womble

I believe Thaksin is planing a trip to both Cuba and USA in the near future.

Surely the united states would not be happy about a countries leader visiting Cuba and Castro on the same trip or indeed at anytime.

The lake I refer to is actually two lakes, man made in Ban Taling Nam. It opened April 2006. The small lake is aimed more at young kids, beginners, both lakes are heavily stocked, but the big lake has bigger fish, so thats the one to concentrate on.

The lakes owner comes from UK and was a carp fisherman, so any one who has fished for carp UK style will recognise the methods employed to catch them. Instead of fishing thai style, they fish on the bottom (ledgering) with boilies or fish and use bite alarms, rod pods and swinger, hair rigs, baitrunner reels (6500 size) and they use GT popper fishing rods, UK carp rods are not strong enough. I know many won't know what most of that means, don't worry, they have guides on hand to show you, bait up and help land the fish, it's all done proffessionally and they take great care of the fish.

There is a diverse range of species, many types of catfish, lots of which have been imported from South America, Red Tail Catfish, Tiger Catfish, Red Tail Leopard Catfish, Niger Catfish and ofcourse the Meckong Catfish. Also Arapaima, Pacu, Siamese giant carp, and a mixture of other species, there's a good range of fish, and you can catch a variety of species which makes it fun, interesting and makes for nice photo's.

Many of the species are extremely fast growing, Arapiama are the fastest growing fish in the world, Pacu (a pirhana without teath) second fastest growing species in the world. Consequently many of the fish are considerably bigger than what they were just 6 months ago when stocked. They are continuing to grow very quickly and there will be some huge fish in there soon.

Best time to go would on an overcast day or in the evening. It's too hot during a normal sunny day, i'd expect fishing to slow down as oxygen is lower in the water and they normally go off feeding anyway.

The owner of the lake also organises Snakehead fishing on the Mainland, any lure fisherman should not miss the opportunity to fish for snakeheads with topwater lures. You stay on floating bungalows on a reservoir, the scenery and wildlife is fantastic and the fishing superb. Snakeheads give one of the most violent strikes from any fish I have ever seen, and they are clever and extremely strong.

Personally I wouldn't bother with sea fishing, it's very unproductive and to get to the best spots costs a lot in fuel, and it's edxpensive when you think your not likley to catch much. If I know fish are in a certain place i'll spend vast amounts of money to get to them. For me though the fish in the sea around samui are not of a size or frequency that makes me want to target them. I also can't stand using the local boats, I have my own equipment so I don't have to use theirs, but the boats are so slow and uncomfortable it just isn't fun compared to what I'm used to.

Having said that for those who just want to float around on a boat and drop a line in then you may well enjoy it, serious sportfisherman on the other hand will not.

Or if you think that's a lame alternative:

Go to Bung Sam Lan, a lake in Bang Kapi, Bangkok.

Mekong Cats 100kg+, Siamese Giant Carp 100kg+, Arapaima 100kg+, adn whole heap of other fishes. It costs about 1000 baht including rod hire, bait and a guide can be had for a little extra who will show you how to catch.

You will catch 15kg+ Catfish all day long, it's very tiring!!!

But great fun.

Definatley more fun than MBK!

Another option is to go to another lake in Bangkok fishing for Barramudi with lures. You will catch those all day long too, average size 6-8kg, great fun on light tackle!

"To suggest fishing at probably the 2 most dived sites around this area I think proves it, Dunc"

And why not? Recreational sport fisherman have just as much right to use the waters for their hobby as divers, sailors or anyone else who does so in a legal manner.

The places I mentioned are not in any national park so provided no divers are in the way and using the site fishing there is fine and don't let anyone try to tell you otherwise.

I hate it when divers think they own the sea, you don't! I practice something called catch and release, this means I return fish alive after I catch them, I may take one or two for the pot, or if they die, also take them, but 99% go back. Some people may choose to take more particulary locals, but that is their choise, I always recommend people return all but 1 or 2 so that there will be no impact on the reefs and we can continue to enjoy fishing the reefs.

Divers have severly damaged a lot of the reefs here by treading all over them, the odd responsible sport fisherman will have a very small impact compared to the onslaught of swarms of divers on the reefs each day.

Sportfisherman who practice catch and release have an extremely low impact on the seas and the rate at which fish are taken is easily sustainable, unlike most commercial fishing operations.

