THAILAND LIVE Thailand Live Thursday 2 Nov 2017

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Forensic results awaited for German expats murder in Phuket

Shela Riva

 

The house where the murder of German expat Johann Friedrich Speckbacher took place. Photo: Chalong Police

 

PHUKET:-- Police are waiting for forensic results to come back in the murder case of 79-year-old German expat Johann Friedrich Speckbacher in late September.

 

Full Story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009407-forensic-results-awaited-for-german-expats-murder-in-phuket/

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Report shows that Thailand means business

By The Nation

 

 

The World Bank Group’s latest “Doing Business” report ranks Thailand in 26th place among 190 economies in the ease of doing business for small and medium enterprises around the world – up from 48th place when applying the same methodology to last year’s and this year’s data.

 

Full Story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009405-report-shows-that-thailand-means-business/

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Midweek rant: People and fireworks don’t mix – enforce the ban at Loy Krathong

 

File photo

 

I was going to rant that Thais and fireworks don’t mix. But let’s face it, it’s not just Thailand – fireworks are horrible things in the hands of the public anywhere.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009427-midweek-rant-people-and-fireworks-don’t-mix-–-enforce-the-ban-at-loy-krathong/

 

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Confusion reigns anew as D-Day for beach smoking ban arrives

 

Picture: Daily News

 

Daily News reported that the department of coastal resources were still threatening to jail or heavily fine tourists for smoking on two of Surat Thani's popular beaches.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009429-confusion-reigns-anew-as-d-day-for-beach-smoking-ban-arrives/

 

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Tourism ministry request Thai Hoteliers' Association to warn tourists about dangerous seas

 

File photo

 

Sophon TV reported on Facebook that the Ministry for Tourism and Sports had asked the Eastern Seaboard Hoteliers' Association to warn tourists in Pattaya and other resorts about possible injury and loss of life.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009430-tourism-ministry-request-thai-hoteliers-association-to-warn-tourists-about-dangerous-seas/

 

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Soldiers pick up 100 tons of trash from beaches around Hua Hin - army plan to dump it in ten holes

 

Picture: Manager Online

 

The army has said that an incredible 100 tons of trash has been picked up in four days of work on beaches in Hua Hin and further south.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009431-soldiers-pick-up-100-tons-of-trash-from-beaches-around-hua-hin-army-plan-to-dump-it-in-ten-holes/

 

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Video: Are Thais prepared to pay more taxes to see the hanging wires buried, asks tourist

 

File photo

 

A news organisation's video praising the burying of unsightly wires on some of Bangkok's streets ended with a timely question posed by a tourist.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009432-video-are-thais-prepared-to-pay-more-taxes-to-see-the-hanging-wires-buried-asks-tourist/

 

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Parties in limbo as NCPO ban persists

By THE NATION

 

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam

 

Political activity prohibited as deadlines approach, raising fears of election ineligibility under new law.

 

POLITICAL PARTIES are being left to their own devices as the clock ticks ahead of deadlines for them to rearrange their internal workings as required by a new organic law, as the junta has kept its strict ban on political activities in place. 

 

Source: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009433-parties-in-limbo-as-ncpo-ban-persists/

 

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EC ‘can’t give political parties extra time to organise’

By The Nation

 

Somchai Srisuthiyakorn

 

The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday made it clear that the agency had no authority to give extra time to political parties to make arrangements to fit with the new regulations. This follows a refusal by the junta to loosen its grip and allow political activities.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009434-ec-‘can’t-give-political-parties-extra-time-to-organise’/

 

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Khon Kaen officials hope floods will recede in two weeks

By THE NATION

 

 

FLOODING IN Khon Kaen should recede in 14 days after the Ubolrat Dam reduced discharges to 30 million cubic metres a day on the order of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, while the Royal Irrigation Department had installed pumps to prevent floodwaters from spreading further, officials said yesterday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009435-khon-kaen-officials-hope-floods-will-recede-in-two-weeks/

 

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Labour Minister resigns over reshuffle linked to migrants

By THE NATION

 

 

LABOUR MINISTER General Sirichai Distakul and three others in his team made surprise resignations from their posts yesterday, a source close to the minister said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009436-thai-labour-minister-resigns-over-reshuffle-linked-to-migrants/

 

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Rock star ‘Toon’ sets Bt45m-pace on first day of cross-country run

By THE NATION

 

 

ON THE FIRST DAY of his 2,191-kilometre run under the campaign “Kao Kon La Kao”, or “Take One Step Each”, rock star Artiwara “Toon” Kongmalai attracted as much as Bt45 million in donations, a source at the charity project said yesterday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009437-rock-star-‘toon’-sets-bt45m-pace-on-first-day-of-cross-country-run/

