Thursday TRENDS
A PRIVATE plan to run daily speedboat excursions to an island off Phuket has triggered a conflict with local residents, who say they have not been consulted.
The DJ PIT Travel Agency intends to start the day-trip and homestay service to Koh Yao Yai from August 10.
But the majority of islanders are objecting, saying that the speedboat trips will change their traditional way of life and have been organised without community discussion.
They also say the move is yet another example where outsiders will take a large share of the profits from growth in tourism while islanders collect a pittance.
''If the speedboats were just transporting tourists to the island, that would be OK,'' said Khun Sao, a resident who spoke to Phuketwan.
''But they are providing a complete package, including food and accommodation, so most people on the island will never gain much from this venture.''
The islanders have their own homestay plans underway, based on maximum benefit to the whole community.
She said that she thought a united effort was required to make sure that what the company offered fitted in with the entire island's future.
''Locals are very concerned,'' Khun Sao said. ''Just one or two people may make a small amount dealing with the speedboat company.
''But really, the main aim for us all is that a strategy for tourist development preserves the island and the beauty of its coral reefs.
''Without everybody on the island being involved, the danger is that there will be a race between developers.
''Look at Phi Phi. We don't want to repeat those mistakes here.''
The speedboat, capable of carrying 50 people, takes 25 minutes to reach the island from Rassada Pier on Koh Sireh, near Phuket City.
Until now, a ferry has been the usual means of reaching the island, and that takes at least an hour.
Ease of access means the island is entering a new phase, with all the issues that come with greater numbers of tourists making day trips and staying overnight.
The manager of the DJ PIT Travel Agency, Damrat Pukmaidee, said the fast daily service would open the island up to regular tourism for the first time.
The speedboat will leave at 9am daily, returning at 4pm, at a round-trip cost of 400 baht.
Packages available from the company also included diving and snorkelling on the relatively underutilised coral reefs nearby.
Koh Yao Yai, officially part of Phang Nga, is home to more than 580 families, or about 2700 people, most of them Muslim. Fishing, rubber and rice are the main industries.
Selfishness and greed?
Well, maybe they will reach the island faster now. But let's hope not.
Run With The Buffaloes
NEIGHBORING Koh Yai Noi plans to hold its first three-day buffalo festival, with visitors welcome, from August 10 to August 12.
Bookings for day trips or community-sanctioned homestays can be made through Khun Chote at 081 8697431.
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One-Two-Go, When, When, When?
WE NOW know that a Qantas Boeing 747 flying from Hong Kong to Melbourne made an emergency landing in Manila last Friday.
An oxygen bottle exploded in midair, blasting a hole through the fuselage and forcing the pilot to make a hurried landing expertly, without the usual instrumentation.
That's alarming. But it's great to know what really happened, and all within a week, too.
Hey, what about that far more serious incident, the One-Two-Go crash on Phuket on September 16 last year?
What caused that? Was it pilot error, the bad weather, a problem with the ageing aircraft, or a combination of some or all of those elements?
Er . . . we don't know. Or rather, someone probably knows. But we haven't been told.
The Australian authorities acted quickly to determine the cause of the potentially tragic explosion and to reassure potential passengers everywhere that flying is, essentially, still safe.
Within a week, we learned enough to be prepared to fly again. But the One-Two-Go crash on Phuket that killed 90 passengers and crew 10 months ago?
We know next to nothing about the cause of that tragedy. The one-year anniversary is due in a few weeks.
Relatives and friends will put flowers on the graves of the victims without knowing what caused their loss.
And Phuketwan understands from reliable sources that it could be - wait for it - perhaps next year, 2009, before the Department of Civil Aviation in Thailand releases what it has discovered about the crash.
Next year!
No explanation for the delay. Not even a rough idea as to what's going on in secrecy behind closed doors in Bangkok and the US, where the black box went for examination.
Yet we are all expected to happily take to the air again as if nothing ever happened.
Now isn't that amazing?
Thumping Kangaroo Punchups
AUSSIES have been involved in a couple more brawls recently in Patong. It must be the popular image of the boxing kangaroo or something, but they seem to enjoy getting drunk then throwing a punch or two, often at each other.
We described some of the nightmares that come with cheap air travel in talking at length to Australia's honorary consul, Larry Cunningham, earlier this year.
Yet just a few weeks later, a group of Aussies did their best to wreck a popular Patong nightclub. Perhaps Aussies are just slow learners.
Or perhaps they simply drink too much and don't have any respect for the country they are visiting.
With Australians in vast numbers still enjoying the benefits of cheap flights on Jetstar, Cunningham is not getting much sleep.
Aussie Brawl Sparks Concern About Package Travel
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TRENDS
every day, Monday to Friday, at Phuketwan. It's essential reading. To tell us your news, email bigislandmedia@gmail.com or telephone 081 6513489.
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