British Tourist Killed By Electric Shock

A British tourist was killed by an electric shock as he took a bottle of water from a fridge at a resort on Koh Phangan Island.

Friends said Grant Harrison, 36, from London, had been relaxing by a pool before he went to the fridge for the bottle and received the fatal shock on the island of Koh Phangan.

He had arrived in the country only at the New Year and had been planning to travel around with his girlfriend.

A fellow Boro fan, writing on the website under the name ‘Lisbonlegend’ paid tribute saying : ‘He told me he was going travelling for a bit in the New Year, over to Thailand and more, to enjoy life for a bit.

‘He was relaxing by the pool, decided to go for a bottle of water and it cost him his life.He was a fantastic friend and a brilliant character.

‘I am going to miss a really great friend and I’m totally gutted he won’t get the chance to score at the Riverside like he desperately wanted.

‘RIP Grant, I’ll really miss you mate.’

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: ‘We can confirm the death of a British national in Koh Phangan, Thailand. We are providing consular assistance for next of kin.’

Original news article here.

Phangan Island Lawyer

Hi my name is Tom, i come from Germany, My Thai wife and I run the Archery Club here on Koh Phangan.

I haved lived here for 17 years on Koh Phangan. Since that time i know Mr. Thakrit Sritongkul very well; his and my family are good friends over a long time.

So he ask me for some References. What can i say?

Mr. Takrit Sritongkul’s Family has been on the islands (Koh Phangan, Koh Samui and Koh Tao) and is very influential and powerful!

As he was born on the island and he is from a very powerful family, he knows and has many connections to all important people and institutions.

His relationships range from Police-, Military-, Government-, and Administration-Official’s, up to and including Judges, Prosecutors and Ministers in Bangkok!

I have accompanied him many times for bail out hearings and problem solvings. So i know how he is working. He has been a great friend to me, also he has helped me a lot.

He made it possible for me to get a 30 year Land lease registered within 1,5 Hours, also he helped me by some boundaries clearing.

My Friend knows very well the foreign mentality. He traveled in a lot countries, and also from his resort business he can understand the thinking from foreign people.

Call me and i will introduce him to you. +66 (0)8 95 30 40 80

Phangan Island Lawyer

You need help ?

I am specialized in Troubleshooting !

Call me !

I can help you !

Mr. Thakrit Sritongkul

Mobile: +66 (0)8 46 39 92 59

With friendly support from Koh Phangan Lawyer

JS Hut Thansadet Koh Phangan

Beware of J.S Hut Bungalows at Thansadet Beach on the east coast of Koh Phangan Island in the Gulf of Thailand.

At least once a week, the bungalow owners, regularly rip people off in every manner, including injury. A small scratch on the motorcycle cost 8000 baht for us and we settled for 5000 … otherwise, they threatened us with injury and would not return our passport. We watched them attack a tourist 3 days ago and he ended up in the hospital with stitches for moving out.

This is not the first time! Another English couple who asked to move out after spending 2 weeks already were spat on and yelled at. Don’t stay at this place! They are dangerous!

BEWARE BEWARE BEWARE!!! Danger Lurks!

Koh Phangan Island

Hello there & a happy welcome back to Koh Phangan Island News – the most debated website about a small island in the Gulf of Thailand called Koh Phangan Paradise Island.

Well … I still do remember the very day when I first stepped my foot on ‘magic’ Koh Phangan Island. It was the 14th November 1992 and I came over from Koh Samui with the Hadrin Queen Express Boat arriving at Hadrin Beach. There was no pier at that time and smaller long tail boats had to come and pick you up outside … and the magic journey began …

I also still do remember the very last day I left the Island Of Madness, this time via a so called international pier at Thongsala. It was the 20th May of 2009 and the magic journey finally came to an end. Crossroad reached!

If we have a closer look at those numbers it finally reveals that I have survived an amazing 16 years, 6 months and 7 days on the Island Of Madness, formerly also know as ‘magic’ Koh Phangan Paradise Island.

It can also be counted as 6032 days or 861 weeks! If we would like to go into even more details then it would be an amazing 144.768 hours, 8.686.080 minutes or 521.164.800 seconds.

And after all I have to tell you that it was the most amazing time I’ve experienced in my life! I would not hesitate a single second and do it again …

Back in those early days Koh Phangan was really a more than magic place and everyone could easily feel the magic, special & laid back atmosphere this tiny island jewel had to offer. I will never forget the early Full Moon Parties when it still was a sort of secret backpackers event and not known yet to the international music & dance festival industry.

