Thai govt stands firm on rubber price

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Govt stands firm on rubber price
The Nation


Crowd-control police take part in a drill yesterday in preparation for a possible operation to reclaim the railway and road sections in Nakhon Si Thammarat occupied by protesting rubber farmers.

NAKHON SI TAMMARAT: -- Despite growing pressure from rubber farmers, the government has refused to bow to their demand that the rubber price be pegged at Bt92 per kilo.

Agriculture Minister Yukol Limlamthong yesterday stood by the government's offer of Bt80 per kilo during an hours-long negotiation session with farmer representatives. Farmers' leaders from the North and the Northeast walked out of the negotiation room at Government House and lambasted the government for ignoring rubber farmers' plight.

Meanwhile, the Ramkhamhaeng University Student Organisation plans to join the mass rallies of rubber farmers across the country on Tuesday.

"We are the children of farmers," president Uthai Yodmanee said yesterday.

Rubber farmers are preparing to stage huge protests in various provinces on September 3 to demand that the government shore up the rubber price, which has plummeted during the past two years.

Uthai said the government had ignored farmers' problems and was apparently engrossed in the granting of political amnesty. He showed up at Parliament to submit an open letter to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, urging her to show her sincerity by addressing the crisis of plunging crop prices, stopping the politicisation of the protest and investigating the use of force against rubber planters in Nakhon Si Thammarat.

Last Friday, some police and farmers were injured during clashes when the protesters cut off a road. The blockade of the road and a railway continued in the southern province.

While some rubber farmers in other areas have said the railway action is not appropriate, they do not rule out the possibility of occupying roads next Tuesday if their plight continues to be ignored.

"Whether we will block roads depends on how the situation develops," said Manoon Uppala, chairman of the Wiang Sa Agricultural Cooperative based in Surat Thani.

He believes the rally on Tuesday in Surat Thani will draw more than 5,000 participants.

Songkran Khampisai, chairman of the Beung Kan Rubber Farmers Network, said more than 30,000 farmers in the Northeast would head to the mass rally in Nakhon Ratchasima's Sikhiu district on Tuesday, where the seizing of a road has been planned.

Prompong Nopparit, spokesman for the Pheu Thai Party, said the government was ready to listen to what rubber farmers had to say.


-- The Nation 2013-08-29

[NongKhaiKid]

Definitely no double standards in play. When the government suggested they might drop the rice pledging amount some PTP MPs reacted and the rice farmers warned the government to be ready for protests heading for Bkk, the government changed it's mind in no time flat.

Rubber farmers want similar assistance and the government's response is " Sex and Travel "

[edwinchester]

Twenty cops behind shields against a chubby guy with a short stick. Pretty realistic these training exercises.

Sent from my GT-I9003 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Siripon]

The government pay rice farmers 40% over the market price.

Please do the same for the rubber planters.

[tingtongteesood]

The Thai government should pay everyone 40% over market price for everything, right !? But this is the mentality here, they get it so why shouldn't we ? It's just not fair ! And really it isn't, the whole rice pledge scheme was a dumb idea which was merely a device to pay for votes ( which sadly worked ) and is bankrupting the country. Nobody is looking at the big picture.

[johnnie20110]

The government pay rice farmers 40% over the market price.

Please do the same for the rubber planters.

And also the corner farmers.

Heck, it would be good if they were just to break even.

In lieu of which, they, too, are ready to protest against this government:

29 August 2013 (NNT)

http://61.19.244.31/centerweb/newsen/NewsDetail?NT01_NewsID=WNECO5608290010003

Meanwhile, around 1,000 corn farmers in Phayao province are looking to stage a demonstration today in a bid to request additional assistance from provincial bodies in the wake of plummeting corn prices.

Currently, corns are being purchased at 4.50 baht per kilogram, which is well below the break-even price of 7 baht.

Edited August 29, 2013 by johnnie20110