Holland heading to the factual legalization of cannabis

Following an announcement dated on December 2, 2005 of AP news agency, a broad coalition of Dutch political parties unveiled a pilot program to regulate psychoactive cannabis farming on the model of tobacco. Opponents of the proposal object against it, saying that it would equal to the legalization of cultivation of the drug.

Cannabis drugs are currently illegal in the Netherlands but tolerated. The Police wouldn’t fine you for possession of less than 5 grams and would not prosecute for possession of less than 30 grams. Nevertheless, commercial cultivation is illegal and coffee-shop owners have no legal way to obtain their supplies.

Dutch mayors from Maastricht and Heerlen (southern border regions) have lobbied hardest for the change, which they say would make it more difficult for German, French and Belgian drug tourists to smuggle large quantities of cannabis out of the country. Their efforts led to the creation of a pilot program, to be conducted in Maastricht, with health and safety standards that will apply to growers, but they would no longer be the target of police raids or prosecution.

Cannabis sold in certified coffee-shops will provide consumers with information about the health hazards of smoking similar to tobacco products and the chemical content of the purchased cannabis drug. The shops would also have to provide information on the origin of their products, so it would be possible to trace where cannabis is grown, and where it’s sold.

Opponents of the proposal say that regulation could open the door to outright legalization and that regulation of the cultivation of psychoactive cannabis would create to the country a legal problem internationally, as well.

The coalition of parties gave the Dutch minority government until mid December to implement the pilot program, after which lawmakers said they would introduce a bill in Parliament to do it. They said about two-thirds of Parliament members were in favor of the plan, so there is a great chance for its approval.

Realization of the plan on the country wide level would represent a considerable benefit for state finances as the annual turnover of psychoactive cannabis business in the Netherlands is estimated to exceed half a billion of euro.

More info on the pilot project

Bushka Bryndova