I will always remember the bizarre times we all experienced at the Palm Beach Psy Trance Parties on the sunset site of Hadrin Beach during the years of 1994 to 1996. This was the real ‘magic’ Phangan experience we all came to enjoy. This was peace, love & happiness! This was the ‘original experience’, the ‘cosmic consciousness trip’ once a week on Wednesday! Loaded with tons and tons of good Californian bliss, pupils as big as the bright moon in the dark sky

Koh Phangan Bullets

There was no charge of entrance fee! There were no international DJ’s present at that time. Our only motivation was to have a good time, a good party and share peace, love & happiness with each other without thinking about money and massive profits. And … tell you what … it worked … perfectly!

During all those years living on the Island Of Madness I have met so many nice people and I still do have the most amazing memories connected to this once very special place on our little planet called earth.

If I think back now I have to say that the first 5 something years were just simply awesome and Koh Phangan Paradise Island provided the perfect shelter for me. Thinking about myself … thinking about life … and meeting some of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met. Those times were just more than fantastic … more than bizarre!

Later on things definitely started to develop in some sort of direction and the last couple of years, bombarded with never ending massive techno sounds throughout the night, were simply just dreadful!

But hey … who am I to complain? I had the very rare pleasure of spending the most amazing time with the most amazing people on Koh Phangan Paradise!

And I’m really grateful for that!

So … thanks a lot … little & beloved Koh Phangan Island … thanks for all those amazing years … thanks for letting me be part of it …

Bye, bye Koh Phangan … thanks for everything & best of luck!

Koh Phangan Island News

Yep … Koh Phangan Island News, the one and only website reporting the real news about the Island of Madness, has finally come to a very end!

But … is it really true? Will there really be no more un-censored & non-corrupted news about one of the last lost paradises on our planet earth called Koh Phangan – The Island of Madness?

Well … this actually just depends on your very participation! On your willingness to share some of your precious time and inform others about the real news & facts from the lost paradise called Koh Phangan Island.

As mentioned earlier douche bag dickhead pussy Becki has decided to leave the Island Of Madness and therefore I’m no longer in the position to provide you with the latest island gossip … the latest Full Moon Party reviews … the latest reports about the Techno Party Battlefield in Ban Tai village … the latest motorbike accidents … the latest police road blocks along the quiet coast roads … the latest murders … dead tourists … shootings … killings …or even stabbings of some unsuspecting tourist during the infamous Full Moon Party night down at world famous Hadrin beach.

But there is indeed no reason to always publish so called ‘negative’ news about Koh Phangan Island! You could indeed, as suggested by one of our lovely comment poster, transform your negative island perception and find back to your beautiful heart and publish a few extraordinary notes about that awesome deep throat blowjob experience little miss Gung selflessly serviced you at the ‘Give me all your money or I will stab you in the back’ girly bar down the horny mile between Thongsala and Ban Tai village.

Or … instead of posting comments how badly this website sucks and calling Becki a pussy … you could also easily get your shit together, realize that you actually indeed do suffer from a major inferiority complex, and start doing something positive and finally contribute to the ‘original’ Koh Phangan community instead of complaining and moaning about nearly everything Koh Phangan Island News has to offer.

So … my dear & pure hearted friends from the Koh Phangan community … get your shit together

Koh Phangan No Drugs

Equip yourselves with some digital cameras and explore the last secret & hidden spots the Island Of Madness still has to offer. Tell us about your weird ‘experience’ on the party island of Koh Phangan. Tell us about your personal ‘magic trip’ or the real & pure ecstasy you recently came in contact with at one of the thousands ‘Respect the Nature but give us all your money’ music dance festivals on the party island Koh Phangan.

Tell us where we can find the good pills … the bad pills … some real brainy acid and some good nice smelly weed to smoke! Tell us about the good guys … warn us about the bad guys who lurk behind the next coconut tree looking to gain personal financial profit just because you’re an un-informed tourist visiting Koh Phangan for the very first time!

Did you ever buy a small bag of Phangan Ganja to only be visited by local & friendly smiling police cops a few minutes later at your bungalow? And out of a sudden another friendly smiling so called lawyer showed up to guide you into the deep realms of the legal system in Thailand! Only to realize a few minutes later that you’re standing in front of the ATM machine typing in your secret pin code.

Did something like this ever happen to you? Tell us where you bought that stinky bag of ‘original’ Phangan Ganja. Tell us what happened … notify us about places to avoid …inform us what NOT to do!

