Guatemala looking at legalized poppy production

SEARCHING for alternatives to the failed war on drugs, the Government of Guatemala is looking at poppy production in a legal and controlled manner.

President Otto Perez Molina's was the only voice raised in the Western Hemisphere in support of the Government of Uruguay authorizing the legalization of marijuana.

"We started exploring the capacity that we could have for controlled planting. What that means is that we would know exactly what extensions are being planted, what the production would be and that the sale would also be well controlled, especially for medicinal use," said Perez Molina.
"There are two paths, one is cultivated substitutes, and the other is the alternative which is controlled cultivation. This is what is already being done in other countries such as India and China, that is to say identifying hectares clearly, seeing how they are grown, carrying out the harvest, taking control of the commercialization and above all making sure this serves mainly the pharmaceutical industry," said Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez.
"This is being discussed as a way to achieve the eradication of poppy planting in upper San Marcos and on the Mexico border …", reported Prensalibre.com.
In November, the National Civil Police (the Army and the Public Ministry eradicated 127 hectares of opium poppy crops valued at $152 million, and 2.4 hectares of marijuana valued at $17 million in San Marcos.
People in that area prefer poppy cultivation because potatoes no longer generate profits.