PM hits out at scam brokers
August 19, 2009 by TTRweekly Staff
Filed under News
Thailand’s Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, ordered airport officials to resolve all tourist scams at Suvarnabhumi Airport and restore confidence among foreign tourists.
Mr Abhisit inspected the country’s gateway airport on Saturday, 15 August. The visit was the main feature of his weekly television programme ‘Having Confidence in Thailand with Prime Minister Abhisit’ that was broadcast on the National Broadcasting Service of Thailand (NBT) on the following morning, 16 August.
Viewers watched the PM tour the airport and ask pointed questions about the various scams that are plaguing the airport and damaging the country’s reputation.
By the time he reached King Power’s duty-free shops his remarks were clearly embarrassing officials, as he reiterated the critical observations raised by embassies, particularly regarding shoplifting scams.
The Thai PM was welcomed by Airports of Thailand president, Serirat Prasutanond, Suvarnabhumi Airport director, Niran Theeranartsin, and the Police Commander of Samut Prakan province, Pol Maj Gen Chitsanupong Yuktathat. But it soon turned into a not too subtle grilling for officials who could ultimately be blamed for damaging the country’s tourism image.
Mr Abhisit spared no one during the one-hour inspection. He called for an overhaul of security at duty-free shops and clearly demonstrated he believes reports that a variety of scams are flourishing at the airport.
Problems identified:
Entrapment — departing passengers are falsely accused of shoplifting and forced to pay substantial cash to gain their release.
Unlicensed taxi drivers flourish, while there are accusations that even the official taxis are a security risk. Recent TV news reports focused on accusations that rogue taxi drivers attempt to introduce a sleep-inducing drug to the air-conditioning while transferring to the city. The allegations are being investigated by the Land Transport Department.
Baggage theft in secure areas involves airport ground handling employees. Pilfering checked-in luggage is rampant.
Shoplifting scams involving illegal use of foreign interpreters and volunteers inserted into an official police investigation. They are assigned by police in direct contravention of the country’s labour law. If found guilty of employing a foreigner without a work permit the police would be liable for a Bt50,000 fine.
Illegal sale of limousine transfers and tours sold openly in the baggage clearance area, before the customs checks, despite letters of complaints from travel agency associations to the AoT.
Mr Abhisit touched on most of these problems during his airport walkabout stating he intended to introduce guidelines and a level of transparency so tourist confidence could be restored at the airport. He was particularly critical of police hiring outsiders and volunteers.
He said relevant agencies would have to submit a report on the problems to deputy prime minister, Suthep Thaugsuban, who would present the issues and solutions to the Cabinet.
He did make some practical suggestions to end the shoplifting scams.
“Duty-free shops must clearly display prices, identify cashiers counters, and display signs advising visitors that unpaid merchandise should not be transferred from one duty-free location to another,” he said.
He also added that airport authorities needed to install more surveillance cameras to help identify shoplifters .
The tourist scams at Suvarnabhumi Airport were first exposed by the Sunday Times, in late June, when it reported that a British couple had been accused of shoplifting at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
(See previous TTR Weekly reports on the subject.)
Other cases, involving Irish and Danish citizens, followed a similar pattern to the case of the British couple, prompting embassies to issue travel advisories on Suvarnabhumi Airport recommending extreme caution when shopping at duty-free outlets.
Both King Power and the Airports of Thailand’s image have been seriously tarnished by allegations that shop assistants, rogue police officers and a police interpreter collaborated to extort cash from passengers accused of shoplifting in exchange for their freedom.
The PM’s visit to the airport underscores the extent of the problem and TV viewers saw for themselves the failure of police officers and airport officials to provide credible answers.
Officials blame their troubles on a meddling media and were hoping to bury the issue, but instead the PM turned up with TV cameras and successfully used the media to demonstrate the enormity of problems at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
They were acutely embarrassed as the TV spotlight focused of an airport of shame. In a commercial world heads would roll.
Although many questions remain unanswered possibly the most important one is will the PM return to the airport to see if anyone has heeded his words? Or was he simply doing what politicians do best? Raise a dust storm and move on to the next photo opportunity.
The travel industry will have to wait and see if being on the national agenda will have an impact on how the airport functions.
I could double the tourist spend overnight if I was in charge. Thailand is missing a big trick – but it is Thailand’s loss – not the tourist. We will just go somewhere else. What is it that the idiots at the top don’t understand?
Thailand has an AMAZING potential that is being wrecked by greed and corruption.
Travel is too important to the GDP of Thailand for this ‘pass the blame’ mentality. Scams are a blemish on the travel record that affects perception abroad, as the stories are carried home and posted online. While I appreciate the Prime Minister visiting Suvarnabhumi in late August, why did it take two months from the first reporting, subsequent building up to BBC and other media, and finally TRAVEL WARNINGS from various countries before Thailand acted? Still “ACTS” is questionable since nothing has changed at the airport: same police, same King Power staff, same old battered taxis lining up for tourists at arrivals. In fact, the officials involved profess innocence and continue to blame the tourists – um – shoplifters.
How about a new law making the international airport off limits to ordinary cops? Appointing an independent tourist liason?
Regardless of reality, it is always going to be a case of one word against another in the press. In this case, Western or Asian travelers/officials from a more developed nation vs Thai Officials from a lesser developed nation. The Tribal Leader in Mozambique may be respected there, but his country’s perceived image is going to lesson his credibility on the world stage. Ditto a Cambridge IT Professor vs a Thai Police General who did not graduate college, who admits he has NO EVIDENCE OF THEFT to try the Professor in a court of law but can’t reimburse even the police ‘fees’ charged. It’s a mess. At the least, apologize, and get the Police to reimburse the expenses. Period. –aa
Until we see some jail time for the people who have been running all of these scams, I am afraid Mr. Abhisit is a hollow man.
All people in the travel industry and everyone who uses airports in our country should keep watching and investigating all the functions and if there are errors that need to be solved by organisations concerned, we must inform the Prime Minister because when time passes by the problems may return again and we need to ensure that airports in Thailand are clear and clean places from now on not only after several days, several weeks or several months when the Prime Minister come to investigate it
Please also do some investigation and check with the Indian Embassy as to the same scam against Indian tourists….they far out number the above mentioned nationalities combined, and it started way earlier with them, since last year.