MEXICO CITY AND TIJUANA — Mired in a bloody battle with major drug traffickers, Mexico is quietly eliminating jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and other drugs.
The government of President Felipe Calderon says removing the penalties will help in its fight against traffickers by freeing up law enforcement resources and shifting attention from minor consumers to big-time dealers and drug lords. The law also provides for free treatment for addicts.
But critics say decriminalization sends the wrong message amid a drug war that has claimed more than 11,000 lives since late 2006. It will encourage consumption and add to Mexico's fast-growing ranks of addicts, opponents say.
With the law, Mexico joins a trend throughout Latin America of easing penalties for small-time drug use. But Mexico's law goes further than most in that it includes substances such as heroin, LSD and methamphetamine.
The law, which went into effect last week, did not stir huge controversy in Mexico, and Washington has not taken a public stance on it. But officials in some states that border the U.S. are worried that they will be flooded with American "drug tourists" seeking a penalty-free high.
That was not the fear Saturday on Tijuana's legendary Avenida Revolucion, the main tourist drag clogged with bars, restaurants and souvenir shops. Tourism has plummeted because of drug-fueled violence, the economic crisis and the recent flu epidemic, but no one was predicting that liberal drug laws would bring the tourists back.
"People who want drugs have always been able to just go down the street and buy them," said Adan Cardenas, a waiter at the Mystery Bar, where it's all-you-can-drink for $15.
The tourist police who patrol Tijuana said their marching orders remain the same: Anyone seen consuming drugs, whatever the amount, is taken to police headquarters.
"It's not like you can shoot up on the street or smoke a joint on the corner. If they catch you, you're still going to the police station," said Jack Doron, president of a downtown merchants association. He said it's still illegal to sell drugs, so there is no talk of opening Amsterdam-style hashish bars.
People caught with small amounts clearly intended for "personal and immediate use" and who are not known members of cartels will not be criminally prosecuted. They will be told of available clinics, and encouraged to enter a rehabilitation program. Rehab is mandatory when a user is caught a third time.
