Mai Krap

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090618-710856.html

JUNE 18, 2009, 12:18 P.M. ET

Ford Confirms Plans To Move Asian HQ To China From Thailand

DETROIT (Dow Jones)-- Ford Motor Co. (F) confirmed Thursday its plans to move its headquarters for the Asia, Pacific and Africa regional headquarters to China from Thailand.

While the move improves management efficiency, according to the auto maker, it also places Ford in what is becoming the biggest car market in the world. China is expected to surpass the U.S. this year in car sales. Ford didn't disclose what city has been selected, although published reports suggest Shanghai.

"Thailand will continue to serve as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regional headquarters with our Ford leadership team and supporting corporate functions based in Bangkok," Ford spokeswoman Whitney Small said in a statement. "Additional centers of excellence will be established around the region. It is still too early in the process to discuss anything further."

The move comes five years after competitor General Motors Corp. (GM) moved its headquarters to Shanghai from Singapore.

Shares of Ford fell 4 cents, or 0.7%, to $5.67 in recent trading Thursday.

-By Jeff Bennett, Dow Jones Newswires; [email protected]; 248-204-5542

________________________________________________________

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-06/...nt_11564445.htm

Ford to move its Asia executives from Thailand to China

www.chinaview.cn

2009-06-19 03:38:43

CHICAGO, June 18 (Xinhua) -- Ford Motor Co. will move its headquarters for Asia, the Pacific and Africa from Thailand to China, the Detroit News reported Thursday.

While a final decision has not been made, Shanghai will likely become home to Ford's senior executives in the region. However, key operations will remain in Bangkok, along with regional headquarters for the 10 nations that make up the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"Our leadership team, with supporting corporate functions, will be moving to China," said Ford spokeswoman Whitney Foard Small.

Thailand will continue to serve as the ASEAN regional headquarters with Ford ASEAN leadership team and supporting corporate functions based in Bangkok, Foard Small said.

Thailand has been rocked by political unrest in recent years, including a series of coup d'tats. But, Foard Small said the unrest did not factor into Ford's decision. Rather, she said the move is part of the company's continued integration of its once-disparate global operations, a key element of Chief Executive Alan Mulally's "One Ford" strategy.

"We will be moving functions and expertise to locations that best meet our business needs," she said.

China is on pace to surpass the United States this year as the world's largest market for new car and truck sales.

"It makes sense. China is one of the fastest growing, if not the fastest growing, markets in the world. It's also more of a travel and communications hub," said George Peterson, president of AutoPacific Inc.

General Motors Corp. moved its headquarters to Shanghai from Singapore in 2004.

http://www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSSP424007

Money won't stop south Thai violence, Muslims say

By Martin Petty

BAN TALUBOH, Thailand, June 18 (Reuters) - In the rustic villages of Thailand's Muslim south, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva's promise of large-scale development aid to tackle a brutal insurgency sounds all too familiar. "Money can't change what's happening, no one can buy an end to the problems here," said Yousuf, referring to a shadowy five-year rebellion that has claimed nearly 3,500 lives in the southernmost provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat. "It's the policies of Thai governments that are to blame," he said in a village tea shop in Pattani. "They have to understand that our way of life is different to other Thais and money won't make a difference".

Other villagers gave similar views on Abhisit's three-year plan to win "hearts and minds" by pouring 54 billion baht ($1.58 billion) into the region bordering Malaysia. [iD:nBKK414765] They are ethnic Malay Muslims who speak Thai as a second language, and dismiss the plan to boost fisheries, rubber and palm oil industries as another example of Buddhist Bangkok's failure to understand a region more than 1,000 kms away. "Corrupt officials will keep the money for themselves. This is a useless idea," Arware said. "It could end up in the hands of the militant groups. Investment won't stop the violence."

Bearmah, a burly Muslim with teeth stained by sickly-sweet tea, said a better idea would be to withdraw the 30,000 soldiers deployed in the region and scrap an emergency decree that grants them broad powers of arrest with immunity from prosecution. "The rebels are fighting the military. We don't need them here because we can protect ourselves," he said, smoking a hand-rolled cigarette. "The emergency laws let them arrest innocent people, jail them for a month, and sometimes they torture them -- how can this win hearts and minds?," he said.

