PHUKET: Australians are being warned to avoid Thailand's full moon beach parties, where criminals are involved in rapes, assaults and thefts, an envoy says.
Tonight is a full moon party night.
The warning comes from Australia's honorary consul on Phuket, Larry Cunningham, who says the rites-of-passage parties on Koh Phangan and Phi Phi especially are risky and should be avoided.
He told Fairfax Media in Australia that kratom, a Thai leaf that gives a natural ''high,'' is often mixed with the insect repellent DEET as well as cough medicine, cola and ice, leaving users in a stupefied and vulnerable state.
Victims of crimes committed at Thailand's beach rave parties usually failed to report to police, he said, leaving the extent of the problem largely unknown.
On Phangan, near Samui, were ''some of the worst criminals in Thailand . . . rapists, murderers and thieves,'' he said, adding ''and some are corrupt police.''
Mr Cunningham, who relinquishes his post at the end of the month, said that one distressed young woman turned up at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok wearing only a T-shirt and bikini.
She had been pack raped and had all her valuables stolen during a party and someone had put her on a bus to Bangkok.
Travel writers who glorified the Full Moon gatherings in southern Thailand had got it wrong, he said.
''These are dangerous, dangerous places . . . even groups of revellers are targeted by these criminals,'' Mr Cunningham told the influential Australian newspaper group.
''Previously the buckets [of alcohol] contained mixes like cheap Thai whiskey but now drinkers have no idea what is in there,'' he said.
Dozens of party-goers are usually ferried to mainland hospitals after each full moon on Koh Phangan, suffering ailments and injuries of all kinds.
There have also been mysterious deaths, notably four young female tourists from Norway, US and Canada on the island of Phi Phi, where buckets and binge drinking are also popular at Full Moon.
Full Moon parties are not yet a fixture on Phuket but Mr Cunningham said many of the more than 20,000 Australians who visited Phuket each month came to Thailand thinking they could do as they pleased, including breaking laws.
''They get plastered and walk around with their shirts off and jump on motorcycles drunk,'' he said.
''We have got to get the message across that people shouldn't leave their brains behind when they come to Thailand.''
Mr Cunningham said he will live forever with the ''wailing'' of relatives who have come to Phuket to take home the bodies of loved ones: ''It's just heartbreaking to see.''
The Thai government is considering relaxing a ban on kratom, imposed in 1943, to allow it to be treated like a herb.
Because of a zero-tolerance drugs policy, Thailand's jails are overcrowded, with drugs offenders making up 80 percent of the inmates.
Tonight is a full moon party night.
The warning comes from Australia's honorary consul on Phuket, Larry Cunningham, who says the rites-of-passage parties on Koh Phangan and Phi Phi especially are risky and should be avoided.
He told Fairfax Media in Australia that kratom, a Thai leaf that gives a natural ''high,'' is often mixed with the insect repellent DEET as well as cough medicine, cola and ice, leaving users in a stupefied and vulnerable state.
Victims of crimes committed at Thailand's beach rave parties usually failed to report to police, he said, leaving the extent of the problem largely unknown.
On Phangan, near Samui, were ''some of the worst criminals in Thailand . . . rapists, murderers and thieves,'' he said, adding ''and some are corrupt police.''
Mr Cunningham, who relinquishes his post at the end of the month, said that one distressed young woman turned up at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok wearing only a T-shirt and bikini.
She had been pack raped and had all her valuables stolen during a party and someone had put her on a bus to Bangkok.
Travel writers who glorified the Full Moon gatherings in southern Thailand had got it wrong, he said.
''These are dangerous, dangerous places . . . even groups of revellers are targeted by these criminals,'' Mr Cunningham told the influential Australian newspaper group.
''Previously the buckets [of alcohol] contained mixes like cheap Thai whiskey but now drinkers have no idea what is in there,'' he said.
Dozens of party-goers are usually ferried to mainland hospitals after each full moon on Koh Phangan, suffering ailments and injuries of all kinds.
There have also been mysterious deaths, notably four young female tourists from Norway, US and Canada on the island of Phi Phi, where buckets and binge drinking are also popular at Full Moon.
Full Moon parties are not yet a fixture on Phuket but Mr Cunningham said many of the more than 20,000 Australians who visited Phuket each month came to Thailand thinking they could do as they pleased, including breaking laws.
''They get plastered and walk around with their shirts off and jump on motorcycles drunk,'' he said.
''We have got to get the message across that people shouldn't leave their brains behind when they come to Thailand.''
Mr Cunningham said he will live forever with the ''wailing'' of relatives who have come to Phuket to take home the bodies of loved ones: ''It's just heartbreaking to see.''
The Thai government is considering relaxing a ban on kratom, imposed in 1943, to allow it to be treated like a herb.
Because of a zero-tolerance drugs policy, Thailand's jails are overcrowded, with drugs offenders making up 80 percent of the inmates.
The continued deterioration of safety at these Full Moon Raves is a terrible nightmare for the young women involved.
Since the Thai Police appear to be stretched too thin, or possibly even part of the criminal element, would it be possible for Farangs to provide their own private security force?
Yes, I am very new here in Thailand, just on holiday. Truth be told, had I found this news outlet prior to arriving here, I would not have come here with my family in tow to vacation.
It sounds like the locals don't want us here. We were accosted in Aonong by the owner of a motorbike rental shop and immediately surrounded by 5-6 young Thai men. It was the middle of day.
Posted by Concerned on September 19, 2013 08:52
Editor Comment:
The Full Moon participants are mostly keen to break the law by taking drugs, so they will not want to be too protected. It's really up to parents and level-headed friends to persuade young people that these parties are not an essential rite of passage.
Most holidaymakers have a great time in Thailand so it would be a waste of time to not enjoy yourself. Please tell us more about your experience in Au Nang.