Thailand Live Friday 13 Aug 2010

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Thailand Live Friday 13 August 2010

News, Bits and Tweets

with webfact

Keep up to date with live updates from the news, hour by hour.

For breaking news,national, regional and international news updates on

a daily basis only, this thread is closed to commentary so that those

who wish to follow the news can find it here...

Commentary is still open for Thailand news in the relevant thread posted in News Clippings.

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Related topic: Thailand Live Thursday 12 August 2010

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SRT: Airport Link ready for official opening on 23 Aug

BANGKOK (NNT) -- The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has confirmed readiness of the Airport Rail Link for its official opening on 23 August 2010.

Mr Yutthana Thapcharoen, in his capacity as the SRT Governor, reaffirmed that the Suvarnabhumi Airport Rail Link would open its commercial service and start collecting the fares on 23 August. He projected that up to 50,000 passengers would be seen and the SRT would generate approximately 1 million THB on a daily basis.

After its free trial kicked off in June, up to 10,000 people per day had been using the Airport Rail Link service, said the SRT governor, adding that there would be more passengers once the rail service was fully operational.

From 23 August until the end of this year, the fare will be collected at a flat rate of 15 THB for City Line from Phaya Thai to Suvarnabhumi stations and 100 THB for Express Line from Makkasan to Suvarnabhumi stations.

For more information on the Airport Rail Link, people can contact the SRT hotline 1690 around the clock.

-- NNT 2010-08-13

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Chavalit confident govt can settle border dispute with Cambodia

Pheu Thai Party chairman Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh Thursday expressed confidence that the Thai and Cambodian governments would be able to peacefully settle the border dispute near Preah Vihear Temple.

Chavalit said he believes the problem would not escalate into a war.

He said troops of the two countries, who are stationed at the border, are close together and have good ties.

"Although the two governments quarrel, troops of the two love each other," Chavalit said.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Thai youth as the main tools in strengthening national identity

BANGKOK (NNT) -- A program that encourages Thai youth to be volunteers in the strengthening of national identity and awareness in the protection of the country’s highest institutions has been continually forged ahead by the Thai Government.

The Government had resolved to progress with the continuation of the program after last year's accomplishment in which all participants were successfully trained to uphold the three national institutions as their main interest.

The program is spearheaded by Inspector-General of the Prime Minister's Office, Rapeepan Sariwat. According to him, three volunteer lecturers have been selected from each of 76 provinces to be trained on the protection of the national

institutions including the Nation, Religion and Monarchy as well as the Thai Democracy. After the completion of the training, the knowledge will be instilled in the Thai youth nationwide.

The program is currently on progress, while the training has been divided into three periods with 100 volunteers attending in each period.

-- NNT 2010-08-13

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Police arrest drug traffickers with 300,000 meth pills in Nakhon Ratchasima

NAKHON RATCHASIMA: -- Three suspected members of a drug syndicate in Thailand's southern border provinces were arrested with 300,000 speed pills, valued at Bt42 million (US$1.2 million) in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima.

Roning Yuso, 50, Somboon Yuso, 27, and Nisit Saie, 37, were arrested for carrying 280,000 methamphetamine pills, worth some $1.2 million Wednesday while attempting to driving through a checkpoint in Prathai district, Central Investigation Bureau commissioner Pol Lt-Gen Thangai Prasjaksattru told a Thursday press briefing.

While inspecting the vehicle, police discovered the illicit drug in a specially-designed compartment in the automobile’s bumper. Police confiscated the drug.

The suspects said that they were hired to transport the meth pills three times with a Bt200,000 (some $6,000) wage for each trip.

The police speculated that the trio were members of a drug syndicate, headed by Usman Salaemang and spent part of the money from selling the illegal drug to fund insurgency in three southernmost provinces of Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2010-08-13

Edited August 12, 2010 by webfact

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Khunying Jaruvan refuses to step down despite pressure

BANGKOK (NNT) -- Embattled Auditor-General Khunying Jaruvan Maintaka has reaffirmed to continue her role in the job despite the Council of State's suggestion that her term of office had ended since 2007.

