Opinion
The Thaiger Opinion Columns
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Opinion: NCPO battles Thai hydra of corruption
PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has taken swift action to show the European Union (EU) that it intends to do more to tackle the problem of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing practices in Thailand and its territorial waters. Whether or not real order can be imposed within just six months on the huge hydra of…
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Opinion: Goodbye, Phuket
PHUKET: In 1997, we travelled to Thailand for the first time – to Bangkok and Hua Hin. It was love at first sight. We fell in love with this beautiful, wonderful country, the warm and heartfelt people, the beautiful beach and the food. The sun and heat made us so happy, as we are used to being in the cold.…
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Opinion: Road improvements to relieve Phuket’s traffic congestion
Samak Luedwonghad, 48, is the director of the Phuket Highways Office, under the Department of Highways. Originally from Nakhon Sri Thammarat province, he graduated from Mahanakorn University of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. He has been the director of the Phuket Highways Office since 2012. Here, he talks about the ever-worsening traffic congestion on the island and…
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Opinion: Helmetless children, hurdles to Phuket parenting
PHUKET: I’m a recent arrival in Phuket after spending several months in Bangkok where I purchased a Honda CBR150 sports bike and then dared to negotiate the city’s infamous traffic. I’d been cautioned not to do so because of the potential for injury or death, but having successfully driven a Chinese-made 150cc motorcycle, which resembled a scaled-down Harley, on the…
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Opinion: Coming together in times of need
Phanuphong Limbuprasertkul, 46, is the president of the Phuket branch of the Thai-Nepalese Foundation, officially called the Shree Bhagawat Dhaam Sanatan Mandir Foundation, which is located in Patong. Mr Phanuphong was born in Kanchanaburi, and has lived in Phuket for the past 24 years. Here, he talks about how important it is for citizens of the world to come together…
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Opinion: Turn them off, folks
PHUKET: Because I’m an anxious flier, I have always been overly aware of my surroundings while taking commercial flights. With all the drama surrounding the ban of Thai carriers to Japan, South Korea and China following the United Nation’s International Civil Aviation Organization audit, which found that Thailand’s Department of Civil Aviation met only 21 out of 100 operational and…
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Opinion: AEC must address human trafficking, smuggling
PHUKET: The discovery of a mass grave of dozens of migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh in Songkhla’s Sadao District, on the border with Malaysia, this week screams urgency for the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to use its extraordinary powers to turn the tide against human trafficking in the Thailand. The order by Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha…
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Opinion: Fill legal loopholes with strong morals
Winai Chidchiew, 42, is the Subdistrict chief (Kamnan) of Karon. Phuket-born Mr Winai has a political science master’s degree specializing in local development and a bachelor’s degree in law, both earned from Ramkhamhaeng University. He also has a bachelor’s degree in community development from Rajabhat University. Here, he talks about the importance of involving local authorities in decisions made for…
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Opinion: Protecting Nepali victims in exodus
PHUKET: Island residents must come together to fully support local efforts by the Red Cross Society and private-sector groups to provide disaster relief to the suffering people of Kathmandu and other parts of central Nepal that have been devastated by the massive earthquake that struck there last Saturday morning. As of yesterday, the reported death toll had surpassed 6,000 and…
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Opinion: Social media’s role in unwanted pregnancy
Yaowanit Nongkom, 33, a Vachira Phuket Hospital psychologist originally from Roi Et province, has been working at Vachira Phuket Hospital for nine years. She graduated with a degree in clinical and community psychology from Ramkhamhaeng University. Ms Yaowanit is head of the One Stop Crisis Center (OSCC) at the hospital. Here, she talks about how social media networks can play…
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Opinion: Lovin’ the python
PHUKET: I love snakes. Whenever there is a news story about snakes sneaking into houses during the southwest monsoon season – I’m clicking on it. Snake in the road? I’m getting as close as possible to get a picture – which I admit is probably not the best idea in some situations, depending on the type of snake. So, naturally,…
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Opinion: Lay down the Songkran law
PHUKET: Though I have a great deal of respect for many of the changes seen in Phuket following the National Council of Peace and Order taking over and the subsequent rule of Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, I was disappointed to see the Songkran bans announced with such severity (story here) and then enforced with such lack of impunity (story…
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Opinion: By land, air or sea – embarrassment for all
PHUKET: The ferry fire that claimed the life of 12-year-old Israeli tourist Shani Manil last week is just the latest in a series of tourist industry maritime tragedies that have occurred in the Andaman region in recent years, demonstrating once again that transport safety for tourists and residents alike remains a chronic problem here. There have been numerous sinkings, capsizings,…
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Opinion: Tides turn against IUU vessels in Southeast Asia
Siddharth Chakravarty, captain of The Steve Irwin, has been working for the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and battling on the frontlines of marine conservation since 2011. Since then, he and his crew have managed to combat Japanese whalers, patrol the Bluefin Tuna fishing season, protect the Whale Sanctuary in the Southern Ocean, save sharks in the South Pacific and more.…
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Opinion: Practice Songkran Phuketiquette
PHUKET: As the Songkran holiday nears, we are continually reminded of the dangers on the road during the Thai New Year festival. Drivers fight traffic on wet, slippery roads while simultaneously getting pummelled in the face with ice water. Officials have made it clear that this year they are determined to make the holiday more about tradition and less about…
