Thailand Live Thursday 29 Mar 2012

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Thailand Live Thursday 29 March 2012

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...

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

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Thai govt's emergency health care scheme excludes 1 million people

Premier oversees signing of MoU for commencement of scheme on April 1

BANGKOK: -- More than 1 million people will not be able to access the government's new healthcare scheme that provides unlimited emergency medical treatment, health experts said.

Full story:

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INDUSTRIAL ESTATES

More incentives for flood-hit provinces

BANGKOK: -- The Board of Investment has approved new incentives to boost projects in industrial estates in Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani provinces, which were hit hard by last year's floods. Submissions for BOI privileges in those areas have been quite low, while those for the Eastern region are increasing.

Full story:

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BOT

Bank of Thailand head opposes 'weak-baht, low-interest' concept

BANGKOK: -- Bank of Thailand Governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul has said he does not agree with Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong's concept of a weaker baht and lower interest rates.

Full story:

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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Sonthi dismisses opposition attacks as 'political rhetoric'

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The chairman of the House committee on national reconciliation yesterday shrugged off the opposition attack directed at him as "political rhetoric" aimed at undermining his credibility.

General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, in an interview with Nation News Agency, said that he was not startled when he was mobbed by senators and MPs demanding that he explain about the report by his panel submitted to Parliament for deliberation.

He explained that he intended to give an explanation but, being a novice MP, he did not know exactly about the debate etiquette. "I had to wait for my turn to speak. I didn't know exactly when I should take the floor," he said.

During the parliamentary debate on Tuesday on the Sonthi panel's controversial reconciliation report, the opposition Democrat MPs focused their attacks on Sonthi, who was ironically defended by MPs of the ruling Pheu Thai Party throughout the turmoil-marred session. The opposition MPs repeatedly asked him to tell the House on the record that the report had received his panel's proper approval.

After four hours of tension, the House of Representatives voted 348-162 to begin discussions on the report. The Democrats insisted that the report should not be deliberated because it had not been properly approved by Sonthi's committee.

When he was the Army chief, Sonthi in September 2009 led a coup that overthrew the government of Thaksin Shinawatra.

Sonthi said yesterday, "The opposition's pressure on me to explain the process of the committee's work was just political rhetoric. The genuine intention was to test my public speaking ability. If I could not, my political future would have been doomed. But I happened to be able to do it."

He considered Tuesday night's turmoil as "nothing unusual for an administrator like me, who ruled people in time of peace and war. I used to rule people who carried weapons. It was worse than this," he said. Sonthi also noted that he got moral support from many Pheu Thai MPs and senators in the form of applause. When asked if he had noticed any signs of disappointment in his ex-colleagues in the armed forces, the former Army chief said he had read their interviews and that military leaders backed efforts for reconciliation.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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House debate likely next week: Thailand reconciliation

Abhisit says move is a precursor to bill paving the way for amnesty, but Pheu Thai rejects his suspicions

BANGKOK: -- The House of Representatives is likely to start deliberating proposals from the House committee on national reconciliation next Wednesday, according to a government MP sitting on the panel.

Full story:

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Ten killed and 52 injured in Two upcountry smash-ups

THE NATION

In a black day on Thai roads yesterday, 10 people died and 52 were hurt, many seriously, in just two multi-car pile-ups.

SARABURI: -- The first accident involved 18 cars on Mittaparb Road in Saraburi province and killed three people and injured some 20 others. A second accident in Ayutthaya killed seven and |injured 12 others.

Full story:

related topics:

18-Car Accident Kills Three And Injures 20 In Saraburi

http://www.thaivisa....20-in-saraburi/

7 Dead, 12 Injured In Ayutthaya Province Pick-Up Crash

http://www.thaivisa....-pick-up-crash/

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Public Transport Vans Face Bt5,000 Fine For Speeding Beyond 90Kms Per Hour: Thailand

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....-hour-thailand/

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THAI TALK

Sonthi won't be allowed to take coup secrets to the grave

Suthichai Yoon

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- General Sonthi Boonyaratglin is said to have written a book about the real story (his version, of course) behind the September 19, 2006 coup that he engineered. However, if his wish were granted, it won't be published until after he is gone.

