Police beef up operations against prostitution in entertainment venues

[garrya]

If it's implemented, this could really hurt. Wonder what sort of jobs the country could offer to these tens - if not hundreds - of thousands of workers.

[greenchair]

If it is true i and many of my foreign friends will be jumping for joy. The sex tourists will have to leave. YEA!

the oldest profession in the World and now gone

it is a sad day indeed

mark this in your diaries

1st Feb 2015 a day that will live in infamy.

its not going to happen

the sexpat makes up a very small % of tourists to Thailand

most tourist come here for the Thainess, the food and the beautiful, quiet, safe clean Islands and beaches

Haaaaaaahaaaaaaahaaaaaahaaaaa

?????

[ColdSingha]

If it's implemented, this could really hurt. Wonder what sort of jobs the country could offer to these tens - if not hundreds - of thousands of workers.

7-11 is hiring

[Dogmatix]

There must be some mistake. Prostitution is illegal in Thailand. Therefore it does not exist.

[RT555]

I thought it was April fools Day. but then again april fools day in Thailand is EVERYDAY.

[brewsterbudgen]

Beer bars and gogo bars are all illegal businesses as their main source of income is prostitution not to mention selling liquor all hours of the day and night.

If the Thai government shut all these places to 'clean up its image' tourism will collapse but maybe recover as people begin to visit who wouldnt of otherwise.

Thai bar prostitutes are grossly overrated anyway. I havent been to a beer bar here in Bangkok for over 10 years. Waste of money and time.

Gogos are legal, unless they are providing rooms for prostitution on their premises. Absolutely nothing illegal about paying a barfine and going off with your lady for some fun.

This "crackdown" has nothing to do with the farang gogo scene which is already tightly regulated.

Sorry to disappoint the moralists.

[Yann55]

Those who were already here when Mr T. first became Prime Minister of this country will surely remember as well as I do that shortly after his election there was a wave of moral stiffening, an official virtuous attitude which resulted in all kinds of raids, all kinds of weird declarations and measures.... and in the end all kinds of nothing, other than filling the pockets of the teams in charge of slapping wrists and pointing fingers.

Incidentally one of the results was also to blame the foreigners for all things related to prostitution, paedophilia etc, in this country, which is laughable considering the disporportion between the 'red' areas reserved for farangs and those where no farang is ever seen. But since farangs don't go there, most of them don't even know about it and earnestly believe that Patpong and a couple other sordid sois catering to farangs in Bangkok actually make up for the whole Bangkok sex scene. Truth is : it's not even 10%.

But make no mistake, farangs will once again be accused of all sexual evils. Meanwhile, money will change hands, as usual.

Edited February 1, 2015 by Yann55

[Jungle Jim]

I have to disagree with you on that. Most do not come here for the Thainess otherwise they would be much more behaved which many are not. Thailand attracts numerous alcoholics no Thainess in that. It attracts numerous foreign criminals, but most of all attracts some very questionable sex tourists. No Thainess in that. If what you saying is the case. Pattaya , the Full Moon Party , Koh Phi Phi and numerous other bars would not be full every night. The majority would be out in the towns far from the tourist hangouts. Where are they?

If it is true i and many of my foreign friends will be jumping for joy. The sex tourists will have to leave. YEA!

the oldest profession in the World and now gone

it is a sad day indeed

mark this in your diaries

1st Feb 2015 a day that will live in infamy.

its not going to happen

the sexpat makes up a very small % of tourists to Thailand

most tourist come here for the Thainess, the food and the beautiful, quiet, safe clean Islands and beaches

[thaigold]

Just as in the U.S., Thailand has gentlemen's clubs in every city. Men out drinking and enjoying the company of young women is not prostitution in any sense of the word. Picking up a strumpet in your car on Santa Monica Blvd is. What pole dancers in Soho or Bangkok do after they leave the bar is nobody's business.

Nana, Cowboy, Patpong ... are legal entertainment venues.

Edit: As well as other areas including much of Pataya.

The venues may be legal but what of some of the activities conducted within ?

Point is they are not affected by what is being mentioned in the OP.

As for legal, it is debatable but general rule is as long as the acts are not being committed on premises and not done in a vulgar (forget exact legal term they use) manner then it is legal.

