Koh Samui: Three British pensioners, one other, arrested with Thais for illegal drinking

[jomtienisgood]

6 hours ago, pattjock said:

Ignorance of the law is never a valid defense. But if the law is not published to the public, in languages that the public can understand, there is no valid reason for punishment.

 

In all civilized countries the current rules are published, in a multitude of languages, in various well known media. In Thailand it's in Thai, If you can find the original source of the information.

 

Any important messages in Thailand should at least be published in Thai, Lao, Cambodian, Myanmar, Malaysian and English language. Most European countries publish everything in 15 to 20 languages.

 

 

555555. Including Thai and all of the above mentioned.????

[sambum]

2 hours ago, tigerfeet said:

Exempt no but common sence should prevail in these uncertain times .a quick reminder and a stern warning and sent home would of suffice plus that would go a long way with police and people bonding.now it's all over the news and social media .not sent out the right vibes for future tourism has it

 

Correct! If Samui is to open for tourism on 1st July, the propoganda machine is going to be very busy! e.g.  "Come to Koh Samui for the experience of a lifetime!"

 

Well, if this "experience of a lifetime includes basic accommodation, (shabby, but functional?)  food, (fish head soup?) and have to pay an extortionate price for it before they let you out of the "hotel" for having an alcoholic drink or two, they might be struggling to get the "millions of visitors" that TAT have promised!!!

[Chalee53]

Illegal to drink in Thailand? I thought it was compulsory to drink when in Thailand!????

[PEE TEE]

13 minutes ago, Olmate said:

What did they do wrong then ? Do tell.

how about reading the headline !

[Bangkok Barry]

1 hour ago, condobrit001 said:

I am sure that a lot of the Brits remember when you could not get a drink in the afternoon in England, and if pubs were caught serving "afters" they were hauled in front of a judge and fined, or even had their licences revoked. This often also made the local press.

Get a sense of perspective guys and at least allow a third world country to act as the UK did not so long ago.

 

The UK moved on and abolished the restrictive laws. Thailand went backwards and introduced them. Nothing really unusual in that.

[PEE TEE]

58 minutes ago, Ireland32 said:

These old Dinosaurs  cause everybody Grief by their drunken stupidity 

Oi! not so much of the old 

[BobinBKK]

2 hours ago, khunPer said:

No matter what you thinks about various laws – some might seem unnecessary or stupid – you need to follow them, especially when not in your home country; it seems even more weird that a Thai pub owner, from what the article says, takes the risk of loosing her business by serving alcohol during prohibition. 

It could have been a setup between the BIB and the bar owner. I wouldn't put it past these people.

[Rolander]

5 hours ago, BestB said:

Ok. Irrespective of my beliefs , law is the law, so if one breaks it then tough luck . But problem I have is why make arrests and such a fuss. This is not criminal offence . So you caught them breaking the news law, issue them with fines on the spot and end of story .

 

why turn it into a circus ? 
 

when big P was caught not wearing a mask , he was not arrested or detained , but simply issued with a fine , why this any different ?

 

it makes news, it scares people from coming when you get arrested for fineable offences 

You really think the Junta boss was actually fined?????

[Liverpool Lou]

30 minutes ago, BestB said:

34 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

"This is not criminal offence".

Yes, it is.

 

"why turn it into a circus ?"

To remind people that, during Covid restrictions, it is a criminal offence. 

 

"when big P was caught not wearing a mask , he was not arrested or detained , but simply issued with a fine , why this any different ?"

Prayut was not caught drinking alcohol illegally in a bar, he, in effect, turned himself in, solely for not wearing a mask.   No similarity with these OAPs' case.

Expand  

It gets tiresome your boring attempts to defend the stupidity over and over again.

 

No, drinking with 3 mates is not a criminal offence, no one was ever charged to face the jury 

 

Best you find another place to spout your nonsense

 

As for your Prayut comment, even more pathetic than the rest, What is more dangerous drinking with  3 buddies in isolation or walk around without a mask spreading the virus?

