VZCZCXRO5319
OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHBK #1203/01 1351052
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 151052Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7042
INFO RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEAWJL/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS IMMEDIATE
RUEHCHI/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI IMMEDIATE 6566

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 001203 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, EEB/TPP/IPE 
STATE PASS TO USTR FOR WEISEL, BISBEE, AND BAE 
COMMERCE FOR EAP/MAC/OKSA 
COMMERCE PASS TO USPTO 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:N/A 
TAGS: ECON ETRD KIPR PINR PREL TH
SUBJECT: THAI GOVERNMENT (UNSUCCESSFULLY) RAIDS NOTORIOUS PIRATED 
GOODS MARKET IN BANGKOK 
 
REF: A. STATE 42645 (SPECIAL 301 DECISION) 
¶B. BANGKOK 661 (SPECIAL 301 RECOMMENDATION) 
¶C. BANGKOK 529 (SPECIAL 301 SUBMISSION) 
¶D. BANGKOK 379 (RIGHT MOVES ON IPR) 
 
BANGKOK 00001203  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: On May 6 a government-led enforcement team raided 
one of Thailand's most notorious markets for pirated and counterfeit 
goods, the Patpong night market in central Bangkok.  A team of 
nearly 100 government officers, largely from the military's internal 
security units, rather than the police, descended onto the night 
market from all directions, only to be met by angry vendors with 
sticks, stones, and even guns.  A large-scale brawl broke out, 
leaving more than ten people injured.  The episode has since 
dominated local press headlines and editorials, sparking a debate 
over the enforcement of intellectual property rights.  Although a 
botched affair, the raid indicates the Thai government is turning 
pledges of enforcement into action.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) COMMENT: The May 6 raid on the notorious Patpong market in 
central Bangkok was a debacle; the raid was poorly planned, poorly 
coordinated, and poorly executed.  Since no arrests were made and 
evidence collected was not tied to a particular vendor, an eventual 
prosecution is doubtful.  However, despite the botched effort, the 
raid demonstrated that Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot 
and his team are turning the government's pledges to combat piracy 
into real actions.  The government has pledged to increase the 
frequency of large-scale raids like the one in Patpong -- hopefully 
coordination and execution will improve so as not to damage the 
overall effort.  END COMMENT. 
 
------------------------- 
A Good Effort... Gone Bad 
------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) At 9:00 p.m. local time on May 6, the Ministry of Commerce 
sent a team of nearly 100 government officials from an anti-piracy 
task force to raid the notorious Patpong night market, a 
well-established pirated goods market selling everything from 
counterfeit watches and purses to pirated DVDs and counterfeit 
pharmaceuticals.  The Ministry of Commerce had declared it would 
crackdown on IPR violators in Patpong and four other areas in 
Bangkok, after the U.S. Trade Representative identified these areas 
as "notorious markets" in its 2009 Special 301 Report (ref A).  The 
Patpong market has endured the government's and rights holders' 
scrutiny for many years, largely because local police officers in 
the precinct reportedly receive hefty bribes and protection money 
from the criminal elements that run the popular outdoor market. 
 
¶4. (SBU) When the enforcement team arrived in Patpong and began the 
raid on the market stalls, the vendors rallied and attacked the raid 
team with wooden sticks, glass bottles, and stones.  Gunshots were 
reportedly also fired, but neither the vendors nor the raid team 
claimed responsibility.  Allegedly more than 10 members of the raid 
team, as well as numerous vendors, were injured in the skirmishes. 
The enforcement team seized thousands of pirated items; however, 
before the government's team was able to depart the scene, the angry 
vendors stormed the government's vehicles, taking back a significant 
portion of the seized products.  Live news coverage of the raid's 
aftermath showed a very confusing, chaotic situation. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Colonel Narin Pannarai, a deputy chairman of the 
government's new IPR enforcement task force who led the raid team, 
had hired a large number of Thai military reservists to augment his 
raid team.  Commerce Ministry IPR officers reportedly refused to 
participate due to fears of violence.  The enforcement task force 
that carried out the Patpong raid reportedly had conducted several 
successful actions over the last few months, including a major raid 
at Sua Pa Road in the Klong Tom area of Bangkok. (Note: The national 
IPR enforcement task force is divided into five regional teams, with 
representatives from the Thai military's Internal Security 
Operations Command (ISOC) and the Royal Thai Police.  The 
enforcement task force is part of the larger IPR committee chaired 
by Prime Minister Abhisit and Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn 
Polaboot (ref D). End Note.) 
 
---------------------------------- 
Debates on Legal Authority of Raid 
---------------------------------- 
 
 
BANGKOK 00001203  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶6. (SBU) Thai law enforcement authorities typically will not conduct 
a raid without a formal complaint from rights holders.  Under Thai 
law, copyright infringement is a compoundable offense, meaning that 
government action cannot be taken without the right holder's 
official complaint.  The May 6 Patpong raid, however, was not 
coordinated with rights holders, because under the Thai trademark 
laws, trademark offenses (as opposed to copyright offenses) are 
considered crimes against the public on which the government can act 
without a right holder's complaint.  Warrants are usually required 
for raids, except when infringing products are in plain sight in a 
public area. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Even though the government's task force had the legal 
authority under the trademark law to raid the market, the team 
apparently failed to follow standard procedures.  The raid team 
reportedly did not coordinate with (or even contact) the police, 
either the local unit in Patpong or the specialized national IPR 
teams, in advance of the raid.  The justification for the lack of 
communication was the need to protect against any leaks of the 
planned operation (a common problem with IPR raids in Thailand).  As 
a result of the botched raid, the Inspector General at the Ministry 
of Commerce launched a fact-finding investigation, and the Royal 
Thai Police initiated a separate internal investigation into the 
alleged corruption of the local police branch at the Patpong market. 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) On May 11, more than 100 vendors from the Patpong market 
sought legal assistance from the Law Society of Thailand to file 
criminal and civil law suits against the government officials for 
alleged abuse during the raid.  The vendors are also seeking 
compensation for their losses, arguing that the raid team 
indiscriminately seized both pirated and non-pirated goods. 
 
JOHN