Ajahnski

I can only assume that most on here would prefer that Thailand adopted a visa application process similar to the UK. No visa exempt and a 12 page visa application form, not to mention supporting documents and the restrictions on long term stay.

Careful what you wish for.

Sorry, but it's not an apples and oranges comparison. The UK has their process set to screen people out. If they didn't then so many under-educated people would blood the UK and not be able to find work that the system would crash.

In Thailand, most foreigners are more highly educated and contribute more to the economy than the average native. They don't need to screen us as tightly as our home countries do.

We don't need a UK style system. We only want an honest one.

There is nothing on that form I don`t mind answering, I have nothing to hide and I guess that anyone who hesitates to give the information or only part information or deliberately gives incorrect information will come under suspicion. In fact I am glad the police may have a quick reference about me in Thailand, it shows I am being a good boy, behaving myself a and decent resizen. It also makes things more difficult for wanted criminals and may be terrorists entering the country. In the end I think it`s more for the benefit of all then against us.

There are several reasons not to answer this form.

1) The Thai government is having major data security breaches every couple of months. I live in the south, and all of mine and my fellow farangs's data was left exposed for months.

2) There are suggestions that some of these questions are mere data mining to assist the Thai government when they want to crack into your online media.

3) The Thai junta has become severely repressive. It has said hitting 'like' on facebook can be enough to trigger criminal charges. It recently locked up a protester's mother! THEY WENT AFTER A GUY'S MOM! That is just despicable.

4) This form is illegal as it is not in compliance with the Licensing Facilitation Act of 2015. (I have an article that explains this law in links above.)

Complying doesn't show that you're a good boy, it shows that you're an easy mark. Who knows what they will suddenly decide is offensive or a threat to national security? If replying 'ja' (ok) on a private message within facebook is enough to get a protester's mom locked up, then none of us are safe. Our only saving grace is that the junta is really, really inconsistent and sporadic with who they crack down upon. That could change at any moment.

As for criminals and terrorists, do you really think they will just hand over all their info? They will have fake accounts at the ready, and the RTP will never know the difference.

Please wake up. This is only to benefit the junta.

So what should we do at our next visits to immigration, quote this law and chuck the form in their faces? They make the laws as they go along, they say fill out this form and then it`s the law. And while you`re at it, you may just as well refuse to hand over your details during your visa extension application process, because I bet there is a law against that as well. Good luck with explaining the law to them and let us know how you get on.

Read my article. That's pretty much exactly what I did. I refused to pay a fine that the shmucks from Kantang wanted to levy on me, and even presented my hands for cuffs and told them to arrest me. I walked out with my 90 day extension and no fine.

Seriously, people need to read the article. We have the legal authority to push back against this bullshit now. If they don't adhere to their own law, then they will lose major face. It also includes references to agencies for complaints.

http://diogeneticlight.blogspot.com/2016/04/thailands-licensing-facilitation-act-of.html

All these changes have led me to making the decision of selling my condo. Don't want to have any assets of decent value in this country anymore. I'll just come and go in between visiting Cambodia and Vietnam.

Signed up to TV on 30-07-2014.

This is your first post.

whats your normal TV username ?

Very clever. The Generalissimo will be sure to give you a promotion!

This sounds very fishy. A form like this should need to be approved by the Ministry of the Interior and/or Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I've lost track of who the Immigration Department is responsible to. Back in 2000 it was responsible to the Minister of the Interior, same as the Police Department. Legally, is it a division of the Royal Thai Police? Does the form have an official form number on it? Why has this not been explained by the regular public relations spokesman from Immigration? Why is this General announcing it? Where did he come from? Is he just involved in office politics and empire building? I have so many questions about this I hardly know where to start. I don't particularly mind giving my bank account details -- heck, I had to give them copies of the bank book for about ten years after 1997. I think they were trying to force foreigners to keep money in Thai banks for some reason. Then they just stopped. No explanation, just, "You don't have to give us this any more."

Does the Immigration Department have an ombudsman or public relations office where inquiries can be submitted?