Edit: I "think" entertainment areas like the Ratchada massage parlors it is legal on premises.

[janpharma]

[ratcatcher]

I have to disagree with you on that. Most do not come here for the Thainess otherwise they would be much more behaved which many are not. Thailand attracts numerous alcoholics no Thainess in that. It attracts numerous foreign criminals, but most of all attracts some very questionable sex tourists. No Thainess in that. If what you saying is the case. Pattaya , the Full Moon Party , Koh Phi Phi and numerous other bars would not be full every night. The majority would be out in the towns far from the tourist hangouts. Where are they?

If it is true i and many of my foreign friends will be jumping for joy. The sex tourists will have to leave. YEA!

the oldest profession in the World and now gone

it is a sad day indeed

mark this in your diaries

1st Feb 2015 a day that will live in infamy.

its not going to happen

the sexpat makes up a very small % of tourists to Thailand

most tourist come here for the Thainess, the food and the beautiful, quiet, safe clean Islands and beaches

"...most tourist come here for the Thainess, the food and the beautiful, quiet, safe clean Islands and beaches"

Jim, surely you do not appreciate Black Jack's delicious irony, so eloquently phrased.

"The beautiful, quiet, safe, clean islands and beaches? "

Think about how that line rings out with people who have been keeping up with Thai news for the last while and have spent time on some of the more popular islands? Samui, Phuket, and who can forget Turtle Island?

[thaigold]

Learned men say the "oldest profession" is the formation of men into groups for sanctioned killing. It's called soldiering and its been around since the first group of males got together to go steal their neighbor's land, goods, and savage their women. Nah ... prostitution is a weak second.

I have to disagree with you on that. Most do not come here for the Thainess otherwise they would be much more behaved which many are not. Thailand attracts numerous alcoholics no Thainess in that. It attracts numerous foreign criminals, but most of all attracts some very questionable sex tourists. No Thainess in that. If what you saying is the case. Pattaya , the Full Moon Party , Koh Phi Phi and numerous other bars would not be full every night. The majority would be out in the towns far from the tourist hangouts. Where are they?

If it is true i and many of my foreign friends will be jumping for joy. The sex tourists will have to leave. YEA!

the oldest profession in the World and now gone

it is a sad day indeed

mark this in your diaries

1st Feb 2015 a day that will live in infamy.

its not going to happen

the sexpat makes up a very small % of tourists to Thailand

most tourist come here for the Thainess, the food and the beautiful, quiet, safe clean Islands and beaches

[HerbalEd]

This is going to be very interesting if this actually does put a major dent in the prostitution business. There are billions and billions of baht in the huge Thai sex-for-hire industry ... and you can bet the money goes much higher than just the police. Much higher. And when those at the top feel the loss of their big, free money.., the government should remember that s..t runs down hill.

And then there's the billions of tourist dollars that will be lost from a major drop in tourist visits.

Edited February 1, 2015 by HerbalEd

[brewsterbudgen]

Why do people keep stating that this is something to do with the government/military/Prayuth? It's a statement from the police and is very similar to many other statements made in the past.

A cynic might think it's been picked up and posted as "news" to generate clicks on a Forum!

[HerbalEd]

Why do people keep stating that this is something to do with the government/military/Prayuth? It's a statement from the police and is very similar to many other statements made in the past.

A cynic might think it's been picked up and posted as "news" to generate clicks on a Forum!

This is obviously different. And you can bet the police don't make a major statement like this on their own without running it by big brother.

[Preman]

Just another daily piece to try and make them look as though they are doing something with higher morals.

Had to create a grand illusion that he is doing something after his embarrassments of the last week.

Should at least do a media release that is plausible / believable.

Not more crazy rants like this. The big boss would end up in a coffin himself - if he ever tried to implement this.

It is all just insanity and you should all just have a good laugh at this kind of dribble - that has now almost become a daily event.

[Thomas Hannah]

There is very little prostitution in thailand.The thai law says.If a girl goes with you from a bar etc.She is the same as a tour guide.You are paying her to take care of you.Yes,we all know they are prostitutes..But because prostitution is against the law.Thailand introduced this loop hole.Again.money number one.So who decides that he or she is a prostitute.Easy,The ones who dont pay are prostitutes.This governments idea is ,Certain places,they want to change the image.All the rest will stay the same as before.