MILITANTS KILLED

The three provinces were part of an independent Malay Muslim sultanate annexed by Buddhist Thailand a century ago, and its people have long resisted Bangkok's attempts to assimilate them. A separatist insurgency from the 1970s and 1980s resurfaced in 2004, and attempts by successive Thai governments to quell the unrest with military force, investment and even free cable television have all failed. The violence has intensified in the last two weeks, with Buddhists and Muslims among the 31 people killed and more than 50 wounded in the all too familiar gun and bomb attacks, for which no credible group has claimed responsibility.

Four suspected Muslim militants were killed on Thursday during a raid by army rangers and police in Yala's Bannang Sta district, police said. "We got four of them," a police official told Reuters after the 30-minute gunbattle. He said they had received a tip that militants were using the house as a hideout. The unrest has heaped more pressure on Abhisit's coalition government as it struggles to revive an economy hit by a global downturn and protracted political strife since a 2006 coup removed ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

Villages like Ban Taluboh have been traditional strongholds of Abhisit's Democrat Party. But few here believe his government, or any other, is capable of ending the violence. "Each government is the same," said Abdulloh, a villager. "They have never listened to the people. Our culture is a Malay culture and we follow the rules of Islam."

Bearmah said the failure to arrest the gunmen who shot dead 10 Muslims at prayer in a Narathiwat mosque on June 8 had intensified peoples' feelings of injustice and resentment. "If they really want to end this violence, they have to arrest these killers," he said, rejecting Bangkok's denials that security forces were involved in the mosque attack. "I suspect the authorities are behind it, because no one has been arrested," he said. "Muslims don't kill other Muslims praying in a mosque." (Additional reporting by Kittipong Soonprasert) (Editing by Darren Schuettler)

This latest information is far from a surprise. Anyone with half a brain has known the Swine Flu was coming for weeks and there was plenty of time to prepare the public instead of going straight into denial and cover up. The problem here and the problem that will still be here when this is all over is nobody wants to step up and take responsibility for anything in Thailand.

Just how hard a job would it be and how much money would it cost to teach people to wash their hands and not cough on each other? Its great that people are finally cleaning up the streets but its completely irrelevant to this current crises. The larger truth is the Thai medical community does not have the stomach to stand up and do what is correct concerning this or any other medical situation that requires education, leadership, and voice.

Nice Story!

There are many resorts in this general area from Phu Krudung to Chiang Khan and from Loei to Dan Sai, Many situated in Phu Rhua, which is the top of the mountain and has a fantastic little valley known for cool weather and flowers.

I was told last year all the mining was closed down and the people involved left the area, I have not checked it out but the source was very reliable. It may be the projects were sold off so they closed for a time and have new people if they are back working. It was never more than a couple dozen expats working in the mining.

I lived up there for a year and rode my little motorcycle all over the area up and down every dirt road I could find. At the time there were hardly any cars on the road and it felt like I had the entire place to myself.

There are some large wine vinyards on the mountain and before they would let you just wonder around and have picnics or whatever you wanted to do. Thats been 5 years ago and I have not been back so it may not be the same.

Loei translates to something like "End Of The Road" as it was almost impossible to get to a hundred years ago. Its a beautiful place but it lacks medical and goods compared to Ubon, Udon, Korat, and Khon Kaen. It can make a great holiday for most who venture there but like Gary said last year, it aint for everybody. I still have friends up there and they are happy to come see me in Bangkok or Pattaya as they all get a little lonely at times and need to practice their English.

Ive seen this much and worse, It leaves one wondering what goes on in people heads. The contradictions I see in Thailand are still amazing, one guy is used and abused as a ATM and cash cow and viewed as taking care of his family. Then you see something like I have seen where a truck load of people flips over and spills out in the middle of the highway and everybody just keeps driving right on by leaving them to their fate.

One thing that always is horrible to view is animal abuse, I have seen it so many times and it still bothers me. Children poking puppies with sticks, breaking their bones sometimes, the family and parents sit around laughing about it, sometimes even encouraging it. Its hard to take but it goes on and I cannot understand why for the life of me, I will never understand that.

