Thailand Live Friday 21 Sep 2012

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Thailand Live Friday 21 September 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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Related topic: Thailand Live Thursday 20 Sep 2012

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Bangkok 'pretty' left unconscious after botched bootleg injection

Full story:

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COLLAGEN INJECTION

'Sleeping beauty' model prompt crackdown on beauty clinics

Pongphon Sarnsamak

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The severe illness of a model who suffers from "sleeping beauty syndrome" after she had a collagen injection to smooth out her hips, prompted public health authorities yesterday to order a crackdown on illegal beauty clinics.

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

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60% of Bangkok youth admit having insufficient information on AEC

Full story:

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CONTROVERSIAL TRIP

Somsak considers ending Europe junket early

Khanittha Thepphajorn,

Prapasri Osathanon

Somsak

BANGKOK: -- House Speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont, who is leading a group of 35 people on a jaunt to Europe, may be forced to make a sudden change of plan by joining the investment exhibition in China's Sichuan.

Full story:

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More heat on BMA as flood problems mount

THE NATION

Inmates from a prison in Pathum Thani pull buckets of waste out of a sewer in Bangkok

Govt says governor not doing enough to keep city dry; 235,00 now affected nationwide

BANGKOK: -- More than 235,000 people across the country have been struggling with floods, according to the latest updates from the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department.

Full story:

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FLOOD

Most SMEs make own anti-flood plans: survey

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- A recent survey by Dhurakij Pundit University Research Centre (DPURC) found |that 66.4 per cent of the small and medium-sized enterprises surveyed said they had plans to cope with floods.

Full story:

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Temple up for World Heritage

The Nation

NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: -- Wat Phra Mahathat Woromaha Vihan, a Buddhist temple complex in Nakhon Si Thammarat dating back to 311 (BE 854), has been nominated as a World Heritage site, pending approval by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, the Fine Arts Department said yesterday.

A nomination dossier must be completed by February 1 for the temple to be considered at an annual meeting of Unesco's World Heritage committee by 2014 or 2015, said director-general Somesuda Leeyawanich.

According to records, a chapel and pagoda were built in 311 to hold Buddha's relics. The main pagoda was built in 550, during the time of the Srivijaya empire. The temple and many buildings were registered as historic sites in 1936.

Somesuda said it meets three of 10 conditions to be considered a World Heritage site: a work based on creativity, lasting virtues expressing cultural or civilisational values and religiously related inheritance.

-- The Nation 2012-09-21

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update:

MEKONG MASSACRE

Alleged drug lord blames Thai Army for Mekong killings

Beijing

Alleged drug lord Nor Kham, 44, is escorted to court after being accused of killing 13 Chinese sailors on the Mekong River in October last year (file photo).

BEIJING: -- Alleged Golden Triangle drug lord Nor Kham told a Chinese court yesterday that he believed Thai soldiers had killed 13 Chinese sailors in the Mekong River last October, reportedly retracting his earlier confession to the crime.

Full story:

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FAT

Worawi to counter-sue over Korean claims

Kitinan Sanguansak

The Nation

Worawi

BANGKOK: -- Embattled Football Association of Thailand president Worawi Makudi has vowed to counter-sue South Korean company Dae-an 21, which is suing him for alleged embezzlement.

The company claims that Worawi failed to honour the firm's contract to oversee the FAT's commercial rights, despite having received US$900,000 in part-payment for the rights.

The case adds to the growing pile of allegations Worawi is currently facing, prompting the Thai FA boss to take the highly unusual step of calling a press conference for the second day in a row yesterday.

On Tuesday, Worawi responded to fresh allegations he had spent football-development grants on developing land he owned by presenting the title deeds to the media. He denied having mortgaged the land with a bank and insisted he had donated it to the FAT.

The contract row with Dae-an 21 came to light after the Korean company sued Worawi for embezzlement last month. The FAT president proclaimed his innocence and insisted that it was the Koreans who had failed to honour the contract.

"I want to confirm there is no substance in the story with Dae-an. We did have a contract with them. I myself signed it with the president of the Korean company. They gained the right to oversee the association's marketing benefits and we received money from them in return. It's as simple as that.

"There's no question of embezzlement, as we had a written contract. The money they transferred to us went into the association's account, not mine. But they made only two payments and then just stopped paying us without any reason."

The fact that the four-year contract was signed in April 2007 and expired in March last year left Worawi questioning the timing of Dae-an's lawsuit.

"Normal people file a lawsuit as soon as they know of any embezzlement. So why the decision to sue me more than a year after the contract expired?"

Worawi also unveiled as his witness someone who worked for Dae-an at the time the contract was signed. He added he would launch legal proceedings against the Dae-an, even though it had since become a "sleeping" company.

"We know it may not be worth of it. We don't know whether they will have money to pay compensation, because technically they don't operate anymore. But I think we need to sue them in order to protect our reputation."

-- The Nation 2012-09-21

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Thailand set for record auto production

Kanittha Panthong

The Nation

Aims to become one of the world's permanent Top 10 producers by next year

BANGKOK: -- Thailand's goal of becoming one of the world's permanent Top 10 auto-makers with annual production of 2.5 million vehicles may come sooner than expected.

