Thailand Live Tuesday 17 Aug 2010

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Thailand Live Tuesday 17 August 2010

News, Bits and Tweets

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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...

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Related topic: Thailand Live Monday 16 August 2010

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THA: Tourist number may slip if politics still unstable

BANGKOK (NNT) -- Thailand may lose a portion of its foreign tourists to neighboring countries if politics remains unstable, according to Director of the Thai Hotels Association (THA) Sakkarin Chorsawai.

Mr Sakkarin indicated that travelers usually made their hotel reservations during August-September of every year in advance of their trips in the high tourist season from October to December. However, he revealed that the booking rate this year had been sluggish due to the

political uncertainty in Thailand. Currently, most tourists checking into hotels are Thai nationals.

On the other hand, Mr Sakkarin expected the hotel occupancy rate to rebound during the high season. He confirmed that tourism in Phuket, Samui Island and Pattaya was still lively with satisfactory occupancy rates, which were only slightly lower than last year.

The THA Director attributed the slack hotel booking rate in the country to the political unrest and series of bombing incidents. He further mentioned that unless the domestic political atmosphere returned to normalcy at haste, Thailand could lose a considerable number of foreign tourists to neighboring countries, such as China, Singapore and Malaysia.

-- NNT 2010-08-17

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Northern residents prepared for sudden floods

BANGKOK (NNT) -- Nakhon Phanom and Chiang Rai Provincial Operation Centers have stepped up preparation for possible flooding in the provinces.

The continual heavy rainfalls in Nakhon Phanom have caused a steady increase of water level in the Mekong River to almost its critical level. The water level had reportedly risen up to 9 metres, with two metres away from the highest level. Once the water reaches its peak, agricultural lands will be harmed by the overflow.

In preparation of a serious flooding, Nakhon Phanom Provincial Operation Center has coordinated with the manipulation office to heighten safety measures and prepare sufficient life-saving kits for ferry ride in case of water incidents.

Meanwhile, Chiang Rai Provincial Operation Center has issued a warning of a sudden rise of the water level in Mae Kok and Lao Rivers within the next couple of days. Chiang Rai Provincial Operation Center has been tasked to monitor water situation and to be ready for flash flood around the clock.

-- NNT 2010-08-17

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3 districts of Nakhon Ratchasima at risk of flashfloods

BANGKOK, 16 August 2010 (NNT) – The Nakhon Ratchasima Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office has warned dwellers of three districts in the province of flashfloods due to frequent heavy rains during this period.

Chief of the Nakhon Ratchasima Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office Piyachat Insawang stated that three districts of the province, namely Soeng Sang, Pak Chong and Wang Nam Khiao, were now at risk of flashfloods resulting from continuous torrential rains.

Areas around Khao Yai National Park in Pak Chong district were also highlighted as vulnerable. People residing in the mentioned districts were thus encouraged to take precautions against sudden floods during this period.

However, Ms Piyachat stated that the office had already established several operation centers throughout Nakhon Ratchasima province.

The duties of the centers are to provide immediate assistance for people affected by disasters in the province and to continually provide people with updates on weather conditions via local media to help them prepare for immediate evacuation.

-- NNT 2010-08-17

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Yellow Shirt protester given suspended jail term for attempted murder of police officers

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HRH special commander

By The Nation

HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, who holds an Army general ranking, has been assigned as special commander of the Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy.

The Royal Gazette yesterday published the Prime Minister's Office announcement issued in August.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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Upgrades for Chatuchak museums

By The Nation

The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has invested Bt100 million to renovate the Children's Museum in Chatuchak area and to open another Children's Museum in Bang Mod area this December, a senior official said yesterday.

The BMA would also allocate Bt35 million in administration budget for the Chatuchak museum, currently under 15-month renovation, and Bt36 million in administration funds to the Bang Mod museum, BMA deputy governor Thaya Theepasuwan said.

The Chatuchak museum, which featured activities and playthings for child development in three age groups: 0-3 years old, 4-6, and 7 to 9, will be reopened in April next year. While the Bang Mod museum, which was planned to also function as a family centre, would open in December, she said.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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Govt will fund rubber to meet world demand

By The Nation

The government is planning to obtain a Bt8-billion loan to fund an extended project to plant rubber in an area totalling 800,000 rai across the country, Deputy Agriculture Minister Supachai Phosu said yesterday.

The money will be granted as soft-loans to rubber planters participating in the scheme, which was aimed at boosting rubber production volume to cope with growing global demand, he said.

The scheme will be implemented by the Office of the Rubber Replanting Aid Fund (RRAF) under the ministry's supervision. Rubber planters can repay the loan through a revenue scheme contributed to by rubber exporters who will profit from the rise in global rubber prices.