Koh Phangan No Drugs

Tells us where we can find the best steak on the island … the best freaking air conditioned Korean barbeque restaurant … as we already got a few hundred such places. Did we really need another one? Are we finally running out of ideas on this majestic little paradise?

Also please tell us about restaurants where the food really sucks and is so disgusting that you don’t want any other human being to taste it! Please inform us about the good & best bungalow places to stay during the Full Moon Party peak season and please also leave a note where the bungalow owners are greedy and only after your money so others can be warned and don’t have to make the same stupid experience you did.

Tell us about the good things Koh Phangan Island has to offer! But also warn the un-informed Koh Phangan tourist about the snaky traps waiting to be stepped in behind nearly every coconut tree!

If you prefer then please focus on the positive things Koh Phangan Island has to offer – you’re more than welcome to do so!

But please keep in mind that the awful truth doesn’t have to be awful! Shit happens everywhere on this planet but we do have the possibility to inform others about it so they don’t have to make the same stupid mistake you did.

It probably won’t change a thing as the ‘bad’ guys are here for a reason and probably will never change their attitude but it’s not necessary to be at the wrong place the wrong time! Instead it could be the perfect time at the perfect place … let the information flow!

The Land of the Smile

So … at the very end it actually starts again with the beginning … the circle closes! Here’s a quote from the early beginning of Koh Phangan Island News website:

“Anyway … this website was originally sent into this universe to act as an open portal, a meeting point, a source of exchange, an area to share information, knowledge, fun, happiness and whatever else pops up in your mind about Koh Phangan Paradise Island. The ongoing and never ending process highly depends up on your cooperation and support! You and any extraterrestrial being in this galaxy are more than welcome to join Koh Pha-ngan Island News now!”

So … don’t hesitate a single second and start participating now in this global cosmic experiment. Please sign up and register for free of course and then you’re able to:

* submit news, articles, reviews
* share knowledge, fun & happiness
* or anything else you want other people let to know about Ko Pangan Paradise Island

So … what’s it going to be? Moaning? Complaining? Calling everyone a douche and just shut the fuck up?

Or will you take part … will you participate … will you contribute to the community? Will you share some of your precious times and finally let others know how you experienced your stay on Koh Phangan Paradise – The Island Of Madness?

Who knows? I’ve been told that my thoughts actually do have impact on the reality so I better wisely use my wicked mental power … but the recent years … while having the purest thoughts and hope into human mankind, especially on Koh Phangan … just revealed to me that my wicked mental powers were simply not enough … access denied

Original Koh Phangan Bullets!

Anyway … do I have any expectations? Of course not

Even my good friend Glyn from Canada promised years and years ago that he would publish some more positive articles about Koh Phangan. But so far Glyn has always been far too busy showing off his newest high tech IPod Touch device to impress the chicks while hanging out at Mike’s during the high season. Look how I can zoom in while I move my fingers! Isn’t that impressive? Yes, Glyn … that’s really some fucking pretty impressive device you got there … awesome Please say hello to Karen

However … my job here is mostly done and I will promise to keep the website of Koh Phangan Island News online as long as I have access to some servers on the internet. There won’t be any more ‘negative’ news published by dickhead Becki but at least you can browse the archive here from time to time and refresh your memories of good, old Koh Phangan.

I will of course monitor and moderate this little website and login from time to time to see if some new articles finally made it through space & time ready to be published. Ready to spread the word … let it be good or ‘bad’!

That’s it for the moment! Be good, nice & Take care of each other!

Koh Phangan Island News

This website seems to be dead! Where has the awful truth gone? Where the heck are the fresh & up-to-date real news about Koh Phangan Island?

Over the last couple of months Becki received quite a few emails and comments asking about the real news from the Island of Madness.

Well … if you have followed the stories on this website it seems to be more than obvious that the real news about Koh Phangan has finally come to a very end!

Yep … order has finally been re-established and we can now concentrate on some of the more important issues … our right to make money … to succeed … to at last develop our little paradise island called Koh Phangan.

I really wish you guys best of luck with all your top notch 21st century future plans for this nice little island and hopefully you will not get lost in between things and always try to remember to respect each other. Be good, nice & take care of each other – especially take care of this nice, little island called Koh Phangan!

You are all one & love is all you need!

I personally will soon close this little project of mine called Koh Phangan Island News and I’m looking forward to new & exciting challenges. Where ever the wind blows me!

