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The skirmish during the Wednesday night raid on Patpong Night Market should not distract the authorities from their job of stamping out piracy. The violence might have been caused by some officials' manner in handling the situation, but violators should not use the ugly turn of events as an excuse to continue supporting piracy.

The vendors should have been ready for the raid because the Commerce Ministry did announce that it would be taking serious action on intellectual-property violations. So the Wednesday-night clashes could have been avoided, but that was not the case. Vendors refused to stop selling these goods despite knowing of the ministry's plans. Then the crackdown turned bloody, and there were even reports of gunshots and casualties. At any rate, the bloodshed should not take the public's attention away from the real issue: intellectual property cannot be violated.

Some vendors said they had to resort to harsh retaliation because the authorities had enforced the suppression far too abruptly. However, the fact that counterfeit goods are becoming so widespread these days only shows that vendors believe they can get away with anything.

Of course, the Commerce Ministry's taskforce should have used better tactics in quashing the sale of pirated products instead of forcefully confiscating everything - both legal and illegal - from the 200 or so vendors in Patpong.

Now that the ministry has set a 30-day deadline on ridding the country of piracy, it will have to come up with better tactics the next time around. The taskforce it sends out should be better trained in dealing with angry crowds, otherwise things will only turn ugly again.

As investigation into the clash continues, the public and the media should not be swayed from the real issue: violation of intellectual property is bad for society and illegal.

Unfortunately, pirated goods are easily available at popular tourist destinations, possibly because some officials have been turning a blind eye to them. So when the authorities do decide to take action, things turn nasty as they did on Wednesday night, and officials end up being portrayed as bullies preying on poor, hapless small vendors.

Though there have been enough reports about the incident and its aftermath, we haven't actually heard anyone declare that they intend to stop selling pirated goods. Instead what we hear are reports of them being beaten up and them claiming that they are only attracting foreign tourists to Thailand by selling these counterfeit products.

These views, however, are not valid. The bloody clash should not be used as an excuse for them to continue selling fake goods.

In fact, Thailand has enough quality products to offer to tourists. Fake goods are not the only choice. The continued purchase of pirated goods will only let the underground business flourish at the expense of taxpayers and designers, who should be given an opportunity to showcase their products. Unfortunately, fake and low-quality products, many of which are not even produced in Thailand, dominate most stalls in Patpong.

The issue of the violation of intellectual property has been around for a few decades. Due to the authorities' failure to suppress it, the negligible revenues earned from piracy have come at the expense of other business sectors. For instance, our major trading partners, like the US, have said that if Thailand fails to address the issue they may have to cut down on trade privileges for Thai exports.

The violation of copyright not only affects innocent traders who sell legal products, but it also discourages the process of product innovation, which eventually dampens the prospect of locals developing their skills.

Unlicensed products can also pose a health risk because most are produced from low-quality materials and the producers cannot be held accountable for the damage that might be caused by them. For instance, consumers do not know which company to sue if the hazardous materials used in fake toys and dolls hurt their children. Or worse, consumers end up paying far more for fake drugs than they had originally thought.

The effort to end piracy will not be fruitful unless consumers adjust their attitudes. Many people feel comfortable about buying counterfeit products because they don't feel they are actually "stealing".

The availability of pirated goods is discouraging or even obstructing honest producers from continuing their businesses. Besides, piracy feeds other bad habits like bribery and corruption. Buyers of fake goods should be aware that they are only helping these illegal activities to grow.

The clampdown on intellectual property violations should be more effective and transparent, and the violent skirmish on Wednesday night should not discourage the authorities from enforcing the law. If we don't respect the knowledge of ours and of other societies, we will never get to realise our objective of becoming a knowledgeable civilisation.