Culture Ministry Campaigns For Thai People To Wear Thai Dresses Once A Week

[Jai Dee]

Culture Ministry campaigns for Thai people to wear Thai dresses once a week

The Ministry of Culture is propelling the campaign for Thai people to wear Thai clothing. The ministry is cooperating with other involved agencies to promote Thai silk.

Mr. Weera Rojpojanarat (วีระ โรจน์พจนรัตน์), the Permanent Secretary for Culture, says the ministry would like to encourage Thai people to wear Thai clothes as they are unique and wearable in many occasions, not only special ones. He says he has an idea to promote Thai national costumes for people to wear in their daily lives. The Culture Ministry plans to urge government officials and people from the private sector to wear Thai national attires once a week.

Mr. Weera says the ministry will also work with other agencies to modernize Thai garments to catch up with the fashion industry.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 13 March 2007

[Martin]

There is professor at the University where I am doing my research who always wears the Thai version of a business suit.

Absolutely immaculate and very smart.

Makes me feel like a right scruff.

At present I just have one good silk shirt-cum-jacket that my wife had her dressmaker tailor for me.

I wear it to funerals and weddings and it gets approved of.

I must get some more made as my M&S long-sleeved shirts are getting a bit old. Then I will outdo the Thais by wearing local produce at least twice a week.

(And, yes, it is local produce---my present job was from silk woven by the dressmaker's mother from thread from silkworms raised by her sister!).

[The Dan Sai Kid]

My school provides all staff with Lanna style clothes to wear on Friday - very common in Chiang Mai.

Although the women's clothes are very nice I think that a lot of the men's clothes look a little on the dorky side!

[PeaceBlondie]

My school provides all staff with Lanna style clothes to wear on Friday - very common in Chiang Mai.

Although the women's clothes are very nice I think that a lot of the men's clothes look a little on the dorky side!

We were expected to wear Lanna on Friday (all the kids did, including girls in those long sarong-type dresses, and the boys in baggy pants). When I left they gave me a purple and pink Lanna jacket that was too flashy for Elton John. I try to talk Lanna when I'm in those gold-striped shirts, so instead of saying, "Zapalote, yee-zip baht" I say, "Ba'ka-nat, sahw baht."

[jbsears]

I really don't understand why the government has to force the culture on its people. The parts of culture that the Thai people like will naturally stay and those that the Thais do not feel are important will fade away.

Why does the government have to decide what should be preserved as a part of 'everyday life' culture of Thais? Its sort of like the government is the mom setting out the clothes for her kids which are the Thai people. Mondays are for yellow clothes and Fridays are for Lanna style clothes. Pretty soon the government is going to tell everybody what they have to wear the next day on the nightly news.

Edited March 13, 2007 by jbsears

[The Dan Sai Kid]

In schools yellow is worn on Monday and Tuesday. Government proclomation. Wednesday at my school is white shirt day. Thursday is red shirt day. Lanna on Friday.

I need my wife to tell me what to wear at the weekend cos I have forgotten how to choose clothes!

[farangsay]

Culture Ministry campaigns for Thai people to wear Thai dresses once a week

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 13 March 2007

If they are going to publish an English language newspaper why don't they get somebody

competent to proof-read the headlines.

Visions of the entire male population cross-dressing can be disturbing.

Edited March 13, 2007 by farangsay

[jbsears]

Culture Ministry campaigns for Thai people to wear Thai dresses once a week

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 13 March 2007

If they are going to publish an English language newspaper why don't they get somebody

competent to proof-read the headlines.

Visions of the entire male population cross-dressing can be disturbing.

That would be a sight. The scary part is that about 50% of the male population would welcome the request by the government.

[Phil Conners]

Making themselves useful, are they? Nothing better to do with their time?

[Martin]

Re posts #5 and #9, I can understand that this matter of 'cultural dress' seems a bit of a pantomime to those of us who were brought up in Western industrialised societies where any old cothes that were suitable for mucky factory work were the norm.

But "dressing up" is a big part of the "grouping" thing. Look at the Navy, and the RAF and the Army and how they use dressing up to bolster esprit-de-corps, chaps.

Personally, I have an 'anti-uniform' streak in me. Went once to Cubs with an aquaintance from a rather posh family and a bossy Scoutmistress put me off the uniformed groups for life. (Not that it made me a pacificist. I would be in the hills with the guerrillas like a shot, if necessary.)

However, I do see that Thailand has to pay attention to the "grouping" thing. There is no natural logic to Thailand having the peoples, borders etc that it has. There are lots of Tai peoples outside and lots of non-Tai inside. So maintaining Thai coherence won't happen automatically.

