An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Anyone could foresee that the influence of marijuana legalization in Uruguay would soon become evident. And so it has been. In neighbouring countries, many voices have risen to demand legislative reforms giving greater freedom to cannabis smokers. In Argentina, the reaction was immediate and many are already calling for the complete decriminalization, some even coming from the government.
The waters are rough on both sides of the Rio de la Plata since president of Uruguay, José Mujica, took a step forward and got his parliament to approve the legalization of both cultivation and consumption of marijuana. The decision has forced the neighbouring countries to make a move. Now the ball is in the court of Argentina, who is torn between following its neighbours’ path and trying to approve the consumption of marijuana to contain the power of the cartels, or continuing on the path of stagnation.
The first steps have already been taken. Argentine Security Secretary, Sergio Berni -a doctor and military man reconverted into a politician- resorted to the words of legendary Colombian drug-dealer Pablo Escobar to illustrate his position in favour of legalizing marijuana. "He used to say that there are no mathematical chances that police persecution may ever defeat drug trafficking, and that is true. It is like the cat fighting the mouse," said 'Crazy' Berni, as he has been dubbed in Argentina.
In a radio program, Berni acknowledged that the first contacts between producing countries, such as Paraguay, and consumers had already taken place- see the case of Argentina and Brazil, where it was clear that the fight against drug trafficking had not given any fruit. That is why he and the chief of cabinet of the Argentine government, Jorge Capitanich, have addressed these concerns to advocate for the path opened last December by Uruguay: the complete decriminalization of consumption and production of cannabis.
Already in 2012, the article of the law that condemned those who planted or sowed marijuana at home or were in possession of seeds was declared unconstitutional by the Federal Court of the city of La Plata, capital of the Buenos Aires province. With this measure, the magistrates exempted from liability those having cannabis for personal use, since this article went against Article 19 of the Argentine Constitution, which protects the private actions of citizens.
This review of the Narcotics Act was prompted by what is known as the Arriola Ruling. In February 2009, the Federal Chamber for Criminal and Correctional Affairs took the first step as it decriminalized the cultivation and possession of cannabis for personal use. The high court acquitted five young people who the police had arrested in possession of cigarettes with a low content of marijuana.
The court found that "the amount and circumstances surrounding the incident are such that it can be stated that the cultivation or planting of the marijuana found was for personal consumption." At the same time, one of the articles of the law, which punished those who consumed from their own crop with sentences ranging from four to fifteen years, was declared unconstitutional. Something the Argentine authorities are already implementing even though it has not been mentioned in the legislation yet. We only need to look at the statistics: 60% of the 12,000 estimated legal proceedings initiated every year for possession of marihuana are dismissed at the end.
Different politicians have already presented eight projects since 2010 to undertake the reform of the current Narcotics Act of Argentina, in force since 1989. Most of them point in the same direction proposing partial reforms and seeking to reduce the weight of criminal law, especially with regard to users. Only one, presented by Graciela Camano, calls for an inverse renewal, i.e., for increasing the penalties.
Meanwhile, Aníbal Fernández presented a comprehensive reform bill firmly seeking the current law to mention, once and for all, the decriminalization of the possession of cannabis for personal consumption. This Senator (from the Kirchner’s wing) proposes to implement this reform with the main goal of caring for the health care of consumers, and then attack the drug trade.
While the authorities are reluctant to undertake the changes both citizenship and the members of the Government claim, some have already begun to explore the marijuana market. In anticipation of future legal changes, by mid-2013, 50 stores had already opened across Argentina selling different materials needed for growing grass, twenty of them only in Buenos Aires.
Others prefer to cross the border and try to get cannabis in Uruguay. An option which will come to an end as soon as the country's pharmacies start selling marijuana. From that moment, only Uruguayan residents entered in a particular register will be able to buy it. That will happen in six months. Will the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner have addressed the matter by then.