Booze-free crusade ‘won’t deter revellers’
The alcohol-free Songkran campaign will not put off people from going out to have fun during the festival, according to the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth).
The foundation was citing the results of a survey on last year’s alcohol-free Songkran push.
Nearly 81% of people asked about their opinion of the campaign during last year’s festival said they agreed with the idea because they believe if less alcohol is consumed it will mean less crime and violence, said Supreeda Adulyanon, manager of ThaiHealth.
Brawls, overly aggressive water splashing and accidents topped the public’s concerns, which make many dread going out to celebrate, he said, citing the survey.
Wasanu Srithawong, a manager for public policy of the StopDrink Network, an anti-alcohol drinking advocacy group, said what is actually of more concern in efforts to combat the irresponsible drinking of alcohol is the so-called “midnight Songkran”.
Hidden forms of marketing strategies are being used by alcoholic beverage firms as an opportunity to boost sales, he said, adding that most night-time Songkran events are held at nightclubs and popular night entertainment venues nationwide.
Night-time Songkran celebrations often lead to alcohol-fuelled violence, and sexual abuse and harassment, he said.
The events run counter to the push this year among some safer road advocates to do away with drinking in some areas altogether.
Sutthiphong Chulcharoen, director-general of the Department of Local Administration, said the Interior Ministry this year plans to declare more than 3,200 Songkran celebration spots nationwide “safe and free of alcohol”.
Meanwhile, deputy national police chief Chalermkiat Srivorakhan said members of the public are being encouraged to use the “Police I Lert U”, a smartphone application they may find useful to report crimes or accidents, especially during Songkran.
With just a few taps on a smartphone, anyone can send a picture and their global positioning system (GPS) location to police officers closest to the location, which will make it quicker for the authorities to arrive at the scene, said Pol Gen Chalermkiat.
During his visit on Thursday to Mor Chit bus terminal in Chatuchak district to inspect security measures for the upcoming festival, Pol Gen Chalermkiat and other officers were seen encouraging people they met to download the mobile app and use it.
Pol Lt Col Parinya Klinkesorn, a Bang Sue station deputy chief, said the station plans to introduce a real-time video streaming called the “SAS System” for crime suppression work during the festival.
For those guys who see Songkran as an open ticket to take advantage of women during the fun-filled, anything-goes water festival, supermodel Sirinya “Cindy” Bishop has a stern message for them: “Hands off!”
She also has safety messages for any girl who wants to join in the water-splashing fun: Go with a group of friends, never alone. Have a phone with you, always. Have a back-up plan when you get lost. Check beforehand where you can get help. And don’t get drunk for your own safety.
Here’s a message for the supermodel: Thanks a million, Khun Cindy. In just a few Instagram postings, your hard-hitting comments on sexist authorities have succeeded in raising public awareness about sexual harassment more powerfully than any women’s rights groups here could ever hope to achieve.
It all happened when this year, once again, a high-ranking public official — like a broken record — came out to warn women not to dress revealingly to avoid sexual harassment during this coming Songkran.
Enough is enough, said the model/ actress/former beauty queen/mother of two and feminist.
Clearly incensed, she posted a video clip on Instagram lashing out at the official line that perpetually blames the victims out of deep-rooted misogyny.
“I just read in a newspaper about an official advising women to stop dressing sexy, revealingly, and to cover themselves properly during Songkran in order to avoid sexual harassment, and prevent rape.
“I, too, was once sexually harassed during Songkran. I wasn’t dressed sexy at all. And it’s not a woman’s fault, is it? Women have the right to dress however they want as long as it’s not lewd and illegal. Men instead must think about what they’re doing.
“Yes, you may be drunk and having fun with friends. But you don’t have any right to touch a woman’s body. This thinking is what has made women’s rights in our home country so backward.”
I couldn’t agree more.
Her IG video clip immediately went viral. Several famous actresses joined in, triggering a viral social media hashtag #don’ttellmehowtodress #tellmentorespect.
Despite an overwhelmingly positive feedback and a star-studded endorsement, the outspoken model also received an earful of demeaning, sexist — and often racist — criticism from ultra-conservatives.
Because of her Caucasian looks, they slammed her as an outsider who does not understand Thailand’s refined traditions and values, telling her to leave the country to go back “where she belongs”.
