Yep. My maire of my district of my capital of my France goes on crusade for legalization !
Good luck to him. If Daniel Vaillant (Parti Socialiste), maire of the 18th district of Paris AND PREVIOUS POLICE MINISTER makes such a coming out, it's that he really has too. The pros are not very popular in France nowadays.

The attempts have been buried a long time ago. Almost ten years that the debate disappeared from the public agora in France. I remember those times, in the late 90's. Back in the days, I was in high school. Pots were smoked in corners of the lycees, discreetly and regularly, in my little town, far away from France's big cities. You could find in libraries books to breed home-grown weed. The socialist Lionel Jospin was Prime Minister. It was the first mandate of President Jacques Chirac. And Daniel Vaillant was Ministre de L'intérieur.
Now, I don't know what's going on in French lycees.. I can bet that pots are still smoked in toilets, and that to be in-crowd, you got to bring some cocaine at the parties, as observed in the whole French society.

According to his interview for the newspaper Le Parisien in November, Daniel Vaillant wants to face 'more seriously and agressively drug issues', so Vaillant.

'Since I'm maire of the 18th district, citizens never complain about marijuana users, only about crack addicts. [Yes, in the 18th we have Montmartre and Sacré-Coeur, but there are also popular areas where drug traffic rises] Of course marijuana is a drug, I'm not naive. But alcohol too. I want to control selling and use of marihuana, avoid underground economy and control production. I'm not laxist, I'm practical.'
Daniel Vaillant's call out for legalization sounds courageous and serious.

Marilou law


How did the political sphere react ? With anger. Actually it has been a disaster for Vaillant.
Here a few quotes in Le Monde from his political opponents :
-The UMP (gov. party, right wing) found the proposition 'totally inacceptable'.
- Eric Ciotti, UMP national secretary for security issues : 'drug traffic feeds networks that are the corn of delinquency. Legalize drugs would mean go against the determined will of the government to fight against them. Do we need to expose again why we voted the Marilou law ?'

In France, the Marilou law is not famous. Almost nobody knows it. The 'Marilou law' was voted after the death of Marilou Poinsot (9) in July 2002, two months after the second election of President Chirac in an unbelievable climate - for the first time, the xenophobic party Front National defeated the Parti Socialiste in the first round of the election.

Marilou Poinsot died in a car accident. The driver was under the influence of drugs. Since then, her family has called out for a law allowing police's drug testing for drivers. One year after, in 2003, the Marilou law was voted.

Marilou law concerns drivers under the influence of drugs. It makes sense. Law punishes drunk drivers too. But Alcohol is legal in France, for those who don't drive. Daniel Vaillant could also argue that it could be the same for Marihuana.

Anyway, Daniel Vaillant is alone. He has not been supported by the heads of Party Socialist. Since then, the debate has been buried again. End of the story.
It's still forbidden to smoke pot and crack but I can find it anytime. Just having a walk and snapping my fingers in any corner of the 18th district of Paris.