It was a pleasure and hopefully you’re all not too mad at Becki for publishing ‘The Awful Truth’ about Koh Phangan Island in the last couple of years.

Yes … I know that I brought myself in trouble! But to be honest I’m really glad that I did! I’m proud of myself and I would always do it again. I would always try to help other human beings. This makes me human … and again … I’m proud of this!

So … God bless you all! Be good, nice & take care of each other!

We will probably meet up again … on an island somewhere … some other life!

Greetings

Becki

Koh Phangan Island News

Koh Phangan Island News

Koh Phangan Island News

Koh Phangan Lost Paradise

Hello there and welcome back to the Island of Madness, formerly also known as Koh Phangan Paradise Island … a lost paradise?

Well … sa-lowly but surely the hardened & original Koh Phangan skin on my feet keeps dissolving layer by layer and my gun shot wound is very well healed by now.

It’s been months and months since I have left the original Island of Madness and Koh Phangan – the lost paradise? – seems to be just a very distant memory in my disillusioned mind

But Becki is in great spirit and doing pretty well here on the other site of the planet called earth. And to be quite honest it simply just feels amazing to be far away from those little & friendly smiling but also snaky Koh Phangan Thai Monkeys.

Oh my god … I just called them little Thai Monkeys Well … keep on posting your comments and call me a racist … a dick … whatever you like

But … it simply feels awesome being able to sleep every single night without any close or even distant deranged techno rave party bum bum bum around your home. It simply feels inspiring not to be bombarded with any demented ‘Come and Satisfy Your Soul’ style stupid techno party signs along the streets.

It actually feels more than terrific to no longer be part of the “original” Koh Phangan community which I really used to love many, many years ago when things were quite different.

But as Buddha once said … nothing is more permanent than change … also our little and beloved paradise island of Koh Phangan was meant to change at one point. And indeed … it actually did change … did change quite a lot in the recent years if you ask me!

Koh Phangan is still a fantastic island with a great climate and stunning magnificent nature around. Of course, you still can have a good time on the Island of Madness but if you have a closer look, probably live there for a while and get accustomed to local traditions, things might appear differently!

If you ask me personally I would say that Koh Phangan has definitely lost its charm & magic it once was so famous for! Finally a pristine, untouched & more than lovely paradise island has been transformed into something we could easily call a massive shithole?

Pardon my french

But shit like this happens everywhere where the money driven virus of capitalism starts moving in and a few years later most people are infected & corrupted with this more than deadly disease created by some wicked masterminds.

Magic Koh Phangan Island … another lost paradise? You better decide!

Koh Phangan Lost Paradise

Koh Phangan Lost Paradise

Koh Phangan Lost Paradise

Koh Phangan Big Trouble Tourist Thailand

Shining down up on the paradise island of Koh Phangan is a mighty full moon which means it must be the night of Thailand’s premier Full Moon Beach Party with thousands of revelers all looking for the ultimate holiday high.

The sandy beach has turned into a disco inferno. And where there is a party there is bound to be trouble. And soon the merriments begin to descent into mayhem. It starts of mildly with local thieves preying on the drunken tourists, looking for a quick handbag snatch or easy victims to pick pocket.

On an average Full Moon Party night nearly a hundred wallets can be expected to be lifted from unwitting hedonists on the beach but bigger crimes await the cops. As the high jinks turns into violence fights start breaking out between party goers.

“It’s always alcohol … the worst drug. It start’s getting violent the more drunk people we are getting. Then the violence comes out!” says Louise Rawlings, Thai Tourist Police, Head of Volunteers

But it’s not just the holiday makers who get nasty it’s also the Thai locals. As the Full Moon Beach Party gets into full swing drunken behavior leads to a violent assault on a British lad. Jamie found himself the victim of a vicious mugging and assault. A local Thai man robbed him off his wallet and passport. Sporting a nasty head injury he needs immediate medical attention.

Over at the local police station his friends try to explain to the Thai cops what happened.

“My friend he come to full moon party … then Thai person come like this … and they go like this … and they take money … he go up to them … and he go … pushed like this … they get stoned … like this … and they smashed the bottle on his head … he had blood over his face …and I just come to report … I just tell you what happened”, Jamie’s friend reports at the local police station.

Koh Phangan Big Trouble Tourist Thailand

Koh Phangan Big Trouble Tourist Thailand

Koh Phangan Big Trouble Tourist Thailand

The language barrier at the police station is creating its own headache for the British lads.

“I talk to police and they just laugh at me” Jamie’s friend further explains.

