Thailand from drug wars to weed curries

This month, Thailand legalized the cultivation and use of cannabis and abolished the fight against long-term imprisonment or the death penalty for drug-related offences. Jonathan Heath of the BBC in Southeast Asia explains what is behind the dramatic change.

Twenty-one years ago, I had one of the most difficult experiences of my career as a journalist. We were invited to watch and film the executions of five prisoners, including four convicted drug traffickers, in Bangkok Prison Bangkok. I will never forget the faces of those whose bones were crushed in death-sentenced sperm.

It was part of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s “war on drugs”, which later killed hundreds of drug suspects. Thaksin’s campaign became famous.

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Thais are concerned about the harmful effects of drugs such as methamphetamine on their communities and are ready to ignore the shocking human rights violations associated with persecution. Other countries in the region have received similar punishments, especially since Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016. Singapore and Malaysia have spent decades serving the death penalty for drug trafficking. Tourists in Southeast Asia have long been warned of severe sanctions for small amounts of marijuana.

So it’s hard to imagine what I’ve seen in Thailand in the last few weeks. Cafes and kiosks openly sell all sorts of cannabis products or display jars full of strong marijuana flowers. Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, who enacted a new law giving Thailand the most liberal marijuana regime in the world, applauded farmers who saw weed-covered curry and hoped to provide a new source of income.

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Thai grandmothers soak up outrageous green cannabis drinks as they line up to drink one of the millions of marijuana trees distributed free by the government.

The new law seems to give Thailand a vision of the world’s freest marijuana. Now people can grow and consume as many plants as they want, but sales and sales are limited.

“It simply came to our notice then. “Tom Cruesopon, the innovator who helped the government change its mind, is not going to jail for using cannabis in Thailand,” he said. You could go to jail for doing other things like smoking in public. Production and sale of cannabis products without FDA permission or in the public interest. But Thailand is the first country in the world not to go to jail for cultivating or using a plant. ”

“It’s a dream come true for us,” said Rattapon Sanrak, who started a marijuana legalization campaign after learning about the medical benefits of marijuana while studying in the United States. His grandfather and grandmother, his father and mother all died of cancer. Returning from the United States to care for her mother, she tried to persuade her to use cannabis to cure her illness, but to no avail, and access to illegal drugs was difficult at the time. What explains this dramatic change in conservative-led countries, where drug liberalization seems unlikely?

One of the reasons is politics. Anutin agreed to legalize marijuana with his party’s signature in the 2019 election. The party’s backbone is in a poor village in northeastern Thailand, and the policy is aimed at farmers who want to give up rice.

Raising sugar and needed it. new products on the market. For example, when he announced the new legislation in his hometown, Buriram earlier this month, he said he had kept his promise. He believes in the medical benefits of legalization and hopes that it will allow the poor in Thailand to grow their own medicines instead of paying for expensive chemicals.

This also applies to business. Kruesopon estimates that the marijuana business will generate $ 10 billion (£ 8.1 billion) in the first three years, but people could benefit much more from cannabis tourism, which comes to Thailand specifically for the treatment and treatment of cannabis extracts. marijuana. He opened the first clinic in Bangkok dedicated exclusively to this type of treatment.

Some Thai conglomerates are already thinking about how to make money with cannabis. With the rapid and complete liberalization of the law, the government hopes to steal marches to neighboring countries, and many countries do not want to follow in Thailand’s footsteps under any circumstances.

But there is a third factor behind the new marijuana regime. It is to reconsider the war on drugs that began seven years ago, when Thailand was ruled by a military regime. The country has one of the largest overcrowded prisons in the world, three-quarters of which are for drug offenses, most of which are less serious. This has led to international criticism of the poor living conditions of prisoners, as well as the demand for government funds to keep them. General Paybon Kumchaya, Minister of Military Justice, announced in 2016 that the war on drugs had failed and that other, less punitive, measures were needed to combat drug use and abuse.

When Anutin introduced a marijuana policy with surprising economic benefits, he saw that it was opening a relatively open door, but he said it would take a lot of work to achieve. Another consequence of the change is that more than 4,000 people have now been released from prison on marijuana charges.

However, the government may not have been prepared to accept all types of cannabis found in Thailand since the new law was passed. This plant appears everywhere: ice cream, classic Thai dishes and new smoothie recipes. Some even sell cannabis. The new law will legalize almost everything about cannabis.

The government is currently developing additional rules for its use. Officially, his position is that the law allows the use of cannabis for medical as well as recreational purposes, but it is difficult to see how he uses these differences.

“By browsing other markets, we all know that entertainment means money,” said self-proclaimed marijuana enthusiast Chidchanok Chichob. His father is a prominent politician in Buriram and one of the first to board a Thai marijuana train. “So if we see it as an economic culture, I think we should take a good step in that direction.”

He experiments with different varieties of plants so that local farmers can grow varieties that are suitable for their area.

Mr. Kruesopon says there are no problems with subsequent regulations. He advocates for the sale of marijuana only to authorized dealers with a prescription and not to persons under 18 years of age.

“You don’t have to think about that,” he added. “Whatever you use for tobacco, use cannabis. The book has laws that control tobacco and alcohol use. Use those laws.”

This is a bold step for the Thai government toward a new bold world. The rest of the region will find it justified.