Since the National Council for Peace and Order took the reins of government 13 months ago, Thailand was supposed to be on a path of reform — to make major changes for the better. The National Reform Assembly (NRA), with members chosen from various groups of presumably wise Thais, was set up to put together what needs to be changed.
After almost a year of deliberation, a group of NRA members recently came out with a proposal that Thailand should legalise casino gambling. Soon after, the commander of the national police, Somyot Pumpunmuang - of all people - expressed his strong support for the proposal, pronouncing himself an expert on gambling for having gone on study tours, probably paid for with taxpayers' money, to leading casinos all over the world. He concluded Thailand should build casinos in various parts of the country to boost the economy, keep gambling money within the kingdom, and attract foreign exchange from abroad.
The idea of launching at least one major casino gambling centre - to be called an "entertainment complex" - is not new. It was proposed more than a decade ago but the governments that supported it since then did not last long enough to see it come to fruition.
When it was first floated, many Thais came out against it, citing various reasons based largely on moral grounds. This time, those opposing it have emphasised the fact that Thailand had experimented with legalised gambling dens during the reign of King Rama V and in 1945. Such dens were soon shut down and gambling was outlawed for one principal reason: Thais quickly became addicted to it, with serious social consequences.
The social impact which the critics mention was not monitored or analysed; it was largely impressions resulting from anecdotal events.
For evidence of the impact of legalised gambling based on such research, one needs to consult the work of William N Thompson at the University of Nevada. Being in proximity to the world-renowned gambling centre in Las Vegas, Prof Thompson began studying the impact of legal gambling in Nevada when he joined the faculty of that university and has since extended his research to other states and localities. Many of his findings have been published in a book titled Gambling in America: An Encyclopedia of History, Issues and Society.
Among some of the findings are these: A casino attracts people in its vicinity who have never gambled before to start doing so. It also stimulates those who already gamble regularly to do more.
The amount of money which Nevada residents lose in gambling averages three times that of people in areas that have no legal gambling and about twice more than of those who live in the vicinity of casinos in other states.
Prof Thompson tells a story of legalised gambling in the United States capital of Washington, DC, before the Civil War. It was shut down because members of the House of Representatives and senators became addicted to it and were heavily indebted to the owners of the casinos, who apparently inserted undue influence on the work of the politicians.
At the same time, some politicians could suddenly enjoy huge wins, which were alleged to be bribes paid to them in exchange for favours. Those who watch the classic movie Casablanca probably remember how the nightclub owner Rick helps a desperate lady gambler recover her losses.
Prof Thompson says those who support legalised gambling always recite its potential contributions - stimulating the economy, expanding the tax base, providing additional employment, and preventing money from leaving the area - but invariably fail to recognise the negative consequences which often outweigh the gains. Casinos also often come under the control of organised crime syndicates who use them as fronts for illegal activities and channels to launder illegally-gained money.
Can we expect such serious negative impacts to result from legalised casino gambling in Thailand?
Certainly, and probably much more so, because the culture of mak-gnai - the proclivity towards laxness as well as to take an easy way out and shortcuts - makes Thais more inclined to gamble.
This is evident in various areas: The bi-monthly government lottery is regularly sold out at substantive premiums, or was until the crackdown and price freeze imposed by the government last month; the underground lottery and betting on foreign football games are widespread; Thais generally cannot play golf without putting some money on the line; and gambling dens can be found in just about every town, operating allegedly under police protection, if not direct participation.
More opportunities to gamble will lead to financial losses, which are likely to result in more problems associated with crimes, poor job performance, family turmoil and breakups. Experiences gained from past experiments and what could be reasonably expected to arise from increased opportunities to gamble tell us that legalising casino gambling is not the way to go to reform Thailand.
Sawai Boonma has worked as a development economist for more than two decades. He can be reached at sboonma@msn.com.