British Ambassador Announces New Honorary Consul For Pattaya

[NancyL]

I've met Bert thru my involvement with the RBL in Chiang Mai and find it to be very open to membership by anyone who supports their aims of assisting British ex-service people. I'm involved with another organization that assists elderly foreigners resident in Chiang Mai (Lanna Care Net) and there has been some overlap and co-ordination of the services offered by our two organizations. That's why I chose to join the RBL and have been glad I did.

See -- they welcome anyone as a member -- even American women!

Bert is a very caring, competent person. I've known him to almost work miracles with some difficult welfare cases and I'm so pleased to see that his skills are now available to the broader British community -- not just those fortunate enough to have served in the British military.

[raro]

Right on Bert! Time to host another party!

[Rimmer]

Two off topic vids removed

[wilcopops]

Asked for info on this guy and have got very little apart from anecdotal endorsements from friends and admirers. I'll check the UK website to see if there is anything there.

Would have thought someone at TV could have found a link to something.

Edited March 1, 2013 by wilcopops

[NancyL]

Asked for info on this guy and have got very little apart from anecdotal endorsements from friends and admirers. I'll check the UK website to see if there is anything there.

Would have thought someone at TV could have found a link to something.

Dr. Google is your friend. He's been pictured in the Pattaya Mail and there is information about his activities in several websites. Admittedly, I haven't found a concise biography or CV, but a few minutes with the results of a google search should tell you the praise is well-deserved.

[LeCharivari]

..... So all you whingers, who can't look after your selves, spare a though for an already busy ex-pat, who does a sterling job for ALL ex forces personnel here, .....

No offence to Bert and no reflection at all on his work with the welfare side of the RBL in Thailand, but neither the RBL nor Bert do anything that reflects on or is "for ALL ex forces personnel here" and I doubt if he would have the temerity to make any such claim.

Comparatively few ex-servicemen living in Thailand are members of the RBL and, conversely and unusually, comparatively many of the members of the RBL here have never had anything to do with the Armed Forces. Many ex-servicemen here have little interest in the RBL in general and many also want to distance themselves from the Thai branch of the RBL for a variety of reasons:

Many ex-servicemen disapprove of the way in which the RBL is openly used as an "attraction" for a privately owned, commercial enterprise (Tropical Bert's). Local RBL halls, which the bar is used as, generate profit only for the RBL, not an individual, and many find this distasteful and an abuse of the RBL (as was a prominent advertisement pinned to the wall in the Consulate). This may well be unavoidable under the circumstances of Pattaya, but profiting even indirectly from a charity is something many find unacceptable.

The British Embassy is supposed to be responsible for the organisation and running of Remembrance Day at the Embassy, as the government is for the service at the Cenotaph in London, but in the last 5 years responsibility for this has been increasingly passed to and accepted by the Thai branch of the RBL with a locally employed (Thai) member of the Embassy staff being responsible for the administration. Not surprisingly with a disinterested Embassy and advice given, however willingly and well intentioned, by someone who took "22 years to rise 1 rank from private" (courtesy lineofentry) supported by an RBL branch chairman who has never served in or with the military a number of mistakes have been made, many of which some ex-servicemen find not only unpleasant but insulting.

Last year (2012) the new Ambassador did not attend his own Embassy's Remembrance Day Service and reception as he had been invited and advised by the RBL to attend a service at Kachanaburi run by the Thai Burma Railway Centre (a private organisation) which the RBL had also been invited to attend (as participants); well intended though this may have been his place was at his own service as the Queen's representative, just as the Queen's is at the Cenotaph and his unexplained absence was as insulting to those there as her absence would have been in London.

In 2011 the Embassy "downscaled" its own service and cancelled any reception due to floods in Bangkok, even though there was no flooding in or near the Embassy; instead the then Ambassador attended the RBL service in Pattaya and was advised that because he was a Muslim he should read an address by the Christian chaplain to the RBL - totally against the military's policy of diversity and equality, ignoring that official Remembrance Day services are multi-faith, that Muslims make up the second largest faith group in the British military (excluding the Hindu Brigade of Gurkhas) and include a Rear-Admiral (the third highest officer in the Navy) and a Muslim imam as Muslim chaplain to the Armed Forces, and that a Muslim imam has attended every service at the Cenotaph since Remembrance Day began in 1919.

Blame for this must go ultimately to the Embassy for failing, as usual, to do the job they are paid to do and instead passing it on to anyone else willing to take it on, but ignorance is no defence and Bert and the Thai branch of the RBL should not have been so enthusiastic to take on something that is clearly beyond their ability and which does affect "ALL ex forces personnel here".

I respect the welfare work Bert does for ex-servicemen and their relatives needing it here, but in no way can he or the local branch of the RBL be said to do anything "for ALL ex forces personnel here".

[LeCharivari]

Berts' roll will involve dealing with relatives of tourists and expats, who die whilst here in the Pattaya area. ....

READ THE BRITISH EMBASSY WEB SITE, before you make any negative comments about his appointment.

Rant over.

No, it will not - whatever else he will or will not be doing, that is the role of the full time consular staff in Bangkok as the Embassy web site and information from the Consul make very clear.

[LeCharivari]

So what qualities does he have that make him suitable for the position of Honorary Consulate?

We've already had one failed appointment, I hope this guy will be more fortunate.

.....

What "qualities" would you expect and for what, exactly?

