and facilitates drug trafficking.
In April Chile became the first country of the region--and the world--to legally harvest cannabis plants while in Uruguay — the only country of the world that has legalized its recreational consumption and sale, producers are still awaiting state's green light. The Colombian Congress is also examining a legislation allowing the medicinal use of marijuana, in a context where more and more scientific studies tend to confirm the benefits of the plant for severe medical conditions like epilepsy.
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