Top brass police gather in Hua Hin as final suspect apologises for brutal attack

[Bangkok Barry]

it will cost Thailand a HUGE amount of tourist income. Such a negative promotion got viral already.

No it won't. Nothing ever seems to affect the number of victims - sorry, tourists. Coups, street riots, murders, nothing. People still rent jet-skis despite the worldwide exposure of the associated rip-offs etc. I have no idea why nothing affects the number of arrivals, but nothing does. All be forgotten by next month.

[SpeakeasyThai]

Too late Thailand the damage is done. In reporting this story the world's media have dealt a further death blow to Thai tourism and rightly so. It is no longer safe in this country for any farang of any age to walk the streets without fear of being set upon for no rational nor logical reason ... oh they brushed passed me ... sorry what! While these mindless drunken pack animal thugs are allowed to continue unabated with their attacks on tourists your main source of income will fast disappear. Apologies are inconsequential because they mean nothing and they were probably prompted to give them anyway. The attacks were sickening to say the least and especially kicking the sh1t out of a defenceless old lady while she was already down ... that is not to say that the other attacks on the males were justified.

Since I started coming to Thailand in 1996 and then moved here in 2011 things have gone from bad to worse and the country is heading for armageddon ... there is no democracy, there is continuing suppression of any kind of peaceful protests, there is no progress on reconciliation, the computer crimes act is a joke, the continuing requirement for expats to jump through hoops and provide personal information to immigration is a is a travesty, corruption is rife all the way up the food chain and the criminal element/mafia (both farang and Thai) are allowed to get away with anything so long as the right amount of money changes hands, the level of road deaths increases on a daily basis ... and a whole lot more.

Why the hell am I living here ... time for a rethink.

Go back to the UK then - and I guarantee you'll be back within a month.

[BlindMagician]

Will it be the usual poor attempt at surface and face saving, or an impressive rigourous response, with shirt and long term effective measures, policies, and implementation for changes.....hhhmmm...bets anyone?

[sweatalot]

We were duped for two weeks with the tale that it was an unprovoked attack, but now that the video is out the we can see that it was far from unprovoked.

There is far less sympathy now for this so called innocent family and they should accept their behavior contributed to their downfall and issue an apology.

I think requesting an apology from those Brits goes too far, the answer to their provoking action was much too far over the top

but innocent victims they are not

[SpeakeasyThai]

it will cost Thailand a HUGE amount of tourist income. Such a negative promotion got viral already.

No it won't. Nothing ever seems to affect the number of victims - sorry, tourists. Coups, street riots, murders, nothing. People still rent jet-skis despite the worldwide exposure of the associated rip-offs etc. I have no idea why nothing affects the number of arrivals, but nothing does. All be forgotten by next month.

So true, people will always come to Thailand. Just like people will always go to the UK (with all its problems and issues).

[BlindMagician]

Why do they think that giving a wai and apologising makes it all OK? During songkran we had an accident caused by kids with high pressure water whilst we were riding bicycles. They gave a wai as an apology and then carried on doing the same thing and no doubt injuring other people too. Kwais.

TIT..do wrong...wai smile...do wrong again...cycle "i" times continues if caught doing wrong again...i=i(1,infinity)

[sweatalot]

Why do they think that giving a wai and apologising makes it all OK? During songkran we had an accident caused by kids with high pressure water whilst we were riding bicycles. They gave a wai as an apology and then carried on doing the same thing and no doubt injuring other people too. Kwais.

TIT..do wrong...wai smile...do wrong again...cycle "i" times continues if caught doing wrong again...i=i(1,infinity)

Basic

[SpeakeasyThai]

We were duped for two weeks with the tale that it was an unprovoked attack, but now that the video is out the we can see that it was far from unprovoked.

There is far less sympathy now for this so called innocent family and they should accept their behavior contributed to their downfall and issue an apology.

I think requesting an apology from those Brits goes too far, the answer to their provoking action was much too far over the top

but innocent victims they are not

How many people has Rosemary slapped in her merry old Wales? Just saying.

[Nicolas32]

Will it be the usual poor attempt at surface and face saving, or an impressive rigourous response, with shirt and long term effective measures, policies, and implementation for changes.....hhhmmm...bets anyone?

Yeah and still taken two week for them and the media to do anything complete joke and waste of time to be fair .. because all this came down to was saving face ..

[Squeegee]

Thailand, where saying sorry is acceptable for kicking their guests in the head.

They don't deserve any tourists. Let them suffer and face the real world.

[SpeakeasyThai]

We were duped for two weeks with the tale that it was an unprovoked attack, but now that the video is out the we can see that it was far from unprovoked.

There is far less sympathy now for this so called innocent family and they should accept their behavior contributed to their downfall and issue an apology.

