Lawmakers not happy with marijuana market next to the Mexican Senate

Critics argue that new amendments to marijuana laws are too restrictive and only favor big business. Photo: File

An open-air marijuana market has been set up next to the Mexican Senate. 

The market is made up of approximately 50 stalls selling joints, marijuana-based edibles such as cookies and chocolates, as well as THC oil, pipes, bongs and other paraphernalia. 

Senate President Eduardo Ramírez is not amused. 

“I am calling on the Mexico City government to dismantle this market in a peaceful and orderly way,” said Ramírez.

The legal status of marijuana is in a gray area. The plant-based drug is still listed as an illegal substance, but the Mexican Supreme Court has ruled its prohibition unconstitutional. 

A bill seeking to regulate the legal possession and distribution of marijuana was approved yesterday in Mexico’s lower legislative assembly. However, because multiple amendments were made to the bill, the proposed law requires ratification, yet again, by the Senate.

Earlier: Marijuana in Mexico will be legal, but under tight restrictions

Pro-marijuana activists claim that the new amendments are intended to favor big business and tighten restrictions on home cultivation. The new rules would require anyone growing marijuana, even for personal use, to register with the government and solicit a special license. 

“They are putting limits on possession, they are putting limits on growing. This is a violation of our rights and flies in the face of the ruling issued by the Supreme Court. We will fight this until the end,” said a protestor outside the Senate in Mexico City.

Ricardo Monreal, the Senate leader of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s ruling Morena party, has said lawmakers considered a number of international models for legalization. The current proposal borrows elements from Uruguay, Canada and some U.S. states.

Carlos Rosado van der Gracht
Carlos Rosado van der Gracht
Born in Mérida, Carlos Rosado van der Gracht is a Mexican/Canadian blogger, photographer and adventure expedition leader. He holds degrees in multimedia, philosophy, and translation from universities in Mexico, Canada and Norway.
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