In order to promote a healthy lifestyle, the Public Health Minister announced today that the government will impose a complete ban on all alcohol advertisements in all forms of media. Dr. Mongkol na Songkhla was quoted as saying “The prohibition will protect people’s health and to reduce road accidents” and the new law will see an introduction of drinking free zones and control of venues selling alcohol.

How the government will enforce these drinking free zones is yet to be seen. Could Nana Plaza be a clean living centre once and for all?

Update:

The legal limit for purchasing alcohol is now 25. Deputy Chief of the Disease Control Department, Narong Sahamethapat, was quoted yesterday as saying that the idea was proposed by a network of parents early this year during a public hearing of a draft bill to control alcoholic drinks. From now on, alcolol free zones include:

– Universities
– Schools (and any other places of education)
– Temples
– State Offices

In one move, this new caretaker government has possibly removed Thailand as the favourite destination for travellers due to it’s extreme drinking laws. It will be interesting to see the economic effects of this new series of laws, one agree’s that binge drinking is a bad thing, but there needs to be more self control given to parents and drinkers themselves, than a state run control program.