During the current restrictions, drinking alcohol with their mates, served to them in a bar that was not allowed to serve alcohol, sure was a criminal offence.   That's why they were arrested.

 

"As for your Prayut comment, even more pathetic than the rest, What is more dangerous drinking with  3 buddies in isolation or walk around without a mask spreading the virus?"

Huh?  Shouldn't you have said, "what is more dangerous drinking with 3 buddies (not in isolation, obviously, there were four people there) spreading the virus" or do you think that is it only Prayut who can spread the virus?

 

"Best you find another place to spout your nonsense"

Would that be because you object to viewpoints that differ from yours?  Best you realise that this is a public forum.  You do know the meaning of the word "forum" and the reason for its existence?

[Liverpool Lou]

34 minutes ago, sambum said:

Once again, we see "British" mentioned rather than "foreigners"

We also see "Thais" mentioned in the same breath.

[CLW]

Their country, their rules.

It's not that there have been situations like this before in the press.

People complaining about the police doing their job.

Are there more important, real crimes. Yes.

[norfolkandchance]

32 minutes ago, sambum said:

Once again, we see "British" mentioned rather than "foreigners"

Hush Hush. We have our reputation to live up to.

Enough of this, I’m off for a beer at our local Mafia run hotel.

[Bangkok Barry]

41 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

"This is not criminal offence".

Yes, it is.

 

Are you sure? To be so, a law must have been discussed and passed in Parliament and then published in the Royal Gazette. Only then can it be declared a criminal offense. Making up rules on the hoof, many of which are reversed days later and/or are often left to Province leaders to enforce or not, come into a different category of 'We order you to because we can, but there is no legal grounds for insisting you comply'. 

[chalawaan]

If youre gonna go down, ingest something to make the insanely unreasonable wages of sin in LOS worthwile, not sipping bloody alcohol!

[Freigeist365]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Yesterday it was announced that Samui was desperate to get foreigners back on the island from July 1st.

...aaaallllrrrrighthythennn... Great way to "lure" (as they always like to put it) foreigner back to that island. You guys have outdone yourself! Bravissimo!!!!

[PeterA]

At the Phimai Krung Thai bank daily, there are 100 or so Thai's trying to get in the door, all piled together. That's legal I guess.  But a few old timers getting together and they get arrested and make headlines.

[Susco]

3 hours ago, Somtamnication said:

That will bring tourists back in droves..................... to Cambodia!!!!

 

Yep it's front page news all over the world  ( sarcasm alert )

[Gulfsailor]

50 minutes ago, BestB said:

It gets tiresome your boring attempts to defend the stupidity over and over again.

 

No, drinking with 3 mates is not a criminal offence, no one was ever charged to face the jury 

 

Best you find another place to spout your nonsense

 

As for your Prayut comment, even more pathetic than the rest, What is more dangerous drinking with  3 buddies in isolation or walk around without a mask spreading the virus?

Just yesterday the court in Suratthani handed out a 5000 Baht fine ruling against some Thais for drinking. So it certainly is a criminal offense in Suratthani and people have been to court for this and have been convicted. 

[Liverpool Lou]

27 minutes ago, Thomas J said:

42 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Did it say that while these four idiots were being arrested at that bar there were no other police attending to all the murders, assaults, rapes, etc. that you seem to think were happening

Did it also say that all of the murders, assaults, rapes etc were completed attended to freeing these police to spend their time looking at people drinking inside a bar and a beauty salon?  

The point is there has to be duties more vital to the public safety than expending time arresting 3 old men who if they were endangering anyone, they were endangering themselves.  As to that risk, you have 3 friends who likely spend time together outside of the bar.  I would view their risk of contracting covid inside the bar is far far far less than the shopping at Makro, Tesco or Big C surrounded by hundreds of people. 

 

"Did it also say that all of the murders, assaults, rapes etc were completed attended to..."

