Thais warned not to 'try before buying' abroad

After Thai national arrested at Tokyo Disneyland for opening box of sweets, Foreign Ministry issues warning for Thais traveling abroad.

SHOPPING, TRAVEL & LOCAL CUSTOMS

Thais warned not to 'try before buying' abroad

24/08/2016
Online Reporters

The Foreign Ministry has warned Thais traveling abroad against "trying before buying" while browsing in shops.

The warning follows the arrest of a Thai national in Japan for doing exactly this.

BE AWARE OF LOCAL LAWS & CUSTOMS  

When traveling abroad, it is always best to check travel guide books about local laws and customs that might be of concern.

Japan, for instance, has some strict and inflexible laws, particularly regarding drugs and pharmaceuticals, that can result in surprised travellers ending up in jail.

Last year, an American executive working for Toyota in Japan was arrested for unknowingly bringing a pain killer named oxycodone, tightly controlled in Japan, into the country (see here).

A friend of the writer was once arrested in transit at Narita Airport for having an antique souvenir opium pipe used for decoration that he had bought in Maesai, Chiang Rai in his luggage.

We all know what trouble the former Bangkok chief of police got himself in by accidentally leaving a tiny unregistered gun in his luggage when he flew into Japan (see here, here, here and finally the case seems to have disappeared public view, mai pen rai).

FAMOUS 'MAI BEN RAI' APPROACH 

There is also the issue of the strictness or flexibility of laws in a society.

Thailand has a famous "mai ben rai" approach towards people who break the rules, which also can be a low-cost quick and effective way to solve problems.

Other societies, however,  are more strict and inflexible in their application of the law, such as Japan.

WHAT HAPPENED?

On July 25 the Thai embassy in Tokyo was informed by police of Urayasu in Chiba prefecture a Thai had been arrested for theft at Tokyo Disneyland.

While at the theme park's souvenir shop, the Thai traveller opened a box of sweets and ate some of them, the person was apprehended by a guard for theft and handed over to police.

At the police station, the Thai told officials that in Thailand a customer could open a box of sweets in a supermarket and try some before paying the cashier, insisting innocence.

POSSIBLE PUNISHMENT

According to the Japanese law, a suspect in an offence must be detained at the police station for 10 days, pending investigation and prosecution decisions.

Since a Thai national can stay in Japan without visa for 15 days, if the investigation takes more than 15 days, the suspect may also be charged with overstaying.

If found guilty, he or she will be prohibited from travelling to Japan for one year.

ACTUAL CUSTOM OF FOOD TASTING IN THAILAND

The vast majority of Thais would disagree with the excuse given by the Thai traveller caught opening a box of sweets in Japan.

While it is possible to try some food or snacks before buying them, it is customary even in Thailand to do so only when they are clearly testers, a plate of food to sample or an store assistant handing out  samples.

Thais do not normally open sealed boxes or bags and taste the food inside without asking shop attendants first. 

FOREIGN MINISTRY WARNING

The Foreign Ministry has warned Thais against "trying before buying" while shopping abroad since it may inadvertently break the laws of the country they are visiting.

The ministry's Protection of Thai Nationals Abroad Division posted on its Facebook while the habit was normal in Thailand, it might not be acceptable in other countries.

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION & UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE 

The subject of intercultural communication in schools is typically taught to get students thinking about and aware of differences between cultures in different countries.

This class can help them when they travel abroad for work or pleasure or in their work when they interact with people from different countries, in the tourism sector for example.

Recently, Coconuts Bangkok published an article on "the five stages of culture shock for foreigners in Thailand" by a lecturer on intercultural communication at a Thai university (see here).

Another useful tool are the four "dimensions of national cultures" of Dutch cross-cultural psychologist Geert Hofstede (see here, here, here, here & YouTube videos here).

As far as the Thai 'mai ben rai' approach to life is concerned the dimension of "uncertainty avoidance" seems to be relevant:

"Uncertainty avoidance deals with a society's tolerance for uncertainty and ambiguity. It indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either uncomfortable or comfortable in unstructured situations. Unstructured situations are novel, unknown, surprising, different from usual."

"Uncertainty avoiding cultures try to minimise the possibility of such situations by strict laws and rules, safety and security measures,..."

"The opposite type, uncertainty accepting cultures, are more tolerant of opinions different from what they are used to; they try to have as few rules as possible..."

Japan at 92 scores second highest in the ranking of societies by "uncertainty avoidance". Russia is highest at 95 out of 100. 

Thailand scores 64 but is by no means the lowest with Australia at 51, the US at 46, India at 40, UK at 35, China at 30 with Nordic countries such as Denmark at 23 being very low.

The book "Exploring Culture: Exercises, Stories and Synthetic Cultures" provides exercises, dialogues, stories and simulations for teachers teaching intercultural communication classes (see here).

Useful resources that are free and online include culture quizzes (see here), especially the Japan Quiz (see here) and cultural guides for many countries (see here) including Japan (see here) and Thailand (see here).

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1069809/thais-warned-not-to-try-before-buying-abroad

http://www.geerthofstede.eu/dimensions-of-national-cultures
http://www.clearlycultural.com/geert-hofstede-cultural-dimensions/uncertainty-avoidance-index/
https://www.andrews.edu/~tidwell/bsad560/Hofstede.html
http://www.geerthofstede.nl/training--consulting

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/466761.Exploring_Culture

http://www.commisceo-global.com/country-guides

http://www.commisceo-global.com/country-guides/thailand-guide
http://www.commisceo-global.com/country-guides/japan-guide

http://www.commisceo-global.com/quizzes

สามารถฝึกอ่านออกเสียงและดูคำแปลได้ที่ : http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/learning-from-news/1069861/thais-warned-not-to-try-before-buying-abroad