Mexico’s Supreme Court voted 4 to 1 in a ruling that “leaving the marijuana possession and consumption outside the law represents a violation of fundamental human rights.”

The new decree represents a change in the opinion of both the Mexican government and the people. The legalization of marijuana not only has an impact on the Mexican economy, but could help reduce the crime rate and the level of political corruption.

People celebrated him smoking joints in front of the Supreme Court building in Mexico City. Magistrate José Ramón Cossío, an authority on the issue, who voted in favor of the measure, declared for the BBC:

“If this court has taken such an important step regarding the legalization of drugs, or part of them, I believe we are careful and responsible when taking a measure of this magnitude.”

Human Rights Watch has documented many times that drug legislation has had devastating effects on human rights around the world:

“If we do not consider the right to health and privacy, we turn them into disproportionate instruments for punishment, torture and extrajudicial violence, and we give bellows to organized crime groups that commit abuses, create corrupt authorities and disregard the law.”

Meanwhile, authorities in their neighboring country, the United States, have declared outright that cannabis is the least of their ills in this year’s National Drug Threat Assessment Summary.

The supreme court has validated the recreational use of marijuana, its planting and its consumption. The resolution, however, does not approve the sale, distribution or supply.

At the moment it is only valid for the four Mexicans who have a judicial order and not for all, but this is a great step towards legalization on a national scale.

Is this the beginning of a legal global cannabis market?