Full story:

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BURNING ISSUE

Laws needed to govern gatherings

Avudh Panananda

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Blood will continue to be spilled in connection with political disturbances until the country has a rulebook on public assembly.

Full story:

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Film to honour late red-shirt hero

Pravit Rojanaphruk

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Six years after the coup that ousted Thaksin Shinawatra, one name is slowly becoming venerated by those who opposed military intervention - the late taxi-driver Nuamthong Praiwan.

Full story:

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Plodprasob defends flood spending; new panel to assist BMA

Khanittha Theppajon

The Nation

Residents in Sa Kaew province

BANGKOK: -- Science and Technology Minister Plodprasob Surassawadi yesterday tried to assure the House that the government's flood-control budget was being spent transparently, and unveiled plans for a new panel that would work with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to solve the capital's flood problems.

Full story:

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Top cops indicted over corruption

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Deputy police inspector-general Pol Maj-General Wichai Sangpraphai and two other senior officers have been indicted for convincing a suspect to pay a gambling debt worth Bt10 million in exchange for not handing him to Chiang Mai police for skipping a court hearing three years ago.

Full story:

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Aranyaprathet flood recedes

SA KAEO, Sept 20 - Floodwaters in this Thai-Cambodian border province began to recede on Thursday, while the cost of damage in the province's commercial zone was initially estimated at up to five million baht per day.

Full story:

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GPS required for toxic truckloads

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Global positioning system (GPS) trackers will be required on trucks hauling hazardous cargo by January 1, the Land Transport Department said yesterday.

A database to store profiles of drivers of such vehicles will be set up to keep logs of mandatory drug-and-alcohol checks before every trip, said Watthana Phattharachon, the department's deputy director-general. The database centre is in compliance with EU and international standards in line with the 2015 Asean Economic Community.

The database will also log maintenance records of vehicles hauling hazardous cargo and would eventually also contain details of drivers of taxis, buses and other forms of public transport.

Vehicles registered under the GPS scheme must renew their licenses after January 1 next year. Owners of trucks failing to the GPS requirements will face stiff fines, Watthana said.

-- The Nation 2012-09-21

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EMBEZZLEMENT CASE

Sorrayuth, three others face legal action: NACC

Atapoom Ongkulna

The Nation

Media personality, his firm, MCOT staff 'conspired to steal revenue'

BANGKOK: -- The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) unanimously resolved to take criminal action against media personality Sorrayuth Suthassanachinda for his role in the alleged embezzlement of Bt138.79 million of MCOT advertising revenue.

Full story:

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More than 5,000 refugee babies get Thai birth certificates

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- More than 5,000 babies born to displaced people from Myanmar have received Thai birth certificates, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which hailed the move yesterday as an important step to prevent statelessness among a new generation of displaced people.

Birth registration started in nine temporary shelters on the Myanmar border in September 2010, when the Civil Registration Act was implemented. Under the law, all children born on Thai soil are entitled to birth registration even if their parents are not Thai citizens.

Birth registration does not confer Thai nationality upon refugee children. But by establishing a legal record of where a refugee was born and who his or her parents are, the birth certificate is a key way to prove if someone can acquire nationality when he or she can eventually return home.

The government and the UN refugee agency have conducted a campaign at the shelters, encouraging the displaced people to register the birth of their children born in Thailand.

"We explained that birth registration may help their kids access education, health care and employment in the future and that it could protect them from things like statelessness, early marriage and trafficking," said Emily Bojovic, a UNHCR protection officer in one of the shelters at Tham Hin in Ratchaburi.

"We also explained that we don't know what the future holds and that this is a simple process that may help their kids later in life," Bojovic said. "Every parent wants to do the best for their kids, so even those who are not entirely sure why it is important are ensuring their kids are registered and receive a birth certificate."

The International Rescue Committee, an NGO, delivers babies in Tham Hin's clinic and sends the information to the district authorities. A few times a month, the district registration team comes to Tham Hin wearing T-shirts that read "Register Your Baby, Protect Your Child" to conduct birth registration and update family records.

With birth registration now a routine activity in the temporary shelters, district authorities and the UNHCR are starting to address the backlog of children born here in recent years.

-- The Nation 2012-09-21

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Seven bids for flood management

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- A shortlist of seven plans has emerged from the initial 34 bids submitted for the government's Bt350-billion flood prevention projects. The seven short-listed bidders will submit draft plans with cost and construction details by November 23, with the final selection to be announced on January 31, 2013.

The seven bidders:

1 Korea Water Resources Corporation (K-water) - worked on projects worth Bt68.2 billion.

2 ITD-PowerChina JV (Italian-Thai Development, Power Construction Corporation of China, China Gezhouba Group, China International Water and Power Corporation, and Panya Consultants) has worked on projects worth Bt39.5 billion.

3 Summit SUT Joint Venture (Samprasit Partnership, SKY Construction and Union Infartech) has worked on projects with a combined value of Bt20.5 billion.

