By Gunnar Schupelius
The planned cannabis law endangers health and should not be passed, says Gunnar Schupelius.
The federal government wants to legalize the consumption of cannabis. A corresponding draft law is currently being discussed in the Bundestag.
As part of the consultation, specialists were invited to the hearing on November 7th and asked for their assessment. It turned out that the medical associations categorically reject the planned legalization of cannabis for consumption purposes.
Both the professional association of pediatricians and adolescent doctors (BVKJ) and the German Medical Association (BÄK) justified their rejection primarily on the grounds that young people were at risk. They classify the planned legalization as a “relevant threat to the mental health and development opportunities of the young generation”.
The doctors criticize the planned youth protection rules. Paragraph 5 (1) of the Cannabis Act (CanG) states: “The consumption of cannabis in the immediate presence of people who have not yet reached the age of 18 is prohibited.” In addition, “public consumption of cannabis” is prohibited Schools and kindergartens and in “an area of 200 meters around the entrance area” will be prohibited, including in “publicly accessible sports facilities” and “in pedestrian zones between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m.
The German Medical Association doubts that such rules “could effectively protect children and young people from having access to cannabis”.
The Federal Chamber of Psychotherapists (BPtK) made a similar assessment, pointing out that cannabis can be physically addictive and lead to psychosis.
The federal government’s cannabis law (SPD, Greens, FDP) stipulates that adults of legal age are allowed to possess up to 25 grams of cannabis for their own consumption. Delivery to adolescents between 18 and 21 years of age should be strictly regulated to 30 grams per month with a reduced content of the psychoactive ingredient THC.
The aim is to make “responsible use of cannabis” possible and to improve the protection of children and young people. The CDU and AfD deny this. They rigorously reject the cannabis law and presented counter-proposals.
Young people up to the age of 25 are at risk from consuming cannabis because their brain development has not yet been completed, argues the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. The AfD also believes that the government is underestimating the danger posed to teenagers and young adults.
The specialists who have now been heard in the Bundestag share this fear. They pointed out the dangers for adolescents in an unusually sharp way. They are the ones who need to know.
The government should take the objections very seriously. The youth protection provisions mentioned in the Cannabis Act are naive and unenforceable. There is a great risk that young people will consume much more after the release. The cannabis law endangers health and must not be passed as it is.
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