|
Hermanolobo
|
Puts it all in perspective for me- Copied from his fortnightly ...................................................................................... The Asiabugle 1st. October 2003 Scuttlebutt Even the hardest nosed, long-term ex-pat is wondering where this government's anti ex-pat stance is going to end. Screwing up tourism does not seem to matter. Conning his peers who are about to descend on Bangkok does seem the most important thing to Chairman Taksin. I do not know who he thinks he is going to kid. Does he not realise that visiting heads of state will all be talking to their ambassadors, and streets stripped of unsightly beggars, dogs and stalls etc. will fool no one. A police force with no anti-terrorist training and an immigration service that has made Thailand's borders about as water tight as a colander are all facets of Thailand that international security services have known about for years. No amount of late sticking plaster will cover up the problems. On Friday night one hundred, armed special-unit police were rounding up teenage flower sellers in the Sukhumvit area. Many beggars have already been swept up and sent back to Cambodia, or wherever they came from. The current sick joke is ,how long will it take the beggars to crawl back from Cambodia.? Answer; a month if they have no legs! Patpong bars have been closed in the afternoon. Nobody is quite sure why or on what basis? The best-informed guess is that Praphan Phumchao-suan, the Chairman of a Patpong Association, has upset the authorities with his recent outbursts against the current 2 am closing of bars etc. Not only has he been publicly criticising the government policy but also I hear he is from the wrong political party. Further weight was given to this theory when he was arrested a few days ago. He was accused of having his Karaoke bar open until 4 pm. The strange thing though was that he was arrested the following day and the local Bangrak police knew nothing about it. Every other arrest for late opening is made when the police raid the place after hours. Needless to say Praphan claims he is innocent and many seem to think he is. It seems bucking the Chairman is not a good idea in modern Thailand! However, the biggest problems have been for travellers who have been unfortunate enough to have the wrong visa stamps. In a crackdown that has surprised every body in its ferocity, those with dodgy visa stamps are being stopped at the airport and refused permission to leave. The worst-case scenario happened to four lads from the UK. Aged 20, this was their first trip abroad on their own. They stayed on Koh Phangan and had a great holiday. As their visa ran out they visited a travel agent offering visa extensions. It seems their passports did a trip to Sadao and a suitable new visa was granted. Needless to say these guys thought nothing of it. They even had a receipt for the extensions. However, arriving at the airport they were arrested and put in jail. It took 36 hours for them to get access to the British Consul and then bail of 300,000 Baht each was granted. They remain on bail with a court case set for October 20th and judgment set for the 23 rd (after APEC). Whilst in jail they were treated appallingly and had their heads shaved. But most of those caught have simply been barred from returning to the country, after a few days of Embassy and immigration hopping, although I am told that as many as 60 Brits remain on bail pending a trial. Most European embassies have run out of passports as any passport with a potential dodgy stamp is being lost. In fact the Embassies are advising those who have a potential problem to do just that (after photocopying the relevant bits, including any long term visa). Of course many of those caught knew what they were doing as using visa services had become very much part of the norm and most people thought the authorities accepted it. Many people I know have official receipts for such services, often including a 7% VAT charge. However, for some tourists this has proved a nightmare as they simply used a travel agent to do a job that in many parts of the world a travel agent would do. What they would not be aware of is that some visa services were using stamps they had made up, or in one case a stolen stamp, to add the new visa. The Sadao border seems to be getting most of the flak and several numbers of bad stamps have been published. I am told that 5 immigration officers from there have been re-assigned in the past few weeks. There is loads more info on this, and the item below, on http://www.Thaivisa.com (Relevant forum ) As a final note, there is to be a meeting this week between the main European Consuls and the Thai authorities to try and resolve these issues. In the mean time the Consuls are being very tight lipped over the matter, maybe they do not want to upset the Thai authorities. However, I would have thought their priority should be to their citizens and at the very least a general warning should go out. Apart from the above, the future visa situation is up in the air. Proposals published suggest that the outlook for many will become a nightmare of bureaucracy that is intended to weed out low-level permanent visitors. I am watching this one carefully and will bring news as soon as it is firmed up. It seems that as long as you are over 50, and have 800,000 Baht you can show in a Thai bank account, you will always be welcome. But those living on a B visa and even a tourist visa may have problems. New work permits (after July 1st next year) look like becoming a real hassle, but what will happen about those with existing permits is unclear. All in all it is causing an enormous amount of discussion and speculation, and not a little concern to many residents. Inevitably numerous are wondering if the Chairman has simply decided to get rid of all farangs, except for package tourists and those who can afford an elite Thailand card (cost; 1 million Baht). Many are blaming all this on APEC and I would concur, as far as the dodgy stamps are concerned. One thing is clear; the Thai's have got their knickers in an enormous twist over APEC. There has been much speculation that Nana Plaza (and Soi 4) will be closed down. However a senior Lumpini officer recently said there are no plans for that "at the moment." But he freely admitted he might be ordered from on high to do just that. The main part of APEC is 19 - 23 October, although certain events start as early as the 10th. With the massive Queens Park Hotel (Sukhumvit Soi 22) hosting many guests (as well as some functions), with all four and five star hotels full with delegates, and with many of the meetings and ceremonies happening on the Chao Praya River, expect Sukhumvit Road to be the major conduit connecting everything. This will mean closing it off to all other traffic, as escorted convoys blast up and down. The sky train, or legs, seem to be the only viable movement options. But please remember to carry proper ID at all times as there will be a massive police operation and ID will be in constant demand. And if that is not enough to keep you out of Bangkok, it has just been announced that all cars entering the toll way to the airport will be searched for arms (specifically anti aircraft missiles).
|
Thai Girls : Meet Sexy Thai Girls
Posted on: 7:33 am on Oct. 3, 2003
|
|
|
|