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"The Rounds" February 28, 2002
Mekhong Kurt * * * * * * * * * * Probably the most important news since I last wrote is the continuing flap over an article in The Far Eastern Economic Review, and article I read myself and found merely factual, at least in tone. And I assume the details were factual, as they were widely reported in many newspapers, magazines, and television and radio news shows. In essence, Thailand's belovéd King spoke about Prime Minister Thaksin in a rather critical way; like many other news sources, The Far Eastern Economic Review reported the story. As I write Thursday afternoon, the situation remains murky. However, now two reporters based in Bangkok have been served deportation notices; there was an emergency meeting of the Foreign Correspondents Club-Thailand the other night, one which was reported in the two main English-language papers as being well-attended by a wide variety of people concerned, including important Thai politicians. If media reports are correct, the Interior Minister is backing deportation and black-listing, as is the Prime Minister. The latter was reported to have said something along the lines of "We have our sovereignty; ignore foreign critics." But in today's papers, there appears to be some concession on the part of the The Far Eastern Economic Review *and* on the part of the police, the latter saying that while they *can* proceed, they are not going to do so, instead planning to give The Far Eastern Economic Review time to make amends. That this situation ever even arose is frightening, as it is another indication that some elements within government are clearly not at all fettered by little details -- such as the nation's constitution. There is -- supposedly -- constitutionally-enshrined freedom of the press in Thailand, yet this case of The Far Eastern Economic Review shows clearly the contrary holds true in certain quarters; the particular issue was out-and-out banned from distribution in Thailand. Although not making the same splash as The Far Eastern Economic Review incident, a story about some foreign businessmen is equally disturbing. Local press reports in mid-month indicated that several foreign businessmen were having a meal together in a restaurant and were discussing business as they did so. Apparently, all of them have proper work permits and residency visas -- but the reports are that they were arrested and now face deportation and legal charges -- because they were "working" away from the workplace each one's work permit specified. This has to make one wonder just where some people's heads are. What if a married couple were assigned here from their home country -- and both were employed by the same business? By extension, the wife and husband could not -- legally -- discuss work once they stepped out of their building. For that matter, even in the more usual situation of one working spouse, the employed one could not go home and tell the other about the workday. All this has definite implications for foreign tourists and foreigners planning to work or otherwise do business here. Though some national leaders say foreign tourists and businesspeople are not only welcome but actually wanted, but it sure seems that much of what's being implemented flies directly in the face of such assertions. Tourists are, presumably, at far less risk than businesspeople; were I one of the latter and asked to come to Thailand for a business meeting, I would be hesitant to do so, for the simple reason I would not like to risk arrest for working without a work permit. We'll just have to see how things develop. One local newspaper ran an editorial cartoon the other day of P.M. Thaksin, with a tiny telecommunications satellite over his head as he stood at a podium -- with his own shadow and that of the satellite on the wall behind him. However, the satellite's shadow took the form of the dreaded and hated Nazi swastika. Yet I've not seen or heard any reports of any plans to go after the editorial cartoonist. * * * * * * * * * * Day-before-yesterday was a major Buddhist holiday, so all the entertainment outlets were required to close for the day. Restaurants were open, though they were forbidden to serve alcohol. Travel agents really should keep abreast of the holidays requiring closings in the various countries they arrange for people to visit; just the day before the holiday, an acquaintance of mine told me he had come in very late the night before and was off again Wednesday morning, meaning he has 2 full days, Monday and today, in Bangkok -- with half that time effectively shot, in terms of bars, etc. I'm not criticizing Thailand for having these closings; rather, I'm saying travel agents ought to be more responsible in where they send people. As usual, some places are allowed to serve alcoholic beverages, such as tourist hotels. I've never understood the logic of forcing tavern owners and the like to close down, and thus lose a day's revenues, not to mention their staffs losing a day's wages, tips, etc. * * * * * * * * * * The Puritanical screws continue to tighten on the night-entertainment areas. If the government indeed imposes geographical restrictions on where such venues can exist, and if it does so without some provision for existing other places, there are going to be thousands upon thousands of people directly hurt, economically. Interior Minister "Pure Guy" Purachai continues his crusade unabated; some places, apparently following his example, are now forbidding minors from being in Internet shops after 10 P.M. The relevant authorities have tried to assuage public concerns by saying the minors won't be arrested, per se, but the police