Crackdown On Homeless, Hawkers In Sanam Luang

[george]

Crackdown on homeless, hawkers in Sanam Luang

BANGKOK: -- After a new Sanam Luang "orderly regulations" regime takes effect from tomorrow, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) tesakit (city police) officials will patrol the area 24 hours a day to deter homeless people from sleeping or selling goods there.

BMA Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra yesterday commented on the Sanam Luang regulations to punish littering persons and prohibit the homeless from sheltering in the area.

The implementation of the regulations will take a year to materialise as the area has many influential figures, he said, citing as evidence that when fairs are held, the area around Sanam Luang is reserved by certain groups to lease to vendors. He said that would be dealt with by legal measures while the longterm solution would be vocational training and assistance from related agencies to the homeless.

Sukhumbhand said he would seek cooperation with Social Development and Human Security Minister Issara Somchai for solutions to the homeless issue after the fiscal year 2010 budget determination is complete.

While Issara said he was willing to work with the BMA on the issue, he believed that it could best be solved by sending the homeless back to their hometowns and having them undergo vocational training.

He said his office was also willing to provide shelter to the homeless upon request.

-- The Nation 2009-08-31

[Briggsy]

Interestingly, there's an admission in there that influential people are above the law. Very common knowledge but seldom openly admitted. These people are rarely named in these statements though.

[DP25]

What they should do in Sanam Luang is get rid of the scammers telling people that the Grand Palace is closed and trying to stop tourists from entering, and getting them to go to tailors or gem shops instead. Easy enough to avoid but a lot of people do no research and get ripped off by them, they do more harm then people selling trinkets.

[Scott]

So the influential people will take a lot longer to deal with even though they break the law.

It's really quite sad.

[animatic]

Of course there are local mafia's controling the street, who expected anything else?

'Influential persons' is code for organized crime bosses most of the time.

If they can slow this down, maybe good can come from it. These are the people

running the scammers, taxi mafia and market stall placement extortionists etc.

Or this is just another way for the bib to make some weekly dosh.

Cynical.

[alstaxi]

I am waiting for a crack down on all these dam crack downs.

[webfact]

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) tesakit (city police) officials will patrol the area 24 hours a day to deter homeless people from sleeping or selling goods there.

I just had a bad dream...

[animatic]

Cracks can be down as long as I am up.

[TAWP]

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) tesakit (city police) officials will patrol the area 24 hours a day to deter homeless people from sleeping or selling goods there.

I just had a bad dream...

Well, with the speed the 'social cleanup' is going with limitations on drinkings, etc, soon a milk bar is the only thing we can find here.

[Losangels]

The hub country of crankdowns

[Hawkup2000]

[Who, me ?]

Maybe another nail in the cof......., well you know what

[caf]

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) tesakit (city police) officials will patrol the area 24 hours a day to deter homeless people from sleeping or selling goods there.

I just had a bad dream...

Well, with the speed the 'social cleanup' is going with limitations on drinkings, etc, soon a milk bar is the only thing we can find here.

Do try to keep up , Tawp.

Are you not aware that a hub is to be established to make Thailand the centre of excellence for milk bars but that it will ensure that the milk is not so strong that it can intoxicate.

[webfact]

Homeless ejected from Sanam Luang

By Mayuree Sukyingcharoenwong

Jeerawan Prasomsap

Daily Xpress

Published on September 2, 2009

Nearly 1,000 homeless people and street hawkers vowed to return to Sanam Luang yesterday after being brushed

aside as part of the Bangkok Metropolitan Admin-istration's (BMA) latest attempt to tidy up the area.

"Sanam Luang is my only shelter in Bangkok," said Somjit, speaking on condition his surname was withheld.

Sanctuary for the poor

The 45-year-old migrant worker from the Northeast said he slept at Sanam Luang whenever he couldn't find a job in the capital.

"Sanam Luang is a place for the poor. There's cheap food, and it's relatively safe because there are so many people around."

Asked about the BMA's attempt to rid the area of homeless people, he said: "I've heard it so many times before. Whenever a new governor takes office, he talks about it."

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a homeless woman in her 50s said she would sneak back to sleep in Sanam Luang because she had nowhere else to go.

'We need assistance'

Noi, a 64-year-old vendor, said the authorities could not simply order people off the ground. "They must offer assistance if they want us to move away," she said.

