Chinese tourists skip Thailand after Phuket boat disaster

A ferry disaster that killed dozens of Chinese tourists in Thailand earlier this year has sent visitor numbers plunging from the kingdom's single largest market. 

The Chinese make up about a quarter of Thailand's 35 million annual visitors who are drawn by cheap beach vacations, renowned food and Bangkok nightlife.

But in July a ferry carrying mostly Chinese tourists back to the resort island of Phuket sank killing 47. 

August recorded an immediate dip of 12 percent and September brought 15 percent fewer Chinese tourists than the same months last year. 

October was the hardest hit, with the tourism ministry reporting Wednesday a same-period decrease of about 20 percent -- or 160,000 people -- from 2017.

About $476 million was lost in spending over the three-month period, statistics showed. 

Thailand has seen tourism slowdowns following a bombing in 2015 in central Bangkok and a military coup in 2014.

 But the prolonged slump of the past few months has been a "wake-up call" for Thailand's tourism operators, Paul Pruangkarn of the Pacific Asia Travel Association said, as it has pushed the sector to mull its overreliance on one country. 

.

.

"Too many people have always been focusing too much on getting Chinese tourists," said Pruangkarn, whose association represents hundreds of businesses around the region. 

He predicted tourist numbers will ultimately bounce back.

Since the Phuket tragedy the government has rolled out inducements aimed at regaining trust and making travel easier.

The immigration bureau exempted Chinese tourists from paying a $60 visa-on-arrival fee from November to mid-January. 

Last month four immigration officials were demoted from their position following a probe that found they were demanding "tips" from Chinese tourists to fast track their entry. 

Source - TheJakartaPost

Not a Red or Yellow, but a Black Day in #Thailand

Yingluck sentenced to five years in prison

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled unanimously to sentence fugitive former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra to five years in prison.

The fugitive politician was convicted of negligence in preventing corruption and irregularities in her government’s rice-pledging scheme prior to the 2014 coup.

The Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders ruled that Yingluck had acknowledged the illegality of government-to-government rice deals but refused to cancel a contract with a Chinese state enterprise.

The court ruled that the deal involved ill-gotten gains and the dishonest discharge of official duties.

Not a Red or Yellow, but a Black Day in Thailand

“The defendant was found guilty of the alleged offences under Section 157 of the Criminal Code and Section 123/1 of the Organic Act on Counter Corruption 1999 and was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment,” a statement from the court read.

The court will issue another arrest warrant against Yingluck, after an initial warrant was issued when she failed to appear before the court on August 25, when the verdict was originally scheduled to be read.

Source - TheNation

Thai junta pressures Google, Facebook, Line to censor content

Thailand's junta is ramping up pressure on internet giants Google and Facebook — and the popular messaging app Line — to scrub the country's web of any content it dislikes, officials confirmed yesterday.

The military seized power in a 2014 coup and has launched the harshest rights crackdowns in decades, arresting critics, muzzling the media and banning political gatherings or protests.

The web, in particular social media, has remained one of the few avenues open to Thais to speak out — though not without risks. Prosecutions have soared with many arrested for online posts.

Junta officials are now seeking face-to-face meetings with major web companies to try and speed up how quickly they take down objectionable content.

 

Police Major-General Pisit Paoin, from the junta's committee on mass media reform, said officials would meet with Google, Facebook and Line over the next three months "to ask for their co-operation in dealing with illegal images or clips that affect security and the nation's core institution."

"There have been tens of thousand of the illegal posts over the past five years," he said.

Officials held the first of their meetings with Google recently. Minutes of that meeting were leaked last week by hackers and later published widely by local media showing Thai officials are pushing for big web companies to agree to takedowns without a court order.

Maj-Gen Pisit said large web companies have reacted with reluctance over the past five years to previous requests to censor content.

"We have received better response from Google in the US (since the meeting)," he said. "Now we plan on talking with Line and Facebook."

Globally, web firms must comply with local laws and routinely block content within that country if presented with a court order.

But the leaked minutes suggest the Thai junta want a far more lenient standard adopted.

In a statement Line said it "has yet to be contacted by an official entity requesting such censorship" but added that "the privacy of Line users is our top priority."

"Once we have been officially contacted, we will perform our due diligence towards the related parties and consider an appropriate solution that does not conflict with our company's global standards, nor the laws of Thailand," the statement added.

The Japanese company is by far the most popular social messaging app in Thailand and is even used by many government ministries and police stations to officially brief media.

Last week, a man was arrested for sharing a video allegedly mocking junta leader Prayuth Chan-o-cha with his friends on Line, suggesting the Thai authorities are already monitoring the messenger for content it disapproves of.

Facebook and Google have yet to respond to AFP's requests for comment.

Source: Coconuts.co

***** 

HOTEL BOOKINGS

Reports emerging of police drug testing scam in Bangkok

Reports are emerging that the police in Bangkok have been harassing tourists on what is claimed to be a crackdown on illegal drug use.

Visitors and tourists have reported being regularly stopped, searched, interrogated and asked to provide urine samples that if found to test positive for drugs can lead to lengthy fines and prison sentences. Apparently these tests have a 10% margin of accuracy leading to fears that many drug tests have returned back positive when those tested have not taken any drugs.

Random tests in the country are not unusual however in tourist areas it seems the random tests are in the up. Visitor Reese Walker told the Bangkok post in November that she and her fiancé were stopped twice by the police in only two days. The report says that they were searched, interrogated and required to provide samples of urine. According to her report they were doing nothing out of the ordinary when the tests were ordered. In her letter to the editor she said “This is our first and last visit to Thailand, the harassment of tourists is unacceptable, we don’t be recommending other people to visit Thailand based on our two frightening incidents that we believe to be racial profiling.

Critics of the police say that these activities are not intended to reduce crime, but are a means to elicit bribe money from unsuspecting and often terrified tourists. Since the harassment is primarily a means of extortion, even those who are not in possession of drugs and have not tested positive for illegal drug use are in danger. Incriminating evidence can be planted and urine samples can test as positive due to the use of a contaminated container, for example.

Source:  Samui Times