Earlier quoted context omitted.
Make it anonymous.
Kinda hard to do, if you complain about unique circumstances at a specific location
You at least will have some leverage and the ability to deny
Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
151–160 of 294 posts
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#152Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#153I'm not surprised. I had some crazy experiences in Thailand. Once the floor dropped out in our bungalow, as I was stepping on it. Sheer luck that I didn't fall through and cut myself open on the exposed building material. Trying to explain this to the owner and they accused us of breaking the floor and wanted to charge for it. Another time we wanted them to order a cab for us but they insisted we use their limo servi…
It goes both ways... I had similar experiences in Thailand, but I also saw a lot of terrible behaviour from tourists - trashing rooms, causing disturbances late at night, trying to trick/scam or just nickle-and-dime the locals . Thailand seems to attract a particularly hard-partying demographic from Australia, UK and Germany in particular that gives other tourists a bad reputation - who are then treated with a lot of…
There does seem to be an attitude, especially among the "lifestyle business" crowd, that SEA exists for Westerners to live like kings, with it borderlining on a masters/servants mentality.
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#154It's worth noting, for context, that for western audiences, Trip Advisor is the Gold Standard for travel reviews in this area. This is where they left the reviews. Restaurants will give a 5-10% discount on meals if you leave a review. Restaurants, tourist attractions, hotels/hostels etc have big Trip Advisor signs in their windows. A couple of bad reviews could be costly for a business.
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#155I'm not surprised. I had some crazy experiences in Thailand. Once the floor dropped out in our bungalow, as I was stepping on it. Sheer luck that I didn't fall through and cut myself open on the exposed building material. Trying to explain this to the owner and they accused us of breaking the floor and wanted to charge for it. Another time we wanted them to order a cab for us but they insisted we use their limo servi…
This seems like just classic poorer country trying to milk money out of rich westerner (well minus the floor dropping out that sounds awful)
There's no shortage of rich westerners trying to use those poorer countries as their cash cows (think cheap VAs, the traveling entrepreneur living cheap there, etc)
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#156Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is that really the level of being a dick that should land you in a foreign prison?
"Should" is a dubious word to use here. That's what the law is there, and what you or I think "should" happen isn't relevant.
It's relevant for other tourists who want to know the level of risk they are subjecting themselves when visiting. The Thai resort really Barbra Streisand'ed this.
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#157Pro Tip: leave your reviews after the stay. Another pro tip: know the local laws. American’s are THE WORST overseas because we think ‘Merica way of life is world wide. No, it isn’t, and you’d to well to humble yourself, learn the local laws, conduct yourself as if you were at Nana’s house. Wheaton’s law: “Don’t be a dick”. But Thailand’s defamation laws, online laws, and more kinda turn me off from visiting. Granted…
Well, being dick shouldn't put you in jail.
Perhaps, but as America has a reputation for putting people in jail for quite a few ridiculous reasons, we should be the last people to pass judgment on other countries' arrest policies.
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
The law is something to the effect of "disclosing private matters can be defamation even if it's true". That's common in many countries. "It's true" is only a valid defense if you're accusing someone of a crime.
Is it true in any first world countries? As far as I am aware publishing anything that is true is always fair game. The very definition of libel (and slander) is that something untrue has been published or said. I’m not aware of a first world/non-dictatorship that treats either libel or slander as a crime or where “it’s true” is not a defense [in a civil case]. This is a good article on the history of the issue: http…
A major difference is if defamation is considered a civil or criminal matter. In some countries such as Thailand, a defamation claim is a criminal matter, which can get you arrested, jailed etc., before going in front of a judge. It can and is used as a weapon, often in politics. In some other countries, a defamation claim first needs to be judged valid before arrest.
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#159Earlier quoted context omitted.
I mean, if he didn't give them the benefit of the doubt he could be extradited and jailed in a mafia run prison right? I for one have nothing bad to say about the Thai mafia.
You think the Japanese government would extradite someone to Thailand for low-level defamation?
He works in Thailand. What are you talking about?
Re: Hotel guest in Thailand jailed for defamation after posting bad online reviews
#160The part near the end of the article is confusing. >While this reaction by the hotel does sound excessive I’d give them the benefit of the doubt that this guest behaved like a total idiot while at the property and then turned around with very unflattering descriptions and manufactured truths aka lies about this resort. He then refused to discuss the matter with the hotel and instead of stopping even accelerated his o…
Sounds like a practical warning on how to stay out of trouble.
True respect laws and you won’t need to go to jail like millions of other people who do write negative reviews and haven’t been sued