But I don't think we need to wait that long. He is already under great pressure from friends and foes alike to answer a few direct questions. Was General Prem Tinsulanonda, the Privy Council's president, behind the putsch? Is it true that General Prem had repeatedly asked him through some close aides to "tell the truth to the public"?

General Sonthi managed to wriggle out of the grilling thrown at him quite unexpectedly at a public seminar on national reconciliation last week by Major General Sanan Kachornprasart. The latter said he had posed the questions in public simply to get the truth out of the horse's mouth, for the sake of national reconciliation.

General Sonthi created quite a stir with his answer: some facts just have to go with him to the grave. What's the point of digging up the past when the more important issue is national reconciliation? But then, the next day, on a TV programme, Sonthi said "only one or two persons" were involved in the coup plot, suggesting but not officially confirming, that Prem had no part in the coup.

But then Sanan seemed to already have the answer before tricking Sonthi into public humiliation. He said he had his own "intelligence source" that had suggested to him that Prem hadn't been involved in the coup in the first place.

It wasn't exactly a coincidence when a retired general, Banchorn Chawalsilp, out of nowhere, confirmed to reporters that General Mongkol Ampornpist, a former aide to Prem, had told Sonthi to come out in public to clear Prem of any association with the coup.

Banchorn said he had arranged the telephone call between Mongkol and Sonthi. But he said Sonthi never complied with that request. The request was never heeded.

Banchorn confirmed what Sanan had suggested: Prem had nothing to do with the coup.

The Mongkol-Sonthi link-up was said to have coincided with the red-shirt rallies in 2007, during which Prem was blamed as the "mastermind behind the coup".

Prem himself has kept mum throughout this episode. Former premier Thaksin Shinawatra has often referred to him as a political enemy. But Premier Yingluck has publicly sought Prem's blessings. It's a political game that gets played out every now and then, with no clear ending in sight.

The opposition Democrats were obviously caught unawares as well when Sanan did his acrobatic double take on Sonthi over the Prem issue - so much so that some cynics within the opposition camp suggested that Sanan might have been doing Thakin's bidding by raising the questions about Prem with Sonthi.

The ruling Pheu Thai Party probably stands to gain from Sonthi's public humiliation, but none of its members will want to show any public support or sympathy. After all, any indication that Prem wasn't part of the 2006 coup plot would go against what the red shirts have been claiming all along - that some "extra-constitutional influence" was behind the move to oust Thaksin in the first place.

Sanan's surprising move has therefore been interpreted by the two political camps as having two diabolically different motives: On the one hand, Sanan was trying to free Prem of any lingering doubt about the senior statesman's role in the 2006 plot; on the other, he has been accused by another faction of trying to help Thaksin pin the blame on the Privy Council president. Sanan's own public stand is that he only wants the truth to come out so that national reconciliation can be realised.

If anything, the whole affair has confirmed that Sonthi is a terribly confused man. And he has only himself to blame.

When he staged the coup almost six years ago, his story was of a country in crisis with Thaksin to blame. Now he heads a House committee on reconciliation that is bent on accepting a proposal by King Prajadipok's Institute to undo every major decision prompted by the coup - which could mean the possibility of offering amnesty to Thaksin.

How does one describe someone who decides to overthrow a democratically elected government and later tells a military affairs reporter that his highest ambition is to be a popularly elected prime minister?

He is supposed to have written a book on the "secrets" behind the 2006 coup that will be published only after his death. But it seems the facts are well known. He won't be allowed to carry them to his grave after all.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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EDITORIAL

All-too-familiar allegations over telecoms deal: Thai opinion

BANGKOK: -- Allegations over unusual practices in the 3G concession will come as no surprise, but the Thai public is sick and tired of misconduct on the part of politicians and businesses.

Full story:

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Bangkok International Motor Show - Stage set for 'Motor War'

After 2011 twin disasters, hopes ride high on annual event to yield flood of orders

BANGKOK: - The Thai auto industry suffered two major blows last year - the East Japan earthquake and tsunami as well as the Thai flood crisis - events that led to disruption of parts supplies, resulting in a temporary production halt.

