The Asia Pacific Advertising Festival – ADFEST 2010 – due to be staged in Pattaya, Thailand, later this month has been postponed. Organisers say the ‘difficult political situation’ there has forced the decision to delay the event until mid-May.

Vinit Suraphongchai, chairman of the working committee, Asia Pacific Advertising Festival – which was to have taken place March 18-20 – said: "As some of you may have read in the press, Thailand is currently facing a difficult political situation, which could affect visitors to the country, due to the possibility of planned political rallies, scheduled to be held in the week prior to ADFEST dates."

He continued: "As you may have surmised, it is the potential for unrest that has forced this unwanted decision upon us. Rather than pushing ahead and disregarding the situation, we think a better solution is to wait for the issue to resolve itself, as we are keenly aware that it may be of serious concern to many of you who will be travelling away from home. Indeed, many governments had cautioned their citizens regarding travelling to Thailand during this period.

"We sincerely hope you understand and accept our reasoning and sympathise with our disappointment at having to make this difficult decision."

Re-arranged details will be published soon.

Suraphongchai added: “We would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused by these unforeseen circumstances and would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support of ADFEST. We hope that you will be able to make every effort to join us in May to support the event and contribute to its legacy for the future."