 

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The Mall, SCB claim a first with payment initiative

By KWANCHAI RUNGFAPAISARN 
THE NATION

 

 

THE Mall Group has teamed up with Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) on the proposed launch of a cashless shopping initiative at its retail complexes that is claimed to be first of its kind in Thailand.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009438-the-mall-scb-claim-a-first-with-payment-initiative/

 

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Golden Triangle is ‘ground zero’ for wildlife trafficking: WWF

By THE NATION

 

 

TIGERS, ELEPHANTS, bears and pangolins are four of the most widely traded species in the Golden Triangle border area where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, according to a report by WWF released yesterday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009439-golden-triangle-is-‘ground-zero’-for-wildlife-trafficking-wwf/

 

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UPDATE:

 

Public tours of Royal Crematorium offers rare view of interior

By PHATARAWADEE PHATARANAWIK 
THE NATION

 

 

PUBLIC TOURS of the Royal Crematorium at Sanam Luang in Bangkok begin today following yesterday’s trial run.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009265-royal-crematorium-exhibition-to-open-thursday-2-nov/?do=findComment&comment=12410075

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009265-royal-crematorium-exhibition-to-open-thursday-2-nov/?do=findComment&comment=12410075

 

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Britain's defence minister resigns in growing harassment scandal

By William James and Elizabeth Piper

 

Britain's Secretary of State for Defence Sir Michael Fallon addresses the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, October 3, 2017. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

 

LONDON (Reuters) - British defence minister Michael Fallon quit on Wednesday saying his conduct had fallen below the high standards demanded of his position, the first resignation in a sexual harassment scandal in parliament.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009440-britains-defence-minister-resigns-in-growing-harassment-scandal/

 

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New York attack suspect charged with providing support to Islamic State

By Gina Cherelus and Barbara Goldberg

 

Sayfullo Saipov, the suspect in the New York City truck attack is seen in this handout photo released November 1, 2017. St. Charles County Department of Corrections/Handout via REUTERS

 

NEW YORK (Reuters) - An Uzbek immigrant suspected of killing eight people in New York City by ploughing a truck into cyclists and pedestrians on a bike path was charged in federal court on Wednesday with acting on behalf of the militant group Islamic State.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009441-new-york-attack-suspect-charged-with-providing-support-to-islamic-state/

 

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U.S. 'diversity visa' programme in spotlight after New York attack

By Yeganeh Torbati

 

Law enforcement officials investigate an area along West Street a day after a man driving a rented pickup truck mowed down pedestrians and cyclists on a bike path alongside the Hudson River in New York City, in New York, U.S. November 1, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A visa programme aimed at diversifying the U.S. immigrant population came under attack from President Donald Trump on Wednesday after he learned that the man accused of killing eight people in New York City on Tuesday used it to enter the country.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009442-us-diversity-visa-programme-in-spotlight-after-new-york-attack/

 

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Putin opens monument to Stalin's victims, dissidents cry foul

By Andrew Osborn

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a ceremony unveiling the country's first national memorial to victims of Soviet-era political repressions called "The Wall of Grief" in Moscow, Russia October 30, 2017. REUTERS/Alexander Nemenov/Pool

 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin inaugurated a monument to the victims of Stalinist purges on Monday, but Soviet-era dissidents accused him of cynicism at a time when they say authorities are riding roughshod over civil freedoms.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009443-putin-opens-monument-to-stalins-victims-dissidents-cry-foul/

 

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China's Xi says hopes to promote relations with North Korea: KCNA

 

China's President Xi Jinping claps after his speech as he and other new Politburo Standing Committee members meet with the press at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China October 25, 2017. REUTERS/Jason Lee

 

SEOUL (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping replied to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's congratulatory message on China's recently completed Communist Party Congress, saying he hopes to promote ties between the two countries, North Korea's official news agency KCNA said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009444-chinas-xi-says-hopes-to-promote-relations-with-north-korea-kcna/

 

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Indian power plant blast kills 20, injures up to 100

By Sudarshan Varadhan

 

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - An explosion at an Indian power plant killed 20 people and injured up to 100 in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, authorities said, in one of the country's deadliest industrial accidents in years.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009445-indian-power-plant-blast-kills-20-injures-up-to-100/

 

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Iraq threatens to resume military operations against Kurds

 

A man rides a bicycle with Iraqi flag in north of Kirkuk, Iraq October 19, 2017. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed

 

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi forces threatened on Wednesday to resume operations to capture northern Kurdish-held territory after accusing authorities there of delaying handing over control of Iraq's borders with Turkey, Iran and Syria.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009446-iraq-threatens-to-resume-military-operations-against-kurds/

 

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Ousted Catalan leader says will not return to Spain to testify

By Paul Day

 

Sacked Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont attends a news conference at the Press Club Brussels Europe in Brussels, Belgium, October 31, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman

 

MADRID (Reuters) - Dismissed Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont said on Wednesday he would ignore a court order to return to Spain to answer charges over the region's push for independence, but he could testify from Belgium.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009447-ousted-catalan-leader-says-will-not-return-to-spain-to-testify/

 

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A century on, UK's Jewish homeland declaration stirs celebration and mourning in Middle East

By William James and Jeffrey Heller

 

Palestinians take part in a protest calling on Britain to apologize for the Balfour Declaration, in the West Bank city of Ramallah October 18, 2017. REUTERS/Mohamad Torokman

 

LONDON/JERUSALEM (Reuters) - In a 67-word statement composed 100 years ago, Britain endorsed the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the Middle East, triggering a process that would culminate in the creation of Israel - and with it one of the world's most intractable conflicts.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009449-a-century-on-uks-jewish-homeland-declaration-stirs-celebration-and-mourning-in-middle-east/

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Tech companies join support of 'Dreamers,' challenging Trump

By Salvador Rodriguez

 

People march across the Brooklyn Bridge to protest the planned dissolution of DACA in Manhattan, New York City, U.S. September 5, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Yang

 

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's Google and Facebook Inc on Wednesday joined a legal challenge by more than 100 tech companies against a decision to end protection for so-called 'Dreamer' immigrants, the companies told Reuters.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009452-tech-companies-join-support-of-dreamers-challenging-trump/

 

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Ex-British spy paid $168,000 for Trump dossier, U.S. firm discloses

By Mark Hosenball

 

FILE PHOTO - People stand outside the building housing the offices of Orbis Buiness Intelligence (C) where former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele works, in central London, Britain, January 12, 2016. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Washington research firm paid a former British spy's company $168,000 (126,859.47 pounds) for work on a dossier outlining Russian financial and personal links to Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign, the U.S. firm said in a statement on Wednesday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009455-ex-british-spy-paid-168000-for-trump-dossier-us-firm-discloses/

 

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Hong Kong seeks law banning booing of China's national anthem

By James Pomfret

 

FILE PHOTO: Football Soccer - Hong Kong v Malaysia - AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers - Hong Kong, China October 10, 2017 - Hong Kong fans hold a protest banner and turn their backs during Chinese national anthem. REUTERS/Bobby Yip/File Photo

 

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong will try to enact a law penalising people who boo the Chinese national anthem "as soon as possible", an official said on Wednesday, in a move that critics say undermines the Chinese-ruled city's autonomy and freedoms.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009460-hong-kong-seeks-law-banning-booing-of-chinas-national-anthem/

 

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BOX OFFICE 

The gruesome story of a Brit who boxed his way out of a hellhole Thai prison – and is now having a film made about his life

Brit Billy Moore found himself the wrong side of the bars in Bangkok - faced with a literal fight to survive the horrors of the hellhole prison

By George Harrison

 

File photo /source Internet

 

THAILAND'S Klong Prem Prison is about as far from luxury as you can get.

 

Violent, overcrowded and filthy, the Bangkok slammer is where Brits banged up for drug offences can expect to while away the days.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009466-the-gruesome-story-of-a-brit-who-boxed-his-way-out-of-a-hellhole-thai-prison-–-and-is-now-having-a-film-made-about-his-life/

 

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Police Reform Committee meeting to resolve dispute on proposed reform details

 

BANGKOK, 2nd November 2017 (NNT) - The government-appointed committee in charge of police reform will hold a meeting next week to resolve a dispute related to the reform plan. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009467-thai-police-reform-committee-meeting-to-resolve-dispute-on-proposed-reform-details/

 

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At least two dead in shooting inside suburban Denver Walmart

By Keith Coffman

 

Police guard the entrance at the scene of a shooting at a Walmart in Thornton, Colorado November 1, 2017. REUTERS/Rick Wilking

 

THORNTON, Colo. (Reuters) - At least two people were killed and one wounded in a shooting inside a Walmart store in suburban Denver on Wednesday, police said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1009470-at-least-two-dead-in-shooting-inside-suburban-denver-walmart/