http://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opin ... corruptionRichard wrote:I am an Englishman with a Thai wife and we have been on holiday here in Thailand for the last five weeks. I'm a teacher in the UK and so we are able to spend long summer vacations here. My wife is from Udon Thani but this year we decided to hire a car and see as much of Thailand as possible. We hired a brand new pickup and arranged full insurance cover and in five weeks have covered over 4,000 kilometres, which has included driving from Udon to Hua Hin, Bangkok, Koh Chang and back up to Udon.
While our holiday has been wonderful there has been one aspect that has put me off driving in Thailand ever again. We have been stopped by the police eight times. With six of those I have been fined for a variety of motoring offences including speeding, not carrying the vehicle registration document and a minor traffic violation in Bangkok.
However, only once have these fines been legitimate and paperwork issued. All the other fines have been reduced amounts paid to the officer who stopped us to avoid me having to relinquish my licence and pay a more expensive but legitimate fine at a location way off our course. In other words, a bribe.
I was fined 400 baht on the way to Koh Chang for speeding but was well under the 90kph speed limit. The police didn't even have a radar or any proof I was speeding. I was simply stopped, told I was doing over 90kph and asked for 400 baht. I paid, of course, as being a foreigner I had no wish to get into any further trouble, but this is blatant corruption by the police. No paperwork is issued and the policemen in question keep their hands well inside the car when receiving their bribe so as not to be seen taking money.
It's not just me who was stopped. The false speeding violations were aimed at all drivers who approached the checkpoint _ 400 baht is quite a lot of money for me to pay out on a false charge, but for a Thai, it must be equivalent to a day's wages. Do the police have no conscience? How do they sleep at night knowing that they are exploiting both foreigners and their own people?
A policeman's income in Thailand must be equivalent to a doctor or lawyer's salary because of this corruption. I am disgusted by this as are my Thai family who are clearly intimidated by the police here and frightened to question their behaviour. Is this a secret? Is the government aware? Everyone I speak to, whether Thai or farang has experience of such treatment by the police so why isn't anyone doing anything about it?
This corruption is ruining Thailand's reputation. This is not the only action I will be taking about this matter and I think next year our family holiday destination will be somewhere quite different.
RICHARD
I know the feeling, I have been stopped many times whilst doing nothing wrong.
Is there such a thing as in-vehicle cctv?