The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) yesterday passed its first reading of a draft bill that would put drug offences into categories offering a range of penalties to ensure fairer treatment for suspects and offenders.
Adm Sitthawatchara Wongsuwon, one of the NLA members who proposed the draft, told the chamber that the new law would make sure the punishment fits the crime.
He said, under the draft law, suspects will be charged and prosecuted according to the quantity of narcotics found in their possession and whether the quantity suggests they had intent to sell. Under the current law, anyone found to have an amount of drugs over a certain limit is deemed to be dealing.
Under the proposed law, the accused would be given a chance to prove that the drugs in their possession are not for sale, he said.
According to Adm Sitthawatchara, the draft bill also seeks to adjust penalties for offenses related to the production, importing and exporting of Type 1 drugs -- the most serious variety -- to ensure suspects are prosecuted fairly.
Under the current law, those convicted of such offenses can be punished with life imprisonment, fines ranging from one million baht to five million baht, or the death penalty.
While NLA members voiced support for the bill, they were skeptical about the proposed changes in penalties. Some suggested the draft bill seemed to go easy on drug offenders. Pattharasak Wansaeng, drafter of the bill, defended the changes, saying they would allow the judiciary to exercise discretion when sentencing drug offenders.
He cited as an example a drug possession case in which a defendant who came back from Laos was sentenced to life in prison for possessing one and a half speed pills. The ruling was based on the law that treated the suspect as an importer of narcotics, he said.
"The current law doesn't take into consideration what the one and a half pills are for. It regards this as trafficking. So be it one pill for personal use or one million pills for distribution, the penalty is just the same."
He said there were various offences related to narcotics, which the proposed law would put into perspective. He insisted that it does not go soft on drug offenders and that the quantity of drugs should not be the sole focus of the judiciary.
Following the debate, 175 NLA members voted to pass the draft bill with four abstentions. An ad-hoc committee was set up to deliberate the proposed law. Improving the rehabilitation of offenders and tackling drug suppression better is among the key areas slated for reform.