NCACC waters down alcohol restrictions for Songkran

Only the Public Health and Justice Ministries voted for the ban while the remaining 11 votes from related agencies opposed it, even if implemented on only April 13, for fear of hurting tourism, Manit said.

The meeting agreed instead on other regulations to be issued by the PM's Office, such as prohibiting people from drinking at certain places - including in the back of pickup trucks- to be in effect before Songkran, he added.

Alcohol checkpoints - more than last year's 8,000 - stationed by local health volunteers, would be set up at villages nationwide. Manit would meet with Public Health Service Support Department chiefs on Thursday to plan the checkpoints.

Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai urged antialcohol advocates not to be discouraged by the vote defeat as the ministry would continue working with health volunteers to campaign against alcohol and reduce alcoholtriggered road accidents.

Alcohol Watch Network coordinator, Kamron Chudecha, expressed disappointment at the meeting's outcome - which he hoped would at least pose the ban on April 13 - saying the committee apparently was so rooted in the alcohol industry's profits it didn't consider the impact on public safety.

Thanapong Jinwong, director of the National Health Foundation's road safety knowledge management centre, said he was disappointed in the ban's dismissal. Reports from 1998 to 2002,he said, had shown that about 95 deaths per day occurred during Songkran holidays, threetimeshigher than the normal period total of 33 deaths per day.

Since the ban was a nogo, he urged the government to get tough on alcoholselling places and timing, supporting roadside checkpoints for drunk driving, and imposing severe punishments on those found to be driving drunk - of up to Bt20,000 in fines and, for drunk drivers causing accidents, Bt200,000.