Full story:

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Thai Police Bust Gang In China 'Call Centre' Scam

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....ll-centre-scam/

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Pheu Thai's unforced setback on charter change

Full story:

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Driver to surrender

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The driver who fled last week after crashing his LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) tanker truck into a bridge on Pattanakarn Road in Bangkok's Klong Tan district and causing an explosion will surrender this week, police said yesterday.

Pol Lt-Colonel Krissada Khansoda at Klong Tan Police Station said Pilatus Land and Transport Co had reached its driver Anan Kaewma, 34, and would bring him in this week.

"Police will wait until Monday. If he doesn't show up an arrest warrant will be issued," he said. The case would be concluded by April 20.

Anan was suspected of dozing off when his vehicle slammed into a bridge railing between Pattanakarn Sois 20 and 22. A bystander sustained serious burns.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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BURNING ISSUE

Dithering Newin leaves Bhum Jai Thai rudderless

It could be a relief for Newin Chidchob's Bhum Jai Thai Party, at least for a while, after escaping party dissolution.

BANGKOK: -- The Supreme Court last Tuesday acquitted Bhum Jai Thai MP Boonjong Vongtrairat of vote-buying charges filed by the Election Commission. Had Boonjong been red-carded, his party would have been dissolved.

Full story:

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Academics, journalists vow to work for freedom in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- Four academic organisations joined forces with the Thai Journalist Association (TJA) on Wednesday in a pledge to expand the space for freedom of expression and academic freedom in Thailand.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....om-in-thailand/

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Two political parties disbanded

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Constitution Court yesterday ruled to disband two political parties on grounds of failing to report their activities in 2009 and barred the parties' executives from holding office for five years.

Under the Constitution and the organic law on political parties, a party is obliged to submit its annual report on activities to the political party registrar. Failing to report is an offence punishable by party disbandment and a job ban on executives. The disbanded parties are Siam, which was formed in 1999, located in Rayong with about 9,000 members, and Puen Kasetthai, which was formed in 2002 in Kanchanaburi with about 12,000 members.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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DSI tracks down buyers of cold pills via money transfers, calls

THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- The buyers of pseudoephedrine tablets that went missing from government hospitals have been identified and tracked down through their money transactions and phone conversations, the Department of Special Investigation said yesterday.

Asked whether the buyers and their middlemen were high-ranking Public Health Ministry officials - as stated by Phasit Sakdanarong, a ministry adviser- DSI director-general Tharit Phengdit said people at many levels were involved.

"But don’t jump to a conclusion yet over which levels. Inspection and fact-finding takes time," he added.

The DSI had heeded Phasit’s tip-offs and scrutinised them, he said, adding that "small fish" would be immune and treated as witnesses in exchange for their testimony against the "big fish".

Phasit said earlier he had submitted details of his unheralded visits to six hospitals to the DSI even before it had decided to take over the pseudoephedrine cases from police.

"The visits without prior appointment yielded documents and evidence valuable to the DSI investigation, and those obtained from two of the six hospitals have implicated high-ranking ministry officials," he said.

Tharit held a meeting with ministry officials to discuss an automatic DSI takeover in future cases involving another nine medicinal items and cosmetics. Jurisdiction could possibly be approved by April through amendment to DSI regulations.

The meeting also agreed to officially consolidate efforts comprising all relevant agencies -including Food and Drug Administration, the ministry and its Department of Health Service Support - in the ongoing crackdown. National police chief Pol General Priewpan Damapong denied that local police in provinces where pseudoephedrine had surfaced had not cooperated with DSI after it took over the cases. He said pseudoephedrine had been treated as an illicit drug and all anti-narcotics units, including the police’s unit - apart from the Office of Narcotics Control Board and Anti-money Laundering Office - were working well together.

Wrappers and packages of pseudoephedrine tablets were found burned and discarded yesterday in the Kok River in Chiang Mai, where two government hospitals had reported pseudoephedrine cases. The debris weighed about 5 kg and carried serial numbers which made it easier for police and DSI agents to track down its delivery destinations, Tharit said.

An internal investigation at Kamalasai hospital, where 350,000 pseudoephedrine pills had disappeared, would be completed this week. Hospital staff suspected of involvement had given useful information, said local police who helped DSI question suspects, offering protection to those willing to speak out.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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Pineapple protest

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Pineapple planters plan to block all four lanes of Phetchakasem Highway in Prachuap Khiri Khan's Muang district tomorrow and continue their protest until the government agrees to allocate Bt800 million to buy their excess crops at Bt4 per kilogram.

