CALDERON WANTS TO SCRAP MEXICO'S SMALL-DRUG PENALTIES

But Similar Proposal In 2006 Failed

MEXICO CITY - Mexican President Felipe Calderon, locked in a bloody
battle with drug cartels, wants to decriminalize the possession of
small amounts of street drugs in a plan likely to irk Washington.

Calderon, a conservative in power nearly two years, sent a proposal to
Congress Thursday that would scrap penalties for drugs including
cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, opium and marijuana.

"What we are seeking is to not treat an addict as a criminal, but
rather as a sick person and give them psychological and medical
treatment," said Sen. Alejandro Gonzalez, head of the Senate's justice
committee.

Under Calderon's plan, people carrying up to two grams of marijuana or
opium, half a gram of cocaine, 50 milligrams of heroin or 40
milligrams of methamphetamine would face no criminal charges.

It would also give Mexican states the power to try drug dealers in
local courts instead of at the federal level.

Reviving a similar effort by his predecessor, Calderon aims to free up
police to hunt for dealers and smugglers. But the plan could run into
opposition in largely conservative Mexico as well as in the United
States.

In a separate proposal, the president asked the Senate to shake up
Mexico's notoriously inept and often corrupt police.

Calderon said poor training and a lack of co-ordination between forces
are hindering efforts to rein in rampant drug violence and organized
crime.

Some analysts say that up to half of Mexico's police could be in the
pay of drug cartels, which offer bribes that dwarf the paltry wages of
the average officer.

Former president Vicente Fox introduced a drug decriminalization
measure in 2006 but ditched it after Washington objected and critics
on both sides of the border said it could lure "drug tourists" from
the United States.

Drug use is less common among young people in Mexico than in the
United States or Europe. But consumption is creeping up with the
growth of the middle class and as tighter border controls mean more
cocaine stays in the country.