Racism At Amphur In Bangkok

[Forethat]

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

In this case it was the woman who had the agreement authored by a lawyer. The agreement also stated that the woman was fully aware of her legal rights.

The nervousness from the husband was regarding the custody of the child.

I want to stress that the discussion the amphur staff had with the woman was not a legal advice, it was more in the region of trying to persuade the woman to nail the stupid farang. I also didn't reveal that I spoke Thai until the woman told them "she didn't want to be enemies with her husband" and asked them to stop, at which point the one woman shook her head in disgust (that's the way I perceived it).

[David006]

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

In this case it was the woman who had the agreement authored by a lawyer. The agreement also stated that the woman was fully aware of her legal rights.

The nervousness from the husband was regarding the custody of the child.

I want to stress that the discussion the amphur staff had with the woman was not a legal advice, it was more in the region of trying to persuade the woman to nail the stupid farang. I also didn't reveal that I spoke Thai until the woman told them "she didn't want to be enemies with her husband" and asked them to stop, at which point the one woman shook her head in disgust (that's the way I perceived it).

hardly racism then...bureaucrats being officious,rude,arrogant,inappropriate, bitchy,....it happens...

....everywherein the world from doormen to parking lot attendants to customs officers, MVd clerks... sorry to say

[Forethat]

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

In this case it was the woman who had the agreement authored by a lawyer. The agreement also stated that the woman was fully aware of her legal rights.

The nervousness from the husband was regarding the custody of the child.

I want to stress that the discussion the amphur staff had with the woman was not a legal advice, it was more in the region of trying to persuade the woman to nail the stupid farang. I also didn't reveal that I spoke Thai until the woman told them "she didn't want to be enemies with her husband" and asked them to stop, at which point the one woman shook her head in disgust (that's the way I perceived it).

hardly racism then...bureaucrats being officious,rude,arrogant,inappropriate, bitchy,....it happens...

....everywherein the world from doormen to parking lot attendants to customs officers, MVd clerks... sorry to say

Like I said, this may be the norm, not just during divorce between Thai and farang. Maybe I should have called it women's lib extreme...?

[samran]

The Bangkok Amphur sounds like any divorce lawyer in the US

But that is the whole point of the the bone of contension,they are not Lawyers,and have no right to take on that role,they are merely there to facilitate the end of a Marriage, legally!

How can a expat assume to know the "role" of any Thai official?

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

I fail to see what all the shouting of 'isms is about? Bordering on Paranoia methinks....

Consider a scenario where it was maybe your sister or close friend getting a divorce from say a potentially well heeled Arab or ...??

You just can't win with the TV punters.

[lopburi3]

Two posts removed per forum rules.

[robblok]

The Bangkok Amphur sounds like any divorce lawyer in the US

But that is the whole point of the the bone of contension,they are not Lawyers,and have no right to take on that role,they are merely there to facilitate the end of a Marriage, legally!

How can a expat assume to know the "role" of any Thai official?

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

I fail to see what all the shouting of 'isms is about? Bordering on Paranoia methinks....

Consider a scenario where it was maybe your sister or close friend getting a divorce from say a potentially well heeled Arab or ...??

You just can't win with the TV punters.

It depends on how it was brought by the people in the Ampur. If it was just formal informing her of her rights or if it was said that now is the time to take the foreigner to the cleaners.

Its quite normal in Holland to do the same and i see no problem here.

[meadish_sweetball]

Adding to that: It's good to be aware that the Thai language is not always as simple as add X + Y and it equals XY. รู้มาก is not necessarily a plain statement like 'knows a lot' (it CAN be, but not always). It can be a compound with any of these meanings 'to be shrewd, to be greedy, to be selfish, to take advantage of'. Just throwing it out there in the hopes that some will now know a little more than before.

[MAJIC]

The Bangkok Amphur sounds like any divorce lawyer in the US

But that is the whole point of the the bone of contension,they are not Lawyers,and have no right to take on that role,they are merely there to facilitate the end of a Marriage, legally!