Yes, there is. It's the Public Sector Development Office. I refer to it in my article about the Licensing Facilitation Act.

http://diogeneticlight.blogspot.com/2016/04/thailands-licensing-facilitation-act-of.html

Another posted stated, turn wanting front and BACK of his amt card,,!? that REEEKS of nefarious purposes,, 1,, there's no need for the front,, let alone the security code on the back,,, years ago credit card companies told me never hand out your credit card to a waiter or such at a store, restaurant, etc,, as that was EXACTLY how your account would be compromised,, the waiter, etc would then sell that info,, they told me that was the most common way for your card to be compromised,, in fact they told me if a waiter or clerk ever turn your card over to look at the back to immediately contact their manager,, so with this new info they now know where Joe Farlang hangs out,, how much he has in his account etc, etc,, that's very very scary info for corrupt officials say a policeman to have, as they have been known to kidnap wealthy individuals and ransom them,, this pertinent info just narrows their field down to certain individuals,,, I mean why bother extorting someone who has little money, let's find someone who does,

That was my post, and I agree,

I pointed out why this was not a good idea (from my POV), but the 'rules' change so regularly (and depending on the person involved) - I quickly realised it was a pointless discussion. Far better to just provide the photocopies and cancel the card.

They aren't allowed to ask for all this info anymore. Please see my posts above and check out my article on the Licensing Facilitation act.

Next step, DNA sample and fingerprints, then ankle bracelet and tattoo on the forehead with the serial number.

Then gas chamber??

Only if you can't pay them off.

Welcome to 1984. This is a most naive document that will do absolutely nothing to assist the authorities. I will not put in the names of my dead parents, only Mummy and Daddy. And in the bank account section I will use one of my accounts in another country as it does not stipulate it must be a local bank. And as for frequently visited places my local 7-11 and the noodle shop are all they will get. None of it is inaccurate, so what can they do.

No big deal here.They get your bank details at visa extension times. Plus your whereabouts at 90 day report times. Everyone I know has my email. I'm sure if they ask about where go it doesn't mean Joe's bar rather if you travel a lot. Far as I am concerned this is non issue. Try immigrating to Australia, The U S ,Canada. That is very hard by comparison.

Sorry, but your comparison is not valid. Yes it's more difficult to get in to those countries. That can be seen as a function of supply and demand -- many, may people want to emigrate to the US and Australia, but how many wish to actually emigrate to Thailand? (Most of us are expats - we have no intention of giving up our home country citizenship, so we aren't emigrees) The answer is very, very few.

I looked up the immigration regs in the US. We don't have 90 day reports, we don't have rules that vary from one office to the next, and we don't ask for bank account details unless you are immigrating on an investment visa. It's more difficult to get in to the US. It's more difficult to stay in Thailand, and all this extra hassle and changing rules, incidentally, opens up many opportunities for tea money extortion.

There is nothing on that form I don`t mind answering, I have nothing to hide and I guess that anyone who hesitates to give the information or only part information or deliberately gives incorrect information will come under suspicion. In fact I am glad the police may have a quick reference about me in Thailand, it shows I am being a good boy, behaving myself a and decent resizen. It also makes things more difficult for wanted criminals and may be terrorists entering the country. In the end I think it`s more for the benefit of all then against us.

There are several reasons not to answer this form.

1) The Thai government is having major data security breaches every couple of months. I live in the south, and all of mine and my fellow farangs's data was left exposed for months.

2) There are suggestions that some of these questions are mere data mining to assist the Thai government when they want to crack into your online media.

3) The Thai junta has become severely repressive. It has said hitting 'like' on facebook can be enough to trigger criminal charges. It recently locked up a protester's mother! THEY WENT AFTER A GUY'S MOM! That is just despicable.

4) This form is illegal as it is not in compliance with the Licensing Facilitation Act of 2015. (I have an article that explains this law in links above.)

