Enforcement status of the poison act 1952 against offences related to kratom (Mitragyna speciosa korth) misuse in Malaysia

• Main Authors: Khalil, Samihah, Abdullah, Siti Alida John, Ahmad, Rusniah
• 格式: Article
• 語言: English
• 出版: UUM Press 2020
• 主題: KZ Law of Nations
• 在線閱讀: http://repo.uum.edu.my/27553/1/UUMJLS%2011%201%202020%2075%2093n.pdf; http://repo.uum.edu.my/27553/; http://e-journal.uum.edu.my/index.php/uumjls/article/view/6928

The kratom story in Malaysia is a bit intricate. Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa Korth) or by the local name ketum is a local plant where ‘mitragynine’ (alkaloid in kratom leaves) is listed as a psychotropic substance under the Malaysian Poison Act 1952. The law states that any activity related to possessing, selling, using, transporting, processing, importing, or exporting kratom is considered illegal and can be prosecuted. Interestingly, kratom trees are not illegal plants and no laws in Malaysia forbid the cultivation or the presence of naturally growing kratom. On the prosecution side, the current laws do little to prosecute kratom addicts for rehabilitation due to no available kratom test kits which can assist the enforcement agency to arrest and prosecute kratom addicts. Therefore, the enforcement of law on kratom has been largely applied for transporting, processing and selling. Though the Poison Act cannot stop anyone who wants to plant or grow kratom, there are land laws that prohibit the plantation of kratom on land specified for agricultural purpose, adding a tricky situation to the present circumstances related to kratom. In pharmacology, there is research and demand for the development of kratom, and demands from international pharmaceutical companies for kratom had created an illegal rational economic exploitation of Malaysia’s kratom by individuals, resulting in more intricacies to the existing complication. This paper intended to discuss the legal status of kratom in Malaysia which we believe is facing its crossroad. The paper used the rational approach of economic and criminologyarguments to establish kratom offences in the northern states of Malaysia, thus offering a review of the current state-of-affair. Police statistics and data on kratom offences were then presented to discuss the current status and its implication.