Fearing military, Pattaya rushes to eradicate sin

[Alwyn]

“This is my version of returning happiness to Pattaya town.” Hmmm... Not for the people that like/enjoy engaging with the hookers to get their rocks off I guess? Pattaya was based on the sex industry from the times when the US navy used to land for R&R all those years ago. I personally detest the place but not because of the hookers. I detest the aggressive one that won't accept a "no-thanks" I detest the aggressive and thieving Ladyboys which haunt the beaches after dark and chase people up and down on their motorbikes. The beaches are dirty and in all honesty, not very nice anyway. I stayed in Banglamung for a short while and I enjoyed the bars and eateries, I enjoyed the fishing in the lakes, I enjoyed going into Pattaya and for the go karting, I enjoyed a lot of nice restaurants and a Thai Elvis show! If there was a means to control the working girls with mandatory weekly health checks and counselling, that would be a start. Any of them that are not "registered" get arrested, anybody doesn't show for the weekly health checks gets arrested. Make it all controlled and safer is the answer, not "eradication" because they just pitch up somewhere else anyway. Give the sex tourists what they want and make it safer for all involved.

[moto77]

“We are arresting anyone for whom we have evidence of trying to trade sex for money,” he said.

Hm. I guess they don't know about this small area of town called Walking Street, because it's pretty quiet and mostly undercover, but I suspect this may be happening in 1 or 2 bars there...

[Fullstop]

“I want to completely change the image of Pattaya from being sin city to a friendly town that everyone can enjoy,”

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Lupatria]

That may cut the number of "quality tourists" drastically in the hub of vertical smiles

Edited August 31, 2014 by Lupatria

[globalmedia8]

Shoppers have increased in Central Festival by at least 50%...

where did that figure come from??

[duanebigsby]

I personally have conservative views on prostitution.

I view it as sexually taking advantage of someone in poverty or desperation. Akin to rape in my mind.

I realize that much of Pattaya's revenue my drop off but I don't think that's such a bad thing.

Be innovative and figure something else out that doesn't make you the seediest city on the planet.

It'll take a huge clampdown to accomplish anything in cleaning up the sex trade in Thailand.

ok, let the "you pay for it anyway comments" start

[andre47]

...adding he was aiming to totally eradicate street prostitution. “This is my version of returning happiness to Pattaya town.”

I don't think that this aim will have any (good) influence on happiness...

[kennypowers]

social welfare. most of the women on the beach are unemployed solo mothers, pretty much similar to the people at the welfare office where I come from, and pretty similar to the streets of Victorian London before welfare

Spot on.

And the majority of women working the bars are uneducated, single mothers too. Most will have not finished high school, have been married with kids by 18 and divorced/separated by 19, left with a kid or two and parents to provide for.

This is the reality.

If they want to clean up prostitution they need to look at providing social welfare and child care while mothers return to further education/vocational courses/back to work schemes.

Of course, you will never eradicate prostitution, but there is lots that can be done to provide better opportunities for marginalised women.

[jacksam]

Maybe bit unrelated but i type this from Hua Hin. One of my favourite get aways from bkk.

Point is they have made it sterile. One example.....the walkway down to beach used to have tables umbrellas food drink etc.

Now its a barren nothing.

In the past we would walk way past all the lay back chairs to what we called "regee bar" magic spot few tables and friendly thai guys bringing you a leo for 70 baht. Guess what...GONE.

My gf loves the current political situation and gets sulky when i talk about all these crackdowns.

I left victoria , Australia, because we call ourselves the NANNY STATE. Far too many rules and regulations.

Thailand is heading down same path. I love living here and rarely criticize a country that i am not from.

Who said ...."be careful what u wish for"

[Stokakrishna]

nothing will shake off the “sin city” tag ,

especially not Pattaya's officials

[slygeeza]

“I want to completely change the image of Pattaya from being sin city to a friendly town that everyone can enjoy,”

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

You'd think they'd know by now you can't turn a ho into a housewife. Pattaya with no adult entertainment would not turn into a family town but into a ghost town.

it already is a ghost town, its only Bangkokians coming down to shop at central in the weekends thats keeping it going at the moment

[loongdavid]

Isaans economy will take a big dive!

