Published on January 18, 2006

The Culture Ministry supports the Public Health Ministry’s plan to ban alcohol advertising in the media – to try to reduce alcohol consumption, a senior official said yesterday.

Ladda Thangsupachai, director of the Cultural Watch Centre, said the centre agreed with the Alcoholic Consumption Control Board resolution to either totally ban alcoholic drink ads in all media or reduce the period for alcoholic drink ads on radio and TV to three hours a day, in the early hours of the morning.

The law is expected to be announced without Cabinet approval in March.

Ladda said alcohol caused major health problems and social disruption, she said, noting it was a major cause of domestic violence and had even spurred incidents of police shooting each other while drunk.

“It’s like a disease that should be got rid of,” she said.

But Ladda agreed talks should be held between the authorities and alcoholic-drink producers in regard to commercial aspects of the legislation to ensure no violation of their rights and freedoms under the constitution.

Public Health Minister Pinij Charusombat said alcohol consumption needed to be controlled because it was linked to many problems from unsafe sex, smoking, and traffic accidents to heart and brain diseases.

Pinij also revealed that the memorandum of understanding signed by 29 government agencies on Monday to make their offices no-smoking zones during working hours, under which lawbreakers would face a Bt2,000 fine and agency heads a Bt20,000 fine, would start next month.

In the meantime, health officials would go to all government offices to educate them about anti-smoking rules, he said.

Narong Sahamethapat, deputy director-general of the Disease Control Department, said that he would invite related agencies to “brainstorm” on February 1, about plans to become smoking-free.

The agency deemed to have the most serious campaign would be given an award on World No-Smoking Day, on

May 31.

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