It's quite ironic that it's actually the divers in Koh Tao who have led to the decline in the reefs. Firstly they came and found the reefs and marked them on maps which made them easy for everyone to find. Then as the fishing industry grew in the gulf boats started commercially fishing the area more. Many reefs were found by the divers using sophisticated echo sounder and sonar. The fishing boats then copied where the divers went.

Also all the divers on koh tao need to eat, and many of them like to eat fish. Where does this fish come from? The waters directly around the island. The demand by divers to eat fish has led to the locals catching so many fish from the reefs that most of the big fish or the tasty ones such as grouper, coral trout and snapper have become rarer and smaller.

I have a friend who has had a boat here for 25 years and they used to sail to Koh Tao and go fishing and they said it used to be really good till all the divers arived on the Island, now they don't even really bother fishing there as the fishing just isn't the same.

I though caretaker governments could not cut deals, that is why the USA put any political agendas with Thailand on hold. I wonder how much money Thaksin will make on this for lack of a better word unauthorized deal?

Yeah but countries led by despot leaders can do as they wish!

I fail to see how Osama Bin Laden has anything to do with this???

The Problems in the south are not effected by outside forces or fanatical ideaology, it's all about the Thai-Malayborder region with some exiled Pulo leaders thinking they are once again important and of course the central Bangkok government not knowing what to do.

Personally I think Pulo are using this to help their cause although the violence is probobally being conducted by others. Pulo don't have huge public backing, the majority of people down there do not want a seperate state. The violence is created more because of a lack of authority and dissatisfaction from groups of locals, they are not all fighting purely for a seperate state as Pulo would like us to believe.

Mark,

Sea fishing around Samui and the rest of the gulf is pretty rubbish. The best sea fishing near here is Koh Tao, but the best you can realistically hope for are small jacks, barracuda and king mackeral. Also the boats are rubbish and their equipment and fishing knowledge are less than impressive.

Andaman side is much better, live bait fishing for sailfish can be good fun on light tackle with multiple releases per day in the waters around Koh Racha or Koh Rok Nok further south.

Freshwater fishing on the mainland for Giant snakeheads and Hampala Barb is very good. But the only fishing really worth doing on the Island itself is in the lake. It's not cheap, but they have some big fish in there. Personally I prefer to fish in more natural locations. But if you wanna catch fish of a size that are worth catching and use decent gear, i'd go there.

The waters around samui are shallow and over fished, the reefs are pretty empty, you only have to go to the market and see the size of most fishes. Go to Bang Rak market and look at the fish, that will give you an idea of the fish that are in the waters immediately around samui.

You can catch squid of the rocks at dusk easily, in the last hour as the sun is going down you can get 4 or 5 decent sized squid for the BBQ. I wouldn't bother the rest of the day.

You could try using very small soft plastics off the rocks not sure how successful it would be but i'd say that'd be the best way to fish from land here although i've seen no one doing it. I doubt the locals would even know what it was, i've never even seen anyone using braided lines here.

If you want to go fishing on a boat or longtail, for the ebst chance I suggest you do this. Find a boat with a live bait well and light to catch squid at night. Send him out the day before to fill the tank up with live squid (black moon is best). Make it clear you have no interest going without lots of squid, tell him if he can't get enough then you will postpone till he has enough.

When you have the live baits, you can go out day or night time although dawn and dusk are the best times. The best reefs are south of samui past Koh Tan. The live baits can catch travalleys (small, not GT), baracuda, small grouper, small snapper. Who knows something bigger may come along, but it's the exception not the rule.

The best spots are Chumpon Pinnicle and Sail rock, trouble is they are a long way from Samui and don't let the divers see you!

Hmmm,

Well that is the end of the 'cosy' relationship with Washington!

infest society.... Unbeknownst to them, they're all marinating and basting themselves with Thaksin hot sauce and TRT tenderizer. These idiots will be just ready and tender for a judicial grill and BBQ when the right time comes.

Shinsat is very useful to Singtel, so too is AIS.

This buy is about strengthening Singtel in the region.

Yes I agree most of Shin will be sold off, they will keep the satelites and AIS as they are very useful to Singtel.

Singtel controls 100% of Australian telecommunications company Optus, they also have significant investment in telecommunications in India, philipines and indonesia. It is company policy to buy into large market share of a countries telecommunications when they become available. Singtel owns between 30-50% of the telecommunications in the above countries including Thailand.