I see plenty of good here too, there are some great people here, its a huge population so you will see everything both good and bad. Some people do get confused when they read negative commentary and somehow believe that is representative of many expats entire view of Thailand. Often something disturbing will happen so people write about it to get it off their chest, today we have the Net so many people read what gets written. When good things happen, people feel good and often do not write about it, maybe they even talk about it in Thai to family members. Cultural differences and complicated emotional matters are usually reserved for ones native language and native culture, thus many of the negative threads that get started on Thai Visa.

This is not a scam, These ladies work dammed hard for their money and make a honest living. I could see your point if they showed up demanding some crazy price like 500 baht or something but being charged a normal price for delivery is not a big deal, no need to classify this as a scam.

Most Thai families have more than two people living in the house so its normal to have a little bag of drinks dropped off. If you don't want it just tell them you don't want it, no big deal. We used to have a delivery of a whole bag full every few days and it was quite nice to have them in the fridge.

One of my best friends died a few years back and his wife has no other income other than selling these little drinks so I have first hand knowledge of how hard she works and how little she makes off it. I'm quite proud of her for being a good mom and raising up a kid in some pretty dramatic circumstance without having to bend over for her income.

If any of you guys has a chance to buy a few of these silly drinks to support a hard working and honest local you should consider a very small investment into the community. Please reserve the term "Scam" for the true "Scams" which typically involve hookers, the police, or degenerates, not industrious moms who are sending their kids to school by working for a living.

Ok Im gonna drop 2 tons of elephant sh*t on your drive let me know if you dont want it, seems reasonable right?

Do you need a street address or do you have a GPS in order to find the place and deliver? Oh I forgot, your just running off at the keyboard because your pissed off at little girls for overcharging you 2 baht a day on silly yogurt drinks. I guess when the real scam artist catch up with you guys and beat you out of some serious money we will not hear anything about it because you will have a heart attack and die right there on the spot still completely ignorant about how things really go in Thailand.

This entire thread shows the kind of quality expats Thailand is attracting with all the political instability and monthly fiasco's. I remember a former government official now living in exile and his grand scheme of turning Thailand into the hub of all VIP tourism, to bad he did not have the foresight to see that trying to attract decent normal thinking people would be a great improvement over the degenerates that often end up staying here long term for whatever reason.

Any scheming scamming little girls selling scout cookies or tiny little yogurt drinks who show up on the doorsteps of a grouchy expat will be chained up, water boarded, shot in the face with a war weapon, then dismembered and dumped into the closest river. Grouchy expats cannot be expected to take any crap off little girls!

P.S. Soundman, Good one, I got a good laugh out of that. Im guessing some of the tough talkers here know nothing of Thailand and have never been introduced to a true Thai scam which usually involves a large payment of cash for no other reason than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I can just picture them jumping out at a police checkpoint, disarming a cop, then pistol whipping the MIBs over a two hundred baht traffic scam that many of us have encountered and dealt with politely so many times we cant even be bothered to remember them anymore.

This is not a scam, These ladies work dammed hard for their money and make a honest living. I could see your point if they showed up demanding some crazy price like 500 baht or something but being charged a normal price for delivery is not a big deal, no need to classify this as a scam.

Most Thai families have more than two people living in the house so its normal to have a little bag of drinks dropped off. If you don't want it just tell them you don't want it, no big deal. We used to have a delivery of a whole bag full every few days and it was quite nice to have them in the fridge.

One of my best friends died a few years back and his wife has no other income other than selling these little drinks so I have first hand knowledge of how hard she works and how little she makes off it. I'm quite proud of her for being a good mom and raising up a kid in some pretty dramatic circumstance without having to bend over for her income.

If any of you guys has a chance to buy a few of these silly drinks to support a hard working and honest local you should consider a very small investment into the community. Please reserve the term "Scam" for the true "Scams" which typically involve hookers, the police, or degenerates, not industrious moms who are sending their kids to school by working for a living.

Now that President Obama has redefined the American relationship with both Cambodia and Laos will Thailand end up left in the dust with a new American business stampede directed into these two countries?

