Colombia’s cannabis users light up in protest against crackdown

Critics questions whether President Duque’s decree banning personal drug possession will any effect on criminal organisations, production or trafficking.

While the laws around marijuana use are being relaxed in a number of countries, Colombia is not one of them.

Its new president, Ivan Duque, has signed a decree allowing police to confiscate all quantities of the drug.

Heretofore, it had been legal to carry small amounts for personal use.

The president had promised a tougher stance on all drugs, but experts and critics are sceptical these new measures will have any effect on criminal organisations or production in what is still the world’s largest cocaine producer.

Al Jazeera’s Alessandro Rampietti reports from Bogota.