Do Foreign Embassies in Thailand Warn their Citizens Enough?

ukinthailand

One of the biggest issues for expats living in Thailand and for visiting tourists is the question of safety and security. Although I have personally not faced any serious issues in the 19 years that I have lived and worked in Thailand, I do recognize the fact that crimes against foreigners seem to be on the rise. In addition to this, there also seems to be a rise in the number of fatalities on the roads and of foreigners being murdered.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that Thailand is more dangerous than what it was when I first came here. There are far more expats and tourists here now. So, it is not surprising that there are now serious incidents nearly every day. Another reason why it may seem that there are more crimes against foreigners is the rise in popularity of social media. We are now getting to hear about news that just wasn’t reported before. Take my @191Thailand account as an example. The majority of fatal bus crashes that I tweet about never reach the Bangkok Post or The Nation. Same goes for deaths of foreigners.

[tweet https://twitter.com/RichardBarrow/status/331237569046118401]

A little while ago, I tweeted asking my followers if they thought that embassies in Thailand were doing enough to warn their citizens of the dangers of travelling inside Thailand. Many said that more could be done by the embassies to make it safer for foreigners in Thailand. But, is that really fair? Like @thaicam said in reply to my tweet, “travelers have been warned for years online and by word of mouth. It’s the Thai authorities who need to clamp down”. I think we both agree that the Thai side is where the problem lies. After all, in recent months, foreign ambassadors have been very active in trying to find solutions to tourism issues. They have been listening to expats and tourists who have posted about their problems on social media and forums like ThaiVisa. They have also been touring the country visiting the relevant authorities to find out what needs to be done. In many places they were given promises that things will get better soon. But, as we all know, these visits and promises have to be followed up if anything is to be achieved.

mintourism

To the credit of these ambassadors, this is exactly what they have been doing behind the scenes. I know how frustrating it can be for them as their hands are often tied as they are living and working in a foreign country. But, they are persisting.  I spotted this picture posted on the Facebook page of a friend of mine (he is second from the left). Here you can see British Ambassador Mark Kent who was meeting with the Minister of Tourism last week to discuss problems being faced by foreigners. And this week, 18 ambassadors and senior diplomats from Europe will be meeting in Phuket for a briefing on tourism issues. This will be followed later by a meeting with Thailand’s top police officers. I am not going to get too optimistic, but as the ambassadors are getting more vocal now I think real change is in the wind. Particulary after the Chinese Ambassador was quoted as saying “‘Police are corrupt in Thailand. Some of them use their positions of power to rip off tourists”.

[tweet https://twitter.com/KentBKK/status/331244566957133826]

To get back to my original question of whether foreign embassies in Bangkok are doing enough to warn their citizens of the dangers in Thailand. I received two replies from foreign ambassadors who are active on social media. The reply above is from British Ambassador Mark Kent and the one below is from Canadian Ambassador Phil Calvert. Both of them point out links to their websites where there is travel advice. I recently re-read them for the first time in a year or so and I must say I don’t think there is more they can say or do. Here are just a few quotes from the British Embassy website: “Western tourists have been victims of vicious, unprovoked attacks by gangs in Koh Phangan”, “There have been sexual assaults against foreign men and women”, “There have been a number of accidents involving overnight coach travel” and a lot more like this. If people don’t read the advice of their embassy then they can only blame themselves for not being properly prepared. Like I said many times before, tourists are often their own worst enemy when travelling abroad. If you take sensible precautions, like wearing helmets on motorcycles and only travelling on registered transport, then your holiday in Thailand will go much smoother.

[tweet https://twitter.com/PhilCalvert2/status/331280495642021888]

What do you think? Can the embassadors and embassies do more to make it safer for us here in Thailand? Is it really their duty? Shouldn’t the responsibility be with the Thai authorities? After all, they are the ones making money from tourism.

12 thoughts on “Do Foreign Embassies in Thailand Warn their Citizens Enough?

  • October 18, 2013 at 9:51 pm
    Permalink

    As a U.S. embassy official once told me, “you are ultimately responsible for your own safety.” My husband and I have lived in some very remote places and always know our emergency plan and have water, food, fuel and cash available. We are too far from embassies to use their contingency plans. For a resident the best protection is a good rapport with the locals and an awareness of changes in feel of your locale – as in “are the market ladies open today?” For those in transit, common sense – not flashing money or valuables, avoiding large gatherings, keeping low profile during elections, being aware of local news. As some of your responses well stated – do not act foolishly because you are away from home! Be aware and alert.

