internationalism

"Arrivals from countries that require a negative PCR test on return must have health insurance coverage of at least US$10,000 for the duration of their time in Thailand, plus an additional 7 days. (China and India currently require a negative PCR test prior to entry). Arrivals found not to have insurance will be required to purchase it at Thai immigration at the airport. Airline crew, students, and those on special business can provide a letter from their host or other forms of insurance." that is contradictory to an article published by the very same phuket-go just yesterday morning

fact, that chinese travellers do require covid insurance and "the city hall has also prepared over 10,000 hospital beds for new Covid-19 patients in anticipation of the arrival of about 300,000 Chinese tourists in the next three months." points to a different scenario. That 100k/month chinese travellers was a projection yet before introduction of vax cerificate and insurance. Hence numbers will be lower. But chinese will come in mass, when situation clears a little and when insurance requirement would be cancelled.

yesterday Chuvit passed his corruption dossier to Ransiman, the MP from the Future Forward. Good timing, as police are stalling investigation into their own at immigration department. Rangsiman is an outstanding brave politician and democracy activist, who exposed the elephant tickets scandal, human trafficking of rohingha to Malaysia and mass graves, and many more scandals. He will sure make a good use of this dossier, probably at the nearest censure debate. That likely to get a few more percent of future forward voters at the general election. Interesting, how high are the government figures implicated in covering chinese triads in thailand. How many senators are among them

goons are the army, and not democratically elected representatives having popular support for over 20 years. Goons are also senate, because they were appointed by goons in uniform. Many of those senate goons are military, ex-military, police and yellow shirt tugs, who staged bangkok shutdown in 2014 and were involved since the 2006 coup in abolishing every single elected government since then and by every possible means. Future is in future forward, which stands for deep constitutional reforms, including abolishing senate. The democratic reform movement goes much further. If the coming election is fixed again, they will be in the streets in no time, like the last time. And with more daring demands and with stronger support from masses, that including political parties. Including voters for pheu thai, which refrained from protesting the last time, under thaksin pressure, who himself is a royalist. There are new pheu thai voters, urban, those who elected bangkok governor the last year. The establishement realises it, that's why prawit is talking to thaksin. Who is this source associated with senators? Why senators can't say it now directly?

just a face saving exercise. Project would be scrapped later on or they will drag it for years and for 10 bln over budget. Something fundamentally wrong was with this ship if she sunk for no apparent reason. Until they find a cause there is no point restoring her

if prawit goes in coalition with taksin parties, some senators, who don't like prayuth, will support such government. After the last general elections people went to the streets and demanded reforms of all institutions, including senate. Likely they will go again and with a stronger message. New generations are not taking it, the dinasaurs are dying. There is a possibility, that elections will be deliberately postponed due to year of mourning

domestic and international tourists don't like rainy season and hot season, just because trapical rains and tropical sun are too extreme. Just a few days stay are fun enough, but not weeks. Nothing can change it. The only motivation to travel in low season are cheaper fares and hotels. Border months (november and february) fares are affordable and there is always selection of cheap guesthouses for below 500b. The most TAT can do is try to boost short shopping/entertainment trips for Malays, Indians and Chinese, cross border or continental travel, a few h flights from north china. That would be lower market clientele

there is always hope that those voters switching from the former junta parties will go for future forward and not thaksin parties. there are rumours for over a year now, that thaksin is planning coalition with prawit as the PM.

the BMA has nothing to do with tourism and their advice won't be heard abroad. International mass media won't broadcast this message at all. Very few tourists read thai local publications. Such matters are at hands of TAT, ministry of health

try misterprakan.com to compare policies from 6 insurers. For some below 50k per year inpatient only you can get resonable good policies from the pacific cross. https://misterprakan.com/th/health/plans?gender=Male&age=49&lg=en&ipd=1&opdf=0&leadid=348157 if you are healthy you don't need any medical documents from australia. I would top up your existing bupa with travel insurance. And switched to another plan, when bupa expires. If you are healthy and reasonable young you don't need to stress yourself for not having insurance

timing of the UK donation and british chamber of commerce program point on relation between them. Chamber of commerce is part of diplomatic mission, so they are related to embassy. In the rest of the world it was governments responsible for vaccination, and not embassies. But Thailand case is different. Anutin tried to take points for donated pfizer from the USA - some 650k went to medical professionals and they were told to express gratitude to health ministry. Thai doctors mocked him on social media, posting portraits of Biden and not Anutin's

