Indonesia May Yet Open Door To Medical Marijuana

Indonesia may, although reluctantly, open the door to medical marijuana.

Photo Insert: CBD, or cannabidiol, is widely praised for its multiple health advantages, including its ability to relieve stress and anxiety and containing anti-inflammatory effects.

The agony of a mother, whose plea to legalize medical marijuana was amplified through social media, has rekindled the debate within government and among parliamentarians about providing a limited exception for the prohibited narcotic in a country famed for its strict anti-drug policy.

According to the Jakarta Post on July 5, 2022, Vice President Ma'ruf Amin may have been the highest-profile politician to weigh in on the issue last week, serving as government caretaker-in-chief to persuade the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to alter its stance.

However, the latest effort to legalize medical marijuana gained traction after an Indonesian celebrity's message went viral - ironically - on World Drug Day, June 26.

Amin's decision was spurred by a tweet from popular Indonesian actress and musician Andien Aisyah. On July 3, the celebrity posted a photo of a woman with cerebral palsy holding a sign that read, "help, my child needs medical marijuana."

Mainichi Japan reported on July 5, 2022, that Japan is taking the lead in reducing cannabis treatment restrictions, as products containing cannabidiol (CBD), an extract of the cannabis plant devoid of intoxicating qualities, are rapidly gaining popularity in Japan.

These items include everything from ingestible oils and candy to skin creams and makeup.

CBD, or cannabidiol, is widely praised for its multiple health advantages, including its ability to relieve stress and anxiety and containing anti-inflammatory effects. CBD products are now widely available in stores across the UK, and trials for a British-made CBD medicine have also begun this year.

On the other hand, a CBD treatment named Epidiolex has become the first of its kind to be trialed in the country for patients with uncommon and severe kinds of epilepsy, and the health ministry is trying to alter the Cannabis Control Act to create room for the drug, according to Mainichi Japan.

Some are also advocating for the availability of CBD products and prospective pharmaceuticals containing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, in Japan. The component is responsible for the psychoactive qualities of cannabis that cause people to feel "high."

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