There have been rumors for three years that Cambodia will lease land to the United States for a new military base in this region, was this latest normalization of relationship with Cambodia a sign that the two nations are moving to redefine their military relationship? If not it sure does make the United States and Cambodia very cozy at a time when there is much stress between the United States and Thailand.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/artic...8Mv0ZRLU8wXmRiQ

US removes Laos, Cambodia from trade blacklist

By Shaun Tandon – 12 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US President Barack Obama removed Laos and Cambodia from a trade blacklist, opening the way for US loans to companies doing business in the former US adversaries.

The United States has been boosting ties with both Southeast Asian nations. But the decision on Laos was sharply criticized by campaigners for the country's Hmong minority, which says it faces persecution.

In brief declarations, Obama said Cambodia and Laos had each "ceased to be a Marxist-Leninist country," a designation that prevented financial support by the US Export-Import Bank for businesses operating in the two nations.

The move, which still must go through formalities, means that US businesses would be eligible for US government-backed loans and credit guarantees as they can receive when operating in most countries.

"Given the commitment of Cambodia and Laos to open markets, the president has determined that this designation is no longer applicable," an Obama administration official said.

With the decision, the United States forbids US-backed loans for businesses to operate in only six countries -- Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Sudan and Syria.

US ties with Cambodia and Laos were long clouded by concerns about the fate of US service members missing since the Vietnam War. In Cambodia, the United States worried about corruption and accountability for Khmer Rouge war crimes.

But the United States has been moving closer to both nations, where China is also stepping up influence. Washington established normal trade ties with Laos in 2004 and three years later lifted all restrictions on aid to Cambodia.

Obama's decision to boost trade ties with Laos came under fire from supporters of the Hmong, a hill people who supported US forces during the Vietnam War and say they face retaliatory abuse decades later.

A recent report by Paris-based Medicins Sans Frontieres, or Doctors Without Borders, said Hmong who fled since 2005 to Thailand have said they suffered killings, gang-rape and malnutrition at the hands of Laotian forces.

Obama's declaration "is completely shocking and outrageous," said Philip Smith, executive director of the Center for Public Policy Analysis, which promotes Hmong rights.

"This is a one-party regime which is closely allied with Burma (Myanmar) and North Korea," he said. "This will embolden the Laos government to continue to slaughter and massacre civilians."

Many Hmong are still in hiding in Laos. Another 250,000 Hmong have resettled in the United States.

Last month, Medicins Sans Frontieres pulled out of the sole Hmong refugee camp in Thailand, complaining that the kingdom was forcing some 4,700 people in the camp back to Laos where they fear persecution.

US lawmakers plan to send a letter next week to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, asking her to press Thailand to halt the repatriation of the Hmong to Laos.

"The US has been a champion of the Hmong since the Vietnam War," said the letter, so far signed by 17 members of Congress.

"We continue to have a vital national security interest in and moral obligation to assist our former allies, especially those with bona fide persecution claims," it said.

Are there any updates on bars or discos being closed in Pattaya? Did anyone go out tonight and see what was going on?

1000 PATTAYA BUSINESS OWNERS ATTEND SWINE FLU MEETING

Nearly a thousand Pattaya business owners attended an urgent meeting to address concerns about the outbreak of Swine Flu in Pattaya at the Pattaya Park Hotel on Friday afternoon (12th June 2009). So far, 21 Pattaya and Chonburi residents have been infected by the flu virus.

The authorities were represented by Mr. Senee Jitkasem, the new Chonburi governor, the Pattaya City Mayor, Chonburi public health and other government officials.

Mr. Ittipon Kunplum, Pattaya City Mayor, was optimistic and said that officials expected to declare Pattaya a “Swine-Flu-free area” within 2-4 weeks. This would make people feel save to visit or live in Pattaya.

http://www.pattayadailynews.com/shownews.p...NEWS=0000009466

http://health.asiaone.com/Health/News/Stor...613-148197.html

10,000 could catch swine flu in Thailand

Sat, Jun 13, 2009

Asia News Network

Minister warns of big leap as cases are reported from several new areas

Thailand could expect more than 10,000 A(H1N1) infections nationwide as the swine flu had already spread across the country, Witthaya Kaewparadai, the public health minister, warned. Authorities reported that the number of infections in Thailand rose to 89, with 43 new confirmed cases added yesterday.