Cindy is a Thai citizen, born and bred in Thailand.
Some accused her of encouraging women to dress provocatively, “the ways models like to do”. Revealing deep sexual double standards in the local psyche, many said women who do not dress like “good women” are “asking for it” and deserve to be treated badly. Sadly, many of these comments are from women.
The feminist model took these ugly criticisms graciously.
“A woman’s body belongs to her only. No one can touch her body without her consent... Telling women to dress properly doesn’t solve the problem. Men want to tell women they must dress this and that way to be “good women”, that if they dress accordingly, they won’t face sexual harassment. But it’s not true. Many more women are sexually harassed when they do not dress revealingly at all.
“And why just focus on women? Why not focus on both men and women? The way I’m dressed cannot be used as an excuse to do what you like with me. Don’t tell me how to dress. Respect me.”
The supermodel’s take on sexual harassment is important at many levels. In the blink an eye, she single-handedly dumped the official sexist line on sexual harassment and rape in the garbage bin and set public discussions in the right direction.
With a few powerful words, she has effectively tackled double sexual standards and the good women versus bad women ideology which are the root cause of all forms of sexual oppression and violence in this country.
Why must working women also shoulder double work at home? Why do many working women forego professional advancement? Why do most women choose to be silent when beaten up by partners, when they are sexually harassed or raped? Why are women and young girls punished, not helped, when they cannot keep their pregnancies?
It boils down to the “good women” ideology designed to keep women under men’s thumbs.
Women are brought up to believe that good wives and mothers must see their duty in serving their families as their sacred first priority. The indoctrination is so deep that if they fail to do so, they must be blamed not only by others, but also themselves.
Good girls must also be virgins before marriage. Or they must act sexually inexperienced with their boyfriends. Since asking for safe, protected sex makes them look like sluts, they dare not to. When they end up with unplanned pregnancies, they are condemned as bad girls, a family shame, kicked out of schools, their future cut short. Meanwhile, the boys who impregnate them get away scot free because “boys will be boys”.
If they choose to end pregnancies, they are treated as criminals. Without safe and legal abortion services, they must seek underground help. Complications often ensue. When they need medical help, the doctors conduct painful scraping of the uterus despite the availability of safe, painless procedures. Why? To punish “bad girls”, that’s why.
For young rape victims, they are treated as “tainted” and often forced to marry the rapists to save their families from shame. They suffer their whole life as a result.
If they speak up and demand justice, they are humiliated at every step of the way during legal procedures, forced to repeat the traumatic experiences, and to defend themselves as if they are the guilty ones, not the rapists.
The double sexual standards do not only justify men’s sexual aggression, they also glorify the base instinct as men’s sexual prowess. Women who do not fit the sexually submissive good woman mandate are condemned as bad, who ask for it, and then deserve punishment.
It is frustrating that state authorities adopt this sexist line, insisting to see sexual harassment and rape as driven by sex, not a show of raw power.
That’s why they keep telling female Songkran revellers to cover themselves up, but not telling men to behave.
Interestingly, not a single official dares come out to rebut Cindy.
We have to admit, however, that sexual double standards are deeply ingrained in Thai culture, as Cindy has experienced herself from the hate comments she has received.
How to break this heavy chain of patriarchy, how to stop sexual harassment? “We must dare speak up. It’s how changes start,” Cindy said in one of her interviews.
“Of course, women must take measures to stay safe. We know how our Thai society still operates,” she said, smiling wryly. “But women are not the cause of sexual harassment. We must tell men to respect women, not tell women how to dress.”
According to the Women and Men Progressive Movement Foundation, nearly 60% of female revellers in a survey of 1,650 women said they were sexually taken advantage of during Songkran in Bangkok last year. Nearly 30% said they did not want to go again for fear of sexual harassment.
“As a Thai citizen, as a woman, I want to do my part in speaking up for women’s rights. We need a society that is safer for women.”
With Cindy’s #don’ttellmehowtodress #tellmentorespect movement, I sincerely hope the mandarins know the right thing to say next Songkran. It takes only two words: Hands off!
Women who do not fit the sexually submissive good woman mandate are condemned as bad.