Thai Cannabis Advocates On Hunger Strike To Protest Recriminalization Of Marijuana, Health Minister Says It Won’t Impact Gov Decision
Protests in Thailand are heating up. Pro-cannabis activists began a hunger strike on July 10 to demand that the government listen to their views following a decision by the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) that parts of the cannabis plant will be relisted as a narcotic.
What happened: In June, Thailand’s government issued a draft legislation to begin reclassifying cannabis as a narcotic starting Jan 1, 2025. According to the draft proposal, the Ministry of Public Health will re-list cannabis buds as a “category five” narcotic.
The Thai Food and Drug Administration gathered public feedback on the draft regulation between June 11 and 25. According to Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin, at least 80% of the 111,201 survey participants favor a draft plan to reclassify the plant.
Not everyone supports this government’s decision, however. On July 8, about 100 members of the Thai Cannabis Future Network, led by Prasitchai Nunuan, marched from the United Nations headquarters to Government House to submit a proposal to the …