BANGKOK, May 22 (TNA) — About 20,000 people declared their possession of marijuana to seek amnesty and most of them were young people who used it to relieve pain, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
FDA deputy secretary-general Dr Surachoke Tangwiwat said that when the period of marijuana possession declaration in exchange for amnesty ended yesterday, about 20,000 people showed up to reveal the possession. They could continue to use marijuana for medical treatment in the next three months and official marijuana products for medical purposes would be available in either July or August, he said.
According to Dr Surachoke, the marijuana possession declaration showed that most amnesty seekers used marijuana to relieve pain, anxiety and stress which actually can be treated with medicines. Only about 100 people who made the declaration were suffering epilepsy, chemo nausea and vomiting, chronic pain and demyelinating disease, which were allowed to be treated with marijuana.
Dr Surachoke also said most amnesty seekers were teenagers but the FDA earlier announced it would reject teenage amnesty seekers unless they had the consent of their guardians.
He also said that marijuana could not cure diabetes, hypertension, heart disease or mental illness. Besides, it could cause hallucination, he said. (TNA)