Khunying Jaruvan downplayed any problems in the operation of the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) while saying that her deputy, Mr Phisit Leelawachiropas, who was recently appointed as Acting Auditor-General, could perform his duty as mandated by the law.

She instructed the Committee of the Council of State to review the previous ruling in 2000 when Mr Meechai Ruchupan acted as its chairman. The ruling stipulated that the Committee had no authority in the legal interpretation pertaining to the OAG.

The dispute over the status of Khunying Jaruvan as Auditor-General flared up after members of the Senate cast doubt over whether she should have retired last month when she reached the mandatory retirement age of 65 years.

-- NNT 2010-08-13

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11 provinces warned of heavy rainfalls, flashfloods

BANGKOK (NNT) -- The Thai Meteorological Department has issued its daily weather forecast, warning 11 provinces of heavy rainfalls and flashfloods.

According to the Thai Meteorological Department, a severe southwestern monsoon is moving across Thailand, the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand while a tropical wave is sweeping through the East and the Central Plains. As a result, abundant rainfalls and possible flashfloods will be seen in several provinces across the country in the next few days.

People in risk-prone areas along foothills, near waterways and in lowlands should beware of flashfloods and heavy downpours in the days ahead. The 11 high-risk provinces include Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phayao, Nan, Phrae, Uttaradit, Tak, Phetchabun, Loei, Chanthaburi and Trat. All boaters are urged to exercise caution while proceeding offshore.

The department also advises all travelers heading to Japan to closely monitor the weather forecast before departure due to Tropical Storm Dianmu, which is currently active in the area.

-- NNT 2010-08-13

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HUMAN TRAFFICKING

Thai-registered ship carrying Tamils on its way to Canada

TORONTO: -- The Canadian Coast Guard has reportedly boarded the Thai-registered cargo ship believed to be carrying up to 500 Tamils off the coast of British Columbia.

The ship, which has been at sea since April, is expected to arrive in Victoria by Thursday night or early Friday morning, Canadian media reported.

There are reports that dozens on board have developed tuberculosis while crossing the Pacific. The Vancouver Sun reported that one of the passengers has died.

A Victoria hospital ward is being sanitized and prepared to treat the sick, and some may have to be quarantined.

The Canadian government is expecting some of those on board to claim refugee status.

Sri Lanka's high commissioner to Canada is urging the government to refuse refugee status, claiming the operation is not a humanitarian voyage, but rather linked to the Tamil Tigers.

There are reports the ship is involved in human trafficking.

The Tamil Refugee Coordinating Committee plans to reveal how they are preparing to help at York University Thursday morning.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

Edited August 12, 2010 by webfact

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PM briefs envoys on emergency, reconciliation

By The Nation

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday briefed foreign envoys from 23 countries about the lifting of the state of emergency and the reconciliation roadmap.

Abhisit told the diplomats his government would next week revoke the emergency state in some provinces-however he did not say how many and which provinces.

The government would do its best to safeguard the basic human rights of people residing in provinces under the emergency regulations, he said.

Government spokesman Panithan Wattanayakorn quoted the prime minister as saying distinguished figures and former prime ministers have joined the reconciliation campaign.

The spokesman said the foreign envoys were satisfied with the briefing and considered the general image of Thailand had improved. They were confident the country was on the right track to restoring security in the community.

Panithan said some diplomats had expressed approval for the country's justice system following the response to the red-shirt leaders and the appeal ruling on ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra's Bt46 billion assets case.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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FOOTBALL

Thai-based King Power Group takes over Leicester City

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Report urges action on backlog of Southern security cases

By Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation

More senior judges or those with extensive experience as well as more public prosecutors are needed to handle the mounting backlog of security related cases as a result of the continuing violence in the deep South, a recently released report compiled by human rights groups recommended.

