Bangkok’s new airport to change the face of seedy Pattaya

PATTAYA: — For many tourists, the Thai resort of Pattaya conjures up images of criminals on the run, girls enticing westerners into sleazy bars, and most disturbingly, child sex tourism.

But the town is undergoing a renaissance as the new Suvarnabhumi Airport prepares to open nearby, creating a rush among high-priced hotel chains for beachfront property aimed not at the single guy, but wholesome families.

“Developers are buying land to develop shopping malls, five-star hotels, and in a few years Pattaya will change its face,” says Chaiwat Charoensuk, the director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in Pattaya.

“We need the families to visit Pattaya, so it is our job to do something to change the image,” he adds.

Pattaya was once a quiet fishing town, but the arrival of US soldiers on leave during the Vietnam war soon put an end to that, with go-go bars and brothels sprouting up to cater for company-starved GIs.

Tourist authorities are now hoping the resort will undergo another transformation, from sleazy sex destination into family-friendly beach town.

The new airport is located 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Pattaya, and will open as planned on September 28 despite the military coup on September 19 which ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Chaiwat says he hopes the opening of the 113 billion baht (3.0 billion US dollars) hub will boost the number of Thai and foreign visitors to Pattaya from 5.8 million per year to 6.5 million.

Chatchawal Supachayanont, general manager of the Dusit Resort and president of the Pattaya chapter for the Thai Hotels Association, says this predicted boom has caused land prices to rocket.

“There are many new hotels opening like the international chain hotels,” he says. “In just three to four years the price has gone up 100 percent in the prime areas.”

One place looking for a new brand of holiday-maker is the Sheraton. The five-star beachfront property opened in August 2005, and is aimed at couples.

“We are hopefully bringing a new market to Pattaya,” says Gavin Maloney, director of sales and marketing, who also predicts a boom in business travellers, many of whom visit factories nearby.

But there are worries that Pattaya’s seedy side may not disappear, instead vanishing behind the closed doors of plush new hotels and apartment blocks.

Anthony Burnett, a spokesman for ECPAT, an international NGO that works to end the sexual exploitation of children, says that once a region has established a reputation for sex tourism, it can be difficult to alter.

“In central areas of the city, a profusion of bars host young women who engage in sexual acts for payment,” he says.

Most of these women are over 18, but he says that young teenage girls walk the streets looking for customers, while underage boys are offered up as ‘masseuses’.

Burnett acknowledges TAT’s efforts to clean up the city, but says there remains much to be done, and warns that the recent boom could have consequences.

“The proliferation of foreign-owned or rented apartments can make child sexual abusers harder to detect, as instead of abusing children in bars or hotels, they are now able to do so in their own homes,” he says.

All tourism officials and hotel owners say they are committed to getting rid of child sex tourism, but concede that the wider adult entertainment industry attracts a lot of people.

“Another kind of tourist wants entertainment and relaxation,” says TAT’s Chaiwat. “As long as it is not illegal they can come and enjoy life, that’s fine for me, it is not dirty, it’s normal.”

Along the beachfront, where mostly British tourists clad in football shirts, shorts and the obligatory sunburn enjoy the baking weather, holiday-makers agree that Pattaya is a fun destination.

“I think it has got something for everyone. It’s good for families, it’s good for young lads like me,” says Michael Johnson, 23, an entrepreneur from Britain.

But most tourists agree that Pattaya is not appropriate for children.

“In our hotel they let guys come back with boys or girls,” says Karen Yeo, 47, from the UK.

Aoife Lowe, a 27-year-old recent graduate from Ireland, says that if she had children, she would not bring them to Pattaya.

“I just don’t think they should be exposed to that sort of thing,” she says.

But Chaiwat says there are plenty of attractions for children to enjoy, including a zoo, a submarine and a water park.

“Pattaya is like Disneyland, but you don’t pay an entrance fee,” he says.

— AFP 2006-09-26

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