Villagers hope the well-endowed straw men will banish the spirit they say is terrorising their homes
TERRIFIED Thai women are hanging scarecrows with huge phalluses outside their homes as panic spreads that the ghost of an "evil widow" is killing local men.
Villagers in Na Cheuak Yai in north-eastern Thailand's Nakhon Phanom province are taking these unusual measures to banish a "ghost widow" they fear caused five men to die.
Nearly every home in the village is now guarded by a scarecrow with an enormous erect, red-tipped penis.
Residents believe that the village - which has a population of just 90 people - is being terrorised by a ghost of a local widow, who is seducing men in their sleep and taking their spirits to the after life.
They believe that the large penises are a symbol of masculinity and strength which defends against the ghost widow - drawing her to the scarecrows instead of to their men.
Terrified men are now said to be wearing lipstick and nighties to bed - hoping that the spirit will be tricked and leave them all in peace.
A villager told local media that the scarecrows were put up after five previously healthy men all in their forties died within a short space of time.
Residents are hopeful the terrifying crows have worked their magic, after the run of deaths appeared to stop since they were put up around a week ago.
Nong Ayu, 68, said: ''People in the village have been very afraid of the widow ghost.
"There have been rumours that men in a neighbouring village have also died.
''Nobody knows why and the village elders are afraid that the young teenagers will die next. "There could be no more men left here.''
Fellow villager Piyatida Wai, 36, added: ''The death first started with two men in their 40s who were physically strong. They didn't have any diseases.
''They had been bathing then went to bed like normal. Their relatives found them dead in the morning.
''Now my son is afraid that his father will die. We have put the scarecrows up outside the homes. "They also have a label on them which says 'there is no man here'.
''The penis symbolises masculinity. Since hanging in front of the house, no man has died. The villagers do it and we'e comforted by our faith.''
The legend of the ghost widow has been known in the region for a number of decades.
But a 1980s Thai Public Health Ministry report into hundreds of sudden deaths blamed on the evil spirit showed they were linked to a high-carbohydrate diet coupled with a physically and mentally demanding lifestyle.
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