Mexico to legalize cannabis by October

Mexico will review the details of the cannabis legalization bill over the upcoming summer break to adopt it before October.

Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that banning cannabis for personal use was unconstitutional and asked the Senate the law with this judgment.

Julio Ramón Menchaca Salazar, chairman of the Senate's Justice Committee, said the body would «take advantage of the recess period» to finalize the legislation, according to a note published on the Senate website.

The break begins on May 1 and ends on August 31. This gives legislators several months to develop a plan for regulating cannabis before the Supreme Court's October deadline. In February, the Senate has published a report asking legislators to consider various aspects of legalization when drafting the cannabis bill.

Salazar has already met with the country's attorney general to discuss the decision, the Senate newspaper reported.

A bill has already been presented to the Legislative Assembly, including a Olga Sanchez Cordero's bill, who, as a Senator, proposed last year that adults aged 18 and over be allowed to possess, consume and cultivate cannabis. But for the moment, it's unclear which bill the Senate will take up.

«The Canada has already legalized cannabis and several U.S. states have at least decriminalized it. What are we waiting for?» said Sánchez Cordero, Mexico's current Interior Minister. «We're going to try to move forward.»

The Senate Health Committee held a hearing on cannabis reform earlier this month, during which policy experts and legislators testified on the prospect of a regulated market.

« Regulating cannabis, Mexico will be able to better define how cannabis is produced, distributed and consumed, and thus protect public health,» said Maria McFarland Sánchez-Moreno, Executive Director of the Drug Policy Alliance. «Mexico will also demonstrate leadership at the regional level and take an important step towards reforming misguided policies that have caused such harm over the past decades.»

Last month, Mexico's Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection published a poll on cannabis legalization on Twitter, which revealed that over 80% of those surveyed were in favor.