The future of Thailand’s cannabis industry is up in the air after a new legal challenge could bring everything to a screeching halt. In response, advocates in the country are mobilizing today in Bangkok to fight back.

An order, issued by Thailand’s Public Health Ministry, effectively removed cannabis from the country’s Category 5 narcotics list on June 9. Under those regulations, marijuana and hemp cultivation and commerce were legalized. Restaurants and cafes are permitted to sell foods and beverages infused with cannabis, but only if they contain no more than 0.2% THC. Products with higher concentrations of THC are permitted, but only for medicinal purposes.

Things didn’t go over well with the opposition, however, and Thailand’s cannabis industry was slammed for its lack of basic controls. The opposition argues that Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul caused social problems for the country and violated local and international laws by issuing the decriminalization order. In response to the growing criticism, the Public Health Ministry announced a new ministerial rule to better control the promotion and sale of cannabis flower, but the law has not yet taken effect.

The Central Administrative Court on Monday accepted a lawsuit spearheaded by Smith Srisont of Thailand’s Medical Council and MPs from opposition political parties who seek to revoke the decriminalization order. Srisont is a member of the Medical Council and president of the Forensic Physician Association of Thailand. His lawsuit names Charnvirakul and the Narcotics Control Board (NCB) as co-defendants.

The political parties opposed to cannabis include Move Forward, Pheu Thai, Thai Liberal, Thai People Power, and Prachachat parties.

Cannabis advocates in the area, however, aren’t going to accept the current legal challenge and are making efforts to have their voices heard.

Cannabis Advocates Fight Back

One of Thailand’s top cannabis advocates Chokwan “Kitty” Chopaka announced on Facebook that she and other dispensary owners would rally together at noon on November 22 at the Government House in Bangkok to protest against the lawsuit that could end everything. 

“Dropping by different dispensaries around Sukhumvit to invite them to attend the protest tomorrow which went better than what I thought, I guess having your business threaten can make people quite active,” Chopaka posted on Facebook, translated from Thai.

“I apologize if I could not personally invite every dispensary, and I would like to take this time to invite all dispensaries to come out and protest against the Narcotics Control Board re-criminalizing cannabis again. Which means that all dispensaries may get shut down.”

“Those that do not want their businesses shut down. Those that do not want their investment disappeared. Those that do not want to hide their grow again. Those that want to sell cannabis legally. Those that do not want to go back to getting piss tested. Those that want to see cannabis stay legal, come and join us.”

ABC News reports that about 200 people showed up to the rally at the Government House in Bangkok. “We want to ensure that these politicians are not trying to put cannabis on the narcotics list again. If that happens, our fight for years will mean nothing,” Akradej Chakjinda, a coordinator of Cannakin, a network of cannabis decriminalization supporters, told The Associated Press.

A proposed bill, the Cannabis Act, would implement Anutin’s decriminalization policy, and will be introduced in Parliament on November 23.

Another advocate, Soranut “Beer” Masayavanich, owner of Sukhumweed dispensary, announced that another group will gather at the Ministry of Public Health to discuss the upcoming Cannabis Act with Charnvirakul. 

“We aim to create mutual understanding on benefits that cannabis will bring,” Beer stated. “We insist that decriminalizing cannabis brings benefits to several sectors from tourism and economy to agriculture.”

Opposition leaders say that it is better to put cannabis back on the country’s banned narcotics list until the proper legislation is put into place. 

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If Thailand’s transformation from a nation with one of the strictest set of drug laws to a place with legal cannabis seemed like too much, too soon—you’re not alone. Doctors from across Thailand are speaking out on what they consider to be a reckless cannabis law that lacks protection against children and teens.

President of the Forensic Physician Association of Thailand, Smith Srisont, posted a document on Change.org in Thai with a list of demands to the government. “Turn off the vacuum state of cannabis” the post reads. The “vacuum” is the way the document describes the lack of regulatory controls compared to systems seen in place in other countries. Srisont helped determine the dangers of other substances like kratom in the past.

Over 851 doctors signed the petition, which was posted in Thai, but it should be noted that all 851 signees are doctors and alumni of one single school—the Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University in Ratchathewi, Bangkok. However, the school is considered the country’s most respected medical establishment.

The document states that studies show that cannabis could affect the health of children and teenagers as well as the growth of their brains. The document added that with legalization on the agenda, the move now threatens the healthcare system and Thai people’s health, both in the short- and long-term.

“Cannabis was removed from the Public Health Ministry’s Narcotic list on June 9, but no policies have been launched to control the use of cannabis for personal pleasure,” a spokesperson from the group stated. This lack of [legal] direction makes cannabis more accessible for children and teenagers.”

Thailand’s Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul was accused Tuesday, by the Opposition party, of deliberately creating a “legal vacuum” in Thailand, in which there is no law to enable control of the use of cannabis, hemp, or extracts following decriminalization of cannabis in the country last month.

Fear in Thai Media

The country also experienced a wave of fear-inducing news articles following the rollout of legal cannabis in the country. Thai PBS reports that in the month following legalization, nine children fell ill from unsupervised cannabis consumption. It was also reported that a 6-year-old child ate cannabis-infused snacks and “fell into a stupor,” while a 15-year-old boy with a known history of depression attacked people with a knife after smoking two joints.

The group invited doctors or alumni who agreed to sign their names and announced that they also had a campaign on Change.org for the public to vote. The target of the campaign was set at 15,000 names, and the campaign got more than 10,800 people.

“The government and related departments should stop threatening people’s health as soon as possible,” the document reads at the end. “The use of cannabis for medical purposes should be under control for the best benefits and safety as the government claimed from the first place.”

Thai doctors began raising concerns that cannabis supposedly can trigger mental health issues months ago. Criticism is also coming from people who are concerned that the change in the law will hurt the reputation of Thai agricultural exports, given that the biomass might be used in animal feed.

Some of the changes have been too much to handle for people in the county. On the bright side, it’s having a lasting positive impact as well. Thailand’s sudden change of heart towards cannabis is prompting other countries in the region such as Indonesia to re-examine their own approach to cannabis.

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