You're right. 4 people should be charged. The two Thai men who did the kicking, and both Rosemary and her husband as they were the instigators and the "thugs" were the two British men, one holding the Thai man and his father landing the first unprovoked blow. If anyone should be apologizing, it is the Brit family. They will never return to Thailand? Great, I don't think that those of us who get along just fine with the kind, friendly and hospitable Thai people need them around to give a negative impression of falangs.

I wish Wales would go independent then none of this would matter.

[gemguy]

Someone else asked recently:

And who paid for all their hospital expenses???

I would like to learn about one of the news papers finding out if anyone or any government entity stepped up to pay the hospital bills and expenses involved and or gave the foreigners the called for sincere apology treatment having some actual substance.

The longer you stay here and live here the more you come to realize the Thais are pretty Fxxxed Up in so many ways....and I bet you used to admire them and praise them and even want to emulate them in some ways while informing other people about the wonders of Thai ways and how Thai society is so much better and so much more "cultured" than the so called Western societies.

Every year the illusion fades away to be replaced with the bitter reality while you come to realize all is not what it seems to be......but the illusionists continue to sustain the illusion while a continual flow of new and naïve spectators are captivated by the hat tricks and magical rabbits that appear out of thin air.

Meantime, I still enjoy Thailand and plan to stay here .... but the magic show and the illusionist are now obvious to me while I know their tricks and recognize their "devious" trade.

Cheers

[mankondang]

My Thai friends really believe this.

They said to me last night "These guys were on tv, gave a Wai and apologised, saying they were drunk. All is ok now"

I asked if they really meant that. They replied yes of course. Thais accept their apology.

I really can't believe Thai mentality.

Yes this compared with other philosophies, Thai Buddhist attitude is more like the Christian one of "turning the other cheek", than it is of the Jewish and Muslim attitude of, "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and a life for a life". Religion ???

Which one f the above do you say you are???

Maybe silence should be our guide. But 10 years jail would suite me better.

[diehard60]

so now all is forgiven?????? WOW!!!! They should be beaten also. Scum like this have no place here in Thailand.

[DaveinAsia]

I hope the British Embassy in Thailand will send a team to follow up on this case and put pressure on the Thai police to ensure that punishments meted out are proportionate to the violence they committed.

And yes, as somebody correctly pointed out, the TAT should invite the family back to Hua Hin for a fully paid holiday.

Sorry, but the British embassy have been on holiday since 2012.

As for TAT offering the family compensation; nobody thought about it yet, but I'm sure they will after reading this. It will be a grand display with all international media present

This 'incident' will cost Thailand 100's of millions of baht in revenues and only paved the way for a higher influx of Chinese tourists, not to mention the loss of face.

It's pretty clear to conscious people around the world that there is no law here and that this parade by the cops is fake and just to save their already frail tourist industry.

Let's check back in 2 or 3 years and ask Thais in tourist areas what they think about tourists having a dump in their garden and BBQ-ing their chihuahua on the parking lot, 555!

Som nam na. If you only rake in money but are too miserable to re-invest some of it in infrastructure, safety and education it will collapse eventually. Law of physics. When greed controls peoples hearts the end is near

[Siamthomas]

Laughable,,, The commander should be fired for direlect of duties. They are serious offenders and attempted to kill people.

Appologize you say... We do not accept it

Charged ?

No the regimes reform never happaned and never will LOL. Thailand has gone in reverse all across international media. Tourism funny there is none. They decided on bus loads of non spending Chinese. Clogging roads and pollution. Thailand is a mess.

[Nicolas32]

I hope the British Embassy in Thailand will send a team to follow up on this case and put pressure on the Thai police to ensure that punishments meted out are proportionate to the violence they committed.

And yes, as somebody correctly pointed out, the TAT should invite the family back to Hua Hin for a fully paid holiday.

Sorry, but the British embassy have been on holiday since 2012.

As for TAT offering the family compensation; nobody thought about it yet, but I'm sure they will after reading this. It will be a grand display with all international media present

This 'incident' will cost Thailand 100's of millions of baht in revenues and only paved the way for a higher influx of Chinese tourists, not to mention the loss of face.

It's pretty clear to conscious people around the world that there is no law here and that this parade by the cops is fake and just to save their already frail tourist industry.

Let's check back in 2 or 3 years and ask Thais in tourist areas what they think about tourists having a dump in their garden and BBQ-ing their chihuahua on the parking lot, 555!

Som nam na. If you only rake in money but are too miserable to re-invest some of it in infrastructure, safety and education it will collapse eventually. Law of physics. When greed controls peoples hearts the end is near

Very true even now Thais are finding it hard to put food on the table .. Plus there debt is very high these days and on top of this ? They take big loans out on homes and vehicles they cant even afford to pay for .. am expecting an 97/98 eccommy crash sooner or later .. Then its going to be interesting when big companies are already moving offices to neighbouring countries and also working on all types of projects .. I think this maybe the time for people to move on to one of these neighbouring countries to be fair because could lose value on there investments and there retirement savings ...

