THAILAND LIVE Thailand Live Monday 14 May 2018

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Artists want PM to fire Bangkok governor over art centre grab

By PHATARAWADEE PHATARANAWIK 
THE NATION

 

 

THE Artists Network for Free BACC will hold a discussion at the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC) tomorrow over a proposed letter to PM General Prayut Chan-o-cha asking that he dismiss Bangkok Governor Asawin Kwanmuang over plans for the city administration to take over the running of the art centre.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038054-artists-want-pm-prayut-to-fire-bangkok-governor-over-art-centre-grab/

 

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Worries arise over brimming dams even before start of rainy season

By PRATCH RUJIVANAROM 
THE NATION

 

File photo

 

MANY reservoirs are already brimming with water prior to the predicted “wetter than average” rainy season, while the authorities claimed they had already learnt from past mistakes and prepared in advance to cope with the worrying water situation ahead.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038056-worries-arise-over-brimming-dams-even-before-start-of-rainy-season/

 

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Santhana defiant, awarded Bt300,000 bail on extortion charges

By The Nation

 

 

“I WILL NEVER be defeated. I will sue every single one of them,” Pol Lt-Colonel Santhana Prayoonrat vowed, as he was taken to the Criminal Court for his first 12-day period of detention yesterday morning. The former deputy superintendent of the police Special Branch had surrendered at his house on Saturday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038058-santhana-defiant-awarded-bt300000-bail-on-extortion-charges/

 

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Parents urged to get more involved in educating their kids

By THE NATION

 

 

SCHOOLS should educate parents about child-raising, child development and the proper support for children’s learning, the Thailand Education Partnership (TEP) has recommended.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038060-parents-urged-to-get-more-involved-in-educating-their-kids/

 

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Prayut avoids speaking about motive for field trips

By WASAMON AUDJARINT 
THE NATION 

 

PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha meets with Newin Chidchob in Buriram on May 7 during his field trip to the province

 

SPOKESPERSON SAYS PEOPLE SHOULD NOT WORRY ABOUT PM’S MOTIVES

 

PRIME MINISTER Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday dodged addressing whether the increased speculation that his field trip to Sa Kaew province had a political motive caused him to cancel the trip.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038061-prayut-avoids-speaking-about-motive-for-field-trips/

 

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Activist Ekachai in jail after refusing to apply for bail

By WASAMON AUDJARINT 
THE NATION 

 

 

THE CRIMINAL Court yesterday ordered that Ekachai Hongkangwan be detained for 12 days following charges over his alleged involvement with pro-democracy, anti-junta activism months ago.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038062-activist-ekachai-in-jail-after-refusing-to-apply-for-bail/

 

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Ex-charter drafter frowns over endless reform plans

By KAS CHANWANPEN 
THE NATION 

 

 

BORWORNSAK SAYS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS TO CONTINUE, PRAYUT WILL HAVE TO RETURN AS PM AFTER ELECTION
 

AFTER four full years of reforms before an election as the dominant theme, and the appointment and dissolution of two major reform assemblies as well as success remain a long way off.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038063-ex-charter-drafter-frowns-over-endless-reform-plans/

 

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Siemens plans high efficiency power

By JINTANA PANYAARVUDH 
THE NATION

 

Markus Lorenzini, Siemens chief executive officer for Thailand, right, and Chotipol Changcharoen, senior vice president of power and gas division

 

GERMAN technology powerhouse Siemens, which has been involved in power generation in the Thai market for nearly 40 years, sees high-efficiency power plants as the trend for the country’s energy sector, which could lower electricity price and also be environmentally friendly.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038064-siemens-plans-high-efficiency-power/

 

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Prison director given 48 hours to recapture escaped inmates or face transfer

By The Nation

 

 

As the manhunt continued on Sunday for two drug inmates who escaped from a provincial prison in Sukhothai on Saturday evening, the Corrections Department chief has given the prison director 48 hours to re-capture them or face a transfer.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038065-prison-director-given-48-hours-to-recapture-escaped-inmates-or-face-transfer/

 

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Rocket festival thrills tourists and appeals to gods for rain

By The Nation

 

People watch as participants launch homemade rockets at the “Bun Bang Fai” festival in Yasothon yesterday. The annual rocket festival celebrated in Thailand’s Isaan region aims to prod the gods to unleash rain ahead of the rice-farming season. AFP

 

