Thailand New Drug Law Reduces Criminal Penalties
The newly enacted Thailand Narcotics Law of 2021 will have the effect of reducing the numbers of defendants imprisoned as a result of drug offenses.
The newly enacted Thailand Narcotics Law of 2021 will have the effect of reducing the numbers of defendants imprisoned as a result of drug offenses. Thailand currently has the largest prison population of all ASIAN countries, and over 80% of people in prison held for drug offenses. Most people imprisoned for drug offenses in Thailand were convicted of possession of methamphetamine.
Important changes include a reduction of penalties, and the removal of minimum sentences, for most drug offenses. There is no longer a minimum sentence for minor drug offenses, making it easier for a judge to decide that no sentence of imprisonment is warranted. However, minimum sentences are instituted for a serious drug offense where aggravating factors are present.
Sentencing guidelines, under the new law, will prioritize rehabilitation over imprisonment, and to take account of a defendant’s individual circumstances, such as the nature of their use, their environment, family responsibilities, physical and mental state or the need to use the narcotic to carry out certain tasks, in determining their sentence.