How can a expat assume to know the "role" of any Thai official?

In the absence of a lawyer(s)sounds like they were being helpful with advice to a potentially naive Thai citizen. The expat is probably lucky that his spouse did not get advice from the Amphur,friends or family to get a lawyer...would a been a lot of screaming then I suspect.

I fail to see what all the shouting of 'isms is about? Bordering on Paranoia methinks....

Consider a scenario where it was maybe your sister or close friend getting a divorce from say a potentially well heeled Arab or ...??

Well actually it's very easy to know! it was biased advice,which put a Farang at a disadvantage, and of course the Farangs side of the agreement was not even considered.

They should stick to their real job,and stop playing amateur Lawyers and Judges.

[Willeyeam]

Racism starts at the local hardware shop. When any dealer inflates the price for a foreigner, that is racism. My general cheerfullness and trust, perhaps naivety, was compromised when I bought a power tool at 2500baht over the recommended price. It's endemic, a product of the culture of corruption and under any light it is racist. It doesn't matter whether the issue is a marital dispute or a belt sander, the Farang is often seen as an easy target and that is racism, pure and simple.

If Thais were treated the same way in my home country, as Farangs are treated here, the court system would become clogged very quickly by the disaffected seeking recompence.

It is disheartening at times!

Never a truer word spoken! (Imagine trying to take this to the courts here or the "Race Relations Board")

[WhingeingMoaners]

In comparison with what Farangs normally say about Thai people on Thai Visa, racism at this Amphur is marginal and footling.

[phutoie2]

The Bangkok Amphur sounds like any divorce lawyer in the US

exactly what I was thinking ...UK, Canada or Australia included...have a young friend in UK that, even as a cuckold, still got taken to the cleaners for life... pension included!

...it's understandable that nationals favor there own against perceived errant wealthy foreigners...?

When we got married our local amphor grilled my wife as to my ability to support her...sort of like a prospective FIL ...lol

Doubt that was the case, more like being bloody nosy as usual.

[MAJIC]

In comparison with what Farangs normally say about Thai people on Thai Visa, racism at this Amphur is marginal and footling.

Not to mention Blatant!

Edited October 6, 2011 by metisdead
Do not modify someone else's post in your quoted reply, either with font or color changes.

[DisainaM]

it became a national question in April this year, that a thai woman should not be without propper compensation after a divorce from a farang husband.

"The main problem is that their foreign husbands have affairs and want a divorce, despite them having kids together," said Ms Kanokrat.

She said many of the women did not have enough money to sue their husbands for abandonment and sought help from her association.

Somkid Homnet, a consultant working with the Department of Labour and Social Welfare who carried out a study concerning foreign spouses in Udon Thani province last year, presented the findings at the seminar.

there was a big media campain,

and the website was promoted for every thai woman,

who is married, or wants to marry a farang.

http://www.thaiforeignspouse.com/

[samran]

Racism starts at the local hardware shop. When any dealer inflates the price for a foreigner, that is racism. My general cheerfullness and trust, perhaps naivety, was compromised when I bought a power tool at 2500baht over the recommended price. It's endemic, a product of the culture of corruption and under any light it is racist. It doesn't matter whether the issue is a marital dispute or a belt sander, the Farang is often seen as an easy target and that is racism, pure and simple.

If Thais were treated the same way in my home country, as Farangs are treated here, the court system would become clogged very quickly by the disaffected seeking recompence.

It is disheartening at times!

Never a truer word spoken! (Imagine trying to take this to the courts here or the "Race Relations Board")

May I ask where stupidity starts for paying 2500baht over the odds?

[ARISTIDE]

I think may be it is what the officer should do at a divorce situation to ask if the couple are making any mistake. Also they may wonder why so many farang like to marry bar girls from isaan and expect better from them.

