Blogger Richard Barrow Tweets Pic Of Corrupt Thai Official

[Slip]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Although, with hindsight Mr Barrow seems to be a bit concerned about the effects of his actions:

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

What's the chance that I will be the one to get into trouble for this? Thai officials don't like losing face & could cause trouble for me.

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

I have this sinking feeling that Immigration will refuse to renew my visa now & they will kick me out of the country :-(

Perhaps because he would much rather NOT fall on his sword and leave Thailand when the amount in question is only 1000 Baht.

[janderton]

Never ever paid any bribe to any official here in Thailand since 24years....

perhaps you did it unwittingly

guess in 24 years you've requested (and obtained) several resident certificates (for driving licences, buy bikes or car): so, tell me, you always get them for free?

I got one free a couple of months ago from immigration.

for free is how should be,

there are no official fees for such document

but i was ALWAYS being asked to pay 200Baht (obviously no receipt) each time i needed one;

friends of mine living in Samui told me they usually pay 600 to get the certificate...

[harrycallahan]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Although, with hindsight Mr Barrow seems to be a bit concerned about the effects of his actions:

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

What's the chance that I will be the one to get into trouble for this? Thai officials don't like losing face & could cause trouble for me.

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

I have this sinking feeling that Immigration will refuse to renew my visa now & they will kick me out of the country :-(

Perhaps because he would much rather NOT fall on his sword and leave Thailand when the amount in question is only 1000 Baht.

Taking pictures of the man and posting them on Twitter is a fairly obvious hint that to him there's a lot more at stake here than just 1000 baht (actually less, about 750).

[villagefarang]

There is also a chance that it was no more than an emotional tantrum. I’ll show him…tweet, tweet!

[Slip]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Although, with hindsight Mr Barrow seems to be a bit concerned about the effects of his actions:

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

What's the chance that I will be the one to get into trouble for this? Thai officials don't like losing face & could cause trouble for me.

Richard Barrow ‏@RichardBarrow

I have this sinking feeling that Immigration will refuse to renew my visa now & they will kick me out of the country :-(

Perhaps because he would much rather NOT fall on his sword and leave Thailand when the amount in question is only 1000 Baht.

Taking pictures of the man and posting them on Twitter is a fairly obvious hint that to him there's a lot more at stake here than just 1000 baht (actually less, about 750).

Fair enough, but to me it comes across more like he reacted hastily without considering the potential consequences. Now his pragmatism has taken over and he is concerned at his actions (or at least their results).

[Greenside]

The introduction to the UK Bribery Act 2010 which makes it an offence for British Citizens to ask for or offer bribes, sums it up excellently.

Bribery blights lives. Its immediate victims include firms that
lose out unfairly. The wider victims are government and society,
undermined by a weakened rule of law and damaged social and
economic development. At stake is the principle of free and fair
competition, which stands diminished by each bribe offered or
accepted.

If you don't care to be held powerless by some petty official demanding payment for something that should be free, then don't try to get away with bunging a traffic cop a couple of hundred baht to avoid a ticket.

If everyone stopped paying, the system would sort itself out but depressingly it's easier said than done.

[Pimay1]

There is also a chance that it was no more than an emotional tantrum. I’ll show him…tweet, tweet!

Those were my first thoughts when I read the article. I found out a long time ago that politeness and non arrogance is the best policy wherever you are and especially in this country. Sure sometimes we get taken advantage of and if it is on a major scale then that is the time to get your drawers in a knot and try to work out an equitable solution. But for small matters we need to consider the consequences of our actions.

[nontabury]

Meh, he will be sued for defamation. End of story.

If the Thai authorities do take him to court for defamation,how do you think this will be reported on twitter,YouTube etc

The Thai powers of B would be well advised to keep a low profile on this case,it could quite easily blow up in their face.

[wineman]

I bought my house here the company way, every year my lawyer charges me 12,000 Bt for preparing the company's financial statement and auditor's report, then sending them on to whoever.

Are these the tax documents being talking about here please?