I'm very interested to know why? Surely not based on the widely held but erroneous belief that the majority of street girls come from Isaan (statistics please). Poverty may be widespread in Isaan but the morals appear to be a lot higher than the majority of Thailand.

[petercool]

troll and derogatory posts removed

[kennypowers]

I just told my wife and she laughed. What about the Issan girls? They not make money selling beer?

My wife’s other comment, was that all the stupid farang go there.

At some point this middle class dominate value will find resistance.

Some of the legal activities need to be cleaned up, but to eradicate what has provided many a income for many years will not make everyone happy.

It's that kind of regional prejudice that perpetuates the negative stereotypes that unfairly tarnish hard-working, honest, beautiful people with the wrong brush.

What about the North girls? The South girls? The Bangkok girls? There are prostitutes from all over Thailand.

The majority of working girls in Pattaya are from Isaan, but then the Isaan region pretty much makes up for half of Thailand's population (26 million odd people). So it's somewhat disproportionate.

The large majority of Isaan women are disgusted by what they hear about women selling themselves in Pattaya and other tourist destinations. If you know anything about Isaan-Lao culture, you'll know of the reserved, frigid approach that surrounds intimate interaction.

When I lived in Samui and Chiang Mai, I met girls selling sex from all over Thailand, many from the south and places in the north like Lampang and Chiang Rai.

Bangkok has some of the worst poverty in Thailand, see Klong Toey slum for reference. Where there is poverty and poor women with kids to support you will find prostitution, drug abuse and alcoholism.

Edited August 31, 2014 by kennypowers

[rwhoov]

If they really wanted to make Pattaya a "friendly" town they could enforce the parking regs so traffic could actually move. Having the meter taxis use their meters would be an improvement, also. Ending prostitution? Anywhere in Thailand? Ha, ha.

[slygeeza]

Isaans economy will take a big dive!

I'm very interested to know why? Surely not based on the widely held but erroneous belief that the majority of street girls come from Isaan (statistics please). Poverty may be widespread in Isaan but the morals appear to be a lot higher than the majority of Thailand.

maybe they are lying but 90% of them will say they are from Issan. not that I have interrogated all of them. where do you think they are from?

[thailand49]

It will never happen period! eradicating sin would mean eradicating all the establishment that provide for such services which in turn provide all the people who want to eradicate sin with their major income!

[dunks]

Isaans economy will take a big dive!

A big dive to what? Something lower than your IQ?

To something even more negative than your negative, low quality retort. If you could even call it that!

Is it time to Invest in Ban Chang?

In what regard?

I am assuming that Khun Kiniyow meas in the classic sense of the word. I.e. invest money for the purposes of making a profit. Please correct me if I am wrong KINIYOW.

[jacksam]

social welfare. most of the women on the beach are unemployed solo mothers, pretty much similar to the people at the welfare office where I come from, and pretty similar to the streets of Victorian London before welfare

Spot on.

And the majority of women working the bars are uneducated, single mothers too. Most will have not finished high school, have been married with kids by 18 and divorced/separated by 19, left with a kid or two and parents to provide for.

This is the reality.

If they want to clean up prostitution they need to look at providing social welfare and child care while mothers return to further education/vocational courses/back to work schemes.

Of course, you will never eradicate prostitution, but there is lots that can be done to provide better opportunities for marginalised women.

I agree with Kenny. Yes I met my gf in bar in bkk. Only strange thing is she was not born in Issan but bkk.

Had a roll in hay at 15. Baby daughter. Daughter had thai bf at 15. Guess what.....yes correct. My gf is a grandmother at 30.

Mind u she is one of the most intelligent ladies i have met in my life. Thats saying someyhing from the mouth of 60 yr old.

Point is some aspects of their education needs to become a focus.

Few months ago i had to return to AU for few weeks. My gf (yes the one i referred to as so clever ) stopped taking contraceptive pill. I returned we shagged a bit. Then she comes out with this....."teerak i no take pill while u Australia. But no you worry, i take today so we no have baby, trouble you"

I sat down and openned a leo, looking skyward to Buddha

[Oziex1]

This conjure up memories how Cardinal Sin and the mayor of Manila cleaned up Eremite

and the Malate districts of all the hundreds of bars there in one fell swoop. that have resulted in massive

unemployment and significant drop in tourists to manila..

