Thai Police officer clarifies 'tourist-beating' video

[slipperylobster]

Many comments in the website, and other social network sites, berate the Thai nationals for their aggressive behaviours against the tourists.

This part we know is basically true

While the trio was waiting for a bus in front of the bus company office at the scene, the Bahraini woman reportedly talked to a Thai man, and her newly married husband became angry and started trashing the bus company office.

This bit is a bit which is hard to believe, but Pol.Col. Suwat has his result, blame the farangs and make a bit of money on the side...

All is good in la la land for quality tourists

Surely they jest. Why would any lady want to flirt with a Thai man?

[rezbin]

They really need to fine more than 200 baht if the police ever wish to control the ever present urge to fight that most Thai males have.

Sent from my iPhone 5s using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[stickylies]

true. when u get into trouble with thai, as a farang, even when u have been living here longtime, u will not get the same "support" (justice) as in your home country. but if some lower-end thai gets into some problem with higher-end thai, the same happens. it's NOT xenophobia perse, it's much more complex. my neighbour hates it that some prices are more expensive for farang, he doesn't like the attitude BUT will never openly speak up about it. THAI RAK THAI.

[scorecard]

200 baht Vs 5000 baht and all said with a straight face. Scum.

Did you read the whole story. The 5,000Baht fine was for damage allegedly caused to an office and the story mentions that the tourist husband got angry and trashed a bus office because someone spoke to his wife.

[Soutpeel]

The overcharge story is also strange. And I have seen tourists from Muslim countries which were very aggressive and always the Thais tried to calm it down.

But as we have seen in the other video we have seen a taxi driver take a samurai sword to someone over a very small amount of money as well....so would you consider this as "calming" a sitiation down as well ?

We have seen jet ski operators point loaded firearms at people over "damage" to a jet ski

etc etc

[stickylies]

and in addition to what i wrote above. my neighbour does NOT LIKE this thai-thing. he tells me everyday he envies the farang way. the guy is in his late 50's and has been bowing all his life. no justice for him either, only a life of serving and wai-ing. the peter principle abounds in thailand. his "superiors" are a joke, arrogant and ignorant people, but they have connections and a bigger wallet.

Edited October 14, 2013 by stickylies

[gopis108]

Disgusting all around-the pacifist Buddhists making a mockery of their religion once again-perhaps they should try following Lord Buddhas advice for a change and stop killing and eating animals because violence begets violence-Thais love eating flesh like animals do and often behave worse than animals.Partially perhaps,they do this non-sense violence because it is useless to call the police so they do it themselves-the police apparently will only come after the fact to extract money from whomever supposedly has the most-no matter the circumstances,.really ugly and stupid.These are the facts about Thailand which come out after one has lived here for awhile but they make one think about going elsewhere as well.

[samjaidee]

I witnessed a dispute at a Thai owned business and the farang (very polite) demanded the police come to help settle the issue. The Thai manager went across the street and spoke to a policeman in a motorbike.

The police sent 6 motorbike taxi drivers instead and stood nearby.

Hoping to escalate the incident into a fight ....and make a few bucks?

I saw what was happening and spoke with the farang, explaining the police were not coming until the gang of Thais beat him to a pulp, then taken to jail to pay 10,000 or 20,000bt fine.

Maybe you'd like to finish your story. What was the final outcome? Please don't leave us on tenterhooks.

[mauGR1]

I have never had a problem with a taxi driver, tuk-tuk driver, or motorbike taxi when we settled on the business beforehand. If a taxi driver fails to start the meter, then I get out immediately. These guys know they can screw you if you negotiate after the trip is made, thus the arguments.

yes I agree , when you confirm the price in advance there cannot be any problems.

Well, not exactly... few years ago, i had a taxi ride from Koh Chang to BKK, and the price of the journey was discussed and agreed.

When we arrived in BKK, the driver asked me 500 B. more than the previously agreed price , and when i tried to discuss it, he started to become aggressive.

I gave him what he wanted, as i thought any other choice could have been more expensive.

TBH, that was the only bad experience i had with a taxi driver in Thailand

[animatic]

Does anyone wonder why drivers in deadly accidents run away and later go to police station. The mob off the leash attitude is a near instantaneous thing, they just snap and go at whomever they think is at fault, no matter if they are or not.

This street fight shows the Thais at their worst. Maybe the Bahrani got angry at his wife being talked to by a Thai man, but his angry words would be enough to set off a Thai man who lost face in front of other Thais, and then the 'us against them' thing kicks in.

