Taiwan, Thailand join hands to fight crime

TAIPEI, Jan 17, 2013 (AFP) - Taiwan and Thailand signed a crime-fighting agreement on Thursday aimed at curbing a growing number of cross-border scams and other crimes, Taipei officials said.

"This is a milestone in police cooperation. We can achieve better results in intelligence exchange, investigation, coordinated operations, and extradition," said Taiwan's police chief Wang Cho-chiun.

Since 2009, a total of 417 people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in cross-border fraud as a result of joint investigations by Taiwanese and Thai police, according to Wang.

Taiwan has also teamed up with other Southeast Asian police forces to bust fraud, with a record 827 people arrested in 2011 for allegedly running operations in seven countries in the region.

Taiwanese fraud rings have relocated to Southeast Asia in recent years after the island's police joined forces with Chinese authorities to wipe out their operations.

Taiwanese police have said that the crime-fighting agreement it inked with China in 2009 helped lower the island's fraud cases by 26 percent in the following year.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2013-01-17

I wonder what the real reason is for corroborative law enforcement. A warning system perhaps for those with corrupt intention in high places in the Thai elitist system or wearing a uniform or simply those who act as early warning scouts? The amount of corruption locally is so rife I hardly think international co-operation is high on the agenda unless it has its own (hidden) agenda.

I hope the Taiwanese count their fingers after joining hands

We can achieve better results in intelligence exchange

So Taiwan will provide intelligence in exchange for.......? Rice?

Not for rice....but may be able to accept large amounts of currency should the need arise on occassions

No love lost between China and Taiwan. Thais holding hands with the Taiwanese probably is meaningless since it was probably the Chinese that controlled lowering crime traffic between Taiwan and China motivated Taiwanese gangsters to move south to Thailand.

How do you get a "border" out of two countries separated by an ocean? Cross-border?

If I read this right, and the reporter did not put it into so many words; then what is really being said is...

1. The Taiwanese crime syndicate has spread onto the Southeast Asian mainland and infiltrated Thailand

2. The Taiwanese have asked permission to come to Thailand to catch their own?

3. The Thais have agreed to this on the condition that: When the bad guys are caught, the Thai Big Wigs will come out hiding from behind their desks get to stand front and center for the photo ops and have their names lovingly and auspiciously plastered all over the news for "showing those backwoods Taiwanese how to get down to business".

4. The Thai police will play the passive role of answering questions erroneously, entering data incompetently and presenting reports which mean nothing.

5. The Taiwanese will do all the work and go away without any recognition.

Am I reading this right?

Otherwise, this article is really mucked up.

Edited January 18, 201313 yr by cup-O-coffee

Taiwan has long been a favoured destination for Sino-Thai criminals on the run. They hide out there until the statute of limitations expires then return to Thailand free and without fear of prosecution.

One such high profile case was Raluek Leekpai, former PM and Democrat Party Chairman Chuan Leekpai's brother, who fled there after allegedly embezzling millions from a Thai bank.

Kind of like the caped crusaders Batman and Robin.

In my humble opinion it would be much more effective to join hands with some states in Africa and the Middle East.