Thai Govt To Ban Smoking In Private Homes

[Jeff1]

If you dont like my smoke , than dont breath.

Yeah right , Thailand the country of clean air .

[siam]

why don,t the goverment just ban ciggeretts altogether and this would include any retailer selling the product as well.

treat it like an illigal drug and impose the same penelities if any one is caught with a ciggerette in their possession then they are treated with the same contempt as "druggies"

oh and this would apply to cigar,s and tobbacco aslo.

So all of the people that carry duty frees can get life for every pack they carry?

Those Thai coaches nearly kill people if you are on a bike sitting behind it at traffic lights

[ninjastar]

i live in london but am from ireland.i just got back from a long weekend there and went out a couple nights.there is a no smoking ban been in place for a while,i was amazed at how busy pubs and restaurants were,most establishments have catered for smokers by erecting roof gardens with gas heaters and the like(i do wonder what it will be like in the winter though!)and it seems to be incredibly sucessful,i really thought it would be a disaster.the atmosphere is so much better and i being a social smoker found i smoked less,i didn't want to miss out or leave mid conversation;we all know smoking is a killer and hopefully if the ban spreads around smoking will be a thing of the past and our younger generation will have a healthier and different social experience.as for smoking in thailand,keep it outside and away from people,especially our youth,peace.

[john b good]

They haven't even managed to fully enforce the no smoking policy in restaurants yet.  I've walked out of at least half a dozen restaurants in the past few months because they were full of patrons (almost exclusively foreigners, by the way) being allowed to happily puff away.

Then provide a smoking area! Then we can all be happy. I was probably one of those "almost exclusively foreigners" that upset you

Exactly. (agreed)

But what a bunch of <deleted> wamkers for even going public with such a thought. (to ban smoking in ones own home)

They should try and enforce the myriad a laws that exist at the moment rather than putting even more stupid laws on the legislative books.

[Zoltan]

It sort of sounds like the country is going communist to me. Smoking is bad i must admitt but this is going overboard. Its just courtesy to leave a room if its bothering other people no need to make more laws that we dont need.

[PvtDick]

Didn't any of you numb nuts read the article? Nowhere did it say that smoking would be banned, outlawed, prohibited, or forbidden in homes! It is just a silly education campaign! So get your hackles down and stop huffing and puffing (or KEEP huffing and puffing, as the case may be; just not in restaurants, OK?

[Maejo Man]

You know, Maejo...you're the kind of person who would throw a fit if someone used a cell phone next to you in a movie theater. Or played loud music near you on the beach. Yet these two things are just rude and annoying to most people -- neither is illegal nor impinges on anyone's health.

Smoking in an airconditioned restaurant is not only rude and annoying to most people, it is also illegal and has health implications. Yet you seem to be proud that you don't give a ###### about anyone else -- nor the law -- and delight in doing it anyway.

What kind of person do you think that makes you?

"What kind of person do you think that makes you?"

It makes me a very happy person, because I tollerate morons that leave their phones turned on in cinemas, and loud music on the beach.

As to smoking in airconditioned restaurants...I simply don't. I choose restaurants that normally have open windows, where smoking is not illegal.

Smoking might get me in the end, but you'll probably suffer a heart attack long before that.

You must be very young, to be so angry all the time. Why not try to be a little more accommodating on the odd occasion

Hypertension is not good for young people, try to relax a little.

[PvtDick]

Thank you for your clarification. I'm glad you limit your smoking to where it is legal, and I have no problem with that.

I am not an angry person (nor am I young), but I believe that people should be considerate of one another, and of course abide by the law. I don't think that is too much to ask.

[Axel]

Tolerance is the word, I used before. Interesting, however, seeing how the waves go up whenever the subject of smoking comes on.

Mostly reasonable responses from both sides, well but for one poster who obviously still suffers from withdrawal symptoms. Certainly I will not point at him or her, should know him/herself who I mean.

I appreciate that some people do like to enjoy a smoke-free meal. Others like to have a smoke in between courses without having to run outside.

So the solution is easy. If you wish to smoke and are not allowed to do so for whatever reason. just don't go to the specific place but tell the owner why you don't come anymore. If you wish not to have smokers around you, same story and let the owner decide from who he will get his income.