Complying doesn't show that you're a good boy, it shows that you're an easy mark. Who knows what they will suddenly decide is offensive or a threat to national security? If replying 'ja' (ok) on a private message within facebook is enough to get a protester's mom locked up, then none of us are safe. Our only saving grace is that the junta is really, really inconsistent and sporadic with who they crack down upon. That could change at any moment.

As for criminals and terrorists, do you really think they will just hand over all their info? They will have fake accounts at the ready, and the RTP will never know the difference.

Please wake up. This is only to benefit the junta.

I have been providing my bank details for more than 10 years because it is part of the requirement when renewing my annual visa for extension of stay or retirement as some like to call it . What I will not do is provide my FB or other SM accounts. They know where I reside they even insist on a Google map , they have at least one of my telephone numbers , a copy of my passport so there is not much more I can give them in the way of information, it's all just another wasted paper trail where the hell do they store all this stuff because here on Samui / Phangan you

Cannot even do 90 day reporting on the PC as they still do not have the facility to do it whilst I believe the rest of the Kingdom offers this online service !!!!!

Please see my post above. They aren't allowed to do this. For more details, check out my article on the Licensing Facilitation Act.

http://diogeneticlight.blogspot.com/2016/04/thailands-licensing-facilitation-act-of.html

This is illegal!

The new Licensing Facilitation Act of 2015 makes a few issues here.

1) The only forms allowed are what is in the manual

2) The manual must be available for applicants to examine both at immigration centers AND ONLINE

3) I have looked a few times, and cannot find the online version of the manual. (If anyone else has found it, please correct me.)

Thus, the only forms that they should be allowed to use are what's listed online. Since the manual that is required by law to be posted online isn't online, then the fallback is whatever is available online. That is the old forms that we know. This general is treating this area as his personal fiefdom and is acting illegally.

I wrote up a blog post about this law here. I hope this helps.

http://diogeneticlight.blogspot.com/2016/04/thailands-licensing-facilitation-act-of.html

What about setting up a document as well to be signed by IO to be fully responsible to keep the information asked for secret and safe and only for the intention of the purpose requested ? Failure to do so will be punished not less than 100.000 USD.

The actual form says nothing that they would keep the information confidential

That's a great idea, except that farang 'don't understand Thai culture.'

Anything that would require accountability also could result in loss of face, thus it can never happen.

If it's any consolation, all of us who believe in rule of law, fairness, and accountability really like your suggestion.

I don't see a penal code number on the form so it begs the question is there actually any penalty under the immigration laws that cover this or is it just a scare tactic

Is it in fact an "approved" form? We so so many little "dictators" in all provinces, that believe they can make up laws, and in this case maybe forms, that would not stand up in court, as there are not legislated.

You are correct. The new Licensing Facilitation act does makes a few issues here.

1) The only forms allowed are what is in the manual

2) The manual must be available for applicants to examine both at immigration centers AND ONLINE

3) I have looked a few times, and cannot find the online version of the manual.

Thus, the only forms that they should be allowed to use are what's listed online. Since the manual that is required by law to be posted online isn't online, then the fallback is whatever is available online. That is the old forms that we know. This general is acting illegally.

I wrote up a blog post about this law:

http://diogeneticlight.blogspot.com/2016/04/thailands-licensing-facilitation-act-of.html

Most of the people here I suspect are not Teachers but overpaid, under-qualified "teachers" who would never be employed as a Teacher in their own country.

Please correct me if I have misunderstood..

No, but most of your so-called qualified western teachers who can work in their own country wouldn't last a semester in a Thai government school trying to teach english.

You are correct. I worked with a lady who had something like 18 years experience between New Zealand, South Africa, and other places. One semester here was all she could handle.

In fairness though, that is more a testament to how bad the system is here than to any qualities of those teachers. I know the lady I worked with was diligent, dedicated, and sincere. She just couldn't handle the dysfunction. I totally sympathize with her.

"Are you able to secure a real Teaching post in your own country ?

