Lawmakers in Thailand have voted to withdraw a law that regulates the broader use of cannabis in the country. reports Bloomberg.
That The bill was returned to committee for further revision after a vote of 198 to 136 by members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday. The Democratic Party, part of the governing coalition and opposition MPs from the Pheu Thai and Move Forward parties opposed the measure, although it had already passed its first reading in the chamber in June.
Opponents of the bill claim that the The original version was significantly amended after the first reading.
The move came something three months after that Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country to decriminalize marijuana by removing it from the Category 5 list of prohibited narcotics and allowing the legal home cultivation and sale of cannabis plants.
Cafes that sell cannabis are looking for mushrooms
Since then, the number of outlets and cafes selling cannabis products in the capital and other cities has grown exponentially, although the government has stressed on several occasions that the move should encourage medicinal and commercial use rather than recreational use. Interestingly, the bill did not directly target recreational smoking as illegal.
Sutin Klangsanga lawmaker from Pheu Thai, said they were concerned that mushroom cultivation by companies that sell cannabis would lead to children and people becoming addicted.
“The law does not control cannabis, in fact it encourages it and leaves room for its use to go from medicinal to extremely recreational,” Klangsang said.
Meanwhile, in the weeks following cannabis decriminalization, Thailand made headlines for its lack of cannabis regulation.
Shortly after Minister of Health Anutin Charnvirak gave away a million marijuana plants the opposition as a sign of good will slammed arguing that he caused social problems and violated local and international laws by decriminalizing marijuana without proper oversight.
Photo: Courtesy…