[DisainaM]

May I ask where stupidity starts for paying 2500baht over the odds?

I bought an electric drill, black&decker 500 watt for about 4.000 baht at homepro.

When it was stolen, together with other items, the house insurance offered me a quote of 50%,

(because they only pay for the real replacement value and not the farang price)

I bought the same electric drill in europe again, for about 1.800 baht, and brought it to thailand.

so, everytime, you have an insurance case, you will realize the real value of your products.

[robblok]

May I ask where stupidity starts for paying 2500baht over the odds?

I bought an electric drill, black&decker 500 watt for about 4.000 baht at homepro.

When it was stolen, together with other items, the house insurance offered me a quote of 50%,

(because they only pay for the real replacement value and not the farang price)

I bought the same electric drill in europe again, for about 1.800 baht, and brought it to thailand.

so, everytime, you have an insurance case, you will realize the real value of your products.

I would say home pro with its prices up there is quite fair (i mean thai and farang pay the same).

[WebBangkok]

hmmmmm

Why did my posts get deleted?

Did I break any rules?

[chops]

This is why a smart man RENTS everything(house, cars, etc).

[samran]

May I ask where stupidity starts for paying 2500baht over the odds?

I bought an electric drill, black&decker 500 watt for about 4.000 baht at homepro.

When it was stolen, together with other items, the house insurance offered me a quote of 50%,

(because they only pay for the real replacement value and not the farang price)

I bought the same electric drill in europe again, for about 1.800 baht, and brought it to thailand.

so, everytime, you have an insurance case, you will realize the real value of your products.

value always has been, and always will be, in the eye of the beholder.

[radiola]

come one........ if you compare thai to American diverced wifes, they will take the skin off your bones too.

He should left her something I think. Just my thoughts, he got daughter for god sake, that almost never happens

[maxme]

I had a friend who spoke fluent Thai and used to live in Bangkok. He told me he got tired of riding the bus as most of the Thais in the bus start talking behind his back about what he was doing there and why he needed to get on the bus. These were only the small topics but it later escalated in to pure hatred and that was when he decided to leave.

This case at the Amphur has nothing to do with sexism at all. The uneducated in Thailand (which has nothing to do with a BD or MD) don´t know anything outside their little world and assumes the worst of people since they can´t do anything about their own situation. This is quite a common thing in most countries however in Thailand the racism has spread into the system and some handlers like to abuse their authority simply because they don´t happen to like the person in question , whether he is black or white.

The staff at the Amphur looks at the farang as a walking ATM and if you gonna tell me its about sexism then you are dead wrong. It's a twisted assumption that everybody outside their country have better than them. Normally they wouldn´t care too mucb about the woman in question but since a farang is involved , well then the hunting season can begin. It's the same story at the immigration offices especially in Bangkok. I have encountered alot of racist remarks from the handlers at these offices but never ever down in the south which I find pretty peculiar.

[samran]

I had a friend who spoke fluent Thai and used to live in Bangkok. He told me he got tired of riding the bus as most of the Thais in the bus start talking behind his back about what he was doing there and why he needed to get on the bus. These were only the small topics but it later escalated in to pure hatred and that was when he decided to leave.

This case at the Amphur has nothing to do with sexism at all. The uneducated in Thailand (which has nothing to do with a BD or MD) don´t know anything outside their little world and assumes the worst of people since they can´t do anything about their own situation. This is quite a common thing in most countries however in Thailand the racism has spread into the system and some handlers like to abuse their authority simply because they don´t happen to like the person in question , whether he is black or white.

The staff at the Amphur looks at the farang as a walking ATM and if you gonna tell me its about sexism then you are dead wrong. It's a twisted assumption that everybody outside their country have better than them. Normally they wouldn´t care too mucb about the woman in question but since a farang is involved , well then the hunting season can begin. It's the same story at the immigration offices especially in Bangkok. I have encountered alot of racist remarks from the handlers at these offices but never ever down in the south which I find pretty peculiar.

