Thailand takes steps toward legalizing cannabis

Thailand has been slowly chipping away at its marijuana laws for years — and now, it’s about to decriminalize possession. The government is even urging citizens to grow weed themselves. Officials will kickstart this new era by handing out 1 million cannabis plants. They’ve touted this sea change as a way for citizens, their financial fortunes worsened by the pandemic, to make cash, in part by selling to tourists. Technically, cannabis will reside in a gray “medical only” zone, but officials acknowledge they won’t be able to monitor smokers and simply encourage people to use it “the right way.” The World’s Patrick Winn reports from Bangkok. 

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