Guest Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Nepfan - You're right about them having lost their innocence. That is precisely WHY to feel sorry for them. They are 9, or 13, and they have lost forever their ability to be children, to trust adults, to find happiness in simple things, to develop healthy relationships, to see a future. I don't want to sound like a holy roller; you had a good post there. But mourn their loss as children. Someone once said that a father of one child is the father of all children. There are hundreds of ways to satisfy ourselves as men in Bangkok. Why a 13 year old? Forget what they have been through and who they have been forced to become. They are still children. Thanks. Chicago Dave [ August 10, 2001: Message edited by: chicago dave ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Thanks to Chicago Dave for his very humane analysis of the problem. On a trip to Bangkok, last year. I noticed the number of children selling Chiclets and flowers in the bars, especially in the Golden Beer Bar where a pre-pubescent girl literally dived into my lap. I was horrified. A bargirl noticed my distress and ushered the child out as I dropped some baht into the child's hand. I can't fathom why the police allow these children to haunt the bars this way. It's one thing to sell flowers and Chiclets, but when kids make physical contact with men, this means they've been watching the bargirls for far too long. This has troubled me for quite some time and shows that Thailand is still not committed to eradicating the abuse of children. Why doesn't Khun Thaksin tackle THIS problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Uhhhh....Scum_Baggio, The purpose of this forum, at least for me, is to share information. In that spirit I would say you are generally correct about the peanut vendors. However, about two months ago they were actually "swept up' and deported. Nana Plaza had to struggle along for about 3 weeks until an entirely new set of faces popped up peddling peanuts. While this was going on the cops, who run the immigration department in this country, were also sweeping up and deporting 90% of the Eastern European hookers from soi 3 and several thousand Burmese and Lao workers from all over Thailand. Remember all those police pick-ups driving around with all those forlorn dark faces sitting in the back?The Burmese and Lao are back...the hookers.. only a few came back. Although why they would come back for 500 Baht LT is as big a mystery as why somebody would pay them 500 Baht. You're right about the police and their empire. However, when the message comes from "on high" no amount of money is going to make them go away. Witness the recent rash of closings in three different police jusdictions and the recent arrest of farang stock pedalers who had been paying the police all along to look the other way. Cheers ! [ August 10, 2001: Message edited by: nepfan ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Originally posted by nepfan: " ... the cops, who run the immigration department in this country, were also sweeping up and deporting 90% of the Eastern European hookers from soi 3 and several thousand Burmese and Lao workers ... The Burmese and Lao are back...the hookers.. only a few came back." I know what they do with the Burmese. They put them on buses to the border in Kanchanaburi province, and when they're let out they're often told exactly where to re-enter the country - where they will be welcomed by the police who take money from them. I have talked to many illegal Burmese-Nepalese and that's what they told me. I guess it's similar with the Laotians. The East European hooker business may just lie low for a while. As fas as I know they are controlled by influential gangs (often Pakistani), which have considerable clout. I've seen the women driven up in vans to Sukhumvit for their daily shift. "However, when the message comes from "on high" no amount of money is going to make them go away. Witness the recent rash of closings in three different police jusdictions and the recent arrest of farang stock pedalers ..." The stock scamsters were arrested because of pressure from the FBI and the Australian police; on top, they were undermining Thailand's image abroad. I won't deny that ever so often there is a "real" crackdown on illegal immigrants or nefarious activities; but after one and a half decades in Thailand I have come to the cynical conclusion that most of the crackdowns are just cosmetic. I'm not overtly surprised that an estimated 20% of Thailand's gross net product is supposed to be created by illegal means (out of that 60%through prostitution.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Scum_Baggio, You pretty much hit the nail on the head. Policy in this country seems to written with gallons of erasable ink. I think one of the things I most love about Thailand is its' flexibilbity, top to bottom. Mai Pen Rai! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khunsanuk Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 Hi, Pattaya127 said: "I heard most of these street urchins are not only poor illegal cambodians but that the whole scam is a racket and that most likely, the poor things get battered if they don't bring enough income. No protection for them. What is your take on that?" Pretty much what I have heard as well. nepfan, great post! Sanuk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 11, 2001 Report Share Posted August 11, 2001 RapidoFreddy - Thanks. I've seen that girl at the Golden myself. Nepfan and Scum_Baggio - thank you so much. Great posts and wonderful inside information on some stuff. SB - I had no idea you'd done the India thing so many times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 11, 2001 Report Share Posted August 11, 2001 Yes, Scum_Baggio, if you have some time I'd like to hear a little about India...Never been there...Keep promising myself. What draws you there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted August 11, 2001 Report Share Posted August 11, 2001 quote: Originally posted by RapidoFreddy: Thanks to Chicago Dave for his very humane analysis of the problem. On a trip to Bangkok, last year. I noticed the number of children selling Chiclets and flowers in the bars, especially in the Golden Beer Bar where a pre-pubescent girl literally dived into my lap. I was horrified. A bargirl noticed my distress and ushered the child out as I dropped some baht into the child's hand. I can't fathom why the police allow these children to haunt the bars this way. It's one thing to sell flowers and Chiclets, but when kids make physical contact with men, this means they've been watching the bargirls for far too long. This has troubled me for quite some time and shows that Thailand is still not committed to eradicating the abuse of children. Why doesn't Khun Thaksin tackle THIS problem? lighten up, Alabama RF. while i agree that poor kids moving around the flesh trade might get drawn into it a little too early, only in USA is it suspicious to cuddle or kiss a kid that's not your own. In other countries and LOS, adults love to play with kids, hug and caress them, and there is nothing wrong with it, because it is not initiated as a sexual play. My friend had a picture of his baby taking a bath in France and when he re-entered the USA, the custom saw it, and became suspicious of him. Last week (San Francisco), i held someone's kid in my arms and gave him a big kiss. You should have seen the face of the father when i did it. I mean, really: lighten up, America! In Pattaya, a few of the street urchins jump on our laps, it never occured to me that it means i am a pedophile. Which reminds me of a statistics i saw years ago as to how many times people in certain countries touch each other in the span of the day: italians won easily, dozens of contact eveyday. we french did ok, but the worse were the puritanical americans who barely reach out any given day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattaya127 Posted August 11, 2001 Report Share Posted August 11, 2001 I know we had this argument already on Delphi Sanook last year, but given that the sex for hire scene is a big mainstay of Thai tourism, and that most of us on this board are part of it, one way or another, we should not get too evangelical about the plight of young children caught in the trade. All i mean is when a million men + patronize places (plazas) for the purpose of having a good time and hiring sex, it sure creates a mercenary environment where a lot more happen than just sleeping with a 20 y.o girl. Not throwing the stone at anyone, but qualifying our outrage. If someone tells me they think large scale prostitution encourages all sort of shameful practices, because it' the nature of the beast ($$), i think it's worth thinking about it. Cordially Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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