Dr Prat Boonyawongvirot permanent secretary for public health, said the latest confirmed cases came for Bangkok, Songkla, Phuket and Pattaya. The Health Ministry also sent officials to collect virus samples from 50 kindergarten students in a school in Pathum Thani for checking after they got high fever. The lab test results were expected to released today.

Education Minister, Jurin Laksanavisit said the executives of each school in Bangkok can make their own decision whether to suspend classes during this period. Mahidol University's Faculty of Public Health yes?terday suspended their classes after learning that one of the students, who recently returned from the US, had been infected with the influenza A (H1N1) and was undergoing treatment at hospital.

Meanwhile, the Thai Hotels Association (THA) has urged entertainment venues, pubs and restaurants in the tourist resort of Pattaya to close their outlets temporarily in order to help prevent the spread of A(H1N1) influenza. THA president Chatchawal Supachayanont said bars and restaurants are usually overcrowded so they better suspend business to avoid widespread infections Earlier, two Taiwanese visitors and local staff were found to have been infected inside a Pattaya discoteque.

The World Health Organisation on Thursday raised the level of influenza pandemic alert from phase 5 to phase 6, the highest level, but it recommends no restrictions on travel and no border closures. Phurit Maswongsa, Phuket Tourism Association's vice president for marketing, warned that the WHO should be careful that travellers and the general public could be frightened by the higher level of alert.

To inform the public of proper measures to cope with the flu, the public health ministry will distribute manuals to all department store and other public venues initially in Bangkok areas. Individuals are also advised to keep themselves fit and if they develop mild symptom sof influenza virus, they should have immediate treatment.

Health minsiter Witthaya said the governmenty has ordered two million doses of vaccines from drug manufacturers. The Disease Control Department also has a stock of antiviral Oseltamivir drug for 420,000 people, while Government Pharmaceutical Organisation is preparing to produce an additional 100,000 antiviral drugs for flu pandemic. Oseltamivir will be prescribed only to children age under 5 yearold, people age over 65yearold and patient with chronic disease as they do not body immunity against flu virus.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/nationa.../Avoid-bars.htm

June 13, 2009 9:15 am TWN, The China Post news staff

Avoid bars, clubs during travel: CDC

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Following recent swine flu infections imported from Thailand, the Center for Disease Control (CDC), in conjunction with the Ministry of Education and the Tourism Bureau, has advised travel agencies to refrain from taking tour groups to Thai bars and clubs. Another student who returned from Thailand was verified as carrying the virus, the CDC announced yesterday.

Of the current tally of 37 confirmed A(H1N1) cases in Taiwan, 15 were infected when traveling in Thailand. The World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday elevated its swine flu alert to its highest level of six — its first designation in 41 years. The international agency added, however, that the declaration of a pandemic, although indicative of its expansion, does not reflect the severity of the virus.

In response to the heightened warning, the CDC has convened experts to strengthen its strategy for infection control against the strain. Shih Wen-yi, a spokesperson for the CDC, noted that Taiwan will be receiving its first vaccine shipment later this fall in September but may not be immediately available for inoculation.

Pending the geographic spread of the disease, the CDC will determine suitable candidates that will be administered the shot. Shih said that a large scale community outbreak in Taiwan is more or less inevitable and that the CDC is currently stepping up efforts to help stave off collective infections. The command center is also not eliminating the possibility of taking drastic action to curb swine flu should the situation worsen significantly.

The CDC and the Tourism Bureau have yet to implement stringent restrictions for travel to cities like Thailand, Hong Kong and Japan, but gently advised tourists not frequent areas where crowds congregate such as bars and clubs. Symptoms of the swine flu are especially pronounced amongst the younger demographic, as fatalities have primarily been young, healthy adults, noted the WHO.

Tour guides should not encourage group members to take fever reducers prior to boarding flights, explained Shih. According to Article 42 of the Communicable Disease Control Act, the tour guide of a tour group is responsible for reporting and taking care of group members who show influenza-like symptoms. If a tour guide infringes upon the provision, he or she will be subjected to a fine ranging from NT$10,000 to NT$150,000.

It seems the bar closings are being done on a need to know basis. As of yet there has been no further public mention of this in the news. This does appear at odds with common thought but perfectly normal in Thailand.

