Thailand grants citizenship to half a million people – but not farangs

[george]

Samak mulls making 'lotto' gambling legal

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej yesterday told his weekly radio and television audience he would move to legalise gambling.

Responding to a question from his audience, Samak said he would follow the legal model that is practised in Malaysia, Macao, Singapore and Shanghai.

He urged newspapers not to use sensational headlines like "Samak supports gambling".

"When gambling is legalised, there will be no longer the need for police to act on gambling dens," he added.

Samak did not provide details about what types of gambling he wanted to legalise. But viewers assume he may be including casinos and small dens that now operate in the countries he mentioned under state super-vision and revenue collection.

Answering another viewer's question about scholarships made available from funding by the now-defunct two and three digit lottery scheme, Samak said he will guarantee such grants would be provided once his plan was implemented.

Samak said while the court was proceeding with the lottery matter, a new law would allow a "lotto" type of gaming. Ticket would be sold "through machines" that will replace people who took bets by writing on chits, which was the old practice.

"The machines have been brought in and we need to wait for the ongoing negotiation to be completed. Then there will be what they call 'lotto', where two- and three digit numbers can be punted," he said.

"This practise has been adopted world-wide, and will be used soon in Thailand. So I can answer to all students [in need of scholarships] that you just have to wait, but not for long," said Samak.

Essentially, proceeds from the "lotto" sales will pay for education for needy children, he said.

Sangsit Phiriyarangsan, an academic and a former National Legislative Assembly member who has supported legalising gambling in Thailand, said the "underground black money" should be brought to the surface and put to good use in a transparent and responsible manner.

Asked whether Samak's policy would be against Buddhist principles, Sangsit said religious matters need to be separated from state policies. "Otherwise no policy can be administered or implemented," he added.

People Power Party spokesman Kuthep Saikrajang said Samak's idea was similar to an initiative by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra to build big "entertainment complexes" to serve foreign tourists.

He said Thaksin's plan was then heavily criticised. He said Samak's policy would need to undergo public hearing before it was implemented.

Kuthep said he expected public criticism about the plan was "inevitable".

Former NLA member Wallop Tangkhananurak said Samak's policy would only result in illegal casinos mushrooming amid legal casinos - a problem that could prove harder to control than the current underground operations.

Citing Samak's reference to authorised casinos in Malaysia, Wallop said he doubted the premier understood how it was run.

He said Malaysian authorities are mainly targeting foreign tourists. They built their casino in a remote area and issued regulations that curb many locals from gambling there.

But in Thailand, Wallop feared that youths could fall victim to legalised gambling.

They were already hooked on "football gambling", he warned.

There have been many cases of revenge killings when punters failed to settle gambling debts, he noted.

Former Bangkok senator Sopon Supapong said the government should not initiate anything that turns young Thais into addicts of gambling.

Democrat Party spokesman Ong-art Klampaiboon said Samak's plan was vague and contained no details about what form of gambling would be allowed or how it would be regulated.

-- The Nation 2008-03-03

[steveromagnino]

Wonderful.

Because we all know what a great job gambling does in making the poor more successful ;_)

And some people even dare to suggest that PPP actually cares about the poor 555555555555555

Ah well, a few more parties, some cheap loans and lots more betting; they will be too distracted/drunk/in debt to worry about life. Kit mahk gor mai dee len huay dee gua woi!

[wintermute]

Wonderful.

Because we all know what a great job gambling does in making the poor more successful ;_)

And some people even dare to suggest that PPP actually cares about the poor 555555555555555

Ah well, a few more parties, some cheap loans and lots more betting; they will be too distracted/drunk/in debt to worry about life. Kit mahk gor mai dee len huay dee gua woi!

Gambling is already a common and favored pasttime of Thais they are just merely making it legal and taxing it. Big deal.

[britmaveric]

No more MIB raiding baht gambling dens???

Guess Mr T will be building a few casino(s) now.

Edited March 3, 2008 by britmaveric

[jayjayjayjay]

Wonderful.