In its previous phase, RRAF subsidised rubber plantations for the first three years, with planters shouldering the cost for the next four years, in the seven-year period when rubber trees began to yield harvests.

In this phase, the RRAF will offer loans at low-interest rates throughout the seven-year period while planters and exporters share the profits, which are also raised to ensure a minimum profit for the planters.

Supachai said he could guarantee there would be no profiteering by politicians or anyone involved in the scheme.

Worrathep Wongsasutthikul, who serves on a national committee on promotion of administrative decentralisation, said rubber would be a key product in high demand across the globe, as synthetic rubber becomes rarer while the world's petroleum supply begins to run out.

Thailand has been and will be a major rubber production hub in the long run, because of a growing world population and 90 per cent of raw rubber produced in Asia.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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BURAPHA U ACCIDENT

Police to look into bulding collapse

By The Nation

Police have launched an investigation to see how parts of a building under construction inside the Burapha University campus collapsed on Sunday night.

The collapse killed one worker, Rung Paesa, and injured three others.

University president Sompol Pongthai yesterday expressed condolences to the victims and their families, adding that one of the injured people had been discharged from hospital and another was expected to leave today.

"The third victim is receiving full medical attention at the university's hospital," Sompol said.

The family of the dead victim, meanwhile, has been given Bt70,000 in initial compensation via an insurance policy bought by the construction firm, Brilliant Engineering.

Speaking at a press conference, Sompol dismissed rumours that more had been injured and that some were students. "This is groundless," he said.

He also denied that the building was being constructed on a plot where there was once a pond.

Sompol said he did not know why parts of the building being constructed had crumbled, adding that he would leave it up to police and public-works officials from the Tambon Sansuk Municipality to determine what was behind the accident.

"I believe we should determine the cause within seven days," he said.

Chon Buri police chief Maj-General Thanes Pinmueang-ngarm said the scene of the accident was cordoned off.

"We are gathering evidence," he said.

The accident took place at the construction site of the Faculty of Education's new auditorium, which is to be completed by September next year.

Provincial Police Region 2 commander Maj-General Suwira Songmettha said police would summon foreman Krissada Patiyatyothin, Burapha University's construction supervisor Taweechai Samranwanich, engineer Wallop Rungrueang, Brilliant Engineering's construction director Surapol Ngarmlert and the firm's manager Pratuan Ritdamrong for questioning.

Krissada and builder Samriang Phosritas have already been charged with recklessness leading to injuries and deaths of others.

Labour Protection and Welfare Department director-general Amporn Nitisiri said that if the scaffolding at the construction site were found to be substandard, those involved would face up to one year in jail and/or a maximum fine of Bt200,000. A team of academics had initially brought up the scaffolding issue.

Deputy Education Minister Chaiyos Chiramethakorn, meanwhile, has vowed to take action if corruption played a role in this case. He said his ministry had sent a circular to all educational institutes telling them to supervise their construction projects closely.

He said universities should turn to their engineering faculties for help.

Burapha University vice president Dr Wirogana Ruengphrathuengsuka, who previously served as dean of the university's Faculty of Engineering, said that if the construction was conducted in line with the correct principles, the building should not have collapsed.

The Office of the Higher Education Commission has also promised to follow up on the collapse.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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STEM CELL

Medical Council okays stem-cell retinal treatment

By Pongphon Sarnsamak

The Nation.

The Medical Council has approved two stem cell research projects at Siriraj Hospital for the treatment of retinal damage in the eyes of children and adults which could prevent blindness, said council president Dr Somsak Lohlekha.

The council's new regulations on which the approval is based are Thailand's first in controlling stem-cell research, after public complaints about fake and harmful stem-cell treatment being commercially advertised by some private clinics.

Since the regulations took effect in May, 15 stem-cell studies were submitted to the Medical Council. Only two were approved by its subcommittee.

However, the council has expressed concern over possible complications during the treatment using stem-cell therapy, as researchers will directly inject stem cells into a patient's retina, which is the back of the eyeball.

"Researchers must be clearly informed about possible complications during the treatment, as we still do not know what kind of tissue or organ the stem cell will develop into after being injected into the human body," Somsak said.

Previously, The Nation reported the case of an end-stage kidney patient who died after she received stem-cell injections at a private clinic in Bangkok and developed complications.

The case was revealed by Dr Duangpen Thirabanjasak, a researcher in the Department of Pathology at Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Medicine, and a colleague in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto in Canada.

Their finding was published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

Duangpen said she had examined kidney tissue collected from a 46-year-old female patient who had suffered from systemic lupus erythematosus, an ulcerous skin disease, for 20 years.

