Swiss Federal Commission favors legalization of cannabis

The Swiss Federal Commission on Addiction Issues and Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases (CFANT) has expressed its support for the legalization of cannabis in a press release issued by the Swiss Federal Council.

Swiss parliamentary committees have already given the green light to the legalization of cannabis, A regulation that would go further than the current experiments in controlled cannabis distribution, which have been slow to get off the ground due to quality problems with cannabis and its products.

«Current cannabis policy is inadequate,» says CFANT, which also points the finger at health risks. To prevent consumers from being exposed to potentially dangerous products, «the cannabis market must be legalized and regulated».

The simple decriminalization of consumption, the possibility of growing at home or selling through the healthcare system «do not constitute a credible alternative to the black market.» Nevertheless, the commission stresses, «there is no justification for encouraging the consumption of this drug», which should not be promoted.

The commission is therefore in favor of controlling cannabis by making it accessible without advertising it.

Zurich and Basel, the first cities to experiment with legal cannabis distribution

Last year, the federal government announced its intention to relax the rules medical cannabis and to put an end to cannabis prohibition. Last October, the Social Security and Health Committee of the Council of States recommended that Switzerland legalize cannabis.

Previously, the Swiss National Council's Public Health Committee had given its approval. The government must now begin drafting a bill, but has decided to experiment first.

While the Basel and Zurich experiments were postponed, in the first case because of pesticide residues were found in the grass, the number of participating towns will lead to a network of experiments that will facilitate the implementation of in fine to legalize cannabis across the federation.