Asia Times - News and analysis from throughout Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia

Thailand: Pouring cold water on road carnage
By David Fullbrook

BANGKOK - For years drunk drivers have feared little on Thailand's roads save death. That is changing, but even with more breath-alcohol analyzers that police are receiving in time for next week's Songkran water festival and stiffer penalties, the death toll may not come down unless campaigners can persuade party-loving Thais to take life - theirs and others - a little more seriously.

Songkran is one of Thailand's favorite festivals. It is the traditional start of the new year (although the kingdom adopted the Western calendar long ago), and revelers mark the height of the hot season by sprinkling water on one another. This reverential "sprinkling" has evolved over the years into a nationwide water bath involving pickups full of water buckets and youths roving the streets with giant water guns. Every year Thais travel the country's congested highways for Songkran family reunions, and inebriated motorcyclists skid on water-soaked streets, sending them into the hospital or worse.

This year, Songkran will be celebrated on April 12-15. Police have received 836 hand-held breath analyzers and 350 speed guns over the past few weeks, allowing them to make more arrests and, it is hoped, save lives. More than 600 people died in traffic accidents during Songkran's three days last year. Those arrested will find bribing their way out of handcuffs harder, as arresting officers will receive part of the fines drunk drivers pay.

While such equipment is standard in patrol cars in developed countries, Thailand's underfunded police are lucky to have a patrol car, let alone the gadgets. Most make do with bare-bones pickup trucks. Government spending prioritizes affordable universal health care, fixing education and improving transport; policing is far down the list.

In a few months, drunk drivers also will face up to 10 years' jail time and fines up to 100,000 baht (US$2,500) when new penalties are introduced. Now the stiffest penalty is three months' jail and a 10,000 baht fine - a few weeks' salary or less for many drivers.

These measures may not be enough to stop around 7.5 people from being killed for every 10,000 vehicles on Thailand's roads, amounting to about 13,000-14,000 deaths annually, plus a million injuries. In neighboring Malaysia, about four people are killed per every 10,000 vehicles. In countries such as Japan and Singapore the figure is one to two.

"In my opinion more than 70 percent of road deaths and injuries are caused by alcohol," said Dr Tairjing Siriphanich, secretary general of the Don't Drive Drunk Foundation (DDDF) and the Ministry of Public Health's injury prevention and control section head.

Campaigners, such as Dr Tairjing, and police invariably finger Thai culture as a major barrier to reducing deaths. "In Thailand we are not very disciplined, we lack self-discipline. Law enforcement is not very good. To control [drunk driving], strict law enforcement is needed. We are too mai pen rai [no problem], too easy-going," said Tairjing. "It is a cultural thing too, and partly religion. In Buddhism we believe in reincarnation, in fate."

Major-General Pharnu Kerdlarpphon, commander of Bangkok's traffic police, added: "We have to change Thai culture. Other laws have to be changed, for example, to make it harder to buy alcohol. The provincial traffic police also need reform so that they work more at night. But this requires a higher budget."

Alcohol is cheap and available everywhere, including fuel stations. Consumption has soared over the past few decades along with vehicle sales. In 1979 Thais quaffed 450 million liters of alcohol annually. By 1998 they were downing 1.98 billion liters a year. No surprise, then, that the value of road accidents in Bangkok climbed 94 percent over the decade from 1990-99.

Major-General Pharnu, a 27-year police veteran, thinks cutting deaths will be hard because vehicle sales are high. In 2002, 420,000 new vehicles were registered in the capital, up from 300,000 in 2001. In the provinces, he sees no hope because police are spread thinly and live among the community, so there is a degree of policing by consent, and right now, the public blithely accepts drunk driving.

"This is not an issue in Thai society. Nine people die from bird flu, so everybody stops eating chicken. Yet they will get drunk and drive, even though it is far more dangerous," said Dr Tairjing.

However, there is reason for optimism. Since early March, more than 250 drunk drivers have been arrested in Ayutthaya province, compared with only five last year. Police, the provincial authorities and DDDF came up with a pilot project aiming to prove that an ongoing crackdown, coupled with education through local television, radio and newspapers, can cut deaths.

"The government tried for two New Year's and two Songkrans and they failed [to cut road deaths]. You cannot just campaign over the festive seasons. It has to be a daily campaign, with double or triple effort during festivals," said Dr Tairjing. "We want to show the government that if the police have enough equipment, drunken-driving deaths can be reduced significantly."

Colonel Naret Nantachot, leading Ayutthaya's drunk-driving task force, is confident that with breath analyzers provided by the DDDF and harsher laws, the police will meet the goal of halving annual road deaths and impress the government. "If this project is a success, the government will expand it across the country," said Naret.

Ayutthaya is not the only success for DDDF, which arose a year ago from a club of concerned officials. Pressure from DDDF led to quick approval of a law restricting alcohol advertising on television to late night. Talk radio shows give DDDF half-hour slots to discuss drink driving and accidents. Its slogan "Mau Mai Kub" (drunk don't drive) has become so well known so quickly, even ad-agency executives have been impressed.

Breweries and distilleries have signed up, pushing the message and giving DDDF cash. Government agencies are putting the issue on their agendas, starting to cooperate on joint programs. A special probation program has been introduced for drunk drivers.

Celebrities are joining up, led by DDDF's president Senator Damrong Buttan, a popular television personality. A movie star charged with driving drunk in early March is seeking redemption through DDDF, and Ad Carabao, one of Thailand's leading songwriters, is writing a song to push the foundation's message.

(Copyright 2004 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact content@atimes.com for information on our sales and syndication policies.)

Apr 10, 2004

No material from Asia Times Online may be republished in any form without written permission.

Privacy and Legal Policies