PHUKET: The future of Phuket's famous tourist beaches remains unclear following a meeting this week that showed differences of opinion are as far apart as high tide and low tide.
The greatest distance in approach lies between the Governor of Phuket, Nisit Jansomwong, and the Mayor of Patong, Chalermluk Kebsub, who takes responsibility for the holiday island's best-known beach.
All of Phuket's west coast beaches and foreshores were cleared of commercial activity soon after the military took control of Thailand last May.
Instead of maintaining the ban on commerce, Governor Nisit suggested a ''10 percent zone'' as a compromise to isolate umbrellas and beach chairs and to provide an income for Phuket's poorest beach workers.
Instead of trying his three-month experiment at one Phuket beach, the governor opted to try it on all Phuket beaches at once. It hasn't gone very well, especially because his edict bans swimmers from bringing their own beach chairs. And if they do bring umbrellas, they must be placed in the authorised 10 percent of the beach.
Patong is supposed to be the prime example for the other beaches but vast areas of the Patong shorefront have been given over to the exclusive use of jet-skis. Most people on Phuket want the jet-skis banned as they are in the neighboring provinces of Krabi and Phag Nga and cannot understand why previous Phuket governors failed to keep a promise to phase them off the island within seven years.
On Friday, Mayor Chalermluk made the governor's three-month experiment look even more misguided by telling the meeting at Patong Municipal Council offices: ''Patong doesn't have any poor beach workers.''
She said the people who ran the sunbeds and other beach businesses were definitely not in need of the governor's generosity.
Sunbeds, incidentally, are still banned even though the governor's edict has permitted the return of umbrellas and beach mats - in the 10 percent zone.
The fact is that even with Phuket's tourism high season slowing, there are more umbrellas evident at the top Phuket beaches than could possibly fit in any '10 percent zone.''
Despite strong criticism, especially over the ban on beach chairs which has forced veteran European visitors to give up on Phuket, the governor shows no signs yet of giving up on Plan A and trying Plan B.
Vice Governor Suthee Tongyam was delegated to chair Friday's beach meeting. and listened as the mayor said: ''We don't have poor people in Patong.''
Police remain reticent to enforce the rule that, if carried out, obliges them to confiscate the chairs that tourists bring to the beaches, and to order all umbrella-users to plant themselves in the ''10 percent zone.''
The total ban on beach chairs was imposed, Phuketwan has previously reported, because officers are unable to tell the difference between beach chairs that tourists own and bring and beach chairs that might have been surreptitiously hired.
Reporters have visited Phuket's key beaches - including Nai Harn, Kata, Karon and Surin - and found no sign of the governor's edicts working. However, the beaches look good with tourists currently planting umbrellas wherever they like and using beach chairs as well if they need to. What seems out of place are the 10 percent zones.
Patong is certainly the exception, largely because, against the wishes of most members of the swimming public, the jet-ski and parasail operators control huge tracts of the beach. Along with the present plan, it's time the governor moved to Plan B, loosened up the beach edict, and kept the promise of his predecessors to remove all jet-skis.
The greatest distance in approach lies between the Governor of Phuket, Nisit Jansomwong, and the Mayor of Patong, Chalermluk Kebsub, who takes responsibility for the holiday island's best-known beach.
All of Phuket's west coast beaches and foreshores were cleared of commercial activity soon after the military took control of Thailand last May.
Instead of maintaining the ban on commerce, Governor Nisit suggested a ''10 percent zone'' as a compromise to isolate umbrellas and beach chairs and to provide an income for Phuket's poorest beach workers.
Instead of trying his three-month experiment at one Phuket beach, the governor opted to try it on all Phuket beaches at once. It hasn't gone very well, especially because his edict bans swimmers from bringing their own beach chairs. And if they do bring umbrellas, they must be placed in the authorised 10 percent of the beach.
Patong is supposed to be the prime example for the other beaches but vast areas of the Patong shorefront have been given over to the exclusive use of jet-skis. Most people on Phuket want the jet-skis banned as they are in the neighboring provinces of Krabi and Phag Nga and cannot understand why previous Phuket governors failed to keep a promise to phase them off the island within seven years.
On Friday, Mayor Chalermluk made the governor's three-month experiment look even more misguided by telling the meeting at Patong Municipal Council offices: ''Patong doesn't have any poor beach workers.''
She said the people who ran the sunbeds and other beach businesses were definitely not in need of the governor's generosity.
Sunbeds, incidentally, are still banned even though the governor's edict has permitted the return of umbrellas and beach mats - in the 10 percent zone.
The fact is that even with Phuket's tourism high season slowing, there are more umbrellas evident at the top Phuket beaches than could possibly fit in any '10 percent zone.''
Despite strong criticism, especially over the ban on beach chairs which has forced veteran European visitors to give up on Phuket, the governor shows no signs yet of giving up on Plan A and trying Plan B.
Vice Governor Suthee Tongyam was delegated to chair Friday's beach meeting. and listened as the mayor said: ''We don't have poor people in Patong.''
Police remain reticent to enforce the rule that, if carried out, obliges them to confiscate the chairs that tourists bring to the beaches, and to order all umbrella-users to plant themselves in the ''10 percent zone.''
The total ban on beach chairs was imposed, Phuketwan has previously reported, because officers are unable to tell the difference between beach chairs that tourists own and bring and beach chairs that might have been surreptitiously hired.
Reporters have visited Phuket's key beaches - including Nai Harn, Kata, Karon and Surin - and found no sign of the governor's edicts working. However, the beaches look good with tourists currently planting umbrellas wherever they like and using beach chairs as well if they need to. What seems out of place are the 10 percent zones.
Patong is certainly the exception, largely because, against the wishes of most members of the swimming public, the jet-ski and parasail operators control huge tracts of the beach. Along with the present plan, it's time the governor moved to Plan B, loosened up the beach edict, and kept the promise of his predecessors to remove all jet-skis.
The few people present at Patong Beach now could easily fit in to a 10% zone, if anybody knew, where that zone is. This zoning plan is just as amazing as the fact, that the governor is not aware of that renting out chairs is a business for wealthy people.
Posted by Sherlock on March 29, 2015 11:47