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[title]The 9th of June 2022 was kind of D-Day for weed advocates in Thailand. It was the day the government, led by prime minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha, gave the green light to legally use and commercially sell cannabis.
Five months in, the free cannabis movement in the kingdom is still carrying on. Various shops and dispensaries have mushroomed in almost every neighborhood of Bangkok, regularly welcoming both locals and foreigners who can now use the happy plant without the risk of being caught. Things seem to be fine and fun on the surface, but the move has seen increasing backlash from the public and opposition parties, who are concerned about the lack of regulations regarding the use of marijuana.
To mark the fifth month anniversary of this groundbreaking act, we took a look at what has happened in Thailand’s cannabis scene since and spoke to a few pro-weed advocates.
What does the legalization of cannabis mean for Thailand?
It’s undoubtedly a big deal. Thailand is the very first country in Asia to remove the plant from its FDA’s narcotics list, and decriminalize its use for recreational and medicinal purposes.
But the road to legalization was long and arduous. We first had a breakthrough in 2018, when authorities gave permission to use cannabis exclusively for medical treatment. That was when some restaurants, alternative clinics, and wellness establishments, such as this ultra-luxury spa or this popular Thai dessert vendor, started to add cannabidiol (CBD) into their products and treatments.
Fast forward to June 2022, when the pot pros got to pop the confetti. The government, together with health minister and Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul, finally agreed to unlock the gate to full-on legalization.
It was an unexpected surprise. Even underground-user-turned-businessman Tai Taveepanichpan was in disbelief. “It was such a shock, you know, like a shock to the mind and the body, but it was one of the most euphoric feelings and times in my life,” the 27-year-old co-founder of Four Twenty Thailand says.
Todd Ruiz, an American journalist, and owner of bar and arcade Arcadia, which sells cannabis products, was delighted about the government’s bold decision. “As a journalist, it’s fascinating to finally see that this government has matured a little bit. They have done something that actually seems to be in the public’s benefit,” he says.
How can Thailand benefit from its decision to legalize cannabis?
The key purpose of marijuana is to provide recreational pleasure. In a way, it’s reflective of Thailand, where tourists come to destress, relax, and get some much-needed R & R.
So the legalization of cannabis does make sense on the tourist front. Case in point, when we visited this Four Twenty on Soi Sukhumvit 22, foreigners kept coming in and out to get their fill of quality pot.
“I think things look pretty bright for cannabis in Thailand,” Tai opines. “Tourism makes up a huge sector of Thailand’s economy—probably 20 percent of the GDP before COVID, based on some projections by western institutions. They’re also projecting Thailand’s cannabis economy to be worth something around two billion by the end of 2025.”
This news report confirms what the Four Twenty frontman says. It predicts a market growth worth about 1.2 billion US dollars within the next few years. And where there’s growth, there’s more jobs and generated income for locals.
Taxation, however, remains a gray area. There is still no clear information on how cannabis will be taxed. Nicolas Vivin, co-owner of VIVIN Grocery and a cannabis enthusiast, points out that legalizing weed was a “smart move”, but the goods must be taxed because it can “bring revenue to Thailand”. Tai also agrees and strongly commits to doing his part to keep cannabis “totally legal”.
What kind of regulations were implemented along with the legalization of the happy plant?
On a basic level, you can’t smoke marijuana in public and selling is limited to people over 20 years of age. (You can check the rules here.) That’s about it.
The decriminalization of cannabis was an unexpected turn of events that not many people saw coming, and that’s probably why the current Cannabis Act seems very vague and rather lenient. And that’s where the trouble emerges. With such leniency regarding regulations (and no evident tax policy), more and more people are beginning to doubt the government’s decision and have expressed concerns over the danger of cannabis. Since the beginning of the free cannabis movement, there have been substantial reports of death, overdose, and hospitalization.
Nicolas is one of those expressing distress over the news. “I don’t agree with how some restaurants put cannabis in their food without informing diners,” he says, “The customers need to be aware of what’s in the dish, so it’s really wrong from a commercial aspect.”
What have been the reactions from the public so far?
Weed advocates are definitely now more at ease now that they can use it without fear. But following the supposedly increasing cases of overdoses and even deaths, more people have been vocal about their disagreement on the issue, including medical personnel from Ramathibodi Hospital, who have called out the government and requested reconsideration due to inadequate “measures and policies for safe use”.
Politics come into play in this regard. On September 14, it was reported that the long-anticipated Cannabis Act was rejected in a parliament meeting, with lawmakers voting 198-136 against the bill. This has worsened the situation, as the rejection of the act means no proper regulations on every aspect of the industry can be imposed. Some “nay” voters cited the over-promotion of cannabis for recreational purposes as one of the reasons for going against the bill.
Within the pro-cannabis community, changing the public perception of cannabis is a priority. “There’s a misconception that weed is only for hobos,” VIVIN Grocery co-owner and Nicolas’ partner Samantha Proyrungtong chimes in. “We need to desensitize people to the controversy, and this will happen in time, but the government has to put regulations in place so that [smoking weed] can become a respectable lifestyle.”
Todd agrees. “We’ve seen other places in the world that have [legalized cannabis], and society hasn’t fallen apart and the children haven’t all become addicts.
“Cannabis is not a bad thing,” Tai puts forth, “But the drug war in America had it classified as a drug, using racist and misogynist propaganda.”
What proper regulations should be established?
Most of the regulations revolve around the requirements for growing and selling, as seen on the Plookganja website. As a buyer, an individual needs to show his/her/their ID when purchasing.
But there should be more rules to assure safe use and public peace of mind. Tai firmly believes that “consumers should be protected” and there should be a “limit on how much people can purchase at any point in time”.
“Certainly, there should be regulations about who can access it, how they can access it, where, what time, how close to schools, and all of that—they need to be decided, hopefully in a common sense way,” suggests Todd.
At the same time, the pro-cannabis community is hopeful that the government “won’t kill the industry with regulations.” As Tai elaborates, “I hope they don’t allow big corporations to just take over the industry, like what’s happened in Canada where the small and medium operators end up getting wiped out.”
“What we don’t need is criminalizing behavior, like what has happened with alcohol,” Todd adds. “They’re charging huge fines on people who post a picture [with alcohol] on Facebook. I hope that we don’t go that way.”
So, what’s next for the liberalization of weed in Thailand?
Following growing public backlash, as well as the messy legal and political stuff, many speculate that the Cannabis Act is bound for cancellation. But that may just lead to more chaos. “There’s no going back at this point,” Todd says. “The genie is already out of the bottle.”
Health minister Anutin Charnvirakul is continuing to fight for the bill despite opposing voices and the rumor that cannabis will be re-listed as a narcotic. He’s stated that scrapping the bill will be “ridiculous, and we won't do it because we have come so far. We haven't seen any negative impact that is beyond our control."
There are no further details on when the law will be finalized, but it is definitely going back to Parliament soon.
In the meantime, cannabis is now no longer a taboo in Thai society. People can openly talk about and use it without being terrified. As Todd puts forward, the liberalization of this happy plant “can change [society] on a fundamental basis, where things happen instead of being stuck in internal paralysis.”