Believe it is fair and works for both sides. In fact I am part of one group in Bangkok, meeting weekly for dinner. When the regular venue switched to non-smoking about 50% of the group did not want to go there anymore. In the interest of the group the other half followed and the restaurant has yet to find other clients to replace the loss in revenue. Fair again imho.

Oh, just see George opened another one, called

Nearly One In Four Monks Smoke Cigarettes

Now what?

[Artisan]

Jeez guys....hasn't this topic ran its course (again) or do you just want to continue to throw jibes at each other? There can be no victors in this arguement and, frankly, it's getting <deleted> boring!

[meadish_sweetball]

sweetball tobacco does make a good pesticide.

They should use it on you!

You are a real pest!

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=16530

Please read that news report carefully and report back. Any cigarettes mentioned there?

You are making a leviathan lobster out of a vanishing soul of a shrimp, and what's more, you do not know what you are talking about.

PS. I am a happy, healthy (except for the dust from the garbage fires and forest fires) non-smoker, but I really hate people who cannot use their time for more worthwhile things than persecuting others. Especially when the problem they cause is truly minor. DS.

[chingy_]

i saw this post and i thought it was belong to joke section, i didn't bother to read it all tho , i give triple smile for this one

[Foggy Bottom]

Wrong. Smoking is banned in ALL airconditioned restaurants. It does not matter if the place is registered as a "bar" or "pub" -- if they are serving anything more than cocktail peanuts, smoking is forbidden. Trust me, I have done some research.

Actually, the 20,000 baht fine is to the restaurant owner. I think you may be right that the fine to the smoker is 2,000 baht.

And if you don't think I have the right people on my speed dial to get police on the scene within 15 minutes...try me. Not a boast, but the truth. I deal with the cops every single day of my life, as part of my job.

Hey Dick Head

R E A D T H E L A W

Smoking is banned in air conditioned RESTAURANTS - i.e. those establishments whose primary function is the serving of food, and in which beverages are an optional item from the menu.

Bars & Pubs, whether air-conditioned or not, are exempt from the non-smoking rule because their primary function is serving drinks, and food is an optional item.

Therefore, if I am sat smoking in an air-conditioned pub and you try to raise a stink about it, I shall happily have you arrested for disturbing the peace, or if you prefer, I will simply exercise my option to enjoy a quiet smoke and drink by FLATTENING YOU where you sit - western style!

After all - P U B S are a unique part of British culture, so when in them, be prepared for the patrons to be British about what offends them - and your excessively crusading attitude certainly offends me. This is, after all the 21st century and not Oliver Cromwells 17th century.

Have your own views, but keep them quiet - you are provoking confrontation, and that is against our hosts culture.

[Foggy Bottom]

Wrong.  Smoking is banned in ALL airconditioned restaurants.

I've never quite understood why it is only air conditioned places. If you only have fans isn't that just as bad?

But......

I'm a smoker. I'm going to always smoke in my home cos it is just that----MY HOME. And if the police or anyone else don't like it, they are more than welcome to jump over the wall and take it up with Daisy and Alan (our rotweillers).

The problem arrises from the way air conditioners work - they recycle the air in the room through a cooling system, sometimes including an air filter. Because the cooling plates and filter trap the smoke particles, the scent of the smoke is continuously recycled and has no exit from the room.

It's one of the reasons why air conditioning is unhealthy - it constantly recycles the same air (bit like being in a submarine or spacecraft) and the level of CO2 can build up quite quickly, which is why people often feel drowsy in closed air-con chambers such as aircraft (and classrooms).

If the air-con was used merely to cool the room rather than freeze it's occupants, then a through flow of "fresh" outside air could be introduced and the stale internal air could be extracted - this would actually prove a better solution all round, as then, cigarette smoke would be extracted with the stale air and there would be no need for a ban or the conflict that surrounds one.

[robsamui]

Woah!

Mr Taxin is right. Thailand WILL be a First World nation in a year or so with a few more bits of legislation like this.

But how about a policy where the children of Thailand have compulsory education? Education is free but up to the parents if they send the kids. Many Thais I have talked to have done a running total of 3 or 4 years at school before they went into adult life at 14.