In 2006, the patient went to the private clinic for stem-cell therapy, where she was given multiple direct injections of autologous stem cells into the regions of both kidneys during a single visit.

Although no details of the treatment conducted by the private clinic were available, Duangpen said the woman's condition did not improve and six months later she developed pain in her left side.

The patient's kidney tissues were examined and abnormal cells called angiomyeloproliferative lesions were found at the injection site.

"The abnormality looked like a cluster of blood vessels and bone-marrow cells," she said

Somsak said this stem-cell therapy treatment for the end-stage kidney patient was not standard treatment approved by the Medical Council.

The council did not investigate the case as it was still waiting for complaints from people who could provide details before it could get started.

"Moreover, the case must be reported as news in the media so the Medical Council can conduct an investigation to find out any wrongdoers and recommend penalties," he said.

Under the Medical Council's regulations on stem-cell treatment, the council has approved only one standard treatment - the transplanting of bone marrow to treat leukaemia, which has been used for more than 40 years.

Dr Niphan Isarasena of Chulalongkorn University's Stem Cell and Cell Therapy Unit said the international community strongly condemned treatment using stem-cell therapy after an end-stage kidney patient died after receiving such treatment, and the case was published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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YOUTUBE'S MEGAHIT

Dance number by Tourist Police is major hit on YouTube

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New security measures needed to deter hackers

By The Nation

To deter hacking into bank accounts and online theft, an authentication procedure requiring more details than usernames and passwords might become mandatory in the future, at a cost to be borne by customers.

"A customer will probably be asked to send in a request through SMS, and be given back shortly a series of codes or personal verification entries, which will be keyed in at ATMs," Chim Tantiyaswasdikul, assistant governor of the Bank of Thailand, said yesterday.

The "two-factor authentication" is used in many countries under central bank regulations, and also among corporate customers in Thailand, but not yet with individuals, said Chim.

The central bank agrees that this system is needed, but it hasn't consulted commercial banks, which have to invest more, he said.

Recently two Germans allegedly hacked into the Bangkok Bank account of an Army officer, and stole Bt700,000, raising security concerns among authorities and the public. In June, a woman lost Bt1.2 million from her account at the same bank, not long after she applied for an e-banking service and checked her account online just once.

These crimes might shake public confidence in a new large-scale e-banking system that the central bank is planning to support.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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JUNO BILL

Assembly aims to ease Thai students ordeal

By Wannapa Khaopa

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GOVT'S SPENDING PROGRAMME

Populist policies set to roll

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PHRA VIHARN DISPUTE

PM's approval of JBC study may stall border talks

By The Nation, agencies

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday the government agreed with the setting up of a parliamentary joint panel to study minutes of the Thai-Cambodian joint boundary committee meeting, which could further delay negotiations on a border settlement near the Hindu temple of Preah Vihear.

The Foreign Ministry submitted for Parliament's reading proceedings from the Thai-Cambodia Joint Boundary Commission's (JBC) three meetings on border settlement.

If the JBC's minutes are approved by Parliament, the commission will continue its negotiations with Cambodia over the boundary demarcation.

A group of senators opposed the approval and called for the government to revoke a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for land boundary demarcation signed with Cambodia in 2000, which is a basic legal document for the JBC.

The MOU, signed during the Democrat-led administration under Chuan Leekpai, recognised a French-made map of 1:200,000 scale, which indicates a boundary line in favour of Cambodia.

Under pressure from the Senate and the nationalist People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), Abhisit said he supported a Senate proposal to have a joint parliamentary panel study the JBC's document before Parliament approved it.

Activist Veera Somkwamkid yesterday lodged petitions with Parliament speaker Chai Chidchob and Premier Abhisit, demanding they withdraw the JBC documents from Parliament's consideration.

Parliament was supposed to discuss the JBC document late last year but Abhisit's government put it off after a diplomatic row with Cambodia over an appointment of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra as an adviser to the Hun Sen government.

Thailand and Cambodia have been at loggerheads over Preah Vihear since the World Heritage Committee added it to the World Heritage List of 2008. The listing has nothing to do with the boundaries, but Thailand feared Cambodia would use the disputed areas adjacent to the temple as a buffer zone.

The government managed to buy time for the World Heritage Committee's consideration of the temple's management plan.

The move prompted anger from Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who said the two countries might not be able to solve the problem bilaterally. Hun Sen wrote letters to the United Nations accusing the Abhisit government of threatening to use force against Cambodia.

Cambodia's Foreign Minister Hor Namhong wrote to seek assistance from Asean to end the conflict with Thailand and discussed the issue with Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan in Phnom Penh yesterday.

"We certainly would like to see a peaceful resolution to any problem in Asean," Surin said after meeting Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong.

He said he would await a decision by Asean foreign ministers before responding to Cambodia's request for regional help in resolving the row, which Hun Sen has warned could lead to bloodshed. Surin, a former Thai foreign minister, also listened to Hun Sen on the issue.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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BUDGET BILL

MPs gear up for three days of 2011 Budget talks

By PIYANART SRIVALO,

YOSSAWADEE HONGTHONG

The Nation

The final stretch of the budget debate will last over three days from tomorrow as every Cabinet member is called on to clarify planned spendings, coalition chief whip Witthaya Kaewparadai said yesterday.

"The coalition and opposition MPs are expected to debate the budgetary allocations for some 36 hours before voting for the passage of the Budget Bill," he said.

Witthaya said the opposition had already agreed to the time allotted and that the debate be broadcast live on state-run radio and television outlets.

Coalition lawmakers are expected to turn up in full force to ensure the quorum for debate and vote, he said.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has instructed Cabinet members to be present at the debate, except for those with prior engagements to attend a royal function.

Coalition parties are obligated to ensure full attendance by a total of 260 government MPs. The Puea Pandin Party, though siding with the coalition, has some dissident MPs sitting on the opposition bench. The opposition has 210 votes.

Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said the coalition was confident on passage of the 2011 Budget.

Suthep ruled out speculation on a coalition rift which could jeopardise the vote, saying the coalition alliance was intact and ready to support the budgetary allocations.

He refused to comment on news reports that certain MPs from Puea Pandin might reject the spending plans, saying he was not mindful about individual votes when the coalition could ensure the bill's passage.

He repeated the denial of any linkage between the rejection of the CNG bus project and the budget vote.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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BURNING ISSUE

Some history on that border temple

By Avudh Panananda

The Nation

A vast number of Thai citizens may find that the Preah Vihear Temple controversy causes feelings of wounded pride, but dwelling on the past will only bring grief and misery to all parties concerned.

Thailand must come to terms with its past and move forward instead of trying to right an "unrightable" wrong. Cambodia too must learn to overcome pettiness to be an understanding neighbour.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled in 1962 that the temple was on Cambodian land. And Unesco's World Heritage Committee agreed to list the temple as a World Heritage site in 2008.

What is the urgency to stir up an international dispute over the site management plan for a temple that has survived the elements since the 11th century?

If the two neighbouring countries opt to quarrel on what they see as their rightful territory, then the verbal spat might soon escalate into a war, with regrettable and tragic consequences.

Regardless of what politicians say or do, Thais should heed the lesson of history before charting their next move on the temple.

To put the controversy in context, it is necessary to trace the issue back to the Franco-Siamese War in 1863, to a time when France was expanding into Indochina and Thailand had to cede territory in Laos and Cambodia. Two Franco-Siamese treaties in 1904 and 1907 formalised the hand-over of Thai territory in exchange for safeguarding Thai independence from the colonial power.

Based on provisions in the 1907 treaty, a mixed commission was formed to demarcate the border, relying on the watershed of the Dongrak mountain range. France, then the colonial power in the region, unilaterally deviated from the watershed principle to "carve out" the temple for its Cambodian protectorate.

Although Thailand attempted to rectify this injustice of boundary demarcation, its fighting with Vichy France in 1940-41 and the outcome of World War II failed to alter the colonial legacy.

The advent of the Vietnam War prompted the United States to produce a 1:50,000-scale map for battle purposes. It happened that this map, using proper cartographic technology, showed the temple's location as inside Thailand.

In the midst of the Cold War when France was forced to retreat from Indochina, Prasat Khao Phra Viharn, as the temple is known in Thai, was briefly returned to Thai sovereignty, as part of what is now Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district.

But a spat between the Sarit Thanarat government and King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia led to an international dispute over the temple. The ICJ decision returned ownership of the temple back to Cambodia.

Even though the Sarit government conceded defeat in the International Court, it said its conditional acceptance of the ICJ verdict was a decision that had nothing to do with the national boundary and that the area surrounding the temple remained in Thai territory.

As a World Heritage site, the main temple structure is about 800 metres in length. But the problem arises from the temple's management plan, because it covers 4.6 square kilometres. The temple perimeter is unclear, but is estimated to link a series of sanctuaries stretching about 2 kilometres into Thailand.

Pending agreement on the boundary between Thailand and Cambodia based on map-making technology and not colonial legacy, the two neighbours have no irrefutable evidence to back up their respective claims on territory.

