Former President Vicente Fox Calls for the Full Legalization of Cannabis in Mexico

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]C[/dropcap]annabis is improving lives for those in the United States, one day at a time. Legal cannabis has increased the number of job opportunities, it’s lowered the number of opioid-related fatalities in legal states, and overall its medicinal benefits are being realized at a rapid pace. But the U.S. isn’t the only country to see positive benefits from having legal cannabis. Other countries such as Mexico aren’t far behind. As a supporter for the legalization of cannabis, former Mexican President Vicente Fox is supportive of the positive public and media opinions of cannabis, and he believes it is critical for Mexico’s lawmakers to learn from other countries.

On May 25, Vicente Fox spoke to Civilized in support of legalizing cannabis not only for medicinal purposes but also recreational, before his scheduled speech at the CannaMexico World Summit on May 30-31. “The CannaMexico World Summit is an international event that will offer a wide range of information, and numerous networking opportunities in the cannabis industry,” President Fox told Civilized. “Industry experts, professionals and leading companies in the fields of science, research, finance, medicine, government, technology, innovation, agriculture and entrepreneurship?among others, will gather to discuss the current opportunities within the cannabis Industry in Mexico.”

As a former politician, Fox believes that it is his duty to discuss the legalization of cannabis in an open and professional manner. “There is a lot of pressure from citizens aimed at authorities to start discussions on the topic of cannabis. The first step was taken by allowing medical use of cannabis but we need to go for the ‘whole enchilada’ and achieve full legalization,” Fox stated.

Fox shared that time is of the essence, and Mexico can no longer hesitate with this pivotal move toward legalization. With Canada moving closer to legalize cannabis this summer, Fox worries that Mexico may possibly fall behind in the legalization of cannabis. “Mexico can’t and shouldn’t be left behind,” he added.

In addition to generating funds for the country, Fox hopes cannabis legalization will make life a little better for everyone in Mexico and “act as an instrument of positive social change, contributing to an overall sense of community and self-sufficiency. Legalization will not only boost economic activity, it also will decrease criminal activity.”