Thailand’s cannabis lovers face comedown amid legalisation U-turn
Southeast Asian country’s booming cannabis industry is under a cloud as politicians reconsider decriminalisation
Friday, June 9, 2023
One year after Thailand decriminalised cannabis, Thailand’s Ganja TV, a Facebook page with 90,000-odd followers, are looking on as rival politicians threaten to make dispensaries and open consumption illegal once more – or at least tightly controlled. At the centre of attention is Pita Limjaroenrat, the prime minister-in-waiting whose Move Forward Party (MPF) scored an upset to come first place in last month’s general elections. While MFP is viewed as the most liberal of Thailand’s political parties, cannabis advocates say it is leading the drive to rein in recreational use, casting a pall over the country’s cannabis industry. Pita says the cannabis boom should be put on pause to curb widespread recreational use until the incoming government can pass a proposed Cannabis Act.
