Travel Forum / Destinations / Asia / January 2006

Paradise revealed

Thailand has long had a reputation as one of the most idyllic places on
earth. But the recent murder of a British backpacker has put its
previously unseen dangers into the spotlight

By Lorna Martin
THE GUARDIAN , KOH SAMUI, THAILAND
Wednesday, Jan 25, 2006,Page 13

When Katie Gill decided to visit Koh Samui during her round-the- world
trip she had an image in her mind of the most pleasurable place on the
planet. Kilometers of white sandy beaches, clear azure water sparkling
in the sunlight, cheap beachfront accommodation, serenity, solitude
and, above it all, a crown of coconut palms blowing in the breeze. Like
many things in life, it didn't quite live up to the fantasy. She
didn't, for instance, expect to see a Starbucks or McDonald's. And it
was much busier and noisier than she'd expected.

But she wasn't too disappointed. When she sat on the sand listening to
the waves splashing gently on the shore, it felt as close as she would
ever get to that funny old concept called paradise.

Katie had planned on staying a few days, but after a week decided to
abandon the rest of her adventure around the globe and stay for ever on
the small island on the Gulf of Thailand.

On a hot and sticky evening last week, some two years after she
arrived, the 25-year-old from Derbyshire, England, sat outside one of
the few remaining bars in the town of Lamai that she still feels safe
in, sipping an ice-cold Singha beer.

The pot-holed and flood-damaged road through the town was teeming with
traffic, the air thick with dust and petrol fumes. Stalls offering
lethal local whisky and fake designer goods competed for pavement space
with stray dogs and people selling chickens and ducks. On the narrow
road, hundreds of motorcycles tried to out-do each other by constantly
blasting their horns, while dilapidated jeeps crawled along, their
Tannoys blaring adverts for the best foam parties.

In the glut of neon-lit "lady bars," drunken, lonely Western men were
propped up by groups of beautiful Thai women, giggling and whispering
and wondering whether tonight was going to be the night that they would
get lucky and hit on a man with a bulging wallet and an urge to get
married. Were they shocked by the news, with the men already caught, of
the rape and murder of the Welsh student Katherine Horton? Yes, it
seems. But they may well be the only ones.

Bargirls and transvestites try to lure customers as they dance and pose
with tourists at the Patong beach bar strip.

PHOTO: EPA

"It's not paradise any more and I guess it never will be," said Katie,
surveying the scene around her. "For the first time since I came here I
don't feel safe. I used to live on the beach and would often walk alone
to bars or wander home a little bit drunk on my own.

"I never felt scared. I used to think in a place like Koh Samui, as a
single female, nothing could go wrong. I actually thought it was more
dangerous for single foreign guys because they are always getting
ripped off by bar girls and lady boys. Now I would be afraid to walk
along the beach on my own and I rarely socialize. For the first time in
two years I have actually been longing for home."

She is not the only one. Since the murder on New Year's Day, many
British tourists have abandoned the tropical resort, unable or
unwilling to accept that the worst horrors of the modern world can also
reside in a place they thought was the nearest thing to heaven on
earth.

Last week, two illiterate and impoverished fishermen, who pleaded
guilty to rape and murder, were sentenced to death for the crime.

As they awaited the judge's ruling, a new picture of Thailand was
emerging, a sharp contrast to the palm trees of the brochures.
Spiralling violence and corruption on the island is growing amid
increasing resentment among some Thais about its unregulated
over-development. I have also spoken to British women who claim Thai
police do not treat rape seriously.

In Britain, Katherine's murder has sparked fears about the safety of
backpackers. Any parent with an adventurous child must have wondered
what they would have done in a similar situation as they listened to
the words of Ian Horton.

He was nervous about his 21-year-old daughter travelling to another
continent. But she had tried to reassure him that she could just as
easily be knocked down by a bus at home.

"She was full of confidence," he said. "She felt immune to the dangers
of the world, as we have all felt when we were young adults. She came
to Thailand to dance on a beach, to ride an elephant. Tragically her
faith in her fellow man let her down."

In Koh Samui, Thailand's fastest growing tourist destination, emotion
still rides high.

"I am very angry about what happened," said businessman Piya Chanthong,
the owner of a complex of beachside apartments near where Katherine had
been staying. He is campaigning for more control over development and
extra police officers for the area. "The people who did this have
nothing in their heads," he said. "They just drink and watch porn and
decide they have to find a lady to rape. In Samui foreign girls have
been raped before, but not killed. To rape and kill is very unusual
here. That is why everyone is so angry. They are afraid that it is
going to make people hate Thailand."

Fifteen years ago, Koh Samui was a backpacker's secret -- a sleepy and
unspoilt coconut and fishing island. Then came the dream of The Beach
-- the film based on Alex Garland's novel starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
The island from which tourists visit the film's location was, before
the tsunami hit it, so overbuilt that the water supply had been
irretrievably poisoned by tourists' waste. These days Koh Samui now
rivals Phuket as one of the country's most popular destinations. It has
recently experienced a triple boom, benefiting from a financial crisis
which suddenly made Thailand very cheap for visitors, the 2002 Bali
bombing which discouraged people from going to the Indonesian island,
and the 2004 tsunami which devastated the west coast of Thailand but
left Koh Samui unscathed.

