The Medical Council of Thailand, the Medical Association of Thailand and 15 colleges of medicine issued a joint statement to demand the proper use of cannabis for medical purposes and object its recreational use.
They stressed that all policies concerning cannabis should have mechanisms to prohibit cannabis use for recreation.
They said that international medicine and laws considered cannabis as a narcotic drug and there must be a law to prevent its abuse.
Permission for people to grow cannabis and use it to treat their illnesses by themselves was against the medical use of cannabis and control on its abuse because general people’s cannabis was substandard and easily contaminated. Besides, those who abused cannabis for recreation could claim that they were using it for medical purposes, the organizations said.
Moreover, no one could be held responsible for any negative impact of cannabis-infused food, they said.
Prof Emeritus Dr Somsak Lolekha, chairman of the Royal College of Pediatricians of Thailand, said that colleges of medicine wanted cannabis to be relisted as a narcotic drug so that governmental organizations could take action to stop its abuse. (TNA)