Bintabaat shut down at 12.15 by masked police!

[usual suspect]

So we've waited for high-season to kick off, after rain, wind, last night was the 1st evening Soi Bintabaat was truly busy & full of tourists..(spending westerners not Chinese).
Tonight was the same..ever bar was doing well..all tourists happy-happy..until...
At 12.15 7-8 masked MiB swarmed Binta and demanded every bar shut NOW!
Well can you imagine the bitter feelings from all the bar owners, & can you picture the holiday-makers who are wondering WTF..??
I left Binta all closed-up, yet all the bars on Poolsuk were still in full swing and music banging out..?
This is on the same day we have got info that on N Yr's eve the bars cannot stay open late! ( as for the last 20+ years)
Am I the only one that really feels that this resort does not want any Western tourist money..?
Am I the only one who talks to ex-pats that are seriously thinking of re-locating to a nearby country soon..?

[oakdale160]

MASKED MIB. is that new??, I never saw or heard of Masked police

[bsdk1960]

nothing can surprise me anymore,thailand seems to get more and more out of touch with almost everything these days.

[redzonerocker]

Had all this nonsense when I was out there earlier in the year.
Closing down the bars in Bintabat area at midnight and the karaoke bars by the Hilton at 2am.

They didn't have masks on though

A lot of short term tourists made their way back up to Bangkok after a day or two.

[oakdale160]

Farang are very ingenious. Isn't there some way that they could send money to Thailand but not visit the country.

[usual suspect]

MiB now wearing masks across their faces due to tourists taking photos of them.
Expect more of this cos the latest MiB big-boss is seemingly very strict..

[Bamboo Grove]

Any idea why it was only Binta, not Poolsuk or others?

[Takiap]

MiB now wearing masks across their faces due to tourists taking photos of them.
Expect more of this cos the latest MiB big-boss is seemingly very strict..

In Thailand, everyone is a General; everyone has to be in front of someone and above someone. It begins right at the very top, and filters it way all the way down to the poverty stricken rice farmer who wants their child to go on their knees before them and worship their feet.

I think the same sort of thing is what drives actions like those which you saw in Binta. The military big brass have full control of the country, so the police big brass also need to be lord over something, and bar areas are not really in a position to offer much resistance.


Sadly, the authorities here really do seem to be chasing people away. I personally know 4 guys who have left Thailand within the last six months after having lived here for many years.


Unfortunately, I can't see the situation improving any time soon.

[migrant]

Robbers wear masks, don't they?

[PeteC]

^ Yes, perhaps not robbers but some group hired by the Poolsuk interests to limit competition over the holiday. Someone needed to ask for ID and then call the Police HQ to verify. Tough to ask anyone to summon the courage I know but needs to be done.

[PBbeacher]

Am I the only one that really feels that this resort does not want any Western tourist money..?
Am I the only one who talks to ex-pats that are seriously thinking of re-locating to a nearby country soon..?

Not only you, sadly a great deal of people i talk to say the same. People I know who have lived here long term, then left for a while for whatever reason, and are now ready to venture back to s.e.asia are looking at all other options rather than coming back here.

This is just another example of the way things are heading..there's a new one everyday .... =(

[NOKYAI]

It’s the inconsistency that leads to conspiracy theories.
Out of town bars told to close between 2-5pm.
I was told last night that all the bars on Soi 80 have been given the OK to stay open ALL-NIGHT on New year!

[oakdale160]

I recently lived and worked in Cambodia for 6 months. I was surprised at the number of Thai ex-pats taking a holiday there. When talking to them they were often also there to consider Cam as an alternative retirement home. I didn't see many couples doing this, mostly single men.

[JWWhite]

Folks who have no roots or commitments here will tend to move around, but for every one who goes there will be at least one more arrival, it's a never-ending cycle.

[Big Boy]

Am I the only one that really feels that this resort does not want any Western tourist money..?
Am I the only one who talks to ex-pats that are seriously thinking of re-locating to a nearby country soon..?

Not only you, sadly a great deal of people i talk to say the same. People I know who have lived here long term, then left for a while for whatever reason, and are now ready to venture back to s.e.asia are looking at all other options rather than coming back here.

This is just another example of the way things are heading..there's a new one everyday .... =(

I tell people at home, who are considering relocation about some of the crap that goes on here, and they just think I'm just a whinging old git and exaggerating. Whinging old git, guilty as charged , but it's no exaggeration.

Fortunately, most of it like this incident and Nokyai's incident yesterday doesn't affect me. It's just another knee-jerk reaction to Thailand achieving No.1. Rather than address the real problems like lack of a real police force, they make isolated gestures like this, which will be an agitation at best.

Oh dear, my chosen bar in Bintabaht is closed, I'm going to have to walk all the way to the next corner to get my fix.

Apart from putting on a show to scare people senseless (FFS wearing masks), what has this achieved?