There was the coup d’etat in 2006, for example, which saw the interim government of Thaksin Shinawatra overthrown by a military junta, and martial law enforced until early in 2007.
Even after democratic elections in December 2007, the sight of protesters blockading government buildings and airports became an increasingly common feature of life in and around the capital city.
But the heavy violence, explosions and deaths that occurred in recent months have shaken even Keidan and other long-time Thailand residents, he admits.
Shaken but not stirred, he adds, into giving up on the country which, during calmer times, is known as the “land of smiles”.
Things are quieter now than they were a couple of weeks ago, when more than nine weeks of anti-government demonstrations by “red-shirt” pro-democracy protesters in the centre of the Thai capital were forcibly brought to an end by the country’s army. Before the watchful cameras and eyes of the world’s media, the military moved in on 13 May after a number of key buildings had been set on fire and more than 80 people died.
Still, in Thailand as elsewhere, there remains a sense that the military action may have brought about only a temporary lull in the unrest.
The ostensible purpose behind the pro-democracy demonstrations had been to bring about the resignation of prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, although the root issues go deeper and include the alienation and disenfranchisement of Thailand’s poor, a not-uncommon situation in developing countries.
An expat favourite
One aspect of Thai life that the televised scenes of burning tyres and determined protesters failed to show last month was Thailand’s enduring popularity among expatriates. The country came in third last year on HSBC Bank International’s Expat Explorer ranking of 26 popular countries to which Britons typically relocate, behind only Canada and Australia. It came in 20 places ahead of the UK (in 23rd place) and four ahead of France in the poll, which surveyed some 3,000 expats on a range of quality of life issues.
According to British Embassy figures, more than 50,000 British nationals make their home in Thailand, and another 800,000 normally visit as tourists every year.
Many expatriates are initially drawn to the country when posted there by their multi-national employers, for whom Thailand offers a centrally-located, relatively low-cost base in one of the world’s fastest growing regions. Some of these executives stay on and retire here, as do some who initially discover it as tourists.
“It has been quite a stressful time for all of us here in Thailand, and our hearts go out to the wonderful Thai people,” Keidan, whose office is in the centre of Bangkok and thus close to the epicentre of the recent troubles, told IA.
“The physical devastation [was] significant and the loss of lives unimaginable, but the real loss is the unity in this country, which will take years to rebuild.
“I hope and pray that the Thai people can find a way to unite for the benefit of each other and their beautiful country, in which I still feel privileged to be a guest.”
‘Dynamic and thrilling’ but ‘volatile’
Keidan, whose company also has offices in Malaysia and Cambodia, does not hide the fact that for him, Thailand when it is not at war with itself is a seductive country in a “dynamic and thrilling” region.
“The combination of the humid and hot climate, the mayhem of the streets and the wonderful people make this a perfect place for those with adventure in their hearts,” he explains.
He warns, though, that those who fall in love with the region’s “beautiful tropical beaches and vibrant cities” must think twice about moving there on that basis alone, even when the air of Bangkok is not thick with smoke and the sound of gunfire and explosions.
“Many people looking into a country like Thailand only see a snapshot of the beautiful beaches and the exciting city and nightlife, and forget that these countries can be volatile,” he says. “We are experiencing such volatility right now in Thailand.”
South Africa to Southeast Asia
A native of South Africa whose parents emigrated to the UK in 1986, Keidan completed school in Britain and went first into sales, subsequently working his way from there into financial services.
“I was always keen on and enjoyed that side of things,” he explains.
After setting up and later selling a consultancy in the UK, he decided to move to Southeast Asia in 2002 – in search, he says now, of new challenges and opportunities in what for him was an unexplored and thus exciting territory.
By 2004, he and two work colleagues were working in various international offices of a UK financial advisory firm in the region which he declines to name, and “decided it was time to venture out on [our] own”.
“At the time, Ben Bennett, a UK national, was based in Kuala Lumpur, where he headed up the corporate benefits division, while Judy Blair [another Briton], was a consultant working in the company’s Bangkok office,” Keidan recalls.
“I had worked for some time with them both, and Judy and I had begun working the region together.
“The three of us felt that the Southeast Asia advisory market was changing, in so much as there was a lot of consolidation of brokerages, and – we believed – room for a strong brand and a company focused on client servicing, with a fresh approach to the business.”
From the three partners working out of two small offices in 2004, Infinity has grown to 45 employees in three cities (the third is Phnom Penh, Cambodia), with Singapore and Hong Kong offices on the drawing board, according to Keidan.
A new sales director, Roy Walker, was hired last month to oversee and develop the company’s team of consultants.
“The work is incredibly demanding and tough, but at the same time it is a great challenge,” Keidan says.
“Working with great people who aren’t afraid to push and challenge you is at times infuriating but ultimately extremely rewarding.”
Keidan would rather talk about his plans for the business, and Infinity’s strategy of “providing a holistic service to our clients”, than Bangkok’s problems. While not downplaying the seriousness of Thailand’s troubles, he believes that they are temporary.
What is more, he says that perhaps not surprisingly, his clients are not looking to him or Infinity for help in coping with Bangkok or Thailand’s recent troubles.
“After all, we are financial advisers, and certainly not seen as a first point of call for emergency assistance,” he says.
“I think it’s fair to say that at the moment, we don’t really know how things will play out.
"I am sure my views and feelings will resonate around the expatriate community [when I say that] we as foreigners will never be able to truly grasp the extent of the situation; there is a great deal lost in translation and the nuance hidden within the Thai language.”
