MEXICO PLANS TO ALLOW SMALL AMOUNTS OF NARCOTICS

Mexico's Congress Votes to Legalize Possession of Small Amounts of Cocaine,
Heroin, Marijuana and Other Illicit Drugs.

MEXICO CITY - Mexico's Congress approved a bill Friday that would
essentially legalize possession of small quantities of marijuana,
ecstasy, cocaine and even heroin for personal use. The only step
remaining is the signature of the president, whose office indicates he
will sign it.

The bill, passed in the early morning hours by Mexico's Senate on a
53-26 vote with one abstention, has already been approved in the lower
house of Congress and was sent to President Vicente Fox.

"The presidency congratulates the Congress for approving the reforms,"
Fox spokesman Ruben Aguilar said. "This law gives police and
prosecutors better legal tools to combat drug crimes that do so much
damage to our youth and children."

Aguilar's comments apparently referred to provisions in the bill that
would stiffen penalties for trafficking and possession of drugs - even
small quantities - near schools or by government employees.

One reason for the law, analysts say, is that it would allow police to
focus on large-scale trafficking operations rather than minor drug
busts.

U.S. officials had no immediate reaction on what the effect the
legalization could have on the war on drugs - or the vast numbers of
American students who flock to border cities or resorts such as Cancun
and Acapulco on vacation.

The bill says charges will no longer be brought for possession of 25
milligrams of heroin, 5 grams of marijuana (about four joints), or 0.5
grams of cocaine. And Mexicans will be allowed to posses 2.2 lbs of
peyote, the hallucinogenic cactus used in some Indian religious ceremonies.

"From my point of view, this is bad," said Ulisis Bon, who works for a
drug rehabilitation center in the border city of Tijuana, where heroin
use has skyrocketed. "This is going to increase addictions in Mexico."

"A lot of Americans already come here to buy medications they can't
get up there," Bon said. "Just imagine, with heroin."