After making waves as the first Asian country to decriminalize cannabis, Thailand’s new government is looking to roll back its recent reform measures.
Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew recently unveiled new draft legislation, specifically targeting the recreational use of cannabis in the country.
“We drafted this law to prohibit the wrong usage of cannabis,” Cholnan Srikaew said this week. “All recreational usage is wrong.”
The new provisions prohibit recreational cannabis use and mandate cannabis for medical use only, additionally looking to enforce hefty fines or prison sentences of up to one year for offenders, or potentially both.
Dialing Back Cannabis Reform in Thailand
As the law stands, smoking cannabis in public has remained illegal in Thailand, though the new legislation would also ban advertising and marketing campaigns for cannabis flower, extracts and other cannabis products.
The draft law notes fines of up to 60,000 baht ($1,700 USD) for recreational use, with advertising and marketing campaigns drawing jail terms of up to one year or fines of up to 100,000 baht. It would also increase penalties for farming cannabis without a license, with jail terms between one and three years along with fines ranging from 20,000 to 300,000 baht, Channel News Asia reports.
The new regulations echo the sentiments of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who pledged in September that the country’s new government would “rectify” its cannabis laws within the next six months.
The proposed law is still awaiting cabinet approval, at which point it will be submitted for consideration to the House of Representatives.
It’s still unclear how exactly the medical element of the new legislation would be enforced, namely whether or not buying cannabis will require a medical certification of some kind.
“The new law will clearly stipulate that cannabis must be used for medical purposes only. It will also encourage the use of cannabis for a range of health benefits,” Cholnan said, adding that there may be a need for future revisions if rules from the Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine Department or otherwise conflict with the new law, the Thai Examiner reports.
An Eventful, Short-Lived Period of Cannabis Decriminalization
The previous relaxation of Thailand’s cannabis laws occurred under former Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul. In June 2022, Thailand removed cannabis from the nation’s list of banned drugs.
The reform measures initially deemed that cannabis and hemp cultivation were no longer illegal and that restaurants and cafes could sell foods and beverages infused with cannabis, so long as they contained no more than 0.2% THC. The move was primarily aimed to foster economic growth and development in the country
Though, even at the time, leaders explicitly warned against tourists and residents using cannabis for recreational purposes, underscoring that high-THC cannabis was only allowed for medical purposes.
“Thailand will promote cannabis policies for medical purposes,” Anutin said in June 2022. “If [tourists] come for medical treatment or come for health-related products then it’s not an issue but if you think that you want to come to Thailand just because you heard that cannabis or marijuana is legal … [or] come to Thailand to smoke joints freely, that’s wrong. Don’t come. We won’t welcome you if you just come to this country for that purpose.”
Since Thailand made the move, the country continued to make headlines for its new policies and the aftermath that followed. Many criticized the policies as ushering in too much change, too quickly.
Over the 18-month period, Thai growers and sellers said illegal U.S. imports were undercutting their business, allowing foreign competitors and money to funnel into the country’s cannabis economy. The new law also led to the opening of thousands of new pot shops, with sellers taking advantage of loopholes to sell psychoactive cannabis despite the country’s regulations.
In August 2023, Thailand appeared in the news once more, this time because of a tourist who filled up a fog machine with cannabis and blasted the street with smoke, reportedly to promote his cannabis business in California — though the suspect denied his involvement and claimed there was never any cannabis in the fog machine.
With the new legislation, Thailand is currently canvassing public opinion on the potential changes with a Jan. 23 deadline for feedback. After that time, the cabinet will weigh the draft bill and suggestions before moving ahead to parliament for further deliberation.
It’s not yet clear what will happen to the country’s unregulated cannabis shops and dispensaries or those who cultivate cannabis at home.