As of last August, statistics showed that more than 545 securityrelated cases were awaiting hearings and 548 people were being held in prison without being granted temporary release.

"There is also no compensation for many who were wrongly affected by the GT200 bomb detector. Schools such as Islam Burapha, which was shut because of the hoax detector, remain shut," Preeda Thongchumnum, legal officer at the Cross Cultural Foundation, who spent years researching in Pattani and contributed to the report compiled by the foundation and the Muslim Attorney Centre, told The Nation yesterday.

The report suggests that the courts should learn about "the root cause of the Southern conflict issue and should take the views and information from civil society into consideration".

What is more, the justice process should be nondiscriminatory.

"There have been cases where the officials [summoned by the court] were able to claim they were engaged with government duties and asked to postpone the hearing many times."

The hearing schedule should also be more flexible, while public prosecutors should be able to exercise their authority independently and impartially in screening cases.

In another report on the 2004 Tak Bai incident in Narathiwat, which led to 78 deaths and an inquest, Preeda and cowriter Darunee Paisanpanichkul, who worked for the Internal Commission of Jurists, concluded that relatives of those injured or killed faced obstacles when seeking access to the postmortem process.

"The postmortem examinations took place at the Provincial Court of Songkhla, which is very far from Pattani and Narathiwat where the relatives [of those affected by the Tak Bai massacre] live. Coupled with security concerns in travelling such a long distance, it simply compromised their access to justice and participation," the report said.

"It is therefore recommended that convenience and the safety of the relatives of the injured parties must be taken into account by the justice system and efforts must be genuinely made for them to attend the hearings and to access justice."

The two writers also said the justice process under martial law in the three southernmost provinces must be in line with the rule of law as stipulated in the Constitution.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Investigate Yala detainee's death, lawyer demands

By Don Pathan

The Nation

The lawyer of a suspected militant who died on Wednesday evening after being held in Yala's provincial prison since April is demanding a thorough investigation into the death of Mahkoseng Pohtae, 39.

Adilan AliIshak of the Muslim Attorney Centre (MAC) said Mahkoseng was taken to Yala Hospital on Wednesday evening suffering from a sudden chest pain.

"His mother went to see him on Monday and I had a meeting with him on August 5 and he seemed fine," Adilan said.

The fact that Mahkoseng died in custody raised a number of questions, the lawyer said.

Mahkoseng's family has filed a formal complaint against police in Yala's Yaha district, accusing them of torturing the suspect, resulting in serious injuries that required regular medical attention up until his death.

A senior provincial officer in Yala confirmed that Mahkoseng had been in and out of hospital for treatment for injuries that Adilan suspects related to torture carried out immediately after his arrest in April. Adilan also suspected that Mahkoseng's chest pain on Wednesday stemmed from injuries inflicted upon his client during the alleged torture.

Police had accused Mahkoseng of being a member of a local insurgent cell. He had been under detention pending trial since his arrest. His family denied the charges and complained through various channels to government agencies.

Sources in the government said Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva had taken special interest in Mahkoseng's case after his mother filed charges against the local police unit, accusing them of torturing her son.

Doctors at Yala Hospital examined Mahkoseng's body on Wednesday evening. Government regulations require an autopsy of a suspected criminal who dies in custody.

Adilan said Mahkoseng's family had requested a more thorough autopsy but the hospital administrators said any further postmortem examination had to be done at Songklanakarin Hospital in Hat Yai and that the victim's family would have to come up with the money for the service.

According to Yala Hospital, said Adilan, it had done its part according to regulations, pointing to the fact that the family, a legal representative, and lawenforcement officers were present at the hospital at the time of the postmortem examination.

Adilan said local residents and family friends were prepared to help with the cost but the Mahkoseng's family members changed their mind and buried him on Thursday afternoon in line with Islamic tradition.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Students awed by science, technology fair

By Wannapa Khaopa

The Nation

Are you the sort of person who likes reading murder reports or whodunit books and solving cases? If you do, then there's a chance for you to get some firsthand experience of forensic investigation.