As fruit shops and canneries will today stop buying pineapples indefinitely, the 7,800 pineapple farmers in the province, which produces some 100,000 tonnes a year, would suffer.

Surat Munitarawong, president of the national pineapple farmers' association and the province's pineapple farmers' group, said yesterday that the planters from Prachuap Khiri Khan would gather with those from Uthai Thani, Kanchanaburi, Ratchaburi and Phetchaburi to cut off all road traffic at Ban Nong Hin Intersection in tambon Klong Wan.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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Canal water test

The Nation

SARABURI: -- Saraburi Governor Thavorn Phrommeechai yesterday urged locals not to use water from a canal near the fireworks factory in Kaeng Khoy district that burned down on Tuesday evening.

Samples from the canal were being tested for quality, he said, adding that the provincial industrial official was checking the factory's operating permit.

The blaze broke out at Pacific Pyro Co's factory and spread to four warehouses, sending fireworks shooting in all directions. More than 20 fire engines were called in. One fireman was injured.

The fire was brought under control by about 8.30pm after all four warehouses were destroyed. The cause of the fire was under investigation but it was initially believed to be an accident.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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Thai workers in Israel want tax safeguards

BANGKOK: -- Negotiations between Israeli authorities and Thailand's Department of Employment to ensure Israeli employers return to their workers income-tax refund money owing at the end of their contracts, have been called for at the initiative of Labour Minister Phadermchai Sasomsap.

Full story:

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Missing boy back with parents

THE NATION

AMNUAY Thiptanakarn holds his five-year-old son Natchapon

The days-long search of grieving parents for their missing son ended early yesterday with a happy reunion.

BANGKOK: -- Five-year-old Nattapon Thiptanakarn rushed into the arms of his father, Amnuay, as soon as they met at Pathumwan Police Station. Police located the boy thanks to a tip-off from security guards in front of Siam Centre.

They recognised Natchapon or Mac from photos that appeared in the media.

The kindergartener allegedly disappeared with a teenager, now identified as K or Pang Kongsin, on Sunday. Amnuay and his wife contacted not just police but also the media to look for their beloved child. They lost sight of their son at a department store in Samut Prakan's Muang district.

On Tuesday, a witness Saowanee Imyuenyong alerted Nattapon's parents that she had seen their son in the company of Pang at around 11pm on Monday in Charurat Tonsai Community in Bangkok's Ratchathewi district.

Saowanee said Pang had relatives in the community and often came here with a small boy.

"He's not always there. His relatives are also getting fed up with him bringing the children of others to play with him," Saowanee said.

According to her, the children were usually aged between five and 10. Many parents, after locating their kids, had not bothered to take action against Pang because the teenager allegedly suffered from some mental problems.

Many residents of the Charurat Tonsai Community also confirmed that they had seen Nattapon walking with Pang.

They told the parents to wait at their community because Pang would usually return with the boy at around 2am or 3am.

However, after waiting till the wee hours of yesterday, they could not find their son.

At around 3am yesterday, Pathumwan Police Station contacted Amnuay saying his son had been found.

Police from the station picked him up after security guards in front of Siam Centre found the boy sleeping on the footpath there.

-- The Nation 2012-03-29

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Four Thai detainees in Cambodia likely to be freed soon

SA KAEO, March 29 -- Four Thai miners detained in Cambodia for alleged illegal entry since Friday are expected to be released soon after the court sought relevant documents to confirm their employment by a gold mining company, a senior Thai immigration police officer said here on Wednesday.

Sa Kaeo deputy immigration police chief Pol Lt-Col Benchapol Rodsawat said the four are now in custody at the court in Sisophon, provioncial seat of Banteay Meanchey province, not in prison.

All are in good condition and awaiting the court's ruling, he said.

The officer said the court asked their employer which is a gold mining company in Oddar Meanchey to submit documents regarding their previously granted permission to bring in a power generator and mine surveying equipment to Cambodia to show the court.

