Thailand looks set to reverse marijuana re-criminalisation plan

BURIRAM, THAILAND – JUNE 10: Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul poses with people who received … (+) free cannabis plant from the Thai government to celebrate the legalization of marijuana on June 10, 2022 in Buriram, Thailand. Today, the Thai government distributed 1,000 cannabis plants to residents of Buriram, a province in eastern Thailand, during an event to kick off the legalization of marijuana called “Unlock Marijuana.” On June 9, 2022, Thailand officially decriminalized the cultivation and possession of marijuana, and the government plans to distribute 1 million cannabis plants for free to residents across the country. The exhibition in Buriram focused on educating the public about the uses of marijuana in medicine and food, and also had informational stands on growing procedures and technology. (Photo by Lauren DeCicca/Getty Images)

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Thailand is changing its mind and plans to regulate marijuana without re-criminalising its recreational use, despite earlier promises by the new government to restrict its use to medical purposes after the election.

The move, announced by Anutin Charnvirakul, deputy prime minister and home minister and former public health minister from 2019 to 2023 who pushed for marijuana decriminalization, will save Thailand’s burgeoning recreational marijuana industry, which was born with the decriminalization of marijuana in 2022 and faced the threat of closure when the new government took power last year.

According to Anutin, who is also the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, the second-largest group in Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s coalition government, the government will discuss plans for a bill to regulate the cannabis industry and the wider use of the plant.

While the details are not yet clear, this step towards regulating marijuana could deter Srettha’s controversial efforts to outlaw it.

This would be welcome news for thousands of growers, dispensary owners and users in Thailand who had been expecting the Narcotics Control Board to re-classify marijuana as a narcotic, effectively criminalising it, next year.

The decriminalization of recreational marijuana and the creation of a grey economy have seen Thailand see rapid growth in the sector, which Reuters estimates will be worth $1.2 billion by 2025.

However, while Public Health Minister Somsak confirmed that the ministry’s proposal to reclassify marijuana as a narcotic is still on the table, Anutin, who is also a member of the Narcotics Control Council, threatened to oppose any reclassification.

Anutin’s staunch opposition to Prime Minister Srettha’s efforts to reverse decriminalisation has led to a political split in the ruling coalition formed after the 2023 elections.

The ruling Pheu Thai Party, led by Srettha, has taken a hard line on drugs, citing public concerns about the rise in marijuana outlets and recreational use by youth.

The decision not to recriminalize marijuana comes as Thailand’s Constitutional Court prepares to rule on two key cases next month that could potentially spark a political crisis. The first case, on Aug. 7, concerns the dissolution of the Move Forward party, while the second, on Aug. 14, concerns the qualifications of Prime Minister Srettha. If Move Forward is dissolved, its members would have to join new parties within 60 days, with the Bhumjaithai Party, led by Anutin, a likely option. If Srettha proves incompetent, a new prime minister would be chosen from among five candidates, including Anutin, who is seen as a strong candidate for his political work and his handling of issues such as the reclassification of marijuana.

The recent agreement to regularize the rules, rather than repeal them, comes after weeks of tensions within the coalition.

Srettha’s plan to recriminalize the drug has caused tensions within his coalition government. The Bhumjaithai Party, which is the second-largest party in the coalition and made decriminalizing marijuana a key part of its 2019 campaign, opposes the move. Anutin played a key role in the initial decriminalization. But Thailand has legalized marijuana without regulating its cultivation or sale, and a subsequent bill by Bhumjaithai to address the issue failed to pass before the May 2023 election.

Decriminalisation has led to a boom in the recreational marijuana industry, but it has also raised moral concerns and prompted Sretthy Pheu Thai’s party to campaign for tighter controls.

In May, Srettha ordered marijuana to be reclassified as a “category five” drug, with the ban set to come into effect by the end of 2024.

Anutin, however, criticised the move and said he would oppose it, arguing that more research should be carried out before implementing such a drastic measure.

Therefore, the return to a regulatory approach is seen as a political maneuver to ease tensions between Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai.