“SOME Germans drink their beer after work. We just want to smoke our weed.” That is what Marcel Ritschel says as he celebrates because Germany – traditionally a “beer country” – is becoming a country that prefers cannabis. Germany partially legalized the use of marijuana from April 1, BBC writes.

However, police unions warn of harm in real life. The change in the law may have come on April Fool's Day, but for them it is no joke.

Several hundred visibly cheerful people, many of whom danced to the sounds of reggae music, waited with lighters held high so that, as soon as the clock struck midnight, they could light marijuana joints. The stage in front of the Berlin landmark was decorated with a huge marijuana leaf.

Marcel Ritschel lives in the Neustadt district of Dresden, the heart of the city's alternative scene. As in other places, it was not difficult here to find people openly smoking weed, even before the rules were relaxed.

That is one of the arguments behind decriminalization; millions of people were smoking marijuana anyway. The new regulation will help break up the black market and improve quality control, supporters of this change say.

What are the new rules?

From April 1:

people over 18 may possess up to 25 g of cannabis in public;

adults may grow up to three plants per household;

smoking a joint is not allowed near schools, sports centers, or in pedestrian zones between 7:00 and 20:00.

From July 1:

growers' associations or “social clubs” may be established and gather up to 500 members;

members must be over 18 and live in Germany;

clubs may grow and distribute marijuana exclusively on a non-profit basis;

on-site consumption will not be allowed.

It will not be like in the Netherlands

Ritschel plans to establish a growers' association or “cannabis social club” in July that will be permitted by law. “A gardening club, but for hemp. Every gram in a social club is one gram less on the black market. So, it is a win-win situation,” says Ritschel.

These clubs will not be like the famous Amsterdam-style cannabis cafés, which are hotly debated in the Netherlands. The non-profit clubs in Germany are supposed to be only for people who actually live here, in order to stop a wave of tourists coming to enjoy liberal cannabis laws.

There are many warnings and questions within the legislation. It was the product of political controversy that led to the original plans being watered down. The halfway solution left many people dissatisfied, on both sides of the debate.

Police union: Chaos follows

There are warnings that a “phase of chaos” will begin for Germany on April 1.

“We assume that the black market will strengthen,” says Alexander Poitz from Gewerkschaft der Polizei (GdP), the German police union. He believes that demand will quickly exceed legal supply given that growing weed at home requires persistence and attention, and it will be months before cannabis clubs begin to function.

In the long term, criminal networks will adapt and even infiltrate legally permitted social clubs, which will be a huge task to deal with. Smoking weed within 100 meters of children's playgrounds, schools, or sports centers, for example, is not allowed. In overcrowded cities, it may take effort to find a legal place to smoke.

There is also the question of how the police will distinguish a user from a dealer if a person can carry up to 25 grams of the drug – enough for dozens of joints.

Doctors also warn

Concern that cannabis can cause addiction and negatively affect mental health has been expressed by groups such as the Standing Committee of European Doctors (CPME). The new measures will increase use and health-related harm, especially among young people, believes CPME vice-president Professor Ray Walley.

Since those under 18 cannot take advantage of the new laws, it is believed that many young people will still resort to drug dealers. Germany is just one on a long list of nations that have weighed the advantages and disadvantages of decriminalizing marijuana.

The government in Berlin cited research from 2021 that showed that 10.7% of men and 6.8% of women had used cannabis at least once in the previous 12 months, most often in the 18 to 24 age group.

There is still no approach that has been truly successful in breaking up the black market or preventing problems among young people, believes Dr. Robin Hofmann, assistant professor of criminal law and criminology at Maastricht University.

“It is a marathon, not a sprint”

Suppressing the black market is a goal that has not been fully achieved even in countries where marijuana has been fully legalized, such as Canada or Uruguay. “It is a long-term process. A marathon, not a sprint,” says Dr. Hofmann.

Germany's shift toward partial decriminalization has also been long in the making. Throughout the debate, leftists and conservatives usually clashed. This proposal emerged in 2021 when the three ruling parties made a coalition agreement, after years of deadlock under former conservative chancellor Angela Merkel.

The party once led by Merkel, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), has already promised to repeal the changes if it wins power in the next election. Marcel Ritschel understands that the change he long advocated may not last a decade: “Maybe we have two years and then it's all over.”

Source: index.hr