After nearly two years of a high court blocking a referendum on marijuana and psychedelics reform, there is growing support for a more narrow measure, which would only allow for the cultivation of cannabis at home, and eventually the creation of social clubs, and the removal of penalties for the consumers.
Marco Perduca is a former Italian senator and advocate who told his supporters, in an email sent recently, “Despite the defeat that we suffered with the legal marijuana referendum, we decided to insist till things change.” Perduca is one of the many organizers that supported the 2021 referendum.
He added, “Parliament is going to be forced to listen when we collect 50,000 signatures.” Don’t forget to sign the petition.
The supporters have six months to collect 50,000 signatures. They began this process earlier in the month. If the campaign reaches this threshold, the Italian parliament will be forced to consider the proposal.
The campaign reported that more than 20,000 signatures were already collected by Thursday. This is less than one week after the signature collection began.
The campaign stated that 10,000 of those came within 24 hours after the petition had been posted online.
In a press release, Antonella Soldo said, “We would like to bring this matter back to the parliament.” She is the coordinator of Associazione Meglio Legale, one of the petitions leading advocacy groups. “This immediate response was not a coincidence. Why is this issue so popular? It’s because it’s about the lives of people. Every Italian family is aware of the dangers of drug dogs in schools and of stigmatization. The fight against marijuana is a waste of money that doesn’t stop mafias, but rather impacts the people.”
Soldo wrote to Marijuana Moment via email on the weekend, saying that she thinks the support has been “promising”.
She said, “Our proposal has received substantial support from individuals and communities of all kinds, highlighting the urgent need for a change.” In a week we had gathered 20,000 signed petitions. This was nearly half the threshold required to present our proposal to parliament.
Soldo added, “The enthusiastic response underlines the importance of this issue.” We are confident that our initiative will be well received by the public, as it is based on scientific evidence and modeled after successful models in countries such as Germany.
FIRMA ORA
Da oggi e possibile firmare online (con SPID) la proposta di legge d’iniziativa popolare per legalizzare la coltivazione domestica di 4 piantine di #cannabis.https://t.co/EHOPfC40TP
— MeglioLegale (@LegaleMeglio) December 7, 2023
The eight-page bill on legalization, which translates as “Decriminalization for the cultivation of cannabis for personal consumption and associated forms,” allows for up to four plants of cannabis to be grown for personal consumption. The bill would also allow the creation of cannabis social clubs that could grow marijuana exclusively for members.
The campaign stated that possession of up to 30 g of cannabis will be permitted. “And administrative penalties such as the withdrawal [of a driver’s] licence and passport will be abolished,” it added.
Meglio legale, in a post on Facebook earlier this week, said that it may “seem unattainable, but this will soon come true in Germany, Europe’s largest economy.” We decided to start a People’s Initiative Bill to legalize cannabis cultivation in Germany right away!
Soldo told Marijuana Moment the bill was influenced by German legislation. She added that it “has successfully navigated the scrutiny of European institutions.”
She said that Germany would legalize cannabis cultivation in a few short months. At that point, the Italian parliament will no longer be able to refuse to admit that prohibition is a failure.
Germany is making its way to legalizing cannabis through a that was recently postponed until next year. The first stages of reform, including home cultivation for personal consumption, could begin in April if lawmakers approve the bill. In July, social clubs that distribute marijuana to their members will open.
In the future, officials in Germany plan to introduce a second complementary measure which would establish pilot sales programs in all cities of Germany. This legislation will be revealed after it has been submitted to the European Commission to review.
The previous attempt by Italian citizens to bring about marijuana reform failed early last year when the country’s Supreme Court of Cassation sent the referendum to a separate Constitutional Court to determine the legality of its provisions. The court announced that the initiative on cannabis and psilocybin did not meet constitutional requirements and would therefore not be put to a vote for the voters. The court also rejected another measure related to euthanasia.
The Constitutional Court has the responsibility of determining whether referendums are in conflict with Italy’s Constitution, fiscal system, or international agreements to which it is a signatory. The 15-judge court disagreed with the advocates who were certain that the reform’s limited scope would meet the legal standard.
Giuliano Amato argued in a February 2022 press conference that the measure’s broad and multi-drug scope “could make us violate multiple obligations international which are an undisputed limitation of the Constitution,” according a translation.
The referendum was unique in comparison to other ballot initiatives passed by the U.S. The proposal, as originally drafted, would have legalized several plant-based substances but would still prohibit their processing. Marijuana, and other entheogenic substances such as psilocybin do not require any additional manufacturing. They would be legalized. Hashish, on the other hand, would be prohibited because it requires some processing of raw marijuana. If the referendum was approved, a decriminalized fine for possessing and using marijuana would also have remained.
Advocates claimed that the court’s reasoning for blocking the referendum stemmed partly from a misunderstanding of which sections of the drug code would be amended by the proposal.
Malta, Europe’s smallest nation, was the first country on the continent to adopt the new law in December 2021.
Last month, government officials from several countries, including the U.S. met in Germany to talk about international marijuana policy issues, as the host country works to legalize the drug.
Last year, a group of German legislators, including Narcotics Drugs Commission Burkhard Blienert , visited the U.S. separately and visited California cannabis businesses to help inform their approach to legalization.
The visit took place two months after the first meeting of its kind between top officials from Germany , Luxembourg , Malta , and the Netherlands to discuss plans and challenges related to recreational marijuana legalization.
In several European countries, a new international survey released last year found that the majority of respondents supported legalization.
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The post Italian Marijuana Activism Has Already Collect Nearly Half Of The Signatures Required To Bring Legalization Measure to Parliament first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
