Bangkok - Thailand's public beaches are getting a facelift, and beach loungers and sun parasols can no longer be rented out by enterprising local business-people to the sun-seekers.
A clean-up of beaches at Phuket, the top resort, was ordered by the military government. Vending booths occupying public land without permission are also supposed to be torn down.
The goal is to return Thailand's beaches to their pristine state, according to the tourism officials, speaking in Frankfurt, Germany. Clean-up crews have already been purifying the sand for some time now.
The beaches of Thailand are in principle public space where anyone is allowed to spread a rug and lie in the sun, so the providers of loungers and sun parasols and booth operators were acting illegally.
Reserved deckchairs are only allowed on the private beaches of hotels, and hardly any beaches in Thailand are in such private ownership. - Sapa-dpa