TIME article prompts Prawit to order probe into Thai police action

[RichardThailand]

Do you think anything will really change? The Thong Lo police boss was already transferred. Maybe one or two more. Some information will be released saying things have been clarified, some transfers, and all be wonderful after the already announced police reforms are implemented.

Business as usual.

I think things are slowly changing. Just have a look at the CSILA facebook page with 423,999 have "liked". When you have almost half a million people reading daily reports on corruption and other problems that a big change from years ago when you'd be lucky to have anyone hear about all this.

[Anthony5]

Don't "solve" it because it's corruption.

Solve it because it damages reputation.

Loving the honesty.

Below is the procedure for solving something that damages reputation.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said yesterday that he had ordered Royal Thai Police chief Somyot Poompanmoung yesterday to scrutinise and deal with the issue.

As in, try to arrest or blacklist the author of the article, who obviously, if you read the TIME report, had a personal bad experience with police in Thailand (attempted drug set-up)?

Or, ban TIME magazine and its website in Thailand????

Those would be the normal ways of "dealing with the issue."

[island hopper]

actions speak louder than words, now it is time to stop all the RTP from collections bribes and exportation for their needs and put the RTP to work as they should have been long time ago.

[billd766]

So this is what it take for the PM to notice the glaring ills of Thailand, an article in a foreign

newspaper, yapp, can't turn a blind eye and sweep it under the rug, now the whole world

knows so let's do something...

meanwhile, the PM is busy with establishing a another floating market and a bike lane... and

oh yeah, freebees to the people...

If it has been going on for a very long time can somebody please explain to me why NONE of the previous governments going back 20 years and more have never been able to stop this?

Equally when the current PM and government attemp to clean the RTP all the anti government posters shout loudly about the persecution and clearing out of the Thaksin appointed senior police. You know the ones that didn't shout when Thaksin appointed family, friends and cronies to the senior police positions. Even when he did nothing changed. Same old under the carpet sweeping went on.

I suppose the PM could always make the police and the governor down there an offer that the couldn't refuse, such as 30 days to stop ALL the corruption and if you don't you are fired and jailed for not doing your job properly. The next layer will be promoted into those jobs with the same conditions. If you run out of policemen perhaps corruption will go down anyway.

I am sure that there are some hard working policemen down in the souths trouble spots who could do with a break.

[kkerry]

Ian Neubauer... probably being added to the immigration blacklist right now...

[Bluespunk]

Hmm, all those previous posts on this issue denying this increase in extortion was going on.......

Hmm, have you seen one report you can link to of such goings on since the reference dates of the Time article, i.e. early December last year?

Hmm do you read Thai Visa?

Did you read all the stories of Thai police extorting money from tourists?

You know, all those stories being reported...hmm, let me see, when was it again...ah yes I recall...Early Last December.

Did you read all those posts saying it wasn't happening? It was normal? It was all ok?

You know, the posts I'm referring to?

Hmm?

You know, I bet you do.

Not sure if you posted some of them, can you clear that one up for me?

Edited January 23, 2015 by Bluespunk

[Jim walker]

Police should improve with the ongoing reform. If not then things won’t change and you will still have to pay the police cash to get your out of jail free card after your random piss test on the pavement.

[Suffinator]

In order to tackle this issue would effectively require the sacking of all police officers and then replacing them. The government is complicit in protecting the police from prosecution; after all they are either transferred or moved to inactive posts.

The article by TIME will quickly be forgotten and the tourists will once again be targeted. It's unlikely anything will really change because you are looking at a government that is inept and complicit.

[Jingthing]

In order to tackle this issue would effectively require the sacking of all police officers and then replacing them. The government is complicit in protecting the police from prosecution; after all they are either transferred or moved to inactive posts.

The article by TIME will quickly be forgotten and the tourists will once again be targeted. It's unlikely anything will really change because you are looking at a government that is inept and complicit.

Well, it's not as if foreigners vote in Thai elections ...

...

or Thais lately either!