A yes/no answer will suffice if coupled with a note of your qualification(s)"

A little background. In the US, there is a teacher shortage, so they are hiring non-ed degree holders in many districts. (That's what happens when a society insults and treats teachers as the problem for 4 decades - people don't want to be in the profession anymore. 25% of new grads leave the field within 2 years right now.) There are PGCE (post graduate certificate in education) programs to qualify people, but schools are so desperate that they are not requiring them prior to hiring in many cases. To substitute teach, you only need a bachelor's or two years college if you are currently enrolled and taking classes. I know one person who paid for their bachelor's that way, and another who paid for a graduate degree that way. There are some people who are making their living just doing sub teaching in larger cities.

As for me, I have a doctorate in law, but came here to start a family with my wife before we get too old. When I return to the States, I want to practice law and teach critical reasoning classes at the uni level part time. With a TESOL, I could easily get a job teaching esl learners (primary and secondary level) in large city districts where there is a shortage. Every community college and university also as an esl program and hires professional tutors, but don't require even a tesol cert. I'll probably use that as an angle to get hired into a college when I return to the States and then look to transfer into teaching what I really enjoy.

I do hope the media and social media will continue to track such stories - just like they did with the Koh Tao Case. We need to know what punishment these people eventually receive. Anything less than substantial jail sentences would just serve to make a double travesty. If the media spotlight continues to focus on such cases, then we might actually contribute to making a difference here. This country cannot hide away all of its' inadequacies any more because social media helps to bring these stories out. When the Courts start to issue punishments that bear some correlation to the crimes committed - on a consistent basis, then maybe we will some some improvements. However, no progress can ever be expected to be made whilst ever the Police / Courts accept apologies and remorse on the grounds of being intoxicated with some sort of substance and issuing 500 Bht Fines as some sort of closure. Accepting apologies with 10 year prison sentences would be a reasonable starting position for most of these particular perps, - with an attempted murder charge for the piece of trash that delivered the knock out kick to the old lady whilst she was already on the floor. This hard line approach should be led from the top for Thailand - and applicable to anyone and everyone who commits crime here - all treated equally, natives or foreigners !!

Well said. The sad thing is that what you call a hard line approach is just basic rule of law back home.

I often criticize prosecutorial overcharging, but attempted murder wouldn't be overcharging in this case.

Most of the people here I suspect are not Teachers but overpaid, under-qualified "teachers" who would never be employed as a Teacher in their own country.

Please correct me if I have misunderstood..

I'm sorry, but you have misunderstood. What we attempt to do is actually teach. We interact with students and desperately work to keep them engaged in a subject that most don't care about. English is one of the few subjects that students can actually fail and still pass to the next grade. (However, with the 'no fail' policy, you have to let the student make up the work until they can at least earn a 1.0 and pass. In reality, you get kids who skip every single class, literally, and then come to bother you when they fail. At that point, there is no realistic way to get the kid up to a passing level of knowledge. If we continue to fail the kid, we are seen as bad teachers and fired at the end of the year. Plus, the kids will just cheat on the extra work you give them, so they still don't learn. The only way to save your sanity is to just pass them.)

We are supposed to teach speaking and listening, but our tests must be written. That wouldn't be bad if the kids had decent written english skills, but they don't. They are rushed through material that they don't comprehend and, thus, cannot assimilate. To make it worse, there is no consistency in knowledge base even between kids in a single classroom. I've had English Program classes with a couple kids who were fluent and several who couldn't even say "I'm fine thank you, and you?" at the M5 level. How can anyone honestly teach a class of 30 kids with abilities that are that variable? The answer - you try but you don't.

To make matters worse, since the English level of the teachers is so abysmal, there is little communication to coordinate lessons. I tried to coordinate with one of my co-teachers this last year, but the material that they use is way too complex for the kids to be able to understand. The kids may be able to figure out how to answer the test questions, but that is really just them having some command over the language as a logic system and being able to function within that system. It's kind of like learning math for some kids. They learn it long enough for the test, but will never be able to use it in real life.

