Thai Ministry of Culture bans five more games
In the wake of an allegedly GTA-inspired murder in Thailand, the Thai government was quick to pull Grand Theft Auto IV from shelves and place a ban on Take Two Interactive's latest blockbuster hit.
It would seem that the their paranoia is not restricted to GTA IV, however, as the country's Ministry of Culture blacklists another five video games:
- Hitman
- 300: March to Glory
- Killer Seven
- Hitman: Blood Money
- Fifty Cent: Bullet Proof
On CNET Asia's Technology Thailand blog, Jesada Chandraprasert (top left) expresses his extreme distaste for the Thai government's hasty actions against video games:
To say that Thailand's ministries are conservative is like saying the Pacific Ocean is a puddle. In their efforts to maintain a level of control and conformity... they issue laws and regulations faster than a geek can whip out his credit card at a Pantip going-out-of-business sale. Such is the case with video games and Internet cafes... Their official press release at the Government's Web site clearly states that they see gaming as "a problem which is obsessive and has an (adverse) effect on the behavior of children and teens..."
At a government and law enforcement conference held in Queen Sirikit Convention Center on August 21, well over 1,500 people (mostly public officials and police) gathered to address issues of video game regulation, especially for unregistered game stores and Internet cafés.
Their aim is to eliminate "dangerous games" within 90 days of the conference, employing several tactics to fulfill the discussed objective:
- Keeping an eye out and taking care of Thai youths so they are safe from dangerous games.
- Encourage all involved to take care of Thai youths and keep them away from dangerous games and games which are deemed "unwanted".
- Encourage the development of games and gaming stores as an educational outlet for youths.
- Regulate, inspect/enforce dangerous games and gaming stores.
- Educate Thai youths on the dangers of dangerous games.
The Ministry of Culture currently has a Top 10 list of "dangerous" video games, with Grand Theft Auto IV as one of those lucky ten. Though the game has not been officially added to any ban lists, legal action will be taken against anyone caught importing or distributing it.
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And if they don't want Hitman, then *bleep* them lol, that game rocks.
And another thing, Scapegoating much? They are doing nothing but blaming their miss steps in raising kids and preventing crime on games, so as Ron Burgundy would say...
"Go *bleep* yourself Anti game activists!"
What's next? Harvest Moon?