Thailand Live Thursday 12 Apr 2012

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Special flights offered to carry stranded tourists in Phuket

BANGKOK, April 12 – Phuket International Airport has used chartered flights to transfer passengers stranded following Wednesday evening’s tsunami alert.

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RT @RichardBarrow: Opening ceremony for Songkran on Khao San Rd is at 6:30pm. Picture: http://bit.ly/I5fKIx - TR @fm91trafficpro

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SET closes up by 8.46 points at 1,162.95 with value of Bt7.82 bn during midday Thursday break /TANN

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Constitution Court to rule on Jatuporn's MP status on May 18; Jatuporn was disqualified because he failed to vote in an election /TANN

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Tourists flock to Hat Yai for holidays; bombed Lee Gardens Plaza hotel reopens

SONGKHLA, April 12 - Malaysian tourists have begun their annual migration to Hat Yai and are checking in at the Lee Gardens Plaza Hotel, which temporarily closed, after the March 31 car bombing.

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Verdict on Jatuporn's qualifications due May 18

BANGKOK: -- The Constitution Court has scheduled May 18 to hand down the verdict on the qualifications of Pheu Thai MP Jatuporn Promphan following the Wednesday's session to launch an inquiry into the case.

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Stranded Phuket tourists struggle to get home

Phuket Gazette

PHUKET: -- Scores of passengers this morning crowded the departures hall at Phuket International Airport, trying to get outbound flights.

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Red Shirt leader Jatuporn: Cambodia prepares 4,500 police to provide security for ex-PM Thaksin during his stay in Cambodia as many supporters will visit him Saturday /MCOT

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PM to visit China on April 17-20

BANGKOK, 12 April 2012 (NNT) – Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is scheduled to visit China from April 17-20 to strengthen bilateral relations and promote cooperation between Thai and Chinese investors.

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao has invited Ms Yingluck to officially visit the East Asian nation. Besides tightening the diplomatic ties between the two countries, the visit serves to boost the level of cooperation between the two strategic partners.

Talks between the two leaders will involve joint development projects on high-speed rail, water management, renewable energy, human resource, education and culture. Cooperation under regional framework such as ASEAN and the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) will also be discussed.

Not only cabinet ministers, accompanying the Prime Minister on this trip will be representatives from private companies and organizations, such as CPF, Mitpol Sugar, Saha Farms, S. Khonkaen, the Tourism Council of Thailand, and the Thai-Chinese Tourism Entrepreneurs Association. The Prime Minister’s entourage will also include members of the energy and health sectors such as Banpu, PTT Global Chemical, Thonburi Hospital, and the Thai Retailers Association.

Entrepreneurs in the construction, real estate, transportation and banking sectors joining the trip are from the Land Transportation Association of Thailand, Italian-Thai Development Co, Sammitr Motors Manufacturer, Green Power Corporation, GMM Grammy, Thai Com, the Bangkok Bank, the Siam Commercial Bank, and the Bank of Ayudhya.

These participants will hold business talks with their Chinese counterparts in order to increase cooperation and potentials of both nations’ private sectors.

-- NNT 2012-04-12

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National Disaster Warning Center Welcomes All Comments For Future Improvement

BANGKOK: -- The National Disaster Warning Center director welcomes all comments for future improvement, following yesterday's false alarm of a possible tsunami across the Andaman Coastal Provinces.

Meanwhile, residents in Satun Province who evacuated out of their homes began traveling back.

Director of the National Disaster Warning Center, Somsak Kawsuwan, refused to comment about yesterday’s false alarm of a possible tsunami.

However, he confirmed that officials have been working at full potential throughout the last eight years.

Furthermore, he has assured that the system is not delayed to ensure the safety of residents during Songkran Holiday.

He further said that he welcomes all comments regarding the center's administration for future improvements.

In Satun Province, evacuated residents have began traveling back home by boat after a tsunami warning yesterday evening.

Soldiers from the 2nd and 5th infantry brigades have brought in buses to pick up and send residents to the port in Tammalang Subdistrict in Muang Satun District.

Furthermore, many evacuated residents in Yao Island in Poo Yoo and Tammalang subdistricts decided to travel back with their possessions to their homes by car and through public transportation vehicles.

-- Tan Network 2012-04-12

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Water splashing has started on Khao San Rd in BKK, around the Kumuang area in Chiang Mai and in front of Lee Gardens Hotel in Hat Yai /TANN

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RT @USEmbassyBKK: The Embassy will be closed for the Thai Songkran holidays, April 13 and 16, 2012. We will reopen on Tuesday, Apr 17, 2012.

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Tsunami Fear Scares Off Tourists

THAILAND: -- Tour operators have admitted that foreign tourists are worried following the Indonesian earthquake, while many tourists have postponed their trips to Thailand.

At the same time, some tourists spending time on the Andaman coast have decided to leave earlier than scheduled.

President of the Association of Thai Travel Agents Sisdivachr Chewarattanaporn said that tour operators are continuing to monitor the situation and watch for aftershocks to yesterday's earthquake.

The incident has scared tourists vacationing in Phuket and provinces along the Andaman coast.

Business operators have been largely affected, as many airlines canceled their flights to Phuket last evening.

Meanwhile, many foreign tourists who planned to travel to Thailand have postponed their trips, while some tourists in Phuket have left Thailand earlier than scheduled.

