The letter by Kuldeep Nagi in yesterday's ''PostBag'', ''Thailand must wake up'' is off the mark in a number of its assertions.
Firstly, his saying that students spend half their day worshipping and bowing to dull historic figures is a gross exaggeration and also disrespectful.
No students I have come across in Thailand spend any significant amount of time worshipping historic figures, who are in fact representatives of the people who helped shape and mould Thailand into a culturally diverse nation. Why is it wrong to acknowledge and give thanks for what they achieved?
Secondly, his view of this new globalised world, where culture has little or no meaning at all, is simply ridiculous. Culture is the very essence of every country in the world. It can be a positive influence; it can also cause division. It is not like technology which is constantly outmoded and replaced.
Finally, I agree to some extent with the letter writer that the education system is in need of rapid improvement and development. It cannot be static, it must continually grow. This applies not only in Thailand but in all countries.
Through technology, the ability for people to access information is quite amazing and educational systems have not necessarily kept pace.
I agree education needs to come up to speed through greater use of technology but not at the expense of cultural heritage.
Ray Gregory
Bangkok
AMNESTY IS UNACCEPTABLE
Regarding the article in yesterday's Bangkok Post, ''Arch-enemies reach deal to press on with amnesty'', they are just joining hands to whitewash what they have done and escape from crimes. Such a move is unacceptable, because members of these groups of ''arch-enemies'' are but a little part of the total population of the country, yet the disturbance they caused to innocent people and the damages to society in general were great, regardless of the reasons. They all should be punished according to the applicable laws.
Robert H Suga
Lamphun
TOURIST POLICE NOT TARGETING LADYBOYS
Regarding your Spectrum cover story last Sunday, while the ladyboy presence is indeed an issue on Pattaya's Walking Street, the implication that the tourist police operate a checkpoint to prevent transvestites and transsexuals from entering or leaving is far from the case. The tourist police mobile unit is positioned at only one of many entrances and exits to Walking Street, so people can easily come and go by various other open routes. The mobile unit, staffed partly by the multilingual Foreign Tourist Police Assistants (FTPA), is there mainly as an information booth to answer general tourist questions raised by foreign visitors. It is also a base at which criminal suspects are interviewed by the regular Thai tourist police prior to being released or arrested.
The tourist police and the FTPA in Pattaya are well aware that ladyboys are part of the colourful scene and sights on the Walking Street. They do not specifically target this group, but they do have to deal regularly with complaints from foreign visitors who say they have been the victims of petty theft. It is also true that some more serious crimes, such as drugging tourists in hotel rooms with attendant theft, are allegedly committed by ladyboys. Finally, a growing number of the ladyboys on Walking Street are Cambodian or Lao nationals whose visas are sometimes out of date, thus triggering an immigration inquiry.
The ladyboy population of Pattaya is a diffuse group. Some have orthodox jobs and are increasingly seen working in banks, offices, restaurants and salons. Others are driven by financial needs to obtain money through prostitution and sometimes by the theft and violence associated with it. There is no gender discrimination by the tourist police, but the needs of tourist safety and public order mean that the problems cannot be overlooked. Finally, I'd like to note that the FTPA is an expat group, with strict entry guidelines and ongoing professional training, designed to help the regular Thai police and not to take over their responsibilities.
Barry Kenyon
FTPA Press Officer
IT'S ALL RELATIVE
Many people write to the Bangkok Post complaining about the endemic corruption that exists in Thailand. They get very hot under the collar at what they see reported in the media every day, particularly inside state institutions such as the police, the courts, the army, and government ministries. When I hear another angry soul bleating that there is no rule of law in Thailand I want to say to them that Thailand is a culture of relationships, so the rule of law exists only in name and does not apply to those who have real power.
Thai politicians excel at using their power for personal gain _ to support their own networks of family and friends. In Thailand this kind of behaviour is completely normal and has been reinforced by the long historical stratification of society along feudal lines where everyone knows their place and accepts their fate/karma _ to do otherwise is, well, just ''un-Thai''.
When someone complains that there is no justice in Thailand I want them to remember that in the Thai mind the poor are poor because of their karma and that conviction rates are high because they don't have powerful patrons to protect them. The powerful and the rich are, of course, powerful and rich because of their karma too _ even if their power was appropriated through corrupt means.
So next time you rush to the keyboard to rattle off another despairing email to the local newspaper, just remember Thailand is a culture of relationships first and foremost, and that this impacts every dimension of social, economic, and political life and will continue to do so for many years to come.
Doc Holliday
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