04.01.2013 Views

History - Russell Family Web Page

History - Russell Family Web Page

History - Russell Family Web Page

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

Another issue which has given the city a reputation is the sex industry. Prostitution in Thailand is<br />

technically illegal, but can be found all over Bangkok in vast numbers of massage parlors, saunas, parks,<br />

and hourly hotels, serving foreign tourists as well as locals. Organized sex work in Bangkok alone<br />

involves a minimum of many thousand workers, and possibly in the tens of thousands. Though Bangkok<br />

is far more affluent than many areas in Indochina, popular youth culture encourages easy money, paid<br />

sex is seen as a means of acquiring the best of capitalism and life has to offer. Vast numbers of locals fly<br />

to Europe on extended vacations with generally older men. Although in upcountry Thailand prostitution<br />

holds a strong stigma, in Bangkok locals, hotel workers, and officials often turn a blind eye towards such<br />

behavior and allow it to continue to flourish.<br />

2006 Bombs<br />

Main article: 2006 Bangkok Bombings<br />

Bombings reported in Bangkok<br />

On 31 December 2006, and into 1 January 2007, eight bombs exploded in the Bangkok city centre and<br />

adjacent Nonthaburi Province, killing three people and injuring more than three dozen people. All three<br />

fatalities were Thais, while nine of the injured were foreigners. All the bombs went off within<br />

approximately 90 minutes of each other. No group has yet to claim responsibility for the explosions.<br />

At the Victory Monument, a busy hub for public transportation, as many as 20 people were injured in a<br />

powerful blast. The police investigated suspicious packages at a handful of other locations throughout the<br />

capital, some of which turned out to be bombs, and were subsequently disarmed.<br />

The New Year's countdown at Central World Plaza was cancelled, as were New Year's celebrations<br />

throughout the city, and people were urged to return to their homes.<br />

Media<br />

Bangkok has been heralded for decades for the amount of free press coverage in Asia. For long it has<br />

been the breeding ground of American democracy in South East Asia and surely, the statistics show.<br />

There is an average of 4 million readers for more than 25 Bangkok based newspapers. The largest<br />

claiming to be Thai Rath one of the most acclaimed papers in Thailand. Bangkok also has a large<br />

selection of English newspapers, the Bangkok Post arguably the most famous followed by the Nation,<br />

other papers such as the Asian Wall Street Journal and the International Herald Tribune also receive high<br />

numbers of distribution. It is however Thai newspapers whom criticize and dig into politics rather than the<br />

two Thai based English papers. Namely Thai Rath and Daily News who been around longest have more<br />

conservative views towards most governments where as newly established papers after the Thammasat<br />

student uprising have more hardline stances. There are also a number of weekly publications normally<br />

45

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!