The same going to happened here, massive drop in tourism and even bigger drop in real estate

and hotel occupancy rates, let see if the new PM have big enough balls to take the Pattaya's

godfathers on.....

Pattaya's godfathers, well he has taken on Phuket, Patongs king pins.

Also we here at TV have this fixation about tourism as though it is the be all and end all of Thailand, the new keepers of Thailand will push through their reforms with or without tourists and the assorted foreign riff raff.

[phuketlive]

The bars are fun in pattaya but the streets look too dirty! so is the beach...

[slipperylobster]

Prostitution, it is the oldest profession in the world.

If they want to reduce it (they will never eradicate it), they need to look at the root causes and eradicate poverty, and the root cause of that in Thailand is corruption.

That would work, as for as the poor prostitutes are concerned. How would they deal with the wealthier ones?

Edited August 31, 2014 by slipperylobster

[Maroon Watcher]

Quality Tourist destination - wanna bees, should follow the lead....

BUT Most Tourists come to Thailand for SEX - to varying degrees of intensity and er... "choice"

And here's the wake-up call they also come because Thailand is Not Normal.

On a quiet night in Patayya there are 20 tour coaches waiting for passengers to return from Walking Street -

the tourists are not there for the walking...

[brewsterbudgen]

We are arresting anyone for whom we have evidence of trying to trade sex for money, he said.

Hm. I guess they don't know about this small area of town called Walking Street, because it's pretty quiet and mostly undercover, but I suspect this may be happening in 1 or 2 bars there...

Any Walking Street bar that allows prositution to take place on the premises is asking for trouble. That's why the barfine was invented. All perfectly legal and a nice Thai solution.

[charmonman]

I think the headline on this article is a bit of an overstatement. More like "Fearing Military, Pattaya rushes to temporarily reduce street prostitution by ladyboys"

[HOOD Robin]

Good. These corrupt people will only act when someone stronger forces them too. Gotta love ot when the army cuts through the red tape and corruption and orders them to do their jobs!

Cant wait to see the military starting the CLEAN UP in Pattaya, starting with all those (red) corrupt officials and police officers (let the bargirls take care for their families, but remove those ladyboys and other female hookers from Beach Road for once and always !)

i know, they started already cleaning in city hall and police station... but there is more to wipe out...

Oh and BTW please dont pitty all those poo yai owners of the biggest entertainment places in Walking str as those are probably build with "dirty money"...

If they can do it in Phuket they can also do it in Ptty

[RobertoOzman]

Agree entirely with them removing The LadyBoys from Beach Road. The last few years have seen them taking over the place!... Get them back into Boys Town, into the Soi 6 Bars, and any other Bar that will use their services. Having LadyBoys on Beach Road is like advertising A-I-D-S, and that prospect should not be allowed to 'fester'!..... Get them out of Walking Street, too,.... If they're not working in a club, there!

[Mark601]

Suradit69 you are on point with with your prohibition comment. I am glad we are finally getting rid of the prohibition on Marijuana as well. Prohibition of anything that people will always do is a child's version of morality. We should regulate for public and tax it, not prohibit the behavior.

[Neeranam]

This conjure up memories how Cardinal Sin and the mayor of Manila cleaned up Eremite

and the Malate districts of all the hundreds of bars there in one fell swoop. that have resulted in massive

unemployment and significant drop in tourists to manila..

The same going to happened here, massive drop in tourism and even bigger drop in real estate

and hotel occupancy rates, let see if the new PM have big enough balls to take the Pattaya's

godfathers on.....

This happened on my second night there in 1992 I think.

Eradicating prostitution from Pattaya is a MASSIVE boost for the country's reputation. The only thing I worry about is that the sex addicts who regularly visit or live there spread up to Isarn. Hopefully they will go to that other spiritual mecca called Cambodia, where there exploits are tolerated. This has gone on too long in Thailand.

[96tehtarp]

Let them eat cake, or failing that off to the workhouses factories with them.