American sued by a Thai resort after he left negative TripAdvisor review
An American was sued by a resort in Thailand after leaving a negative review on TripAdvisor — and could face two years in prison, police say.
In July, Wesley Barnes left a one-star review for his June stay at Sea View Resort and Spa in Koh Chang.
The review said that resort staff were “unfriendly” and that “no one ever smiles,” adding that staff seemed “like they don’t want anyone there.”
Barnes went on to say that the restaurant manager was “extremely rude and impolite to guests,” before suggesting that travelers find another place to stay.
The resort responded to the review, alleging that Barnes had used “abusive language” toward a waitress who told Barnes and his group they’d have to pay a $15 corkage fee for a bottle of alcohol they’d brought to dinner at the resort’s Sunset Restaurant.
The resort said the restaurant manager went to Barnes’ table and talked with group, ultimately apologizing to avoid further issue and waiving the corkage fee.
“It was to our surprise that even after all the disruption you caused and our gesture of allowing you to drink your own bottle of liquor at our restaurant you still decided to write negative reviews on all possible review sites,” the resort said.
Colonel Thanapon Taemsara of Koh Chang police told Agence France-Presse that the owner of the Sea View resort filed a complaint against Barnes, who works in Thailand, alleging that he had posted unfair reviews on TripAdvisor that caused “damage to the reputation of the hotel.”
Barnes was arrested by immigration authorities under the nation’s anti-defamation laws and detained before being released on bail, according to AFP.
In a five-page statement sent to McClatchy News, the resort said it wasn’t suing Barnes for one negative review, but for posting several reviews to TripAdvisor and Google over the course of two weeks with “obvious defamatory intentions.”
Sea View said it tried to contact Barnes for more than a month to resolve the situation, but alleged that he only responded once the complaint had been filed.
“We agree that using a defamation law may be viewed as excessive for this situation,” the resort said in its statement. “We simply want to ensure that these untrue reviews are stopped, and we had no way of negotiating the matter with the guest until after our filing the complaint with authorities.”
Barnes could face up to two years in prison, according to the Bangkok Post.
Thailand’s tough defamation laws have been criticized by human rights advocates for potentially leading to criminal charges for people who choose to speak out, the New York Times reported. They have been used in the past by businesses to quiet critics.
