66% of Mexicans are against legalizing marijuana: survey

Six out of every 10 Mexicans disagree with the ruling of the First Chamber of Mexico's Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN) that declared the ban on personal use of marijuana unconstitutional and opened the doors to "self-consumption".

According to the results of a national telephone survey conducted by EL UNIVERSAL between November 6 and 7, 2015, 60% of respondents disagree with the permission granted by the SCJN to four people to grow, harvest, transport and possess marijuana in amounts necessary for their personal consumption.

Also, 66% of people consulted by EL UNIVERSAL disagree with a possible decriminalization of marijuana, even though 63% of participants said they are in favor of a wide debate on the subject.

The telephone survey was conducted 24 hours after the Court'd decision, that 59% of respondents said they were aware of, while 41% said they were unaware of it.

The survey also revealed that 79% of participants are in favor of legalizing marijuana for medical use, as in the case of Graciela Elizalde, an 8-year-old girl whose parents use a derivative of marijuana to control their daughter's severe epilepsy.

Moreover, 33% said that legalizing marijuana would reduce corruption and violence caused by drug trafficking in Mexico, while 63% said that it would not decrease these problems.

Finally, 58% of respondents said they were in favor of installing dispensaries to supply consumers provided they receive information about the health risks of marijuana use.