PM Prayut orders ban on alcohol sales near universities and vocational colleges

[passiflora]

next step, ban alcohol 300 meters around police station

[gchurch259]

That is not good, I am a very moderate drinker. But, I ;like the music at Country Road on Cowboy and the best girls to look at Long Gun, both on Cowboy !!

Damn, and I like the General/PM, but Dear Sir, you can not legislate self discipline, you Mother needs to teach it, not the government !!

Holey Moley. That's Soi Cowboy... The whole length of it.

[catterwell]

Some of my most memorable discussions were with other D.Phil students in the bar at Wolfson College, Oxford, where we could drink, play snooker at solve the problems of the universe until 3 am at least.

[Zzon]

Convert to a B.Y.O.B club , nothing says you can't serve ....there is always ways around prohibition for such a small percentage of the area that they believe will make a difference in people's habits or national statics!

[glasswort]

Yet another knee jerk reaction. Does the Government really believe that this decree will deter youngsters from consuming alcohol? Naive in the extreme.

[passiflora]

I drink that even per day but as a German I do hit around 300 liters a year if Thai beer or 500 liters if it is a good German beer

yes i think so too, 1.8l per year!!, it's only 3 bottles!

For the spirits,the average should be by week

[manarak]

clearly, some schools will have to move.

[Lupatria]

Now I'm waiting for a greedy wealthy guy looking for areas with a couple of cafe's and pubs asking the owners how much they would pay him per month if he don't open up the planned vocational school in the hood...

[Honkeydog]

Not too familiar with Bangkok too much but how does this ban on alcohol sales near universities cause Soi Cowboy to go dry? Are there nearby Universities?

[Oziex1]

Well, that explains, why on Cowboy some 59 new hotels are opening by the end of this month

They won't be selling any alcohol, unless they keep up their payments.

It's all just another cash cow for the people at the top, similar to trading hours must close at xx o'clock unless??

[Geordie59]

Yes, education and alcohol simply don't go together. I'd make it 500 metres myself. And how about a ban on cigarettes as well ?

That would make the whole of Bangkok dry and smoke free - except for the exhaust fumes etc.

[metisdead]

Please use discretion in your references to the government. Phrases which can be considered as anti-coup will be removed. Referring to Thailand or the government as a dictatorship, military dictatorship or other such terms will be removed.

[Beng]

Thai government solutions that don't fix problems - their specialty

True.

[English 1]

This idea is totally unnecessary and a violation of human rights to make one's own decisions.

If you want a drink you will get one!

To suggest for instance that a ban would apply in a Cafe in Paragon is beyond stupid.

A drink with a meal is a socially accepted.

As for School pupils buying drink it's for the Seller to control that......

Do not penalise others for their failure to adhere to the law.

The PM seems to have a Bee in his bonnet about drink.

[ukrules]

Not too familiar with Bangkok too much but how does this ban on alcohol sales near universities cause Soi Cowboy to go dry? Are there nearby Universities?

Yes, there's a school of some kind somewhere down Sukhumvit Soi 23.

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

Even Singapore isn't this bad and I thought I would never say that..

[Cabra]

Maybe its too simple, but why don't they just ask customers who look like they might be of student age for ID

to show they are over 20 years old which is the legal age to buy alcohol.

Totally agree.....and if the Retailer does not abide by the rule..... they get a hefty fine...

Slainte....

[AlQaholic]

So now the students have to walk 301 meters to buy Alcohol?

[passiflora]

So now the students have to walk 301 meters to buy Alcohol?

walk...???? lollll

[Lord Lucan]

He just doesn't know what to do next!

Can't wait for next weeks decree.

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

This is why business investment into a bar or store with liquor never entered my mind. Thailand is too unpredictable to turn a profit.

[lildragon]

Ahh yes, prohibition has proven to work so well in the past

When I was an underage drinker in the UK we ALWAYS found a way to get booze, one way or another. These students will do the same.

[Robert24]

1) existing entertainment venues and bars with licenses are exempt from this.

2) entertainment areas like Soi Cowboy, Siam Paragon etc are exempt from this.

3) the law refers to universities and technical colleges, not any school.

look like a lot of misleading information on this forum. Also bear in mind, if and when this law comes into effect,it's also about whether it will be enforced or not or how it will be enforced.

the last time a lot misleading information was circulated was when people talked about some ban on beer girls, alcohol advertisement and so on.