This appointment has no connection with that done by the previous Vice Consul or the previous two Honorary Consuls other than requiring some local geographical knowledge, nor is there any requirement (or allowance) for him to act on his own initiative unlike his predecessors.

The new British Honorary Consul is not required or permitted to do anything without direct instructions from the Embassy, to give anything other than the minimal level of advice which is readily available on the Embassy website, or to become involved in local issues as other Honorary Consuls regularly do - that much is clear from the Embassy.

Above all he must not do anything for Brits abroad that the Embassy would not do, making the main "quality" required never to do anything wrong by doing nothing at all, while repeatedly maintaining that (like him) the Ambassador and his staff are doing a very demanding job under very difficult circumstances (none of which, unfortunately, he can talk about) and to tell the Ambassador what a superb job he is doing ("sir") and how much his work is appreciated by the silent majority of Brits in Thailand.

.... and which was the "failed appointment"? LB, the last and only Vice Consul, lasted four months after training until she resigned because the Embassy would not transfer her to Bangkok where she could be with her friends. Her predecessor, HM, lasted just over a year until he resigned when the Embassy dispensed with his services by changing his job to a full time position and turning down his application for the post. His predecessor, BK, lasted several years until he resigned, openly (and very honestly) admitting that he had had enough of being micro-managed from Bangkok and repeatedly told that he was doing far more than they approved of or allowed for Brits who needed help in Pattaya. His predecessor, MC, died ....

Judging by how well he already gets on with the Embassy it looks as if BE's appointment has every chance of outlasting any of them.

[LeCharivari]

Great news that a man of relatively humble origins has been given this very challenging honarary post. You must be mad and all best wishes!

I think you're confusing the post now with both the post as it was for the last few years and that of Honorary Consuls of a few decades ago.

The post, as the Embassy has made very clear, is far from "challenging" and his scope is extremely well defined and limited.

Most Honorary Consuls are now of "relatively humble origins" (HM can hardly deny it, and BK would probably be offended by any other suggestion!) and the requirement for them to be socially acceptable over Pimms and cucumber sandwiches is long gone - any suggestion that it may be a leg up some sort of social ladder in Pattaya, of all places, or that such a thing exists except in the imagination of Pattaya's self-styled movers and shakers must be wishful thinking.

[OMGImInPattaya]

Never heard of him.

[stephenterry]

The honoury consul on Samui does carry out documentation services, which is or should be a main function of this post.

[LeCharivari]

The honoury consul on Samui does carry out documentation services, which is or should be a main function of this post.

As he does in Phuket,and obviously in Chiang Mai also (with the help of two full time staff).

[Basset]

Dear all,

Firstly many thanks for your comments, words of support and emails about my appointment as Honorary Consul for Pattaya, it certainly gives me a little more confidence.

I do feel I should correct some inaccuracies and misinformation that has been given out within this thread:

1. I joined the Army at 15 served 3 years as a Junior Guardsman followed by 9 years in the Coldstream Guards, not 22 years.

2. I reached the rank of Platoon Sergeant within those 9 years, not Lance Corporal.

3. With regards to comments about The Royal British Legion, we try to help all those who have served, are serving and/or their dependents that might approach us with a problem, this includes widows and children, 95% of those we help are not members of the Legion.

4. Our membership totals just over 300 of whom 75% are ex – servicemen and women spread throughout Thailand, we also have a Sub Branch in Chiang Mai.

5. Our Pattaya members (certainly not all) meet socially at Tropical Bert’s every Sunday from 2pm, I have never profited from this in that drinks are reduced, free food provided and of course members do not have to attend, we have meeting every 3 months, I recently asked at one of our meetings if we could change our social day to Saturdays as this would help my business (Sunday Lunches), the members did not like this so it remains on Sunday and I lose out on some Sunday Lunches, mainly due to poor renditions of “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary” and worst!.

6. The Royal British Legion have never been responsible for the Remembrance Service at the British Embassy, this is organised by the Embassy and rightly so.

7. Our Branch Chairman served 22 years in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers reaching the rank of WOI, to say he never served is as bad as saying I am someone who took 22 years to rise 1 rank!

8. The new Ambassador chose to attend the service in Kanchanaburi last year as it commemorated 70 years since work began on the Thai/Burma railway, this was the Ambassadors choice.

9. In 2011 the then Ambassador attended the Church Service in Pattaya as there were doubts as to if the service would go ahead in Bangkok due to floods. I arranged for a Muslim Poppy Wreath to be sent over for the Ambassador, he chose to lay a traditional one. I asked him if he had any choice about The Reading for the service, he had none. So as not to offend any faith I contacted the Royal British Legion Chaplin General for his advice, he sent me a Reading that he thought would be suitable and that was read without comment or complaint.

I could go on but I’m sure the majority have got the point, rather than give out false information from sources that are inaccurate how about letting me get on with the job and try and help those who might need it.

As regards my Consular role that is clearly laid out in the original post, I don’t even know myself yet how this position will work out, however given the chance I do promise to do the best I can, I hope the Mods will perhaps allow a pinned thread where I (and other Hon/Cons) can give out any Embassy updates, contact information and so on.

I do not intend to get involved in long debates about what I can or can’t do, Thai Visa is a great tool for the passage of information and that’s how I intend to use it.

Best wishes

Bert

[Rimmer]

Thank you for setting the record straight Bert, I believe on that note we should close the topic up.

//CLOSED//