President Vicente Fox won't oppose the bill that decriminalizes possession of small amounts of some drugs. 비센테 폭스 대통령은 소량의 약물을 소지하는 것을 비범죄화하는 청구안을 반대하지 않을 것으로 보인다.
MEXICO CITY, Mexico (Reuters) -- Mexico's president will approve a law that decriminalizes possession of small amounts of marijuana, cocaine and other drugs to concentrate on fighting violent narco gangs, the government said Tuesday.
멕시코시티, 멕시코(로이터통신)-멕시코 대통령이 강력한 마약갱단들과의 싸움에 집중하기 위해 소량의 대마초 코카인 등 약물소지를 비범죄화하는 법률안을 승인할 것이라고 멕시코 정부가 화요일(2일) 밝혔다.
President Vicente Fox will not oppose the bill, passed by senators last week, presidential spokesman Ruben Aguilar told reporters, despite likely tensions with the United States.
대통령 대변인 루벤 아길라는 "미국의 반대에도 불구하고 비센테 폭스 대통령은 지난주 상원을 통과한 청구안을 반대하지 않을 것"이라고 기자들에게 말했다.
"The president is going to sign that law; there would be no objection," he said. "It appears to be a good law and an advance in combating narcotics trafficking."
이어 "대통령은 이변이 없는 한 법안에 서명할 것이다. 마약거래와의 전쟁에서 긍정적인 법률과 진전효과가 있을 것이다"고 말했다.
The approval of the legislation, passed earlier by the lower house of Congress, surprised Washington, which counts on Mexico's support in its war against gangs that move massive quantities of cocaine, heroin, marijuana and methamphetamines through Mexico to U.S. consumers.
하원에서 일찌감치 통과된 입법안은 워싱턴(부시행정부)을 놀라게 했다. 워싱턴은 멕시코에서 미국의 소비자들에게 많은 양의 코카인, 헤로인, 대마초와 메스 암페타민을 운반하는 갱조직들에 대항한 전쟁에서 멕시코의 지원을 계산해왔다.
Under the law, police will not penalize people for possessing up to 5 grams of marijuana, 5 grams of opium, 25 milligrams of heroin. Nor does the law penalize possession of 500 milligrams of cocaine -- enough for a few lines.
The legal changes will also decriminalize the possession of limited quantities of LSD, hallucinogenic mushrooms, amphetamines, ecstasy and peyote -- a psychotropic cactus found in Mexico's northern deserts.
Hundreds of people, including many police officers, have been killed in Mexico in the past year as drug cartels battle for control of lucrative smuggling routes into the United States.
The violence has raged mostly in northern Mexico, but in recent months has spread south to cities such as vacation resort Acapulco.
While likely to complicate relations with the U.S. government, the legislation has drawn relatively little attention from the media in Mexico, where drug use is less common than in the United States.
Aguilar did not say when Fox would sign the bill.
Under current law, it is up to local judges and police to decide on a case-by-case basis whether people should be prosecuted for possessing small quantities of drugs.
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