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Alcohol-Free Celebration Campaigns during holidays, festivals, and cultural events
A study shows that the numbers of alcohol related traffic accidents and violence are on the rise during long holidays such as New Year and Songkran-Thai New Year. In fact, the average death toll from traffic accidents during 2001-2004 were 87 persons a day during New Year and 84 persons a day during Songkran comparing to 35 persons a day during normal period.
To reduce the alcohol consumption and incidents during the holidays, festival and cultural events, StopDrink Network has implemented Alcohol-Free Celebration campaign by promoting alcohol-free gift giving i.e gift basket and fun celebration without alcohol. The campaign is run during the national holidays, religious ceremony, and community festivals.
Holidays
New Year
Background
New Year is one of the major holidays in Thailand where gift giving becomes a custom. It is a norm to give a gift basket to business clients, friends and family members. Alcohol is a common gift during the holidays.
Campaign Effort
 1. “New Year Fun Without Alcohol” is a cooperative work of StopDrink Network, TV station Channel 3, TV station Channel 9, and radio station FM 96.5. We organized parties that do not serve alcohol to show the public that a party and a celebration can be fun without alcohol.
 2. “Alcohol-Free Gift Giving” is a campaign encouraging Thai society to give a healthy, non-alcoholic gift and gift basket. We heavily promoted the concept that family gathering is the best gift for the holidays. Also, we recently introduced a new slogan “Alcohol giving is a curse to death!” which created a thrill during the past holiday seasons.
Songkran (Thai New Year)
Background
“Songkran” is Thai traditional New Year; also known as “Water Festival.” This is the longest public holidays in Thailand which lasts approximately 5 days. Traditionally, Songkran is the holiday for family reunion. Many people especially factory workers travel long-distance back home during this period. The combination of the celebration and congested traffic led to a high number of fatal traffic accidents. From a study, the numbers of death toll from traffic accident were double during Songkran.
 Campaign Effort
The campaign was therefore organized in collaboration with local civil societies. We created a model of a fun alcohol-free celebration with traditional integrity of Thai culture. The local communities also created measures to ensure that alcohol substance were not allowed in the celebration. One of our success stories was in Khao Neaw district, Khon Kaen province. The number of alcohol drinkers during Songkhran reduced from 43.8% in 2003 to 21.4 % in 2008. In addition, StopDrink Network coordinated with our partners in setting Road Safety Reminder Points in gas stations along 30 major highways across the country. This effort also included a cooperation of youth volunteers and Traffic Accident Prevention community groups to promote road safety tips along 75 main streets throughout the nation.
Furthermore, we ran “Travel Home Safely” campaign by coordinating with over 500 enterprises and the Federal of Industry to promote road safety tips.
Chinese New Year
Background
Thailand has a large population of Chinese immigrants and Chinese descent Thais. The most density of Chinese immigrants is located in Yaowaraj, Chinatown in Bangkok. During Chinese New Year, the majority of Chinese businesses have a shut down for a period of three days to one week. This becomes a long holidays for many workers. Similar to other long holidays, many people particularly laborers travel back to their home town and celebrate with their families and friends by drinking alcohol.
 Campaign Effort
“Prosperity all year round and forever without alcohol” is a motto for Chinese New Year celebration organized by a collaboration of Chinese-Thai Business Association, Yaowaraj Civic Group, Center Point and Youth Networks.
Religious Ceremonies
Buddhist Lent
Background
Buddhist Lent is the period when Buddhist monks stay in a temple of their choice for an intensive Buddhist practice for 3 months during the raining season, July to October. It is also the time when strongly religious Buddhists are willing to conform to the Five Precept rules. One of the rules requires the Buddhists not to consume any alcohol.
Campaign Effort
This is the biggest campaign which is widely adopted in other provinces throughout the country. People are encouraged to stop drinking during Buddhist Lent. On July 8, 2008, Thai government announced that the first day of Buddhist Lent is the national alcohol-free day of Thailand.
According to a recent survey, the number of the campaign participants has increased from 40.4% to 59.1% in 2003 and 2007 respectively. Also, the number of people who were informed about the campaign has increased from 84.7% in 2003 to 90.3% in 2008. More than 1.25 million people wrote their vows of commitment to either reduce or quit alcohol drinking in 2005.
Tod Kathin
Background
Tod Kathin is one of the most significant forms of merit making festival. Traditionally, the ceremony is about offering new robes to the monks who live in a temple at the end of Buddhist Lent. Nowadays, monetary donation, clothes, and other goods are being offered to the monks. It becomes quite normal that the sponsor and event organizers provide alcohol to participants during the party after the ceremony.
 Campaign Effort
This campaign is to embrace a new social value of “making merit without committing sin.” Since alcohol is considered a sin in Buddhism, it should be discouraged from an activity related to the religion.
The pilot project for this campaign was done by inviting people, who wish to sponsor or organize the event, to participate in the alcohol-free Tod Kathin for temples in Nakornrachasreema province. As a result, there were 1,500 temples received donations from the alcohol-free Tod Kathin effort.
Thai Funeral
Background
Thai Funeral generally lasts for seven days. During the service, beverages including alcohol are being served to guests. It is costly for the family to arrange the funeral and to cover the beverage expenses.
 Campaign Effort
Alcohol-free funeral is a campaign that encourages people not to drink alcohol during the ceremony which would help reducing the financial burden on the host family. Based on our survey, the campaign participants saved about 5,000 to 10,000 Baht of the funeral expenses by not serving alcohol.
San Done Ta
Background
San Done Ta is a local ritual ceremony of the Thai-Cambodian people in North Eastern region. Family members usually gathered in a ritual ceremony to pay respect and commemorate their ancestors. During this family gathering, alcohol drinking becomes a norm of this event.
 Campaign Effort
This campaign is to encourage people to enjoy the time spending together without drinking alcohol. As a result, water and soda become common beverage in this event.
Community Festivals
 In Thailand, each province organizes an annual community festival including Elephant Festival in Surin province, Thai-Laos Countdown Festival in Mookdaharn province, Sunrise Maekong Festival and Candle Festival for Buddhist Lent in Ubonratchathani province, Silk Festival and Red Cross in KhonKaen province, Fish festival in Singhaburi province, and Long-tailed Boat racing in Pichit and Sakonnakorn province.
During these events, many people take the opportunity to have a party or a gathering which usually involves with excessive alcohol drinking. StopDrink has been promoting “fun celebration without alcohol” in all of the above events.
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