Rumours of drug abuse among Thai workers in Israel dismissed

BANGKOK: -- The Labour Ministry has dismissed rumours that more than half of the Thai workers in Israel are drug abusers.

"Only a few Thais living there have drug problems," Noppadon Kannika said Tuesday in his capacity as adviser to Labour Minister General Surasak Kanjanarat.

About 25,000 Thais are working in Israel and most send money back to their families in Thailand, Noppadon said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Rumours-of-drug-abuse-among-Thai-workers-in-Israel-30250495.html

-- The Nation 2014-12-23

" The Labour Ministry has dismissed rumours that more than half of the Thai workers in Israel are drug abusers."

So it means only 49% are.

" The Labour Ministry has dismissed rumours that more than half of the Thai workers in Israel are drug abusers."

So it means only 49% are.

You forget we are talking about a ministry. Less than half equals 80 %

That was quick. No need to investigate

OK lets get this right, less than 50% are drug users. and the other 50% are sending money home. Hmmmmm, no dealers hmmmmm

Who cares if they are drug users - as long as they are not causing problems and doing their job. Live and let live.

Who cares if they are drug users - as long as they are not causing problems and doing their job. Live and let live.

Interesting comment

Do the Israeli crime syndicates play a role in this?

Wouldn't know if it's 50%, but yaba been reported to be found more often by Israeli customs and police.

Far as I can tell it was almost always to do with Thai workers, not the general public or the party scene.

A similar story appeared about about a couple of weeks ago on the other newspaper. Also included Thai

authorities intention of introducing mandatory drug use screening tests for foreign workers. A bit different

than outright dismissing the issue.

Wide spread use and addiction; many many workers don't manage to send too much money home; many workers get their money that they put aside as cash , stolen by other Thai workers claiming what is owed to them from loans; Israelis are also involved (second hand info that is pretty reliable and the area suits the claim (Kiryat Gat and Kiryat Malachi in general, several moshavim in specific) envelopes change hands...

i know of several dumb Thai girls that had 'presents' sent to them and in the 'presents' that they received were huge amounts of yaabaa, they were imprisoned, but they didn't even know they were being sent the yaabaa... Thai friends asked if they 'wanted something from back home and if they could receive the packets'...

one of the 'goat gurus' near my kibbutz was sent a package last year with a humoungous amount of yaabaa in it w/o knowing it; the package was for his thai goat herd. the guy was arrested and we (my husband and i ) got asked a zillion questions by my kibbutz (did we know this guy (deny deny) , does my husband hang around with the Thai workers here (not so much anymore)... etc..

All the Thai workers know there are Thai prisoners that are given early discharge if they come to Israel undercover as Thai farm workers to 'sing' to the Thai police; ketoys are na other method, most Thai men know and are very suspicious of new Thai workers, until proven otherwise...

This past year there have been joint efforts indeed in finding the dealers at the airports, dogs being used, suitcases totally taken apart etc... one moshav an hour or so from my kibbutz had some thai guy with a huge lab making yaabaa (with israeli help from some important morroccan family that lives on that moshav... )and was caught (about year, two years , ago) .

We had a friend (hubby no longer speaking with her due to some stupid Thai squabble) who is the court translator for all these thai guys and women, one of a several. an other translator lives near us, he also told us a few wild stories (he translated for hubby in traffic court).

no yaabaa? Right, and there are no tunnels between gaza and israel either... ummm... yeah...

and i absolutely refuse to receive packages for cousins friends brothers etc; and i packed my husband's suitcase, and mine and kept them under lock and key when we returned to israel.

i dont even want to receive packages for us from his family; i dont trust them as for being too stupid and thinking that 'as israelis will say' (li ze lo yikray) (it wont happen to me)>

....of course.....

....only everybody else........

I guess every nationality brings it's own endemic problems with it. Whatever the downsides to Thai labour I suspect they are still far preferable to who lives over the wall.

Perhaps Shlomi's Maurice is back in business selling to the Thai banana workers at Matzuba.

It almost makes one wonder if having a low skilled labor force of foreign workers is nothing more than a front, or an excuse, to engage in these sort of activities. I understand that the labor is cheap, but I also wonder why no one in the area (any local) would not be grateful to have a job to at least support a living and perhaps a family. In the USA a lot of Americans do not want the jobs that the Mexicans take. Is this the way it is in Israel, and what sort of jobs do Thai workers do there... and why not just send them all home if it such a problem? Just curious.