BANGKOK – Thailand’s Cannabis Future Network issued a statement on May 9, 2024 in response to Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s order instructing the Ministry of Public Health to reclassify cannabis as a narcotic substance.
The network emphasized that the definition of what constitutes an addictive substance should be based on scientific evidence. They called on the Ministry of Public Health to carry out a comparative analysis of the benefits and harms of cannabis, alcohol and cigarettes.
If it is scientifically proven that cannabis causes more harm than good compared to cigarettes and alcohol, the network will support the reclassification of cannabis as a narcotic. However, if it is proven that cannabis is not as harmful as it is currently portrayed, the network proposes the enactment of specific laws to regulate cannabis use in Thailand.
The network also criticized the government, claiming that the ruling Pheu Thai Party is influenced by large capital groups and that several of its MPs have business interests in cannabis. They believe that the government intends to control cannabis cultivation, which would lead to a monopoly, and that the reclassification of cannabis as a narcotic would be a legitimate tool for such control.
“We would like to inform the public that news reports of cannabis-induced psychosis are dubious. Individuals who have used cannabis openly and daily for more than a decade have shown no signs of psychosis. However, reports of cannabis-induced psychosis often involve people who have been using cannabis for a long time or only occasionally. This raises questions about the true cause of these incidents.
In reality, these individuals may be using other illicit substances and blaming cannabis to avoid arrest, or they may be using cannabis in conjunction with other drugs. The fact remains that cannabis does not cause psychosis. We urge the Department of Public Health to investigate this matter immediately and we believe that the experiences of numerous long-term cannabis users can serve as valuable case studies,” the statement reads.
The secretary general of the Thai Cannabis Future Network, Prasitchai Noonuan, announced that the network would gather to submit a petition to the Minister of Public Health within seven days. If the government continues to disregard scientific evidence in determining the status of cannabis, a rally will be organized to demand the government base its cannabis policy on facts.
Furthermore, if the government insists on reclassifying cannabis as a narcotic on June 9 2024, the second anniversary of the decriminalization of cannabis, the network is planning a large-scale protest in front of Government House.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Anutin Charnveerakul, who heads Bhumjai Thai Party which democrimialised marijuana during the Prayut administration said on Thursday that his party is no longer in charge of the Public Health Ministry.
“We have to let the current minister determine the policy, but we must provide information on why cannabis has more benefits than harm. We provide full information, and then we vote in the meeting. Whatever the outcome, we must accept it,” he said.
Anutin said that this matter is the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Health and the National Committee for Prevention and Suppression of Drugs because the effects of cannabis can be scientifically proven, not based on emotions or feelings.
If new information emerges today that cannabis is definitely harmful and addictive, he must listen and consider it, but currently, he has to wait for that information. He is not worried because the cannabis policy is included in the government’s policy statement to the parliament.
Anutin said that when he had announced the removal of cannabis from the list of narcotic drugs, over six thousand prisoners in jail for marijuana selling or consumption have already been released or went through rehab. As for the general practitioners and traditional medicine practitioners who used cannabis and were previously sentenced to imprisonment, they have also been released.
He also said that many foreigners owning marijuana shops must be arrested. Those who can open cannabis shops must be under the announcement of the Ministry of Public Health. There are already rules and regulations in place
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