Drug inmates seek sentence review after law amendment

Over 92,000 drug inmates have petitioned the Justice Ministry to review their sentences following the implementation of the new Narcotics Act.

At a meeting of the National Narcotics Control Committee yesterday that was attended by provincial governors, Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin said there are currently about 186,500 drug inmates in the Thai prison system.

Mr Somsak said of the 92,000 inmates which requested a review, 32 have been released, 1,028 have had their jail terms reduced, while 805 petitions were dismissed.

The petitions followed changes to the Narcotics Act, which was amended to reflect the government’s new focus on major dealers and production bases in its crackdown on illicit drugs, as opposed to arresting smalltime users.

The ministry said it expected to confiscate about 6 billion baht worth of assets each year.

Despite tough crackdowns on narcotics, drug-making equipment is still readily accessible to the public, making the use of illicit drugs harder to eradicate. As such, Mr Somsak said the government will turn its attention to routes through which the equipment and drug precursors are brought in.

The Office of the Narcotics Control Board will seek cooperation from its counterparts in other Mekong region countries to organise training which will involve public prosecutors and the police, he said.