Series on Legislative Reform of Drug Policies Nr. 13 April 2011 Kratom in Thailand Decriminalisation and Community Control? By Pascal Tanguay 1 In early 2010, the Thai Office of the Narco- tics Control Board (ONCB) developed a policy proposal to review different aspects of the criminal justice process in relation to drug cases. The possibility of decriminalis- ing the indigenous psychoactive plant, kra- tom, was included in the ONCB’s proposal for consideration by the Ministry of Justice. This briefing paper provides an overview of issues related to kratom legislation and policy in Thailand as well as a set of con- CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS clusions and recommendations to contri- Kratom is an integral part of southern Thai bute to a reassessment of the current ban culture. Criminalisation of kratom is unneces- on kratom in Thailand and the region. The sary and counter-productive given decades of briefing is based on desk research of exist- unproblematic use. ing documentation as well as field research carried out in October and November 2010 In the absence of health and social harms, in Bangkok, Surat Thani, Trang, Satun, decriminalise use, possession and production of Songkhla, and Hat Yai in Thailand. kratom and empower community leaders to control production and manage consumption. Kratom (Mitragynia speciosa korth) is a tro- Revise thresholds for sentencing in regards to pical deciduous tree that is part of the boiling 4x100, which should not be considered Rubiaceae family (same family as coffee). as the production of a new drug. Indigenous to Southeast Asia, the tree can Strengthen and reinforce national pharma- reach up to 15 metres or more and produ- ceutical control systems including compliance ces big broad leaves that have long been with prescription laws and policies at pharmacy used for medicinal and recreational pur- level. poses. In Thailand, the kratom tree can Facilitate unhindered access to kratom for mostly be found in the south of the coun- scientific research and explore medicinal prop- try. erties, especially its potential as a substitution Kratom use has been reported to act on the drug to manage alcohol and drug dependence. central nervous system, both as a stimulant Inform and build the capacity of Thai media and a depressant, depending on the level of and the general population to present balanced dosage. Kratom leaves contain over 25 alka- evidence that does not stigmatize people who loids, among which the alkaloid mitragyni- use kratom and 4x100. Legislative Reform of Drug Policies | 1 vinces, are predominantly Muslim and are prohibited from drinking alcohol based on the dictates of Islamic beliefs. With strict controls on alcohol, kratom is an alterna- tive substitute, not specifically prohibited by the clergy, but regulated by the state. TRADITONAL OR TRENDY – PATTERNS OF USE Recent research confirms that kratom is popular in Thailand, especially in the southern provinces and around Bangkok. Across the southern provinces, the three most commonly used drugs are kratom, yaba (methamphetamine) and cannabis. The 2008 National Household Survey on the Status of Drug and Substance Use shows an increase in the number of people who reported use of kratom compared to 2007 (1,078,152 in 2008 in comparison to 1,018,304 a year before). Available data shows two distinct profiles and patterns of kratom use. On the one hand, traditional use involves chewing fresh leaves or swallowing powdered fresh ne is the most important. Other alkaloids leaves. Traditionally, kratom chewers start include mitraphylline, speciogynine and 7- using kratom at 25 years of age or later and hydroxymitragynine etc..2 Whereas higher many continue chewing all their lives. On concentrations of mitragynine are attrib- average, chewers will eat between 10 and 60 uted to act as a stimulant, 7-hydroxymitra- leaves daily though some have been re- gynine is the most significant alkaloid for ported to eat more. Kratom is chewed in sedation with more potent analgesic acti- teashops, at certain ceremonies (though vity than that of morphine.3 this practice is fading) and other informal social events, as well as while engaging in Kratom has been traditionally chewed by manual labor and in the comfort of one’s people in Thailand, especially on the south- own home. Eating kratom is a tradition ern peninsula, as well as in other countries that has been practiced for centuries in in Southeast Asia. In southern Thailand, southern Thailand and up to 70% of the traditional kratom use is not perceived as male population in some districts use kra- ‘drug use’ and does not lead to stigmatisa- tom daily. Indeed, many people in southern tion or discrimination of users. Kratom is Thailand consider chewing kratom similar generally part of a way of life in the south, to drinking coffee. closely embedded in traditions and customs such as local ceremonies, traditional cul- On the other hand, recent