Chiang Mai: 100 armed police arrest foreigners for not carrying passports

[mikiea]

m16's hahahahaaa looks like the boss is loosing his grip .... id checks and those pesky bridge players .....we gotta tighten up this lot , who knows what these old farts are up to .

[off road pat]

No weapons, drugs or other dangerous items were found on any of the people there., ???? Most drug dealers are around there ! (that's where the customers are) where they tipped of ??? just a taught !!!

[beerzy]

That picture, with a semi-automatic weapon, in the tourist zone of CM is sure to make TAT happy! LOL I wonder how many trips are being cancelled as I write this??

And that is exactly what this administration wants. I have been watching this situation develop for years now. Who cares if more and more falang leave Thailand, or not come at all. Falang are too much trouble ! The more of us leave the more Chinese can move in, thay are more compliant to orders, even though they walk all over Thai culture and values..

Yes when 25% tourists are from China thats what they want.....But the chinese drown too much which costs Thailand money. The chinese usually book in cina and not spend in Thailand or oif they do coach tours, boat tours and accomodation is chinese as well.

TATS been a bit silent on the "record numbers od Tourists in January....They happily reported the increases in December. Deaths and injuries of tourists are at record numbers in January, but no monthly report. Phuket and Andaman Governors givenb brief but General to stop this happening...

so get rid of farangs and problem solved...I think not!

[cyberfarang]

i wonder if this has to do with Thai police on high alert over possible IS terror threat? And why they are checking on foreigners IDs?

[thhMan]

Perhaps we should all just sew Yellow Star on our clothes, as it seems thats the way its heading....

[Bantex]

I carry a credit-card sized, laminated copy of the main passport page with copy of the current visa on the reverse, plus my driving licence. It will be interesting to see if they accept that, since last year's announcement that a copy was enough...

I also carry a credit card, laminated copy of my passport but I also photographed all important documents and emailed them to myself so that they can be accessed from anywhere by me. I once had to go to a police station but forgot to take one piece of paperwork with me but I was able to access it on line to show, which was accepted.

[givenall]

it will be interesting to find out what actual law has been broken.

I mean with an actual article reference rather than 'you must carry your passport'.

Are you kidding. this is Thailand no law applys

[4737 Carlin]

Thailand doesn't want any foreigners living there. They only want them to go there on holiday, spend lots of money, then go back to their own countries.

[brewsterbudgen]

Thailand doesn't want any foreigners living there. They only want them to go there on holiday, spend lots of money, then go back to their own countries.

Nonsense. This and similar raids in Pattaya and Bangkok are an attempt to be seen to be doing something about the potential terrorist threat. Over the top maybe, but if it led to the apprehension of an ISIL terrorist it would be considered worth it.

[mankondang]

I hope this makes the international press, as it will be another nail in Thailand's tourist coffin. Assault rifles to check for passports? W.T.F.?

Whilst you are correct, i think theie response will be on the lines, that they are doing this as a response/deterant to terrorism, and hence come out of it smelling of roses.

[fullcave]

The locals put up with much worse. They have absolutely no rights whatsoever...

[masuk]

I carry a credit-card sized, laminated copy of the main passport page with copy of the current visa on the reverse, plus my driving licence. It will be interesting to see if they accept that, since last year's announcement that a copy was enough...

But most other countries who welcome tourists, don't raid Bridge Pensioners or send in armed police to check that a passport or ID is carried.

Travellers are warned by their governments not to carry passports in high risk countries, and obviously should be warning them to carry copies of their documents in the event that they should play Bridge or go to a disco.

[masuk]

Thailand doesn't want any foreigners living there. They only want them to go there on holiday, spend lots of money, then go back to their own countries.

Well, I seem to spend lots of money here in Thailand. My entire pension goes on employing shop attendants, restaurant owners, tuk-tuk drivers, song taews, doctor, dentist to name but a few.

[bazza40]

I'll say this for Thai Visa, it's an interesting place to identify paranoid falangs.

[Ulic]

I carry a credit-card sized, laminated copy of the main passport page with copy of the current visa on the reverse, plus my driving licence. It will be interesting to see if they accept that, since last year's announcement that a copy was enough...

What about a photo on a smart phone of the main passport page and visa stamps. Would that do?

I do keep a full size photocopy under my scooter seat, but I don't really want to explain that to the

guy with the assault rifle if pulled from a bar.