Anyway, I'm one of those people who smoke...who enjoy smoking...and who decided to stay in Thailand (in part) because I was allowed this freedom. I was pissed off with being one of the millions who had to leave the building every chance they got so they could light-up.

Keep Thailand ignorant, I say. Don't teach the people about rights and freedoms. Don't teach them about the world, or widen their awareness. Just keep telling them they are the finest nation in the world. Don't teach them basic health awareness and biology and science. Keep on not educating them!

That way I'll be able to continue enjoying "university-educated" Thais with Band-Aids on their face because they have tooth-ache, and also smoke as much as I want.

Rob

[DaveYo]

Never going to happen ever. There is no way to police someone smoking inside the homes let alone know when you want to sit on johnnys face etc.

Another huge big farce and hunky BS coming from the political dipwits.

Daveyo

Maybe they want to see the smoke come out of our ears!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ferret_IntheSky]

All parents should know that smoking isn't good for their children. Is it really so hard to go out for this reason?

Prohibiting something is a bad way...

[Phil Conners]

Well you live here, you must know by know how (in)considerate smokers are in this country!

[cutethaigirl]

Here is the easy solution.

Costs nothing.

Very easy to put in force.

Does not involve the Police. a lot of which smoke.

Jus ban cigarette imports and production.

Solved???

[Foggy Bottom]

Here is the easy solution.

Costs nothing.

Very easy to put in force.

Does not involve the Police. a lot of which smoke.

Jus ban cigarette imports and production.

Solved???

So, as a farang and therefore one of the few thousand who actually pay income tax in this kingdom, will you accept your income tax rate jumping by 15 - 20% to cover the loss of excise & VAT revenues following the ban on tobacco products?

Nah - thought not !!

Smokers in every country subsidise all government activities - from bureaucracy to military, and transport systems to health care. Most economies would either collapse or have prohibitive taxation without us.

Put that thought in your pipe and smoke it.

[Phil Conners]

Here is the easy solution.

Costs nothing.

Very easy to put in force.

Does not involve the Police. a lot of which smoke.

Jus ban cigarette imports and production.

Solved???

So, as a farang and therefore one of the few thousand who actually pay income tax in this kingdom, will you accept your income tax rate jumping by 15 - 20% to cover the loss of excise & VAT revenues following the ban on tobacco products?

Nah - thought not !!

Smokers in every country subsidise all government activities - from bureaucracy to military, and transport systems to health care. Most economies would either collapse or have prohibitive taxation without us.

Put that thought in your pipe and smoke it.

Where on earth do you have that absurd idea from? It is a known fact that the costs of smoking - healthcare, low productivity, etc - largely outweights the taxes collected on it.

[PvtDick]

Wrong.  Smoking is banned in ALL airconditioned restaurants.  It does not matter if the place is registered as a "bar" or "pub" -- if they are serving anything more than cocktail peanuts, smoking is forbidden.  Trust me, I have done some research.

Actually, the 20,000 baht fine is to the restaurant owner.  I think you may be right that the fine to the smoker is 2,000 baht.

And if you don't think I have the right people on my speed dial to get police on the scene within 15 minutes...try me.  Not a boast, but the truth.  I deal with the cops every single day of my life, as part of my job.

Hey Dick Head

R E A D T H E L A W

Smoking is banned in air conditioned RESTAURANTS - i.e. those establishments whose primary function is the serving of food, and in which beverages are an optional item from the menu.

Bars & Pubs, whether air-conditioned or not, are exempt from the non-smoking rule because their primary function is serving drinks, and food is an optional item.

Therefore, if I am sat smoking in an air-conditioned pub and you try to raise a stink about it, I shall happily have you arrested for disturbing the peace, or if you prefer, I will simply exercise my option to enjoy a quiet smoke and drink by FLATTENING YOU where you sit - western style!

After all - P U B S are a unique part of British culture, so when in them, be prepared for the patrons to be British about what offends them - and your excessively crusading attitude certainly offends me. This is, after all the 21st century and not Oliver Cromwells 17th century.

Have your own views, but keep them quiet - you are provoking confrontation, and that is against our hosts culture.

