MEXICO EASES BAN ON DRUG POSSESSION

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico decriminalized small amounts of marijuana,
cocaine and heroin on Friday, in a move that creates one of the
world's most permissive narcotics markets and that opponents say
could complicate President Felipe Calderon's war against illegal drug cartels.

The law goes beyond what is allowed in many other countries by making
it legal to possess small amounts of a wide array of drugs. For
instance, the new law allows the equivalent of about five joints of
marijuana or four lines of cocaine.

The softened approach to small-scale drug possession comes as Mexico
fights drug gangs that account for a large part of the marijuana and
cocaine sold on U.S. streets. In Mexico, more than 12,000 people have
died in the past three years in the cartels' battles for turf and
clashes with law enforcement.

The gangs are also selling more and more drugs domestically, fueling
drug addiction. A 2008 government survey found that the number of
drug addicts in Mexico had almost doubled in the past six years to
307,000, while the number of those who had tried drugs rose to 4.5
million from 3.5 million.

Mexican prosecutors say the law will help the war on drug gangs by
letting federal prosecutors focus their attention on traffickers
rather than small-time users.

"This frees us from a flood of small crimes that have saturated our
federal government and allows the authorities to go after big
criminals," said Bernardo Espino del Castillo, an official with
Mexico's Attorney General's office who helped design the new law.

Still, Mexico's move could anger some allies in Washington. Mexico
tried to pass a similar law in 2005, but the Bush administration
objected strongly, killing the initiative.

This time around, the Obama administration has kept largely silent on
the issue. U.S. drug czar Gil Kerlikowske said in July he would adopt
a "wait-and-see attitude" about the new Mexican law, which was passed in April.

"We know that Mexican law-enforcement authorities are continuing
their efforts to target drug traffickers," Department of Justice
spokeswoman Laura Sweeney said on Friday. "Our friends and partners
in Mexico are waging an historic battle with the cartels, one that
plays out on the streets of their communities each day. Here in the
United States we will continue to enforce federal narcotics laws as
we investigate, charge, and arrest cartel leaders and their
subordinates in our joint effort to dismantle and disrupt these cartels."

Julie Myers Wood, who worked closely with Mexican authorities when
she headed Immigrations and Customs Enforcement under President
George W. Bush, said she was opposed to decriminalizing drugs. "I'm
sympathetic with the Mexicans that they need to find a more effective
way to deal with the cartels," she said. "But just giving up, in
terms of small amounts of drugs like and cocaine and heroin, does not
seem to me to be the most sensible approach."

Polls show that support for legalizing marijuana is growing in the
U.S. In a Zogby poll in April, 52% of those polled thought marijuana
should be legal, taxed, and regulated.

Mexico joins a growing list of countries in Europe and Latin America
that are rethinking parts of the decades-long war on illicit drugs.
Launched by former President Richard Nixon after the boom in drug use
during the 1960s and 1970s, the war on drugs tried to attack demand
by passing stricter sentencing laws for users, as well as trying to
slow supply by promoting eradication efforts in countries like
Colombia, Bolivia, and Afghanistan.

Early this year, three former presidents of Mexico, Brazil, and
Colombia blasted the drug war as a failure that threatened the
stability of countries throughout Latin America and called for the
decriminalization of marijuana. Last year, courts in Brazil and
Argentina ruled that possession of drugs for personal use was not a
criminal offense, putting the courts at odds with local laws. In
Ecuador, President Rafael Correa, whose father was jailed in the U.S.
for three years for carrying drugs, pardoned hundreds of low-level
drug couriers known as mules.

Despite billions of dollars spent both in the U.S. law enforcement
system and in eradication efforts, the supply of drugs has grown,
while usage remains about the same globally. That has caused some
nations to focus more attention on drugs as a public health issue
that requires treatment and prevention rather than a criminal issue
that is solved by jail time.

In 2001, Portugal decriminalized personal use of psychotropic drugs,
including marijuana and cocaine. The U.K. softened its anti-drug laws
in 2003, setting guidelines that make it much more difficult for
police to arrest someone with small amounts of marijuana. In
Switzerland, heroin addicts can go to a doctor to get a prescribed
dosage for heroin and can consume it at monitored sites.

Until now, Mexico has followed the law-and-order approach. Possession
of any amount of drugs in Mexico was a federal crime, punishable by
long jail sentences. But rates of drug use have risen steadily, while
corrupt Mexican cops have used the law to shake down casual users for
hefty bribes.

The new laws may not change things much in Mexico. Most Mexican
police never bothered to arrest someone caught with drugs. Even if an
arrest was made, few people were actually prosecuted because federal
prosecutors didn't have the time or energy to go after casual users.
Of the 21,456 arrests for drug possession in Mexico City from 2005 to
2007, only 1,084 were prosecuted, according to the city government.

The new law states that anyone caught with the small amounts of drugs
will be encouraged to seek treatment. For those caught a third time,
treatment becomes mandatory. "We think we will have more success
preventing local drug use through a combination of prevention and
treatment in addition to coercion," said Ricardo Najera, a spokesman
for the Attorney General's Office.

Many in Mexico welcomed the changes. "This is a good law. It helps
the government focus on the bad guys and lets state and local
governments get involved in drug abuse as a public health issue,"
said Alberto Islas, a security consultant in Mexico City. Mr. Islas
said he didn't think the changes would create a bigger market for
local drug cartels, who are more focused on the rich U.S. market.

Javier Armenta, a valet parking attendant in Mexico City who
supplements his income by selling a few marijuana joints to
customers, is a fan of the new law. He has never been arrested, but
he says Mexican police often hit him up for $50 bribes to look the
other way. "This law only recognizes the reality: If someone wants to
use drugs, they will use them," he says.

Some Mexicans fear that condoning drug possession will only encourage
consumption, including among tourists who visit Mexico. "We believe
there should be zero tolerance for consumption," said Regina Kuri,
who works at the Monte Fenix drug rehabilitation center in Mexico City.

Still, Mexico is not likely to turn into another Amsterdam, where
drugs are legally sold. "This has been confused with the idea that
Mexico is allowing people to go out on the streets with drugs. That's
false," Mr. Espino del Castillo said. "The new legislation allows
police to determine that if a person is dealing drugs, even a smaller
quantity than the guidelines, he is committing a crime."