They are extremely powerful in the asia-pacific telecommunications industry. They will not be selling off parts that will lessen that power.

It's always good to get things cheaper, but there are trade offs. In the UK the big supermarkets have put many butchers, green grocers and fish mongers out of business. Whilst you can often get stuff cheaper, you don't have the same range of products, and often the specialist shops stocked tastier alternatives and better cuts of meat.

Many varieties of english fruits, and strains of animal are being lost and some of these are much better than what is being sold in supermarkets. This has lead to many specialist shops becoming popular once again, particulary in areas where people can afford to pay a bit extra. However it remains the case that many great foods are being lost.

Personally I buy cleaning stuff and general household items from tesco. I like to go down the fishmarket in Big buddha for fish, which is really good now.

My complaint with tesco is they are always sold out of stock, you go there for steak, none left, ribs, none left. You want some livers to make pate, great none left, so I often find myself in Tops (which has some good stuff but expensive) or the market.

A prime example and close to home is Vietnam, currently enjoying one of the worlds highest paced growth, and this is directly a result of liberalision of said laws.

As far as I am aware Vietnam has not yet introduced it's new Housing Bill, drafted June, which in Chapter 11 looks at Foreign Ownership. Although there is a desire by the Government to implement provisions in order to prevent the corruption and illegal developments taking place by foreigners. Vietnamese Property Laws over the past 10 years have been more complex than Thailand!

I thought it was law, interesting so the lands rises are being driven up from illegal specualtion from foreign investors similar to Thailand and a highly leveraged local market, mirror image of the Thailand property boom.

There's gonna be a big bang at the end of this bubble.

So I concede thats not a good example or indeed an example at all.

Panama however is. With some of the worlds most liberal laws for foreign investment, this is a place that has been performing well lately and should continue to do so.

Northern Ireland is an example of when dialogue can help improve a situation.

Sri Lanka is a good example of where dialogue helped for a brief period, but now all the good work is undone.

It's always good to know ones enemy, and the better you know your enemy the easier it is to try to find middle ground that is acceptible to both sides.

So dialogue is good in that you could learn exactly what your enemy wants (their main goals), if you can't agree to all demands then you have to let it be known what you can agree to, maybe you can through negotiation come to a settlement that is whilst not perfect, acceptable to both parties.

If dialogue fails, well atleast you tried, you now know exactly what it is they want and can at least try to help with improving certain things that are acceptable to you and the local populous as a whole.

A very important part here is to understand exactly what the poulation of the three southernmost provinces want. By giving into demands that are also popular with the people you get them on your side. If certain demands are not popular with the people then ignore those demands as some of the terrorists demands may not reflect local opinion.

With people on your side the terrorists are weakened. They will start helping the state as they see terrorists as a threat to their new found importance.

Investment in the area could really help, especially in infrastructure and industies that will benefit the local people. If you start to improve their lives they will see that they matter to central government, if that isn't enough maybe a form of devolution could work (although highly unlikely from a nationlist thinking government and soveriegn nation population as a whole).

Know your enemy use dialogue.

Know your people, gadge public opinion and consult with the local population on all relavant matters.

I agree with you, but we have to remember that some people "don't understand peace." It's simply in their culture not to listen to (chit chats) dialogues and negotiations. In order for you to get their attention, you have to engage them in a fight. You have to "be at war with them," fight them and beat them, before they listen. There are others people that even gets confused with peace!

Thats extemely cynical, there is nearly always something behind the violence, an ideology, teritory or aim of some type. The violence is usually used to draw attention to those aims, specifically as in the south where whilst some incidents are lethal on the whole they are designed for impact as opposed to large scale loss of life.

There are few in this world who kill purely for fun, a group who go around killing for no reason other than to kill would not find many sympathisers from the mainstream population.

I personally think the killing in the south is being carried out to force the government to the table. By doing away with the previous local hierachy and putting implace people acceptable to central government they have taken away the people with the power and local respect to control subversive elements. This leaves the terrorists to run amok as there is no people with enough local respect and combined power to stop them.

Now the puppets from central government cannot control the situation, this is leading to it becoming increasingly ungovernable, it's entirely the governments own doing and more than lilkely the best solution to the crises is conceeding that thier system of control is not working and trying to go back to the old system, although this would never be acceptable as they want to be in control down there (even tho they arn't), they still call the shots.

