Thailand wants more gay tourists

[Gaybutton]

This is very interesting in light of "Big Joke's" push to make the retirement visa more difficult. I doubt it is the majority, but certainly a significant number of gay men are in Thailand and/or want to be in Thailand on the retirement visa.
_______________________________________

Thailand pushes for expansion of gay tourism

By Barry Kenyon

August 10, 2023

As Thailand struggles post-covid to recover its huge international tourist profile, a renewed effort is underway to attract much more of the US$200 billion annual expenditure by gay visitors worldwide. As the tourist director of Chiang Mai explained recently to the New York Times, “We live in a country that is open and pretty liberal – I can’t think of a market that we wouldn’t welcome.” That’s quite a claim.

TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) of late has been sponsoring gay pride events in several Thai cities, not only in Bangkok, and has now expanded its roadshow marketing to gay Muslims in several countries by promoting halal food and spas and publicizing the availability of prayer rooms in public facilities, as well as more quietly including the gay rainbow flag in marketing campaigns. Homosexuality is suppressed in several other south east Asian countries with Muslim majority populations.

Another TAT initiative is to attract wealthy medical tourists. Already, Bangkok’s Bumrungrad International Hospital, a leading provider, has opened a Pride clinic that offers medical and wellness services to the gay international market, including specialist hormone, cosmetic and gender-affirming treatment. As regards gender reassignment, the hospital requires evidence of age (usually at least 20 years, 12 months’ estrogen use, already living “new” lifestyle etc) with costs 420,000 baht up.

In Japan and elsewhere, TAT is promoting gay romance Thai dramas such as “2gether” and “I Promised You The Moon” which are freely available on the internet and proving to be very popular, even with non-gay audiences. They are mostly puppy-love stories which rarely cover adult relationship problems or the everyday issues facing gay men such as financial and employment difficulties. The boys-love dramas seek to capitalize on gay-related soft power with exports now approaching 3 billion baht per year through international business partnerships.

Critics say that TAT’S policy is purely to make money, choosing to ignore the fact that Thailand is well short of being a gay paradise, especially for lesbians who are mostly overlooked in marketing campaigns. Although tourist-orientated cities have a multiplicity of social media contact sites and male-orientated gay bars and clubs – including cabaret shows which employ a sizeable proportion of the transgender community – legal protection is low. In spite of mega-publicity, gay marriage and adoption are still illegal, whilst transgenders can change their names by law but not their genders. Discrimination against gays in employment is largely unprotected by a legal framework. “But,” says the TAT officer, “it’s a wonderful place for a holiday.” Especially for men.

https://www.pattayamail.com/latestnews/ ... ism-437826

[Jun]

TAT might try to promote gay tourism, but not every other offshoot of the government is doing the same.

During covid closures, I've seen the brown shirt police mafia raid & shut down Jomtien bars, including those licensed as restaurants, whilst allowing a noisy and crowded straight bar to remain open almost next door to the mafia police HQ on beach road.

In Bangkok and Pattaya, the authorities seem to inconsistently interfere in the running of gogo bars. Girls will be seen in underwear or nude. There is a trend towards the gay gogo staff wearing shorts or jeans, with the most plausible explanation being that the police demand too much tea money for undressed staff.

[Jun]

And here's a Facebook picture showing a Bangkok street scene.

Patpong is rather like this, although scaled back. Ladies spilling out of their gogo bars onto the streets in underwear. Whilst on the same street, the boys inside the bars are in shorts or jeans.