Language classes back home have prerequisites. You don't get into spanish II unless you pass Spanish I. That's not the case here. So, even by the time they are in M2, the ability levels are so scattered that it's impossible to teach all, or maybe even most, of these kids. The low levels are too confused and frustrated, and the higher levels are too bored, to pay attention. Then you have to try to keep a class under control when you have no discipline support from admin and over half the kids don't pay attention because they are bored or confused. To call it one giant clusterfuck is still a massive understatement. Please pardon the language, but polite words just cannot convey how messed up the system is here.

Yes, most of us just have TESOL certs, although I've met several with teaching degrees. Those with teaching degrees usually cannot last here b/c the system is too dysfunctional. Ironically, one of the teachers I met who was most successful had only a 2 year degree in music production - a completely unrelated field. He had a pretty looking diploma that he bought from BKK and a tesol. He was willing to put up with the b.s. in order to get the one year of experience he needed to go teach in Europe as a backup employment plan. (but he found a job in his field when he got to europe, so Thailand was just a waste for him.) The others who are 'successful' here just use the job for income and a visa. They know and act like it's a big joke. They do the absolute minimum with worksheets that they get from esl sites on the web that the students have little to no comprehension of. But, they don't care for the aforementioned reasons.

We should also ask 'what is a qualified teacher?' There seems to be an unspoken belief that only people with ed degrees are proper teachers. Only a tiny fraction of college level teachers have ed degrees, and they do fine. I have a friend from law school that teaches a law/sociology/civics/history course at a charter school for underprivileged kids. His kids love him and they can tell that they learn a lot from him. He has no ed degree either. Not to knock the ed degrees, I'm just pointing out that it's not the holy grail others (not you) are making it out to be.

I'm so glad i'm not a teacher

I think you may have the context confused...

We are referring to teachers at Government schools, paid 20-35,000.Baht a month, unskilled, perhaps a college degree but not in the specialty, and often unable to acquire and hold a real job in their home country and/or coming from a third world country with even lower wages. These "positions" are not career positions.

So with that in mind, having some health care, some rations, decent working conditions(inside, not manual labor), and limited hours without overtime can have it's benefits. I might also mention paid holidays.

If you want and expect a real teachers job, get your degree in Education from a real University, be a Native English Speaker, and go to work in your own country or of course, get one of the "real" International jobs only offered to those fully qualified and vetted and with Masters degrees.

Others, it's what it is. A chance to excel doing something productive. Tell any Hooters girl you are a teacher and she will flood you with phone numbers, line handles, emails, Instagram photos, and all the rest which leads to a meaningful relationship at no cost to you.

Yep, a TESOL isn't as good as a PGCE, but it's still additional qualification, and the only qualification that they require on top of a uni degree. However, you're disparagement of foreign teachers is wrong on the facts and out of line in general.

Wanna know why Thailand doesn't require more than a TESOL cert? It's because they have completely ruined their education system. Every foreign teacher I've asked has agreed that, while tesol cert information is great for teaching, the way they run things here makes it pointless. The one teacher I worked with who had an ed degree quit after one semester, despite a career teaching in some pretty remote and poor areas.

I know another teacher with an adult educator's degree who concurs that the system is entirely dysfunctional. He's only stuck around b/c his home country is falling apart, and this job allows him time to work on his other business. However, the school has said time and again that they would like him to make a career at that school.

I know of foreign teachers who have been working in Thailand for several years. That's usually because they have Thai wives. Many leave after a year or two here and go abroad b/c the money and treatment is so much better that it makes up for not being with their families.

"and go to work in your own country" This comment is just silly and stupid. I have worked with Thai teachers who have a master's degree in English that cannot speak or comprehend even simple sentences. ASEAN is here, and Thailand desperately needs to improve its English in order to compete. They cannot do that with the current teacher that they have. Thailand needs foreign teachers.

Now, the next time you want to troll, please just go find a bridge to sit under and stop wasting our time.

