They first appeared as part of the tradition of floating one's troubles away in a hot-air lantern, then they turned into a fad. The fad transformed into spectacle and turned tradition to travesty. Meanwhile, wake-up calls over floating lantern safety were heard for several years. Then last week, the need for action passed the point where no involved official could laughingly brush it aside. From now on, any serious problem resulting from hot-air lanterns will be the fault of this government and its ministers.
The urgent need to educate and regulate lanterns has been evident through several governments. The need is now imperative. On the first day of the year, after literally hundreds of predictions that it would happen, a Bangkok Airways Airbus 320 sucked a lantern into its engine near Chiang Mai airport. A maintenance crew found the mangled lantern after Flight PG906 landed.
Call it a sign, a final warning, or simply another lucky near miss of aviation. The lantern broke up when the jet hit it over Chiang Mai province on the evening of New Year's Day. If it had been at a different angle at the moment of collision, it could have caused the engine to tear itself up. Aviation officials, government security agencies including police, martial law authorities and sane members of the public all must act to stop this dangerous activity.
The release of a tiny hot-air balloon certainly has traditional roots. It was a symbol of releasing earthly problems, then watching as they soared away. In this way, the lanterns are linked to the similar intention of the Loy Krathong festival during the full moon of November. But what once was an authentic, singular event has turned into a travesty.
This new "tradition" of mass releases of hot-air lanterns has expanded well past Loy Krathong night. People release them on selfish whims. All of this is no more traditional than the Songkran water-gun fights at the Thai New Year. It is part of "culture" only in the sense of pop culture — neither traditional nor respectful. It has now been proven beyond doubt that letting masses of lanterns rise into the sky is dangerous. Releasing lanterns threatens to cause mass death in an aeroplane crash, and probably will if such releases continue.
The response to the Chiang Mai near-miss by responsible officials is not only disappointing, but frankly irresponsible. A "warning" from Chiang Mai airport officials that legal charges might be brought in the future is meaningless, merely dusting off old rhetoric. Transport Minister ACM Prajin Juntong has ordered a study. Surely he understands this is a time-waster; the problem is extremely familiar and defined.
Last November, during the days around Loy Krathong, airlines cancelled more than 100 flights to and from places where mass releases of lanterns were planned. Thousands of people were inconvenienced, while the cost in baht to the airlines has yet to be tallied.
In contrast to the transport minister, Somchai Phiphutthawat, director-general of the Department of Civil Aviation, recognises that both strict regulation of the lanterns and harsh enforcement against those endangering lives are urgently needed. Finally, we have an official who is onto something. Unfortunately, Mr Somchai has no power to carry out his wise and badly needed recommendations.
From the prime minister on down, the time for action is now. Any delay puts the public and airlines at mortal risk. There is a need to preserve traditional culture. But this can never justify refusals by the government and other authorities to educate and to regulate about clear and present dangers.