All explanations seem to fall on deaf ears making the lads despair about the justice system in Thailand.

“I came to see the police and they basically did nothing! They never get someone caught … never! It’s Thailand!” Jamie’s friend finally reveals.

Then we follow up on the story of Micha, a real cute British chick whose dream holiday on Paradise Island Koh Phangan turned into a terrible nightmare.

It’s the morning following Micha’s arrest and after scraping together enough money form family and friends Micha has made bail and is been released from the prison cell.

“Did the police give you any indication of what would happen to you?”

“We kept asking about the court date but the police officers just shrugged his shoulders. All day they were just trying to get money out of us. They weren’t talking about crime or anything. They were just talking about money … that’s all they wanted!” Micha’s boyfriend Martin explained.

“It seemed like the more we looked desperate the more they were playing hard ball with us.” he further added.

“If I had had the money I would have given it to them just to get out!” Micha says.

Koh Phangan helpful Cops!

Koh Phangan making a police report!

Koh Phangan Police Station Hadrin Beach!

Finally Micha is being sent to the court and the next 20 minutes spend pleading her case will define Micha’s future. She knows that she could be looking for up to a year in prison or be giving her ticket to freedom.

The wait is over … Micha finally has a verdict!

“Relieved … very relieved! I am happy … yeah! And it’s good news! I was sentenced to 1 year in prison but because I was so young it was a month and then because it was my first event I got fined and being send out on probation. Very good!” Micha happily announces.

And finally real cute British chick Micha Abigail Dixon is returning home from her dream holiday which has turned into a real & original Koh Phangan nightmare.

Then we follow the trail of Thai Tourist Police volunteer Howard Miller in the streets of Pattaya where a drunken English bloke has urinated on a taxi car and also smashed the hood with his fist. Then being arrested Howard Miller explains the local customs in the Kingdom of Thailand.

“If the man apologizes and makes some form of compensation to the taxi driver according to local customs the situation will be resolved and he will get away with a caution.” Howard Miller, Tourist Police volunteer enlightens.

“The taxi driver has given me a figure … hang on … hang on … 3.000 Thai Baht for damage … just give us 2.000 Thai Baht and then the situation is finished!” Tourist Police volunteer says to the drunken British lad.

“We had two options! After finding out the English guy had no witnesses I said to him … look … you could either be locked up for what you did or we can come to some sort of financial arrangement and try to clear the damage on the car and then it is finished and you can walk away. We agreed on a price of 2.000 Thai Baht which is about 30 pounds and I think it is a fair amount. The English guy agreed to pay it and that was it … finished! He avoided going to jail … it’s nice ” Howard Miller further explains.

So let’s all be real happy about this fantastic local legal system and just keep in mind that money makes the earth spin around the sun … and justice does indeed not exist … at least in the land of the smile

Greetings and be good to each other!

Micha & Original Koh Phangan Nightmare!

Howard Miller, Thai Tourist Police - It's nice

Happy Micha finally relieved!

Koh Phangan Big Trouble Tourist Thailand

The second episode in the controversial ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand‘ television series is set to screen in Britain on Monday night – but Thai authorities are now preventing the eight-part series from being completed.

Producer-director Gavin Hill says the Thailand Film Office has sent a letter asking the British production company, Bravo, not to screen any more episodes.

Episode Three, being edited in Britain, is in rough-cut form. The show can only go on with permission from all the people shown on-screen.

That includes Winai ‘JJ’ Naiman, the now-notorious Phuket jet-ski operator, who signed a release form so that his actions could be displayed to viewers with his approval.

Mr Hill said tonight’s second episode does not reflect badly on Thailand. That was never the intention of ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand,’ he added.

‘I don’t know what’s going to happen now with the series,’ he said. The Thailand Film Office has ‘pulled all the releases and permissions that are required to complete the series.’

He has been told there is the likelihood of a complaint being made to the British embassy. At least one volunteer expat tourist policeman in Pattaya had also expressed concern.

Episode Two, Mr Hill said, contained no more about jet-skis on Phuket and was about ‘Brits behaving badly,’ with military police in pursuit of drunken sailors.

‘In some ways, it’s very positive for Thailand,’ he said. ”The young lady who was in trouble on Koh Phangan in the first episode is fined 50 pounds, she gets her bail money back, and she is allowed to go, with the only real penalty being an extra three weeks in Thailand.”

Koh Phangan - Busted for cannabis possession!

Koh Phangan - Busted for cannabis possession!

