Street vendors face jail time for 'occupying' Bang Rak
By Coconuts Bangkok



BANGKOK: -- Dozens of protesting street vendors staged their own Occupy Bang Rak yesterday by sealing government workers inside their own office.

About 30 street vendors could face charges after they locked the gates at the government office in protest of new rules limiting their use of sidewalks near Wat Hua Lamphong to nighttime hours.

They approached the office in the morning to plead their case. After they were rebuffed and cleared away, they came back with a new plan. They just locked the gate and wouldn't let anyone in or out. Later they increased their shutdown to a stretch of the street on Soi Naret.

The vendors say the new rules, which have been rolled out since the coup at locations throughout the city to improve traffic flow, have destroyed their livelihoods as there are no customers at night.

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co//2014/10/03/street-vendors-face-jail-time-occupy-bang-rak


-- Coconuts Bangkok 2014-10-03

If the 'new' rules simply enforce existing laws or regulations, what's the problem?

However, if these people have the appropriate licences for their trade on the streets, they have a case.

A case of following what the PDRC did. However they forgot that it the PDRC has the court support.

Finally! But i bet those people paid somebody to have their shop there. That's why they are protesting now i think.

If the 'new' rules simply enforce existing laws or regulations, what's the problem?

However, if these people have the appropriate licences for their trade on the streets, they have a case.

Do you have in fact ANY idea of how these things work(ed) in BKK? They have no official licence-these do not even exist, but they pay weekly/monthly to the BiBs and consider (like any normal minded Thai would do) as the ''licence, incl. fee, no receipt issued''.

OTOH those pesky vendors are alwys the very first ones to protest if they have the slightest idea that someone might lower their perceived takings- with threats to that even more faught with as actual.

I stepped on their trade several times (yes i got size 13) but they never dared to charge me for that. I like streetvendors though but only if they are not in a walkway or hiking around with their cart.