This government will never solve the problem as they have no intention of making their oponents more powerful in the region.

I am curious about the post that said a Thai had to pay 2,000 baht departure tax. My wife and I have been flying in and out of BKK since 1999 and I don't recall her ever having to pay anything other then the 500 baht.

TH

Not true, I have traveled with Thais many times and they always pay the same, 500bt.

Maybe it was the case in the past I don't know, but certainly not now or for the last few years.

Northern Ireland is an example of when dialogue can help improve a situation.

Sri Lanka is a good example of where dialogue helped for a brief period, but now all the good work is undone.

It's always good to know ones enemy, and the better you know your enemy the easier it is to try to find middle ground that is acceptible to both sides.

So dialogue is good in that you could learn exactly what your enemy wants (their main goals), if you can't agree to all demands then you have to let it be known what you can agree to, maybe you can through negotiation come to a settlement that is whilst not perfect, acceptable to both parties.

If dialogue fails, well atleast you tried, you now know exactly what it is they want and can at least try to help with improving certain things that are acceptable to you and the local populous as a whole.

A very important part here is to understand exactly what the poulation of the three southernmost provinces want. By giving into demands that are also popular with the people you get them on your side. If certain demands are not popular with the people then ignore those demands as some of the terrorists demands may not reflect local opinion.

With people on your side the terrorists are weakened. They will start helping the state as they see terrorists as a threat to their new found importance.

Investment in the area could really help, especially in infrastructure and industies that will benefit the local people. If you start to improve their lives they will see that they matter to central government, if that isn't enough maybe a form of devolution could work (although highly unlikely from a nationlist thinking government and soveriegn nation population as a whole).

Know your enemy use dialogue.

Know your people, gadge public opinion and consult with the local population on all relavant matters.

The real reason why there is no interest to make foreign ownership of land legal is because it would force land prices up beyond the reach of Thai nationals. Its political suicide.

Having said that, it has already happened in places like Phuket. How many upper income Thais can afford to buy a 60 million baht holiday home facing the Andaman?

Why should even successful Thai nationals be deprived access to his/her own country's prime land?

Many allude to how the government is shooting themselves in the foot because precious foreign demand for Thai real estate will be sacrificed.

This is a very naive perception considering that politicians don't get voted in by farangs.

This is a very one sided view as it doesn't take into account benefits the foriegners may bring to the economy as a whole. I agree that specualtion is dangerous and chiefly benefits those speculating, but if ownership is only allowed for a single dwelling of a foriegn national who is resident in thailand it could be a positive thing for the economy as a whole.

Many areas of central London and indeed many of the worlds capital cities are priced beyond most locals as the price is too high due to investment from overseas. But with them they bring business, expertise, spend money and ultimatley create jobs, which is all welcome.

Many countries have realised the benefits foriegn ownership can bring and relaxed laws.

A prime example and close to home is Vietnam, currently enjoying one of the worlds highest paced growth, and this is directly a result of liberalision of said laws.

He's heading for a fall, or at least has left himself open for one.

1.) You never ever pay more than a very small holding deposit before you recieve a photocopy of the title deeds. I would only pay something if I was worried someone else would get the plot, and I knew checking at land office was just a formality. You then get a decent lawyer (Bangkok) to carry out the due dilligence at the land office, they check whether any money is owed to the bank, that it is Nor Sor Sam or Chanote and not a lower title. Also that the photocopy of the title deed you have been given matches the one in the land office, They will also check that it has access and that it doesn't have a registered lease at the land office or indeed other problems that without proffessional advice you could never find out. They will also check that the person selling to you is the same as whose name is on the title deed.

2.) It is not true that he is safer if he holds less of the company, the more he holds the safer he is providing it is not greater than the amount stipulated in Thai law. The smaller the share the easier other shareholders would then find it to get together and plan to sell and rip him off. He should hold 49%, 51% being owned by the Thai Shareholders. The more shares the Thai's hold the easier it is for him to be ripped off should he fall out with those shareholders.

3.) The deposit is too high, If it checks out ok at land office then you can pay a deposit (around 10%) and have a full sales agreement drawn up (this is very important), the balance is paid on transfer of the title deed at the land office, after the transfer has been made.

It seems he has been too trusting of others, if they aren't out to rip him off, or if he doesn't fall out with them and the land is ok he will be alright, but the way this is being done is suspicious, and without doubt alarm bells are ringing.

