Tan Siok Choo’s column “Making Sens” in The Sun today makes sense – she had described Thailand as “the ultimate Teflon country” (p 10). This non-stick trait is something Thailand possesses. Remember the one hundred thousand Red Shirts massed in Bangkok last year and it ended in a bloody crackdown on May 19 that left more than 91 dead, at least 1400 injured and arson attacks on city buildings that left Bangkok looking like Beirut? Now if this had happened in another developing country, the country’s reputation would be in tatters, perhaps even irreparably. Instead, Bangkok’s May mayhem left unblemished Thailand’s happy-go-lucky claim to be the Land of Smiles.
According to the statistics given, last year, the Thai baht climbed by 11% to 29.98 to the US dollar, Asia’s third biggest gainer after the yen and the ringgit. During the same period, Thai equities enticed net foreign investment of $1.9 billion – the biggest annual net purchase since 2006 – while global funds sank a whopping $10.7 billion into Thai bonds.
And preliminary data by the Tourism Authority of Thailand suggested tourist arrivals in 2010 could total 15.8 million – besting the tally of 14 million visitors in 2009. Even more extraordinary, international arrivals increased over 2009 for every month last year except for April and May, the peak of the "Red" unrest.
Yes, Thailand’s Teflon reputation is indeed remarkable.
According to the statistics given, last year, the Thai baht climbed by 11% to 29.98 to the US dollar, Asia’s third biggest gainer after the yen and the ringgit. During the same period, Thai equities enticed net foreign investment of $1.9 billion – the biggest annual net purchase since 2006 – while global funds sank a whopping $10.7 billion into Thai bonds.
And preliminary data by the Tourism Authority of Thailand suggested tourist arrivals in 2010 could total 15.8 million – besting the tally of 14 million visitors in 2009. Even more extraordinary, international arrivals increased over 2009 for every month last year except for April and May, the peak of the "Red" unrest.
Yes, Thailand’s Teflon reputation is indeed remarkable.
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