One Thai Visa forum member went to a Disco last night only to be told it was not open for tourist, only open for Thai because of the Swine Flu outbreak in Pattaya. It will be very interesting to see how this "Flu Situation" plays out in the media and in private.

My interpretation is that Taiwanese Nationals came to Thailand healthy and became infected here, going home sick. The spin on the story is a few Foreign Nationals came here sick already and infected some locals. This suits the current government and local administration as long as this is the end of the story. I for one see it as only the beginning, there is no need to panic but one has to be a complete idiot to ignore this situation.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2009/06/12...al_30104952.php

In Pathum Thani province north of Bangkok, 50 nurseryschool students were taking medication after falling ill.

Public Health Ministry deputy permanent secretary Dr Paijit Warachit admitted the Kingdom now faced internal spread of the disease.

I was just denied entry to Noir Disco on 3rd rd this evening. Reason given: all foriengers will be not be allowed in for the next 3 days due to the flu outbreak. I explained that I am working in Pattaya and produced my Thai Driver's liscence as ID but was still denied

This is classic. Did you end up out at some other Disco or was everything closed? Supposedly 17 venues were ordered closed according to one Newspaper, well see what the story is after the sun comes up and Thai News gets translated into English.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/1829...flu-alert-level

Local authorities in Pattaya are stepping up measures to contain the spread of the virus and ensure the town is clear of H1N1 in a month.

Pattaya Mayor Itthiphol Khunplome said more than 80 health volunteers have been dispatched to monitor closely the health of the immediate families of the infected patients.

A surveillance centre has been set up in Bang Lamung Hospital and 420,000 anti-viral tablets were distributed to medical facilities.

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail....&con_type=1

Nightclub workers treble Thailand's swine flu tally

Friday, June 12, 2009

The number of confirmed cases of swine flu in Thailand nearly tripled to 46 yesterday, with most of the new infections detected among workers at a nightclub in the seaside resort of Pattaya.

And a Hong Kong visitor has claimed to have contracted the virus on the southern resort island of Phuket. Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva has sent Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai Witthaya there to investigate.

"There are new confirmed cases both in Pattaya and Phuket," the prime minister said. "But none of these confirmed cases is in a serious condition."

Health officials reported 30 new cases across the kingdom, including a young British traveler, and said more were expected. But they urged people to remain calm.

Twenty-one of the new infections were found among the Pattaya nightclub workers, who were tested after two Taiwanese tourists claimed to have contracted the disease there upon their return home.

Four other cases were found at the privately run St Gabriel's College in Bangkok. The college has now announced it will close for one week.

The remaining five infected people in Thailand are being kept in quarantine.

Since the virus was first discovered in the United States and Mexico in April, 74 countries have reported more than 27,000 cases, including 141 deaths, according to figures from the World Health Organization.

In Australia, the flu tally has ticked up by 39 to 1,263 cases, with 1,011 in the southern state of Victoria. Authorities in the state said four people were being treated in hospital intensive care wards.

That was a potentially worrying escalation for Australian health chiefs, who have previously reported only mild symptoms among flu victims.

But the flu has spread rapidly in Australia - the world's fifth worst- hit country - since sick passengers were allowed to leave a cruise ship in Sydney late last month.

Victoria has recorded numerous cases of domestic transmission, which occurs when the virus spreads between people within a community rather than the infection being driven by people coming from overseas.

In Germany, 27 children from a Japanese school in Duesseldorf tested positive for flu. The Japanese families affected have been quarantined in their homes and the school closed.

AGENCIES

4 Dont listend to complacent idiots on this board that might get you or your loved ones killed.

I agree with this, The Thai Gov could have been on this situation 2 months ago when any educated person could figure out that Thailand was at risk. I expected naysayers when I posted on this subject before, either the first or second thread started on the subject which was closed. What is interesting is to see people who are in a complete state of denial on how this will effect all of us in Thailand with the newest information we now have.

I told the wife to wait three months and we would see what happened, it only took two and now there are confirmed cases of people coming to Thailand on holiday in good health and leaving with Swine Flu.