Funny, I speak fluent Thai as well and ride public transport. Most, if not all people very rarely give me the time of day.

Any Ampur I walk into treat me well. As does immigration when we extend my wife's visa.

All I can say I'm very glad I live in a different Thailand to you.

[mca]

Any Ampur I walk into treat me well. As does immigration when we extend my wife's visa.

Same here on the whole. It may be pointing out the blatantly obvious to some but Thai officials ( and all Thais come to that) are not this single pulsating organism but made up of different people with different personalities the same as every other person on the planet. Some are rude and racist, some are not, some are friendly, some are not, some are helpful, some are not. Like everyone else.

As an example when I extended my visa a couple of years ago the immi officer asked my wife " Is yours a genuine marriage or does he ( meaning me ) rent you to stay in Thailand?" despite us having 10 back to back marriage extensions and a 7 year old daughter in tow. My wife gave a wry smile and said " No it's a genuine marriage" as we both mentally wrote him off as a rude dolt.

On the other side of the coin I extended last week and a different officer, after him filling out the interview form to see how much my wife knew about me to make sure we're legit, commented on our 12 back to back marriage extensions and said he'd give us a copy of the form to fill in ourselves at home because we were obviously genuine but the form was an immi requirement.

If Thais really treated us as crap as some TVF members seem to think I'd have blown this joint long ago.

[4.real]

Rather than get a divorce do what W.C.Fields did...

......'I got a dog for my wife the other day

.....Great exchaaange.....Great exchaaaa...'

[4.real]

I had a friend who spoke fluent Thai and used to live in Bangkok. He told me he got tired of riding the bus as most of the Thais in the bus start talking behind his back about what he was doing there and why he needed to get on the bus. These were only the small topics but it later escalated in to pure hatred and that was when he decided to leave.

This case at the Amphur has nothing to do with sexism at all. The uneducated in Thailand (which has nothing to do with a BD or MD) don´t know anything outside their little world and assumes the worst of people since they can´t do anything about their own situation. This is quite a common thing in most countries however in Thailand the racism has spread into the system and some handlers like to abuse their authority simply because they don´t happen to like the person in question , whether he is black or white.

The staff at the Amphur looks at the farang as a walking ATM and if you gonna tell me its about sexism then you are dead wrong. It's a twisted assumption that everybody outside their country have better than them. Normally they wouldn´t care too mucb about the woman in question but since a farang is involved , well then the hunting season can begin. It's the same story at the immigration offices especially in Bangkok. I have encountered alot of racist remarks from the handlers at these offices but never ever down in the south which I find pretty peculiar.

I have seen many foreigners at bars surrounded by bar girls carrying toy monkeys etc ,bunches of flowers and all with full glasses of lady drinks.

I have also seen many at good restaurants treating beach girls as if they are high born ladies.

I then hear the words,often, of 'cheap Charlie' with the accompanying smirk from those speaking the words..

And you wonder why you are treated with disrespect.

[WebBangkok]

The Bangkok Amphur sounds like any divorce lawyer in the US

I was about to say that she sounds like a lawyer.

[clausewitz]

There was one instance when we went to the Thai police station and the "boss" there asked my wife in Thai . If I spoke Thai? I answered in Thai, yes I do. Thus was many years ago when there were fewer Farang residents that actually spoke and understood Thai. There is a saying in Thai, "Farang loo mak, mai dee"; Farang know too much, no good!

Fascinating, I speak fairly fluent Thai and in all my years of living in Thailand and overhearing thousands upon thousands of conversations in Thai, not once have I ever heard this 'saying' .

There is website in thai (which i forget the name right now) where thais, and especially women , talk about foreign men and customs: kind of a Thai counterpart to Thaivisa. You will see many Thai women, the "experienced ones" warning that those farang who have been here long, who know Thai ways, are not good 'catches" and its better to get the ones straight off the boat.