The forensic science booth - one of the highlights at this year's National Science and Technology Fair - showcases a mock murder that visitors are encouraged to solve.

Before entering the murder site, visitors are first given testimonies from three suspects detailing their relationship with the victim, and the last time they saw him. With this information at hand, visitors then get to enter the seen and use forensic evidence to identify the killer.

"The murder scene is scary. There is lots of blood, but it's also exciting to see how forensic officers solve cases. I wanted to see how they worked," Passanee Salaewong, a 16yearold student from Bangna Commercial College (BCC), said after visiting the booth. "Members of the staff taught me how to observe the scene, analyse the evidence and check fingerprints."

Once the investigation is completed, visitors get to identify who they think the murderer is by putting a plastic ball in a box in front of the suspects' pictures.

Those wanting to know if they named the correct suspect would have to wait until August 22, the last day of the fair, when the answer will be announced as well as posted on the Central Institute of Forensic Science's website.

The fair, which kicked off last Saturday, is being held by the Science and Technology Ministry in cooperation with the National Science Museum at BITEC in Bang Na.

Suttida Misa, 15, another BCC student, recounted her experiences at the "World Crisis" booth, where she got a chance to witness natural disasters through a 4Dsimulator.

"Seeing what might happen to the world is scary. I will do my best to conserve the environment," the student said.

Tenyearold Wararit Amornphong, who was accompanied by his mum, found the light and laser booth most interesting because he got to learn about the different aspects of laser technology.

Most students visiting the fair found the fair stunning. In fact, three students from a Chon Buri school were practically overcome by the many different things up on offer.

"I learned so many new things here," 15yearold Wattana Narksuk enthused. He too recommended the light and laser booth, as well as the one that challenges visitors with mathematical games.

Korawit Chitbanyong, 17, said he was most interested in the biodiversity booth, because he got to learn about animals he had never heard of before.

He and his fellow student, 16yearold Nawee Kokain, also liked the Royal Pavilion where they learned about the royal family's work in science and technology. Also, Nawee got a chance to treat fake wounds and try his hand at shooting guns in the Defence Ministry's booth.

Visitors also got to learn about nanotechnology, emerging infectious diseases, technology for the disabled and automation technology.

About 1.2 million people are expected to visit this fair, which is being held to promote public understanding about science and technology.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Farmers in Uttaradit seek quick solution

By Mayuree Sukyingcharoenwong

The Nation

Residents of Ban Nong Ya Lam in Uttaradit's Tha Pla district are urging government agencies to solve a long-standing issue of farmland overlapping conserved forestland and state-owned land affecting about half the 8,000 families there.

They also asked for progress on the Huai Nam Ree reservoir construction project that would tackle the farming water shortage, threatening to hold a protest if the government kept ignoring their woes.

The Tha Pla association of kamnan and village headmen's president, Kham Jaiyapiangkaew, and his family were among the 4,500 families moved to the allocated lands at the Nan River self-help settlement after their original lands were expropriated for the Sirikit Dam construction over 40 years ago. They gained no real rights to the new lands, some of which were said a decade later to be conserved forestland. He said the villagers have fought for the right to land, but until now they haven't received land title deeds, which deprives them from the land documents required to apply for bank loans to fund their farming activities.

"We've been waiting patiently and peacefully for help with our farming land and water shortage plight. From now on, if the state agencies continue to ignore us we will have to act," Kham said.

Claiming the community located upstream from Sirikit Dam will benefit from it, he called for the Huai Nam Ree reservoir construction project - approved as a royal project with a Bt4.1 billion fund in 2006 but shelved after a landslide disaster - to have an impact assessment and allowed to become the villagers' source of farming water.

