Probe needs third party
Re: “Prayut calls for calm after Phuket street riots”, (BP, Oct 12).
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s investigation of the Phuket incident, where cops chased two youngsters on a motorbike, crashing into and killing both, must be above suspicion.
Allegedly, the youths ran a police checkpoint, but the cops’ running into them means the police are at fault. At best, it looks like manslaughter. At worst, murder.
Gen Prayut insists he will not protect wrongdoers — but given that the commanding officers of the wrongful killings at Krue Se (32 bodies), Tak Bai (85 bodies) and Nong Chik (four bodies) haven’t even been charged after all these years, and he’s explicitly ruled out reforming the cops even though he has absolute power, many might not believe he'll act against his brothers in uniform.
To be above suspicion, the investigation must be carried out by a mutually trusted third party and include participation by Phuket's civic leaders. As defendants, the police cannot investigate themselves. The cops, too, must come under the rule of law.
Burin Kantabutra
Heed insurance advice
Re: “Yet another scam in Pattaya”, (PostBag, Oct 11).
The advice from Thai insurance firms whenever there is a vehicular accident with injury or property damage is to not move the vehicle even if it blocks the road, to call the police and to call your insurance company.
Do not discuss how the accident occurred or blame or argue with the other party. Just wait for the police and a representative from the insurance company to arrive.
If you are driving a rented vehicle call the rental company and they will advise.
If the police arrive first do not argue with them, but tell them you have called the insurance firm and are waiting for them to arrive and that they will resolve the matter. Do not be tempted to make any sort of payment to the police or to the other driver.
Always let the insurance company manage the incident. And, as in most Western countries, even if you are at fault, do not under any circumstances apologise to the other party or take the blame for the accident as you will most likely invalidate your insurance policy.
Peter Atkinson
Two-tiered road justice
While on the road this afternoon, a line of vehicles was brought to a stop while the police arrested a driver for causing an accident involving a death.
Here was a driver, driving an old, dilapidated pickup who was arrested, while the twerp who drove a Ferrari and allegedly killed a policeman in Bangkok is still out there somewhere enjoying his freedom.
Tell me Gen Prayut, why the double standard? There are disparities between the rich and the poor, but I am told you declared justice applies to all… or does it? Surely you have the power to ask for extradition.
Joob-Joob
Border wait woes
Has anyone at the immigration and tourism ministries, let alone TAT, looked at the disgraceful Aranyaprathet border crossing last weekend?
The average wait time at immigration into Thailand was five hours!
It is bad enough that Thai authorities last year made this crossing infinitely impractical by changing a single-level entry and exit structure to an upstairs/downstairs one, requiring people to navigate stairs twice with cumbersome baggage.
But bigger headaches await by understaffing the crossing over long holiday weekends.
Perhaps Thai officials consider border crossing travellers as less worthy, or as poor backpackers — although I am definitely not one of them. I have an Apec card, but there is no designated line for VIPs here either.
Although it is not a Thai holiday at Cambodia’s Pchum Ben, local managers at the border could surely anticipate an influx. Or perhaps tourism is not an important issue, let alone bureaucratic inefficiency.
Robert Cormack
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