BY Robert Harland
According to a new book, Thailand is one of the most dangerous tourist destinations on earth.
Thailand: Deadly Destination written by Australian author John Stapleton talks about widespread police corruption, violence and crime, which are blighting a country once commonly referred to as the ‘Land of Smiles’.
He claims the boom in tourism has created a hatred of foreigners and a murderous indifference towards tourists.
Stapleton was a frequent visitor to Thailand for many years before moving to the capital Bangkok in 2010. He says he was robbed on numerous occasions and this made him curious about the welfare of tourists. His conclusion? The police have little interest in helping foreigners who report crimes.
“Having spent so much time with the locals, I finally began to understand how they thought; and to understand that they actively dislike foreigners, have no compunction in robbing them, and that their cultural distaste for foreigners and ultra-nationalistic pride in their own country fuels and justifies the crimes against tourists,” he said.
He further claimed that the death rate among tourists, which he often goes unrecorded, is a scandal.
Indeed, figures released by British Foreign Office showed that between 2011 and 2012, there were 296 British deaths in Thailand. In the 12 months up to April 1, 2013, there were 389 British deaths in the country while in the same period up to April 2014, there were 362 deaths and 267 hospitalisations of British tourists.
However, Stapleton does not give an analysis of the deaths. Were the Brits murdered? Did they die in traffic accidents or did they simply die of old age – perhaps there are thousands of elderly British expats who visit or live in the country?
“Thailand’s carefully manufactured reputation for hospitality, as a land of palm trees and sun-drenched beaches, happy-hour bars, world-class hotels and welcoming people, as paradise on earth, is very different to the reality many tourists encounter,” Stapleton added.
“The rapid growth in Thai tourism has been a triumph of advertising and image creation; building the perception, firmly entrenched in the West, that Thais embrace strangers.
“In reality, the relations between ethnic Thais and foreigners are often difficult; and there has been growing friction and disengagement, a drift from curiosity to contempt, as visitor numbers have increased.
“While many foreigners leave the country happy, there are equally thousands of travellers from Europe, America, Australia, India and the Middle East, both short-time tourists and long-term residents, leaving the country impoverished, distressed, frightened and unlikely to ever return.”
In the book, Stapleton attempts to explain why a million fewer tourists are predicted to visit the beach-rich nation this year, following a military coup and the unsolved brutal murder of two British backpackers in September.
Needless to say, the Thailand Tourist Authority (TAT) dismissed Stapleton’s book as an exaggeration.
“We are certain that those who come across this book will conclude themselves that Thailand is by no means the ‘most dangerous’ country in the world to visit,” said Joanna Cooke, PR Manager for TAT’s London office.
Stapleton recognises that “the poor behaviour of countless drunken Westerners” is often to blame for anti-Western feeling.
“When visiting a country as culturally different as Thailand, tourists must respect and adhere to local customs and laws to prevent getting into trouble.”
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