Thailand Turning Illegal Cannabis into Medicine

Officials in Thailand are turning seized cannabis into medical cannabis products for the domestic market, according to a report from the Grizzle. Last week, law enforcement authorities seized more than 2,204 pounds of illegally grown cannabis and transferred it to the Department of Thai Traditional, Alternative Medicine and the Department of Medical Sciences to process into about 600,000 bottles of cannabis oil. Another 11 pounds will be used by the agencies for experimentation.

This month, Thailand has produced 10,000 bottles of cannabis oil through its state-run medical cannabis program and began distributing them to patients last week, according to the report. The government plans to produce 1 million more bottles at a facility near Bangkok early next year; however, demand is outpacing supply and the cannabis grown in the recent bust is high enough quality for processing.

Niyom Termsrisuk, secretary-general at the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, said that the transfer violates no international narcotics laws.

The International Narcotics Control Board, though, has said they are “deeply concerned” with the liberalization of drug laws in Thailand. INCB president Sumyai Viroj told the Bangkok Post that Thai officials should examine its agreements under the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs and comply with both Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 and Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.

Qualifying conditions for medical cannabis in Thailand include epilepsy, chronic pain, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and the side effects of chemotherapy, although doctors can approve patients for other conditions as they deem fit.