Lancelot

The curfew was lifted less than a week go. How can tourism 'significantly recovered' in less than 7 days?

We really can't expect anything other than this oh so positive nonsense.

As a poster said in a thread recently " were tourists waiting at international airports for the curfew to be lifted ? "

It's bad enough they come out with this rubbish but then insult everyone's intelligence by expecting it to be believed.

Naa, I love good news, pass the Kool Aide please

Oh, I bet by this time next week hotels will be at 100% occupancy and it will be difficult even finding a room

Todays arrest came as Thailands military government scrambles to make up for a year of bad press surrounding the countrys dismal record of combatting human trafficking. Tens of thousands of migrants from neighboring countries are trafficked across Thailands borders every year and many of them are forced into slavery or exploited in the sex industry. Recent reports by Reuters and The Guardian have thrust a global spotlight on the tragic fate of many trafficking victims, as well as the complicity of some Thai officials.

I don't recall seeing how the trafficker would be punished.

Slightly off topic but I did read one report of a trafficker that was "brought to justice." He received a three months jail sentence; the Burmese -not sure if they were slaves or accomplices- received 30 years imprisonment.

Some times an arrest doesn't amount to much and other times it does...

Entertaining tale. The OP has a total of two posts so it makes me curious as to the subject of his first misfortune

zMy personal experience is that there are more rats in Bangkok on lower Sukimvitt. And they are fatter as well- more garbage piled up on the street

My local Mom & Pop store guarantees all of their products. About ice, Uncle Somchai told me if the product didn't meet my highest, bring it back for a prompt exchange- and he will give me another one just like it

Punishing persons involved in corruption is always a good thing. Since the junta naturally wants to justify the coup, its a smart move to highlight cases of abuse.

If the coup had been against a government of the Democratic Party, I dare say many cases of irregularities could have been found as well...

I used to go up to arrivals and catch a cab to Pattaya or BKK. For the trip to Pattaya I would pay 800 to 1,000. In to BKK I never had one refuse to turn on the meter, usually 200 to 300 baht, depending on the traffic.

Now I use the high speed rail link in to BKK and the Bell Bus to Pattaya

Inflation= too many baht chasing too few goods and services

I'm surprised that inflation is not higher considering:

1 Full employment in Thailand

2 Thai government stimulus

3 Easy money policies of central banks world wide. A lot of that extra cash ends up in developing economies like Thailand

The number does not supprise me- all the building sites are staffed with foreign workers, at least for the unskilled manual labor. I've also noticed many of the staff in Thai style restaurants are not Thai.

Same in the USA, when I was a kid, I cut grass for spending money. Now people hire lawn maintenance firms, staffed by Mexicans. I would wager that not one single "American" picks fruit or vegetables in the USA...

They do it because, well, they can and crime does pay very well. Not much down side for locals committing crimes against foreigners.

Yeah,there are the professional criminals that would steal not matter how many tourists visit, but there is usually a correlation between unemployment and rising crime. Some locals who normally don't engage in criminal activities will go for it when their incomes suddenly drop. Not unique to Thailand- this happens world wide...

When I see the headline I was worried then after reading realised it was clamping down on minors which ain't too bad

Please don't close the to go go bars

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Yes, I too support raids to remove underage workers.

But I'm cynical and wonder if the sudden interest in enforcement is in any way related to Thailand's ongoing assertions that it is "Making great progress" eliminating human trafficking...

If I had any money, I would bet that the US will not downgrade Thailand. They will report that Thailand is improving (however slowly) but more progress needs to be made. They will criticize but let Thailand save a little face at the same time.

Yes both sides will continue kicking the can down the road. Its a well rehearsed dance: Thailand saying the right things and appearing contrite; the US wagging its finger and (with fake out rage) sternly warning "This is your last chance!"

Japan is a large buyer of Thai fish as well, I haven't seen any condemnation from them...

Thailand has many progressive laws already in place. Its that "enforcement" thingy that allows the undesirable conditions to continue

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Meanwhile, Burmese fishermen are bought and sold by Thai boat owners and slave traders.

Thais are honestly living in a fantasy land thinking / saying it is getting better. Shame on the USA if they don't downgrade them and sanction the living hell out of them. As it was stated above, there is no other way to try to stop this horrible practice.

If the US and other western nations (the US is not alone ) need to introduce sanctions, they have two good reasons (according to them), military controlled country and people trafficking, two issues that the west is vehemently against, lets see the real money fella's.

The European Union has a greater combined population that the US- and therefore consumer power. Will the EU take a stand and impose sanctions? And the Chinese trump both the US and EU combined, in terms of population. How about the Chinese stepping up to the plate as well?

I agree it would be good if US consumers refused to buy shrimp harvested by companies using slave labor. However, other nations eat shrimp too, how about consumers in the European Union? And if the US and EU refused to buy, how about Chinese and Russian consumers?

My point is that consumers world wide also have a responsibility.

I disagree. Some posters are letting off some steam; it is not polite to complain in Thailand

Some complaints have merit, some do not.

If the OP feels that life is perfect here, well that is his opinion. If that is OK, then why is it wrong for another poster to say life here is not perfect and some times foreigners are wronged?

Great thread and it has me thinking why I've been here for so long. In my case its the ease of one more year courtesy of my annual extension due to retirement.

But its a big world out there and I need to move on and see more of it

USA is not Thailand's father.

But the USA consumer is your grandad.

Not sure what that means... So slavery on Thai ships is the fault of consumers in the USA? And if by magic all US consumers stop purchasing slave produced shrimp, the problem will end?

Over 200 people have been convicted in 400 cases involving human trafficking crimes.

Has anyone heard about this? Can't be true, it's never been mentioned on TV before!!! I would have thought the Navy would be falling over them selves to publicise these facts.

I too wondered about that little factoid of 200 convictions. Not to be funny, but what does a conviction actually mean here? Suspended sentence? 500 baht fine? Moved to an inactive post? Or released on their own recognizance?

USA is not Thailand's father.

I remember that one 555

This is an Al Jazera report from 2008 concerning Burmese slaves working on Thai fishing boats

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEKsZ8dqZB8&feature=player_detailpage#t=10

Been here for 15 years.

Fluent reader and writer having passed my Por 6 seven years ago.

If people are poor and get steamed up over $4 it's not my fault.

Congratulations on your communications skills. But you've learned little of the Thai psychic.

The locals know the value of money and don't squander it.

Besides that -and if you're not a troll- you are an expert on Thailand, the Thai people and we the unwashed of this forum are truly lucky to benefit from your vast knowledge