Highly unlikely a Bahrani man on his honeymoon would start trashing a bus station office, but highly likely his misunderstood rebuke to a Thai man to not speak with his wife, would set the Thai off as the 'insulted party', even if HIS cultural myopia had caused the first insult in the first place.

Edited October 14, 2013 by animatic

[Xonax]

These scumbag taxi drivers!!!

Just 2 weeks ago I was driving my small Motorbike from Ikea / Mega Bangna headed towards Bangkok. I was in the left lane, as required by law, when a Taxi driver, driving in the middle lane suddenly spotted potential customers on the sidewalk and immediately cut right in front of me and hit the brakes. To avoid a crash, I tried to get around him on the outside, but gently hit the car with a plastic bag (containing a pillow) hanging from my left mirror. Passing the driver I used the horn and called him an idiot. Then he forgot all about the potential customers and drove after me, shouted someting in Thai out of the window and tried to make me stop. I just kept driving, but then he chased me and again threw his taxi around other cars and right in front of me to cut me off, hit the brakes and jumped out of the car. He was a big guy around 30-35 years old and acting extremely agressively towards little old me, so I kept in mind that some Taxi drivers carry guns, knives, clubs or even samurai swords in the cars, which made me decide to try to escape from him. I managed to get around the taxi right in front of me, speed up and luckily escaped from whatever was waiting for me. I was really scared and imagined that I could very well soon be hit by a bullit in my back. Luckily there were lots of cars on the roads, which made my escape possible. Luckily I was very familiar with this particular area, and knew exactly where to drive, to escape this mad taxi driver. The Taxi was one of the most common yellow and green taxis, and unfortunately I only thought about escaping, so I didn´t think about checking the number. Now every time I meet a yellow and green taxi in this area, where I frequently need to go, I fear that it could be this mad taxi driver, who would possibly kill me if he only could get a second chance.

Edited October 14, 2013 by Xonax

[EyesWideOpen]

Someone once told me always be careful in a fight with a Thai. You are fighting to win, he maybe fighting to kill.

Agreed....Have seen this type of video over and over again, with a group of Thais putting the boot to a farang

laying on the ground. So yes , in essence you are in a fight for your life, so act accordingly. So take the closest

attacker, and hurt him badly and quickly. That may at least give some pause to the other 7 attackers..... :-)

Or I guess you could just lay on the ground, try to cover your head, and pray you will wake up in the hospital

as you are kicked into unconsciousness......

[hansnl]

Do Thai people ever fight one on one?

They love ganging up on people 5 6 7 on 1

Fricken animals

Sounds like the tourists had to pay for damages to items that were

broken by their heads as the items were swung at them

Thai justice ...

More proof that 99% of taxi drives in Thailand are the scum of the earth

Would you be very much affronted if I asked you to broaden the scope of your last sentence?

[stickylies]

Disgusting all around-the pacifist Buddhists making a mockery of their religion once again

every manmade religion is a farce, and that includes religions that are claimed not to be religions. just check how tibet was ruled before the chinese occupied it. not exactly a paradise either. but this here has nothing to do with relegion. it's a couple of people acting like pricks. i've met plenty of goodhearted buddhist (and muslim and christian) thai. these people have good hearts and their religion is a side issue.

[Soutpeel]

Many comments in the website, and other social network sites, berate the Thai nationals for their aggressive behaviours against the tourists.

This part we know is basically true

While the trio was waiting for a bus in front of the bus company office at the scene, the Bahraini woman reportedly talked to a Thai man, and her newly married husband became angry and started trashing the bus company office.

This bit is a bit which is hard to believe, but Pol.Col. Suwat has his result, blame the farangs and make a bit of money on the side...

All is good in la la land for quality tourists

Not hard to believe if you have Bahraini husband who smashed a CCTV camera in front of his hotel room. he accuse that the hotel is spying on his wife when she opens the room door to put out the plates. They paid for the damaged camera. " blame the farang " no no no. We should "blame the Thai" for putting up the CCTV in the hotel room corridor and "blame the Thai " for not running away when Bahrain women/ girl talks to you. ( I am not thai ) .

Same person ? when did this happen ?...

[Newguy70]

That is the poorest attempt of breaking up a fight that I have ever seen in my life.

However, I do believe that the more videos posted onto Youtube regarding corruption, violence etc. in any country, can only help in the long run.

[Soutpeel]

Always find the anti Thai hate stuff a bit tiring. Dealing with tuk tuk, motocyke and taxi drivers is simple. AGREE ON A PRICE BEFORE YOU LEAVE, then pay as promised, throw in a small tip if you can.

