MEXICO CITY, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Friday confirmed the possibility of holding a public consultation about legalizing some drugs for medicinal purposes as a way of reducing the violence caused by drug trafficking.

"I am not ruling out the possibility of calling a referendum or a collective reflection about legalizing certain drugs, especially those used for medicinal purposes," Lopez Obrador told a press conference in Merida, the capital city of the southeastern state of Yucatan.

"I have also been considering how this is part of the chain for ensuring peace and tranquility," the president said.

"There are some people who do not want to legalize the use of drugs, not even for medicinal purposes, and there are people that support it (and insist) that the violence originates from the ban (on drugs)," he said.

The president said the consultation on this polarizing issue will be held once his administration makes further progress in strengthening social security.

Last month, the United States issued a presidential memorandum in which Mexico was identified as one of the 22 major drug transit and producing countries in the world. Enditem

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