Loan Sharks Threaten Families, Say Debtors

[george]

Loan sharks threaten families, say debtors

BANGKOK: -- A number of debtors who owe money to illegal lenders yesterday filed complaints with a police division claiming they were intimidated when they could not repay daily high interest rates.

Chicken rice vendor Urai Tembang said the debt collectors working for a loan shark to whom she owed Bt50,000 had threatened to abduct her teenage daughter and make her work as a prostitute to repay her debt, and to beat up and mutilate her husband.

She filed complaints with the Suppression of Crimes against Consumer Protection, along with other Bangkok-based low-income earners indebted to loan sharks. Urai paid Bt1,000 a day to a loan shark in interest, together with daily additional amounts in principal repayment.

A fruit vendor living near Soi Ramkhamhaeng 39 said she had received a threat to burn down her house after she could not pay high daily interest on a Bt23,000 loan. She also accused Hua Mark police of illegally refusing to accept her complaint when she applied to lodge it after being threatened.

Jitkusol Kummaphan, from Udon Thani, said two debt collectors had intimidated her young children and scolded them regularly when she failed to pay money when they showed up.

-- The Nation 2009-11-10

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[Dpolenz]

I have some Thai Loan Sharks that live close to me,and i have heard them In Thai Talking to a Bib Complaining about how much money he have to pay him.Scum {Loan Shark pays of the Bib}

Edited November 10, 2009 by Dpolenz

[Heng]

Yeah, and they probably forced these loans on these folks.

[slapout]

Sounds like someone is trying to welsh on a loan, which they fell behind on, via any means they can.

[steveromagnino]

'Chicken rice vendor Urai Tembang said the debt collectors working for a loan shark to whom she owed Bt50,000 had threatened to abduct her teenage daughter and make her work as a prostitute to repay her debt, and to beat up and mutilate her husband.'

Is it just me or does it seem like the debt collectors intend to abduct the daughter, then make the chicken rice vendor work as a prostitute and then also to make the vendor beat and mutilate the husband?

Now, I am not a graduate of the Chucky Pancamo school of justice, but I would have thought it would make more sense to do the following:

- don't abduct the daughter, that is high overhead and serves no real purpose

- don't make a chicken rice vendor work as a prostitute, she is probably a chicken rice vendor and not a high class escort as a result of bad skin and body shape

- don't make a chicken rice vendor beat and mutilate her own husband, that is probably a good job for the thugs

Then again, perhaps this is not quite what they meant? I really must study how commas work.

Anyhow, easy credit...it's a sad thing when people don't get that they have to pay it back.

Edited November 10, 2009 by steveromagnino

[way2muchcoffee]

Yeah, and they probably forced these loans on these folks.

Oh come on. There are few social supports from the government. Tragedy can strike at any time. The wealthy and landed class refuse to pay laborers a fair wage in order to further line their own pockets. Pure exploitation. So a person or family turns to the only source they can find - a loan shark. Then the interests are incredibly high. So high that they can never make a dent in the principal. Threats, intimidation, violence ensues. The whole system is set up to keep the poor in their place.

I know you do lending Heng, but the way you have described it, you simply require collateral. No collateral = no loan. Fair enough. After reading your posts these last few years, I am confident you will give people every chance to make good on their loans before seizing the collateral. Yes, it is a business, but I imagine you have bent the rules on occasion (to your own financial detriment) when it seemed humane to do so. Perhaps not too often, but when circumstances warranted it. The business you engage in is very different from those who deal in unsecured loans.

Any violence or threats of violence should be dealt with harshly by the police. Sadly this is unlikely, simply because most of the BiB are for sale, and the loan sharks have the means, while the borrowers sink further into poverty and misery.

[TAWP]

The concept of 'fair wages' are a socialist construct based on the belief of entitlement.

You are payed what you are worth. Why would they give higher salaries and decrease the companies profitability and therefor jeopardize its future in the marketplace?

[Rideau]

When some corrupt officials are the top guys in loan shark business, what can you do?

[TAWP]

You call the 'Equalizer'.