Westerners in Thailand tend to see things from a Western perspective, why not try putting on the other guys shoes for a second. He has a family, he works long hours often 7 days a week, he deals with drunk, angry trouble makers (many times farang) often. Be polite, learn a bit of the language, work out a deal before hand and then you'll have no problems, no fights, in fact the exact opposite you can have a nice conversation, and learn a bit about another persons life.

I have spent about 3 years in Thailand, taken hundreds of Taxis, motorcykes and tuk tuks...never once has there been an argument about money. Treat people with kindness and respect, work out the price before you depart and your good as gold.

Thank you for such an insightful post based on your many years experience of Thai Cultural norms...

[h90]

The overcharge story is also strange. And I have seen tourists from Muslim countries which were very aggressive and always the Thais tried to calm it down.

But as we have seen in the other video we have seen a taxi driver take a samurai sword to someone over a very small amount of money as well....so would you consider this as "calming" a sitiation down as well ?

We have seen jet ski operators point loaded firearms at people over "damage" to a jet ski

etc etc

yes one taxi driver takes a samurai sword doesn't make this story less strange.

Strange doesn't mean it didn't happen.

[UncleJ]

I witnessed a dispute at a Thai owned business and the farang (very polite) demanded the police come to help settle the issue. The Thai manager went across the street and spoke to a policeman in a motorbike.

The police sent 6 motorbike taxi drivers instead and stood nearby.

Hoping to escalate the incident into a fight ....and make a few bucks?

I saw what was happening and spoke with the farang, explaining the police were not coming until the gang of Thais beat him to a pulp, then taken to jail to pay 10,000 or 20,000bt fine.

Maybe you'd like to finish your story. What was the final outcome? Please don't leave us on tenterhooks.

He hadn't noticed the Thai taxi gang ready to pounce until I pointed it out. He took my advice and let it go.

He was waiting for the Tourist Police that he thought were coming...

The dispute was over the farang stating he got the wrong change for a 1,000Bt note.

All he asked for was the security video directly above the cashier confirm his claim. He was very polite but insisted. (German)

The manager got to keep the guys money....then gave free ice cream to the taxi thugs as a reward.

[stickylies]

the problem is thai people are NOT interested to understand farang attitude unlike us westerners who have to accept other nationalities and customs/behaviour in our country. u come here u play by the rules. note that many of the same people on TV who complain about the thai also complain about "those arabs" in their homecountry and how they don't assimilate/speak the language/etc.

[H1w4yR1da]

Please don't post some BS chart rating Thailand as most racist or violent.

Enough of the Thai-apologist BS already!

How many of these incidents need to happen before you guys take your head out of the sand?

[robblok]

These scumbag taxi drivers!!!

Just 2 weeks ago I was driving my small Motorbike from Ikea / Mega Bangna headed towards Bangkok. I was in the left lane, as required by law, when a Taxi driver, driving in the middle lane suddenly spotted potential customers on the sidewalk and immediately cut right in front of me and hit the brakes. To avoid a crash, I tried to get around him on the outside, but gently hit the car with a plastic bag (containing a pillow) hanging from my left mirror. Passing the driver I used the horn and called him an idiot. Then he forgot all about the potential customers and drove after me, shouted someting in Thai out of the window and tried to make me stop. I just kept driving, but then he chased me and again threw his taxi around other cars and right in front of me to cut me off, hit the brakes and jumped out of the car. He was a big guy around 30-35 years old and acting extremely agressively towards little old me, so I kept in mind that some Taxi drivers carry guns, knives, clubs or even samurai swords in the cars, which made me decide to try to escape from him. I managed to get around the taxi right in front of me, speed up and luckily escaped from whatever was waiting for me. I was really scared and imagined that I could very well soon be hit by a bullit in my back. Luckily there were lots of cars on the roads, which made my escape possible. Luckily I was very familiar with this particular area, and knew exactly where to drive, to escape this mad taxi driver. The Taxi was one of the most common yellow and green taxis, and unfortunately I only thought about escaping, so I didn´t think about checking the number. Now every time I meet a yellow and green taxi in this area, where I frequently need to go, I fear that it could be this mad taxi driver, who would possibly kill me if he only could get a second chance.

That is why I don't drive on the left as supposedly required by law, its one of the most dangerous lanes. Taxi's and minivans and even busses cut you off all the time. I rather stay on the other lanes and go as fast as that lane is going and get fined once in a while then to go back to the most left lane where I am certain to have an accident and have to avoid stuff all the time.

