Uruguay to Become First Nation to Legalize Marijuana

The Uruguay Senate is expected to pass a bill Tuesday that would make it the first nation in the world to regulate the cultivation, distribution, and sale of marijuana. President José Mujica, who introduced the proposal last year, is expected to provide final approval this week, and officials will have 120 days to develop regulations. The lower house of the Uruguayan General Assembly approved the bill in August.

Uruguay will join the states of Colorado and Washington as the only jurisdictions in the world to establish legal marijuana markets for adults. Retail marijuana businesses are expected to begin opening in Colorado on January 1, 2014 and later in the year in Washington.

“We applaud President Mujica and members of the Uruguayan General Assembly for their leadership on this important issue,” said Dan Riffle, director of federal policies for the Marijuana Policy Project. “Support for regulating marijuana and taking it out of the underground market is not only growing in the United States, but also internationally. It will not be long before more states and nations decide to end marijuana prohibition.”

President Mujica and other supportive officials say regulating marijuana will allow authorities to control the substance instead of organized crime affiliates and drug traffickers.

“Marijuana prohibition creates underground markets that generate billions of dollars in tax-free revenue for violent drug cartels and traffickers,” Riffle said. “Regulating marijuana will allow authorities to control it and ensure profits are being used to benefit communities instead of criminals.”

Article republished from Marijuana Policy Project