There is a book ('National Identity and its Defenders: Thailand Today', edited by Craig J. Reynolds, published in 2002 by Silkworm at Chiang Mai) in which various academics, as the blurb says, look at the formation of Thai identity from the perspectives of history, political science, anthropology, linguistics, social psychology, human geography , and media and religious studies.

Also Niels Mulder in 'Thai Images: The Culture of the Public World' (Silkworm, 1997) goes into what lies behind these campaigns by the Culture Ministry.

Since we liked what we found here, and decided to stay, I think we should do our bit towards fitting in, even if it does mean a bit of dressing up that wasn't our way in the West.

[leisurely]

But Martin, the headine said THAI people.

[quiksilva]

Crikey can you imagine the reaction the government in England would have to forcing people to wear Morris dancing outfits?

I see this as more of an excuse for Mr Weera to do the "Im more patriotic than you" dance.

I can't see this one being adopted somehow.

I mean what would happen if someone dissents?

Lock em up, fine em?

What next?

Malaysia's thought police?

Edited March 14, 2007 by quiksilva

[ThaiGoon]

Where did it say in the news that the gov't will be "forcing" Thai people to wear Thai clothing? All I saw was they'd be "campaigning" or encouraging people to do so. So I don't see anything wrong with that.

Edited March 14, 2007 by ThaiGoon

[ColPyat]

There is a book ('National Identity and its Defenders: Thailand Today', edited by Craig J. Reynolds, published in 2002 by Silkworm at Chiang Mai) in which various academics, as the blurb says, look at the formation of Thai identity from the perspectives of history, political science, anthropology, linguistics, social psychology, human geography , and media and religious studies.

Also Niels Mulder in 'Thai Images: The Culture of the Public World' (Silkworm, 1997) goes into what lies behind these campaigns by the Culture Ministry.

Since we liked what we found here, and decided to stay, I think we should do our bit towards fitting in, even if it does mean a bit of dressing up that wasn't our way in the West.

I think you also should read the book "Rituals of National Loyalty" by Katherine A. Bowie, an anthropological study into the village scout movement to understand the drives for uniformity and what can happen, has already happened in Thailand in the name of this uniformity of thinking, the intend to suppress with this and other nationalist ideas any sort of critical thinking by the people.

Maybe, fitting in, in in this aspect, is not to good of an idea, and one should look beyond government propaganda in order to fit in.

[paveet]

Where did it say in the news that the gov't will be "forcing" Thai people to wear Thai clothing? All I saw was they'd be "campaigning" or encouraging people to do so. So I don't see anything wrong with that.

I back you up on this.

[dog412]

I would welcome the sight of bare breasted, sarong wearing females. might even break out the betel.

[popshirt]

Culture Ministry campaigns for Thai people to wear Thai dresses once a week

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 13 March 2007

If they are going to publish an English language newspaper why don't they get somebody

competent to proof-read the headlines.

Visions of the entire male population cross-dressing can be disturbing.

That would be a sight. The scary part is that about 50% of the male population would welcome the request by the government.

That's the part I'm looking forward to. Where do I sign up?

[andook]

Thailand seems to have very diverse culture(s). plural. Cultures evolve and change all the time, mainly stemming from history, weather, folklore, etc., and I don't see how some Orwellian-sounding "Ministry Of Culture" can dictate a one-size-fits-all package for the whole country?

[maccaroni man]

Making themselves useful, are they? Nothing better to do with their time?

i have often asked the thai business men i have meetings with why do you wear suits and ties in this climate? they always laugh and in a good nature blame me and my culture. I agree that the Thai people would benefit from identifying with their social and demographic roots. a mix of new and old as they do in indonesia will work just fine i.e. batik shirt with a pair of slacks and dress sandals looks great, stays cool and is much more practicle for this climate. who knows maybe the a/c could be set to a warmer temp if the garb was set to a more regional concept.

[Dupont]

Thailand seems to have very diverse culture(s). plural. Cultures evolve and change all the time, mainly stemming from history, weather, folklore, etc., and I don't see how some Orwellian-sounding "Ministry Of Culture" can dictate a one-size-fits-all package for the whole country?

A complete goon squad if ever there was one.

How much is their budget for doing this crap? Whats traditional?

What era? 100 years ago? 300 years ago?

Traditional what? High class dress, peasant farmer, elephant warrior, Northern, Southern, (Bangkok elite I suspect)

Suspect it will be a push to return to how things were then the ministers were young, the world was a more peaceful and wonderful rose tinted place. A place and time with no wars, death, poverty, disease, prostitution, education for all, health care,

[lannarebirth]

I'd love to see a minister come out and suggest the Thai people should read a book one day a week, or use that day to learn a foreign language. as the library of books in the Thai language is quite limited and not particularly mind expanding.

[ThaiGoon]

A complete goon squad if ever there was one.

