Thailand Live Monday 24 Sep 2012

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FOOD

Burgeoning growth of Japanese cuisine in Thailand

Yomiuri Shimbun/Asia News Network

BANGKOK: -- The number of Japanese restaurants in Thailand jumped about 2.2-fold from five years ago to 1,676 as of June this year, according to the Organisation to Promote Japanese Restaurants Abroad (JRO) and other sources.

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Waterworks Authority confident in flood-tackling plan

BANGKOK, 24 September 2012 (NNT) – Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (MWA) Governor Chareon Passara has expressed his confidence that the agency’s flood-tackling plan will prevent the flood affecting its water production and distribution.

The MWA governor has revealed that the MWA has renovated dykes along Khlong Prapa from east coast to west coast in order to tackle possible impact of flood on its water production and distribution. Furthermore, the MWA has also enhanced electrical equipment surrounding its 4 water plants and 12 water-distributing stations.

He also expressed his confidence in the flood-tackling plan, saying even if this year’s water was as much as last year’s, the MWA would be able to prevent the flood impact and stabilize its water production capacity.

He said the water-tackling plan has been implemented since August 10th, starting from building dykes, elevating road level, to building concrete walls.

As for its long-term water prevention plan, the governor said it would be commenced from next year onwards. The MWA has also prepared Poly Aluminum Chloride (PAC) and chlorine for water disinfection.

-- NNT 2012-09-24

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BOT keeps eye on foreign cash influx following new monetary stimulus by Fed; insists no interest rate cut for fear of sending wrong signal /MCOT

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Inmates sent to unclog sewers in flood prone areas

BANGKOK, 24 September 2012 (NNT)- Sewers around 9 flood prone locations in Bangkok have successfully been unclogged by a team of inmates, who are from the Department of Corrections.

The areas which are easily flooded in Bangkok include many major roads such as Rachadapisek, Vibhawadi, Pracharatbumpen and Changwattana. The latest efforts have been carried out on Rachadapisek road beginning from the Criminal Court all the way to Paholyothing station.

The sewer-unclogging effort has been a cooperation of the Metro Police Bureau and the Department of Corrections. The latter would be coordinated as soon as flooding was imminent.

-- NNT 2012-09-24

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More Thai retailers seek online outlets

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Boonyong Ariyarit, owner of Real Gadd, a store selling a range of accessories for the iPad and other gadgets, faced troubles in reaching out to potential clients.

With a physical store located in a less favourable position in one of Bangkok's busy IT malls, he found he wasn't able to rely on passing traffic to generate enough sales. After less than a year of trading, Boonyong decided to supplement his existing outlet with an online shop to increase brand awareness.

"There is a lot of competition for my store both in the mall we are located in and, more generally, for the product we sell, but setting up our store on Rakuten TARAD.com has helped us attract a wider audience and increase sales. Initially, we were assigned an e-commerce consultant (ECC) to assist and advise us on techniques that could help make our online store successful, and even 12 months after opening the online store, we can still call on our ECC to provide guidance and insight," said Boonyong.

Since establishing the Real Gadd e-commerce store on Rakuten TARAD.com, Boonyong has seen a 153 per cent increase in year on year revenue at his online store, while he has added out of town buyers to his customer base. Additionally, thanks to comparatively low costs, margins achieved via the online business are 20% higher than that at his physical outlet.

"It has boosted business performance and enabled us to reach out to new markets - exactly what we needed," Banyong said

Real Gadd is one of over 250,000 merchants that join Rakuten TARAD.com, one of Thailand's leading e-commerce portals.

According to Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, founder and managing director of TARAD.com, the growth of e-commerce in Thailand is changing the way retailers think about their location, with small and medium-sized enterprises now able to compete on a more level playing field with established names.

"Choosing where you locate your retail business is a demanding task and can have a major impact on the success of your store with prime locations commanding a premium fee, often prohibitive for small or medium business owners in their initial set-up phase. Establishing an e-commerce store at Rakuten Tarad.com can complement existing stores and enable retailers to reach a wider audience, increasing the visibility of their store," said Pawoot.

Location, access and passing traffic are among the most important considerations when setting up shop with prominent storefronts in a busy thoroughfare being the most sought after. In Thailand's numerous malls standing out from the crowd can be challenging.

Rakuten TARAD.com's e-commerce consultants work within Rakuten TARAD.com's unique B2B2C business model and are assigned to business owners to ensure each merchant has all the information and tools they need to stay at the forefront of e-commerce. Each ECC works as part of Rakuten University, a training institute which offers courses for merchants on how to optimise the virtual shopping channel for sales. They also advise each merchant on how they can customize their online storefront, allowing the merchant to take ownership of their brand to help them build brand loyalty and drive sales.

-- The Nation 2012-09-24

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Drinkers warned of drowning in floodwater

BANGKOK, 24 September 2012 (NNT) – Amidst the current flooding, Deputy Minister of Public Health Dr. Surawit Khonsomboon has revealed the danger of being intoxicated while staying in the water, saying the act can lead to death from drowning.

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SET index closed at 1284.87, down 1.39; Bt/USD30.80; GBP49.85; AUD31.98; EUR39.78; CAD31.33; HKD3.97; SGD24.97; JPY39.21

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Thai pair in Myanmar court over drug charges

The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Two Thais - a man and a woman - faced questioning in a Myanmar Court in Koh Song province Monday about drug charges.

