voyager1970 » 18 сен 2009, 08:54
и наконец Гран Финале: продьюсерская компания ,заснявшая эту и несколько других сцен вымогательства у туристов на Пукете оказывается под судом за нелицензированный вынос'' мусора из избы''
Jet ski video maker faces prosecution
Police admit extortion of tourists hard to stop
Writer: ONNUCHA HUTASINGH
Published: 18/09/2009 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: News
A Thai video production company involved in the filming of alleged extortion of foreigners by a Phuket jet ski operator is to be prosecuted for sending the recordings abroad for broadcasting without permission.
Wanasiri Morakul, director of the Thailand Film Office which comes under the Tourism and Sports Ministry, yesterday said police had traced the tapes to a company called Black Sheep Productions.
She said the managers of the company, which had produced the Big Trouble In Thailand series for Bravo All News station in England, admitted to holding the copyright for the recordings.
Ms Wanasiri said normal videos made by Thais do not require prior approval from the ministry's Office of Tourism Development.
But the people responsible for the Big Trouble In Thailand series, which has been a big hit on YouTube, had violated Article 34 of the motion picture law by not having the contents examined by a Tourism and Sports Ministry film committee before they were broadcast abroad.
The company's managers could face 12 months in jail and/or a fine of up to a million baht.
Seksan Nakawong, director-general of the Office of Tourism Development, said the film-makers also violated Article 23 of the same law for making a film tarnishing the reputation of Thailand.
The clips feature Phuket jet ski operator Vinai Naiman, also known as "JJ", demanding compensation from a British client, a marine on rest and recreation leave.
In the footage of the British marine, Mr Vinai was seen going to a storeroom and returning with a gun which he dangled by his side.
Sasisupa Sungvaribud, president of the Film Production Services Association, said the recordings took the form of a reality show and the events depicted were obviously staged and scripts written for the film.
Tourist Police chief Adis Ngamjitsuksri has conceded the extortion of tourists was a problem which the police alone could not stamp out.
He said the extortion gangs, including those in tourist provinces, worked under highly influential people.
Добавлено спустя 24 минуты 19 секунд:
PHUKET CITY: -- The Thai television company responsible for producing the Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand series, which featured footage of an alleged jet-ski scam on Phuket, is to be prosecuted, the Bangkok Post reported today.
The managers of Black Sheep Productions, which produced the show, could face 12 months in jail and fines of up to a million baht, the report said.
The first episode of the series showed a Patong jet-ski operator, Winai ‘JJ’ Naiman, extracting 35,000 baht from a group of British Royal Navy Marines in compensation for ‘damage’ to one of his vehicles.
At one point, Mr Winai was shown holding an air rifle as he argued aggressively with the men, who denied damaging the jet-ski.
For our previous report, click here.
As well as being broadcast on British TV, the show has been uploaded to YouTube, causing uproar among those who say jet-ski scamming is rife on Phuket’s beaches.
In today’s Bangkok Post report, Wanasiri Morakul, director of the Thailand Film Office, is quoted as saying those responsible for the show had violated Article 34 of the motion picture law by failing to submit the footage to the Tourism and Sports Ministry for approval before its broadcast abroad.
Director-general of the Office of Tourism Development, Seksan Nakawong, reportedly said the film-makers had violated Article 23 of the same law for making a film damaging to Thailand’s reputation.
Meanwhile, Region 8 police chief Lt Gen Santhan Chayanont has suggested the TV show was a deliberate attempt to tarnish the image of Thai tourism and the police force.
Lt Gen Santhan said many of the scenes, including those showing Mr Winai arguing with the British marines, looked like a set-up.
Gavin Hill, the British producer of the series, denies the allegations, saying the show was neither fake nor stage-managed.
A crucial meeting at Patong Municipality offices this afternoon will aim to hammer out details of a compulsory insurance scheme for the island’s jet-ski industry.
It is hoped such a scheme will put a stop to rip-offs and disputes on the island’s beaches.
Critics say it will be impossible to find an insurance company willing to insure unlicensed, potentially intoxicated tourists on the vehicles.
Carpe Diem
"He who controls the present, controls the past. He who controls the past, controls the future."
-- George Orwell
