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Mexican poppy producing state pushes to decriminalize opium
Updated 8:20 am CDT, Wednesday, August 22, 2018
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Political leaders from Mexico's main heroin-producing state are pushing the federal government to legalize opium production for pharmaceutical use in a move they hope will reduce violence and help local farmers.
Legislators in Guerrero state voted Friday to send an initiative to the Mexican Senate for further debate, since the proposal to legitimize opium output would require changes to federal health and penal codes.
Incoming Interior Minister Olga Sanchez has expressed support for nationwide legalization of opium production for medical purposes after President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador takes office in December.
The mountainous state of Guerrero, on Mexico's southern Pacific Coast, is home to most of the poppy bulbs that yield heroin consumed in the U.S.
More:
https://www.chron.com/news/world/article/Mexican-poppy-producing-state-votes-to-13166939.php