It may well be that the land is cool, the seller is a bit greedy and wants a large deposit, maybe your husband has fallen for the hard sale from the agent who wants a big deposit as it means more cash upfront for him. It may be that it is all above board, but by doing things in this way he is taking risks, big risks that could be used by others to take advantage should they wish to do so.

So ... back to the topic .... anyone remember a BIG raid when they urine tested EVERYONE in the last 2 years? Q bar was just over 2 years ago

Anyone remember a more current case?

I think that is the last time a whole farang orientated club was tested. The staff in bars get tested from time to time, and I remember CM2 was also done, lights on and everyone tested, I think just before the Q raid.

I should imagine they won't be doing that again, on the night of the Q bar raid they had TV cameras and were expecting to have people test positive, when no one did they had to find something and when they tried that (I think it was the work permits) no one was guilty of that eigher, they went for the passports.

One of those arrested had a diplomatic passport!

So to say the whole event backfired is a bit of an understatement!

Perhaps Singaporeans overestimated Thaksin's grip on power. Otherwise they were promised smooth sailing. Look at ITV case now - the government tries very hard not to collect 76 bil fine from the company, and it might just not succeed even with Thaksin in charge, and ITV WILL have to pay a lot if Thaksin is out. Who will pay that bill?

Singaporeans haven't paid all the money yet and we don't know if there's a cop out clause in the contract just for the cases like this.

Temasek invests all over the place - India, Middle East, I don't think they have any particular Asean integration plans. Shin looked like a good buy at the moment.

I disagree to a certain extent, Shins share price was extremely high and I would say at a price thats difficult to maintain when it's possible the PM will no longer make such strong efforts to bend government policy in a way to benefit Shin to the same extent it has in the past. I think they clearly underestimated fallout from the sale from the Thai public, but they must surely have realised there were risks buying a business that has so obviously benefited from corrupt pratices. It's also very clear that large investment was needed, specifically with AIS, which makes up the majority and most proffitable arm of Shin Corp.

There must be something greater to be gained than just profit, my guess is it's the satelites.

It's an issue hardly worth debating, we all know the risks involved in thailand, however small the chance of being caught. However i'll say this, personally I have never heard of anyone caught with small personal amounts of drugs with money to actually have anything serious happen to them. They've spent a few hours normally or on rare occasions a few days if they're skint in a jail to scare them to come up with some cash which really isn't that much when you think of the possible consequenes.

Trafficing is a different story, you better know people and have lots of cash. Most people in jail in Thailand do not have money. Those with cash in jail are normally there for political reasons or because they turned down or failed to recognise opportunities to get themselves out.

Yeah thats very true, in any true democracy police would be provided to ensure that demonstrators can demonstrate and voice their opinions without being hassled by those that disagree. However in Thailand at present it seems the state is more interested in bullying anyone that wants to make public their dissatisfaction with the administration.

Noli nothis permittere te terere

Another date for the diary, october 9 could set a precendent on tax law that directly effects the shin sale.

FOCUS / INVESTIGATION OF SHIN CORP DEAL

Sirote says he's had tougher times

Revenue Department chief claims clear conscience about the tax-free status of 73-billion-baht share sale

Sirote Swasdipanich, the reserved and discreet director-general of the Revenue Department, has been in the hot seat for several months after the family of caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his in-laws, the Damapong family, sold their 49.6% stake in Shin Corp to alleged nominees of Temasek Holdings in January and netted 73 billion baht tax free.

The public continues to debate whether the 73 billion baht should be taxed. And the Revenue Department has come under severe criticism.

Asked if the Shin Corp deals have brought him the toughest time in his professional life, Mr Sirote said no. The toughest time was when he was director of the Fiscal Policy Office. At that time, the office had to draw up the country's oil policy.

"I don't stress myself on this matter [the Shin deal]. The evidence is my physical health. It's still okay. And my mental health is okay, too," said Mr Sirote.

His family life is also well-shielded from any repercussions from the Shin sale controversy.

"My wife feels the controversy is something rather normal. My life after office hours remains the same. I still see my friends. This case hasn't changed my life," he said.

As the top man in the Revenue Department, he said he has to remain calm and steady while the controversy swirls and the department is criticised by outsiders.

"Otherwise, the morale of my subordinates will be shaken," he said.

Besides public censure, the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) is investigating whether Revenue Department executives were negligent in their duty by not taxing the children of Mr Thaksin over the acquisition of Shin Corp shares from Ample Rich Investment.

