Argentina’s Supreme Court ruled criminal penalties for the possession of drugs for personal use unconstitutional. The ruling overturned the criminal convictions of five Argentines for having marijuana joints in their possession.
In a unanimous decision, the judges upheld the sentences of those who sold marijuana and urged government to battle against drug trafficking.
Argentina’s top judges sent politicians a clear message to change focus to ‘adopt preventive health measures, with information and education to dissuade people from drug consumption, focused, above all, on the most vulnerable groups, especially minors’.
The judges’ ruling interpreted the Argentine Constitution, ‘each adult individual is sovereign to make free decisions about the lifestyle he or she desires without the state being able to interfere in that ambit. It is not acceptable to penalize private conduct that does not cause danger or damage to third parties.’
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