Another street hawker, Jeab, said she and her husband had plied their trade at Sanam Luang since escaping unrest in the deep South. "We sell used hats and caps here to support our children," said the 41-year-old mother.

She urged the BMA to regulate stalls at Sanam Luang rather than forcing street hawkers out.

Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra explained that it was necessary to clean up Sanam Luang because it was a venue for royal ceremonies. "We need to put a stop to prostitution in the area," he said, adding that the garbage problem and illegal street hawking was also being tackled.

Sukhumbhand said the Social Development and Human Security Ministry would place Sanam Luang's homeless people on its register. "They will be given accommodation or sent back home," he said.

He added that the Labour Ministry was ready to find jobs for them.

As of yesterday, 22 people had registered themselves as homeless at Sanam Luang.

-- The Nation 2009/02/09

[scorecard]

I work very close to Sanam Luang, every morning when I drive past it's totally littered with rubbish and people sleeping everywhere.

Good idea to clean it up, and I'm happy to see that the Bkk governor realizes they need to do the clean up to a one year time frame and help the homeless to get into a different picture, rather then just move them on.

[TAWP]

Noi, a 64-year-old vendor, said the authorities could not simply order people off the ground. "They must offer assistance if they want us to move away," she said.

No, they don't.

Reminds me of when teenagers in Europe squat a building and refuse to move 'unless the [government] builds youth centers for them to hang out in'.

If you are somewhere without permission you have no right to complain about being removed from there.

And in no position to make demands.

[dale8]

Hello, this is a sad story for the poor people as they will not get much help from the Thai government. We can hope that some will get some training to get a good job, but the reality is they will go to a different place to live.

[WaiWai]

he believed that it could best be solved by sending the homeless back to their hometowns and having them undergo vocational training.

The vocational training sentiment is a good one but I am wondering in what form it is offered in these people's hometowns ?

[jasreeve17]

Clearly many of the people here need social support rather than police kicking them off to somewhere else.

A decent percentage of these folk suffer from mental illnesses; with Sirrirat hospital being so profitable and their mental health specialists only a few minutes away perhaps they can help... I get fed up of hearing of so many international hubs, i.e. Health Hub when so many locals need immediate help (and never receive it).

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem. If I said who runs this 'industry' the post would be deleted, but I'm sure most of you can take a guess...

This area is a sad little cameo of present day Thai society: the location and prestige, the powermongers and manipulators, the havenots and poverty.

[madjbs]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem.

Hmm, not sure about that these days, how do you know, what is your source?

Edited September 2, 2009 by madjbs

[jasreeve17]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem.

Hmm, not sure about that these days, how do you know, what is your source?

"What's your source, what's your source???" Um, how about my eyes. Also, I work at the university alongside Sanam Luang; for one of their projects students put together a presentation highlighting the problem - I was pretty surprised (not pleasantly) with what they told me...

[TAWP]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem. If I said who runs this 'industry' the post would be deleted, but I'm sure most of you can take a guess...

So send a PM naming the person.

[mca]

He added that the Labour Ministry was ready to find jobs for them.

Yeah right.....

[jasreeve17]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem. If I said who runs this 'industry' the post would be deleted, but I'm sure most of you can take a guess...

So send a PM naming the person.

What? PM every member on ThaiVisa?

(You're not the full ticket mate; you just like arguing... get a lifewife!)

[mca]

If I said who runs this 'industry' the post would be deleted, but I'm sure most of you can take a guess...

That bloody Thongchai McIntyre! I knew it! Bastard!

[dkstoney]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem.

Hmm, not sure about that these days, how do you know, what is your source?

Great. Now there's going to be a crackdown on farang men lurking around Sanam Luang.

[TAWP]

Lastly, this area has a huge teenage (13, 14 and 15 mostly) prostitute problem. If I said who runs this 'industry' the post would be deleted, but I'm sure most of you can take a guess...

So send a PM naming the person.

What? PM every member on ThaiVisa?

(You're not the full ticket mate; you just like arguing... get a lifewife!)

I was asking you to PM me. You are obviously to afraid to post it, so if you PM me maybe it can be posted anyway...

And thanks for the offer, but I am neither gay or single.

Take care, keep looking and you will find someone with low enough bars eventually.