[way2muchcoffee]

The concept of fair wages is a humanist principle as well socialist. According to the the principles you espouse TAWP then slavery, bonded labor, serfdom, etc. should be perfectly acceptable as that would increase profitability for the masters.

[TAWP]

The concept of fair wages is a humanist principle as well socialist. According to the the principles you espouse TAWP then slavery, bonded labor, serfdom, etc. should be perfectly acceptable as that would increase profitability for the masters.

You sound like a confused socialist.

Slavery cannot occur in a libertarian world as no-one can force you into doing work against your will. And if you sell yourself (i.e. write a contract) into a job with no pay, it isn't slavery...

The concept of 'fair wages', again, comes from the misunderstanding of what 'fair' means and directly steams from the notion that people are entitled to whatever other people have. If the neighbor has a big TV then you assume your salary should be 'fair' so you can enjoy this too.

The term is subjective, diffuse and used as an emotional and not an economical argument.

[way2muchcoffee]

Well, I reckon we'll have to disagree about human priorities.

Personally, I find fraternity, compassion, and adherence to egalitarian principles, to be a higher level of thought and action, when compared with principles that lead to excess for the few and exploitation of the masses.

Edited November 11, 2009 by way2muchcoffee

[MayBeLater]

For some time I worked at the debt collections department at a creditcard company. In that time I have never met a single person that was 'innocent' for the debts they had. They made a mess and complain afterwards, I hardly ever felt pity. In life we have choices and a fact is some people make stupid choices, up to them, let them pay for it. In all cases the debt came from greed of wanting to have all. If people live for accumilating material posessions up to them, but don't complain when you can't pay your bills.

Same applies in all countries including Thailand. How stupid can you be for thinking you can repay a thousand Baht interest a day!

[pedro01]

I knew a guy a while back in the business. He charged his customers 20% a month.

That 50,000 baht owed may have started out as 3,000 baht - that's the way these things work.

[salty]

For some time I worked at the debt collections department at a creditcard company. In that time I have never met a single person that was 'innocent' for the debts they had. They made a mess and complain afterwards, I hardly ever felt pity. In life we have choices and a fact is some people make stupid choices, up to them, let them pay for it. In all cases the debt came from greed of wanting to have all. If people live for accumilating material posessions up to them, but don't complain when you can't pay your bills.

Same applies in all countries including Thailand. How stupid can you be for thinking you can repay a thousand Baht interest a day!

As an ex banker I would agree that some people should never have credit cards. If they saw a 747 passing overhead they would want to buy it.

On the other hand we are talking mainly about people who have very meagre resources being screwed by loan sharks. Being single and having a good pension I would be very loathe to criticise these poor unfortunate people.

[Heng]

Yeah, and they probably forced these loans on these folks.

Oh come on. There are few social supports from the government. Tragedy can strike at any time. The wealthy and landed class refuse to pay laborers a fair wage in order to further line their own pockets. Pure exploitation. So a person or family turns to the only source they can find - a loan shark. Then the interests are incredibly high. So high that they can never make a dent in the principal. Threats, intimidation, violence ensues. The whole system is set up to keep the poor in their place.

I know you do lending Heng, but the way you have described it, you simply require collateral. No collateral = no loan. Fair enough. After reading your posts these last few years, I am confident you will give people every chance to make good on their loans before seizing the collateral. Yes, it is a business, but I imagine you have bent the rules on occasion (to your own financial detriment) when it seemed humane to do so. Perhaps not too often, but when circumstances warranted it. The business you engage in is very different from those who deal in unsecured loans.

Any violence or threats of violence should be dealt with harshly by the police. Sadly this is unlikely, simply because most of the BiB are for sale, and the loan sharks have the means, while the borrowers sink further into poverty and misery.

I wasn't defending the sharks, I don't swim with them.

My comment was more directed towards irresponsible borrowing that is often just the icing on the cake of living like you want to be poor forever. Tragedy can happen, sure, but it hits like a hammer with folks who have been living life without responsibility (drinking, gambling, partaking in any manner of thousands of fun things you shouldn't be doing if you're poor), and then suddenly just focus on the final sequence of events and blame fate, karma, or worse yet the bank, credit card companies, or money lenders. That's the issue I have with it.