Friendly Police Officers :-)

[medz]

At a Fullmonn party last year I asked an officer of the

law if he would mind letting me have a picture taken

of him and my spouse.

It took a little while to explain that I did not wish for

him to take a photo of myself and my girlfriend, although

that´d been nice as well. As it seems, it wasn´t one of

the more common things people adress officers about.

For the sake of respect I´ve done a slight editing to the

picture:

[sbk]

Actually, he is not a police officer per say. I believe he is attached to the District Office as a kind of security force.

But yes, there are friendly police --in fact, I find them to be less intimidating than police in the US.

[medz]

Actually, he is not a police officer per say. I believe he is attached to the District Office as a kind of security force.

Ah, that might be it then... some road patrol officer stuck his head into

our cab in BKK and had a look around, grunted something, gave me

the evil eye and left again. I guess it had somethign to do with me

filming a little "Getaway Bangkok" flick, holding my camera onto the roof.

[Martin]

We live just along the soi from the 'amphoe' police station, and many police officers pass our house on their way to the station.

All are friendly, and when a new senior officer is appointed, one of the sergeants asks my wife to take me down to be introduced to him, as "Our Falang".

It makes me feel a bit like a ship's mascot being paraded for introduction to a newly-appointed skipper! (But I accept it in the spirit of good community relations.)

Recently, we had the cremation of a retired senior policeman and the whole force was there, absolutely immaculate. They insisted that I sit with the 'top brass' on the sofas on the front row.

[meadish_sweetball]

I agree, it ain't all bad being a mascot.

[Farma]

Late last year I stopped at traffic lights from a side road entering onto the main highway. The lights didn’t change in the time I would have expected.

A local traffic cop sitting in the police box across the road sauntered over in my direction. I fully expected some made up excuse to extract coffee money from me.

I was pleasantly surprised when told me in broken English to move my car forward so the under road detectors could detect my car and change the traffic lights. I can still see his proud smile as I drove off.

[Thaiboxer]

Last year when I was working for a private school, I was on the way back to campus after a lunch break. The front license plate had fallen off a few days before (shows you how old our car is) and I hadn't had the time to apply for/pick up a new one. As I approached a major intersection, I saw a policeman motion me over to the side of the road. I knew what he was waving me over for and on top of that, there were at least six officers standing there; no way was I going to try handing over 100 baht here! I pretended not to speak any Thai, but the cop was friendly and tried explaining to me that I would need to go pick up my driver's license at the local police station and pay a fine (standard procedure). An older, higher ranking cop came out of the police box and spoke to me in pretty decent English. I told him that I was a teacher and where I worked. He then told me to just go get the new license plate at which time he told the younger cop to give me back my license. The boss then shook my hand and sent me on my way. No hassle, and no tea money required.

[Backpack_thailand]

Friendly Police Officers ??

Mmmm!

[kayo]

Best thing is to get a good relationship going with the cops before you need them. It´s helped me out of minor binds before, and when they like you, they´ll help you more. We were friends with the local immigration (helping me to eventually obtain my non imm...) and with the local traffic (helping me to avoid some petty fines) and with the tourist police, which never really helped me much.

i volunteered to teach two hours (twice a week) cadets at the national Training Acdemy in Nakhom Pathom. English for cop related situations. The cadets were not yet defined. ie: they were cop cadets, but not yet split up into immigration, tourist, traffic, etc.... (on a side note; sadly, that whole year group ultimately was sent to the southern troubles).

Quite wesome standing up infront of 500 cadets in one auditorium. Very secretly fun to do role playing where htey are the tourist and I played the prt of the cop.... Hihihih! Got some revenge.

then a local tourist police officer would drive me back to Kan in cruiser and we would go and misbehave.

[thaibebop]

Actually, he is not a police officer per say. I believe he is attached to the District Office as a kind of security force.

But yes, there are friendly police --in fact, I find them to be less intimidating than police in the US.

Our cops are down right scary!

[Thaipwriter]

The cops here in Khon Kaen are first class. Never met a bad un.