The pair is among nine Thai detainees still imprisoned after the arrest of 92 people in July for illegal entry, encroaching on Myanmar territory and clearing land opposite Ranong in southern Thailand.

Some 83 others were pardoned recently after being found guilty by the Myanmar Court of illegal entry and encroachment on a local forest.

The two faced additional charges of possessing drugs. The court said yesterday it would rule on both defendants on October 1.

Seven others face charges of possessing war weapons.

-- The Nation 2012-09-24

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Patong security guard arrested on Deep South terrorism charges

Phuket Gazette

Mahamasakree Mahama-useng (seated, right) signs police documents at Thung Thong Police Station. He denied all charges, saying he had never been involved in any terrorist activities. Photo: Police handout

Mr Mahamasakree was wanted on terrorism-related charges dating back to February 2004. Photo: Police handout

PHUKET: -- Phuket police have arrested a security guard in Patong wanted on an outstanding warrant for charges related to terrorist activities in Thailand’s restive Deep South.

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Phuket Police on lookout for snatch artists in Kata

Phuket Gazette

PHUKET: -- Police are searching for two men who conducted a drive-by purse snatch in Kata last night.

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Army chief indifferent to DSI charges

BANGKOK, Sept 24 - Thai Army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha today called on the public to refrain from criticising state officials charged by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) for involvement in the deaths of 11 of 98 persons killed in the 2010 political unrest, saying a final court verdict should be the only judgment.

The DSI said earlier that it has sufficient evidence to substantiate allegations against state officials in the case. During the political upheaval in Bangkok from March to May 2010, the government-authorised Commission on Resolution of Emergency Situations (CRES) was given peace-keeping responsibility to maintain order in the capital.

Asked if the army felt discouraged by the DSI allegations given its duty to act, Gen Prayuth replied: "The question is clear in itself. What more do I have to answer?"

Asked again if state officials on duty during the unrest are still covered by immunity provisions while under CRES orders, the army chief said he believed so but "you'd rather not ask this question now."

"Let's wait for the court trial. The army must protect [the morale of] its strength and reputation," he said. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-24

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Two Thais charged with drug possession testify before Myanmar court in Kawthaung, ruling scheduled for Oct 1 /MCOT

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Myanmar court to rule on drug charge against 2 Thais next Monday

RANONG, Sept 24 – A Myanmar court is scheduled to rule on the case involving two Thais charged with drug possession on October 1 after the pair testified before a local court today.

Col Pornsak Poonsawat, the Thai co-chairman of the Thai-Myanmar Township Border Committee (TBC), said the two Thais detained in the neighbouring country and charged with drug possession were taken to court in Kawthaung today but no ruling has been made.

He said the Myanmar court will deliver its verdict next Monday.

The Myanmar government last week pardoned and freed 83 Thai nationals who were found guilty by a Myanmar court of illegal entry and encroachment upon its forest territory.

Nine Thais however remain imprisoned in Myanmar, as seven of them were charged with arms possession apart from the forest encroachment charges and were sentenced to seven years in jail.

Col Pornsak said there are still good signs that efforts to win freedom for the remaining nine Thais will be successful. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-24

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Flooding eases in eastern provinces

SA KAEO, Sept 24 – Flooding in Thailand’s eastern provinces has eased and a big cleaning campaign started in some areas.

Sa Kaeo governor Sanit Naksooksri said that thousands of workers from several agencies have cleaned the Aranyaprathet municipality after flood receded.

After five days of flooding, two villages remain flooded at about 30-50cm, but the flood is expected to recede and the situation return to normal in one or two days.

The authorities are helping local residents, and providing relief and rehabilitation help as directed by standard regulations.

Regarding flooding in Prachin Buri, governor Chittra Promchutima said the situation is now not worrisome as several sluice gates have been opened to help drain floodwaters.

Five Prachin Buri districts were flooded, putting 28,000 acres of farmland under water. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2012-09-24

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Big Gates grant to develop a better toilet

BANGKOK: -- Up to 99 per cent of Thais have access to toilets but they are not units that provide safe and sustainable sanitation, a Thai researcher said Monday.

Therefore, a team of researchers has been funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), which is co-chaired by the head of Microsoft and his wife, to try to invent better toilets.

BMGF has provided a Bt150million (US$5 million) research grant to a team led by the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT). The team, which has five years to work on the project, is the sole group in Southeast Asia funded for this goal, a news conference heard Monday.

-- The Nation 2012-09-24

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Phuket Immigration launches online queue for ‘one-year visas’

Phuket Gazette –

The Patong Immigration office is expected to re-open by November, with officers issuing re-entry permits and confirm 90-day reports for people staying on ‘one-year visas’. Photo: Gazette file

Phuket Immigration chief Col Napat Nusen has quietly launched a queue system for people applying for one-year permits-to-stay. Photo: Chaiyot Yongcharoenchai

PHUKET: Phuket Immigration currently has no plans of launching an online queue system for re-entry permits similar to the one recently launched by Immigration Division 1 on Cheng Wattana Road in Bangkok, the busiest Immigration office in Thailand.

However, Phuket Immigration has quietly already launched a queue system for people applying for one-year permits-to-stay.

Full Story: http://www.thaivisa....s/#entry5696120

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to continue:

Thailand Live Tuesday 25 Sep 2012