the UK donated 400k of astra zeneca around August 2021. Vaccination program was coordinated by one of the british agencies to all foreigners and also including their thai families. I have enrolled into their program, but finally went for pfizer, as the second dose can be given just 2 weeks after the first one. With Astra Zeneca there is 8-12 weeks gap. That was Delta outbrake, so getting them quicker was my choice. equally as the british embassy, so all thai agencies were indifferent to the majority of foreigners. People were turned back from waiting lines just by not being thai citizen. That was not case in the majority of countries - all those living in the country were treated as equal

no covid insurance requirement. It was addressed to Indian travellers to Thailand. India introduced PCR testing before departure for Thailand, because they would like to stop Chinese travellers transiting through Thailand

if somebody is in need of medical help for covid, he wouldn't have time to buy airfare, travel to an airport and on the flight and checking into thai hospital, with temperature above 39C, shortness of breath and many other symptoms, which can also be serious. That would take them some 24h. Some of them would also risk suffocating on airplane, as oxygen levels are low. That's why newborn and people with lung problems can't travel. I have seen people faiting on airplanes and given emergency oxygen - and they were, apparently, young and healthy. Yes, there might be those medical tourists at the early stages of infection, shortly after testing positive, with little symptoms, who would travel to escape China health crisis. Nothing can stop them at this stage, unless pre-departure testing is introduced

it was Anutin who first flogged travel restriction the last Thursday. On Monday at 3pm, just 14h after introducing new rules, he cancelled vax requirement. Another 12h and cancells covid insurance. I would expect that the czar of covid, which the PM is still formally, will step in at some stage. Anutin was removed from taking decisions on covid matters, after he botched the second wave around songran 2021 and for neglecting contracting vaccinations.

sure Anutin can be seen by the USA as a future PM, at least a deputy. Bhumjaithai is just short of few percent below Pheu Thai. But Anutin cancelled vaccination regulation for (mainly) chinese travellers just minutes after that very meeting with the USA embassador. That was around 3pm Monday. Was it just coincidence? So maybe Anutin doesn't want to play chess with the USA

but it was Anutin, who refused to contract reasonable quantity the Astra Zeneca, even if offered so by the AZ. That was for $6 per dose. If they contracted earlier they would pay only just over $2 per dose. A few months later thailand was forced to buy over 50mln sinovac at $20/dose - in the meantime refusing india's ambassodor donation of millions doses. And many more millions of sinopharm on order of princess - that one outside of health ministry. Again, some $20/dose. That much public money was wasted by Anutin's negligence. Just short of $1bln down the drain. If not pfizer donation of 1.5mln in 08.2021 by the usa government and 400k of AZ by the UK, the majority of foreigners in thailand would not have any jab well into 2022. Another 1mln donation of pfizer never made it to thailand, because thai embassy in washington didn't bother with filling up some essential paperwork for the shipment.

He said "move forward". That is already patented by a political party with the very same name. Young, fresh, outside political establishment, striving to reform powers. on the opposite, prayuth is a conservative. So not much new ideas, just reheating history

At 3 pm Monday Anutin has cancelled vax requirements for entering thailand. It sounds as it was done immediately after that very meeting. The USA, as well as some european countries and India, have recently requested vax certificates from Chinese entering their countries. So Anutin move can be interpreted as pro-china and against policies of those countries.

an extramarital affair is not a sex scandal. But anything can be used to blackmail, even less trivial reason. Very likely that former deputy is banned from public office for 10 years, so there might be many years more, say 2025, before he can run for elections

chinese, as well as indians, do need now covid insurance for minimum $10k. That is some 350k thb, which is enough for covid hospitalisation, even at private hospital. As covid is still not an issue in Thailand, those arriving and getting seriously sick, will contibute to thai health system. Surely there would be additional measures, if health situation would worsen. Thailand can change rules of entry every day (as seen for the last 5 days)

valid from Monday 1am to 31.01 16:59.

this 1.8km chase on the roads and ending up just 500m from shooters home is too much for coincidence. That white car driver could easily knock down motorbike from behind to look like an accident. Without need to shoot

so mistaken identity. Neil has just came back from the UK day before, on 4th January.

"Phunut Thanalaopanich adds that from the end of this month, hotels will ask guests from China to show a negative test result at check-in. He explains that most Chiang Mai hotels have been asking every guest for this, regardless of where they’ve come from. Hotels also require proof of vaccination and may carry out random testing during a guest’s stay." I don't think any hotel in thailand was ever asking for covid tests and vax status, even more so random testing. Only airlines did. There would have to be the province governor order to do so and would be blank for all hotels, not just "most hotels" - otherwise that would mean guests checking in and overcrawding hotels which don't require test results. It wouls also mean, that Chinese travellers won't visit Chiang Mai, they will go elsewhere, where there would be no any checks