Former President Vicente Fox has been one of the highest profile champions for the movement to legalize soft drugs in Mexico.
His libertarian enthusiasm for a more permissive attitude toward narcotics is now gaining traction in equally elevated circles.
Several members of the transition team of President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador are in favor of relaxing marijuana laws for recreational use. The federal Congress last year approved the use of marijuana for medical reasons, although the regulations for how it will be applied are still being elaborated.
Lopez Obrador recently said he would consider legalizing certain kinds of drugs if such a policy could help reduce poverty and crime.
And on Tuesday, a day before Canada became only the second country in the world, besides Uruguay, to legalize marijuana, Jalisco Governor Aristoteles Sandoval added his voice to the debate. In a post on Twitter, Sandoval noted that while “advanced” countries are now “doing business” from marijuana, Mexico’s drug policy causes so much suffering and violence. “When are we going to open our eyes?” the governor asked.
A seminar on medical marijuana is scheduled Sunday, October 21, 10 a.m. at Prolongacion Alcalde 1927 in Guadalajara. Cost: 80 pesos for doctors, 200 pesos general public.