They dont speak any English and will not bother engaging you if you do something wrong on the road.

They just wave you away like a bad smell.

[penzman]

I saw a policeman near our shop at about 10 am. I was wondering what he was looking for. We hopped in the truck and he comes over and opens the passenger door Wants a ride to the next corner at the main road, about 200 meters down. I think he watched the World Cup late in the night and slept through in the morning,

Once at the corner, he said thank you and hurried out of the truck, but did stop and smile when I replied with " Mai bpen lai".

[mittheimp]

I remember being in Chiang Mai one Song Gran. Me and wife were walking around the central area - lots of people, booze, and water. We walked past a police tent and noticed a young (21 ish) tourist had been arrested and was shouting his mouth off - completely drunk. He was Irish and was shouting about how much he hated the British!!! He was really out of order and totally offensive to anyone around him - Anyway the officer with him really was trying to calm him down but his English wasnt that great - so he explained to my wife that if he continued like he was he would have no alternative but to cart him off to the nick! So I tried my best - oh i tried, but he was so drunk he didnt understand the sentence - 'shut up or youll be spending your next day in a thai jail - they are not nice' - replying '<deleted>~~ the British, its all their fault'. Anyway eventually and very reluctantly he was taken away - the officer sincerely thanked me and my wifes efforts and looked genuinely disappointed when he ordered his men to take him down!

He was freindly i think!

[johnh101]

The best one I ever heard ......

Stopped by the police on the highway for speeding, the guy engages the cop in a thailish conversation in the hope of getting away with it.

"Where you stay" says the cop......."Pattaya", says the guy...

"Same Same Me' says the cop.

"200Baht for fine" says the cop

The guy tries to plead poverty but to no avail he pays 200 Baht.

As the copper turns to go he says to the guy "now you go Pattaya and have a nice cold beer"

"How can I ...you took my last 200 Baht"

The copper turns around and walks back to the car and hands the guy back 100baht.

"I am very sorry, now please go and have a cold beer"

[medz]

Not that I´m a lover of authorities, far from it, but it´s really

refreshing with all these nice anecdotes.

When even coppers show they´re pretty much nice guys,

there IS some hope for mankind in general :-)

[Soundguy]

Name a country with nicer police than here. Better still someone start a poll...

[lannarebirth]

I've met a great many friendly Thai cops, but I've yet to meet any that are worth a shit at being a cop.

[ROFL]

I met a nice policeman at the border. I had gone through the line and then noticed they had only given me one month when it should have been 3. I walked back smiling and apologizing and he took a look at my passport, gave me a smile, a pat on the back and led me to the window.

Now I did get a finger waving from the girl at the counter as she handed my passport back to me.

[ROFL]

Name a country with nicer police than here. Better still someone start a poll...

Walt Disney World.

[alexth]

Name a country with nicer police than here. Better still someone start a poll...

Walt Disney World.

The most friendly cop I've ever came across in Thailand was one that fined me while smiling and not giving me that angry face...it was nice for him for keep it professional. I am sure there are more of them out there and I know that cops aren't that bad, no matter where, yet, my father was one too, I met nice guys but the bad ones....grrrrrrr

[Martin]

I found out about the radar trap, that they sometimes set up on the highway just to the south of us, by getting caught in it!

I didn't realise why I had been waved over; just thought it was a 'looking for drugs' check.

Anyway, as soon as he saw that I was a farang, he asked: "......falang poot thai.....?".

I did my little act: "Phum mae poot thai!", pause, "Phum poot lao nid noi", slight pause "Sip kaem", hold up hands with fingers and thumbs spread out to show that I am trying to say "Ten words".

Cop bursts out laughing and calls his mate over, repeating what I had said (and taking the piiss out of my pronunciation, I think---not that I mind, as I admit it is piiss-poor).

We then have "Where you from?".They mean which country, of course, but (as always) I answer "Amphoe Non Sa-at".

By the time we have got it established that I have a Thai wife (very beautiful, as evidenced by her photo) that I met in Singapore, am Angrit, but regard my baan falang in Non Sa-at as home, have been here ten years, and one of my stepsons is a disc jockey and we have heard him doing his stuff on the local radio station, we have established friendly relations (and they have a bit of gossip to relate in the police canteen), but they think they should get back to boring old work.

