AROUND 200 to 300 Phuket residents today (Aug. 28) aired their bad experiences at the hands of foreign tourists at Loma Park, Patong Beach, and demanded that the government restrict Israeli tourists to a maximum 15-day stay to prevent them from engaging in illegal businesses, Amarin TV said.
The forum, entitled “Save Phuket, Save Patong, Respect Thai Law”, was tightly controlled with numerous uniformed and plainclothes policemen watching over it.
Among those attending were tourism operators, including hotel owners, tuk-tuk drivers, tour guides as well as Phuket residents who said they were frustrated with the behaviour of foreign tourists, particularly those from Israel. They want relevant agencies to convey their concerns to the government and find a solution to this tourist problem.
They said it is time for Phuket to screen incoming tourists more carefully, focusing on high-quality groups, and impose stricter tourist visa regulations limiting stay to maximum 15 days to ensure only genuine tourists come to the island, not those engaging in illegal business and taking away jobs from Thai people.
One tourism operator mentioned that there are three flights a week bringing Israelis to Phuket, each carrying 200-300 people. Each week, at least 1,000 Israelis arrive, many staying for at least 15 days per trip. These are high-spending tourists, but Phuket residents want tourists who holiday on the island and then leave, not those who stay for excessively long durations and take jobs away from Thai people.
Officials need to verify that incoming tourists are genuinely here for a holiday and do not come with some ulterior motives.
Currently, there are also many low-quality tourists. They stay in cheap accommodations, eat food from convenience stores, and some act arrogantly even disregard the law.
The forum urged the government to consider limiting Israeli tourists’ stay in Thailand to a maximum of 15 days, in order to attract genuine tourists and to limit the number of visitors appropriately.
Should too many Israeli tourists come to Phuket, European tourists from many countries would stay away, they added.
Subsequently, Mr. Chalermpong Saendee, People’s MP for Phuket Constituency 2, received a petition from the Phuket Land Protection Group which had invited him to this forum to listen to opinions and suggestions from the public regarding the inappropriate behaviour of some tourists and the business operations of some capitalists that may affect local people.
Phuket is a world-class tourist destination and every year, tourists from all over the world visit, he said, adding tourism brings income and economic opportunities to the island province.
However, there are also some problems that must be solved, especially regarding those who enter the country and do not respect Thai law. This includes investment groups who have entered the market by taking advantage of local businesses, resulting in Phuket’s SMEs and small-scale entrepreneurs facing unfair competition, Chalermpong added.
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Top and Front Page: Phuket residents attending the forum at Dolphin Park today, Aug. 28. Photos – Amarin TV
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