Before you consider buying or using any drugs in Thailand you should do a bit of research. I travel outside US quite frequently. Thailand is at the top of my list for places to stay the hell away from drugs. Though tempting as it might be, just using illegal drugs in Thailand carries a 15 year jail sentence. Did you know they can force you to take a urine drug test without cause? Refuse and that's considered an admission of guilt. The penalty for drug trafficking is death or life in prison if you are lucky. I first learned about Thai prisons after reading "The Damage Done" by Warren Fellows, who got busted transporting drugs in Thailand. Just read a few reviews of the book and you'll soon get the idea. http://www.farangonline.com/disp_articles.asp?art=371&origin=Media%20Tha i-Ins http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/184018275X/qid=1107537909/ sr=8-1/ref=pd_csp_1/104-6976802-0423155?v=glance&s=books&n=507846 You might rent Broken Down Palace to get a sugar coated version of what their prisons are really like. The info below is from the US state department. http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1040.html
From the US "Penalties for the possession, use, or trafficking of illegal drugs in Thailand are severe. Convicted offenders can expect long prison sentences under harsh conditions, and often-heavy fines as well. Thailand also has a death penalty for serious drug offenses, and has executed convicted traffickers. The U.S. Embassy frequently does not learn of the arrest of U.S. citizens for minor drug offenses, particularly in southern Thailand, until several days after the incident.
Thai police occasionally raid discos, bars, or nightclubs looking for underage patrons and drug users. During the raids, they typically check the IDs of all customers in the establishment, and then make each person provide a urine sample to be checked for narcotics. Foreigners are not excused from these checks, and anyone whose urine tests positive for drugs is arrested and charged. Although some Thai civil libertarians have questioned the constitutionality of these forced urine tests, the Embassy is unaware of any successful challenge to the practice, and customers can be jailed if they do not cooperate." "There is no greater joy than soaring high on the wings of your dreams, except maybe the joy of watching a dreamer who has nowhere to land but in the ocean of reality." Despair INC. DONALD D GAGEN MAILTO:DGAGEN@ENSEMBLESTUDIOS.COM ENSEMBLE STUDIOS http://www.ensemblestudios.com -----Original Message----- From: orb-bounces+dgagen=ensemblestudios.com@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:orb-bounces+dgagen=ensemblestudios.com@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of -<(:: jason ::)>- Sent: Thursday, February 03, 2005 12:38 PM To: What were the skies like when you were young? Subject: [Orb] Thailand tips / info Bit off topic, but I will be heading to Thailand later this month (Feb 18th) for about 2.5 weeks. Never been, and needless to say, I am very excited! :-) I will be heading to Koh Samui, Koh Phagnan (for the full moon party), Bankok, and Chaing Mai. Does anyone have any recommendations on specific places to check out? Temples, snorkeling, forest treks, waterfalls, lodging, etc. There's loads of info on the web (too much!), but looking for recommendations from actual experienced travelers vs. marketing websites. Anyone got any pointers? Also, I know it's an officially a "no-no", but I am definitely looking to get my smoke on/Thai stick salvation, but have heard both horror and success stories. Anyone have any experience? :-) _jason_ _________ ________ _______ _____ ____ ___ __ _ _ _ _______________________________________________ Orb mailing list Orb@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/orb Report list abuse to list-abuse at studio-nibble.com