On March 15th, Thai celebrity Duangjai Phichitamphon uploaded a 2 minute video to Facebook where she spoke of the unruliness of Chinese tourists during her time at Jeju’s airport.
In the video, she explains that she wanted to show people evidence of the frustrations she was experiencing regarding the airport situation. She and her travel companion had queued up at the airport to receive their tourist tax refund, however, as she turns her camera around, a crowd that continues to push and shove it’s way toward the desk appears in the frame.
In addition to complaining about the Chinese tourists’ lack of manners, she touches on a sensitive issue by implying that these tourists have also dirtied the bathrooms after they used the facilities.
The video was later uploaded to Youtube and already has over a million hits after less than 24 hours. It was also uploaded to the videos and Korea reddit pages where international users commented on the behavior.
Some contrasted Thai culture saying that, “On the one hand, public complaining is completely unacceptable in Thailand. On the other, when you hear a Thai person complaining like this, it probably is pretty bad” implying the affect of the situation.
Others called for action saying “Honestly China needs to address this” which spurred a heated debate on the reddit post as users defended their thoughts on the lack of action by Chinese government.
One user pointed out that because of their large size as a group, mob mentality (do as the group does) becomes the acceptable standard and does not stem from an individual’s lack of manners.
This two minute spiel about her experience resonated with many users as they commented in agreement with her statements while others felt that generalizations were uncalled for, sparking lengthy debates on multiple platforms.
Were you surprised by this video? Do you think her statements are justified?
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