Looks like this is going to be the night the lights went out in Pattaya,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

17 Entertainment Venues Ordered Closed

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-06/...nt_11528048.htm

Thailand orders suspension of entertainment services in Pattaya to curb A/H1N1 outbreak

www.chinaview.cn 2009-06-11 20:34:14

　BANGKOK, June 11 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's Public Health Ministry on Thursday ordered service suspension of 17 entertainment places in resort town Pattaya in a central province of Chonburi in a bid to curb the A/H1N1 flu virus outbreak, the Thai News Agency reported.

The order of the temporary closure has followed the earlier announcement by the Ministry that now totally there are 21 confirmed A/H1N1 flu patients in Chonburi, the destination of tourists around the world.

Also, some 420,000 pills of antiviral Camiflu have been distributed to Chonburi's provincial public health office, said Somchai Chakraphan, director-general of the Disease Control Department, the Health Ministry, the website by Thai-language newspaper Krungthep Turakij reported.

The provincial public health office will later re-distribute them to hotels and risk-affected areas, he said.

On May 12, the Health Ministry announced the country's first two confirmed A/H1N1 flu cases, and by June 10 the country has totally 46 confirmed A/H1N1 flu patients.

According to the World Health Organization, Thailand ranked 33rd as the country that has been hit by the deadly new virus.

http://www.drudgereport.com/

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CN...;show_article=1

US 'very concerned' about swine flu outbreak

US medical authorities expressed strong concern Friday about an unprecedented multi-strain swine flu outbreak that has killed at least 60 people in Mexico and infected seven people in the United States.

"It's very obvious that we are very concerned. We've stood up emergency operation centers," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) spokesman Dave Daigle told AFP.

One major source of concern was that the virus included strains from different types of flu.

"This is the first time that we've seen an avian strain, two swine strains and a human strain," said Daigle, adding that the virus had influenza strains from European and Asian swine, but not from North American swine.

In 11 of 12 reported human cases of swine influenza (H1N1) virus infection in the United States from December 2005 to February 2009, the CDC has documented direct or indirect contact with swine.

But the seven known cases of the previously undetected strain in the United States -- five from California and two from Texas -- did not have contact with pigs. The seven people infected have all recovered from the flu.

"We have determined that this virus is contagious and is spreading from human to human," the CDC said on its website. "However, at this time, we have not determined how easily the virus spreads between people."

Local and state health officials were interviewing not just the people who were infected but the people with whom they had contact, Daigle noted.

Officials were looking for the source of the infection, Daigle said, adding that US health officials were due to receive samples from Mexico that would be tested at a lab at the centers based in Atlanta, Georgia.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified swine influenza as a potential source of a human flu pandemic. Pandemics usually occur every 20 years.

"Our experts and others are saying are not saying it's not a matter of whether but when. And we are past due," said Daigle.

Swine flu is caused by type A influenza and does not normally infect humans but cases have been reported among people, especially those exposed to pigs, the CDC said. Most outbreaks take place during the late fall and winter months.

Swine flu symptoms include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Some people who have contracted the virus have also reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, according to the CDC.

Human outbreaks of H1N1 swine influenza virus were recorded in the United States in 1976 and 1988, when two deaths were reported, and in 1986. In 1988, a pregnant woman died after contact with sick pigs, the WHO said.

In recent years, the global focus for a pandemic has shifted to the H5N1 bird flu virus, which has spread from poultry to humans, especially in Asia.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...refer=worldwide

Swine Flu, Mexico Lung Illness Heighten Pandemic Risk (Update2)

By Jason Gale and Tom Randall

April 24 (Bloomberg) -- Disease trackers are asking U.S. hospitals to help follow a new strain of swine flu and are trying to determine whether it’s related to hundreds of illnesses and 57 deaths in Mexico.

A previously unseen variant of H1N1 swine influenza has sickened at least seven people in California and Texas, the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said yesterday. The World Health Organization said 57 people died among more than 800 in the Mexico City region who developed flu-like symptoms in the past month.

Global health experts are studying whether the U.S. and Mexico illnesses pose a threat of pandemic, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. U.S. hospitals today were asked to collect samples from patients with flu-like symptoms, said William Schaffner, a flu expert at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee.

“This has a sense of urgency about it,” Schaffner, chief of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt, said in a telephone interview today. “They are asking us who work in hospitals to go to our emergency rooms and our pediatric wards to gather specimens and start testing them.”

