Thailand plans to give away 1 million marijuana seedlings to encourage growers — getting high, however, could still be punished.
Cannabis is no longer listed as a dangerous drug in ThailandImage: Manan Vatsyayan/AFP/Getty Images
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A legislation allowing the cultivation of cannabis in Thailand came into effect on Thursday.
The law, also allowing the use of cannabis in food and drinks, is a first of its kind in Asia.
Although Thailand is not following the Uruguayan or Canadian models of legalizing recreational marijuana, it is seeking to boost hemp agriculture and medical tourism.
"We should know how to use cannabis,'' Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said recently. "If we have the right awareness, cannabis is like gold, something valuable, and should be promoted."
Some Thai advocates celebrated Thursday morning by buying marijuana at a cafe in BangkokImage: Sakchai Lalit/AP Photo/picture alliance
Grow but don't smoke
Thailand is strongly promoting growing cannabis and using it for medicinal purposes, but it is still encouraging people not to smoke pot.
The government is not allowing the possession or sale of cannabis extracts containing more than 0.2% of its psychoactive ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC. That's around 20 to 40 times less than modern recreational cannabis designed to influence people's state of mind would likely contain.
In a warning against recreational use, the government said smoking pot in public could be considered nuisance, due to the smell. That's punishable with up to a 3-month sentence and a fine of 25,000 Thai baht ($780, €728).
A million plants for free
Thailand's Health Ministry is planning to give away 1 million cannabis plants to encourage farmers.
Entrepreneurs are learning how to grow cannabis plants and the new rules open new economic opportunities Image: Sakchai Lalit/AP Photo/picture alliance
A Health Ministry official said nearly 100,000 people have signed up to a government app for cannabis growers.
Registration on the app called PlookGanja (or "grow ganja," referring to a nickname for cannabis) is mandatory to grow the plant.
Businesses seeking to sell cannabis products also must get permits from the government.
Complicated licensing processes and expensive fees for commercial use are raising concerns that big corporations might have an unfair advantage over smaller companies.
"We have seen what happened with the alcohol business in Thailand. Only large-scale producers are allowed to monopolize the market,'' said Taopiphop Limjittrakorn, a lawmaker from the opposition Move Forward party.
"We are worried the similar thing will happen to the cannabis industry if the rules are in favor of big business,'' he said, noting that his party is pushing for news laws to tackle the issue.
Cannabis: Open to cultural interpretation
Opponents demonize it while supporters praise it as a universal remedy: for decades, myths and tales have surrounded cannabis like no other plant.
Image: Mukhtar Khan/AP Photo/picture alliance
Mythical plant
This is the hemp plant of legend. Intoxicating cannabis can be obtained from certain varieties, so its cultivation is strictly regulated in Germany. Unlike 200 years ago, hemp plants in the country are completely out of the public eye, paving the way for myths generated from the camps of supporters and opponents alike.
Image: Christian Charisius/dpa/picture alliance
French troops brought home hashish
The use of hemp as an intoxicant has a comparatively recent history in Europe. French soldiers, who took home hashish made from the resin of female cannabis plants from Napoleon's Egyptian campaign in 1798, played a key role in spreading it. While Napoleon banned hashish in Egypt, it became popular in Paris.
Image: Christian Böhmer/dpa/picture alliance
Prescribed for menstrual cramps
Since the 1990s, the UK has been discussing the legalization of cannabis. There was a rumor at the time that Queen Victoria was prescribed cannabis for menstrual cramps. The only evidence: in 1890, her personal physician John Russel Reynolds noted in a medical journal the "great value" of cannabis in treating an array of conditions.
Image: dpa
Parchment or hemp?
Urban legend has it that the American Declaration of Independence was written on paper made from hemp. That's not quite true: the document, vacuum-sealed and behind thick panes of glass at the National Archives in Washington, DC, was written on parchment paper. The first two drafts, on the other hand, were probably written on hemp paper.
Image: Rauchwetter/dpa/picture alliance
Reefer Madness
"Reefer Madness," originally financed by a church group under the title "Tell Your Childen," was a 1936 US propaganda movie that depicted young people as immediately addicted, violent and crazy after consuming cannabis. With its almost comical exaggerations and misconceptions, the film is a historical testimony to the fear-mongering of that era.
Image: Richard Vogel/AP Images/picture alliance
Racist undertones
Back then, Harry Anslinger, the racist head of the US Drug Enforcement Administration, had been fighting for prohibition since the 1930s. Allegedly, Mexicans and African Americans in particular consumed cannabis, but Anslinger wasn't concerned about their health. Weed makes Black people think they're as good as white people, he once said. For over 30 years, he set the tone of US drug policies.
Image: Mary Evans Picture Library/picture alliance
Religious devotion
Other cultures are perhaps more open about the intoxicating effects of cannabis. Sacred texts about the Hindu deity Shiva state that he renounced all life's pleasures — except cannabis. Contrary to often repeated claims, cannabis use can very well be addictive.