Because we all know what a great job gambling does in making the poor more successful ;_)

And some people even dare to suggest that PPP actually cares about the poor 555555555555555

Ah well, a few more parties, some cheap loans and lots more betting; they will be too distracted/drunk/in debt to worry about life. Kit mahk gor mai dee len huay dee gua woi!

It's evil, but it's everywhere, may as well generate some more jobs in Thailand, ie Cashiers, Gaming attendants, Slot repairmen, cooks, cleaning staff PLUS paramedics, social welfare personel, loan sharks, baby sitting staff, 55555.

[farang prince]

Hallelujah!!!! Is this a great country or what? Now Thailand can appeal not only to sex tourists but now gambling degenerates. And yes, I suspect that Thaksin will not only be known as Frank Sinatra in the U.K., but he will be known as the "Godfather" once he builds some casinos in LOS under the watchful eye of the Las Vegas and Atlantic City crowd.

[mrt273nva]

No more MIB raiding baht gambling dens???

Guess Mr T will be building a few casino(s) now.

it does sound like a good idea to me. i'm originally from las vegas so my opinion might be a bit biased but gambling can be heavily taxed and regulated. gambling could become thailand's second largest industry behind tourism if they wanted to become a wealthy nation. because tourism is so large here it would be an easy industry to establish. it would also boost tourism from china. may as well have a portion of gambling profits going to the state rather than organized crime. thai's are going to gamble regardless of whether it is legal or not.

[stumonster]

and there is such a nice block of land available to build an entertainment complex next to RCA .

[advice]

I think that is a good move. I realize gambling is not a good thing the world over and it is another problem in family break downs etc, but it is life and people do it. It is better to legalize than put people in jail for playing 5 baht card games.

Drinking is the biggest problem in the world, if thats allowed in very country, why not gambling?

great revenue raiser and it puts less strain on the legal system.

IMHO>

[trader1]

This should be a huge new income and create 10,000s of new jobs. A good move, hope it gets implemented quickly.

[John_Rambo]

I'm in full support of this. It's about time.

[BigSnake]

I hope he was in reference to the two and three digit lottery that the Army did away with, no wonder so many people love Thaskin.

[Thai at Heart]

But in Thailand, Wallop feared that youths could fall victim to legalised gambling

Forget the youth, how about 50% of the country. They have made it illegal for so long a lot of people would be beside themselves at the prospect of a casino down the road. At least the govt would get a cut of all the illicit money that would be cleaned thru the system.

[lvdkeyes]

it does sound like a good idea to me. i'm originally from las vegas so my opinion might be a bit biased but gambling can be heavily taxed and regulated.

Regulate in Thailand?

[Thai at Heart]

it does sound like a good idea to me. i'm originally from las vegas so my opinion might be a bit biased but gambling can be heavily taxed and regulated.

Regulate in Thailand?

The $1mn dollar jackpot question

[Scott]

It doesn't affect me one way or the other, but it does worry me. I've seldom met people who are so enamoured with lucky numbers as the Thai people are. This might turn out to be a bigger problem than it is in other places where people at least understand at the intellectual level that it's a matter of chance and probability.

My first introduction to statistics had to do with using dice and calculating the chances of a certain number coming up. I know others that did the same thing with cards. In Thai schools you CANNOT even broach the subject of statistics using these very common and practical methods.

[njpski]

Gambling redistributes wealth from the poor to the rich.

Legalised Gambling in any country causes so much harm and yet governments love it because it generates huge income for them and their cronies. refer the Australian experience

[alexbuk]

Great so they legalise gampling under the guise of 'it happens anyhow so we might as well control/tax it etc etc' now how about taking the same attitude towards prostitution and drugs if legalising gambling is the way forward.... I wonder where the kickbacks are coming from that have instigated this 'initiative'

[Thai at Heart]

Gambling redistributes wealth from the poor to the rich.

Legalised Gambling in any country causes so much harm and yet governments love it because it generates huge income for them and their cronies. refer the Australian experience

This would however go some way to the fiscal hole that they have just created by restriciting cigarette consumption. Switch one vice to another.

