Georgian government plans to export marijuana

The Georgian government has put forward a bill proposing to legalise the production and export of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

InterPressNews agency writes that the bill was discussed at a meeting held at the office of the ruling Georgian Dream party. Ministry of Internal Affairs employees presented the bill to majoritarian MPs.

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According to the working version of the bill, the production of marijuana will be strictly licensed. Licensees are to be determined on a competitive basis. Licensing criteria will include geographical area, the amount of marijuana produced, and others.

According to the agency, there was heated discussion and even disputes at the meeting. Interpressnews.ge reported that the chairman of the ruling party, former prime minister and the man known as the informal ruler of the country, Bidzina Ivanishvili, supports the idea.

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The bill, developed by the Ministry of the Interior, contains other innovations pertaining to cannabis use, such as restrictions on marijuana users. The authorities plan to ban the use of marijuana in schools, public institutions and offices, which will affect representatives of some professions.

The legislative package will soon be presented at a government meeting.

• On 30 July 2018 the Constitutional Court of Georgia abolished the administrative punishment for the use of marijuana, making it legal in Georgia. This decision does not apply to the cultivation and sale of the plant.