Thailand Live Wednesday 16 Mar 2011

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HRH Crown Prince bestows 20,000 blankets to be sent to Japan for quake victims /TAN_Network

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DSI Chief Petitions Court to Revoke Red Shirt Bail

Tharit Pengdit has petitioned the Criminal Court to revoke bail granted to seven red shirt leaders.

He claims he has concrete evidence that speeches made on the red shirt rally stage this past Saturday goes against conditions set by the court for their bail.

-- Tan Network 2011-03-16

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Phuket Punchline Comedy sends in the April fools

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British freight boss on sex charges in Thailand found dead

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Body of Malaysian found on Narathaiwat road

NARATHIWAT, March 16 - A Malaysian man was found dead on a road in Narathiwat on Wednesday morning, according to Pol Col Peerapol Na Pattalung, superintendent of the Sungai Padi police station.

The man was identified as Thang Chong Yoeng from Malaysia's Perak state as shown in his identification card found in his wallet. He had been shot three times in the head and torso.

His body was sent to Sungai Padi Hospital for an autopsy and the Thai authorities will contact his relatives to take his body back home for a funeral.

Police initially believed that he was murdered in a robbery. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2011-03-16

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Police Hunt Down Robbers of Violent Gold Shop Robbery in Narathiwat

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Cambodian media reports that PM Hun Sen is setting up committee and hiring lawyer to have Intl Court interpret decision on Preah Vihear /TAN_Network

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Suthep said he doesn't want to press on with nuclear plant construction plan as it would put Thais at risk /BkkPost /via @RichardBarrow:

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Thai Exports to Japan Delayed By Disaster Damage

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Family of Thai Energy Researcher Returns from Japan

The family of a Thai researcher in Japan have returned to Thailand over concerns of a meltdown at the damaged nuclear plants in Fukushima.

At Ubon Ratchathani International Airport, Chompoonut Morachart, a professor from Ubonratchathani Rajabhat University, together with relatives, has welcomed home her 31 year old daughter Sirichon Morachart, as well as her son in law and six year old niece from Tokyo.

Sirichon said her husband is an energy researcher at a private Japanese private company, and her family has lived in Tokyo for the past two years.

During their stay in Japan, they experienced many small earthquakes, as they are quite common, especially in Tokyo, but the most recent quake was the most severe.

She added that for this reason, her family has decided to return to Thailand as they are uncertain about the situation in Japan.

The Japanese government declared a nuclear emergency following an explosion at a nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture.

Her husband then asked for the company's permission to return to Thailand.

She noted that although the explosions are 260 kilometers from Tokyo, there could be an explosion at another nuclear power plant in Tokai, only 120 kilometers from Tokyo.

Sirichon added that a number of Thai people are stranded in Japan, as the price of air tickets has increased two times higher than usual.

She called on people who plan to build nuclear power plants in Thailand to think twice.

Meanwhile, representatives of local residents in all 18 districts in Kalasin Province gathered at Yang Talad District Office to express their disapproval of a plan to build a nuclear power plant in the district, as they fear the risks of the plant, such as the recent events in Japan.

A leader of the protesters claimed that the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand is surveying the area for the construction of a nuclear power plant.

He said if the construction is carried out without a public hearing, they will escalate their protest.

He called on the provincial governor to seek a solution to the problem.

-- Tan Network 2011-03-16

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Kasit Grilled in Censure Debate for Allegedly Mishandling Foreign Policies

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Army chief: Culprits in missing weapons case arrested

BANGKOK, 16 March 2011 (NNT) – Army Chief General Prayut Chan-O-Cha has announced that authorities can arrest all culprits involved with the disappearance of weaponry from Dhanarat Infantry Camp in the southwestern province of Prachuap Khiri Khan.

The army chief confirmed that weapons were missing and were not stolen as previously speculated. He explained that the culprits forged weapon lists submitted to their commanders, and investigation of the case was progressing continuously.

General Prayut stressed that authorities had been trying to retrieve all the missing weapons as fast as possible while those related with this case must be punished accordingly.