The OAG will conclude its investigation by the end of the month. The public will then know if the share transaction should have been taxed.

Last Tuesday, Mr Sirote was questioned for about three hours by OAG investigators.

Mr Sirote said following the public uproar over the tax-free deal, he received letters from people who said they would no longer pay taxes to the Revenue Department.

"They can do whatever they want. But don't forget that once they decline to pay taxes, revenue officials will have to take action against them," he said.

"I am confident in what I have done," he said.

"My parents were teachers and we lived a simple life. The most important things my parents taught me were to do the right thing, be honest, persistent and grateful to others," he said.

Mr Sirote said he has lots of friends. Of course, over the years, some of them asked him to help them get out of paying taxes.

"I simply asked my friend if this is what a person should ask his friend to do. The friend then backed off," he said.

This confidence might be partly responsible for the refusal by Mr Sirote and four other top Revenue Department executives to meet with OAG investigators probing the Shin deal's tax exemption.

On the urging of the Senate, the OAG began its investigation into the Shinawatra family's tax liability in the Shin Corp share deal in July, more than six months after the January transaction.

The focus of the probe is on the acquisition of more than 320 million shares by Panthongtae and Pinthongta Shinawatra at one baht a share from the Shinawatra family's Ample Rich Investment Co.

Following the acquisition, the Shinawatra and Damapong family's 49.6% stake in Shin Corp were sold to alleged nominees of Temasek Holdings, Cedar Holdings and Aspen Holdings, at the market price of 49.25 baht per share.

However, the Revenue Department argued at the time that the OAG did not have the authority to question its officials and asked the Council of State to rule on the OAG's authority to look into the department's tax collection.

"Initially, I got the invitation letter and request for information from an OAG investigator. So, I wasn't sure if the person who signed the letter had the authority to look into my agency's management. I had to consult the Council of State because what we were asked to do was to reveal certain taxpayers' private information. Such information is protected by revenue law," said Mr Sirote.

Later on, Auditor-General Jaruvan Maintaka wrote him a letter, seeking cooperation from the Revenue Department on the OAG investigation and he agreed.

Last Tuesday, OAG special audit director Pisit Leelawachiropas said the investigation team found the Revenue Department had done everything in line with the law and the team was satisfied with information the department supplied.

Nevertheless, Khunying Jaruvan said information from the Revenue Department was insufficient and she would need some time to seek more information, possibly from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The Revenue Department earlier defended its decision not to tax the Shinawatra family on the acquisition of Shin Corp shares from Ample Rich by Mr Thaksin's children on grounds that this was done at a price lower than the market price. Consequently, Mr Panthongtae and Ms Pinthongta did not have any tax liability from the transaction.

Meanwhile, Raungkrai Leekitwattana, adviser to the auditor-general, insisted Mr Thaksin's two children should be taxed after they bought Shin Corp shares from Ample Rich and resold them to Temasek nominees.

He argued that people purchasing valuables at low prices should be taxed. If not, it would create a loophole in the tax law for corrupt people to exploit.

In future, if anybody wanted to bribe a politician or a civil servant, he could sell valuables or stocks to the other party at a price much lower than the market price. The transaction would not be taxed either, he said.

A former OAG official himself, Mr Raungkrai sued the Revenue Department for applying double standards by levying taxes on him when he bought shares in Bangkok Expressway Plc from his father at below the market price, but then failed to impose tax on Mr Thaksin and his wife Khunying Potjaman when they did the same in 2000.

When taxing Mr Raungkrai, revenue officials said the difference between market price and the price of shares he purchased from his father was considered his earnings, and earnings should be taxed.

The case was debated in the House of Representatives, prompting the Revenue Department to return Mr Raungkrai the money he paid.

Mr Raungkrai, however, believed his income tax payment was legitimate, and sued the department for not taxing him as this would provide a precedent for Mr Thaksin's case.

The Tax Court will rule on Oct 9 if his tax payment was legitimate, Mr Raungkrai said

Bangkok Post

Wow that's seriously bad luck, I've never heard of fatal stingray bites to healthy people, only very young kids. 99% of stings are on the foot, freak accident!

I always thought he'd be taken by an animal, who'd have thought a stingray tho.

does he himself have to be present in court on september 11?

If not it won't be nearly as powerful, if he does the it will be far more interesting.