[mittheimp]

Great so they legalise gampling under the guise of 'it happens anyhow so we might as well control/tax it etc etc' now how about taking the same attitude towards prostitution and drugs if legalising gambling is the way forward.... I wonder where the kickbacks are coming from that have instigated this 'initiative'

Not a bad idea!!!

If Thailand was serious about wanting to use casinos as a tourist attraction.. could just ban Thais from entering. Here in Korea most casinos only allow foreigners in. Creates jobs for the locals and money for the country.

[samran]

and there is such a nice block of land available to build an entertainment complex next to RCA .

hmm, and there will be a train line straight from the airport!!!

I wonder who will get the concession to run the casino???

Anyway, I bet Heng is already busy setting up his pawn shops around the site......

[jberwick]

Awesome!! Let's get some poker games going!!!! FINALLY!

I love the quote, "by legalizing gambling it will reduce the amount of time police use to find gambling dens"... LOL... ya, no shit sherlocknakrub... try legalizing drugs too and watch how you don't even need police. Duh.

[fwwong]

Well, do you think this is in-line with Thaksin bought over the Manchester City Football Club's plan? Once this is legalised, the Thai people can start betting those football matches openly just like those Ladbrookes in UK. Then, everyone will love Thaksin and eventually he will be popular again and might have the chance to become the next Prime Minister soon.

I could smell something that... sooner or later... Thailand will have their very first CASINO, since Samak bench-marked with Malaysia, Singapore, Macao, etc... If they do so, this would definitely help to contribute the entire Thai economy, apart from positive growth on Tourism.

Womanise, Detroit of the East (Automotive), Tourism, Shopping Paradise, Casino (Next??)

Smart move!

[bbw]

moral debate aside, it's the direction the whole region is going in. look at singapore's sentosa, macau's reinvigoration.

IMO the best way to do this is to pull in foreign gamblers and keep it high end (more revenues, less crime). but if they really want to make this a draw and make some real money for the country it looks like they are too late. even so, it's doubtful they'll get rid of gambling dens or capture any real revenues from them anyway. if you were a gambler, wouldn't you rather be in a smokey basement? i think that's part of the lure.

[Lifelover]

The coup prevented Thaksin's plan to build the first casino in Thailand. Gordon Brown prevented his plan to build one in Manchester. He seems to be fixated on this idea. He's been back in Thailand only a few days and now we hear this. Any connection I wonder?

The rumour was that all those five star hotels being built in Chiang Mai had received heads up that the first mega casino was going to built there. Now we'll see.

[ilyushin]

Great news! Been waiting for more than 25 years.

[Mobi]

IMHO it will never happen.

The religious lobby will be out in force.

If Thaksin had to back off when he had an overwhelming majority, and every department of government under his thumb, what chance do you think piggy Samak will stand?

Beer Chang couldn't even do an IPO on the Thai stock exchange due to the religious opposition.It's very, very powerful.

It's just the pig pipe dreaming and shooting his mouth off.

[chrislarsson]

Wonderful.

Because we all know what a great job gambling does in making the poor more successful ;_)

And some people even dare to suggest that PPP actually cares about the poor 555555555555555

Ah well, a few more parties, some cheap loans and lots more betting; they will be too distracted/drunk/in debt to worry about life. Kit mahk gor mai dee len huay dee gua woi!

Gambling is legal in most of the world already. Even if it's not a good thing, what's the big deal.

[Prakanong]

Great so they legalise gampling under the guise of 'it happens anyhow so we might as well control/tax it etc etc' now how about taking the same attitude towards prostitution and drugs if legalising gambling is the way forward.... I wonder where the kickbacks are coming from that have instigated this 'initiative'

Not a bad idea!!!

If Thailand was serious about wanting to use casinos as a tourist attraction.. could just ban Thais from entering. Here in Korea most casinos only allow foreigners in. Creates jobs for the locals and money for the country.

There are two opening up in Singapore soon and they are having all sorts of restrictions on locals using them.

[seri thai]

No more MIB raiding baht gambling dens???

Guess Mr T will be building a few casino(s) now.

His friends and family (and a few generals) already have. They just aren't called casinos yet...

Check out Koh Samui and Koh Chang