The Army Chief admitted that he coould not inspect weapons in all arms depot in person, but the army had its own regulations to manage its supplies with commanders at each level. He said the army empowered its personnel, but regulations must be amended when damages occurred.

Over 100 items of military weaponry had gone missing from the army depot at Dhanarat Infantry Camp at the beginning of March. Some of the missing weapons have been retrieved while culprits have been suspended from duties.

-- NNT 2011-03-16

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Kasit: Thai govt to fully assist Japan

BANGKOK, 16 March 2011 (NNT) – The Thai Government will speedily provide full assistance to Japan as the country is facing with difficulties after an 8.9 magnitude and a deadly tsunami attack on 11 March 2011.

According to Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, the ministry has been assisting Japan in mainly three ways. The ministry will send blankets, garments, personal items and instant food to the Japanese government since at present the weather is relatively cold.

The Thai Government recently has approved a budget of 200 million baht plus the provision of 15,000 tons of rice for Japan. The ministry is now working with the Board of Trade of Thailand to coordinate with companies and factories to help manufacture products for disaster victims.

Meanwhile, the Friends in Need (of ‘Pa’) Volunteers Foundation of the Thai Red Cross has also been requested to manufacture related products in this mission.

Mr Kasit however voiced his concerns with the operation to contact Thai nationals in Japan because communication system in some areas remained out of service. He said the ministry would keep contacting Thai people via networks of Thai people in Japan such as Thai restaurants.

The Minister then asked Thai people to donate to help disaster victims in Japan, and the ministry would send all donations to the Japanese Red Cross accordingly.

-- NNT 2011-03-16

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BoT allows banks to help clients affected by disasters in Japan

BANGKOK, 16 March 2011 (NNT) – The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has given a green light for commercial banks to assist their customers affected by the tremor and tsunami in Japan without seeking official approval.

BoT Deputy Governor for Financial Institutions Stability Krirk Vanikkul stated that commercial banks can choose to bypass some of the regulations without seeking approval from the BoT in order to assist their customers impacted by the recent devastation.

Mr Krirk noted that the current regulations that the BoT had been using to oversee operation of financial institutions were relatively flexible.

The Deputy Governor explained that the BoT had to consider the needs of the society and assess if they would affect stability of the Thai financial system or not. He said so far there had been no negative impact on Thailand; therefore, commercial banks could help their customers freely.

Thai financial institutions at present have been granting over 250 billion baht loan. The portion of credits given to Japanese related investment does not account for much of the total assets in the Thai financial system of over 1.6-1.7 trillion baht.

-- NNT 2011-03-16

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Fate of 200 Buri Ram Natives in Japan Unknown

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JAPAN

Follow our thread on Fukushima nuclear crisis situation:

Meltdown Likely Under Way At Japan Nuclear Reactor

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Bangkok - Emporium Department Store, Punky Runners and Association of Japanese Scholarship Alumni to organize "Run4Japan" Sunday March 27th 6-8 AM. /via@RungthipThaiPBS

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DSI Chief Petitions Court to Revoke Bail for 7 Red-shirt Leaders

The Department of Special Investigation has filed a petition seeking the revocation of bail for seven red-shirt leaders, who have allegedly breached bail conditions.

Department of Special Investigation Director-General Tharit Pengdit has filed a petition to revoke bail for seven leaders of the Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship recently released on March 12.

He alleged that all of the suspects have violated bail conditions by making provocative speeches and inciting red-shirt protesters to participate in illegal activities during their mass rally last Saturday.

-- Tan Network 2011-03-16

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Opposition Leads Government in Popularity After First Day of Censure Debate

According to an ABAC poll on public satisfaction, the first day of the censure debate showed the Opposition leading against the government by a few points.

The ABAC poll has revealed that respondents from 17 provinces have given the government a 5.69 score out of ten, and the opposition a 5.89 rating.

The survey showed that 78.1 percent felt the debate was interesting and said they would continue following the debate, while 21.9 percent felt it was not interesting.

As for the House Speaker, 56.4 percent reported that they are very satisfied with his performance, 26.6 percent felt quite satisfied, and 17 percent are not satisfied.

The popularity score for the prime minister showed that 41.5 percent feels his popularity has not declined, 40.4 percent felt it has declined, while 18.1 percent gave no comment.

Regarding the popularity of the Democrat and Bhumjaithai parties after being grilled by the Opposition, 50.4 percent feels their popularity has not declined, while 51.1 percent feels it has.

-- Tan Network 2011-03-16

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Kasikorn Bank Expects Japanese Firms to Relocate Production to Thailand to Avoid Disaster Risks

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Thai webmaster jailed for 13 years

BANGKOK, March 16, 2011 (AFP) - Thailand's criminal court has jailed a webmaster for 13 years on charges of insulting the kingdom's revered monarchy and violating computer laws, an official said Wednesday.

Thantawut Thaweevarodomkul, 38, was arrested last year during anti-government "Red Shirt" protests after the website he ran -- linked to the opposition movement -- allegedly published comments insulting the monarchy.

Thailand has drawn flak from rights groups for suppressing freedom of speech using the Computer Crimes Act and lese majeste legislation, which bans criticism of the royal family.

"The court found that he was guilty under criminal code article 112 and sentenced him to 10 years in jail," a court official told AFP, referring to the lese majeste charge in relation to the website www.norporchorusa.com.

Nor Por Chor stands for the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) in Thai -- the official name of the Red Shirts.

He was also sentenced on Wednesday to three years for violating the computer crimes law that relates to allowing content deemed likely to affect national security onto a computer system and covers web providers and moderators.

Amnesty International has called on authorities to drop charges against another Thai, website editor Chiranuch Premchaiporn, who faces decades behind bars over reader comments about the monarchy posted on her site.

The rights group said the case shows "how far the Thai government is willing to go toward silencing unpopular or dissident views".

Authorities have also been criticised for using emergency powers to arrest hundreds of suspects and shut down anti-government TV channels, newspapers, radio stations and websites after its crackdown on protests last year.

Two months of mass anti-government rallies by the "Red Shirts", who were seeking immediate elections, sparked clashes with security forces that left more than 90 people dead, mostly civilians, in April and May 2010.

The monarchy is a very sensitive topic in politically turbulent Thailand. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest reigning monarch and revered as a demi-god by many Thais, has been hospitalised since September 2009.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2011-03-16

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German WWI submarine found in Dutch waters is believed to contain 41 bodies but will not be retrieved - Defense Ministry /RT @mpoppel

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Australian Man With Fake US Dollars arrested in Pattaya

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AFP: Thai south shootings kill eight: police

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Health Ministry to distribute iodine pills at Suvarnabhumi,Phuket airports to Thais going to Japan,to counter radiation from quake-hit nuclear power plants /MCOT

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Televised address by Japan's emperor underscores depth of crisis after #quake, tsunami http://on.cnn.com/hCvegB /via@cnnbrk

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All Japanese artists cancel their shows during Pattaya Int't Music Festival in Thailand this weekend in the wake of JP quak & tsunami. /via@veen_NT:

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Couple arrested and charged with selling class 1 drugs in North Pattaya

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Iranian caught with stolen credit card at Central Festival Pattaya: Beach

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Unemployed man steals motorbike-for-rent on Pattaya Beach

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Criminal Court rejects DSI bid to revoke bail for seven UDD core leaders, saying Attorney General has jurisdiction for such request /MCOT

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US help needed to contain nuclear disaster, Tokyo says

Tokyo - Japan said Wednesday that further assistance from the United States was needed to help keep the nuclear cores at a power plant from overheating, after last week's quake and tsunami knocked out the cooling systems.

Tokyo might also request the help of some of the US military stationed in Japan, government spokesman Yukio Edano said.

On Tuesday, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission said it has sent two experts to Japan, and had been asked to send cooling equipment. The commission's chairman Gregory Jaczko said there were plans to send another team soon.

The commission said that Japan's evacuation of a 20-kilometre radius around the Fukushima plant, 250 kilometres north of Tokyo, was "parallel" with US emergency measures in a similar situation.

In a statement released late Tuesday, the agency said that radiation levels in Japan were "well below" the levels that would trigger emergency evacuations in the US

-- The Nation 2011-03-16