Young people's changing attitudes toward cannabis are creating new challenges for prevention and public health in Singapore. This investigation examines cannabis use, addiction risk, social media, drug trafficking, and the influence of changing policies in nearby Thailand. Through healthcare professionals, researchers, law enforcement, counsellors, community organizations, and people with lived experience, the episode explores Singapore's strict approach to drugs alongside prevention, recovery, and youth outreach efforts. It also examines concerns surrounding cannabis commercialization and how shifting perceptions of the drug may influence younger generations.
Across Pakistan, Thailand, Canada, and Australia, methamphetamine production, trafficking, addiction, and recovery take very different forms. This investigation follows police raids, rehabilitation programs, border patrols, drug-destruction operations, clandestine laboratories, and wastewater monitoring while tracing the networks that move synthetic drugs across borders. It also examines the role of Myanmar's expanding meth trade, the challenges facing people seeking treatment, and the impact of high-potency drugs on communities. Through law enforcement, experts, treatment workers, and people affected by addiction, the episode reveals the global reach of synthetic drugs.
Thailand's 2003 war on drugs unleashed a violent crackdown on suspected drug users and dealers as authorities faced intense pressure to meet government targets. This investigation follows police, local officials, journalists, and community members as blacklists, arrests, and killings spread across the country. While the government blamed much of the violence on drug traffickers silencing informants, critics raised concerns about extrajudicial killings and innocent people being caught in the campaign. The film examines the fear, stigma, and human cost of an enforcement strategy intended to suppress Thailand's growing yaba crisis.
TOPICS: Crime, Drug Trafficking, Law Enforcement, Methamphetamine, Stigma, Stimulants, Thailand, Yaba
Thailand's decision to legalize medical cannabis marked a dramatic departure from decades of strict drug prohibition. This 101 East investigation examines the country's emerging cannabis industry through researchers, patients, farmers, politicians, and traditional practitioners navigating the new policy. From university laboratories and government clinics to Buddhist temples offering cannabis products, the documentary explores hopes for new treatments and economic opportunities alongside concerns about safety, regulation, and exaggerated medical claims. As enthusiasm grows around the plant, the investigation asks whether Thailand's promised cannabis revolution represents meaningful change or a mixture of politics, profit, and hype.
TOPICS: Cannabis, Decriminalization, Public Health, Science & Research, Thailand
Thailand's decision to remove cannabis from its narcotics list created a rapidly expanding industry almost overnight, opening new opportunities for farmers, entrepreneurs, dispensaries, and tourism. Travelling across the country, SBS correspondent Mazoe Ford examines the legal grey areas surrounding recreational use, the economic promise of cannabis, and concerns from medical professionals about regulation and public health. The investigation also looks at Thailand's history of cannabis prohibition and traditional medical use, capturing a dramatic moment in drug-policy reform before the government later moved to restrict cannabis primarily to medical purposes.
TOPICS: Cannabis, Decriminalization, Public Health, Thailand
SBS Dateline travels to Thailand to examine a changing war on drugs as the country confronts widespread yaba use, methamphetamine trafficking, prison overcrowding, and decades of punitive drug policies. Filmed during Thailand's historic move to decriminalize cannabis, the investigation follows anti-trafficking units, social workers, formerly incarcerated people, and communities affected by drug use. It also travels to the Golden Triangle, where instability in neighbouring Myanmar and the growth of synthetic drug production have transformed regional trafficking and contributed to an enormous supply of cheap methamphetamine flowing into Thailand.