If you've already signed a contract, you break it at your own risk. A friend of mine had a contract signed, but the school never gave him a copy so that he could do his visa run. He called them 3 different times, and nobody could be bothered to return a phone call. He called one last time, telling them that he either needed the contract, or, if they didn't want him, then he'd go find a different school. No return phone call, again. In a civilized country, this would have been a breach of contract on the school's part, and allowed him to do what he needed to do in order to make arrangements for his next year of employment.

He got his new contract at a different school and did his visa run. On the first day of school, the director from the school that couldn't be bothered to return a phone call showed up with the other contract and told the director of the new school that he couldn't work there. Then, behind closed doors, he told my friend that he didn't want him as a teacher now because they 'had to go through an agency.' But, if he still wanted his new contract, the old director would let him work there if he paid him 10,000 bht/mo to cover the 'extra expenses' of going through an agency.

This is what we are dealing with here. It's a thugocracy. Beware and best of luck.

Thanks for the story. I'd never heard of a Director getting directly involved in the hiring and/or failing to honor a "contract". The 10,000.Baht payment doesn't make sense as you lay it out above. Who was in theory getting the 10,000.Baht per month, the current Director, the past Director, or the Agency?

It would have been the director of the school that never got back to my friend. The director claimed it was for extra expenses of the agency, but that is an unrealistic cost.

BTW, notice that they never tried to contact him, but, if they knew the school where he got the new contract, then they definitely knew how to contact him. The director smelled a way to line his pockets, pure and simple.

If you're feeling demoralized get out. If the food is crap, it won't get better. The treatment won't get better either.

BTW, we aren't in demand. If we were in demand, the system would try to work with us to actually teach these kids. In my experience, that doesn't happen. The pay would be much better and the treatment would be better also, if we were really in demand. They do like pretty faces to show the parents, however. That's where you (and I) come in.

Friends I've known who have done multiple years at that same school say it rarely gets better. It only gets better if you get a new admin to work with, otherwise they tend to expect more of you and give you even less support than before. You only get used to the mistreatment. (On the plus side, if you have the same classes as the year before, you can reuse most of your old material.)

I hope I don't come off as too negative. This is just the reality that I've been forced to grudgingly acknowledge. (I wish it weren't so. I have many nieces and nephews who are stuck in this horrid system. They are my daughter's cousins. I want better for them and for my kids too. It won't happen.) I for one, am no longer willing to work in a system where I must commit fraud in order to do my job. I'm looking to leave Thailand and go someplace where I can make enough money to get my wife and kids out of here.

Hope this helps. Good luck.

If you've already signed a contract, you break it at your own risk. A friend of mine had a contract signed, but the school never gave him a copy so that he could do his visa run. He called them 3 different times, and nobody could be bothered to return a phone call. He called one last time, telling them that he either needed the contract, or, if they didn't want him, then he'd go find a different school. No return phone call, again. In a civilized country, this would have been a breach of contract on the school's part, and allowed him to do what he needed to do in order to make arrangements for his next year of employment.

He got his new contract at a different school and did his visa run. On the first day of school, the director from the school that couldn't be bothered to return a phone call showed up with the other contract and told the director of the new school that he couldn't work there. Then, behind closed doors, he told my friend that he didn't want him as a teacher now because they 'had to go through an agency.' But, if he still wanted his new contract, the old director would let him work there if he paid him 10,000 bht/mo to cover the 'extra expenses' of going through an agency.

This is what we are dealing with here. It's a thugocracy. Beware and best of luck.

It is the press release that has promted this action by authorities, I hope they get it into their heads that it is not the news that is wrecking Thailands image it is the incident itself and the fact that it was reported in an open and transparent way, efforts to hide these incidents from the public is actually more damaging IMO than the incident itself, there is a lesson to be learned - I hope they got it

You said it perfectly.

I still don't think they got it, though.

First, serves him right he should have been able to access 100,000 baht and got bail immediately, secondly I don't believe his story one bit he killed someone and is trying to blame them e.g no lights on a bike when they are hard wired to the ignition and they had no helmets, it doesn't mitigate his responsibility in their deaths if it's his riding at fault.

