Mae Hong Son Governor Pushes For Amphoe Muang To Become A Tax-free City

[Jai Dee]

Mae Hong Son Governor pushes for Amphoe Muang to become a tax-free city for tourism benefits

Mr.Direk Konkleeb (ดิเรก ก้อนกลีบ ), Mae Hong Son Governor, stated that Mae Hong Son's mainstream revenues have been from tourism and trade along the border. However Mae Hong Son appears to have many problems for visitors especially those travelling by air, which could significantly reduce the number of the travelers.

Therefore, Mae Hong Son has initiated an idea to make Amphoe Muang of Mae Hong Son a tax-free city, in order to attract tourists all year long. The province will appoint Mr. Chana Nagsuriya (ชนะ นาคสุริยะ), Deputy Governor of Mae Hong Son, to lead a team in the study of this project. The team is to finish a public hearing within February 2550. If the public agree to the project, the province will immediately carry it out so that the implementation could begin this year.

Meanwhile Mr. Wisutr Buachum (วิสูตร บัวชุม), Head of Mae Hong Son Tourism Coordination Center, remarked that Amphoe Muang of Mae Hong Son is in a suitable location to make a tax-free city. It is next to foreign countries and is remote from towns of the bordering provinces. Once transformed to a tax-free city, it would become similar to Langkawi Island of Malaysia, where tourists keep flowing in each year for sightseeing and tax-free shopping.

He added that for Mae Hong Son province, revenues from tourism for the year 2005 and 2006 were 1,506 million Baht and 1,700 million Baht, respectively.

Mr. Poonsak Sunthonpanichakij (พูลศักดิ์ สุนทรพาณิชกิจ), chairman of the Mae Hong Son Chamber of Commerce(ประธาน หอการค้าจังหวัดแม่ฮ่องสอน), said that before making Amphoe Muang of Mae Hong Son a tax-free city, the Third Army Area 3 must first open up the Baan Huay Pheung (บ้านห้วยผึ้ง) border checkpoint, in order to let in products from Myanmar and China to be sold in the Amphoe Muang city.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 31 January 2007