    Reply
  • June 21, 2013 at 5:30 pm
    Permalink

    Naturally embassies around the world are obliged to protect their citizens who intend to travel. As to whether there is enough information may depend on certain circumstances which prevents them to directly publish additional information which ‘diplomatically speaking’, might upset the apple cart. My view on this subject is rather vague, but IMHO it seems to be a fine balancing act of being informative where the would-be traveller can make a definative decision based on the advice given at the time, whilst at the same token of being sensitive to those sources that may be supplying the information, directly or indirectly which could have a profound impact say on tourism as an example if they data somehow proved to be inaccurate. At the end of the day, it is certainly upto the person to familiarise themselves with as much information as possible, be it from an official website or elsewhere, and make their own judgement. After all, there is so much information out there, not just on the internet.

    Reply
  • June 17, 2013 at 12:39 am
    Permalink

    Warnings can only have limited effect.

    Embassies should work more closely with Thai authorities to resolve problems faced by their citizens, from individual issues (e.g. legal and medical) to systemic/general ones (e.g. common scams in certain areas, police corruption, visa rule changes).

    Embassies could do a lot to suppress certain type of crime (Farang-on-Farang) which Thai authorities tend to ignore.

    Reply
  • June 11, 2013 at 9:44 am
    Permalink

    They do Fuxx all… If they do warn of danger its most likely to late.

    Reply
  • June 11, 2013 at 9:43 am
    Permalink

    apparently not, else we wouldnt have “Richard Barrow in Thailand” haha

    Reply
  • June 11, 2013 at 9:43 am
    Permalink

    New Zealand embassy is pretty good, but Thailand is one of those places where common sense is needed

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 8:29 pm
    Permalink

    I have to agree with John on this matter. Every time I visit I see tourists behaving in ways they would never do in their own countries and I am not just talking about wearing helmets. Shocking to see how many men in BKK, chon buri,Krabi, and lots of other places treat Thai women. It’s not because the women are Thai, that they are by definition prostitutes. And even those women should be treated with respect. A lot of violence/scams happen in these red light parts. Not once were my Thai wife or me attacked, or had a feeling of not being safe. We just don’t look it up. If you walk in the red light district in London, Paris, Barcelona late at night, drunk… you will get robbed as well and as fast as in Pattaya. When you act like a pig, you will be treated like one. Show respect, and they will respect you.

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 8:16 pm
    Permalink

    We don’t need no stinkin’ embassies..all we need is your blog !

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 8:13 pm
    Permalink

    If people are going to be stupid on holiday then there is nothing their embassy can do. All that is needed is some common sense and a little bit of research. The tailor and jewelry scams are so well known now on the Internet and in guidebooks I am surprised people still fall for it. And why do people insist on riding motorcycles without helmets and protective clothing here in Thailand when they wouldn’t dream of doing that in their home country. I personally think the embassies are doing a great job and that Thai authorities should do more to guarantee tourist safety.

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 8:04 pm
    Permalink

    To be fair, another warning should be expected from the embassies to prevent crimes that might be proveked by tourists. Warnings should be given to them that like most Asians, Thais are more prone to physical fights or actions compared to westerners, so tourists should take precautions to prevent themselves from starting any arguements. Dont you think so ? Afterall we cant guarantee that all problems are started by the locals. Prevention is better than cure.

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 8:01 pm
    Permalink

    Richard,

    In the past 20 years tourism has more than tripled from 7 to 26 million

    http://www.thaiwebsites.com/images/Tourism/tourismEnd2012.gif

    Also I personally the number of foreigner who live here on a permanent or semi permanent status has increase much more than that.

    So are more the more attacks just because we are a great percentage of the population.

    Paul

    Reply
  • June 10, 2013 at 7:59 pm
    Permalink

    Life is cheap in Thailand. That’s everyone. Not just the poor of Issan but middle class tourists from the US as well. Who even listens, the embassy just covers itself.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Stanley Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *