We all know that, in our country, when we want to refer to cannabis and its legal consumption, the debate is long. So, what happens? How can we know if the consumption of this cannabis is legal or not? Where can we consume it without incurring in a crime? We will try to clarify this and many other doubts focusing on the city of Barcelona.
But why not start at the beginning? When it comes to cannabis consumption, Spanish law can be diffuse and lax. The question is: is it legal to consume marijuana in the Spanish state? And the answer is not simple. On paper, cultivation, possession and purchase are illegal, unless these acts occur in privacy and for non-profit purposes. However, the legislation is not homogeneous. Although smoking marijuana If cannabis is considered a private and personal matter understood as "legal", any cannabis user caught with cannabis in possession or smoking it may be subject to administrative or criminal penalties.
Yes, Spain in a global compendium is far from legalizing cannabis. There is a widespread social stigma that plagues its consumers and makes it difficult to normalize its consumption. So what can we do?
Cannabis Clubs and Associations, a viable and legal solution
The big question is: if cannabis consumption is thought out, how can it be that Cannabis Clubs (CSC) are so booming? And the answer is logical, but not simple: the legislative system has inconsistent gaps (or not) that allows the private cannabis clubs operate under the cloak of legality.
The key? Simple. Spanish CSCs (and those in the city of Barcelona) are very different from the coffee shops in Amsterdam, as they are private, require membership and are not legally allowed to advertise publicly. Also, the sale and purchase of cannabis is not tolerated outside its walls.
At present, cannabis is not legalized in Spain, but its self-cultivation and self-consumption is allowed as long as it is done privately and is not intended for trafficking. The limits are so diffuse: what is punishable is not self-consumption, but what the judge may determine as cultivation of plants for individual consumption, or for profit. Each specific case is a different case to be studied.
Barcelona, "the new Amsterdam".
In the Spanish state the legislation is confusing, and even more so when we go into its different autonomous communities. This is so because each community has specific laws (governed under the general law) that are more or less lax with the consumption of cannabis. In the case of the Catalan community, this consumption is highly permitted: yes, it is popularly known as "the new Amsterdam".
And this is where we come in. The Barcelona CSC like ours are very different from the coffee shops in Amsterdam.And it all lies in two keys: under Catalan law marijuana cultivation is legal (if it is for self-consumption), but if it cannot be seen from the public road, and, above all, possession is legal if the substance is in private spaces, that is, inside our house or in cannabis clubs.
In this way, it becomes so the support of a CSC must be available.don't you think? Associations or clubs like ours are set up to provide answers and solutions to the loopholes of this legal system. We have already explained the benefits of becoming a member of a CSC in one of our previous posts, but we summarize it again in three words: protection, peace of mind and legality. It sounds good when we refer to a consumer outside the private sphereWhy take a gamble?