Smoking ban brings smirting to Thailand
As of tonight, bar and club owners throughout Thailand will be legally required to ban all smokers from lighting up inside in their premises.
A similar ban was introduced at pubs and bars in England on July 1st last year, sparking off a social phenomenon that the British press have since dubbed ‘smirting’ (a combination of smoking and flirting at the same time).
No longer able to smoke freely at their tables while sipping a pint of lager or a glass of wine, smokers in England have been forced outside into newly-built smoking gardens, often complete with funky lighting and electric heaters for the chilly winter months.
Ironically, far from alienating smokers from the masses by pushing them onto the outskirts, these smoking areas have quickly become the most sociable places to be. In fact, the move has even encouraged some non-smokers to pick up the habit just to make sure they don’t become the Billy-no-mates who is forced to sit behind and look after a table while their friends go outside for a ciggy and a chat.
It’s easy to see how smirting has come about. Like-minded people who instantly have something in common are thrown together and all of a sudden breaking the ice with that cute girl / guy requires little more than a cursory, ‘Hi! Do you smoke here often? ’
According to the Nation newspaper today, bar-owners in Bangkok are worried that the ban will scare customers away and the owner of Route 66 is predicting a drop in customers over the next few weeks.
On the contrary, if England is anything to go by, bars like Route 66 and Flix will actually do quite well out of the ban. Smokers will deliberately choose to go there knowing that they can still smoke outside in the outdoor section without feeling like they have to leave the party just to light up. The places that might be worse affected are the entirely indoor bars and clubs such as 808 and Bed Club where smokers will have to either stand outside the front door or gather in some glamorous corner of the car park.
At this point we should probably remember that this is still Thailand, a country where the law sometimes takes on a flexible nature, depending on how much Mr Policeman stands to profit from turning a blind eye. Enforcement of the ban still remains to be seen.
Maybe that sounds cynical, but one has to wonder when you regularly see Thai policemen deliberately hiding the ash-trays outside of MBK shopping centre so that they can fine some unsuspecting smoker who’s left with no choice but to put his cigarette out on the ground.
It’ll be interesting to see what happens, but in the meantime, don’t forget to carry a lighter in your pocket and let the smirting begin.
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