7 Tourists Arrested in Phuket For Illegal Pre-Wedding Photoshoots

Now this normally happens, but seldom does it happen for as good a reason as this.

According to Thethaiger.com, seven foreigners were arrested over an illegal pre-wedding photo shoot in Phuket on 19 January.

In digressing – which is a common occurrence for me – I find myself applauding Thethaiger’s choice of naming itself.

While I’m not plugging “Thai Girl,” “Tiger” or “Ping Pong” shows, I must say it’s quite funny that Thethaiger chose to make such a reference.

I mean, it surely is catchier than Goody Feed or Thrashy Feed right?

Sighting my insult-laden, quarter-completed article, my boss yells: “You’re fired!”

Okay, kidding.

What’s in a Name?

Then again, my writer-ly instincts *self-pat on head* tells me that I can tie in my preceding paragraph with this article by quoting Shakespeare.

A name, like in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, can indeed spell tragedy.

This is what seven foreigners on tourist visas found out for themselves in Phuket.

According to Thethaiger, The Phuket Immigration Office reported “that all staff in the pre-wedding photo shooting team were foreigners who only held tourist visas” and “had been conducting work contracted in China.”

Their “working contracts provide(ed) information about places for pre-wedding photos including Soi Rommanee and Thalang Road in Old Phuket Town, Kamala Beach, Kathu Temple, Chalong Temple, Lattiwanaram Temple (Wat Tai), Phrmthep Cape, Surin Beach and Naiyang Beach” and identified too “the names of photographers, makeup artists and coordinators.”

Which is the actual equivalent of getting caught with their pants down.

Work Permits

While the article doesn’t state the visa required for foreigners to do freelance/contract work in Thailand, a quick search on the net leads to Thaiembassy.com which states that:

So, essentially, these seven foreigners’ tourist visa is but the “initial visa” which serves as a prerequisite for securing a work permit, which they did not possess.

And these wedding photographers ironically, got their own photos taken by the authorities, and here they are:

Putting them in (musical-chair) place

Heads bow in contrition

Unluckily for them, these Phuket Immigration officers pictured were ordered by their boss, The Phuket Immigration Office Chief Col Kathatorn Kumthieg, to inspect Kathu Temple and Kata Noi Beach; popular locations for foreigner pre-wedding photo shoots, where they were eventually caught.

So what’s the moral of the story folks?

Boringly, it’s to work only when legal and possessing the right permits.

That and Thethaiger’s name is awesome.