A group of hundreds of academics warned the government alcohol abuse led to increased youth crime and unwanted pregnancies.

The group wants a bill headed for the Cabinet and the National Legislative Assembly toughened up.fg

Describing themselves as academics concerned about children and youth, they published their wish list in an open letter to Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont.

The panel finalising the alcohol bill is expected to complete its re-draft ahead of next week's Cabinet meeting. An earlier draft was rejected.

The letter pleaded with the government to maintain three main principles in the new law - including restricting alcohol sales to certain zones, raising the minimum drinking age from 18 and imposing a blanket ban on alcohol advertising.

Group member Amorvich Naktub said drunken teenagers were just one concern. Alcohol abuse led to "related problems such as unwanted pregnancies".

The Chulalongkorn University lecturer heads research into youth behaviour called Child Watch.

It discovered unwanted pregnancies this year had increased from the 50,000 recorded in a 2005 survey, he said.

Child Watch found a significant relationship between alcohol consumption and unwanted pregnancies in the provinces. Unplanned pregnancies were more frequent upcountry where teenagers also drank more.