Koh Phangan - Busted for cannabis possession!

By coincidence, authorities on Koh Phangan have announced a plan to make the island, noted for expat full moon rave parties, drug-free as fast as possible.

Episode One of ‘Big Trouble in Tourist Thailand’ screened last week, revealing footage of what appeared to be an extortion bid by ‘JJ’ with a gun in hand, just before a planned summit on jet-ski scams on Phuket.

Nationwide, crackdowns are underway on crimes against tourists at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok as part of a push against corruption by the Prime Minister.

The jet-ski crackdown on Phuket came after the Deputy PM met with the Australian ambassador and other ambassadors echoed their increasing concerns to the Phuket Governor, Wichai Praisa-nob.

Mr Hill was keen to make the point that the jet-ski scandal coverage came about by chance. He still says that in fairness, there is no way of knowing whether the alleged damage to jet-skis in the show was genuine or not.

An incident involving ‘JJ’ and US marines, posted this week on You Tube, was not used in the series because the show was being made for a British audience. Only the first-episode incident involving ‘JJ’ and British marines was considered relevant.

Original article at phuketwan.com: Anxious Thai officials put big trouble series on hold

Koh Phangan No Drugs

Long associated with debauchery and wild Full Moon parties, moves are afoot to change Koh Phangan’s image and make it a drugs-free island.

Koh Phangan, long associated with wild Full Moon parties, is undergoing an image change to make the island a family destination. The monthly all-night Full Moon party on the Surat Thani island’s Had Rin beach draws mostly foreign tourists and the event is synonymous with illicit drug use.

However, moves are afoot to rebuild the island’s image as a drugs-free haven for holiday makers, with drugs authorities, residents and tourism operators committed to the efforts. The Office of the Narcotics Control Board’s Division 8, responsible for the upper South, has implemented a joint operation with residents and tour businesses to prevent the use of illicit drugs at the beach side party.

“The operation is the vehicle of our social order campaign to ensure partygoers stay away from drug abuse at the party,” said Division 8 chief Surasak Klam-in.

The campaign is being conducted in consultation with stakeholders, including local leaders and tourism businesses from nearby Koh Samui, he said.

The division has asked locals to tip off police about any suspected drug-related activities on Koh Phangan. Police have set up checkpoints along the main roads and at piers on both Phangan and Samui islands. Police check partygoers at random for possession of drugs, such as cannabis, ecstasy and crystal methamphetamine, known as yah bah or ice. Undercover officers on the lookout for criminal activity mingle with the crowds.

Locals say the first Full Moon party was held 24 years ago. A resort on the island organized a farewell party for a group of about 20 foreign guests after an extended stay. Since then a party has been held on Had Rin beach every full moon. As the island’s nightlife capital, the beach is home to dozens of nightclubs, pubs and restaurants.

Sound systems are erected along the one-kilometre beach to cater for the thousands of revellers who flock to the party every month. Some revellers party too hard to be able to make the journey back to their guesthouses and end up sleeping on the beach.

Koh Phangan No Drugs

Koh Phangan No Drugs

Koh Phangan No Drugs

“No one knows exactly when illicit drugs were first brought to the party,” says Nikom Somwong, chairman of the Samui-Phangan Community Strength project.

Mr Nikom said as a community leader he was well aware of drug use at the parties. But he also recognised the monthly event is a big cash-spinner for Phangan and Samui islands. Significant revenues are earned from food and drinks sold at the party.

Jongdee Thongchan, chief of Takian village in tambon Angthong on Koh Samui, said some people from the village go to the Full Moon party. He was worried they would be exposed to drugs and could develop a drinking habit.

Mr Jongdee said he worked closely with family networks and drugs authorities to raise awareness of the risks of taking illicit drugs at local schools and homes.

Many partygoers, however, say it is perfectly possible to enjoy the world famous party without taking drugs.

Ilkka Happonen, a 24-year-old Finnish student, could not hide his excitement about attending the Full Moon party for the first time. The Finn chose the island to celebrate graduating from the National University of Singapore.

“I’m very happy to be here. I have lots of fun and a great time with my friends. We drink and dance together and never take drugs,” he said.

Grant Ligon, 21, from the United States, said he heard about the party from a friend who spent time on the island last year.

“He told me the party was full of fun and also warned me to avoid taking drugs there or I would be caught and sent to jail,” said Mr Ligon.

Bangkok Post – The world’s window to Thailand
Writer: Anucha Charoenpo
Published: 12/09/2009 at 12:00 AM