nder The Radar is a special series and newsletter offering from Diplomatic Courier bringing you compelling, under–the–radar stories from around the world over the past month. This month across Southeast Asia: Thailand’s potential border wall, New Zealand looks to secure its fishing industry, and HBO’s “The White Lotus” faces criticisms of “Orientalism.” You can sign up to receive the newsletter here.
On 3 March, Thailand’s government announced that it will run a feasibility study on building a wall along its border with Cambodia. Thailand’s Defense Ministry has previously considered building a 55–kilometer wall along the border, which is approximately 817 kilometers long. The border is intended to combat human and drug trafficking, including a unique type of human trafficking—scam call centers run by organized crime elements traffick people in the area, coercing them into working in these centers.
Three days before the government announced its feasibility study, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra visited Sa Kaeo, a Thailand town near the Cambodian border to show resolve in the fight against proliferating scam call center groups. Shinawatra visited a center in Sa Kaeo set up to help trafficked victims of the scam call centers, where she was told the center would receive 119 Thai victims the next day. The extent to which center workers are victims may be at question, however, as the Thai citizens sent back from Cambodia reportedly told Cambodian officials they had come purposely, knowing it was a crime, in pursuit of high wages.
Scam call centers and cybercrimes in general have been on the rise globally, but are especially rampant in several Southeast Asian countries, where the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights estimates that “more than two hundred thousand people have been trafficked into Myanmar and Cambodia” to work in these call centers.
New Zealand to build first–ever offshore king salmon farm
In 2019, salmon farming company New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS) applied for an offshore farming license for its Blue Endeavor project. The long–planned project—which will be the world’s first king salmon farm situated offshore—was originally intended to be operational in 2021. Delays meant the license for the project was only approved in 2024. In March, the New Zealand government signed a funding partnership with NZKS to help push the project to completion.
The New Zealand government sees the partnership as a way to develop the country’s aquaculture industry. As Blue Endeavor will be New Zealand’s first–ever aquaculture farm and the world’s first–ever offshore king salmon farm, the government expects to learn from the process to help further develop the industry. With wild king salmon populations dropping due to overfishing and the impacts of climate change, expanded and sustainable fish farming operations will be critical to the future of New Zealand’s fishing industry.
HBO’s “The White Lotus” faces criticism for “Orientalism”
HBO’s hit television series The White Lotus has kept viewers on the edge of their seats for three seasons with its interesting take on the familiar murder mystery genre, but despite its general acclaim, season three of the show is facing much criticism. While the criticism for the show's latest season often mentions the storytelling and arguable lack of comedy, one devastating critique has centered around the show’s depiction of Thailand.
Each season of the show takes place in a different “White Lotus” hotel, with the first season set in Hawaii, the second in Italy, and the third in Thailand. Season one of the show was criticized for its depiction of native Hawaiian characters. Season three is facing similar criticism for what critics say are orientalist themes. While The White Lotus intentionally includes wealthy characters ignorant about the countries they are visiting, critics argue that the show falls too heavily into portraying an “exotic” Thailand from a too–Western viewpoint.
One distinct criticism is the show's use of a sephia–colored filter, often used by Western films when showing Asian countries, which was criticized as soon as the first trailers were released. Other criticisms include the depiction of religion, which in the show’s depiction seems overly mystical whether the religion is engaged with by a tourist or a local, the tourists’ indulgence in debauchery, and the “tourist gaze” depiction of Thailand’s landscape. And similarly to season one, there is criticism around depicting the local characters as plot devices for the tourist characters.
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Thailand eyes border wall to protect against Cambodian scammers
Krong Siem Reap, Cambodia. Cambodia is steeped in cultural history—but is also becoming a center for scam call centers and, allegedly human trafficking. Photo by allPhoto Bangkok on Unsplash
April 14, 2025
Diplomatic Courier’s Stephanie Gull brings you three under–the–radar stories from Southeast Asia and Oceania: Thailand’s border wall, fish farming innovations in New Zealand, and accusations of “Orientialism” aimed at HBO’s “The White Lotus.”
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nder The Radar is a special series and newsletter offering from Diplomatic Courier bringing you compelling, under–the–radar stories from around the world over the past month. This month across Southeast Asia: Thailand’s potential border wall, New Zealand looks to secure its fishing industry, and HBO’s “The White Lotus” faces criticisms of “Orientalism.” You can sign up to receive the newsletter here.
On 3 March, Thailand’s government announced that it will run a feasibility study on building a wall along its border with Cambodia. Thailand’s Defense Ministry has previously considered building a 55–kilometer wall along the border, which is approximately 817 kilometers long. The border is intended to combat human and drug trafficking, including a unique type of human trafficking—scam call centers run by organized crime elements traffick people in the area, coercing them into working in these centers.
Three days before the government announced its feasibility study, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra visited Sa Kaeo, a Thailand town near the Cambodian border to show resolve in the fight against proliferating scam call center groups. Shinawatra visited a center in Sa Kaeo set up to help trafficked victims of the scam call centers, where she was told the center would receive 119 Thai victims the next day. The extent to which center workers are victims may be at question, however, as the Thai citizens sent back from Cambodia reportedly told Cambodian officials they had come purposely, knowing it was a crime, in pursuit of high wages.
Scam call centers and cybercrimes in general have been on the rise globally, but are especially rampant in several Southeast Asian countries, where the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights estimates that “more than two hundred thousand people have been trafficked into Myanmar and Cambodia” to work in these call centers.
New Zealand to build first–ever offshore king salmon farm
In 2019, salmon farming company New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS) applied for an offshore farming license for its Blue Endeavor project. The long–planned project—which will be the world’s first king salmon farm situated offshore—was originally intended to be operational in 2021. Delays meant the license for the project was only approved in 2024. In March, the New Zealand government signed a funding partnership with NZKS to help push the project to completion.
The New Zealand government sees the partnership as a way to develop the country’s aquaculture industry. As Blue Endeavor will be New Zealand’s first–ever aquaculture farm and the world’s first–ever offshore king salmon farm, the government expects to learn from the process to help further develop the industry. With wild king salmon populations dropping due to overfishing and the impacts of climate change, expanded and sustainable fish farming operations will be critical to the future of New Zealand’s fishing industry.
HBO’s “The White Lotus” faces criticism for “Orientalism”
HBO’s hit television series The White Lotus has kept viewers on the edge of their seats for three seasons with its interesting take on the familiar murder mystery genre, but despite its general acclaim, season three of the show is facing much criticism. While the criticism for the show's latest season often mentions the storytelling and arguable lack of comedy, one devastating critique has centered around the show’s depiction of Thailand.
Each season of the show takes place in a different “White Lotus” hotel, with the first season set in Hawaii, the second in Italy, and the third in Thailand. Season one of the show was criticized for its depiction of native Hawaiian characters. Season three is facing similar criticism for what critics say are orientalist themes. While The White Lotus intentionally includes wealthy characters ignorant about the countries they are visiting, critics argue that the show falls too heavily into portraying an “exotic” Thailand from a too–Western viewpoint.
One distinct criticism is the show's use of a sephia–colored filter, often used by Western films when showing Asian countries, which was criticized as soon as the first trailers were released. Other criticisms include the depiction of religion, which in the show’s depiction seems overly mystical whether the religion is engaged with by a tourist or a local, the tourists’ indulgence in debauchery, and the “tourist gaze” depiction of Thailand’s landscape. And similarly to season one, there is criticism around depicting the local characters as plot devices for the tourist characters.
