Give refugees shelter
Re: "Thailand must lend a hand to the Karen" (Opinion, April 5) and "56 fleeing Karen refugees sent home" (BP, April 1).
Thailand has a long and honourable history of sheltering and nurturing refugees fleeing atrocities in neighbouring countries. It is therefore startling to see authorities pushing refugees back across the border to face shooting, bombing and burning.
Certainly, if Thai citizens were facing brutality like that currently being inflicted on the Myanmar people, they would hope that others would welcome them and provide them support and comfort. This is clearly a case of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you".
Samanea Saman
It's a Thai cop out
In her April 5 commentary, "Thailand must lend a hand to the Karen", Paritta Wangkiat said: "But what I learned from journalists on the ground is a different story". Which tells us all we need to know. People are lying. Men in Bangkok and making up quotes to offer a compliant press and they get printed. There are no refugees in Thailand, they haven't signed the convention so they don't have to treat them properly. Just like us aliens are staying temporarily with our wives so we have no rights. It's the Thai way, cop out of being responsible.
Lungstib
Biden's dark future
Re: "GOP's sour grapes", (PostBag, April 5).
Kuldeep Nagi thinks that the policies of Joe Biden will make the US "stronger, progressive and more attractive for foreign investment" as if the US were akin to Thailand.
The US is the strongest nation on Earth by far, both militarily and economically. As such it is extremely attractive to investors. As to policy, under Biden, we are witnessing a retrogressive return to the Obama era. For example, tunnels under the southern border are no longer necessary, human traffickers merely toss children over the fence.
Geopolitically, Taiwan is likely to fall, new investment in Thailand is now dominated by the Chinese and Hong Kong has been seized. The Philippines is seeing increased presence of Chinese vessels in an intimidating show of force. Biden is actively ushering in a dark period in human history when authoritarian rule will overwhelm human rights and freedoms. Mr Nagi simply cannot see the forest for the trees.
Michael Setter
Bang Saray
Big bike woes
Our family lives in Sukhumvit Soi 40. Living in Bangkok is a challenge with millions of people and a lot of traffic, and the past year with the addition of the Covid-19 pandemic that makes life harder and more stressful in many ways. The problem we would like to address is the big motorbikes that race up and down Sukhumvit every night at full throttle and are extremely noisy and wake up thousands of people living in the surrounding condos, and who then have a hard time getting back to sleep.
The past weekend we finally took a trip to Pattaya and stayed in a hotel near Jomtien beach, and the same thing happened: Big, noisy bikes raced up the down the roads all night and took away our sleep.
Sverre Golten
A watery question
I'd like to know if we now can filter the tap water and drink it. In February we were told it was unsuitable for drinking due to the salt content. I am tired of buying water and would like to go back to filtering it and use it. Please let me know!
Turid O Kashio
Sukhumvit
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