Sorry, but you're wrong.

[thebear]

Well said Maejoman - if the majority of Thai's themselves didn't like it they would do something more about it. Live and let live - these 'guest' Crusaders sometimes forget where they are. TIT and if you don't like it, 'every guest has a choice'.

[PvtDick]

Well said Maejoman - if the majority of Thai's themselves didn't like it they would do something more about it. Live and let live - these 'guest' Crusaders sometimes forget where they are. TIT and if you don't like it, 'every guest has a choice'.

Same thing could be said about the law. You don't like the laws of a country, and can't or won't abide by them, don't come here.

The laws here are in the favor of the non-smoker. Smokers' rights are limited, not non-smokers'. And if someone infringes my rights in Thailand, I will act on it just as I would as if I were anywhere else in the world. Just because most Thais are non-confrontational does not mean that I have to avoid confrontation -- particularly if it's another farang (which, most times, it is). The Thais I have asked to refrain from smoking in an airconditioned restaurant have, without exception, apologized politely and put out their cigarette. The problem is mostly with farangs who seem to think that laws don't apply to them here.

[Axel]

Wrong.  Smoking is banned in ALL airconditioned restaurants.  It does not matter if the place is registered as a "bar" or "pub" -- if they are serving anything more than cocktail peanuts, smoking is forbidden.  Trust me, I have done some research.

Just for the records, where did you find this law?

I tried to search but perhaps would first need a few more years to study legal Thai language.

Source: Bangkok Post (th), 2002-08-17

Author: Anjira Assavanonda

A nationwide smoking ban, spearheaded by the Public Health Ministry and taking effect in November, will cover all air-conditioned restaurants and most public places.

But pubs and other entertainment places survive the ban announced by the ministry yesterday.

Public Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan said such places were spared because they were not frequented by children.

I found above which seems to contradict your statement. So, can you help pointing me to the right paragraphs? Although the Public Health Minister should know the laws, but who knows?

[PvtDick]

You may smoke in bars and pubs, but bars and pubs are not licensed to serve food. So, there is in effect no airconditioned place where food can be legally served and cigarettes can be legally smoked. The venue is either serving food illegally, or allowing cigarette smoking illegally. You can not get around the rules by registering a place as a "bar" or "pub" and then using the premises to operate as a restaurant.

[Axel]

You may smoke in bars and pubs, but bars and pubs are not licensed to serve food.  So, there is in effect no airconditioned place where food can be legally served and cigarettes can be legally smoked. ....

Thanks PvtDick for this info. But where in the law books can I find the ruling?

Example: Gulliver's on Sukhumvit Soi 5. This place is so big, that even Thai Visa member missed each other a few weeks ago.

But the place dares to serve food while others are smoking. How can they be stopped from doing so?

Either smoke or eat, but not both. I talked to the managers there, to no avail. They kept telling me, they operate on a pub-licence.

Somehow, I have to believe them. Before you can enter the place they check your ID, usually by 5-6 security guards. OK, I am a bit angry, they never check MY age...

If I can call the cops for them allowing smoking while I am eating. Great, but under what law?

If I atart court proceedings, even following your advice, I want to be sure that I win the case.

[mrvietnam2001]

Hahahahahaha!!!

Mr Vietnam

[Sumitr Man]

When I first came to Thailand I would hazard a guess that approx. 60% of the male population smoked, and 1-2% of the female population smoked.

Today my guess would be around 40% of the male population smoke, but somewhere in the region of 8-10% of females smoke.

Whilst the intentions may be noble, once again, IMHO, the Thai government/authorities are going after headlines, rather than real cause.

Which is without asking what about the legal maxim my home is my castle. Whether or not one smokes, to allow the government to dictate who may, or may not, do certain [legal] activites in my own home would be a very danagerous infringment of my person civil liberties. You never know (with this government), the next thing might be a regulation saying we all have to watch UBC for 3 hours a day in order to improve our English language skills!

[Maejo Man]

If I can call the cops for them allowing smoking while I am eating. Great, but under what law?

If I atart court proceedings, even following your advice, I want to be sure that I win the case.

Really Axel, you can't be serious?