Gatherers lit up joints and danced to reggae music at midnight, celebrating the coming into effect of the new law (Photo: Christian Mang/REUTERS)
Eko Hot Blog reports that it has become legal for adults in Germany to carry up to 25 grams of cannabis and cultivate up to three marijuana plants at home.
The new development came in at midnight on Monday after the country’s parliament approved a new law in February 2024.
According to DW, cannabis users in Germany’s capital, Berlin, gathered at Brandenburg Gate on Monday to welcome the new law decriminalizing the personal use of the drug.
“We can finally show ourselves, we don’t have to hide any more,” Henry Plottke, a member of the German Hemp Association (DHV), told dpa at the Berlin gathering.
The event was organized by the Berlin chapter of the DHV and was registered with the police.
Under the new law, adults aged 18 and over will be allowed to carry up to 25 grams of cannabis for their own consumption.
Public consumption will be allowed, so long as it is not within sight of children or near sports facilities. It will also be prohibited in pedestrian zones between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m.
A man carries a sign reading “Not criminal” as he participates in a gathering with marijuana activists in Berlin this year to call for the legalization of marijuana in Germany. (Photo: Lisi Niesner/Reuters)
Adults will also be allowed to store up to 50 grams of the drug at home, as well as keep three plants for home cultivation.
Special cannabis clubs will be allowed to grow and purchase the drug on a limited basis from July 1. The clubs can have up to 500 members.
However, the law, which makes Germany among the most liberal countries in Europe in regard to cannabis consumption, has been met with some criticism amid concerns for the health of German youth.
The German Police Union (GdP), on Monday, voiced concern over the implementation of the new law, with the union’s deputy federal chairman, Alexander Poitz, predicting problems with controls.
“From April 1, our colleagues will find themselves in situations of conflict with citizens, as uncertainty reigns on both sides,” said Poitz.
The union is concerned about regulating the consumption of cannabis within the permitted distance to certain facilities. Poitz also pointed out the lack of precision scales or other instruments police would need to make sure the law was not being abused.
But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach was a strong proponent for the new law, arguing the country’s previous drug policy had failed and led to a black market.
Justice Minister Marco Buschmann also backed the law, saying it would mean less work for the judiciary and police.
Germany is not the first European country to relax cannabis regulation. The use of small quantities of cannabis has long been decriminalized in Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Belgium, and the Netherlands, though there too, certain rules remain in place.
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