Uruguay, a country of 3.3 million that is one of the most liberal in Latin America, has become the first nation to legalize the production, sale and smoking of marijuana, - a pioneering social experiment that will be closely watched by other nations debating drug liberalization.
Cannabis consumers will be able to buy a maximum of 40 grams each month from licensed pharmacies as long as they are Uruguayan residents over the age of 18 and registered on a government database that will monitor their monthly purchases.
When the law is implemented in 120 days, Uruguayans will be able to grow six marijuana plants in their homes a year, or as much as 480 grams, and form smoking clubs of 15 to 45 members that can grow up to 99 plants per year.
Registered drug users should be able to start buying marijuana over the counter from licensed pharmacies in April.
The bill gives authorities 120 days to set up a drug control board that will regulate cultivation standards, fix the price and monitor consumption.
Uruguay's attempt to curb drug trafficking is followed closely in Latin America where some regional leader see the legalization of some narcotics as a possible way to end the violence spawned by the cocaine trade.
Rich countries debating legalization of pot are also watching the bill, which philanthropist George Soros has supported as an "experiment" that could provide an alternative to the failed US-led policies of the long "war on drugs".
Uruguay's leftist president, Jose Mujica, defends his initiative as a bid to regulate and tax a market that already exists but is run by criminals.
"We've given this market as a gift to the drug traffickers and that is more destructive socially than the drug itself, because it rots the whole of society," the 78-year-old former guerrilla fighter said.
President Mujica has yet to convince a majority of Uruguayans that it is a good idea. According to a recent opinion poll by Equipos Consultores, 58 per cent of Uruguayans oppose legalizing pot..
Critics say legalization will not only increase consumption but also open the door to the use of harder drugs than marijuana, which according to government statistics is used by 8 per cent of Uruguayans on a regular basis.
"Competing with drug traffickers by offering marijuana at a lower price will just increase the market for a drug that has negative effects on public health," said Senator Alfredo Solari of the conservative Colorado Party.
"This development in Uruguay is of historic significance," said Ethan Nadelmann, founder of the Drug Policy Alliance, a leading sponsor of drug policy reform partially funded by Soros through his Open Society Foundation.
"Uruguay is presenting an innovative model for cannabis that will better protect public health and public safety than does the prohibitionist approach," Nadelmann said.
The International Narcotics Control Board, which oversees international treaties on drugs, has warned that the law violates the Single Convention of Narcotic Drugs, adopted in 1961 by Uruguay and 185 other countries.
But following decades of drug-related violence throughout Latin America, a number of former leaders from the region have endorsed the plan.
Senator Roberto Conde, of the ruling Broad Front, insisted that the law will do nothing more than recognize what is already happening around the country.
'Marijuana is the illegal drug that is most consumed, fundamentally by young people, one that is perceived as extremely low risk and is easily obtained,' he said.
The government has accompanied the law with a publicity campaign featuring the slogan, 'All drug consumption has risks.'
DRUG LAWS AROUND THE WORLD The Netherlands is well known for its liberal policy on cannabis, and the capital Amsterdam is full of 'coffee shops' where residents and tourists can smoke weed, although production is still illegal.
The Netherlands, Canada and Israel have legal programs for growing medical cannabis but do not allow cultivation of marijuana for recreational use. Switzerland, Spain and Canada are among the many other states where the drug has been decriminalized for personal use, with official efforts directed against dealers and producers instead.
Last year the U.S. states of Colorado and Washington both voted to make the sale and use of marijuana legal - however, as it is still banned under federal law, the long-term functioning of the states' laws are uncertain.
In addition, 18 other American states allow the use of medical marijuana.
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