Recently several charitable cannabis clubs were founded in Spain, whose lawfulness was now confirmed by courts in Catalonia and the Basque region. People join to grow cannabis together and distribute it to members of the club at cost price. Only members have access to the growing rooms and the cannabis. In Spain trade with cannabis is prohibited, but possession for personal use is legal. A court in Bilbao, the biggest city of the Basque region, cleared four defendants of a cannabis club with 66 members from the prosecution of illegal cultivation of 150 kg of cannabis (fresh whole plants that resulted in 17.4 kg dried cannabis). 39 members use cannabis for medical purposes.

ENCOD (European Coalition for Just and Effective Drug Policies), a European organisation for the change of the drug laws regards the Spanish cannabis clubs as a model for other countries. Recently the first association of cannabis growers was created in Belgium. As in Spain the possession of cannabis for personal use is legal.

(Source: El Confidential.com of 7 August 2006, www.encod.org)