News Forum - BREAKING: Bars reopening in Thailand’s “Green” and “Blue” Zones, changes to Thailand Pass

[Thaiger]

NIGHTLIFE VENUES Today, Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration – or CCSA – announced the official reopening of nightlife venues in both “green” and “blue” zones across the kingdom. Pubs, bars, nightclubs, massage parlours and karaoke bars are permitted to serve alcohol and open until midnight, beginning June 1. Nightlife venues in “yellow” zones are not permitted to reopen. Green Zones (14 provinces): Chai Nat, Trat, Nakhom Phanom, Nan, Buriram, Pichit, Ang Thong, Mahasakam, Yasathon, Lampang, Surat Thani, Surin, Udon Thani and Amnat Charoen. Blue zones (17 provinces): Krabi, Bangkok, Kanchanaburi, Chon Buri, Chanthaburi, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Nakhon Ratchasima, […]

The story BREAKING: Bars reopening in Thailand’s “Green” and “Blue” Zones, changes to Thailand Pass as seen on Thaiger News.

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[Giltee]

In the nearest city (8kms) to my village which are yellow zones the nightclubs are open until well past midnight with people not wearing masks so what’s the point of making these declarations when bars are already open. What’s more covid isn’t spreading from these places. 

[Highlandman]

OK so for the month of June, Thai nationals can freely enter and exit with no vaccine or testing requirement. Foreigners still need insurance + either proof of vaccination or a PCR or ATK test. Or you can come in with just insurance and do the ATK test on arrival. This is an improvement, but I wonder why they decided to discriminate against foreigners here.

It does look like they will scrap the entry restrictions for foreign nationals (other than maybe insurance) come July 1 though.

It's worrying that the emergency decree continues until the end of July. At first I thought they might only extend it another 15 days until mid-June as that's what the news hinted at (a short extension) but now it's been extended not just for one month but two! This emergency decree looks like it will never end.

Edited May 20, 2022 by Highlandman

[WilliamG]

Pitchit is a Green Zone, whereas Phitsanulok right next door is a Yellow Zone.

The border goes between my house and my front garden. Eh!

[Cabra]

2 hours ago, Giltee said:

In the nearest city (8kms) to my village which are yellow zones the nightclubs are open until well past midnight with people not wearing masks so what’s the point of making these declarations when bars are already open. What’s more covid isn’t spreading from these places. 

As it indeed seems every province/district/village is in business for themselves as to what is or isn't allowed and/or enforced, my guess is this is simply a baseline lowest common denominator for justifying any potential enforcement. Plus making announcements makes it appear like the government is actually doing something useful

[JJJ]

11 minutes ago, Cabra said:

As it indeed seems every province/district/village is in business for themselves as to what is or isn't allowed and/or enforced, my guess is this is simply a baseline lowest common denominator for justifying any potential enforcement. Plus making announcements makes it appear like the government is actually doing something useful

It just shows how out of touch they are with what actually happens out in public.  Selective enforcement of rules breeds corruption. 

You can always tell a Thai law isn’t important if the politicians tell you they’re going to start “strictly enforcing” it or ask for the “people to cooperate”. 

Either have rules and enforce them or get rid of them. 

Edited May 20, 2022 by JJJ
Grammar

[Benroon]

I have been able to get a drink until I cannot remember my own name until the small hours for months now - what this announcement about ?

[Manu]

2 hours ago, Highlandman said:

This emergency decree looks like it will never end.

...or at least not until the next general elections.

[Sharky99x]

1 hour ago, WilliamG said:

Pitchit is a Green Zone, whereas Phitsanulok right next door is a Yellow Zone.

The border goes between my house and my front garden. Eh!

Please ensure you follow the rules for the safety of everyone and do not drink in your garden after midnight !!!

[Soidog]

4 hours ago, Highlandman said:

This is an improvement, but I wonder why they decided to discriminate against foreigners here.

They do with almost everything else, so why are you surprised they have with Covid?

4 hours ago, Highlandman said:

It's worrying that the emergency decree continues until the end of July. At first I thought they might only extend it another 15 days until mid-June as that's what the news hinted at (a short extension) but now it's been extended not just for one month but two! This emergency decree looks like it will never end.

I’ve said for a long time that all this drawn out nonsense is about extension of the decree. They need to keep this going as long and as close as possible to the next election. End of July could easily turn in to end of August or September. Perhaps a November election will mean they can end it in July. If it’s March next year for elections they they will want to keep it until September or October. Time will tell….

[Soidog]

2 hours ago, WilliamG said:

Pitchit is a Green Zone, whereas Phitsanulok right next door is a Yellow Zone.

