SECURITY USE A METAL DETECTOR ON A PATRON ENTERING A CLUB IN PHUKET, 2002-10-31 (photo)

A foreign tourist is searched with a metal detector as he enters a nightclub in Patong on the Southern Thai resort island of Phuket late October 31, 2002. Thailand has stepped up security and reassured tourists on Thursday the country was safe despite warnings from western nations such as Britain that threats to westerners on Phuket island had increased sharply. Phuket relies heavily on the tourist trade and economists say a major fall in tourist arrivals would slice a large chunk off Thailand's foreign exchange earnings and throw millions of people out of work. REUTERS/Jason Reed JIR