Investigators haven’t found a link between the California and Texas cases, indicating the virus may be circulating elsewhere, Schaffner said. CDC disease experts will continue investigating whether the outbreaks have a common source, he said. The agency also will host a conference call today with experts, he said.

Threat of Pandemic

Flu can spread quickly when a new strain emerges, because no one has natural immunity. The so-called 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic, which may have killed as many as 50 million people, began when an avian flu virus jumped to people, experts said.

“We are taking this very seriously,” Gregory Hartl, spokesman for WHO, the Geneva-based United Nations agency, said in a telephone interview today. “We have to get laboratory confirmation of what it is. We need to know how widespread it is.” The Mexico illnesses are affecting “otherwise healthy adults,” Hartl said.

Pandemic Potential

“The infection of humans with a novel influenza-A virus infection of animal origins, as has happened here, is of concern because of the risk, albeit small, that this could represent the appearance of viruses with pandemic potential,” the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, based in Stockholm, said in a statement.

There’s no evidence a pandemic strain is evolving in the U.S., the European agency said. The CDC reached the same conclusion.

“We don’t think this is a time for major concern,” Anne Schuchat, CDC’s director of respiratory diseases, told reporters on a conference call yesterday.

Authorities in Mexico asked the Public Health Agency of Canada to help identify what’s causing the lung infection that has also spread to five health-care workers, the Ottawa-based agency said in an e-mail yesterday. Mexico Health Minister Jose Cordova canceled classes in Mexico City today and recommended citizens avoid public places.

Canada’s National Microbiology Lab received 51 specimens from Mexico on April 22 and will test them for pathogens. Tests in Mexico found patients had the H1N1 and type-B influenza strains and the parainfluenza virus, the agency said.

Pigs Susceptible

Three main human flu strains -- H3N2, H1N1 and type-B -- cause 250,000 to 500,000 deaths a year globally, according to the World Health Organization, a United Nations agency. Pigs also are susceptible to flu, including the H1N1 subtype.

“It will be critical to determine whether the strains of H1N1 isolated from patients in Mexico are also swine flu,” Donald Low, an infectious diseases specialist at Toronto’s Mount Sinai Hospital, told the Canadian Press.

The CDC is discussing its cases and viruses with Mexico and the Pan American Health Organization, Schuchat said.

“At this point, we do not have any confirmation of swine influenza in Mexico,” Schuchat said.

Symptoms of the illnesses in Mexico include high fever, headache, eye pain, shortness of breath and extreme fatigue with rapid progression of symptoms to severe respiratory distress in about five days, the Canadian agency said. A “high proportion” of cases require mechanical respiration, it said.

U.S. Sickness

The four males and three females in San Diego County and Imperial County, California, and in San Antonio, diagnosed with swine flu had mild flu-like symptoms. The patients, 9 to 54 years old, included a father-daughter pair and two boys attending the same Texas school.

The virus is contagious and spreading from human to human, the CDC said in a statement on its Web site. The patients began feeling sick from March 28 to April 19. All have recovered and only one was hospitalized, according to the CDC. None had direct contact with pigs.

“That’s unusual,” Schuchat said. “We don’t know yet how widely it’s spreading and we certainly don’t know the extent of the problem.”

As precaution, CDC is preparing the virus as a vaccine seed strain that could be used to make immunizations, she said.

The swine flu virus contains four different gene segments representing both North American swine and avian influenza, human flu and a Eurasian swine flu, CDC said.

Not Seen Before

“We haven’t seen this strain before, but we haven’t been looking as intensively as we are these days,” Schuchat said. “It’s very possible that this is something new that hasn’t been happening before.”

Swine influenza is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type-A influenza that regularly causes outbreaks among the animals, according to the CDC. Swine flu doesn’t normally infect people, though human infections do occur and cases of human-to- human spread of swine flu viruses have been documented.

Infection in pigs is regarded as especially problematic because of the risk of “reassortment” to produce a new virus, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said.

“These mild U.S. cases infected with a novel influenza are not reflecting the emergence of a pandemic strain, but they at least raise the possibility that there has been limited human- to-human transmission,” the health agency said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jason Gale in Singapore at [email protected]; Tom Randall in New York at [email protected].