Time to Decriminalise It

The author contends that cannabis prohibition in Germany has failed, fostering organised crime and leaving consumers and youth unprotected. The text advocates for a regulated market—specifically proposing a draft by the German Greens—that would allow limited personal possession, mandate licensed stores with strict ID checks, and redirect law enforcement savings toward drug prevention.

• Prohibition of cannabis in Germany has failed to limit use, with over 2.3 million adults consuming the substance and 22% of 15- to 16-year-olds having used it.
• The current prohibition policy creates a black market controlled by organised crime, which eliminates effective youth and consumer protection and exposes users to contaminated products.
• Ending the prosecution of cannabis users could save the state approximately 1.8 billion Euros, which the author suggests should be reinvested into drug prevention.
• The German Greens' draft proposal for a regulated market would allow adults to possess 30g of cannabis or three plants for personal use, while restricting sales to licensed stores with strict quality controls and youth protection measures.
• The proposed regulatory framework includes a driving limit of 5.0 ng/ml of active THC in blood serum and requires the government to submit evaluation reports to the German parliament every four years.

APA

Terpe, H. (2015). Time to Decriminalise It. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/time-to-decriminalise-it/

Chicago

Terpe, Harald. Time to Decriminalise It. Green European Journal, 2015. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/time-to-decriminalise-it/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Terpe |first1=Harald |title=Time to Decriminalise It |publisher=Green European Journal |date=4 August 2015 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/time-to-decriminalise-it/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{terpe2015time, author = {Terpe, Harald}, title = {{Time to Decriminalise It}}, publisher = {Green European Journal}, year = {2015}, month = aug, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/time-to-decriminalise-it/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }