Nationwide Ban On Alcohol This Weekend

[cardholder]

I feel remarkably good this morning - I think I may participate in an alcohol ban EVERY Saturday !

[NALAK]

it wont stop 1 thai who wants to get drunk from getting drunk, as always plenty of shops will sell booze, my experience is the thais dont tend to go to bars to much anyway sit around in groups drinking booze from mom po stores etc, they had plenty of time to stock up anyway. does however have impact on tourist trade if it weremy 2 week vacation and bars were closed like this i would never come back. the heavy presence of poice is always around th farang owned tourist bars. stupid rule, still good for the likes of Cambodia and vietnam who are fast over taking Thailand in most areas, particularly education standards.

wife has gone home to vote but more importantly to get 300 baht of democrats and 300 baht of peu thai, as the rest of the village have to get there vote. does the country really deserve democracy with this kind of attitude.

Edited June 26, 2011 by NALAK

[khaowong1]

So we can pay 400 Baht to enter a temple, but we can't get a beer? (Foreigners who don't look Thai). I believe this is called profiling. If profiling works so well when entering temples, why can't it work the other way when ordering a drink in a bar?

Oh well, I'll just stay home, drink whiskey alone and cry. :jap:

Where do you have to pay to get into a temple, except in Bangkok. And then only at two that I know of. Wat Pho and Wat Phra Kheiw.

[cardholder]

it wont stop 1 thai who wants to get drunk from getting drunk, as always plenty of shops will sell booze, my experience is the thais dont tend to go to bars to much anyway sit around in groups drinking booze from mom po stores etc, they had plenty of time to stock up anyway. does however have impact on tourist trade if it weremy 2 week vacation and bars were closed like this i would never come back. the heavy presence of poice is always around th farang owned tourist bars. stupid rule, still good for the likes of Cambodia and vietnam who are fast over taking Thailand in most areas, particularly education standards.

wife has gone home to vote but more importantly to get 300 baht of democrats and 300 baht of peu thai, as the rest of the village have to get there vote. does the country really deserve democracy with this kind of attitude.

Having been to Cambodia twice this year I was surprised how wide that difference is

[chooka]

JDINASIA you state " I don't disagree now. Drinking alcohol is not a basic human right"

Well I guess eating fish is not a basic human right either.

I am over 18 and alcohol is legal and it is my basic human right to drink it whenever I want.

Nope it is not. You may wish it to be, but there are many places and many times when drinking is not legal. Additionally legal drinking ages also vary. Eating is a basic human right. Consuming alcohol is not.

Well unless you have to be over 45 yrs old then I am of the legal drinking age, Unless you are in a country that has less human rights than another or is dominated by a certain religion that forbids alcohol consumption then I can consume alcohol whenever I want. In places like Australia and Thailand it is a basic human right for citizens to drink if they choose to do so. I have not heard of a law forbidding the consumption of alcohol in these countries between any dates or times. I do not know where you live or come from but it appears you are not afforded the same basic rights as citizens of many free countries around the world. I enjoyed a lovely glass of Penfolds last night with my dinner and did not have the alcohol police kicking in my front door to drag my wife and I off to the slammer. We used our basic human right afforded to us to eat and drink what we wanted for dinner.

Chooka - as you state alcohol is legal but what you fail to see or mention it is also governed (in most all countries) in terms of when, where and to whom it can be sold. The election ban is no different than the 2am ban or the age requirement ban. You are welcome to consume as much alcohol as you want, within the law, during the election period as you are any other day. However, as you surely are aware, there are laws dictating when establishments can sell alcohol. Although you are free to consume fish, you are not free to take it from wherever you want without obeying the law which may include paying to buy it or needing a fishing permit.

PS. You are in Thailand .. the drinking age at a bar is 20, not 18.

I was not questioning the human right to buy alcohol. I was simply replying to the other who states that it is not our human right to consume alcohol. regardless of the drinking age be it 18, 20,21 or 60 if you have attained the age then you have a right to consume if you wish. (The drinking age in Aust is 18 however minors may consume alcohol on a licence premises at any age if they are with a parent or gaurdian and partaking in a meal)

[chooka]

The idea of this is to keep that day safe for the voters. But then you drunks out there don't understand that or can't understand or don't want to understand or just don't care. You only care about your booze that's all.

Please explain how the day is going to be less safe than any other day. When did they start to install polling booths in the bars frequented by tourists? (Most of the bars in places like Pattaya/Phuket are frequented by tourists and not expats. Do you really think after having a wine with dinner that the tourists are going to form a lynch mob and start hunting down thais going to the polls? You give the impression that everyone who enjoys a quite drink is a drunk and out to cause mayhem. I would suggest that it is a very small monority that would do this and they should refrain. Lets ban it on every second wednesday so that all those that drink are not running rampant through the department stores/markets beating staff/shoppers and causing mass destruction.

I have no problems with the restiction of alcohol sales as you can always purchase outside the times.

When Thailand passed this law long ago, I assume they could give a rat's a@@ if you or other outsiders understood it or not .. as should be. The law has to do with Thailand and its people's election process. It is what it is and it is the way Thailand works ... simply accept it. The bottom line is the law has a number of reasons that you will probably never understand or accept because your sole focus is on what you want and how you think Thailand should work. But what you should understand is that you (we) are insignificant when it comes to defining Thailand, its politics and most of its laws.

Understand there is no "lets ban it on every second Wednesday" because you have no say-so in the matter and shouldn't. The right words would be 'let them ban... " It is not your country and Thailand isn't going to bat an eyelash if you or the rest of the expat community decide to move to Cambodia nor are they overly concerned with tourists who decide to boycott Thailand because they can't drink in a bar on certain days of the year .... in fact, my guess is they would probably think they are better off without this element.

You and others are in Thailand and should stop complaining so deeply about such minor things that you don't understand and simply accept them or don't stay in Thailand. It is there country, not ours and if people are going to come to Thailand they should try to learn something from locals such as not getting so worked up about things you neither can control, that will pass and that are insignificant unless you choose to make them significant.

I also think the average Joe who likes to have a glass of wine with dinner isn't going to be upset or greatly impacted by this law unless they choose to be ... especially considering this is not a short ban on drinking but simply the selling/serving of alcohol. For those who are unable to consume food without their glass of wine for a day or two then they simply can eat at home.

NISA STATES - "You and others are in Thailand and should stop complaining so deeply about such minor things that you don't understand and simply accept them or don't stay in Thailand."

Nisa Pls take a chill pill. I am not complaining. If you read what I posted I stated "I have no problems with the restictions of alcohol sales."S

Edited June 26, 2011 by chooka

[MrChangers]

I feel remarkably good this morning - I think I may participate in an alcohol ban EVERY Saturday !

I've just woken up in my shop/bar full of empty bottles with Farangs and Thais littered over the tables. Good job Mrs Changers has gone to Surin for a few days, give me time to clear up or do we do the same again tonight?

[Nisa]

I am not complaining. If you read what I posted I stated "I have no problems with the restictions of alcohol sales."S

It appears you have been complaining about the perceived reasons for the ban but apologize if your comments were misunderstood as well as your assertion that drinking alcohol is a "basic human right"

[chooka]

I feel remarkably good this morning - I think I may participate in an alcohol ban EVERY Saturday !

I've just woken up in my shop/bar full of empty bottles with Farangs and Thais littered over the tables. Good job Mrs Changers has gone to Surin for a few days, give me time to clear up or do we do the same again tonight?

What time should I be there??

[ikwiljou]

As a farang living in Thailand I accept the rules here. Isn't that what any guest should do? Don't like it? No one will stop you from leaving this fantastic and great country which I love.

[cardholder]

As a farang living in Thailand I accept the rules here. Isn't that what any guest should do? Don't like it? No one will stop you from leaving this fantastic and great country which I love.

Bully for you !

No one is saying don't accept the rules - that is our obligation in this great country.

Doesn't mean that a free-thinking person can't question the validity/effectiveness of some rules.

I am sure the Thai government don't want all their 'guests' to be simple-minded, sycophantic automotons ........

...... or perhaps they do ?

Edited June 26, 2011 by cardholder

[MrChangers]

I feel remarkably good this morning - I think I may participate in an alcohol ban EVERY Saturday !

I've just woken up in my shop/bar full of empty bottles with Farangs and Thais littered over the tables. Good job Mrs Changers has gone to Surin for a few days, give me time to clear up or do we do the same again tonight?

What time should I be there??

With cash or mop and bucket??? Back to the real thread ....

The only people this is really hitting is the bar owners. Luckily Mrs Changers emporium is not Farang dependant.

[tombkk]

JDINASIA you state " I don't disagree now. Drinking alcohol is not a basic human right"

Well I guess eating fish is not a basic human right either.

I am over 18 and alcohol is legal and it is my basic human right to drink it whenever I want.

Nope it is not. You may wish it to be, but there are many places and many times when drinking is not legal. Additionally legal drinking ages also vary. Eating is a basic human right. Consuming alcohol is not.

Well unless you have to be over 45 yrs old then I am of the legal drinking age, Unless you are in a country that has less human rights than another or is dominated by a certain religion that forbids alcohol consumption then I can consume alcohol whenever I want. In places like Australia and Thailand it is a basic human right for citizens to drink if they choose to do so. I have not heard of a law forbidding the consumption of alcohol in these countries between any dates or times. I do not know where you live or come from but it appears you are not afforded the same basic rights as citizens of many free countries around the world. I enjoyed a lovely glass of Penfolds last night with my dinner and did not have the alcohol police kicking in my front door to drag my wife and I off to the slammer. We used our basic human right afforded to us to eat and drink what we wanted for dinner.

I could not find the "basic human right to consume alcohol" in the list of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, kindly point it out to me:

http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml

[tombkk]

The idea of this is to keep that day safe for the voters. But then you drunks out there don't understand that or can't understand or don't want to understand or just don't care. You only care about your booze that's all.

Well said.

One more thing (and this is my opinion only): The law is for the Thai people. Whatever the reason (some possible reasons were mentioned here), they will not make an exception for foreigners and allow us to do something that locals are not allowed to do. The only discussion here is whether we (the members of this thread, whether Thai or foreign) agree that a ban on alcohol just before and during elections is good or not. Whatever we think has no impact though.

[chooka]

JDINASIA you state " I don't disagree now. Drinking alcohol is not a basic human right"

Well I guess eating fish is not a basic human right either.

I am over 18 and alcohol is legal and it is my basic human right to drink it whenever I want.

Nope it is not. You may wish it to be, but there are many places and many times when drinking is not legal. Additionally legal drinking ages also vary. Eating is a basic human right. Consuming alcohol is not.

Well unless you have to be over 45 yrs old then I am of the legal drinking age, Unless you are in a country that has less human rights than another or is dominated by a certain religion that forbids alcohol consumption then I can consume alcohol whenever I want. In places like Australia and Thailand it is a basic human right for citizens to drink if they choose to do so. I have not heard of a law forbidding the consumption of alcohol in these countries between any dates or times. I do not know where you live or come from but it appears you are not afforded the same basic rights as citizens of many free countries around the world. I enjoyed a lovely glass of Penfolds last night with my dinner and did not have the alcohol police kicking in my front door to drag my wife and I off to the slammer. We used our basic human right afforded to us to eat and drink what we wanted for dinner.

I could not find the "basic human right to consume alcohol" in the list of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, kindly point it out to me:

http://www.un.org/en...dhr/index.shtml

:huh: :huh: :rolleyes:

[jdinasia]

Well unless you have to be over 45 yrs old then I am of the legal drinking age, Unless you are in a country that has less human rights than another or is dominated by a certain religion that forbids alcohol consumption then I can consume alcohol whenever I want. In places like Australia and Thailand it is a basic human right for citizens to drink if they choose to do so. I have not heard of a law forbidding the consumption of alcohol in these countries between any dates or times. I do not know where you live or come from but it appears you are not afforded the same basic rights as citizens of many free countries around the world. I enjoyed a lovely glass of Penfolds last night with my dinner and did not have the alcohol police kicking in my front door to drag my wife and I off to the slammer. We used our basic human right afforded to us to eat and drink what we wanted for dinner.

I could not find the "basic human right to consume alcohol" in the list of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, kindly point it out to me:

http://www.un.org/en...dhr/index.shtml

:huh: :huh: :rolleyes:

As much as you might wish it were true ... there is no basic human right to consume alcohol (or even all foods) wherever and whenever you wish. Can you point out where the UN or anyone else states it is a basic human right to consume alcohol?

BTW -- again in Thailand you may consume alcohol during the day before and on election day. You may not legally purchase it at those times.

[Boater]

well i was able to purchse Alcohol last night from all the mom and pop stores, also the restaurant i ate at last night was serving alcohol...

last night i saw many thais out drinking at each others houses and having BBQ's... again mom and pop store;s are selling today..

i do think it has a reverse affect those, as its only these ' Dry ' days to i see more then usal thais drinking

[dhrobertson]

As a farang living in Thailand I accept the rules here. Isn't that what any guest should do? Don't like it? No one will stop you from leaving this fantastic and great country which I love.

So after living here for 10 years, building and operating a successful engineering consultancy business and paying taxes, it is unacceptable for me to cricise some of the loony aspects of the country? <deleted>.

The fact is that tourism IS being damaged by these ridulous alcohol bans which occur several times a year.

The bans only affect the bars run or frequented by farangs. The local minimart on my Soi actually took on extra staff to cope with demand last night.

Instead of "protecting" Thais from alcohol consumption, the authorities might consider forcing political parties state what their policies actually are.

LOS? LOFI more like....

[jdinasia]

well i was able to purchse Alcohol last night from all the mom and pop stores, also the restaurant i ate at last night was serving alcohol...

last night i saw many thais out drinking at each others houses and having BBQ's... again mom and pop store;s are selling today..

i do think it has a reverse affect those, as its only these ' Dry ' days to i see more then usal thais drinking

Nobody was selling on my street .... Then again everyone knew about the law (posted) and bought in advance. The little places just took a well deserved day off

[softgeorge]

well i was able to purchse Alcohol last night from all the mom and pop stores, also the restaurant i ate at last night was serving alcohol...

last night i saw many thais out drinking at each others houses and having BBQ's... again mom and pop store;s are selling today..

i do think it has a reverse affect those, as its only these ' Dry ' days to i see more then usal thais drinking

Yes I have just come back from the local store with plenty of beers. The owner was unloading quite a few slabs of beer from the back of the pickup. She says she can still buy for her shop from Mackro.

[jdinasia]

well i was able to purchse Alcohol last night from all the mom and pop stores, also the restaurant i ate at last night was serving alcohol...

last night i saw many thais out drinking at each others houses and having BBQ's... again mom and pop store;s are selling today..

i do think it has a reverse affect those, as its only these ' Dry ' days to i see more then usal thais drinking

Yes I have just come back from the local store with plenty of beers. The owner was unloading quite a few slabs of beer from the back of the pickup. She says she can still buy for her shop from Mackro.

I don't THINK the ban on sales affects wholesale purchases. (VAT number and quantity) Shops still have to be stocked for the next day after all

[ginjag]

The 6% of Thai gdp re tourism is way out, keep this silly stat, in the real world look at from the Airport down to transport resorts hotels-food alcohol wives and girl friends/boyfriends-houses businesses bars and bar persons attractions national parks temples boats islands I could go on for ages, one has to look at the whole thing rather than pick the lowest stat ever to highlight your point of view.

Kind of little point in debating if you are unable to accept a widely & globally accepted figure compiled by folks whose job it is to understand how to compile and do so using commonly & globally accepted accounting measures. Of course, we all can ignore these official figures and believe what you have come up with from your thoughts while working the fields up north. By the way, since you are so sure it is not approx. 6% of the GDP what do you recon it is? And what proof do you have to show that areas you claim weren't considered actually weren't?

How nice if your life just revolves around official figures,stats and comparisons with the U.S.A.

I do have a apartment in a tourist area, and so I'm not confined to Bkk condo or similar, get around and look both sides of the fence. All farangs don't frequent bars and consume loads of alcohol.

[Nisa]

The 6% of Thai gdp re tourism is way out, keep this silly stat, in the real world look at from the Airport down to transport resorts hotels-food alcohol wives and girl friends/boyfriends-houses businesses bars and bar persons attractions national parks temples boats islands I could go on for ages, one has to look at the whole thing rather than pick the lowest stat ever to highlight your point of view.

Kind of little point in debating if you are unable to accept a widely & globally accepted figure compiled by folks whose job it is to understand how to compile and do so using commonly & globally accepted accounting measures. Of course, we all can ignore these official figures and believe what you have come up with from your thoughts while working the fields up north. By the way, since you are so sure it is not approx. 6% of the GDP what do you recon it is? And what proof do you have to show that areas you claim weren't considered actually weren't?

How nice if your life just revolves around official figures,stats and comparisons with the U.S.A.

I do have a apartment in a tourist area, and so I'm not confined to Bkk condo or similar, get around and look both sides of the fence. All farangs don't frequent bars and consume loads of alcohol.

My life certainly doesn't revolve around official stats but I will refer to them, especially when they are accepted figures, as opposed to taking the word of somebody with teeny tiny knowledge on the subject as compared with those who have compiled the figures. It is simply illogical to throw away internationally accepted figures that are compiled in similar fashion to the rest of the world simply because they don't align with your arguments. Nor does it make sense to claim Thailand is worse than other places, regarding certain areas, then think a poster has an issue when they point out that the UK and US has worse problems in this area. Nothing wrong with having opinions but if you want to argue your point then challenge, with facts, the comparisons and official figures ... don't act like it is unfair to use them or publicly bury your head in the sand to them just because they run counter to your opinion.

Instead of simply denying ... why not show us links to other credible sources that claim it is much higher than approx. 6% ... since you say this is the lowest stat out there.

Edit: By the way, I believe the 6% (6.5 & 6.7%) figures actually include domestic tourism too but obviously domestic tourists usually don't spend the same as International tourists.

Edited June 26, 2011 by Nisa

[sydneyjed]

Agreed dh' and then you have to question why TAT are using taxpayers money in a concerted new worldwide publicity exercise to fly hundreds of the travel industry/media into Thailand to help promote and launch 'high end ' tourists here.'Amazing Thailand Always Amazes You 'is to be the new TAT worldwide advertising slogan....at least they've got something right! (eglobaltravelmedia.com.au)

As a farang living in Thailand I accept the rules here. Isn't that what any guest should do? Don't like it? No one will stop you from leaving this fantastic and great country which I love.

So after living here for 10 years, building and operating a successful engineering consultancy business and paying taxes, it is unacceptable for me to cricise some of the loony aspects of the country? <deleted>.

The fact is that tourism IS being damaged by these ridulous alcohol bans which occur several times a year.

The bans only affect the bars run or frequented by farangs. The local minimart on my Soi actually took on extra staff to cope with demand last night.

Instead of "protecting" Thais from alcohol consumption, the authorities might consider forcing political parties state what their policies actually are.

LOS? LOFI more like....

Edited June 26, 2011 by sydneyjed

[Nisa]

Agreed dh' and then you have to question why TAT are using taxpayers money in a concerted new worldwide publicity exercise to fly hundreds of the travel industry/media into Thailand to help promote and launch 'high end ' tourists here.'Amazing Thailand Always Amazes You 'is to be the new TAT worldwide advertising slogan....at least they've got something right! (eglobaltravelmedia.com.au)

As a farang living in Thailand I accept the rules here. Isn't that what any guest should do? Don't like it? No one will stop you from leaving this fantastic and great country which I love.

So after living here for 10 years, building and operating a successful engineering consultancy business and paying taxes, it is unacceptable for me to cricise some of the loony aspects of the country? <deleted>.

The fact is that tourism IS being damaged by these ridulous alcohol bans which occur several times a year.

The bans only affect the bars run or frequented by farangs. The local minimart on my Soi actually took on extra staff to cope with demand last night.

Instead of "protecting" Thais from alcohol consumption, the authorities might consider forcing political parties state what their policies actually are.

LOS? LOFI more like....

I think we are getting a bit carried away in believing any measurable number of tourists refuse to come to Thailand because of alcohol not being sold on select days

The number of tourists continues to trend up and has significantly since 1997. If you look at the below chart you can see that tourism numbers continue to go up despite the downward bumps do to major incidents ... not 1 or 2 day bans on selling of alcohol.

http://www.thaiwebsites.com/tourism.asp

Edited June 26, 2011 by Nisa

[Atmos]

one could apply some of the same arguments from earlier posters to all the countries who ban or restrict alcohol sales on specific days eg Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Christmas Day etc

should non-Christians be permitted to buy?

I don't think that's going to happen.

[zydeco]

11 pages on this already!

[TheShockMaster]

I just bought some Jack Daniels at the Airport. No ban there. I'm a little worried about all the clubs and bars being closed upon my arrival today. Hmmmm

[Bkkorupcountry]

Thirdly, golfers here on a golfing holiday came here first and foremost to golf and not to drink. Furthermore, if they are golfers and drinkers, then you can be sure that they would have purchased their duty frees at the airport so once again no issue.

You must know a whole different bunch of golfers to me!. That has to rank as one of the dumbest comments I have read about LOS for donkies!

No ban in our small republic, just had 6 x 15L bottles of water delivered and my weekly box of big LEO's.

Yes, I know a whole different bunch of golfers to you, thank goodness for that

[TheShockMaster]

I just read over on davetheravebangkok.com that the Alcohol ban is lifted at 8PM on sunday? is this correct?