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Bangkokrecorder Magazine -
Bangkok Life
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Saturday, 04 October 2003 |
Why are the police raiding and breaking up parties at clubs and bars?
Because Clubs and Bars have always been well-known as a place to swap, take and sell drugs. So in order to crack down and solve drugs problem, we would be ordered to go for clubs and bars first.
Where do the orders or instructions coming from?
Actually the order is originally from our Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. He ordered the Vice-Minister of the ministry of interior to form special teams of officers to specially work on only drugs problem. There are specific teams in charge in each area.
How do the police choose which clubs to raid?
Well, first we’ll send some undercover officers to check out different clubs and bars we suspect that there’s drugs taking or selling going on. So normally, nobody would find out that there’s actually some police are in the place with them. There’s no specific way of choosing which clubs we are breaking. We just basically look at the amount of people and the time they close their clubs. If any club is very packed or maybe too packed, or a lot of time it’s close later than 2.00 am. That’s when those clubs automatically become suspicious. The undercover officers will report back to the chief. It depends on what area that club is located. Then, if it’s in my area that I’m in charge of, my team and I will have to follow the chief’s order which usually is breaking the parties and see if there is any drug taking or selling going on either by urine test or examine the place.
Are the police finding any people using drugs recently at the raided clubs?
Yes, we got some kids took X in some clubs the other day but the amount
of drugs taker is less than before now.
Are there any incentives for finding drugs or people using drugs?
Yes, we do get some but I’d rather not to say how much but I can say for YABA. In YABA case, we get 1 baht per one YABA but the maximum is 1,000,000 baht.
Do you believe Thailand can be drug free in the future?
Well, to be honest, I don’t believe so because Thailand is a very open country. We are being too easy for foreigners to come in and do whatever crap they want to, plus our neighbors are the places where some of the biggest drug agencies live in. Also, our neighbor like Burma is one of the biggest places to produce YABA. It’s very easy to sneak those drugs in since we are their neighbor so I don’t believe Thailand can be drug free in the future as long as our neighbor especially Burma’s still not a drug free country, too.
Do you personally agree with the raids and are they working to stop drugs?
Yes I agree with the raids even if I also think it’s a little involved with people’s rights. However, I personally don’t think the raids are working to stop drugs now. It works for a while because those who take drugs are scared to get caught but then if we don’t do it routinely, sooner or later, they would come back to take it again. Clubs and bars are not the only places they use to take drugs though. What about somebody’s apartment? What if they don’t make parties but they are just taking drugs, just like that, with doors closed? Then, we’re gonna need the warrant of search in order to get into their places which honestly we find that too complicated and some of us are too lazy to get the warrant. So…searching clubs and bars is easier and that leads to the reason why I don’t think only breaking parties at Bars and clubs is actually working to stop drugs.
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