Thailand’s population growth has slowed dramatically since the 60s, with a little help from Mechai Viravaidya’s vasectomy festivals and condom-blowing competitions
“Out of these animals, which has more sex: the elephant, gorilla, cat, rabbit or honey possum?” asks Mechai Viravaidya. Posing the question from his office in Bangkok, the octogenarian explains how, over almost 50 years, he has used humour to tackle serious and sometimes taboo topics in an attempt to address the serious issue of birth control. That’s why he is known as Thailand’s “Condom King”.
From hosting vasectomy festivals to condom-blowing competitions and using sheaths as shoe shine, the activist has become a national treasure through his work on destigmatising contraception in a historically conservative culture.