[Morakot]

^^ It's on Barrow's Twitter account, easy to find with a bit of Googling.

Yep, took about 30 seconds. Google twitter @RichardBarrow

(0.34 seconds) it took me.

[Suffinator]

I write for meebal (dot com) on a regular basis and often feature news on Thai corruption. Never ceases to amaze me the gall of these people. Nice one Richard, keep up the good work, but do be careful, you know how cheap life here can be.

[Morakot]

British Ambassador to Thailand Mark Kent joined Barrow on his anti-corruption movement on Twitter by tweeting: "UK Bribery Act applies to UK citizens overseas. We encourage any UK citizen who is asked for a bribe to report it."

Report it to whom? The local police? The British embassy in Bangkok?

No. It means reporting it to a police officer in the UK who could refer it to the Crown Prosecution Service in England, Crown Office in Scotland, or the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland, depending on the jurisdiction of the officer to whom you have reported this.

The Act has a near-universal jurisdiction, but is not applicable for people who are not British citizens/ residents in the UK, in relation to bribery committed outside the UK. Hence the police officer, to whom you might report this case, will not take up the matter and (hopefully) politely show you the door.

Edited March 12, 2013 by Morakot

[nontabury]

Perhaps Mr. Barrow has an audio recording .....

If he does, and it was made without the officer's knowledge and permission then it is worthless. i believe it is even an offence here to make such a recording.

Wrong,many years ago I was in a Thai court,on some false allegation. I was allowed to present to the court an audio recording of a Thai threatening me and also trying to blackmail me, the judge did listen to it,however because it showed a Thai in bad light, he decided to disregard it.

[bigbamboo]

The introduction to the UK Bribery Act 2010 which makes it an offence for British Citizens to ask for or offer bribes, sums it up excellently.

Bribery blights lives. Its immediate victims include firms that

lose out unfairly. The wider victims are government and society,

undermined by a weakened rule of law and damaged social and

economic development. At stake is the principle of free and fair

competition, which stands diminished by each bribe offered or

accepted.

If you don't care to be held powerless by some petty official demanding payment for something that should be free, then don't try to get away with bunging a traffic cop a couple of hundred baht to avoid a ticket.

If everyone stopped paying, the system would sort itself out but depressingly it's easier said than done.

Wonderful sentiments that all citizens should follow.

You first.

[nontabury]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Cannot agree more with what you say, I find it very depressing to read fellow farangs who seem to have no backbone and are quite content to accept corruption.

[kbvicar]

Yup, defamation lawsuit. His word against a Thai govt official (who will gladly pay out part of settlement to cronies).

They will find against RB, then the govt will not renew visa based on the defamation.

Really quite stupid.

Defamation laws were set up to protect thieves, murders and scoundrals - why does this person think he can buck these laws?

I've met Richard Barrow twice before and he didn't strike me as being the sharpest pencil in the box. Now my impressions are confirmed.

Each time this <deleted> tweets on Twitter he's digging a deeper hole for himself..

[ricardofel]

Imagine this...in Chiang Mai a friend is in the wood furniture business. He had to pay the forestry dept guys 80,000 baht "under the table" to get permits....and then has to pay them 1000 baht per month...same as all the other folks in the wood business in the Baan Tawai area.

[Krataiboy]

While i admire his bravery and stand against corruption, i also find it silly in a number of ways.

To start with corruption is a way of life here, like it or not.

The only way to get things done fast and easy is to pay someone to do it fast and easy.

The amount was rather small, so lets hope he has all his paperwork in 100% order, because rest assured he would be audited in the near future.

Yes some Thai have supported him, but just like with everything else in Thailand it passes by pretty fast.

The next year he will try to renew his visa or WP he may find a number of obstacles, not to mention being refused, as WP and Visa is not granted but up to the discretion of issuing officer.

All those claiming to have never paid any bribes, either too oblivious or talking out of their backside.

It's gutless wonders like you who keep corrupt systems going. Take a leaf out of Barrow's book and learn to be a man.