Ouch ..

Thai banks see profits plunge in Q1, cut rates to boost loans

BANGKOK -- A prolonged slump in Thailand's economy has sent profits falling at its big four banks, prompting them to simultaneously make cuts to lending rates.

Combined net profits at Bangkok Bank, Krung Thai Bank, Siam Commercial Bankand Kasikornbank plunged 16% on the year to 36.049 billion baht ($1.03 billion) in the first quarter of 2016.

http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/AC/Thai-banks-see-profits-plunge-in-Q1-cut-rates-to-boost-loans

[phuketandsee]

From CBS News in the US:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/thailand-gang-attacks-uk-family-video/

Check out the comments. I wonder if TAT reads these things. They should be very worried. But what are the chances of that?

[8OA8]

Nothing about the British Embassy in this story whatsoever .. Clearly they are busy promoting isn't Britain Great Campaign.. Seems Mr Kent is busy in Washington and nothing on UK in Thailand .. What really is the point of having an embassy when something does go wrong for people the embassy come out with pre copy and past responses what shown very little compassion when they do make statements ..

I think the British Embassy are doing the smart thing, actually hoping the family wasn't British after watching the unedited video and seeing how the whole thing kicked off...

[elgordo38]

My Thai friends really believe this.

They said to me last night "These guys were on tv, gave a Wai and apologised, saying they were drunk. All is ok now"

I asked if they really meant that. They replied yes of course. Thais accept their apology.

I really can't believe Thai mentality.

I can.

[tonray]

2 weeks in Bangkok in front of MBK comes to mind

Just make him walk thru MBK as a shopper every day for 2 weeks....OK....yes that is cruel and unusual punishment.

[little mary sunshine]

Clearly, three weeks from now hardly anyone will

Be upset with this attack, it will be business as

Usual with the packs of Chinese, and everyone

Doing their own thing.

[elgordo38]

Damage control clean up in aisle 5. Flowers for the cops hmm I think they have been spoiled now and expect money not flowers to do their job.

[tgeezer]

There was a chap in a red shirt with the number 10 on the back who took the opportunity to join in when the people were down, another opportunist actually kicked someone in the head in the same circumstances, a very dangerous assault. I hope that they have them both. The initiator of the incident wearing a white shirt, was following a Thai chap with whom he had been trying to pick a fight, he only decided to pick on the son instead when he brushed against him. That they were pissed is an excuse, but should mean that they should be prevented from getting pissed again. Jail effects that, also it acts a reminder when next they have the opportunity to get pissed.

[Colabamumbai]

To make things really right, those unfortunate tourists, should be invited back by TAT and give a right

royal treatment of no less that 5 starts all the way, coupled with a hefty compensation for the sufferings,

and suffered they did, and those thugs should be brought to prostate, grovels and beg forgiveness the

Thai way, for the whole world to see, and than maybe, just maybe, this case can be

put aside.... ( until the next one )

To make thing really right the thugs should all spend at least 5 years in prison.

[Jonmarleesco]

Top brass. Wonder if that was the RTP's own idea, or Prayuth's? Must be getting worried about the tourism industry. Short-lived no doubt it will be, but a move in the right direction.

[Jonmarleesco]

so now all is forgiven?????? WOW!!!! They should be beaten also. Scum like this have no place here in Thailand.

They're Thai. Where else would you suggest they have a place?

[jesimps]

There; all done and dusted.

1. Photo shots of important top brass police

2. Pathetic and insincere apology by cowardly youth

3. Bail payments received from rich parents of other cowardly attackers

4. Flowers at the hospital bedside of aged victim

Safe for tourists to return now.

Your level of optimism, supported by your defeatist signature, I feel is misplaced.

I think the Thai guys will get disproportionately hammered, in a vain attempt to restore confidence.

This little boy, Khun Drop Kick, should have the book thrown at him, for sticking his jamook into events that didn't concern him. But I think the first 2 guys should not be charged, unless the farang are jointly charged for their initial assaults.

You, and people of similar opinions are as bad as the morons that carried out this attack. Possibly worse, because your support just encourages them.

That an elderly lady kicked senseless should be charged with assault,in your opinion, is sickening. You need help.

[Jonmarleesco]

Nothing about the British Embassy in this story whatsoever .. Clearly they are busy promoting isn't Britain Great Campaign.. Seems Mr Kent is busy in Washington and nothing on UK in Thailand .. What really is the point of having an embassy when something does go wrong for people the embassy come out with pre copy and past responses what shown very little compassion when they do make statements ..

I think the British Embassy are doing the smart thing, actually hoping the family wasn't British after watching the unedited video and seeing how the whole thing kicked off...

Would that be the one where the 60+-year-old pensioners put the boot in first? Please show us the footage. But be sure that video truly is unedited.

[chilli42]

16 bottle among 4 people ... being drunk could not be te excuse.