Hassan, a 40-something sporting a conspicuous gold watch, says cannabis is “our main source of wealth”. Ketama has been famed for its cannabis since the 1960s, when it became popular with hippies seeking the high life. Later it gained a reputation for lawlessness, and by the late 1990s guidebooks were advising tourists to avoid the region entirely. “Twenty years ago, the tourists were mainly young Spaniards who came to smoke,” one local tour operator says. Small-time dealers and unlicensed guides approach tourists to offer them hashish or a tour of nearby farms to meet the “kifficulteurs” – local cannabis producers.

Source: The Nation Bangkok December 04, 2017 20:03 UTC