Which murders, assaults, rapes, etc., that were happening at the same time?

 

"...arresting 3 old men who if they were endangering anyone, they were endangering themselves".

No, it's not just that.  The point is that they were also endangering anyone that they and the Thai owner had contact with afterwards, and anyone else that they subsequently had contact with, ad infinitum.   Don't you understand how infections spread? 

[chalawaan]

Also, these 'perp pics' that plod pose for are supposedly forbidden by RT Police High Command years ago.

But, TIT baby.

[Freigeist365]

19 minutes ago, Chalee53 said:

Illegal to drink in Thailand? I thought it was compulsory to drink when in Thailand!????

 

One need to be drunk when travelling or living and working in Thailand, as otherwise it would be impossible to cope with all this nonsense, downright stupidity and ignorance in the first place...

[ikke1959]

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

So bars, pubs, beauty salons, etc., have not been closed as a result of Covid restrictions anywhere apart from Thailand?  Perhaps it's just you who's never heard of them.

and pool villas in phuket too???? 

[ikke1959]

In fact it should be 5 Thais nabbed for drinking with 3 British pensioners

[Liverpool Lou]

27 minutes ago, Thomas J said:

28 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

The real question is, why do you think that they're going to be thrown in jail?

Do you really take everything literally and can not see when a person is making light of what is a ridiculous post by the police. 

Do you really think that it's clear that you didn't mean what you posted? 

 

What is so ridiculous about arresting people who were drinking illegally in a bar during the Covid restrictions that everyone else has to comply with?   If they were allowed to get away with it why not let everyone pile into the bars for a few scoops?

[chilli42]

Why is it always the British pensioners that cause a ruckus?  Drinking, illegal bridge and dart games etc.  Grabbing all the headlines.  Leave some room for the rest of us!

[Dexxter]

4 hours ago, Thomas J said:

List of major crimes

Homicide

Assault

Robbery

Rape

Drug Dealing

Human Trafficking

Arson

Kidnapping

Thai police making life safer for everyone by apprehending and arresting three elderly men for drinking.  I feel so much safer now. 

 

Which one is Peter, the Youngster? Why is the guy in the red shirt pointing? He is not Thai.

[Liverpool Lou]

19 minutes ago, Rolander said:

You really think the Junta boss was actually fined?????

What have you got that says that he wasn't?

[Thomas J]

1 minute ago, Liverpool Lou said:

...arresting 3 old men who if they were endangering anyone, they were endangering themselves".

No, it's not just that.  The point is that they were also endangering anyone that they and the Thai owner had contact with afterwards, and anyone else that they subsequently had contact with, ad infinitum.   Don't you understand how infections spread? 

Let me walk you through this because somehow have the misguided notion that them drinking alcohol somehow spreads Covid. 

1. These people were at the bar together
2. It is likely they are friends and spend time together outside of the bar.  ( They can get Covid spending time with each other at locations other than the bar)

3. If these same three people, sitting at exactly the same table, had in their possession, a Diet Coke, a glass of water, and bottle of lemonade and were drinking them.  Their risk of catching Covid would not be any less or more than having a couple of beers and a glass of wine. 
4. If these same 3 people were shopping at Makro, inside one of the government offices waiting areas, or shopping at Home Pro, they would touch more contaminated surfaces and be in closer proximity to a greater number of people than they were at the bar. 

The only thing that makes this "illegal" is that they were drinking a beer and having a glass of wine and that act while presently illegal does not make that action any more risky than if they were sitting together with nothing to drink. 

[Spock]

4 hours ago, Somtamnication said:

That will bring tourists back in droves..................... to Cambodia!!!!

Except that tourists have no chance to enter Cambodia

[ChipButty]

Recently I've been in a few restaurants in the evening where people know me and they ask if I want a beer, I always say no thanks Im not getting a 5000 baht fine over a 70 baht beer and you get fined also, Thanks but no Thanks,