"e.g no lights on a bike when they are hard wired to the ignition "

Apparently, you've just arrived here. I cannot count how many times I see bikes with no working tail lights. Often, there are no working headlights either, though, sometimes, the drivers will get one of those flashlights that strap on the head. Often also, I see a bike with no tail light and the head light is so dim that you cannot see it except in your rear view mirror -- it doesn't even make a bright spot on the road. Then there's my favorite, the guy with no tail light and so much stuff in his front basket that the headlight is completely blocked and pointless. Seriously, have you spent a single day in Thailand?

Oh, and yes, not wearing helmets absolutely does mitigate his fault. There is a reason for helmet laws - helmets reduce the severity of injuries and the likelihood of death from an accident. A person of reasonable prudence would not go without a helmet. This is one of the very scenarios that we discussed in one of my law school classes when we covered the mitigation doctrines in torts.

This is not a poor defenceless granddad, he's a 7th dan karate expert. There's a hell of a lot more to this story and so many posters are so far off the truth it's funny reading your posts. I'm not going to give any further details, it's up to Dave if he wants anyone to post on his behalf. Some of you need to write crime stories & prison stories as you are great fiction writers.

Source please?

Something not right here...

Three people not wearing helmets on the other bike with no lights on are involved in an accident with this single bloke, and he is the one facing charges?

Either the frenchies are being extremely litigious or this bloke isn't telling us something. The charges against him, though in Thai, should have been available to him. A translation could have easily been done.

Also nothing to stop him from pressing charges against the french if he is so in the right.

Not saying this guy didn't have a bad experience in jail, but something smells fishy about the story.

I agree that there are some key facts missing here. Based on my interactions with Thai officials, I'm inclined to believe he's being set up. I've even been extorted and threatened by teachers and school admin here, though, so I might be too inclined to think the worst of all Thai officials.

Unfortunately for those incarcerated in the jails and the prison system here in Thailand they are subjected to some truly crude and rude conditions.

While most of the people agree that a prison incarceration should be one that makes the prisoner suffer for their crimes the end result of that collective mentality results in an abundance of real life horror stories to be told and considered....truth be told.

The prison system in any country is a measure of the countries collective mentality concerning law and order while Thailand is still somewhat in the dark ages concerning how they deal with convicted criminals and how they are addressed and how they are treated while incarcerated.

There are numerous countries with even worse prison conditions while hell does exist if you are incarcerated in those prison in those countries.

Here in Thailand the conditions are Bad but not the worst of worst if you compare them to the known conditions suffered by all to many people languishing in dismal prison conditions throughout the world.

Meantime the Thai prison system has to be improved a whole lot while the prison system here in Thailand is never seen as an important issue needing to be addressed while the allotted budget for prisons and correctional facilities is dismally small as compared to the amount of people being arrested and prosecuted and finally incarcerated.

Each successive government has always talked tough on crime and the need to crack down on crime but they seldom if ever address the other half of the equation relevant to how they are going to handle and contain all the criminals and law breakers that are going to be incarcerated as part of their increased law enforcement activities.

There has never been a plan to deal with all the people that will or could be imprisoned resulting in some notably miserable conditions suffered by all to many that are not hard core criminals while their only crime was smoking some marijuana or some minor criminal activity that they were involved with.

The Thai government at present and all the governments before have never had a well thought out plan concerning how to deal with those that are convicted and imprisoned.....and I do not think they ever will as their collective attitude and collective mentality is one of no one really cares and no one wants to speak out on the issue let alone actually address that issue....that is until they are incarcerated themselves and find they have no voice at all while no one to speak on their behalf and no one addressing the problems associated with over crowded prisons with hellish like conditions suffered by all too many and more so by many others.

You all just hope you never suffer the Thai prison system regardless of your thoughts or opinions about law enforcement and how criminals should be handled because, like the man in the OP, that could be you behind prison bars one day.

Cheers

Thank you for a breath of sanity!

I have only one very slight quibble -- When does any Thai think through the consequences of their grand schemes?