[FangFerang]

Interesting to note that action is only taken when something is mentioned in a high profile foreign newspiece and then only because it damages Thailand's precious "reputation". Can't have those damn foreigners thinking the Thai's are picking on foreigners in any way, can we. As always, it's too little, too late. They might want to listen to their own news sources and take action "before" the damage is already done.

tx22cb - yes, this is one of the forums "monitored" and often "commented" on by the "authorities".

As a footnote. No action is being taken. Someone was told to "look into it" (sort of like telling a fish to observe the water it swims in... Instead, there is a written response to a written article concerning an obviously flagrant behavior pattern.

In shorty, nothing was done, nothing is being done, and nothing will be done.

[moe666]

The Thong Lor boys have been stopping people for years this is nothing new. And arrive at Ekimai bus station with a big bag and you will be searched. HO HUM

[Somtamnication]

Come on, guys. You know this stuff never happens until it is written in an overseas article!

[maidee]

normal thai reaction would be

block TIME website and ban the publication in newspaper stands

[robertson468]

Congrats to the PM for changing his behaviour - i.e. not criticizing TIME's article and threatening to ban the sale of TIME & access to its website, but instead acting on the information provided.

However, I am miffed that he only acted as a result of this foreign article today, while we at TVF have highlighted this practice for weeks but were ignored - especially as I reckon that this webboard is being monitored by the Govt's agents ......

I believe the first action should have been taken by the British Embassy on behalf of their citizens who should have lodged a complaint at the onset of this situation and could have had a heads up on this by monitoring TV. A good litmus test of "goings on in Thailand"; It had been reported here on TV quite a few times, so much so that one of the contributers had set up a website. In my opinion, The Embassy should have contacted the other Embassies in Thailand to ask if any of their citizens had experienced this disgraceful behavior by the RTP, then all of the Embassies involved shoud have written in the storngest terms to the Thai Foreign Minister and the Tourist Authority Thailand. Thank goodness they did not ask any females to provide a urine sample on the street.................or did they???!!! The mind boggles at what I can only describe as rank stupidity by someone who should have known better.

[ggold]

Congrats to the PM for changing his behaviour - i.e. not criticizing TIME's article and threatening to ban the sale of TIME & access to its website, but instead acting on the information provided.

However, I am miffed that he only acted as a result of this foreign article today, while we at TVF have highlighted this practice for weeks but were ignored - especially as I reckon that this webboard is being monitored by the Govt's agents ......

If this website were being monitored by govt's agents, It would have been shut down long ago!

[outsider]

"ongoing reform"???

If anything, the situation looks like deteriorating than anything else.

[rickirs]

Will the RTP file a defamation suit against Time? If it doesn't, then that is a tacit admission that Time is reporting the truth.

[bangon04]

Hmm, all those previous posts on this issue denying this increase in extortion was going on.......

Hmm, have you seen one report you can link to of such goings on since the reference dates of the Time article, i.e. early December last year?

Another TV maven with no work ethic wants somebody else to search Google for him.

Please don't feed the Chief Apologist...

[bangon04]

Come on, guys. You know this stuff never happens until it is written in an overseas article!

So the best thing that TV members can do to improve the situation is to keep sending the info to overseas media.

[chainarong]

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Congrats to the PM for changing his behaviour - i.e. not criticizing TIME's article and threatening to ban the sale of TIME & access to its website, but instead acting on the information provided.

However, I am miffed that he only acted as a result of this foreign article today, while we at TVF have highlighted this practice for weeks but were ignored - especially as I reckon that this webboard is being monitored by the Govt's agents ......

Like it or not, there's a world of difference between the credibility of ThaiVisa members views and those of Time.

Yes the TV members are sometimes more accurate.

[Thai at Heart]

Can we get Time magazine to run a weekly article about issues in Thailand?

[Jonmarleesco]

Well, if nothing else will put a rocket up the authorities' collective posterior to sort this latest racket out, perhaps a Time exposé will.

[hawker9000]

Would THIS investigation be IN ADDITION TO the previously announced THREE investigations, looking into the exact same thing?

I'll never understand how officials in a nation so absorbed with the concept of 'face', can continue to repeat this tactic of empty, meaningless, glib public promises to investigate or "look into" debacles like this? You'd think by about the 8,589th time they'd begin to find it not a little bit humiliating doing so.

Edited February 2, 2015 by hawker9000