Guatemala may weigh softer drug punishments in liberalization push

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Reuters

Guatemala may weigh softer drug punishments in liberalization push
By Dave Graham,
Reuters
October 15, 2014, 12:07 PM

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Guatemala will weigh easing punishments for minor narcotics-related offenses as part of a push to liberalize drug policy and explore regulating production of opium poppies and marijuana for medical use, President Otto Perez said..

Shortly after taking office at the start of 2012, Perez, a conservative retired army general, surprised many of his Latin American peers by proposing legalization as a means of curbing the power of criminal gangs and the deaths they cause.

Central America is one of the most violent regions in the Americas and Honduras, which like its neighbor Guatemala is a staging post for drug gangs moving their product to consumers in the United States, has the highest homicide rate on the planet.

"We have 17,000 prisoners in our jails. Many of them are linked to drug trafficking. Some of them are indeed criminals. And there are some who are in for minimal amounts of consumption or possession," Perez told Reuters this week in an interview.


Read more: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/sns-rt-us-guatemala-drugs-20141015-story.html

[Louisiana1976]

1. Guatemala is eyeing a more sensible drug policy than the US has. It would be a good idea if that

country emulated Uruguay and legalized marijuana.