Another villager Chamlong Buasomboon, 60, lamented that state officials had notified her the seven-rai land she lived on was a public land and she must move out or pay a rental fee. She said she and other villagers fhad ought for the rights to the land and she wouldn't know what to do if the lands were ruled to be public.

Having no land title deeds, she said she couldn't borrow money for farming from banks and resorted to borrowing from a loan shark who charged 5 per cent interest, so the Bt30,000 she borrowed took two years to fully pay back.

Privy Councillor Air Chief Marshal Kamthon Sindhvananda visited the area and said all agencies were working to solve the land issue. The Royal Forestry Department was working on amending the law to transfer the lands in question to the Treasury Department so they would become state-owned property before they could be allocated and issued with land title deeds for the affected residents. He said the reservoir project was still in the government's consideration process and the Office of His Majesty's Principal Private Secretary would follow through its progress to materialise by the end of this year.

The reservoir project's adviser Dnuja Sindhvananda confirmed that state agencies were working to solve the problem over the 11,880 rai of land occupied by the affected 4,500 families. They had sacrificed their land to the Sirikit Dam construction between 1968 and 1971, only to find later their new land overlapped conserved forestland and public land. Therefore, as an initial solution, 1,040 families would get land title deeds for 9,877 rais within this year. The Nan River self-help settlement covered 50,000 rai of land.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Heroine Thitima has a son

By The Nation

A woman named as a heroine while nine months pregnant, gave birth to a boy baby yesterday - Mother's Day.

Thitima Yurawan, 33, who helped police arrest car thieves on August 5 - despite being nine months into her pregnancy - gave birth by Caesarian section to the boy yesterday morning at Phya Thai 3 Hospital in Phasicharoen district of Bangkok.

Her husband Somchart Wichitrakanlikhit, 36, said Thitima's mother named the baby, Sirawit Wichitrakanlikhit, and his wife would call her son "Hero" as his nickname.

Her family and the stolen car's owner Angkhana Boonyong, 54, and media members went to the hospital yesterday to give her moral support.

Hero is the couple's second child.

Earlier, Her Majesty the Queen praised Thitima's courage in her traditional birthday address to the nation on Wednesday evening.

"Our family is really delighted that HM the Queen praised my wife as a good role model for society. We appreciate that she blessed our son to be a healthy, brave and good person in society," Somchart said.

The hospital rewarded Thitima by offering the freeofcharge operation and also offered her son baby vaccinations free of charge.

Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra led Bangkok people in offering alms to 279 monks to celebrate the Queen's Birthday at the Sanam Luang area.

Magnificent exhibitions to honour HM the Queen were organised at the Royal Plaza and meritmaking activities were held countrywide to celebrate the occasion as well.

Meanwhile, Phitsanulok Provincial Statistical Office head Kitisak Phosri said the province had the highest number of people who wrote online messages extending their best wishes to HM the Queen. They totalled 30,300, equivalent to 25 per cent of all the people who wrote messages nationwide. Bangkok was ranked second.

Kitisak said people could post online messages to send their best wishes to HM the Queen until August 31.

Later, the online channel would be available for people to send their best wishes to HM the King to celebrate Father's Day which falls on December 5.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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South blast injures 3; bomb found in north

By The Nation

Two victims in serious condition; emergency in Chiang Mai to be lifted, says Abhisit

Two bombrelated incidents took place yesterday, one detonated in the deep South possibly by insurgents which wounded three policemen, and the other in Chaing Mai as a bomb scare intended to merely cause disruption.

At around noon, the roadside bomb attack in Narathiwat wounded three policemen and caused property damage. It was planted near a busy petrol station in Ra Ngae district, blasting at a police pickup which the three wounded officers were occupying while causing damage to another three vehicles.

Police said the homemade bomb, using fivekg explosives contained in a metal box and detonated through a mobile phone, could have buried at the site after 9 pm Wednesday night after the petrol station was closed. They did not say whether political motives were behind the explosion, as the site was also located near the home of Matuphum Party MP Najmudeen Uma.