[nauseus]

They kill the duck laying the golden egg by the minute. They may as well arrest people for not wearing flipflops as this is not part of Thai culture.

`Coarse they are!

[Roomuck]

Here we go again " another nail in the tourist coffin" blah,blah blah.

Tourism up, year on year, not that you would think it reading thaivisa.

And it will be up again next year, and the year after like it always is. Bombs in the streets two years ago, the tourists keep coming. Bomb last year that killed tourists at Erawan temple. The doomsayers were saying the coup would ruin tourism blah,blah,blah.

I think the people who would be scared off by a routine passport check are not the type who would come to Thailand anyway.

The only thing that would cause a drop would be huge bomb like the Bali bombings, but it would bounce back again.

[CoreanoOzzie]

Kick them all out and deport them.

[CoreanoOzzie]

Thailand doesn't want any foreigners living there. They only want them to go there on holiday, spend lots of money, then go back to their own countries.

Sounds like just about every country on earth.

[Roomuck]

Thailand doesn't want any foreigners living there. They only want them to go there on holiday, spend lots of money, then go back to their own countries.

Well, I seem to spend lots of money here in Thailand. My entire pension goes on employing shop attendants, restaurant owners, tuk-tuk drivers, song taews, doctor, dentist to name but a few.

If you leave, it won't be noticed. The Thais will manage without out you. But your lifestyle will drop dramatically especially if you are a pensioner

I think a lot of people overestimate how much thought Thais give us being here and how important they are.

It is not something the average Thai thinks about.

Edited February 20, 2016 by Roomuck

[TheKnave]

It's a good idea to keep a (reduced size) photocopy of your passport about your person. Technically the law requires you to carry the original at all times; but in practice a photocopy will do.

No, it does not. Zip it.

[mancub]

Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ubon would not even accept my passport ( complete with visa stamps etc) and insisted on a letter from the British Embassy " confirming that the said passport was genuine "!!!

At which point I asked as to how they would know that any such letter was itself not fake, and left.

And this was merely for the purpose of obtaining the yellow house book.

[Seelow]

try to write in english that is understandable to the rest of us "english" speakers! what the hell is a bog?

Tallguy-you are obviously an educated and refined gentleman, although obviously not English public school educated, as if you were you would know that it is the common slang for what in polite circles is called a lavatory.

I must apologise for the low lifes that inhabit this forum with their crudeness in trying to explain to you what a "bog" is.

[sz1a]

First they came for.... I'm glad I left Thailand to see where things are heading. I hope democracy is restored soon.

[Shaunduhpostman]

My wild guess as to what is really going on with this is that someone important is probably angry at the owner of the bar and decided to cause him to lose face and business by making a big scene. Seems sending 100 cops down to one bar is a bit much, as though they are trying to make sure as many people as possible see some kind of commotion. No skin off the police's teeth to drag a wagon load of tourists and inncocent bystanders down with the bar owner. I hope everybody brought their passports with them!

Edited February 20, 2016 by Shaunduhpostman

[hawker9000]

I hope this makes the international press, as it will be another nail in Thailand's tourist coffin. Assault rifles to check for passports? W.T.F.?

The number of times I have read that coffin comment.......the coffin must weigh a ton by now...but keeps on floating

I must admit, plenty of nails in the coffin at this point, but you do get the prize for originality with the 'floating coffins' thing tho. If they WERE supposed to float however, this one would be seriously decks awash, that's for sure. If any nation on the planet could find a way to hammer coffin nails underwater, it would have to be this one.

[Thaidream]

Aas much as I love Thailand- this constant harassment is the worse I have ever seen. It needs to stop or they won't have a tourist business. Utter nonsense- deployment of police with assault rifles. Arresting Bridge players.. And the beat goes on.

[SKguy]

It seems that to some , the penny never drops, that we are not actually liked here.

Correct, but they never seem to dislike all the money we spend in this country!

[Paul Kernell]

<deleted> is happening. Tourism is down a lot! Never mind the manipulated figures, go to any beaches, bars or restaurants over the past 2-3 months and they are as good as empty!!!!! So arrest/detain the rest for playing bridge and not carrying your passport, (which I was advised not to carry by the Thai police because of the rise in thefts) Make sure they or their friends don't come back! AM I MISSING SOMETHING? Or do you have to be a special kind of stupid?

[bazza40]

Kick them all out and deport them.

And the week's tautology award goes to............