THE NORTHEASTERN province of Yasothon’s “Bun Bang Fai” annual festival has wowed Thai and foreign tourists with nearly 100 beautifully-decorated traditional rockets, to be lit as an offering to the gods for rain along with a contest for cash prizes worth more than Bt60,000 being held at Phaya Thaen Park in Muang district.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038066-yasothon’s-rocket-festival-thrills-tourists-and-appeals-to-gods-for-rain/

 

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Speaker-equipped drone helps drive away wild elephants

By The Nation

 

 

Phetchaburi Rajabhat University academics have used on a trial basis a drone equipped with speakers blaring a recording of bee sounds to drive away wild elephants from the La Au forest in Hua Hin district, Kaeng Krachan National Park official Mana Phermpoon said on Sunday.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038067-speaker-equipped-drone-helps-drive-away-wild-elephants/

 

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Students warned to check university programmes before enrolling

By The Nation

 

Supat Champathong Secretary general of Office of Higher Education Commission

 

With some universities operating substandard programmes, the Office of Higher Education Commission (Ohec) is strongly advising students to “check first” to avoid regretting their choices later.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038068-students-warned-to-check-university-programmes-before-enrolling/

 

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Thai activists drop protests, vow to resume if deal with junta fails

 

File Photo: People protest against Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha in Bangkok, Thailand May 5, 2018. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - A Thai anti-government movement vowed on Sunday to resume its protests unless the ruling junta keeps the promises it made in return for the group agreeing to end more than a week of demonstrations ahead of a coup anniversary later this month. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038069-thai-activists-drop-protests-vow-to-resume-if-deal-with-junta-fails/

 

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Chinese Tourism Increasing Despite Coercive Guides: TAT Chief

By Pravit Rojanaphruk, Senior Staff Writer

 

A man hangs Chinese lanterns in February morning in Yaowarat.

 

BANGKOK — Tourism will not be affected by tours that coerce Chinese tourists to buy goods at designated shops, said the industry’s chief said Sunday.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038070-chinese-tourism-increasing-despite-coercive-guides-tat-chief/

 

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OPINION

The Military Junta As A Political Party

By Pravit Rojanaphruk, Senior Staff Writer

 

Then-army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha casts a ballot in the 2011 general election.

 

Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha denied his visit to Buriram province this week was a political move to woo voters and lure local politicians for the promised general elections where he is expected to make a bid to return as prime minister.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038071-the-military-junta-as-a-political-party/

 

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Pawn shops ready to meet cash demand as schools reopen

By The Nation

 

 

With the new semester of most Thai schools starting on Tuesday, pawnshops across the country have prepared extra money to cater to the increased need of customers seeking cash in exchange for valuables to pay their children’s tuition fees and other related expenses.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038072-pawn-shops-ready-to-meet-cash-demand-as-schools-reopen/

 

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Party-Hard Thailand Is Going After Rehab Tourists

By Natnicha Chuwiruch

 

-- Country becomes a top spot for drug, alcohol treatment

-- Opioid, heroin and methamphetamine crises fueling demand

 

Thailand, a tropical paradise known as a place to let loose, these days is starting to get another reputation: as a low-cost option for foreigners looking to dry out.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038073-party-hard-thailand-is-going-after-rehab-tourists/

 

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PM calls for urgent reform in five sectors

 

 

BANGKOK, 14th May 2018 (NNT) – Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has called for the implementation of five reform imperatives which he expects will produce concrete results in the next eight months. 

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038074-pm-prayut-calls-for-urgent-reform-in-five-sectors/

 

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German online bank uses Bitcoins to transfer loans

Reuters Staff

 

FILE PHOTO: A token of the virtual currency Bitcoin is seen placed on a monitor that displays binary digits in this illustration picture, December 8, 2017. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic//File Photo

 

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Radoslav Albrecht has founded an online bank that allows clients to transfer loans anywhere in the world using Bitcoin.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038076-german-online-bank-uses-bitcoins-to-transfer-loans/

 

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Could ScoMo’s cash ban be just what cryptocurrencies want?

THE Australian Government’s crackdown on large cash payments has inadvertently given a huge leg-up to cryptocurrencies.

Jason Murphy

 

THE Australian Government has made big cash payments illegal, but is it just giving a free kick to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin?

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038077-could-scomo’s-cash-ban-be-just-what-cryptocurrencies-want/

 

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Shi'ite cleric Sadr leads in Iraq's parliamentary election

By Huda Majeed and Ahmed Aboulenein

 

Iraqi supporters of Sairun list celebrate with portraits of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, after results of Iraq's parliamentary election were announced in Baghdad, Iraq May 14, 2018. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani

 

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Moqtada al-Sadr was leading in Iraq's parliamentary election with over half of the votes counted, the electoral commission said on Sunday, pointing to a surprise comeback for the powerful Shi'ite cleric who had been sidelined by Iran-backed rivals.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038079-shiite-cleric-sadr-leads-in-iraqs-parliamentary-election/

 

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British spymaster tells EU - Let's work together to counter militants and Russia

By Guy Faulconbridge

 

Director General of MI5 Andrew Parker looks on, as he delivers a speech in central London, on the security threat facing Britain October 17, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Rousseau/Pool - RC17A92C34E0

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain and the European Union must build a close security partnership after Brexit to foil Islamic State militant attacks and counter Russia's malign attempts to subvert Western democracies, the head of Britain's domestic spy agency said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038080-british-spymaster-tells-eu-lets-work-together-to-counter-militants-and-russia/

 

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Most foreign envoys absent as Israel, U.S. launch embassy festivities

By Ori Lewis

 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claps after handing U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman a letter of appreciation, during a reception held at the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem, ahead of the moving of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, May 13, 2018. REUTERS/Amir Cohen

 

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel launched celebrations on Sunday for the U.S. Embassy's relocation to Jerusalem, a move whose break with world consensus was underscored by the absence of most envoys to the country from a reception hosted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038081-most-foreign-envoys-absent-as-israel-us-launch-embassy-festivities/

 

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Peace talks ignite land buying frenzy along South Korea's fortified border

By Joori Roh and Cynthia Kim

 

A sign advertising properties within and along the demilitarized zone (DMZ) which separates the two Koreas, is seen at a real estate agency in Munsan, South Korea May 10, 2018. Picture taken on May 10, 2018. REUTERS/Kwak Sung-Kyung

 

SEOUL (Reuters) - Forget Seoul's posh Gangnam district.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038082-peace-talks-ignite-land-buying-frenzy-along-south-koreas-fortified-border/

 

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Father speaks out after Australia's worst mass shooting for decades

By Alison Bevege

 

Police Commissioner Chris Dawson addresses the media in Perth, Australia, May 11, 2018. AAP/Rebecca Le May/via REUTERS

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The father of four murdered children spoke out on Sunday as details emerged of the mass shooting that killed three generations of the same family on a farm in the Margaret River wine-growing region in the country's rural south west.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038083-father-speaks-out-after australias-worst-mass-shooting-for-decades/

 

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296 needy elderly to get hearing aids in Bangkok

By The Nation

 

 

Authorities have given hearing aids to 100 elderly people in Bangkok in a bid to improve their quality of life.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038084-296-needy-elderly-to-get-hearing-aids-in-bangkok/

 

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Indian crashes car into minimart

By Surasak Rimseub 
The Nation

 

 

An Indian engineer crashed his Toyota Altis sedan into a Lotus Express minimart in Ang Thong province on Saturday night, as he reportedly mistook the acceleration pad for the brake when someone suddenly cut in front of his vehicle, Pol Captain Chakkri Phan-et of Muang Ang Thong said.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038085-indian-crashes-car-into-minimart-in-ang-thong/

 

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Barbed wire fence erected around the offices of the Emerald Development Group

By The Thaiger

 

  

A barbed wire fence has been erected around the main offices for the Emerald Development Group and two signs erected in the front of the property.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038087-barbed-wire-fence-erected-around-the-offices-of-the-emerald-development-group/

 

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UPDATE:

 

Both father and grandfather had turns raping daughter/granddaughter - aged 10

 

Picture: Sanook

 

A ten year old girl has said that her own father and grandfather raped her at home during the school holidays.

 

Full story:  https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1037969-10-year-old-thai-girl-repeatedly-raped-by-father-and-grandfather/?do=findComment&comment=12982404

 

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Paris knife attacker was French citizen born in Chechnya

By Emmanuel Jarry and Ingrid Melander

 

French police secure a street after a man killed a passer-by in a knife attack in the heart of Paris and injured four others before being shot dead by police, according to French authorities in Paris, France, May 12, 2018. REUTERS/Lucien Libert

 

PARIS (Reuters) - Police on Sunday scoured the background of a Chechnya-born Frenchman who killed a man in a knife attack in Paris, questioning the parents and a friend of the 21-year old, who had been flagged previously as a potential security risk.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/1038090-paris-knife-attacker-was-french-citizen-born-in-chechnya/