Australia’s Senate Votes Down Marijuana Legalization Bill [Video]

Australia’s Senate has rejected a proposal by the Greens party that would have legalized marijuana nationwide. Lawmakers in the chamber voted 24–13 to block the legislation on Wednesday, with opposition led by the governing Labor party and opposition coalition Liberal and National parties.

The plan’s backer, Sen. David Shoebridge, said the vote nevertheless marked progress in the country’s shift away from the war on drugs. A Greens press release noted that it’s the first time Australia’s federal parliament voted on a nationwide cannabis legalization bill.

“We took a big step today from treating cannabis as part of the failing ‘war on drugs’ and instead putting forward a model that is safer, reduces harms and delivers for the millions of Australians who just want us to legalize it!” Shoebridge said in a statement, adding: “The Labor and Coalition parties joined together to try and hold Australia back in the 1950’s by blocking this desperately needed …