[onni4me]

Oh, these loving caring and wonderful Buddhist people. Always smiling and taking care of every whim and fancy of yours. They are so wonderful, warm and skillful, so professional in their conduct.

How can this happen? It must be a disgusting degenerate Farang who deserves to be beaten to death since he refused to hand over his assets to these second-to-none people. I must say, throw this kind of honeymoon travelers to jail and let them rot there.

BTW, I have not taken a taxi or tuk-tuk in about 8 years now. Have my own car and motorbike. Saved a lot of money and hassle doing it myself. Can recommend. If drinking, I simply ask some of my relatives to give me a lift. They do it without asking me any donations or beating me up on my rude behavior.

God (or Buddha?) bless them!

[Pib]

From the audio it sounds more like a cat fight (I.e., females fighting) than anything else....and the fight was pretty much summed up at around 1:18 into the video clip where a guy can be heard saying, "Money, money, money, good money here." So sad there were so many bystanders, Thai and farang, that did little to nothing to stop the fight...sad statement to our current day society.

[chooka]

I have never had a problem with a taxi driver, tuk-tuk driver, or motorbike taxi when we settled on the business beforehand. If a taxi driver fails to start the meter, then I get out immediately. These guys know they can screw you if you negotiate after the trip is made, thus the arguments.

yes I agree , when you confirm the price in advance there cannot be any problems.

Well, not exactly... few years ago, i had a taxi ride from Koh Chang to BKK, and the price of the journey was discussed and agreed.

When we arrived in BKK, the driver asked me 500 B. more than the previously agreed price , and when i tried to discuss it, he started to become aggressive.

I gave him what he wanted, as i thought any other choice could have been more expensive.

TBH, that was the only bad experience i had with a taxi driver in Thailand

Similar thing happened to us last Thursday, My wife and her friend organised a taxi at Don Muang to Pattaya (Ambassador City) I waited with our 5 yr old and luggage, the negotiated price was 1,600 baht when we arrived the price was suddenly 2,500 baht the increase was due to myself being a farang and the wife didn't inform the driver I was a farang. Just glad he didn't demand a seat wear and tear on top of it. We just paid. The wife tried to give him a mouth full which set him off.

[robblok]

I have never had a problem with a taxi driver, tuk-tuk driver, or motorbike taxi when we settled on the business beforehand. If a taxi driver fails to start the meter, then I get out immediately. These guys know they can screw you if you negotiate after the trip is made, thus the arguments.

yes I agree , when you confirm the price in advance there cannot be any problems.

Well, not exactly... few years ago, i had a taxi ride from Koh Chang to BKK, and the price of the journey was discussed and agreed.

When we arrived in BKK, the driver asked me 500 B. more than the previously agreed price , and when i tried to discuss it, he started to become aggressive.

I gave him what he wanted, as i thought any other choice could have been more expensive.

TBH, that was the only bad experience i had with a taxi driver in Thailand

Similar thing happened to us last Thursday, My wife and her friend organised a taxi at Don Muang to Pattaya (Ambassador City) I waited with our 5 yr old and luggage, the negotiated price was 1,600 baht when we arrived the price was suddenly 2,500 baht the increase was due to myself being a farang and the wife didn't inform the driver I was a farang. Just glad he didn't demand a seat wear and tear on top of it. We just paid. The wife tried to give him a mouth full which set him off.

If i were you (and there was no kid real important difference) I would not have paid I would have given 1.600 and that is it.

[Straight8]

200 baht Vs 5000 baht and all said with a straight face. Scum.

Did you read the whole story. The 5,000Baht fine was for damage allegedly caused to an office and the story mentions that the tourist husband got angry and trashed a bus office because someone spoke to his wife.

What did you expect the Thai officer to say? That the damage was done by the Thai's but we are just finding a way to rip these tourists off...

Well he is an officer of the law, so he must be telling the truth.. my bad!!!

[maengda]

Please don't post some BS chart rating Thailand as most racist or violent.

Enough of the Thai-apologist BS already!

How many of these incidents need to happen before you guys take your head out of the sand?

Poor you. Were you once victimized too??

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[robblok]

Please don't post some BS chart rating Thailand as most racist or violent.

Enough of the Thai-apologist BS already!

How many of these incidents need to happen before you guys take your head out of the sand?

Poor you. Were you once victimized too??

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I guess your a Troll... considering what your name means.

[KRaymond]

What ever the cause of fight, I wouldn't find anything proud in winning a fight such as in the video. Stupid cowards and stupid officials that just can't make better excuse.