Deputy PM Mares seeks to make drug law clearer and more liberal
Under the current law on drugs, people can possess "not more than a small amount" of marijuana, though what constitutes a "small amount" is not specified. Recently, Deputy Prime Minister Petr Mares caused divisions within the cabinet by proposing a clearer, more liberal drug law. It would make possession of less than a fixed amount (some reports said enough for 250 joints) a misdemeanour, not a crime. On the eve of Thursday's International Day Against Drug Abuse, Petr Mares explained why he was putting forward this new legislation:
"We should give to our judges a more precise description of what does it mean. But let me tell you one more thing which is really important about my initiative. What I'm trying to do is to build a barrier between those who are experimenting with marijuana and those who are offering hard drugs. I don't like our kids to get in contact with drug dealers and I believe that, well...let them have an opportunity to raise two or three marijuana plants and smoke them. It's better than to try to buy it on the streets."
Some people say that if you set a fixed amount, like 250 cannabis cigarettes, that doesn't take into account the strength of the cannabis?
"Well the number is something which is an example of what can happen in the media. I've never mentioned this number, it appeared somewhere, I don't know where, and now it is being discussed all over the media, on TV and so on. It's not an official number and we are now trying to find out what a proper amount is. And as you said it doesn't make any sense to talk about 250 joints because what does it mean, in grammes, and what does it mean in the real context of drugs."
Would your proposal bring Czech law closer to the standards in European Union countries?
"It's very difficult to say because, as you certainly know, there are great differences between EU members. It will bring us closer to the UK attitude, or Belgian or German, but it will bring us farther from the Swedish attitude, for instance. But I believe that we are now part of the great discussion inside the EU and the same way as we are looking for our way, the EU as a whole is looking for the right way how to approach this problem."
How likely is it do you think that your proposed law will come into effect?
"Well, I would describe it as fifty-fifty."