drug use trends tural performances4 and teashops, as well as in Thailand indicate that a second pattern in agricultural and manual labor in the is emerging. Approximately five years ago, context of rubber plantations and seafaring. young people from teenagers to people in People from the southern provinces, espe- their thirties started boiling kratom leaves cially in Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat pro- (15 to 100 leaves at a time) to produce a tea 2 | Legislative Reform of Drug Policies Kratom leaves (Photo: Amaralak Khamhong) as a base for a cocktail coined 4x100 (สีคูณร้อย tail. Armed with such information, com- - pronounced: sii koon roi). The basic munity members living in the southern 4x100 cocktail includes the kratom tea, provinces are increasingly worried about cough syrup, Coca-Cola, and ice cubes. The the rapid increase in 4x100 use in the past cocktail is generally prepared twice or more five years among young people. This per day, depending on availability of leaves research, however, has found limited evi- and money. 5 Young people feel the need to dence of the use of these dangerous and drink 4x100 in hidden settings due to fears unconventional additives. of arrest by law enforcement. In one district, 21 of 39 villages reported the In both cases, kratom users are predomi- presence of 4x100 users in their commu- nantly male – very few women currently nity. Compared to traditional use, 4x100 use kratom, especially for recreational users are subject to some measure of com- purposes. Women in southern Thailand 6 munity discrimination, though community chew betel nut instead, which remains perceptions are far milder than for yaba or outside legislative controls. Betel nut also heroin users. has psychoactive properties and has been widely used in southern Thailand and the Most recently, the discrimination has come rest of Southeast Asia for thousands of especially from increasingly conservative years, though recently mostly by women elements within both the Buddhist and rather than men. The International Agency Muslim communities paralleled by an in- for Research on Cancer (IARC) regards the creasing volume of media attention related chewing of betel nut as a known human to supposed cocktail additives such as ben- carcinogen, yet betel nut remains legal and zodiazepines, powder from fluorescent uncontrolled by legislation or policy in tubes, powdered mosquito coils, road paint, Thailand, owing to its cultural heritage. pesticides, ashes from dead bodies, and Kratom, though less harmful and just as other substances found in the local envi- important in the local culture as the chew- ronment to ‘enhance’ the effect of the cock- ing of betel nut, is criminalised. Thai Natio- Legislative Reform of Drug Policies | 3 Table 1: National Data on Cases, Arrests, and Seizures of Kratom in Thailand YEAR 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 # CASES 1,100 2,494 3,702 3,778 5,485 # ARRESTS 1,251 3,241 5,372 5,083 7,388 QUANTITY (kg) 1,743 8,544 42,268 12,716 20,877 nal Household Surveys indicate that appro- Asia War in 1942 and declining revenues ximately 10% of kratom users are women.7 from the opium trade pushed the Thai government into action to curb and sup- CRIMINAL OR TOLERATED – press competition in the opium market by LEGISLATION AND ENFORCEMENT making kratom illegal. Despite the fact that the international drug In the words of Police Major General Pin conventions do not compel UN member Amornwisaisoradej, a member of the states to control or criminalise kratom use, House of Representatives from Lampang in possession, production, distribution and a special meeting on 7 January 1943: “Taxes trading, an increasing number of countries for opium are high while kratom is cur- have seen fit to do so in part because of its rently not being taxed. With the increase of potential negative health effects (see more those taxes, people are starting to use on health issues related to kratom in the kratom instead and this has had a visible next section). In 2004, both mitragynine impact on our government’s income.”11 and kratom were placed under Schedule 9 (the most restrictive level) of the Australian After World War II, the Kratom Act was National Drugs and Poisons Schedule.8 never enforced with much vigour and, for Though not illegal in the US, the Drug many years, kratom trees could be grown Enforcement Administration (DEA) has with moderation and their leaves chewed recently added kratom to its list of drugs openly. In 1979, kratom was included in and chemicals of concern. Wikipedia and the Thai Narcotics Act, under Schedule 5 erowid websites report that some European (the least restrictive and punitive level) countries are also starting to deploy legisla- along with cannabis and mushrooms, effec- tion to control the widespread distribution tively reducing sentences and punishments of kratom through the Internet. from those intended by the Kratom Act.