4 Team Thailand Joint Venture (CH Karnchang, CH Karnchang (Laos), Team Consulting Engineering and Management, Christiani & Nielsen (Thai), Ch Thavee Construction, Serm Sanguan Construction, Tipakorn, and Rojanasin) has worked on projects worth Bt67.1 billion.

5 China CAMC Engineering - worked on projects worth Bt19.7 billion.

6 Japan-Thailand Joint Venture (CTI Engineering International, Obayashi Corporation, Taisei Corporation, Kajima Corporation, Shimizu Corporation, CTI Engineering, Sunyu Consultant Incorporated, Pacific Consultants, Yachio Engineering, One Water Agency in Japan, and Unique Engineering And Construction) has worked on projects worth Bt1.14 trillion.

7 Consortium TKC Global comprises 16 companies - Pyunghwa Engineering Consultants, Dong Ho, Soosung Engineering, Sunjin Engineering and Architecture, Hyundai Architects and Engineers Associates, Woongjin Coway, Thai Engineering Consultants, Roge and Associates, Professional Project Management, Lotus Park Corporation, King Mongkut Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, King Mongkut Institute of Technology Thonburi and CM Grand Development. They have carried out projects with a combined value of Bt43.3 billion.

-- The Nation 2012-09-21

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Thai Muslim women criticise infidelity survey

KOTA BARU: Muslim women in southern Thailand are not happy with the latest survey by Durex, a condom producer, that Thai women rank as the world's second most unfaithful lovers.

Full story:

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Official probe finds Tiger Disco failed to meet fire-safety regulations

Phuket Gazette

A Phuket Police officer at the scene on the morning of the disaster pictured with the Tiger Discotheque fire escape ladders behind him. Photo: Atchaa Khamlo

The report cited several breaches of fire regulations, including that some of the escape ladders did not reach required standards. Photo: Atchaa Khamlo

PHUKET: -- The findings of an official investigation into the Tiger Discotheque fire that killed four people on August 17 were publicly released yesterday. They cite failure by nightclub management to adhere to multiple fire-safety regulations.

Full story:

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Sukhothai braces for new round of floods

SUKHOTHAI, Sept 21 – Floods have receded in this former capital of the Sukhothai kingdom, 420km north of Bangkok, but officials are accelerating repairs of anti-flood embankments in bracing for a new round floodwaters in the Yom River next Tuesday.

Sukhothai governor Chakrin Plienwong inspected the dykes along the Yom River and found a 3m hole in the base of a rock embankment.

Engineering, irrigation, public works and city planning officials have been assigned to meet with private sector specialists to find ways to repair the damaged wall within five days, before a third round of flooding expected in the Yom River next Tuesday.

The situation has returned to normal in the provincial seat as well as in Sawan Kaloke and Sri Samrong districts. The water level has, however, remained critical in Kong Krailas district—the final stop for flood water from Sukhothai. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-21

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Police officer killed in Pattani

PATTANI, Sept 20 - A border patrol policeman was shot dead Thursday while driving on a road in this violence-plagued province in Thailand’s far South.

Pol Sub-Lt Abdulloh Doloh, 56, left his office in a white Mistubishi sedan heading for home when four men in two motorcycles approached his car and shot at him.

Lt Abdulloh lost control of his car as he died, and the careening vehicle hit three motorcycles on the Yaring district road. The assailants escaped from the scene.

The slain police officer was attached to Border Patrol Police Unit 44. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-21

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PM mum on Pheu Thai MPs’, Red Shirt protest against Truth for Reconciliation Report

BANGKOK, Sept 21 – Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra refused to comment on some Red Shirts’ dissatisfaction with the recent report of the Truth for Reconciliation Commission (TRC) which concluded that members of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) was partly to blame for the March-May 2010 violence in Bangkok in which 92 people died.

Full story:

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Thai stock index opens on Friday at 1,285.56, up 2.88 points /MCOT

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Heavy rain in Prachin Buri floods Si Maha Phot market

PRACHIN BURI, Sept 21 -- Heavy rain at Prachin Buri in the early hours of Friday flooded Si Maha Phot market, and local authorities are closely monitoring the rising water level of the Prachin Buri River, already above critical level.

Continuous heavy rain and floodwater flowing from Kabin Buri district has added more water to flood Tha Prachoom, the Si Maha Phot municipality's market, where the water level was more than 40 centimetres.

Traders in the market rushed to pack their goods for fear that they could be damaged in the flood.

Si Maha Phot municipality officials are closely monitoring the water situation, particularly the earth embankment along the Prachin Buri River at Wat Mai Krong Thong, for fear that if the dyke failed, the market would be totally flooded.

More than 20 pumps ran all night to drain water from the municipality, where some 100 homes were affected. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-21

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Norwegian dies following Bar Brawl at Central Pattaya Beer Bar

PATTAYA: -- A Norwegian died less than 24 hours after suffering a severe skull fracture during a bar brawl at a popular Norwegian-owned Beer Bar in Central Pattaya.

Full story:

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Swedish man caught-up in South Pattaya Necklace Snatch

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/585949-swedish-man-caught-up-in-south-pattaya-necklace-snatch/