I've just been reading a travel Forum called "Backpacker Thailand" it's virtually full of crime reports and warnings from Koh Phangan, especially the FMP. I had no idea that the situation had deteriorated so much. It sounds out of control. The risks involved far outweigh any reasons to travel to Hat Rin & Koh Phangan in general. Here are some cuts from this forum:


"Remember - this is the biggest uncontrolled party in the world (the last of the free festivals - like the old music festivals used to be before the big fences, security and high entry prices) - but as such, it's a free for all for theives, con men, drunkards and assholes - so please don't be the part of the small percent who become a victim of this."

VIOLENCE - Showing respect to the Thai locals is very important, especially during Full Moon night, when there are crowds of people and sometimes too much jolity and too many whiskey buckets! There are many people who are not local to the island who arrive just to make trouble - if you experience any problems with any Thai's then simply walk away - do not get involved as maybe many other of their friends may get involed and it doesn't matter how big you are - bottles, chairs - whatever could be used! Be careful - don't be a HERO - just WALK AWAY! If you are muscular/body builder be careful - often you are a target to young guys trying to impress their mates - bottles over the back of the head are sadly becoming more regular and you simply wont know it's coming. Best to cover up those muscles with sleeves and ask your friends to look out for you!

DRINKS SPIKED - Girls be careful of people putting things in your drinks - try and ask a male friend to go up and get the drinks!
AND EVERYONE DO NOT WALK AROUND ALONE, ANYWHERE!! - there have been reports of guns in the beach bars, rapes, stabbings and murders.

Wonderful isn't it. The Land of Smiles. "Do not walk around alone, anywhere" or the lovely smiling friendly Thais will crack you over the head with a bottle, or stab you, or rape you. I blame the Thai government for this situation, their dual pricing system sets foreigners apart as targets, victims, the local people see the government signs around the place making foreigners pay 200%-400% more than Thais, so naturally Thais get the idea that foreigners are not to be treated the same, are not worthy of the same considerations - Get what you can out of the foreign devils - that's the message they're getting.
And what are the useless Thai police doing while tourists are being bashed over the heads with bottles, drugged, raped and murdered? Sitting around drinking whisky and having sanuk. Bloody useless mongrels. They can't even give their tourists decent protection. They know too well who the trouble making bottom feeding low life Thai scumbags are who are on the island to prey on the tourists. Why aren't they being rounded up and booted off the island?

Its good to be made aware of the problems, do you have any advice on safety in Samui, will be travelling there with my 3 children 12, 14, 17 (2 younger boys and older girl)Many thanks.

Well I'd keep the 17yo girl on a short leash, if she was my daughter I sure wouldn't let get out to the hot spots at night, nor to the beach after dark. And if any Thai boys came sniffing around her I'd send them packing. I don't think any of these Thai tourist meccas are safe anymore - Phuket, Pattaya, Samui, Phangan, all these places have been attracting the Thais ratbags who prey on tourists. The cops don't care. It's my belief that crimes against tourists are now way out of control, but they're not being reported much, they don't want to alarm the tourists and kill the golden goose. Anyway, don't let your daughter out of your sight.

Men should be careful of getting their drinks spiked too... in fact in Bangkok (and possibly Pattaya) I'd say foreign men are at much more at risk than women. The motive is theft of course, not rape. Happens a lot....I saw one guy who was in a coma for about 10 hours. While he was unconscious both a local doctor and an emergency medical team examined him. Both diagnosed "drunk farang" and went away without doing anything even though they couldn't bring him round. I'd have thought someone that drunk would have vomited? This guy's breath didn't even smell of alcohol. Is the stereotypical view of how foreigners behave so deeply ingrained amongst Thais that even doctors assume they are drunk when there are obvious signs something else is wrong? People have been known to die after being given date_rape_drugs

This said, I don't have a lot of sympathy with people who go to the full moon party on KPN primarily because they think it's ultra cool to get completely wasted with thousands of other like-minded cretins. They get excessively drunk/stoned, fight amongst themselves, have motorbike accidents, vomit, pass out and generally trash the place ...... and provide very easy pickings for criminal elements of course.

Unfortunately the FMP phenomena is spreading to other islands now, and that means that the associated crime rates will increase there too.

Tourists are not entirely blameless for what's happening.

__________________
“Not all those who wander are lost.” Tolkien.
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

It is happening, sure, but to say that Thailand became "unsafe", is exagerated.

A lot of countries, where tourism is blooming, have they own nasty "touristtraps" and violent crime! In Europe, Asia, South America, US, just name it!

The thing is, you just have to be consious of that, and don't do silly things! Walking alone on a beach at night, is just stupid everywhere. If you go to regular places, it will not happen so easy, that things are put in your drink. if you like a particular nightlife, it is not smart to ga as a 17 year old girl to places, that are frequented by a special crowd. A lot of disco's in thailand are made for farang men, looking for cheap Thai women. A 17 year old is not better off, anywhere else btw.

So if you go out, stick to places for a normal crowd. If you are a man, and want to go to places like Pattaya, avoid to shaggy bars. There are nice places, with a little band playing, where nothig will happen to you. You only make sure, that you take your beer from the bottle, and watch it opened.

Except deft in my room, I never accountered any problem in 20 yeas. I go out, drive a bike, and stay away from everything that can mean trouble, like in any place of the globe!

I think certain tourist spots in Thailand are now very unsafe due to a huge influx of ratbag Thai men who usually arrive tagged on with their hooker wives/girlfriends and they hang around the tourist spots preying on farang. I also strongly believe that Thai police don't really give a stuff because in general Thais are so wrapped up in their own Thai affairs, their monachy, their religion, their whole culture that farang don't fit into the scheme of things, other than being viewed as a source of income. The government don't help this sorry situation with its open dual-pricing at national monuments & parks. It sets up tourists as targets, victims, "different from us".
10-15 years ago there was no problem anywhere in Thailand in walking along a beach late at night, now you'll be beaten up, robbed, raped, possibly murdered. It is the ratbag Thai men who are doing this and as far as I can see nobody in the government/police cares.

I would not say, that nobody cares, that is false!

When I had my wallet stolen in Chiang Mai (15 years ago!), I had help of Thai people from a transport firm, who went with me to the police and all. They were very concerned about what happened to us.

Also, a lot of "bandits" have been caught. That they offer whistles to woman that arrive in Phuket is sad, but a way to show they care.

Like I said, tourism brings to a place also more crime. In Thailand it is not only the boyfriend of ahooker, but also Birmanese workers, that make the place more unsafe.

I don't feel safer in afrika or South America, and certainly not in a big Western city.

Well tintin if you think everything's hunky-dory in the LOS then OK. However, I believe that as tourism is Thailand's largest source of income the country has an obligation to us that they are not fulfilling. The cops could start by monitoring the ever-increasing Thai/Burmese ratbags that hang around the tourist meccas getting up to no good. Bashings on heads, robberies, rape and murder is totally unacceptable on paradise holiday islands. And I fail to see how any farang could disagree with this line of reasoning.