So one goes off, leaving the other to point to my speedo and write '147' on his pad and shake his head and say something that sounded like "Take it a bit easier. If you had been a few kilometres further up the road and over the provincial boundary and the Udon contingent had caught you, they might not have let you go with a caution as we nice Khon Kaen lot are doing".

Nowadays, I watch out for the opposite traffic flashing its lights in warning that the trap is operating, and slow down. But they recognise my car and wave me in anyway, just to be friendly and have a chat!

It is not really an oral chat, as it is mostly conducted by waving hands and drawing little pictures on their pad. (I suspect that one of them may be a Trainer and is getting material for his lecture on how much information you can get out of a falang, even though the falang is 'mae poot thai'!!)

[johnh101]

I was stopped for speeding on the Suk Highway. It was the usually smiley banter, the cop telling me how I have to go to the main station in Chonburi to pay the fine, more smiling , laughing, slapping me on the shoulder. I took 200 baht out my wallet and handed it to him, he took it and told me " If I stop you again remind me you paid already. All falang look same to me "

TiT

[The Skipper]

A friend of mine was stopped in Cambodia, asked the officer "what's the problem?"

He replied, "I need beer and cigarettes, give me ten dollars".

[medz]

A friend of mine was stopped in Cambodia, asked the officer "what's the problem?"

He replied, "I need beer and cigarettes, give me ten dollars".

Well, that sure is one heck of a tight spot to be in.

My thoughts go out to all beerless policemen in the world :-)

Edited July 15, 2006 by medz

[kayo]

The best one I ever heard ......

Stopped by the police on the highway for speeding, the guy engages the cop in a thailish conversation in the hope of getting away with it.

"Where you stay" says the cop......."Pattaya", says the guy...

"Same Same Me' says the cop.

"200Baht for fine" says the cop

The guy tries to plead poverty but to no avail he pays 200 Baht.

As the copper turns to go he says to the guy "now you go Pattaya and have a nice cold beer"

"How can I ...you took my last 200 Baht"

The copper turns around and walks back to the car and hands the guy back 100baht.

"I am very sorry, now please go and have a cold beer"

Good One.

Years ago I was up for my first Visa Run, and went across to Cambodia.

Ont he minibus on the way out there, I got my documents and stuff swiped, as all newbies should.

I got to the border (Laem Ngop i think/Koh Khong) and after a futile search of the mini bus went to the thai immigration checkpoint, explaining my situation in simple english.

they were brilliant. Invited me into their little office and shared their lunch with me. Then one guy who was going off duty DROVE me back to Trat, Commandeered an internet shop to lend me a PC (which said immigration copper paid a few baht for) to allow me to cancel cards and stuff. Then after a coffee in Trat, and a convo, he lent me 500 baht to get to the capital, to sort out my documents. On Good Faith I would return.

Four or five days later I did indeed return, armed with some fresh cash, a temp. passport, and paid him back. I was by then THREE days over my original visa.

he invited me back in for another lunch with these guys, had a drink or two together with his chief and the next shift.

After Lunch, I finally got my stamps. He came across with me to the cambodian side, and helped me with the stampy happy cambodians.

Oh! A fairly amusing aside.

They DID charge me the three days I´d overstayed nonetheless. Receipt and all...

[tatom]

I have to agree that the Thai police are the best. Ive had to ask for thier assistance a few times and they were always very helpful and professional.

Also, Ive recieved several traffic citations and fines. Each time I did break the law, but the police, while issuing the ticket, were polite and friendly. Unlike in the US where the cop often is unfriendly and gives an uncalledfor scolding with the ticket. More often than not, the Thai police just tell me to go get my helmet, slow down etc.

My local police chief has become a close friend. He is retired now but we still get together now and then. In all the years Ive known him, he never asked for a thing. In fact, he has given me stuff, plants, etc.

I know they have the bad ones, but Ive never seen them.