Marijuana use decriminalized in Georgia

According to the decision of the Constitutional Court of Georgia, the use of marijuana will no longer be considered a criminal offense, Interfax reports.

This decision was made on November 30, 2017 at a meeting of the Constitutional Court. Givi Shanidze, a member of the Girchi opposition party, filed a lawsuit against the parliament. Smoking marijuana now does not fall under the article "illegal manufacture, acquisition, storage in small amounts for personal use or illegal consumption without a doctor's prescription of narcotic drugs, their analogues or precursors."

It is noted that criminal liability for the use of marijuana contradicts Article 16 of the Constitution of the country, which states that "everyone has the right to the free development of his personality."

Representatives of the Girchi party have already called this decision historic.

The party called Girchi, which means "bump" in Georgian, was created in 2015 by a group of politicians who left the ranks of the former ruling United National Movement party. Among the goals of the organization was the legalization of the acquisition, storage and use of marijuana.