Dangerous Ground

This topic is speculative, but in these times when even bankers can get arrested who acted on the basis of information that was available to them, then everything becomes speculative. Remember, a lot of information available in Thailand is not officially available. Call it a new, not yet seen interpretation of a LM-like approach. The bankers’ arrest is based on the undermining of national security. That’s legally shaky ground. I’m not aware of a similar case anywhere in the world.

Thai police on November 1st, 2009, arrested two Thai bankers of Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse who allegedly spread rumors about HM the King’s health; rumors that had made the Thai stock exchange nosedive. The arrests raise serious questions. Can authorities draw a line in their sole discretion, just like that? Basically anyone can get arrested in Thailand who’s caught in the middle of the nation’s intrinsic unwritten laws.

Most people would argue that the arrested bankers just did their job and that it’s difficult to balance information in a country where disinformation and the occasional spreading of intentional wrong information are not uncommon. One of the bankers was arrested for a Thai translation of a Bloomberg article and its posting in a web forum. In the end though, it seems, the two bankers were arrested for questioning the official channels of information. But anyway, this topic is about the perception of Thailand, or Thai girly sites rather: is their end near?

It’s actually a contribution from an occasional contributor who’s usually spot and delivers solid insider information. The message I got was that quite popular sites that deal with prostitution in Thailand or even the mention of freelancers in a club may soon run into serious problems. I don’t think so, but hey, if two bankers run into such troubles, who knows?

A source informs that the MICT is poised to expand the list of blocked websites beyond the usual (LM and national security, gambling, pr0n) to include the ones that seem to promote sex-tourism. This is part backlash from the Big Trouble in Thailand show plus the general curbs on press freedom and Thai paranoia about image, and propping up the failing straight tourist trade. News is already starting to leak about this, but there’s nothing official yet on which to hang a full story.

This change may be expanded to include the websites of bars which feature pictures of their female employees in anything like suggestive costumes or poses. They may also go after sites that talk up what you can call drug-tourism, such as highlighting wild times at full moon parties on Koh Phangan, the lifestyle in Pai, etc. so there’s another topic to stay away from for now.

Keep in mind that the MICT staff who review sites aren’t geniuses. They have poor English skills as a rule and are just looking for keywords or any of the sexual obscenities or acronyms that punters write into “field reports” and if those keywords come up too often, a site will get flagged. It’s easier for a bureaucrat just to put a “nightlife” site on the list of blocked sites because it affects farangs and not Thais, rather than in effect okaying a site by not blocking it and maybe getting blamed later by his supervisor. Getting off the list … no clue how someone would do that, it’s probably a black hole that no site ever escapes from.

The MICT people do understand that they won’t control what the rest of the world sees. But for most Thai sites about the girl scene, so much of the traffic is from expats that the block would have a significant effect. Add on loss of advertisers (they know the authors are getting ad revenue without work permits or paying taxes on income) and also interfering with ability of the website owner to post if he’s local, and it’s a pretty potent weapon.

Would the absence of Stickman, TFS2M, Werewolf or any of the lesser lights actually be a loss? Doubtful. The sites tend to be pretty dull reading for anyone who’s been there and done that – or not. A little less bad advice, a little less prejudiced clap-trap and a great deal fewer juvenile sexologues won’t do a lot of harm. Hardly a blip on the radar screen in the greater scheme of things, but the sort of issue a Thai bureaucrat can use to advance his career “protecting Thai dignity and the national image.”

If a site just sticks to your normal general interest stories and simply talks about what clubs have decent food menus, reasonable drink prices, good music and a nice atmosphere (no mention of any girls, and definitely not go-go bars, beer bars or anything like that) one should be okay. That’s the Thailand the tourism people want to promote as a place for fun holidays rather than brothel to the world.

My source thinks it has to do with a serious inner-circle panic about “spin” because lately Thailand’s taken a hell of a beating in the international press, from big things like coups and airports and GDP and human rights, right down to the odd dead tourist as well as airport scams and other pocketbook issues. That all goes to serious concerns about the big-earner tourism industry because they are losing sex-tourists and straight tourists left and right. But the losses of straight tourists is worse percentage wise and that’s the bread and butter of tourism. There’s still a recession, and there’s a lot of new negative word of mouth about Thailand among the Western middle class. So government is inclined to grasp at straws, especially career-boosting ones.

Add to that the more media savvy political class (MPs and bureaucrats) who’ve come in since the Thaksin era started and mix that with the career bump any one of them would enjoy from getting their picture in the papers as guardian of public morals. For the first time you’ve got significant penetration of people into government who understand “spin” is as important as “face,” and people in senior positions who have a grasp of how Westerners think and value Thailand, and who actually “get” the internet.

Sum it up, these are the right social and economic times, and the right people are now in power to play the cards. Who can fight back? Is any website owner really going to file complaint with their real name on it, and thereby take responsibility for a sex-tourism website? A de facto admission of working illegally? Not going to happen.