How much is their budget for doing this crap? Whats traditional?

What era? 100 years ago? 300 years ago?

Traditional what? High class dress, peasant farmer, elephant warrior, Northern, Southern, (Bangkok elite I suspect)

Suspect it will be a push to return to how things were then the ministers were young, the world was a more peaceful and wonderful rose tinted place. A place and time with no wars, death, poverty, disease, prostitution, education for all, health care,

Given the amount of bitching I've seen in this thread, I can't imagine how cynical the bitching would get if the gov't decided to be more specific on what type of Thai costumes people should wear.

[ThaiGoon]

I'd love to see a minister come out and suggest the Thai people should read a book one day a week, or use that day to learn a foreign language. as the library of books in the Thai language is quite limited and not particularly mind expanding.

Good point.

[toybits]

Actually, I support this idea of the Ministry of Culture. It is so much nicer to see Thais wearing Thai style clothing. Actually, I find it rather absurd to find Thai politicians in many layers of western clothes when they go to parliament. Chamlong Srimuang had the right idea of wearing a mohorm (blue demim shirt) although some people might think that Chamlong was disrespecting some people.

Where did it say in the news that the gov't will be "forcing" Thai people to wear Thai clothing? All I saw was they'd be "campaigning" or encouraging people to do so. So I don't see anything wrong with that.

[wintermute]

Welcome to year Zero thai style!

[Dupont]

A complete goon squad if ever there was one.

How much is their budget for doing this crap? Whats traditional?

What era? 100 years ago? 300 years ago?

Traditional what? High class dress, peasant farmer, elephant warrior, Northern, Southern, (Bangkok elite I suspect)

Suspect it will be a push to return to how things were then the ministers were young, the world was a more peaceful and wonderful rose tinted place. A place and time with no wars, death, poverty, disease, prostitution, education for all, health care,

Given the amount of bitching I've seen in this thread, I can't imagine how cynical the bitching would get if the gov't decided to be more specific on what type of Thai costumes people should wear.

Thats the crux of the problem and the source of the derision. Its not cynical bitching, its justified derision at another ill thought out piece of nonsense.

You have an entire Ministry that goes (at great expense, surely these people are not volunteers) to great lengths to issue bizarre statements that are vague and based on very fuzzy logic with absolutely no depth of thought given to them. Most developed Countries would pass this round the Department for Scrutiny and critisism before unleashing it to the press. But here, even if it were done, "Kreng Jai" and toadyism would prevent any critisim of the boss wouldn't it.

Indeed, why don't they be more specific? Its because they are totally mad and only interested in setting themselves up as saviours of the Nation and getting in the media and saving their ministry from dissolution. Go ahead, be specific by all means at least then, we mad falangs that can look futher than the shallow surface of these inane policies can understand what they mean.

Our Traditional dress from the middle ages for example was stinking sack cloth robes, and bathing took place once a year by the highest classes! Further back you have bear skins etc.

[hammered]

I wonder if grants will be made available to the poor so that they can buy the expensive traditional garb, or are we just talking about government workers will all go traditional one day a week?

[samran]

I'd love it if we could scrap the Culture Ministry, based on idiotic statments they make, but the existence of the ministry serves a larger purpose which is to use it as a dumping ground for the especially useless and conservative members of the Thai ruling class who would otherwise be causing more mischief in ministries which actually have a say in things.

The keep them in the dark and feed them on you-know-what. They let them out once or twice a year to make proclamations about no-spaggehtti straps at Songkran, or how we should all me more Thai.

It lets them vent steam, without doing much harm.

[gummy]

I suggest that one gives more lateral thought to the Ministry's suggestion. In fact ,have you considered that perhaps they make these statements as many of them are themselves members of TV and it gives them ( Thais ) a great laugh reading the stupid comments made by others in this forum which puts them on a par with each other for ridiculous statements and suggestions ?

[andook]

I'd love it if we could scrap the Culture Ministry, based on idiotic statments they make, but the existence of the ministry serves a larger purpose which is to use it as a dumping ground for the especially useless and conservative members of the Thai ruling class who would otherwise be causing more mischief in ministries which actually have a say in things.

The keep them in the dark and feed them on you-know-what. They let them out once or twice a year to make proclamations about no-spaggehtti straps at Songkran, or how we should all me more Thai.

It lets them vent steam, without doing much harm.

Yes, its an effectively "inactive post" for duds and knobhead relations-of-the-connected here.

If memory serves me correctly, the MOC was started a few years ago, to give then Interior Minister Sanoh Thienthong's wife a job to do. (Other than shopping, or poking her nose into his extra-marital activities)....Her first edict from on high was to condemn the "spaghetti-strap" dresses popular at the time.... Which made a whole world of difference to modern society...