The legalization of marijuana varies from one nation to another. Even though certain countries have imposed a total ban on marijuana use, some countries have legalized its use. Since the prevalent prohibition of marijuana by many countries in the 1930s, many countries have legalized the "small-quantity possession" of marijuana. Some countries have legalized the use of marijuana for particular purposes. The level of legalization also varies depending on the county's laws and regulations. Some countries impose more restrictive laws on the use of marijuana than other countries. .
According to Anderson (2013), legalization has been effected in many countries in Europe, North America and South America. In addition, a research study conducted by Friese & Grube (2013) revealed that it is legal to possess marijuana in Netherlands, the state of Colorado in the United States and Uruguay. Colorado decriminalized the use of marijuana through its Amendment 64 (Ruschmann, 2012). The first nation to give legal permission to the public to farm and sell marijuana is Uruguay. Several countries in the world authorize the use of marijuana as a medicinal drug (Caulkins, 2014). Some of those countries include Czech Republic, Canada, North Korea and Israel (Friese & Grube, 2013). Even though federal laws in the United States prohibit the sale and possession of marijuana, the law enforcement also differs from one state to another. Some states have established programs that support the use of marijuana as a medicine. .
However, these programs contradict the laws of the federal government on the use of marijuana. Just like Colorado, Washington repealed their laws, which prohibited the recreational use of marijuana, through the Washington Initiative 502 (Caulkins, 2014). The move has made it possible to adopt legal regulations on marijuana use, which are contrary to the statutes established by the federal government.
