OPINION

'Fun police' strike again

I would like to ask the powers that be why I am being punished? Never in 25 years have I broken a Thai law. I have never partaken in the illegal nightlife entertainment for which the country is famous.

I always obey every road law while millions of others cause death and injury by driving illegally without any chance of being punished. My one sin is that for 50 years I have partaken in my culturally acceptable and very legal hobby of having a wager on horse racing.

Now that my physical self is in Thailand I have recently been denied this pleasure. I was using English pounds from my English bank to transfer money to the legally operating English bookmaker to wager on English horse races. But recently the Thai government has deemed me a criminal and blocked my website. People are continually moaning that the illogical immigration laws will cause them to up and leave. I have never had any worries with immigration but this illogical denial of my enjoyment that millions of others do legally every day may see me on my way also. The "fun police" will cost the country yet again. What right do these people have to ruin the lives of others? Lastly, the UK bookmaker pays huge tax to the government. No one loses.

Testing our patience

As my wife and I landed at Buri Ram airport on April 10 at 8.55am, we were asked, as announced, to queue up and sit waiting to be tested. We were asked to show our ID to the doctor and were finally tested without being registered.

Registration came when we have had to disburse 600 baht to cover the test's expenses. We got a health certificate without any clinical examination.

When we were invited to move on, we could see all the sample sets still on the table next to the cabin. Our temperature was tested as we entered the arrival room. Then, we were free to move everywhere, not aware of our Covid-19 status. A situation which we are still in one week later.

We are puzzled about such an experience.

We want to report it as it not always easy for travellers to get updated (and update others) about their health conditions. And still, we would really appreciate getting the final results of the tests.

Jab delay doesn't make sense

With the number of cases of Covid-19 and the daily reported number of new cases, why oh why, doesn't the government start mass vaccinations? Vaccines are readily available. Is this more corruption in the government? Who is the individual not getting paid enough to start this process? The crown has plenty of money and so does the government for such an important health pandemic.

Do as we say, not as we do

Re: "Officials to blame", (PostBag, Apr 16).

WhizBang says that Thai officials have been the source of three waves of Covid infections, namely the army boxing stadium, people trafficking, and government ministers attending illegal businesses supported by the Royal Thai Police.

He is forgetting another, which makes it four Covid waves that can be laid fairly and squarely at the door of officialdom: the Rayong illegal casinos, which are well known to police and which no doubt are a steady source of income for some police officers. As I said in an earlier letter to PostBag, I know that the police knew about this casino because I reported it to them more than a year ago when one of them took illegal possession of my Thai son's motorbike as surety on gambling debts.

The government and its officials are very good at proscribing what we mere mortals must do to cope with Covid. It is a disgrace that they blatantly ignore their own dictates.

Cruelty leads to tragedy

Re: "Man killed while feeding an elephant", (BP, Apr 16).

I have a video of my wife feeding the same elephant, Cherry, on a recent trip to Khao Yai's Thanarat Road.

I couldn't help but notice that Cherry, in addition to being chained to a tree by her hind leg, also had her two front legs chained closely together, giving her basically no room to move. I pointed out to the caretaker that he ought to at least lenghten the chains on the front legs.

He just shook his head and said 'oh, mai dai. Kao due mark' (No can do. She is very naughty). I can't help but wonder if Cherry finally got fed up being chained.