Two of the officers are still in critical conditions and being treated in Songkhla's Hat Yai district, where 50 people donate blood for their surgeries in an hour's time after a request for blood was made public. The one not seriously wounded is receiving treatment in Narathiwat.

In Chiang Mai at around 9 am, a bomb was found planted at a bus stop in front of a school in Chiang Mai's Pa Tong district, before it was disposed of by a bombs disposal robot.

The bomb, contained in a potato ship can with its detonator powered by a pair of batteries, was active and ready to go off if detonated, said police ordnance personnel.

Police said the incident was intended to merely cause disruption, but did not comment about who could be behind it.

Responding to the Chiang Mai bomb scare, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said he was considering lifting the state of emergency in Chiang Mai, wihch is a stronghold of antigovernment red shirts, and other touristfrequented provinces anyway in the next week regardless of the incident.

"Chiang Mai is one the provinces being put under consideration over revocation of the emergency state, as the business sector are complaning about effects on tourism," he added.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Mae Ping close to overflowing

By The Nation

Flash floods continue to hit the North following days of heavy rains, causing a five-year record surge in Chiang Mai where a bridge has collapsed leaving two entire villages stranded.

Mae Ping River sections in Chiang Dao district are swelling and have inundated several areas. The river is also overflowing in Muang district and causing floods in tourist areas such as Night Bazaar and Huay Kaew.

A flood warning over a possible three-metre surge in the Mae Ping River has been issued. The level has come close to a critical height of 3.7 metres.

Two villages in tambon Ping Khong have been left stranded after the only bridge connecting them with the outside world has collapsed due to strong currents. Repairs of the wooden bridge are being conducted. In Lampang, Jae Son National Park has been closed to tourists because of swelling in the Jae Son waterfall and creeks. The currents are full of mud sediment, an indicator of possible landslides. More than 100 families living in many villages nearby have been affected by the flash floods.

More than 150 households in Uttaradit, with a history of mudslides, have been inundated by floods rolling from mountainous areas. Soldiers from local units are helping villagers to move their property to higher areas.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

Edited August 13, 2010 by webfact

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Hun Sen will seek UN chief mediation in Thai border row

Cambodian PM says talks won't resume until earlier agreements are approved by Thai lawmakers

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STREET WISE

The billionaire philanthropists' club can count Thaksin out

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Thai schools nationwide to get free wireless Internet

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Mekong River in danger of becoming Chinese river

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Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) seeks help from overseas Thais

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INTERVIEW

Thailand 'still attractive base for foreigners'

By Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation

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DSI 'cannot give information to Amsterdam'

By The Nation

The chief of the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) yesterday turned down a request by fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra's foreign lawyer for information regarding witnesses and evidence in the terrorism case against red-shirt leaders.

Tharit Pengdit, director-general of the DSI, said he had not received the letter reportedly sent to him by Robert Amsterdam, an American lawyer hired by Thaksin to present his case against the Thai government.

"I don't know the purpose of that letter in question. And I have not seen or read it yet," Tharit told reporters yesterday.

He said that the law would prevent him from providing Amsterdam with the information he wanted. "It's because the DSI now has completed its job. We have handed over the investigation report and other information to the Attorney-General's Office for court trial," he said.

The Attorney-General's Office on Wednesday decided to indict 19 red-shirt leaders for terrorism acts in connection with the recent political unrest that followed 10 weeks of protest by the red shirts in Bangkok. Some 90 people were killed and over 1,000 injured during the turmoil.

Meanwhile, spokesman for the opposition Pheu Thai Party, Prompong Nopparit, yesterday criticised the DSI and the Attorney-General's Office for "rushing" the case against the red-shirt leaders.

He said that while the investigation and indictment of red-shirt leaders had been expedited and completed- without questioning of witnesses suggested by the accused - the cases in which protesters were victims progressed very slowly. "It appears they are serving politicians in power rather than people," he said, referring to the authorities involved.

