British academic removed from blacklist after 4 days at Thai airport

[buksida]

Academic rivalries and accusations of plagiarism rarely make international news. But that’s what unfolded at a Bangkok airport on Thursday, when British academic and agricultural consultant Wyn Ellis, a resident in Thailand, was refused entry to the country because of a years-long plagiarism dispute that left him branded a “danger to Thai society”.

Ellis spent four days in the transit section of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport after refusing to return to Europe, opting instead to stay in the airport until the matter was resolved.

He was finally allowed to re-enter Thailand Monday night.

Ellis’s problems originate from a row with a Thai official which began nine years ago that led to him being added to a Thai immigration blacklist. In 2006 Ellis made complaints that the then head of Thailand’s National Innovation Agency (NIA) Supachai Lorlowhakarn had plagiarized much of his doctorate dissertation from early research that Ellis had conducted on asparagus.

After a series of legal battles, Supachai was stripped of his doctorate by Chulalongkorn University and was convicted of criminal forgery in 2012. He was also fired from his position as director the NIA.

The matter appeared to have been resolved, but on Thursday Ellis — who is married to a Thai academic — was told he could not enter Thailand after disembarking from a flight from Europe. Immigration officers showed him a letter sent from Supachai in 2009 that accused Ellis of forgery, stealing government documents, and being an overall “danger to Thai society.”

Full Story: Asian Correspondent

[dtaai-maai]

A relevant clarification:

He did, however, clarify in a Facebook post that he was not technically “detained”, as was widely reported in the media, but chose to stay in the airport.

“It was entirely my choice to stay to clear the situation locally. So, I want to make it clear I was never kept locked up by the Immigration Dept; this was my choice to remain so I could clear my name from the blacklist,” he wrote Monday night.

He added that he was allowed to work in an immigration official’s office and was provided with “excellent” food and “REAL coffee” by immigration staff.

Ellis again praised immigration staff in a Facebook post after his release: “I must say the Immigration staff at the airport were professional, sympathetic and helpful. They really worked to take care of me and did their level best to seek solutions.“

[Spitfire]

Guess this guy (UK/UN academic) paid the price for exposing the obvious corruption, incompetence and plagiarism that is rampant here at all levels and into the smallest corners of everything here (also to a shameless degree), whilst not realizing that he would be "on the list" of some 'Little Hitler' that wants to save whatever ridiculous 'face' that he has lost/got left after being outed and busted as a piece of complete lying garbage.

This episode certainly makes Chula Uni look 'half-arsed' but it looks like they did a last minute save and 86ed the idiot (finally) in a belated attempt at damage limitation and trying to not look like they are also useless by granting him the award in the first place without checking anything.

Bet this sort of story/thing goes on all the time.....just that this guy got caught out and it hit the news so they had no choice but to reconsider the award. I wonder how many thousands of rich indigenous frauds have got away with it though because they have the right social stature and enough money to grease the wheels so no questions are asked....begs the question TBH.

Apologies for stating the obvious....just needed to be said.

[Big Boy]

Definitely not in mod mode and totally . but what does 86ed mean please? Never heard it before.

Forget that, Google was my friend - what an interesting term
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/86_%28term%29

[hhfarang]

^ I was 86ed from a couple of bars when I was in my 20's.

[centermid7]

69 is what I focus on . . .