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[title]Rattapon Sanrak acquainted himself with medical marijuana while studying in California. The then student suffered enormously from migraines as well as pains from a herniated disc, and it was his doctor who suggested that he should try marijuana as an alternative form of therapy. The pathological improvement he experienced intrigued Rattapon, and led him to do more research on the “magical” substance. He soon discovered how marijuana can help cancer patients. It was the sad news that forced Rattapon to fly back to Thailand as his mother was diagnosed with the final stages of ovarian cancer. Equipped with knowledge of medical marijuana, he wanted to introduce his mother to the healing properties of cannabis. But she rejected his suggestion and passed away experiencing extreme pain. “It was sad to see her go, struggling with pain. So I decided to make useful the knowledge of marijuana that I had gathered from different sources, and spread them to the public,” he explains.
Sereechai Puttes/Time Out Bangkok
Consequently, Rattapon and a few peers founded a group called Highland in 2014. Starting out as a Facebook Page, the group provides information about marijuana in different contexts, be it for recreational or medicinal use, and pushes for the legalization of the substance. Highland is active in educating the public through discussions and fairs where like-minded ganga enthusiasts can gather and exchange their views on various issues surrounding the substance. The group recently opened Highland Café, a legal coffee shop in Lad Prao that sells casual bites, some infused with hemp, that has become a meeting point for marijuana-related activities.
“At first, people were skeptical about what we were doing as marijuana was having a rough time in terms of reputation,” Rattapon recalls. When we were organizing the second fair, about 200 police officers raided our event but discovered nothing illegal in what we were doing. What we were doing was purely educational.”
Sereechai Puttes/Time Out Bangkok
Highland has three main objectives. First, the group is campaigning for equal access to medical marijuana, without big companies taking advantage and monopolizing the production and distribution of the medicine. Second, they are looking to promote the use of hemp, the family crop of marijuana with less THC, as different parts of it is useful for various purposes—for example, its seed is considered a superfood and can be an ideal source of plant-based protein. Finally, Highland is pushing for the legalization of recreational marijuana. “What we are doing is not campaigning for free weed. That’s totally out of the picture. We should make recreational marijuana legal, and allow it to emerge from underground so its use can be properly regulated.”
Sereechai Puttes/Time Out Bangkok