The Association of Thai Travel Agents has estimated that confidence among tourists will return to normal within a month and stated that related agencies must be effective and report the facts clearly as the main problem is unclear reports about the circumstances.

Tourism Council of Thailand Chairman Kongkrit Hiranyakit admitted that yesterday's incident had a psychological impact on tourists who were planning to travel to the coastal areas of the Andaman Sea as they are concerned about their safety.

However, it is believed that the impact is only short-term and the situation will return to normal quickly compared to others involving national security and terrorism.

-- Tan Network 2012-04-12

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Khao San Road Songkran Kicks Off In Bangkok

BANGKOK: -- Songkran celebration on Khao San Road will be officially launched this evening.

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Three Muslims shot dead in Thai south

Bangkok, April 12, 2012 (AFP) - Gunmen shot and killed three Muslims as they left a mosque after evening prayers in Thailand's insurgency-plagued south, police said Thursday, amid an apparent spike in bloodshed in the region.

Two men and a woman died when attackers opened fire on the Banna Praow mosque in Pattani, one of three southern provinces that have been rocked by eight years of violence, on Wednesday night.

"They were still inside the walls of the mosque when they were shot after evening prayers. We do not know the motive yet," said local police officer Lieutenant Parinya Kwankaew.

More than 5,100 people have been killed -- both Muslims and Buddhists -- in attacks across Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat since unrest escalated in January 2004, according to Deep South Watch which monitors the violence.

A series of devastating bomb blasts in two southern cities at the end of March killed 15 people and wounded hundreds more in the deadliest attacks in the region in recent years. Police have since arrested four suspects.

Those attacks marked an apparent escalation of a shadowy insurgency, without clearly stated aims, that has involved near-daily bomb or gun attacks, targeting both soldiers and civilians.

A state of emergency is in force in the worst-affected parts of the region, which rights campaigners say in effect gives the tens of thousands of military troops based in the area legal immunity and fuels rights abuses.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2012-04-12

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PM orders police to prevent unrest during Songkran; looking to adjust tsunami warning system /TANN

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TSUNAMI SCARE

Phuket Airport resumes flights but Trang residents and visitors still on edge

Phuket Airport

PHUKET: -- Phuket International Airport has used chartered flights to transfer passengers stranded following Wednesday evening's tsunami alert.

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DANGEROUS SONGKRAN HOLIDAY

First Day Of '7 Dangerous Songkran Holidays': 30 Killed In Road Accidents

The Nation

Police campaign to reduce accident during Songkran Holiday

BANGKOK: -- A total of 30 people were killed in road accidents on Wednesday, the first of "seven dangerous Songkran holidays", the Road Safety Centre announced Thursday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....road-accidents/

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Thaksin holding Thailand hostage: Abhisit

BANGKOK: -- The political conflict will persist so long as fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is holding the country as hostage in order to whitewash his conviction and punishment, Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Thursday.

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SET index closed at 1169.45, up 14.96; Bt/USD30.67; GBP48.73; AUD31.66; EUR40.15; CAD30.41; HKD3.94; SGD24.26; JPY37.68

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Cambodia deploys huge security for Thaksin rally

PHNOM PENH, April 12, 2012 (AFP) - Cambodia will deploy thousands of security personnel to police a mass rally for ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra this weekend, officials said Thursday.

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Belarus woman drowns in Condominium swimming pool in North Pattaya

PATTAYA: -- A 31 year old woman from Belarus reportedly drowned in a communal swimming pool at a North Pattaya apartment complex on Wednesday.

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Suspected drug courier arrested by Police in South Pattaya

PATTAYA: -- A suspected class 1 drug dealer was arrested at a Pattaya Police Checkpoint late on Wednesday Night. Khun Supachai aged 22 was stopped on his motorbike in Soi Khopai in South Pattaya and was found to be in possession of 2 bags totalling 28.75g of Crystal Methamphetamine.

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Police Prepare for the Pattaya Songkran Festival

PATTAYA: -- Police Lieutenant General Panya, the Region 2 Police Commissioner is working closely with Pattaya and Banglamung Police who are charged with ensuring safety for residents and tourists in the Pattaya area over the Songkran Festival period.

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MRTA offers real-time parking vacancy data

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand has made available the real-time data on parking vacancy at all nine park and ride sites.

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KFC Thailand in earthquake promotion apology

BANGKOK, April 12, 2012 (AFP) - KFC Thailand apologised on Thursday for a post on its Facebook page urging Thais to hurry home and monitor earthquake news with a promotional bucket of chicken as tsunami fears gripped the nation.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa....motion-apology/

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GAS SUPPLY

Gas shortage in NE anticipated

The Nation

UDON THANI: Natural gas shortage in the Northeast is anticipated for some time, following the technical disruption of gas supply from Sin Phu Hom well in Udon Thani.

PTT said in a statement that the supply was disrupted late April 11 due to equipment malfunction. For safety, the production was stopped.

This prevented PTT from supplying gas to the main station in Nam Phong district, Khon Kaen, and this will reduce the daily gas supply from 600 tonnes per day to 400 tonnes. It handled this situation by supplying more gas to the Kaeng Khoi main station in Saraburi and deploying mobile trucks the affected stations. However, it noted that the problem will persist for some time, due to heavy traffic during Songkran festival which will slow the shipment

-- The Nation 2012-04-12

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to continue:

Thailand Live Friday 13 Apr 2012