[trompelemonde]

British Ambassador to Thailand Mark Kent joined Barrow on his anti-corruption movement on Twitter by tweeting: "UK Bribery Act applies to UK citizens overseas. We encourage any UK citizen who is asked for a bribe to report it."

Report it to whom? The local police? The British embassy in Bangkok?

No. It means reporting it to a police officer in the UK who could refer it to the Crown Prosecution Service in England, Crown Office in Scotland, or the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland, depending on the jurisdiction of the officer to whom you have reported this.

The Act has a near-universal jurisdiction, but is not applicable for people who are not British citizens/ residents in the UK, in relation to bribery committed outside the UK. Hence the police officer, to whom you might report this case, will not take up the matter and (hopefully) politely show you the door.

Your last paragraph is not correct. The UK Bribery Act (2010) does cover acts of bribery comitted outside the UK by UK citizens, corporations etc.

Making facilitation payments is also made illegal by this act. This covers so called 'grease' payments to foreign/public officials and is therefore much stricter than US FCPA legislation.

[Pimay1]

While i admire his bravery and stand against corruption, i also find it silly in a number of ways.

To start with corruption is a way of life here, like it or not.

The only way to get things done fast and easy is to pay someone to do it fast and easy.

The amount was rather small, so lets hope he has all his paperwork in 100% order, because rest assured he would be audited in the near future.

Yes some Thai have supported him, but just like with everything else in Thailand it passes by pretty fast.

The next year he will try to renew his visa or WP he may find a number of obstacles, not to mention being refused, as WP and Visa is not granted but up to the discretion of issuing officer.

All those claiming to have never paid any bribes, either too oblivious or talking out of their backside.

It's gutless wonders like you who keep corrupt systems going. Take a leaf out of Barrow's book and learn to be a man.

There are many ways to receive an education. Universities, online learning, turtoring, ect. I have found over the years there is no replacement for the school of hard knocks. When we live in a country such as Thailand where corruption is accepted from the PM, whoever they may be down to the man on the street, this fact needs to be factored into our daily decisions. We either choose to accept it or not. If we choose to accept it to some degree then we can survive and live in this country. As I stated previously acceptance depends on the monetary value the corruption affects us. If it is major and personal then of course we try to minimize it. On the other hand it it is minimal then we have to make a decision is it worth challenging the system and jeopardizing our ability to continue to reside in this country as a guest. Kinda like putting pluses and minuses on each side of an excel spreadsheet and deciding if the risks outweigh the probable outcome.

If you think that someone who thinks through a similar issue and decides to do different that Richard is a gutless wonder then up to you. I personally believe he made the wrong decision in this case.

[FritsSikkink]

This story offers an intriguing way to reduce corruption. Individuals who think they can extract bribes will soon loose their power once they understand they can easily be videotaped and exposed to a wide audience.

There is no proof, so the only thing you get is a defamation lawsuit.

[Morakot]

The UK Bribery Act (2010) does cover acts of bribery comitted outside the UK by UK citizens, corporations etc.

I'm pretty sure it does. See section 12 (2) and (4) http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/23/section/12

Section 12 (2)

(b)a person's acts or omissions done or made outside the United Kingdom would form part of such an offence if done or made in the United Kingdom, and

©that person has a close connection with the United Kingdom.

Section 12 ( 4)

For the purposes of subsection (2)© a person has a close connection with the United Kingdom if, and only if, the person was one of the following at the time the acts or omissions concerned were done or made—

(a)a British citizen,

(b)a British overseas territories citizen,

©a British National (Overseas),

(d)a British Overseas citizen,

(e)a person who under the British Nationality Act 1981 was a British subject,

(f)a British protected person within the meaning of that Act,

(g)an individual ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom,

(h)a body incorporated under the law of any part of the United Kingdom,

(i)a Scottish partnership.

Edited March 12, 2013 by Morakot

[Charlie Cheap]

Good on yer Barrow, but watch your back.

It's comments like this that make me throw up a little in my mouth. "Watch your back"

I hope this guy keeps exposing the people that are extorting and fight the good fight, protest and survive, its that simple!