[Frajuhe]

Funny idea, it seems that they try to catch the wind and crackdown breathing.

[Beetlejuice]

and a million sexpats cried out in horror..

Last night i saw what looked like a SWATteam. at NANAplaza.

This is probably a new way of attracting more customers, dominatrix bargirls in uniform.

[EyesWideOpen]

Why do people keep stating that this is something to do with the government/military/Prayuth? It's a statement from the police and is very similar to many other statements made in the past.

A cynic might think it's been picked up and posted as "news" to generate clicks on a Forum!

This is obviously different. And you can bet the police don't make a major statement like this on their own without running it by big brother.

Of course !! The police generate a huge amount of income from prostitution / entertainment

places, why would they cut their own throat by reducing their income from these operations ?

Unless..........our dear leader picked up the phone, and made a call that said knock this

crap off. Then the police " leadership" would have no choice but to toe the line reluctantly.

[Basil B]

Well the Thai tourist industry is already hit hard by the decline of Russian tourists...

Though tourists engaging in P4S is only a small part of the P4S industry in Thailand it is the part that brings income into the country, wonder if Dominique Strauss-Kahn Ex-IMF chief was still at the helm that he would have some friendly advice for Thailand about it's 5 trillion Baht overdraft.

[Andre0720]

Pattaya gonna be a ghost town

May not be so.

In Pattaya, you find only girls who take care of a farang, who in return, take care of the girl....

[brewsterbudgen]

Just another daily piece to try and make them look as though they are doing something with higher morals.

Had to create a grand illusion that he is doing something after his embarrassments of the last week.

Should at least do a media release that is plausible / believable.

Not more crazy rants like this. The big boss would end up in a coffin himself - if he ever tried to implement this.

It is all just insanity and you should all just have a good laugh at this kind of dribble - that has now almost become a daily event.

You might be right, although I can remember many similar statements from the police in the past.

Even if it is more serious, it's a reflection of Thailand's poor human rights/trafficking rating and an attempt to try to do something about the thousands of Lao/Cambodian and other girls working in the brothels and karaoke bars in Thai towns, many of whom are underage and forced to work. It's nothing to do with the already well regulated sex industry catering for foreigners or the many massage parlours aimed at high-end Thais.

[eeworldwide]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Lets be honest here, some of us are saying that places like Nana and Cowboy etc are going to be safe. Are they?

How do you know?

This is just the START of something, and I for one would be willing to bet that these places will definitely see some kind of shake up in the coming months.

IMO , its all a house of cards. Sure - the Thai karaoke bars etc that farangs never visit will undoubtedly get hit, but the people that have their stakes in these places, will undoubtedly have stakes in the "legal" entertainment centres.

Face it - none of us can read Prayut's mind, you DONT know what he's planning, and I for one think it's extremely likely that the infamous red light districts that cater to the "wrong" kind of tourist, will undergo some major changes.

I've passed through the soi where Nana is on, late of an evening and the place is littered with prostitutes who are plying their trade.

Those days will soon be gone. You can't have a national crackdown on prostitution, but just ignore those places and think that it will continue in the same fashion as it did before.

As to loopholes etc, that as may be, but I seriously think there will be some MAJOR changes. Expect heavy police presence at the very least, for a considerable period, in these areas.

The PM and his team are not blind to what is happening.

It wouldn't surprise me if a farang exiting these places with a girl on his arm, could be questioned when outside, by police.

Anyway - I haven't got a crystal ball, but Im willing to bet my bottom dollar that it's going to be entertaining.

Best have your wits about you if you go to these places.

And lastly, it wouldn't surprise me if they DO take a European spin on this and start going after the men themselves - lets wait and see.

And NO - I don't think it will just be a matter of paying off the police, if you're caught doing something, that kind of activity is right at the top of Prayut's no-no list right now, and these new measures and shakedowns are designed to CHANGE things, not provide the police with a way of making more money on the side.

Places like Ratchada, Nana and Cowboy will not be closed down because of who owns those establishments, I mean Prayuth could try but he'd be upsetting some in his own ranks by doing so....