Prompong also pointed out that a recent written request by Justice Minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga for an early decision on the case against the red-shirt leaders might have pressured the public prosecutors' decision to indict.

The Pheu Thai spokesman said that in comparison, there was slow progress in the case against leaders of the yellow shirts, the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD). He said the yellow-shirt leaders were also accused of terrorism acts for taking over Bangkok's airports in 2008.

"This is a pity for Thailand. The justice system has been used as a political tool against the government's political enemies and opponents," he said.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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Thaksin should accept assets seizure as karma, says Thepthai

By The Nation

Ousted and fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra should accept the Supreme Court's decision to throw out his plea on the Bt46 billion asset seizure as part of "the law of karma" for those who committed bad deeds, said Thepthai Saenphong, spokesperson for the leader of the ruling Democrat Party.

Thepthai said there was no use for Thaksin to struggle further as the decision to throw out the appeal was final. Thepthai added he believes no foreign groups can pressure the Thai court to change its decision. He added that Thaksin's claim that he is being unfairly treated didn't hold water as the case went through the justice system.

Thaksin, warned Thepthai, should not use the case to rally political support. On Wednesday, 119 Supreme Court judges voted 103 to 4 against Thaksin's plea on the landmark case.

What's more, said Thepthai, the confiscation of Thaksin's Bt46 billion assets was not extreme as the former premier appeared to be still very wealthy.

Thepthai rebutted an earlier remark by red-shirt leader and Pheu Thai MP Jatuporn Promphan that the assets seizure will have no bearing on red shirts who operate through popular donations such as staging fund-raising concerts. Thepthai said red shirts depended on large sums of money and spent some Bt10 to B20 millions per day while staging their protest in April and May this year.

Meanwhile, Promphong Nopparit, spokesperson of the Pheu Thai Party, accused Thepthai and the Democrat Party of hypocrisy by insisting the government wanted to work towards reconciliation.

Promphong said Thepthai's remark was insensitive and advised Thepthai not to "poke his nose" into other's businesses. It was up to Thaksin to consider what to do next.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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PM vows to solve issues of water and forest in response to the Queen’s remarks

BANGKOK (NNT) -- Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Thursday stressed the Government’s readiness to solve water and forest-related problems in response to Her Majesty the Queen’s remarks on water and forest preservation.

According to the Prime Minister, forestation and the artificial reef programs have been highlighted most during the past year of his administration. From now on, the government will closely monitor the intrusion of agricultural land and deforestation as well as other land-related problems.

In addition, special means have been implemented to tackle water problems both at hand and in a long run. The Government’s Strong Thailand Scheme under the supervision of the Ministry of Science and Technology has widened opportunities for the government to closely monitor the water situations nationwide.

-- NNT 2010-08-13

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Overnight incessant rain in southern Ranong, landslide blocks roads; meteorological dept warns of flash flood in North /vai @MCOTEnglishnews

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Jail for US pair in Thai film fest graft scandal

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Man released after suspicion of bombing cleared

Chanasongkhram police on Friday released a man after detaining him overnight on suspicion of trying to plant a bomb at Sanam Luang.

Checks on Roongphet Muangsoon found traces of potassium nitrate, a precursor chemical for bomb making, but the substance was not used as explosive in this case, superintendent Colonel Khing Kwaeng Wisetchaichan said.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13

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EMERGENCY STATE

Northern Army Region recommends for lifting emergency rule

By The Nation

Thanongsak

The military recommendation for lifting the state of emergency in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai has been forwarded to the government, 3rd Army Region commander Lt General Thanongsak Apirakyodhin said on Friday.

Thanongsak ruled out the bombing incident in San Kamphaeng, Chiang Mai on Thursday would impact on his recommendation.

"According to police report, the bombing might involve teenagers and did not intend take life," he said.

He said the military could invoke the security law if the situation deteriorated after the emergency lifting.

-- The Nation 2010-08-13