Emmanuel Macron is thinking about the referendum, Éric Piolle takes him at his word on cannabis and legalization

POLITICS – With both feet. The environmentalist mayor of Grenoble Éric Piolle is taking advantage of the debate emerging around Emmanuel Macron’s desire to organize referendums, to propose to the Head of State that the French vote on the legalization of cannabis. “ This will allow the subject to be raised head on rather than always getting bogged down in the same controversies. », he explained this Thursday January 23 on franceinfo.

It was the President of the Republic himself who opened the way on December 31 by explaining, during his vows, that he was going to ask the French to “ decide on certain decisive issues ». « We will have choices to make for our economy, our democracy, our security, our children », he launched, thus waving the referendum card, often mentioned, never practiced by the current tenant of the Élysée.

According to Le Figarothis time things are serious. Emmanuel Macron would consider several different subjects likely to be put to a vote: institutional issues such as the accumulation of mandates, or societal issues, such as the question of the end of life. Not too surprisingly, the legalization of cannabis does not appear on this short list.

Ineffective repressive strategy?

However, according to Éric Piolle, such an initiative would make it possible to think about a more global strategy on the issue of drugs and drug trafficking and to break with the choices “ all repressive » made by governments for years. An ineffective strategy, according to the mayor of Grenoble, in that it does not make it possible to stem the traffic and prevents targeting the roots of the phenomenon.

« By refusing any dialogue on decriminalization, control of production, legalization, the Ministers of the Interior are making these questions their stock in trade “, he explained, still on franceinfo, pointing to the “ lack of courage of the government which always repeats the same operations with the same failures, and which refuses to fight against recidivism. »

As a reminder, the French are the leading consumers of cannabis in Europe, with 5 million users per year in 2023, 1.4 million regular users (10 times in the last 30 days, Editor’s note) and 900,000 daily consumers. Figures which tend to stabilize after years of increase.

The French in favor of legalization

In this context, Éric Piolle believes that the strategy of successive Interior Ministers, from Nicolas Sarkozy to Bruno Retailleau, amounts to “ scooping out the sea with a spoon”: “We are asking the police to put more and more people in prison but for all that the sea level and traffic levels are still high. »

« A referendum would allow a serious public debate, rather than letting things happen like that, which are appalling for public debate, public health, the use of our police forces. “, still believes the environmentalist mayor at a time when the French are (according to the polls) rather favorable to this legalization, following the model of some of our neighbors, such as Germany for example. Several elected officials from all sides are too.

Note also that this referendum (the chances of which being taken up by the president are zero) would be intended to settle the debate between the two Emmanuel Macrons. The one before his election, who cited health professionals in 2017 to praise “effectiveness” of “decriminalization.” » Or the one after who, once at the Élysée, left the keys to the truck with movement ministers “ zero tolerance », always more offensive and repressive.

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