Thailand Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has discouraged pot tourism just two months after the country became the first Asian nation to legalise the growing of marijuana and its consumption in food and drink for medicinal purposes in early June 2022.
“We don’t welcome those kinds of tourists,” Mr Anutin said when asked about recreational marijuana use by overseas visitors in Thailand.
In 2018, Thailand became the first Asian country to legalise cannabis for medical use before the entire plant was decriminalised this year, leading to widespread recreational use.
Despite the government’s pleas against getting high, cannabis businesses with special smoking rooms have been a hit with locals and visitors, however, those caught smoking in public risk a three-month jail sentence or fines of up to 25,000 baht (AUD$1,004.21).
The health minister’s comments come as international arrivals increase in the tourism-reliant country with Thailand expected to receive eight million to 10 million arrivals in 2022.
Last year, the pandemic slashed international arrivals to just 428,000 compared with a pre-COVID record of nearly 40 million people in 2019.
Thailand has focused its cannabis policy on the industry built around its medical and health benefits, however, Mr Anutin said recreational use could be explored once there was a better understanding of the drug, possibly in the near future.
Thailand’s cannabis policy has also drawn interest from regional neighbours such as Malaysia, which is studying the use of cannabis for medical purposes.
Via AAP