The border goes between my house and my front garden. Eh!

Well no drinking in your front garden then William

[AdvocatusDiaboli]

2 hours ago, WilliamG said:

Pitchit is a Green Zone, whereas Phitsanulok right next door is a Yellow Zone.

The border goes between my house and my front garden. Eh!

The backyard is the Bar, Front yard the restaurant ….. both can now serve alcohol to very late, or early. Depends on election date or religious holidays of course.

[Guest1]

2 hours ago, Cabra said:

Plus making announcements makes it appear like the government is actually doing something useful

Also it looks a bit like as if they would be in charge! 

[JJJ]

3 hours ago, Soidog said:

They do with almost everything else, so why are you surprised they have with Covid?

I’ve said for a long time that all this drawn out nonsense is about extension of the decree. They need to keep this going as long and as close as possible to the next election. End of July could easily turn in to end of August or September. Perhaps a November election will mean they can end it in July. If it’s March next year for elections they they will want to keep it until September or October. Time will tell….

My prediction is Thai pass will never go away for foreigners. The airlines aren’t going to collect the new tourist fee. But they don’t need the airlines! Just add a nice little credit card feature and voila. 

[JamesR]

6 hours ago, Sharky99x said:

Please ensure you follow the rules for the safety of everyone and do not drink in your garden after midnight !!!

 

[JamesR]

7 hours ago, WilliamG said:

Pitchit is a Green Zone, whereas Phitsanulok right next door is a Yellow Zone.

The border goes between my house and my front garden. Eh!

You could, just to spite them, nip over to the yellow zone in your garden now and then and take a quick swig of a beer and then quickly rush back to the green zone, that would be a bit of fun. 

Or you could stand in the green zone, use a very long straw reaching to a beer which is standing in the yellow zone, that way you will be drinking in an unrestricted area. 

 

[WilliamG]

14 hours ago, Soidog said:

Well no drinking in your front garden then William

No, it's the house which is in P'lok, yellow !  Beer in the garden.

[Rookiescot]

9 minutes ago, WilliamG said:

No, it's the house which is in P'lok, yellow !  Beer in the garden.

Can you not just push your house into the green zone?

[WilliamG]

17 minutes ago, Rookiescot said:

Can you not just push your house into the green zone?

It's a house not a caravan.   555

If Plod come round, I shall invite him onto my lawn where my bar is always open.

[TWS60]

Possible some in government circles rather enjoyed the public health crisis mode, brainstorming, making tough decisions, feeling a heady sense of authority and power as the masses snapped to attention with the intended level of fear and self-preservation, complying with every order, no matter how ridiculous.  Perhaps a few sadistic ones among them are feeling a sense of loss as the enabling, sustaining crisis slips away like an ebbing tide. 

Queue breathless reporting about Monkeypox.  The double mask wearing talking heads on Thai tabloid shows this morning were in borderline melt-down mode, spritzing each other with hand sanitizer, issuing streams of "Chai!  Kaa!  Chai! Kaa! OMG, KAAAA!" like belt-fed machine guns, punctuated with extended views of wiggling viruses on a microscope view slide and gruesome photos of victims.  

Without a sense of irony, apparently.  Monkeypox, indeed.  

[vlad]

On 5/20/2022 at 7:24 AM, Highlandman said:

OK so for the month of June, Thai nationals can freely enter and exit with no vaccine or testing requirement. Foreigners still need insurance + either proof of vaccination or a PCR or ATK test. Or you can come in with just insurance and do the ATK test on arrival. This is an improvement, but I wonder why they decided to discriminate against foreigners here.

It does look like they will scrap the entry restrictions for foreign nationals (other than maybe insurance) come July 1 though.

It's worrying that the emergency decree continues until the end of July. At first I thought they might only extend it another 15 days until mid-June as that's what the news hinted at (a short extension) but now it's been extended not just for one month but two! This emergency decree looks like it will never end.

The Emergency decree will continue until the Elections come up Highlandman. They will use it as a bargaining chip like the old Carrot and Donkey theory. Vote for us and we will end all rules and bring all tourism, bars, etc back as they were pre-Covid.

[Soidog]

4 minutes ago, vlad said:

The Emergency decree will continue until the Elections come up Highlandman. They will use it as a bargaining chip like the old Carrot and Donkey theory. Vote for us and we will end all rules and bring all tourism, bars, etc back as they were pre-Covid.

And they can ensure no nasty mass protests months before the election. This would destroy investor and consumer confidence. Plus the voters wouldn’t want to see their kids at expensive universities being blasted with water cannon and gassed on the streets. For some reason, such images upsets the electorate!