In lieu of sabre-rattling, the two ought to keep calm to pave the way for work on border demarcation. All the necessary mechanisms to settle the border dispute are already in place and just await a green light to go into operation.

It would be sheer folly to squabble over a temple built to uplift human spirits to the heavens.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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Bangkok Bus spat is a smokescreen for the sharing of spoils

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Opposition MP Concerned about Democrat Dissolution Case

A senior MP of the opposition Pheu Thai Party has expressed concern that some of the key witnesses in the Democrat Party's dissolution case could change their testimonies after being pressured.

Chairman of the Pheu Thai Party MPs, Chalerm Yoobamrung, has expressed his concern about the possibility that the list of witnesses in the Democrat Party's dissolution case could fall into the wrong hand.

Chalerm has claimed this could affect the case as some of the key witnesses could be pressured into changing their testimonies in court.

However, Chalerm believes that the document evidence and the written testimonies will hold more weight for the judges.

When asked to comment on a remark made by some members of coalition partner Bhum Jai Thai Party that they could work with the Pheu Thai Party in the future, Chalerm said that everything is possible in politics.

He added that it is possible that the Pheu Thai Party could win up to 255 House seats in the next general election.

-- Tan Network 2010-08-17

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Thai stocks open up 1.91 pt, 0.22 pct

Thai composite stocks index (SET) opened on Tuesday at 862.46, up 1.91 point, or 0.22 per cent.

Blue chip SET-50 index was at 586.61, up 0.92 point, or 0.16 per cent.

Top five active (value) stocks: THCOM, TRUE, IVL, CPF, JAS.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

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Blackout in Chalong, Phuket tomorrow

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Army Commander ensures peace and order maintained along Thai-Cambodian border

BANGKOK (NNT) -- The Thai army commander has assured that the army is ready to maintain peace and order on the Thai-Cambodian border.

General Anupong Paochinda, Army Commander in Chief said Thai soldiers have been maintaining order along the border in line with the government’s policy. He has also dismissed reports that Cambodia has deployed more soldiers in the area, adding that soldiers of both sides have been on good terms in spite of the dispute.

The address follows the tense relations between the two countries over the border demarcation issue, which ignited a heated altercation between the two neighboring countries, with each sides accusing the other of infringement on its sovereignty. Meanwhile Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has called on international bodies to help mediate the conflict, whereas Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has urged that the dispute be resolved through bilateral negotiations.

-- NNT 2010-08-17

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Thai Army Chief Denies Armed Confrontation with Cambodia

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Red-Shirt Leader Denies Suspect's Link to Thaksin

A core leader of the Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship said a close aide to late Major General Khattiya Sawasdipol, who was recently arrested in Si Sa Ket province by the police, did not confess to any wrongdoing or to receiving money from a close associate to the fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, to fund violent incidents during the most recent red-shirt protest in Bangkok.

Jatuporn Phrompan, a red-shirt leader, said a lawyer representing the red-shirt protesters told him that Jacharat Kongsuwan, wanted for violating the emergency decree, did not admit to receiving money from a female associate of Thaksin Shinawatra on behalf of Seh Daeng to stage violent incidents.

His statement contradicts a statement made by the Department of Special Investigation which claimed the opposite.

Jatuporn also remarked that Tharit Pengdit, the DSI director general, seems to be making no progress in finding the culprit to the assassination of Major General Khattiya Sawasdipol or Seh Daeng.

Jatuporn added that TODAY a lawyer will apply for bail on behalf of DAAD leaders who are in remand. He said he and Pheu Thai MP Karun Hosakul will make a court appearance on August 19.

-- Tan Network 2010-08-17

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Phrae governor orders search after helicopter carrying senior Natural Resources Ministry officials, disappears from radar screen /MCOT

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Pattaya: Foreign-Thai national arrested in Ya-Ice investigation

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Thailand Restaurants, hotels spared from drinking water price control

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Airport Link connecting Bangkok and Suvarnabhumi airport will begin its commercial services next Monday, State Railway of Thailand governor said /THE NATION

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Mineral Resources Department helicopter missing

A helicopter of the Mineral Resources Department went missing Tuesday morning, officials said.

They said the helicopter could not be accounted for at 7:33 am or about two hours after it lifted off from the department's office in Phitsanulok and headed to Nan to survey a forest.

It lost contract with the control tower while flying over the forest, which straddles Prae and Uttradit.

Officials in Prae were deployed to check the area of forest after villagers said they saw the helicopter flying over the area between Tambon Bankas and Tambon Bankwang in Phrae's Soongmen district.

-- The Nation 2010-08-17

[george]

Miss Thailand Universe 2010 catches heat for looking sexy & “outstandingly lavish”