If more people expose the extortion and corruption it would end.

Break the chain people, don't be a slave to corruption and greed!

if you hadn't noticed, i was encouraging the guy pukebreath

Oh, I get it! You encourage and invoke fear at the same time. Kind of like terrorism I guess, But a more positive approach toward terrorism. That makes perfect sense to me.

[EyesWideOpen]

The UK Bribery Act (2010) does cover acts of bribery comitted outside the UK by UK citizens, corporations etc.

I'm pretty sure it does. See section 12 (2) and (4) http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/23/section/12

This can lead to an amazing concept. Whereby every British citizen here has a laminated copy of this law in both English and Thai. When faced with corruption, simply show the card and claim you cannot possibly comply with the demand for money due to the fact you would have to report the act of the Thai official to British authorities..... Pretty cool. Does America have a law like that?? Edited March 12, 2013 by EyesWideOpen

[Morakot]

The UK Bribery Act (2010) does cover acts of bribery comitted outside the UK by UK citizens, corporations etc.

I'm pretty sure it does. See section 12 (2) and (4) http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/23/section/12

This can lead to an amazing concept. Whereby every British citizen here has a laminated copy of this law in both English and Thai. When faced with corruption, simply show the card and claim you cannot possibly comply with the demand for money due to the fact you would have to report the act of the Thai official to British authorities..... Pretty cool. Does America have a law like that??

Yes, kind of:

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) (15 U.S.C. § 78dd-1, et seq.)

But it's limited to bribing foreign officials by US citizens/ residents and does not cover US citizens/ resident accepting bribes themselves, I think.

Edited March 12, 2013 by Morakot

[Charlie Cheap]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Cannot agree more with what you say, I find it very depressing to read fellow farangs who seem to have no backbone and are quite content to accept corruption.

Totally, I couldn't agree more as well.

It's so sad and pathetic watching foreigners cower.

[wilcopops]

Richard Barrow being different to you doesn't equal Richard Barrow being stupid.

Richard Barrow lives by his own principals.

If Richard Barrow would rather be made to leave Thailand than bow to corruption then it makes sense for him to have taken this action. I personally find it easy to understand why a person might take that stance.

I'll bet some of you are just criticizing him because his actions here have proven himself to be the better man.

Cannot agree more with what you say, I find it very depressing to read fellow farangs who seem to have no backbone and are quite content to accept corruption.

Totally, I couldn't agree more as well.

It's so sad and pathetic watching foreigners cower.

Hear! Hear!

[NanLaew]

youngXpat, on 12 Mar 2013 - 03:37, said:

NanLaew, on 12 Mar 2013 - 03:33, said:

Haydn, on 12 Mar 2013 - 01:16, said:

Next time I go to do 90 day reporting I am going to take a camera --Last week I saw a farange police volunteer take a passport with 500 bt in it from a farange at the door ,---jump the queue of about 40 people waiting for the 90 day reporting at Soi 5 Immigration Pattaya and get that passport checked and paper stamped straight away

You have personally witnessed how your regular Pattaya Immigration grind can be blissfully reduced to a few minutes and you want to bring a camera next time? Try 500 baht <deleted>!

Agreed.

And you are p***ing and moaning about 500bht to save you a long wait?

Not pissing and moaning about anything. Just wondering why you don't use the 500 baht bung as well. Unless that's a bit expensive for you of course.

[aboctok]

Do not you realize this officers family wwill now starve on his regular salary

Really? I don't think so.

Sure, the Thai wage is much lower than ours but starving is a little bit of an exaggeration. He's working for the government so he's actually got an alright wage for a Thai national.

Do you not realise that dry humor is not yet extinct? The post makes perfect sense to me!

[hmj]

Slip #124

Slip quotes Mr Barrow "I have this sinking feeling that Immigration will
refuse to renew my visa now & they will kick me out of the country."

No chance, because immigration is extremely worried about being considered
corrupt. Immigration goes by the book. If Mr Barrow qualifies, he will get his
visa. Reference: personal communication with a captain of the immigration
department.