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Opinion: No time to let our guard down
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) and the Phuket Provincial Governor’s Office must take emergency measures to return lifeguards to active duty at west coast beaches as soon as possible. The two key governmental offices must also work out a long-term solution to end the annual contract disputes that have left beaches unpatrolled for long periods in recent years…
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Opinion: Save our trees
Anawut Prapunwong, 41, is a chairman and landscape architect of Oriental Vista Co Ltd, and the president of Phuket’s Big Tree Club, which was established on March 5 last year. He graduated from Chulalongkorn University with a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture and has been president of the club since its inception. The Big Tree Club is a sub-club of…
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Opinion: Propel Phuket to become a global yacht stop
PHUKET: Efforts by Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul to ease restrictions on a wide variety of bureaucratic measures that are preventing the island’s marine tourism industry from going ‘full throttle’ deserve full support. The aim is to further develop the island into its natural role as one of Asia’s premier yachting and cruise ship destinations. While details of the…
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Opinion: Help tourists discover true Thainess
PHUKET: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) recently launched a multi-million-baht tourism campaign to lure foreign visitors to the Land of Smiles under the banner ‘Discover Thainess’. What they did not do is explain what “Thainess” is before unleashing their latest marketing ploy. A catchy campaign and slogan with so much potential was immediately lost in translation. Tourists new to…
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Opinion: Save and protect our fellow earth dwellers
Wanchai Supanaus, 56, from Nakhon Sri Thammarat, is the head of the Phang Nga Wildlife Nursery Station. He graduated from Phrae Forestry School in 1979, where he earned a vocational certificate for forestry. He has been head of the station for 15 years. Here, he discusses the illegal trade of touting protected species, which is prevalent in Phuket and other…
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Opinion: Teaching tourists proper footiquette
PHUKET: The fining of a Chinese tourist for washing her feet in a sink in a public restroom on Phi Phi Don hardly comes as earth-shattering news. It does, however, raise several cultural issues in a country which is so dependent on mass tourism, but at the same time famously sensitive to issues regarding the lowest of the lower extremities.…
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Opinion: Need for more speed in court proceedings
Sakun Suanpharn, 53, originally from Uttaradit, took up the position of Chief Judge of Phuket Provincial Court on April 1 last year. Judge Sakun earned a Bachelor’s of Law, Barrister-at-law from Ramkhamhaeng University. Before coming to Phuket, Judge Sakun served as Chief Judge of Yala Juvenile Court, following more than 20 years’ experience after graduating from university. Here, he explains…
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Opinion: Take it easy, people
PHUKET: Take it easy, people. What our government is trying to do is bring back “The Land of Smiles”. The nation’s leaders are trying to fix all of the problems that have plagued Thailand for decades. I have heard some say that Rome wasn’t built in a day… so, give the government a chance to work out these problems. What…
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Opinion: Always put safety first
Jetsada Chanpen, 27, from Ranong, has been a Kusoldharm Foundation rescue worker for eight years. Last year, he almost lost his life doing what he loves. On March 26, Jetsada was the first to respond to an accident in which four workers had passed out in a sewer in Phuket Town. Wasting no time, he plunged into the sewer to…
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Opinion: Phuket defining boating culture
Erwin Bamps is CEO of Gulf Craft, listed among the world’s top 10 superyacht builders as per the 2014 Global Order Book, a report issued annually by the Boat International Group. Before his appointment to CEO in June 2014, Mr Bamps had been the chief operating officer of the company since 2009, during which the company grew from a few…
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Opinion: Tourism – Once Thailand’s golden goose
PHUKET: Thailand should decide if it wants tourism, or not. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has spent billions of baht over the past 15 years to build the tourism industry into a major force, and it has been largely successful in spite of political turmoil, a tsunami, floods, corruption and fluctuations in currencies worldwide. One estimate published in 2003…
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Opinion: Making Phuket’s roads safe one step at a time
Dr Wiwat Seetamanotch, 57, from Yala, has been living in Phuket since 1987. He worked as director of Thalang Hospital for 17 years, followed by 10 years as deputy director for the Phuket Provincial Health Office. Now retired, Dr Wiwat has been working on road safety campaigns for the past six years, as well as running a clinic in Thalang.…
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Opinion: Ban anything, ban tourists – just be clear
PHUKET: The issue isn’t the beach management plan. It’s the lack of a plan or, at the very least, the lack of communicating the plan clearly and concisely. Phuket can junk up or freshen up its beaches as much as the government wants, but it won’t really matter – there are tourists suitable for each kind of beach. Of course,…
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Opinion: Working together to win the war on drugs
Lt Col Somkid Boonrat, from Songkhla province, is chief of the investigation department at the Phuket Provincial Police Station. After graduating from the Royal Thai Police Cadet Academy, he continued on to earn a bachelor’s degree in law from Ramkhamhaeng University and a master’s degree in business administration from Prince of Songkhla University. Lt Col Somkid has been head of…
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Opinion: Beach bums blue after latest Phuket ban
PHUKET: Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup is correct in calling for a compromising approach to the ban on beach chairs on the island (story here). An equitable and transparent solution must be worked out before this latest embarrassment causes irreparable damage to the island’s tourism industry, permanently driving away many of the island’s most loyal guests. Images of elderly tourists being…
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