Last month, the Thai Health Promotion Foundation launched a campaign to prevent people from drunk driving just in time for Songkran, a time when road deaths often snowball. The campaign came with a clear-cut message: "Drunk drivers equal murderers".
The message was plastered on billboards, along with a series of dramatic images, on highways across the country.
Despite its compelling, forthright slogan, the campaign didn't seem to be very effective — 364 people were killed on the roads, a higher number than last year. Drunk driving remained the leading cause of death.
As Songkran road deaths are expected each year, the sadness of the carnage is often lost in the festivities. The deaths weren't mourned by the nation, as people were too busy towelling off.
However, when someone is killed on the road during a quiet period, it stands the chance of creating more of a stir. And if it has something do with the coexistence on the road between a larger, stronger vehicle and a smaller, weaker vehicle — especially one that is trending, like a bicycle, the spotlight is on.
On Sunday in Chiang Mai, three cyclists were killed and two severely injured by a driver with a blood-alcohol level of 67mg percent. She had fallen asleep while driving home at 5am, causing her to end up slamming into the five cyclists, members of the Sua Sansai Bike Club. The damage and pain she caused should keep her awake in horror for the rest of her life.
The woman was conveniently caught crying in a video recorded by a passer-by at the scene, as her leg was pinned by the car after it flipped over. Nobody knows whether she was howling because she realised that she had ended other people's lives or because she was in great pain. Regardless, the video went viral, and she was crucified on the internet, with comments ranging from "How could you dare to cry?" to "You are the one who deserves to be dead".
There were also those who said accidents are accidents, and that the woman didn't want this to happen. Of course, accidents are accidents and the woman would not have chosen to doze off behind the wheel.
But she must have known her responsibilities as she drank alcohol; she must have known that she would be driving home while intoxicated. Her car was parked outside, somewhere.
She probably thought she was going get away with it again, perhaps just like the other times she had successfully made it home without killing anyone.
Surely, it would have been more fair — or at least made more sense — if she had died. But now that she remains alive, she doesn't deserve to be dead.
But she deserves to know that people like her are responsible for making Thailand a hotbed of road carnage. She deserves to know that people like her helped Thailand secure top rankings in worldwide road fatalities. (In 2014, the World Health Organization ranked Thailand third, and the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute ranked Thailand second, in 2014)
She deserves to know that people like her shouldn't be on the road. And she deserves to know why she may have to go to jail.
Of course, there have been countless cases prior to this one.
We have watched many succumb to Thai road accidents and we will assuredly watch more.
Issues concerning the dangers of Thai roads have been discussed over and over. Each time, many seem to be in favour of stricter laws.
They might be right. Stricter — or better enforcement of — laws might be the only solution.
Laws won't bring about conscience — they will only scare people away from doing something illegal.
It's true that, ultimately, it should be the conscience of people that helps to save lives, rather than harsh laws. But it seems it's a little too late for that.
Maybe that's why we need to stoop so low as to rely on the macabre "Drunk drivers equals murderers" campaign.
Duangphat Sitthipat is a feature writer for the Bangkok Post's Life section.