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Draft Ministerial Regulation: Approval for Manufacture, Import, Export, Sale, or Possession of Cannabis Approved by Cabinet

Thailand’s legalization of cannabis for medical purposes continues to move forward. On 28 May 2019, the Thai Cabinet approved the draft Ministerial Regulation regarding Approval for the Manufacture, Import, Export, Sale, or Possession of Cannabis proposed by the Ministry of Public Health. Some of the key elements of the draft are: Definitions of the terms “Cannabis”; “Licensee”; and “Government agencies”.Categorization of seven types of objectives related to the manufacture, import, or export of cannabis: administration of cannabis for medical use domestically;education, analysis, and research for medical, scientific, or pharmacological purposes;prevention of offenses and for international co-operation;export manufacturing and export of cannabis;manufacturing for specific-patient use by the Thai traditional medical profession;necessary treatment for specific patients;for patients traveling across borders who bring cannabis into or out of the country for personal treatment within 90 days.Specification of qualifications of applicants to manufacture, import, export, sell or possess cannabis.Requirements for planting cannabis only in the areas prescribed in the license; for the use of seeds,…

Cannabis in Cosmetics — High Alert in ASEAN

There is an increasing global trend towards legalizing the use of cannabis, albeit to differing extents. Canada and Uruguay have fully legalized cannabis, while New Zealand has legalized cannabis for medical use only—although a referendum will be held in 2020 on recreational marijuana use. This trend is emerging even amongst Asian countries, which generally impose tough laws on drug use. Thailand is the first country in Southeast Asia to legalize the use of cannabis for medical purposes, with Malaysia and the Philippines considering similar legislative changes. Nonetheless, the fact remains that many Asian countries remain steadfast in their stance against drugs. Generally, even trace amounts of controlled drugs are sufficient to trigger the operation of anti-drug laws, which attract severe penalties. Singapore, known for its zero-tolerance stance against drug use, classifies cannabis, cannabis resin, and its derivatives as Class A controlled drugs. Under Singapore’s Misuse of Drugs Act, the penalties for trafficking, manufacturing, importing, exporting, and possessing controlled drugs include a…

Thailand Legalizes Cannabis for Medical Use and Research

Across the world, countries are revisiting their laws on the use of cannabis. For some countries, such as Canada and Uruguay, the legalization of the use of cannabis extends to non-medical purposes, including recreational use. For a number of other countries, such legalization has been limited to medical use only. The move to legalize cannabis for non-medical purposes is a direction being debated in light of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, as amended by the 1972 Protocol, which places obligations upon State Parties to limit the production, manufacture, export, import, distribution, trade, use and possession of drugs exclusively to medical and scientific purposes. Amidst these developments, Thailand has become the first nation in Southeast Asia to allow the use of cannabis for medical use and research with the amendment to the Narcotics Act, legalizing licensed possession of cannabis for medical purposes, as of 19 February 2019. The amended Narcotics Act now allows certain types of entities and organizations to…