Index
Drugs and Democracy
10 December 2013
Uruguay has become the first state to regulate cannabis use
instead of criminalising users. This infographic explains why
they took this pioneering step and how the regulations will work.
http://www.tni.org/infographic/uruguays-pioneering-cannabis-regulation
....................................................................................
Uruguay
Overview of drug laws and legislative trends in Uruguay
Trends
There is a favourable environment in the country for an open debate, not only involving domestic
legislation but also regional and international drug policy and questioning prohibition as a failed
model. Congress is debating a bill to regulate the cannabis market with state control over production
and distribution. A new version of the bill was released in December 2012. This is the text of the bill
passed by the House of Representatives on July 31, 2013. The Senate will likely vote on the project
in November 2013.
Law
The existing legislation is Law 14.294 passed in 1974, modified by Law 17.016 from 1998. According
to Article 31: "Whoever is found in possession of a reasonable amount of drugs meant exclusively for
personal consumption, as determined in good faith by a judge, will be exempt from punishment; the
judge must substantiate the reasoning behind his/her ruling." The law permits consumption but
penalizes possession not for consumption. It does not establish a legal mechanism for obtaining the
substance or set limits on the acceptable quantity for personal use, which is left to the judge’s
discretion.
etcetera ..............
http://www.druglawreform.info/en/country-information/uruguay
10 December 2013
Uruguay has become the first state to regulate cannabis use
instead of criminalising users. This infographic explains why
they took this pioneering step and how the regulations will work.
http://www.tni.org/infographic/uruguays-pioneering-cannabis-regulation
....................................................................................
Uruguay
Overview of drug laws and legislative trends in Uruguay
Trends
There is a favourable environment in the country for an open debate, not only involving domestic
legislation but also regional and international drug policy and questioning prohibition as a failed
model. Congress is debating a bill to regulate the cannabis market with state control over production
and distribution. A new version of the bill was released in December 2012. This is the text of the bill
passed by the House of Representatives on July 31, 2013. The Senate will likely vote on the project
in November 2013.
Law
The existing legislation is Law 14.294 passed in 1974, modified by Law 17.016 from 1998. According
to Article 31: "Whoever is found in possession of a reasonable amount of drugs meant exclusively for
personal consumption, as determined in good faith by a judge, will be exempt from punishment; the
judge must substantiate the reasoning behind his/her ruling." The law permits consumption but
penalizes possession not for consumption. It does not establish a legal mechanism for obtaining the
substance or set limits on the acceptable quantity for personal use, which is left to the judge’s
discretion.
etcetera ..............
http://www.druglawreform.info/en/country-information/uruguay
