I am in receipt of your letter dated June 20.2016. Sorry to be so long in replying, but I have just returned from Hangdong Thailand, where I have been busy ordering a container of Thai Handicraft for our Thai shop.
May I assure you, we at Thai Pothong which employs over 50 Thai staff, respect the Buddha and the Buddhist religion. In doing so no Buddha is located on the floor or near the toilet or bar, most of our customers for Buddha are Thais or Australian Buddhists and are aware of this, as it is in their teachings. To non-Buddhists, seeing the Buddha promotes the Buddhist religion, and if they make a purchase, we advise them how to display the Buddha.
We do import Buddha’s from Chiang Mai Thailand, and display them in our Thai Restaurant and Handicraft shop at www.thaipothong.com. Most of our Buddha’s are sold to Thai’s living around Australia. Due to the strict quarantined laws in Australia and the cost of a Thai export licence which takes 2 weeks from the fine arts department in Chiang Mai, fumigation, and packing and shipping from Thailand it would be too expensive to import only one. Please tell me, if Thais cannot buy from our shop where can you recommend them to obtain a Thai Buddha in Australia?
Over the past 20 years we have provided work for hundreds of wood craftsmen and provided many millions of Thai Baht to the local economy, plus the Thai Government have now made export licence procedure simple for Thai Buddha. Sadly wood carving is a dying art in Thailand many importers will look to Indonesia which is cheaper and allows Thai Buddha to be exported from Indonesia licence free, however we are Thai Pothong wish to support Thai craftsmen.
Many Thai Monks come to visit Thai Pothong only two weeks ago, Ajahn Jamnian, a living Dhamma master from the Thai Tradition and was impressed with the work of Thai Pothong staff in promoting Thailand and the handicrafts of Thailand including the Buddha’s.
Finally, on a personal note, I am very proud of the Staff of Thai Pothong who are true ambassadors of Thailand. Together they promote Thailand as the world’s best place for a holiday. Displaying a full range of the Best Thai Handicrafts in the restaurant and in the gift shop, and most important, the best of Thai Food which results in thousands of customers visiting Thailand. I feel they should be commended and encouraged for their contribution to Thailand