I hear you, and don't downright disagree, but as foreigners here, speaking on hearsay about who owns these places, etc, we would be foolish to think that Prayut has to turn a blind eye - he hasn't so far and many top brass have taken a tumble.

I actually think he will implement new regulations that will be much harder for the foreigner to have free and easy access to these women as they did before.

At least - for the time being - ie till he leaves power - which will be in 3-5 years.

[brewsterbudgen]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Lets be honest here, some of us are saying that places like Nana and Cowboy etc are going to be safe. Are they?

How do you know?

This is just the START of something, and I for one would be willing to bet that these places will definitely see some kind of shake up in the coming months.

IMO , its all a house of cards. Sure - the Thai karaoke bars etc that farangs never visit will undoubtedly get hit, but the people that have their stakes in these places, will undoubtedly have stakes in the "legal" entertainment centres.

Face it - none of us can read Prayut's mind, you DONT know what he's planning, and I for one think it's extremely likely that the infamous red light districts that cater to the "wrong" kind of tourist, will undergo some major changes.

I've passed through the soi where Nana is on, late of an evening and the place is littered with prostitutes who are plying their trade.

Those days will soon be gone. You can't have a national crackdown on prostitution, but just ignore those places and think that it will continue in the same fashion as it did before.

As to loopholes etc, that as may be, but I seriously think there will be some MAJOR changes. Expect heavy police presence at the very least, for a considerable period, in these areas.

The PM and his team are not blind to what is happening.

It wouldn't surprise me if a farang exiting these places with a girl on his arm, could be questioned when outside, by police.

Anyway - I haven't got a crystal ball, but Im willing to bet my bottom dollar that it's going to be entertaining.

Best have your wits about you if you go to these places.

And lastly, it wouldn't surprise me if they DO take a European spin on this and start going after the men themselves - lets wait and see.

And NO - I don't think it will just be a matter of paying off the police, if you're caught doing something, that kind of activity is right at the top of Prayut's no-no list right now, and these new measures and shakedowns are designed to CHANGE things, not provide the police with a way of making more money on the side.

Places like Ratchada, Nana and Cowboy will not be closed down because of who owns those establishments, I mean Prayuth could try but he'd be upsetting some in his own ranks by doing so....

I hear you, and don't downright disagree, but as foreigners here, speaking on hearsay about who owns these places, etc, we would be foolish to think that Prayut has to turn a blind eye - he hasn't so far and many top brass have taken a tumble.

I actually think he will implement new regulations that will be much harder for the foreigner to have free and easy access to these women as they did before.

At least - for the time being - ie till he leaves power - which will be in 3-5 years.

I don't think you could be more wrong! (Except about him being in power for 3-5 years!). The regulated sex industry will continue as usual.

[eeworldwide]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Just another daily piece to try and make them look as though they are doing something with higher morals.

Had to create a grand illusion that he is doing something after his embarrassments of the last week.

Should at least do a media release that is plausible / believable.

Not more crazy rants like this. The big boss would end up in a coffin himself - if he ever tried to implement this.

It is all just insanity and you should all just have a good laugh at this kind of dribble - that has now almost become a daily event.

You might be right, although I can remember many similar statements from the police in the past.

Even if it is more serious, it's a reflection of Thailand's poor human rights/trafficking rating and an attempt to try to do something about the thousands of Lao/Cambodian and other girls working in the brothels and karaoke bars in Thai towns, many of whom are underage and forced to work. It's nothing to do with the already well regulated sex industry catering for foreigners or the many massage parlours aimed at high-end Thais.

As always, the article is poorly furnished in terms of accurate and specific information. I think I will try and find a Thai article about this and get it translated, and then I will post it on here, so we can have a little more insight into the actual plan.

[eeworldwide]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Lets be honest here, some of us are saying that places like Nana and Cowboy etc are going to be safe. Are they?

How do you know?

This is just the START of something, and I for one would be willing to bet that these places will definitely see some kind of shake up in the coming months.

IMO , its all a house of cards. Sure - the Thai karaoke bars etc that farangs never visit will undoubtedly get hit, but the people that have their stakes in these places, will undoubtedly have stakes in the "legal" entertainment centres.