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

Looks like the affected businesses need to revise their profit forecast.

[NickJ]

Soi Cowboy and no booze. Never happen. There are still underage girls working. One bar never even blinked an eye at the no smoking ban. They will just have to pay more.....or sell only at night so no big deal

[Beechboy]

What a silly law.

There are surely many far more sensible ways to inhibit alcohol consumption amongst the young without damaging the livlihoods of others or the infringing upon the freedoms of all, from the hard worker in an office or a shop etc at the end of the working day denied his favourite haunt, to the pleasure seeking tourist intent upon spending his hard earned money the way he/she wants, and within reason.

Age restrictions more strictly enforced at point of sale has been mentioned. Bigger penalties for infringement, either way, has not.

More vigorous enforcement of anti-social drunkeness (including drink driving) is another option. Community service combined with an awareness course for the slightest infringement would be a deterring factor.

Education, at source, about all the various health implications is necessity.

There are surely many more avenues to explore.

Old Mother Prayut seems determined go down in the history of Thailand as the nanny of all nannies who seems motivated as much by his own values as by the worth of the cause he enhances. He stumbles through with his half-cocked Puritanical laws as if on some divinely inspired mission to clean the country up.

The problem is, he always seems to come at things from the wrong end and even then he only scratches at the surface.

Yes, there are merits behind his thinking, but his proposed legislation is all of clumsy, ill-thought out and unworkable.

It will likely do as much harm as it manges to achieve for the good.

[Whyamiandwhatamidoinghere]

Looks like it's going to be dry this rainy season. "Hey Gomer turn the still up on high!"

[arunsakda]

More evidence that the current "govt." should be a care taker govt. and wait for an elected body to make changes and decisions affecting the country, they are so in over their heads.

Funny, because about 20 states in the US have similar laws. When I was a student at UC Berkeley, no takeaway alcohol sales were allowed within 1 mile of campus. But, you're probably from the UK or EU where free flow is the rule. I wouldn't expect you to be worldly enough to understand that the government is following a model which has been used elsewhere in the world.

Since you do not know me your guess at my origins and "worldly" quotient is pointless to put it politely. When my dad attended UC Berkeley his fraternity house had a huge ornate beer keg situated in the entrance hall with steins of the frat brothers displayed around it. Things have changed in the U.S. since then.... they can probably now smoke weed on campus so that may be an improvement. My opinion of this new Thai law and those that signed it remain unchanged.

Yes, in my time as well. You had to drive down to College Ave. Liquors, 1 mile away, on the border of Oakland, to pick up your kegs of beer. 35 years later, this law is still in place.

Yes but now a same sex couple can smoke marijuana prescribed by a doctor for "stress" (whilst shacked up in married student housing) instead of purchasing it from a guy in Peoples' Park.

[spambot]

I have just come back from Thammasat University and to the right and within the range of 300 metres of the Uni is the very busy Phra Ahtit tourist centric and not developed around students.

To the left of the Uni most bars and restaurants are catering for tourists visiting the grand palace with many bars for tourists that start around 50 meters from the Uni.

Why would they kill businesses that are entirely aimed at the tourist industry just so that they could satisfy a theory about student drinking?

Then there is the situation where one bar is next to another bar and one falls into the 300 meter rule – how does the measurement criteria work here – where do you start the measurement from? Is it straight line, or a walking route, driving only route, edge fencing of Uni or should it be the end of nearest building? Confusingly there are also an out building to the university that is not part of main campus, but part of the university – Do you start the measurement from here?

There are also bars at the other side of the river direct ferry from the university (240 meters on the ferry, but bank to bank is much less) the place is never visited by students and feels like a million miles from the university (but is actually within the 300 meters rule).

There will be lots more situation anomalies - This ruling will be difficult to understand never mind enforce.

[lavender19]

I was starting to think I am living in a muslim country but even neighboring Malaysia and even Indo isnt as pathetic as this place has become.

It's bad enough running a restaurant and I can not buy alcohol until 11.00 .That is when I open(so I have to loose two hours to shop) so being a consenting adult in this draconian country is not even considered.Just do as I say like good little sheep that they are

God another 2 years of this bunch of idiots.But then again they only seem to be bending over backwards for the cheap charlie Chinese nowadays.

And before the if you don't like it leave crew get started.I will gladly leave this sinking ship if you want to buy my business