Cannabis legalization may be in the hands of “German contraption”

The three parties involved in negotiations to form the coalition that will take over the German Federal Government may consider legalizing cannabis for recreational purposes. Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals advocated in their campaigns a regulated system for the cultivation, distribution and sale of cannabis. And the rumors of the emergence of a possible measure have already made several entities take a stand.

 If Germany advances, it will follow in the footsteps of Luxembourg, the first EU member state to legalize cannabis.

Negotiations to define the composition of the new German Federal Government are still simmering, with three parties moving forward with coalition intentions. With a new composition of the German federal government, where the Social Democrats (German Social Democratic Party), the Liberals (German Liberal Democratic Party) and the Greens (German Green Party) are together, the possibility of emerging a regulation that frames consumption and production of cannabis for recreational purposes may even emerge according to analysts and the German press.

However, in the documents presented by the coalition, there is still no mention of the initiative to legalize cannabis for recreational purposes, despite the legalization of cannabis being an issue on which there are possible understandings between the various parties that are forming a coalition in Germany, given that the campaign manifestos of these parties involved themes related to legalization for recreational purposes.

What do the party manifestos say?

The Green Party defend a whole new approach to drug control, starting with the controlled legalization of cannabis. The party's plans call for commerce through licensed stores where "strict youth and consumer protection" would be central to their legislation and they hope to "pull the rug out from under the black market."

The Liberal Democratic Party also favors the creation of licensed stores. The manifesto highlights the health benefits, windfall tax gains and the transfer of police resources that legalization would create. “Only the sale of cannabis in licensed stores guarantees quality control and prevents the sale of contaminated substances”, believes the liberal party. Up to 1 billion in new tax revenue could be invested in prevention and addiction programs, they say.

Center-left Social Democrats also think a reform of Germany's prohibitive stance comes too late, however. “Prohibition and criminalization have not reduced consumption, they prevent an effective prevention of addiction and occupy enormous resources of the judiciary and the police”, says the poster of the party. The Social Democrats, however, are more cautious than the smaller parties in their legalization plans, planning to start through pilot projects.

Rumors about legalization echo positions

Reactions to rumors concerning an understanding that makes legalization possible for recreational purposes have already caused various sectors of society to echo their positions. Arguments on the side of those opposed to legalization relate to concerns about health and perception effects, but also the risk that cannabis poses to younger people. In favor, there are arguments related to the fight against the black market and quality control.

German Federal Government Anti-Drugs Commissioner Daniela Ludwig, stated that “cannabis is anything but harmless” and police unions have reacted with concern this week to speculation that possible legalization will take place. Oliver Malchow of the Police Union (GdP) told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung that “it makes no sense to legalize another dangerous drug along with alcohol”, explaining that cannabis leads to social conflict between teenagers and young people. Rainer Wendt of the German Police Union said that “if people under the influence of cannabis start getting into cars and driving, we will soon have a problem”.

Concerns about negative consequences for adolescents are also shared by medical experts. Rainer Thomasius, a Hamburg-based child psychiatrist who has conducted research into the effects of cannabis on adolescent cognitive development, told broadcaster WDR that legalization would be harmful.

'Cannabis prohibition is unconstitutional'

Specialists are still not convinced about the existing international experiences, namely in the American continent. however, Lorenz Böllinger, a professor of criminology at the University of Bremen, told the Local.de that “Foreign studies show that consumption among young people does not increase significantly after decriminalization and prohibitive regulation” noting that “cannabis has been readily available on the black market for a long time”.

Böllinger defends legalization and makes an even more fundamental point, arguing that prohibition is actually unconstitutional: “In criminal law, the state can only prohibit things that harm the fundamental rights of other people! Hurting yourself is not a punishable offense,” he says. “The legal justification [for cannabis prohibition] is 'damage to public health', but this justification contradicts the German constitution. By that measure, consuming alcohol, tobacco or chocolate would have to be declared an offence. ”

The German Hemp Association continues to advocate legalization. “The ban endangers the health of consumers through dangerously adulterated products on the black market. Regulating that market, on the other hand, would finally allow quality control,” said association director Georg Wurth when asked by Merkur.de. However, cannabis “is not actually harmless and the risk is greater in teenagers than adults”, which is why Wurth leaves the appeal: “we need prevention and education that are credible for young people”.

The head of the Hemp Association says: “Justifying prohibition and repression of predominantly adult consumers with the risks of cannabis is a lie, while alcohol, even more dangerous, is legally sold and advertised on every street corner.”

In any case, we will have to wait for the parties to transition from the negotiation phase to the government constitution phase, a process that can be lengthy given that this is a political situation that has not occurred in Germany since 1950, the need for a coalition of at least three parties.

Therefore, only after this stage can the regulation of cannabis be considered as a hypothesis to be developed by the German government.