Survey reveals Thais want to drop outdoor mask rules and extend nightlife to 2am

Petch PetpailinPublished: 16:19, 10 June 2022| Updated: 16:19, 10 June 2022

228 1 minute read

Survey reveals Thais want to drop outdoor mask rules and extend nightlife to 2am — Thai Embassy

A National Institute of Development Administration survey revealed nearly half of all Thai people agree that the country should drop the outdoor mask rules mandate, and nearly 50% of those polled agreed to extend nightlife hours from 12am to 2am.

PM Prayut Chan-o-cha on Tuesday informed Thai media that he thought many Thai people were still scared of catching the Covid-19 virus and would insist on keeping mask-wearing restrictions.

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NIDA’s survey, conducted from June 6 to 8 with 1,310 respondents aged 15, and above from all over the country, tells a different story.

For the outdoor mask rule about 65.5% of the respondents agreed and fully agreed that Thailand should drop outdoor face mask rules, while around 34.5% said they disagreed and fully disagreed with taking off face masks in outdoor settings. For the survey on nightlife, 51.3% of the respondents agreed and fully agreed that bars, pubs, and entertainment venues should open until 2am.

NIDA also surveyed the level of concern over the chance of getting infected. More than a half of respondents were not concerned about getting infected because they were fully vaccinated, took care of themselves, and didn’t live in high-risk areas. Other groups of respondents were still concerned because they were either partially vaccinated or unvaccinated. They had to travel, meet many people, and live in high-risk areas. Some other people polled made it known they were scared because they belonged in the old-age group and had congenital diseases. They also thought the Omicron variant spread easier and faster.

Overall, the survey reveals that the majority of people are ready to take off their mask in outdoor spaces and are not scared of getting infected, which is quite different from what the PM had expected.

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration is to discuss the outdoor mask rule in the next meeting expected to be held on Friday, June 17.

Petch Petpailin

Petpailin, or Petch, is a Thai translator and writer for The Thaiger who focuses on translating breakingThai news stories into English. With a background in field journalism, Petch brings several years of experience to the English News desk at The Thaiger. Before joining The Thaiger, Petch worked as a content writer for several known blogging sites in Bangkok, including Happio and The Smart Local. Her articles have been syndicated by many big publishers in Thailand and internationally, including the Daily Mail, The Sun and the Bangkok Post. She is a news writer who stops reading news on the weekends to spend more time cafe hopping and petting dwarf shrimp! But during office hours, you can find Petch on LinkedIn and you can reach her by email at petch@thethaiger.com.