And “dispassionate debate” on cannabis possible in France? In any case, this is what the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (Cese) calls for in a draft opinion adopted on January 24. The Cese, for its part, has chosen its camp: that of a framed legalization of the so-called recreational uses of cannabis.
Cannabis legalization: which European countries have already taken the plunge?
His arguments are essentially based on the idea that the current prevention policy is a failure. « Despite the establishment of a prohibition system for more than fifty years, one of the most repressive in Europe, France is the country of the European Union which has the highest proportion of drug users., points the notice. Indeed, according to the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 45% of 15-64 year olds have used cannabis at least once in their life, compared to 27% in the European Union as a whole.
Guardrails
In the Cese scenario, only adults could obtain cannabis, “in dedicated points of sale subject to license”. The repression of illegal trafficking targeting minors would also be reinforced, and all advertising prohibited. Another sine qua non condition: the creation of a French production sector.
“Contrary to popular belief, legalization is not synonymous with blind decriminalization”, underlines Professor Amine Benyamina, head of the psychiatry and addictology department of the Paul-Brousse hospital in Villejuif and president of the French Federation of addictology. He pleads for “pragmatism” : “Because it’s drugs, we have a kind of inhibition, a psychological barrier, but the fact is that we won’t overcome cannabis. The urgency is to reduce the risks. »
A position that belongs to ” common sense “ in the eyes of Bernard Basset, president of the association Addictions France. “There is obviously no question of encouraging the consumption of a psychoactive and dangerous product such as cannabis, nor of making it a free market like in Colorado, but it is clear that the current system does not work. . We have to draw conclusions and get out of ideological positions,” does he advance. Especially since, according to him, morality is sometimes variable geometry. “Authorities repeat that cannabis is very bad for the brain, but this is true of other legal products such as alcohol. »
“Reversal Effect”
For this public health physician, the time has come for a “great national debate, without a priori”. “We must take the time to observe the tracks traced elsewhere, such as in Canada”he suggests. “Supervised legalization has proven itself”continues Professor Benyamina, which describes a “reversal effect” : “At first, consumption increases, because it creates curiosity. Then the level stabilizes and ends up dropping, especially among the target populations of young people. » Supervision rather than repression: according to Bernard Basset, the vast majority of doctors lean towards this option.
Will the Cese’s plea relaunch the eternal debate on the legalization of cannabis? Responsible for advising the government and Parliament on public policies, the body, made up of associations and unions, only has an advisory role. In the meantime, all eyes are on Germany: legalization is planned there by 2024. For the time being, Malta is the only European state to have taken the plunge, at the end of 2021.