Sure, they are picking the low-hanging fruit if this happens, but remember that the people who would be affected are essentially disposable in the Thai mindset. The authorities can benefit while no Thai interests are damaged and that’s the real key. It will play well in the provinces, as the saying goes, and also to the international press if they notice.

Again IF this happens, it should make for one hell of a show and put many other controversies to shame.




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November 1, 2009 | Filed Under Business & Economics, Culture Shock, News & Media, Nightlife & Entertainment, The Thai Mind 

Comments

11 Responses to “Dangerous Ground”

  1. Tweets that mention Dangerous Ground -- Topsy.com on November 1st, 2009 10.20 pm

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Stuart McDonald, BangkokDan. BangkokDan said: (BLOG) Dangerous Ground http://bit.ly/2fyNcG [...]

  2. Talen on November 2nd, 2009 7.47 am

    This could be very troubling news indeed and not just for the website and blog authors that write about the bar scene.

    We all write about Thailand and touch on aspects of nightlife here and there, it’s hard not to. The way Thai authorities usually go overboard could very well mean that other sites might get caught in the net.

    It’s sad that they would rather censor what people are saying than actually doing the necessary things to clean up the perceived problems.

    I feel for the Thai bankers. It’s not like they broke news here … everyone knew the king has been sick and for all the double talk about lung inflammation most people figured that out as pneumonia.

  3. KV on November 2nd, 2009 9.28 am

    I read the news about the arrest too and think that considering the banks involved, I truly hope they see they would not see them as disposable and give them proper lawyers but hardly think it will happen. The moment they were arrested, lawyers the otherside of the planet decided that it is better not to endanger the banks postion in Thailand and let the two bankers rot in jail for LM. This happens after all in China too, where companies ie. the managers don’t give a crap about ethics or human rights if it means they would be barred from markets.

  4. CT Bruton on November 2nd, 2009 9.33 pm

    As it turns out, these two are enthusiastic supporters of Thaksin. Can you see what’s going on here?

    (BD: Please elaborate CT.)

  5. Oneditorial on November 2nd, 2009 11.07 pm

    I don’t think many Thais give a cr@p about how much the shares fell last month. But these two crossed the line. Thankfully someone managed to find the woman’s home address and posted it on the internet. Now she will have to face the consequences of her action. That is called social punishment.

  6. Further crackdowns on websites etc ?? - TeakDoor.com - The Thailand Forum on November 2nd, 2009 11.23 pm

    [...] [...]

  7. seaking the truth on Thai tourism - TeakDoor.com - The Thailand Forum on November 2nd, 2009 11.36 pm

    [...] Dangerous Ground [...]

  8. eman on November 2nd, 2009 11.59 pm

    Oneditorial, regarding your advocacy for “social punishment,” I think in English we call it linching, similar to killing by throwing stones. My Thai girlfriend witnessed a lone farang get the shit kicked out of him by a local Thai mob. She called their action “using the foot.” Euphemisms are a dime a dozen in fanciful Thailand. BTW something tells me Bruton is on to something here. Let’s hope he elucidates.

  9. Talen on November 3rd, 2009 12.06 am

    Oneditorial, just what do you believe the social punishment is that will fit this crime? Someone showing up at her house to scare her or would perhaps killing her be better?

  10. jk on November 4th, 2009 1.55 pm

    One of the arrested was a former employee of UBS, but had not worked there for a full year. The other was with a local broker Seamico, not Credit Suisse.

    The Seamico employee could possibility have broken securities laws (or at least ethical practices), by publishing opinions under and assumed name while giving investment advice publicly.

    In the case of the ex-UBS woman at least, she just translated something that had already been published in English. She did so after the market closed and after it had suffered its sharp fall.

    I believe the only market move post-publication was up.

    She published the translation after the market fell to explain why. It then rose the next day.

    It would appear impossible to claim that she played a role in the original market fall or later correction.

    It is hard to see how this could violate any law at all, and I will be surprised if it goes to court.

    Neither comment was published as a part of any job and I don’t expect either will get legal support from these banks.

    I assume CT Bruton is Chris Bruton, a rabid PAD supporter so we can see what is going on with his comment: expressing an opinion. There is nothing wrong with it in either case, certainly not to the degree that the government should, or should be allowed to, interfere in.

    (BD: Thanks for the clarification, hadn’t updated the first available reports yet. The word later on was that UBS and Credit Suisse were having manipulated stocks – a claim that’s rejected by the SEC itself: http://enews.mcot.net/view.php?id=12620)

  11. the farang doesn’t speak at all « Werewolf's Lair on December 23rd, 2009 2.05 pm

    [...] have linked it to the article at Absolutely Bangkok a month or two ago that indicated that the authorities would begin cracking down on blogs and [...]

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