In addition, the court ordered customs officers at the Poi Pet checkpoint, bordering Thailand's Sa Kaeo province, to examine the seized items to calculate custom duties to be levied for bringing the power generator and survey equipments into Cambodia.

Col Benchapol said he believed the court would consider fining the four and release them within two or three days.

The four are two couples, Saran and Suriya Panphet, both 43, Sa Kaeo natives and the mining contractors, and their assistants, Bai Sodachan and his wife, Ms Wanwisa, both 24.

The four were detained while driving two pick-up trucks to survey a mine in Cambodian territory nine kilometres from the Thai-Cambodian border.

Meanwhie, Sa Kaeo Governor Sanit Naksooksri said after attending the Thai-Cambodian Regional Border Committee (RBC) at Siem Reap that the Cambodian authorities assured him that they would coordinate seeking a release of the detainees. He was optimistic that they would be freed after the mining company confirms their employment. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-03-29

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Krabi gang hacks off tourist's thumb in bag snatch

Police question one of the youngsters over the attack, which occurred just across the bay from Phuket. Photo: Warisa Temram

PHUKET: -- Krabi Police arrested three teenagers and one 20-year-old yesterday after a gang cut off a German woman’s thumb during an early-morning bag snatch in Krabi Town, across Phang-nga Bay from Phuket.

Full story:

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Garbage truck fells electrical power pole, pulls down 6 others, forcing Pattanakarn 59-61 closure /MCOT

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PM: Parliamentary system is the best mechanism to achieve reconciliation

BANGKOK, 29 March 2012 (NNT) – The prime minister has urged all parties engaged in the country's political conflicts to trust in the parliamentary system as a passage towards national reconciliation.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has commented that although there remain opponents and proponents of the proposal by the House Committee on national reconciliation, she would like to implore both sides of the conflict to respect the opinion of the majority, which is also to respect the ideas proposed by the minority.

PM Yingluck insisted that the parliamentary system will continue to be an important mechanism to allow all parties to help find the best solution to enable Thailand to achieve reconciliation, with each member holding one vote that will combine into a viable resolution to restore peace in the country.

When asked to comment on the opposition party's concerns over an attempt by the government towards a blanket amnesty, the prime minister stated that a chance for such a law is still “a long shot” in her opinion.

-- NNT 2012-03-29

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FTI: 2012 Bangkok International Motor Show well-received by consumers

BANGKOK, 29 March 2012 (NNT) – The Thai Industries Federation has claimed early success of the 2012 Motor Show 2012, which kicked off on Wednesday.

Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) Chairman Payungsak Chartsutipol said that the 33rd Bangkok International Motor Show 2012, which runs from March 28th to April 8th, has kicked off on a good note.

Mr. Payungsak commented that there are possibilities that as many as 40,000 cars will be booked by the end of the 12-day automobile extravaganza, held at Impact, Muang Thong Thani on the outskirts of Bangkok.

He added that, this year, all participating automakers have been planning several special offers for consumers, with the highlight given to introduction of several models of Eco cars.

In addition, the FTI Chairman said that the Thai auto industry is aiming to produce around 2 million units of automobiles in 2012.

He also brushed aside worries that rising fuel prices will affect consumer's decision on auto purchases.

-- NNT 2012-03-29

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Fireworks Factory Fire Blamed on Hot Weather

SARABURI: -- Saraburi's Kaengkhoi District chief says the fire at a fireworks factory in his area might have been caused by hot weather.

Full story:

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Suvarnabhumi named popular Asian airport with over 10% of traffic growth

BANGKOK, 29 March 2012 (NNT) – Suvarnabhumi International has been named as one of Asian airports that have enjoyed sizable growth in passenger traffic.

The Airports International Council (ACI) reported that Asian airports have been performing outstandingly well in 2011, with 5 of them enjoying a double-digit growth in passenger traffic.

All 5 outstanding facilities are Indonesia's Jakarta Airport, Singapore's Changi International Airport, China's Guangzhou Airport, Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Thailand's Suvarnabhumi Airport.

ACI stated that Jakarta Airport has also recorded the biggest growth among 30 leading airports around the world, with passenger traffic expanding by 19 percent to 52.4 million.

For the other 4 Asian airports, the 2011 growth rate was noted at an average of 12 percent.

-- NNT 2012-03-29