Bangkok, Thailand-
Following a major meeting of the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration in Bangkok yesterday, March 18th, 2022, the overall reaction online and from business owners has been tepid at best and outright negative at worst.
We aren’t going to detail the changes made and discussed yesterday in depth in this article, you can recap by reading our coverage from yesterday below first.
The reaction to the changes has come in from across the board but with very few exceptions has been universally negative.
The Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) and Thai Chamber of Commerce have both stated the changes are not enough to encourage wider foreign tourism and travel.
The FTI in particular has stated this weekend that they will continue to petition and urge the government to entirely drop the Thailand Pass and test and go process, replacing it with a simple vaccine verification. They do not believe dropping only the pre arrival test will make much difference and pointed at an increasing number of countries with little to no paperwork, testing, and restrictions required to visit.
The Thai Chamber of Commerce stated that the steps made a positive move forward but far too slow and the current plan to treat Covid19 as endemic in four months will put Thailand significantly behind other tourism destinations. They suggested immediately moving forward the timeline to dropping restrictions and regulations around travel and testing.
The Hotel Association of Thailand joined FTI by stating that they supported the total and complete removal of Thailand Pass and Test and Go as soon as possible to restore their business and the economy.
The Khaosan Road tourism association was not happy with a water splashing ban for the third year in a row, which hurts it’s previously world famous celebrations. Celebrations can still take place, the government stated, but no alcohol, water in public areas, foam parties, powder, or other “fun” activities. As one upset business owner stated online, this was like Christmas without gifts. Representatives from the Khaosan Road association plan to petition the Prime Minister personally with a proposal to make the road a safe area for water splashing with atk tests and vaccine checks and crowd limits.
Nightlife and entertainment associations across the country, including in Pattaya, called foul at the decision to continue to keep nightlife and bars legally closed with no set date for opening. The venues are allowed to operate in a grey area as converted restaurants currently but this brings many rules and regulations as well as a chance of corrupt officials and law enforcement looking for bribes.
Pattaya business owners, as seen below, are trying to make the city a trial legal nightlife zone and vowed to continue to fight to do so.
Finally, reactions on our own social media channels and groups were universally negative, with a recent unscientific poll with hundreds of responses showing over 90 percent of readers want all restrictions and mandates removed immediately. TPN notes, however, this was from our mostly foreign and English audience and may not show the opinion of many Thai people.
Indeed, to be fair, the reaction from Thai people on social media about potentially easing the outdoor mask mandate (another sore point for foreign tourists) was highly negative, causing the Thai government to reverse on mulling removing the mandate for public areas like parks and beaches. See below for information on that.
The Thai Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration has set out a four month plan to move towards treating Covid-19 as endemic and lifting most restrictions. It seems they are well aware that some sectors of the Thai population are still deeply concerned about the disease and apprehensive about lifting policies. At the same time, the increasing pressure from a frustrated business and tourism sector could cause further and faster changes.
We will continue to keep you updated here at TPN.
