Thailand Live Wednesday 1 Jun 2011

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Chiang Rai military forces arrest drug dealers in possession of 900,000 speed pills and 25kg of 'ice,' worth Bt150 mln /TAN_Network

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Abhisit Calls on Thaksin to Stop Intimidation Efforts

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Ratchadapisek Land Plot to See New Bidding

The Financial Institutions Development Fund has announced an auction of the Ratchadapisek land plot, previously owned by the ex-wife of ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The Financial Institutions Development Fund, or FIDF, Manager Thong-urai Limpiti said an auction will be held for the 33-rai plot of land on Ratchadapisek Road.

The land was auctioned off to Khunying Pojaman Na Pombejara, ex-wife of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, but the sale was later annulled following the Supreme Court for political postholder's ruling that Thaksin abused his authority as prime minister when he authorized his wife to purchase the land.

This is the first of the myriad of cases against Thaksin and forced him to go into self-imposed exile abroad as he was sentence to two years in jail.

The court ordered the FIDF to return the 722 million baht Pojaman paid for the land, with a 7.5 percent annual interest, while the ownership of the land was reverted to the FIDF.

Thong-urai said both individuals and corporations can take part in the auction, and they can submit their bids from July 19 through August 1.

He added that those attending the bidding will be requested to make a 70 million baht down payment.

The auction date is scheduled for August 17, and the winner of the bidding will have to make an immediate 50 percent payment.

The rest of the payment is due no later than September 14.

He said the winner of the bidding will become the legal owner of the land by September 16.

Thong-urai expects that many real estate companies will be participating in the bidding.

He said the FIDF will make sure there is no political involvement in the auction.

In addition, the FIDF will hold bidding for a 46-rai empty land plot in Phuket, and registration documents can be purchased from June 27 through July 8.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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US Believes Chaos Will Break out in Thailand Before Election

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AFP: Thaksin's sister Yingluck urges army to honour poll result

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Yingluck says it's too soon to rule out working with Bhum Jai Thai

Pheu Thai Party prime ministerial candidate Yingluck Shinawatra said Wednesday that it is too soon to rule out working in the same coalition with the Bhum Jai Thai Party.

Yingluck said she has yet to wait for the election results before a final decision would be made.

Earlier, Pheu Thai deputy leader Plodprasop Suraswadi said the Pheu Thai would never work with Bhum Jai Thai in the same coalition.

But Yingluck said the party had yet to officially discuss the issue.

"Now, it's too soon to talk about this issue. I'll have to focus on proposing our policies to the people for now," Yingluck said.

-- The Nation 2011-06-01

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Preah Vihear Case Concludes at World Court

Thai and Cambodian representatives have delivered their closing statement in the Preah Vihear Temple case at the International Court of Justice.

No verdict date has been set yet.

Veerachai Palasai, the head of the Thai legal team, delivered a closing statement last night at the International Court of Justice in the case brought by Cambodia to seek its injunction to order a withdrawal of Thai troops from the disputed area around the Preah Vihear Temple.

Thailand asked the court to reject the injunction request from Cambodia on the grounds that the issue is outside the court's jurisdiction.

The Thai representative pointed out that the court's 1962 ruling only addresses the ownership issue for the Preah Vihear Temple, not the border or outlying area as argued by Cambodia.

Veerachai also said that the court already rejected Cambodia's request that the border issue be examined almost fifty years ago.

Alain Pellet, a French law professor and a legal adviser to Thailand, repudiated the claim made by Cambodia, stating that none of the evidence submitted by Cambodian representatives has anything to do with the court's 1962 verdict as it involves the border clashes that took place at Ta Kwai and Ta Moan Thom temples, which are situated some 150 kilometers away from the Preah Vihear Temple.

Thailand also asserted that the injunction request is unnecessary because the two countries have border dispute solving mechanisms in place, including the memorandum of understanding signed by both countries in 2000, which Cambodia has repeatedly violated by settling and building roads in the disputed area.

In addition, the Thai representative said that Cambodia unilaterally registered the Preah Vihear Temple as a World Heritage site without informing Thailand despite the fact that both countries had previously agreed to a joint registration.

He said this demonstrates that Cambodia is attempting to claim a larger territory in the area where the ancient Khmer temple is located.

The court did not specify when it will reach a verdict on the latest case.

However, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya expects the verdict to be announced within the next four weeks, or by the end of June.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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BoT raises policy interest rate 0.25% to 3%, effective immediately /MCOT

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Abhisit faces 2 red-shirt women in at Silom

By The Nation

Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva Wednesday met two red-shirt women while he was campaigning for his party on Silom Road.

Abhisit received warm welcomes from shoppers and vendors on Soi Lalaisup when he campaigned at there at 11:30 am.

Then he noticed two women carrying the Voice of Thaksin magazine whose cover showed the people killed during the crackdown on May 19 last year.

Abhisit walked to talk to the women to talk to them. The women said they wanted to demand for justice for the people killed during the crackdown.

Abhisit replied that the loss of lives occurred because the men in black attacked troops.

But the two women argued by asking the prime minister why he did not order the troops to stop shooting.

Abhisit replied that the troops were ordered to stop but they could not pull out because they were surrounded by black-shirt fighters.

Abhisit said the authorities had no reason to harm the people.

He added that the people killed in the Pathum Wanaram Temple were not killed by troops because the protest had already stopped.

Abhisit said not only red-shirt people were killed but also the authorities and he was sorry for the loss.

The women appeared calm down following the talk and said they did not want to see Thais kill one another.

