Mandarin-language Thai guides call on junta to crackdown on illegal guides
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About 200 Mandarin-language Thai guides on Monday submitted a letter calling on the junta to crack down on foreign unlicensed guides who compete with them for work.
The Thai guides, led by Saengthong Prailinwichit who is deputy chairman of the Mandarin Guides Club of Thailand, submitted their demand to junta chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha at the Army headquarters. The letter was received by Col Permkiart Juthathet, an Army officer.
Prayuth was told in the letter that foreign unlicensed guides had damaged Thailand’s reputation because they provided wrong information to Chinese tourists.
The letter alleged that the problem of unlicensed guides speaking the Mandarin language has been ignored for over 10 years because a political party, which dominated tourism industry, chose to disregard the problem. The refusal to take notice had caused Thai guides to suffer, the letter said.