will notify the minors' parents to come get them. Even so, this is at least the second time in recent weeks a decades-old law has been trotted out and dusted off for current use, itself a matter of concern. * * * * * * * * * * Tourists need to be aware of one particular practice of some bar owners -- not all, but a significant number. It has to do with so-called "lady drinks," or drinks one buys for an on-duty girl. Such drinks are money-spinners for the owners and the girls, the latter because they get a commission from the price of each drink they receive. And that's fair enough, all the way around. However, some owners charge a customer for a lady drink even when the lady in question is off duty. Even worse is that some charge the customer the price of a lady drink -- higher than for a regular order of soda pop, with far less liquid than a regular order -- then don't give the employee any commission; the argument goes she's off-duty and therefore is not entitled to receive any commission! Which is exactly the point: when she's off, she's off, and if she is with a patron who chooses to buy her a drink -- notice I did NOT say "LADY drink" -- then she's entitled to a regular order, and the patron is entitled to get it for her at the regular-order price. I once was with a colleague from the university where I taught; she happened to be quite attractive, a 30-something Thai lady. We went into one of my favorite watering holes only to get into a real row with the owner, a friend of mine. When the waitress brought my colleague a lady drink, I asked about it, of course; the waitress disappeared, and a minute or two later the owner came out, asking (rather hostilely) what the problem was. I told him there was a mistake in the drink order. He argued that any customer bringing in a bar girl had to pay for a lady drink for the lady. I was not amused by his automatic assumption that my professor companion was a bar girl, and set him straight. But he still insisted I had to pay a lady-drink rate; his logic was that since I was with a lady, I wouldn't buy a drink for any of *his* ladies. As I've introduced a LOT of people to his bar, however, it finally got through to him when I told him I would pay for the drinks, leave with our drinks not drunk -- and tell everyone I saw to give his establishment The Big Miss. He relented, but angrily. This is patent nonsense, and owners need to know that many an Old Thai Hand is swift to alert newcomers to the practice. I certainly tell people -- and I name the places that insist on pulling such stuff. * * * * * * * * * * Spoke with a Phuket-based friend yesterday, and he reports the southern resort is wall-to-wall with tourists -- which *might* help explain the relative paucity of them in the capital. Another friend was in the Clinton Plaza area several times recently but reported that except for the bars facing Sukhumvit Road and for The Doll House, the rest of the bars weren't getting any of the substantial number of pedestrians in the area. A third friend says he has been to Patpong several times the past week or so, and that while there appeared to be adequate business overall, it didn't measure up to earlier years. A friend who lives in Nongkai and who travels a fair amount in the north end of the country says he's not seen as many foreigners as he had expected at the beginning of the tourist season, even factoring in the terrorism of 9/11. I know when I traveled to Chiang Rai last November I was downright amazed at how very few foreigners I saw about. Here at BangkokAtoZ.com we want to promote Thailand in general as a tourist destination, especially Bangkok; if you entered the site from the homepage, you may have noticed we've joined Expedia.com's affiliate program; they have one of the largest, most respected online travel-services organizations around. Of course, we hope to make a little money -- that's the whole point of an affiliate program -- but we're just as interested in making it easy for people to book airline tickets and hotel rooms. * * * * * * * * * * And now we come to Queen's Park Plaza. Global Bar, formerly Ama Bar, is reportedly set to re-open the first of March under its 3RD owner in just about as many months! Aside from it, and one enclosed place at the back end of the right-hand row (if your facing into the plaza from Sukhumvit Soi 22), apparently every other place is operational -- though the seafood restaurant was closed surprisingly early last night, about mid-evening. One open-air "bar bier" owner told me a few nights ago that the previous night she was open from 12 o'clock noon until 8:30 P.M. before she had her FIRST customer -- and that for the entire day's take she ended up selling a tiny 300 baht's worth of beer. She also intimated that if things don't pick up -- quickly -- she may pull out. * * * * * * * * * * A Bangkok-based bar-owner I know reported, with considerable surprise, that every drinking place he went in Pattaya on the religious holiday was closed. Other reports said some of the places in Patpong that normally serve all the time were not doing so that day. I've not heard about Soi Zero, Clinton Plaza, Or the Sukhumvit Sois 22 & 33 areas, though I did pass the mouth of Soi 33 and everything appeared dark in the early evening. * * * * * * * * * * A request to readers: if you like any part of the site, we will appreciate it if you pass the web address along to any of your family or friends who also have an interest in Thailand. We're happy whether you forward the homepage URL or the address of any particular part of the site you favor. * * * * * * * * * * Until next time -- Mekhong Kurt Return to the Table of Contents.
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