20/07/2022
An open letter to Canadian and American Cannabis Industry.
As a woman that worked to push for cannabis legalization in Thailand and part of the newly emerged Thai cannabis industry, due to cannabis being delisted from the narcotics schedule on the 9th of June 2022 .
With the delisting comes many emotions from highest of joy to the deepest of pains. Joy from the fact that cannabis use, possession, cultivation and sale of are legal. And pain from seeing Thai cannabis industry being sabotage by those on the inside and being devestated by those that's on the outside.
Did you know that back in the 70s Thailand used to be the biggest illegal exporter of cannabis to America? But now, in the 21st century America is the biggest illegal exporter of cannabis into Thailand.
I never thought that the world would changed that much to make the above statement true, but it is. Since the delisting, the demand for cannabis in Thailand increase higher than local supplies can currently support. Which opens up to bad actors that looks to profit from this moment of chaos by trafficking cannabis from legally produced, cheaper price and over supply places such as certain states in America, as well as Canada (Sorry but I haven't forgotten about you) into Thailand.
Those people are shooting Thai local growers especially the little guys in the foot before they can even enter into the race, and this pains me a lot.
I do not know what to do except to plead and beg the people that where cannabis is coming from to please look into your heart. To remember when it was you fighting your government for cannabis legalization. It was hard wasn't it? How many of your friends and family went to jail? How much had the war on drugs affect you, your family and your friends? We went through all of that as well you know? Apart from fighting the government, the public we also need to fight the suits just like you.
If you know all those pains, if you went through them like we did, then can you please look into your heart and maybe give us at least one to two crops head start before resuming with whatever it is that you want to bring in (legal or illegal, I won't judge). I know that we cannot stop the imports, but maybe give us a bit of a chance please, I beg of you.
Also I'm not sure where are all the authorities in regards to this, I always thought that 1st world country like America and Canada would have very tight border control regarding cannabis trafficking. Especially when they usually takes lead in the war on drugs, but where are they, and why they are not doing anything about this, I wouldn't know.
I don't know who will read this or where this will get to, but please, I beg you, have it in your heart we also want to benefit from this wonderous plant that had be taken from us for so long as well.
Chokwan Kitty Chopaka