U.S. CRITICS TRY TO SMOKE OUT CLARITY ON MEXICAN DRUG BILL

MEXICO CITY -- President Vicente Fox's government scrambled Tuesday
to defend and explain a proposed law that U.S. officials and others
fear could send a message that Mexico is softening its stance against drugs.

The legislation, passed last week by the Mexican Congress, designates
small quantities of heroin, cocaine and other narcotics that drug
addicts and other "consumers" can use without being prosecuted as criminals.

Mexican officials denied Tuesday that the bill is aimed at
decriminalizing narcotics. They said it is part of a larger attempt
to give local police the ability to battle drug dealers without
filling the jails with petty drug users. Fox and his conservative
National Action Party originally proposed the legislation two years
ago. The president plans to sign the bill, his spokesman, Ruben
Aguilar, said Tuesday.

"In principle, it looks like it's a good law and an advance in
combating narco-trafficking," Aguilar said. "It establishes the
minimum amounts that a citizen can carry for personal use, for
addiction problems, for medical treatment problems."

But the law has been sharply criticized on the U.S. side of the
border, where local officials fear it could encourage more
trafficking and lure tourists and others into Mexico to do drugs. San
Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders said Friday he is "appalled" by the legislation.

U.S. officials met with Mexican officials in Washington on Monday and
urged them to review and clarify the proposal, according to Judith
Bryan, the spokeswoman at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City.

"We want them to clarify what it means, and not let anyone think the
purpose is tolerance," Bryan said. "We urged them to assure that
anyone in possession of any quantity of illegal drugs either be
prosecuted or diverted to mandatory drug treatment programs."

The bill would make it legal to possess up to 25 milligrams of
heroin, 5 grams of marijuana or half a gram of cocaine. It also would
be legal to have small amounts of LSD, amphetamines and up to a kilo of peyote.

The legislation was passed by the Mexican Senate on Friday after an
all-night meeting that wrapped up the Congress' spring session.

Included are provisions that would empower local judges and police to
enforce drug laws, something proponents argue would seriously improve
Mexico's enforcement because only federal authorities are involved
now. The bill also would stiffen penalties for drug dealing.

Under the existing system, judges can overlook possession of small
quantities of drugs, but that means small-time users often go to jail
while dealers with more money can try to bribe their way out. The new
limits would reduce the discretion and help judges determine who
should be jailed.

Anyone caught with less than the legal limit of a narcotic would be
arrested and sent before a judge, proponents said. If the person
could prove drug addiction, he or she would be sent for treatment,
not prosecuted.

Critics argue that Mexico does not have enough treatment programs,
and that slacking off on enforcement could promote more dealing and
recreational drug use.

But some analysts said the measure would help Mexico concentrate on
combating international traffickers and on its growing problem of
smaller dealers selling drugs on street corners and outside schools.

Border cities such as Nuevo Laredo have been torn by violence and
killings as turf battles among drug cartels rage over smuggling
routes into the U.S. But officials here are just as worried that
Mexico has gone from a transit country for drugs to one with a
serious domestic consumption problem.

"Drugs are not being legalized in Mexico," said Ana Maria Salazar, a
former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration official now working as a
political analyst in Mexico. "If you are caught with drugs, you will
be detained and put in either a criminal process or an administrative
process. This is just trying not to clog up the judicial system with addicts."

People coming to Mexico would be "absolutely crazy" to think they can
do drugs freely, she said. "And now there will be more police who can
arrest them."