Last year, during high season, it was so busy that some tourists were
found sleeping in temples. For some it is all good news -- property
developers, the sex trade, wealthy expats and ex-cons are reaping the
benefits. Others -- mainly backpackers, poor uneducated Thai people and
the environment -- are paying a heavy price. Although still unarguably
beautiful in parts, many of Thailand's main beaches and towns have been
ruined by the trappings of Western tourism.

Lamai has been spoken about as the new Ibiza or Faliraki. Premiership
football matches are shown in many bars, British newspapers are widely
available. In addition to such influences, Lamai has also emerged as
one of the largest and least regulated red-light areas in the country.
It is not easy to find a bar there which is not a front for
prostitution and many Thais say the scene is now far worse than the
once notorious Patpong district of Bangkok.

There are around 10,000 prostitutes in Samui alone. Thai officials have
an uncomfortable relationship with this side of their country. At least
10 per cent of the total tourist spending is on the sex trade which,
although illegal, is tacitly tolerated by the government because of the
enormous sums earned from it.

"There are two types of Thai men," said Chanthong. "Those who work with
tourists and those who have come down from the mountains and never come
into contact with them. Most Thai men have the same respect for Western
women as they do for Thais, but some men see European women topless on
the beach and think it is easy to have sex with them. I even have
friends who come down from Bangkok and ask if I can find them a
European woman to have sex with. I say it is not like a piece of cake.
They don't understand that. I suppose it's the same as the European men
who come here thinking Thai women are easy."

Koh Samui is increasingly becoming a tale of two cities. While it is
still possible to rent a beach hut like the one Katherine had stayed in
for US$15 a night, they are becoming a rarity. In their place are
multi-million-dollar homes and five-star spa resorts. In the next six
months, around 20 upmarket health spas are due to open.

Although the permanent population of the island is just 40,000, it now
draws nearly 1 million tourists every year. Thailand as a whole hopes
to increase its tourist numbers from 14 million to 20 million by the
end of 2008.

Unless there are some controls, however, on the relentless
overdevelopment of islands such as Koh Samui, many locals fear it will
not only spoil the area and the environment, but also lead to an
increase in crime and corruption.

There is already endemic corruption among police and government
officials in Thailand. And, despite Samui's increasing levels of crime,
it has only 15 tourist police and a regular force of 200.

Despite the myth peddled in holiday brochures and assurances from
police and politicians that Koh Samui is safe, in the past eight weeks,
there have been at least five murders, more than 20 robberies, the same
number of violent assaults and around 15 gun-related incidents.

There have been at least two more reported rapes on the island since
the beginning of December. One involved a 26-year-old British woman who
was allegedly raped by two men in the island's busiest resort of
Chuweng. The two fishermen charged with Katherine's murder have been
linked to this attack. Photographs of them have been sent to the victim
but sources in Thailand have said the men vehemently denied any
involvement. In the other case, a 12-year-old Swedish girl was
allegedly raped by a man who worked in the resort where her family was
staying.

Although these are the only known reported rapes, the true level is
thought to be much higher. Police in Thailand tend to turn a blind eye
to violence in relationships, even if that relationship is little more
than a one-night liaison on the beach.

Katherine's murder may focus minds. It may just bring a little more
control over the rapid development of the island and its deteriorating
infrastructure.

Paiant Pangha, a driver in the area, said many ordinary Thais felt
their island was being taken away from them and destroyed for ever.
"This was once a beautiful island, but it has lost so much of its
charm. It resembles a massive construction site, as every inch of land
is sold off to developers to build more luxury resorts, with no regard
whatsoever for the environment or the natural ecology."

As well as government action, he would like to see tourists taking more
responsibility when they travel to foreign shores.

"It's terribly sad what happened to Katherine. Every Thai person is
deeply saddened by it and hate the men who did that to her. But I also
think it is important that as more and more tourists come here, they
respect our different culture. I'm not talking about Katherine here but
there are many European women who ignore our culture and, for example,
run around topless on the beach. I know many Thai men who boast about
the number of farangs (foreigners) that they have slept with. I just
think it would be better for everyone if people respected other
peoples' cultures and environments."

With the eyes of the world's press on them, and because of their fear
of inflicting damage on their vital tourist industry, the Thai
authorities have acted with unprecedented haste in solving the murder
of Katherine. Hundreds of officers were dispatched to the province and
in an unusual public appeal, the country's Prime Minister Thaksin
Shinawatra said the killers should receive the "hardest punishment
possible."

Rachel Harrison and Erin Sander, both 26, arrived on Koh Samui as part
of a three-month backpacking trip. Rachel said they had already spent
one month on another island and would not be put off because of the
murder. "It is of course tragic for her family and it did feel a little
eerie walking along the beach," she said.

"But these things can happen anywhere. We have spent one wonderful
month in Thailand, people have welcomed us into their homes and looked
after us. Some people can tend to lose their judgment when they are on
holiday. They do things they wouldn't do at home, and think nothing can
touch them. But in Katherine's case she did nothing wrong. In many
ways, that is scarier."

Erin said she would definitely return to Thailand. "I would never
devalue what has happened. It's awful. But parents can't keep their
children in a cocoon. They have to let them fly. You can't stay in the
basement and be afraid to travel the world. There is too much to see
and explore and experience."

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