-- The Nation 2011-06-01

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Malaysian Company to Operate Airport Link

The State Railway of Thailand has signed contract to hire a Malaysian company to operate the Airport Link system.

Transport Ministry Permanent Secretary Supoj Sublom said that the State Railway of Thailand, or SRT, has agreed to have a Malaysian company, EMAST, operate the Airport Link system running from the Suvarnabhumi Airport to the center of Bangkok.

Supoj said the Bangkok Mass Transit System company has also showed interest in bidding for the right to operate the Airport Link system, but EMAST was the only company that submitted a proposal.

Supoj added that the SRT will hire EMAST for three years at an annual fee of 128 million baht.

He said EMAST will begin operation in July.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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Boat Fare Hike Put on Hold

The Habor Department calls a meeting with Bangkok’s private boat operators to discuss measures to help them tackle severe impact of rising fuel prices after the Cabinet asked them to put the fare hike on hold.

Deputy Transport Minister Kuekun Danchaiwichit said that the Cabinet has put a brake on private boat operators' plan to increase fares as the hike will adversely affect the public.

Earlier, the passenger boat committee approved a one-baht fare increase for the Saen Saeb Canal boat service and the Chao Phraya express boat and a 50-satang fare rise for ferries, which was scheduled to take effect on June 20.

Chao Phraya Express Boat Managing Director Parinya Rakwatin stated that boat operators have no problems with the Cabinet's resolution, but want the government to come up with measures to help boat operators affected by high fuel prices.

Meanwhile, Thai Boat Association Chairman Chaovalit Metayaprapas, also the owner of the company that operates the Saen Saeb Canal boat service, admitted that holding the fare increase will certainly affect boat operators as the rising price of diesel, which has surpassed 29 baht per liter, is in turn raising their operation cost.

Chaovalit added that the company has been suffering loss of two million baht a month since September last year.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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Energy Ministry to Prepare for Future Energy Crisis

The Energy Ministry is planning to reorganize the energy structure as natural gas, which is the country's main energy source, will be exhausted within 18 years.

The ministry is also aiming to educate the public about nuclear power plants as a possible solution.

At a seminar on the topic of the energy crisis, Deputy Permanent-Secretary of the Energy Ministry Kurujit Nakornthap pointed out that currently, natural gas accounts for about 70 percent of Thailand's electricity production.

Kurujit also said that it is likely the country will face an energy shortage due to the surge in demand, based on this year's projection of natural gas usage, at 4.5 billion cubic feet, an increase from the 4.3 billion cubic feet consumed last year.

In addition, despite the ongoing attempts to explore new proven natural gas reserves, drilling has been impossible due to protests from the public and environmentalist groups.

Based on the country's current energy consumption trends, the ministry is estimating that the natural gas reserves in the Gulf of Thailand will be exhausted in 18 years.

Also, in the case that the gas pipeline is damaged in a natural disaster or terrorist attack, half of the country will face power outages if there are no nuclear or clean coal power plants constructed by then.

In addition, Kurujit said that alternative energy output is currently too unstable and unreliable.

The deputy permanent-secretary also commented on Germany's plan to phase out nuclear power plants by 2022, saying that it is a decision by the German government in the wake of the disaster in Japan.

He said that the safety issue for nuclear plants has now been brought to the attention of the rest of the world, including Thailand, which has decided to push back construction of its first nuclear plant for another three years.

In the meantime, the ministry will try to educate the public about the matter.

Based on the exploration and development of new petroleum sources by the Mineral Fuels Department over the past 40 years, there are total of 63 granted concessions covering 84 petroleum fields with an overall investment value of 1.3 trillion baht in 2010.

For Thailand, commercial energy usage accounts for about 39 percent of the country's total energy consumption.

However, due to the unrest the Middle East, oil prices have been increasing continuously.

As a result, many countries are preparing to import less oil, including Thailand which is planning to lower petroleum consumption by 37 percent.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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SET index closed at 1065.63, down 8.20; Bt/USD30.14; GBP49.35; AUD32.16; EUR43.33; CAD31.04; HKD3.87; SGD24.36; JPY36.85

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AFP: Thailand steps up fight against inflation

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Floods Hit Nakhon Sawan, Phitsanulok

Floods are wreaking havoc in Phitsanulok Province as almost 100 houses have been affected and thousands of rai of farmland damaged.

Water from Mae Wong Hill hit Lat Yao District in Nakhon Sawan Province yesterday, causing a one meter high inundation with the water level reportedly continuing to rise.

A total of 90 houses and 2,000 rai of agricultural land have been affected by floods.

Local residents have called for the opening of two more reservoir gates to release more water from the affected area, but the request was opposed by farmers nearby for fear of damage to their farmland.

In Phitsanulok's Wang Thong District, officials and residents inspected the Prong Khun In Reservoir that leaked yesterday following heavy rainfall.

An initial report said the reservoir broke after taking in a huge volume of water, causing floods in downstream areas.

As no investigation has been conducted by related officials, local village headmen have told residents to brace themselves for possible flooding if rainfall continues.

-- Tan Network 2011-06-01

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Crackdown ordered on religious tattoos in Phuket

OH MY BUDDHA! Religious tattoos have a long tradition in Thailand,

but Phuket authorities fear their growing popularity among foreign

tourists is little more than a fashion trend.

An image of the Hindu deity Ganesh, as displayed by one satisfied

foreign customer at a Phuket tattoo shop.

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Thailand Live Thursday 2 June 2011

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