SILOM – The Thai Patriots Network, or TPN, is now claiming an infringement of Thai soil in downtown Bangkok by occupational Japanese tourists and residents.
“Thaniya is undisputably within Thailand’s borders according to every accepted map,” said TPN leader Chaiwat Sinsuwong. “Yet for years it has been occupied by Japanese expatriate forces, who have claimed it for their own.”
According to the TPN, the Japanese have removed all signs of Thai culture and even Thai-language signs from the Thaniya area and replaced them with Japanese ones, in an act of “cultural colonization.”
Worse, it has been reported that the business within the Thaniya Disputed Zone do not even allow Thai patrons to enter inside, claiming that the bars and parlors are for “members only” – a veiled reference to a “Japanese only” door policy.
The TPN plans to occupy Zone with hundreds of its members, who will block traffic, disrupt business, and prevent deliveries if its demands for Japanese withdrawal are not met. Additional protests are planned for the Japanese Embassy on Wireless Road.
Additionally it has renewed calls for the resignation of Abhisit and key members of the cabinet for failing to protect Thai sovereignty.
“This is yet another failure of the administration,” Chaiwat said. “They are literally giving away Thailand to our enemies.”
However, a spokesperson for the businesses located in the disputed area claimed that the accusations were misguided. “We are still a proud part of Thailand,” said Prempij Pradchapet, manager of the Alessa Hostess Club. “We employ hundreds of Thais, pay Thai taxes, and have pictures of the King on every wall.”
When asked about the “Japanese only” door policy, he laughed.
“Only a Japanese person would be so insecure that he’d pay ฿350 for a Singha just to avoid non-Japanese people,” he explained.
“We’re just cashing in on the pathetic needs of lonely, foreign men. And that’s very, very Thai.”