Face it - none of us can read Prayut's mind, you DONT know what he's planning, and I for one think it's extremely likely that the infamous red light districts that cater to the "wrong" kind of tourist, will undergo some major changes.

I've passed through the soi where Nana is on, late of an evening and the place is littered with prostitutes who are plying their trade.

Those days will soon be gone. You can't have a national crackdown on prostitution, but just ignore those places and think that it will continue in the same fashion as it did before.

As to loopholes etc, that as may be, but I seriously think there will be some MAJOR changes. Expect heavy police presence at the very least, for a considerable period, in these areas.

The PM and his team are not blind to what is happening.

It wouldn't surprise me if a farang exiting these places with a girl on his arm, could be questioned when outside, by police.

Anyway - I haven't got a crystal ball, but Im willing to bet my bottom dollar that it's going to be entertaining.

Best have your wits about you if you go to these places.

And lastly, it wouldn't surprise me if they DO take a European spin on this and start going after the men themselves - lets wait and see.

And NO - I don't think it will just be a matter of paying off the police, if you're caught doing something, that kind of activity is right at the top of Prayut's no-no list right now, and these new measures and shakedowns are designed to CHANGE things, not provide the police with a way of making more money on the side.

Places like Ratchada, Nana and Cowboy will not be closed down because of who owns those establishments, I mean Prayuth could try but he'd be upsetting some in his own ranks by doing so....

I hear you, and don't downright disagree, but as foreigners here, speaking on hearsay about who owns these places, etc, we would be foolish to think that Prayut has to turn a blind eye - he hasn't so far and many top brass have taken a tumble.

I actually think he will implement new regulations that will be much harder for the foreigner to have free and easy access to these women as they did before.

At least - for the time being - ie till he leaves power - which will be in 3-5 years.

I don't think you could be more wrong! (Except about him being in power for 3-5 years!). The regulated sex industry will continue as usual.

I don't know how you can possibly say that, when you don't, and can't know the extent of what his plans are.

As I stated in pervious posts, the regulated sex industry has to and WILL face a shake up of sorts.

Neither you nor I have a crystal ball- and Im certianly willing to be proved utterly wrong - but it stands to reason that the red-light districts will undergo a shake up. Everybody knows what these places are - and by definition they are HUBS of P4P.

Indeed - if Prayut and his cronies DON'T do something, then there really is NO shakedown on prostitution.

I think Prayut has a mandate to try and change Thailand's image internationally, because he wants "quality tourists". If we obliterate ( for the sake of argument) the 3 major red light districts in BKK, and a lot of the sea front filth in Pattaya, then that would actually promote Bangkok as being a place finally worthy of "quality tourists".

Believe it or not - I met a long time Asia resident from OZ the other day, who had never heard of the dodgy massage experience in BKK - and I'm not talking about happy endings.

What IS infamous is Soi C, Nana and PP.

Lets wait and see.

I'm not foolish enough to say Im right 100% - because we don't know yet - but Im willing to bet we will see some BIG changes to these established areas.

[peterb17]

Pattaya gonna be a ghost town

Cancelling this year's trip to Thailand as of right now.

We'll see what happens when Thailand loses over half

of its tourists.

No Pattaya will not be a ghost town- can't remember the exact figure visitors number around 5 million. The % of sex tourists , especially amongst the largest group the Chinese is actually quite small.

Sorry to hear you are canceling your trip to a developing county where I presume you desired to sexually exploit some of the poorer citizens .

When did exploitation become socially acceptable?

[dragonfly94]

Just looking at Sukhumvit in Bkk, if somebody had suggested 15 years ago there would be no more soi zero, Washington sq, Asoke corner, Sukhumvit sq and Clinton Plaza, as well as a few smaller places, all within a few hundred meters they would have been laughed at. Times change, the Bkk sex tourist era will never be the same, now it's expensive and far more of a hard nosed business. I don't know anything about Pattaya, that's for real losers IMO.

Edited February 1, 2015 by dragonfly94

[DP25]

Good news, but hopefully he goes after the foreigner orientated sex industry as well. Regardless that the girls are there willingly and make tons of money, those places have a toxic effect on Thailand's reputation in the world. Hopefully a wrecking ball is in store for Nana and Soi Cowboy in the near the future.