Thailand Legalises Growing, Consumption Of Marijuana
Thailand has legalised the growing and possession of cannabis and its consumption in food and drinks, the first Asian country to do so, with the aim of boosting its agriculture and tourism sectors – but smoking it recreationally is still against the law.
The public health minister is planning to distribute 1 million cannabis seedlings, starting Friday, to encourage farmers to take up its cultivation.
However, Thailand’s government has said it is promoting cannabis for medical use only, warning those eager to light up for fun that smoking in public could still be considered a nuisance, subject to a potential three-month sentence and 25,000 Thai baht ($780) fine.
So far, it appears there will be no effort to police what people can grow and smoke at home, aside from registering to do so and declaring it is for medical purposes. Thailand legalised medicinal cannabis in 2018.
Authorities aim to head off an explosion in recreational use by limiting the strength of the cannabis products that are legal. Products that contain more than 0.2 percent of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical that makes people high, are still illegal.
Shoppers queued up at outlets selling cannabis-infused drinks, sweets and other items on Thursday as advocates of the plant welcomed the reform in a country with a reputation for strict anti-drug laws.
Among those at the front of the queue at one Bangkok shop was Rittipong, 24, who waited overnight to buy his first-ever legal cannabis.
“I took a bus here after I got off work,” Rittipong told Reuters news agency.
“We’re now able to find it easily, we don’t have to worry about the source, but I have no idea about the quality,” he said, referring to the strength of the products on offer.
Chokwan Kitty Chopaka, who owns a store selling cannabis sweets, told Reuters: “After COVID, the economy going down the drain, we really do need this,”
Old post alert
#EOB
