HRH the Princess Maha Chakri pays a 2-day visit to Laos

BANGKOK, 29 April 2014 (NNT) - Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is leaving for the Lao People’s Democratic Republic this morning on a 2-day official visit.

The Bureau of the Royal Household said in an announcement that HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will be visiting Laos from April 29-30, 2014, during which the Princess will officiate at the opening ceremony of the Savannakhet agricultural development and service center at Baan Phoan Sim, in Kaysone Phomvihane Town.

Her Royal Highness will also preside over the official opening of the new office building of the Thai Consulate-General in Savannakhet. The Princess will afterwards attend a celebration on the 20th founding anniversary of the Huai Son - Huai Sua Agricultural Development and Service Center in the Town of Naxay Thong, Vientiane.

Besides, Her Royal Highness will observe a cooperation project between the two countries to promote agricultural production to substitute poppy cultivation in Ban Na Saen Kham, Muang Xay, Oudomxay Province. Her Royal Highness will also grant an audience to the Vice President of Laos, Mr. Bounnhang Vorachith, who will host a luncheon for the Princess.

HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will depart from the Royal Thai Air Force airfield in Don Mueang area at 6.30 a.m. on April 29 and will return to Bangkok on April 30 at 8.15 p.m.


-- NNT 2014-04-29

Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) introduces a '100 baht' tourism package



BANGKOK, 29 April 2014 (NNT) – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) along with the private sector is organizing a tourism exhibition that offers a cheap promotional package tour costing only 100 baht for weekend trips.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722225-tourism-authority-of-thailand-tat-introduces-a-100-baht-tourism-package/

Chaturon visits 'Intensive English Camp' at Chachoengsao

CHACHOENGSAO, 29 April 2014 (NNT) – Mr. Chaturon Chaisang, Minister of Education, has been welcomed by Junior High students of the Opportunity Expansion School who have joined the Intensive English for Occupation Camp, at Wat Nakhon Nueang Khet School and Datdaruni School.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722227-chaturon-visits-intensive-english-camp-at-chachoengsao/

BMA beefs up security to deal with political protests

BANGKOK, 29 April 2014 (NNT) - The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) sets to an operation center on political protests while instructing all units to be on standby ready to safeguard government buildings and other important places in Bangkok.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722228-bangkok-administration-beefs-up-security-to-deal-with-political-protests/

Citing Fear of Protest Clashes, Govt Extends ISA
By Khaosod English


Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra leaving cabinet meeting at the national science museum, 28 April 2014.

BANGKOK — The head of the National Security Council has insisted that it is necessary to extend the Internal Security Act (ISA) for another 61 days in order to prevent clashes between rival protest groups.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722117-bangkok-internal-security-act-isa-extended-to-june-30th/#entry7750495

CRIME
Giant Buddha head has not been sold: temple staff
CHARNYUT KOTTHAM
THE NATION
NAKHON PHANOM



BANGKOK: -- STAFF AT A Buddhist temple in the Northeast yesterday denied claims on social media that they had sold a three-metre-long head of a Buddha statue to an antique dealer.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722229-giant-buddha-head-has-not-been-sold-nakhon-phanom-temple-staff/

POLITICS
Prem denies he agreed to seek royal help
Panya Thiosangwan
The Nation

Chief of Man of the State group to go ahead with its proposal regardless

BANGKOK: -- The Man of the State group will go ahead with its plan to seek help from His Majesty the King to bring the political crisis to an end, even though Privy Council President General Prem Tinsulanonda has "hesitated" in supporting the group, the group's leader General Saiyud Kerdphol said yesterday.

The retired supreme commander said he did not know why Prem changed his mind after telling him he had accepted the group's proposal to appeal to His Majesty to issue a royal command to solve the crisis.

However, Prem's close aide Lt-General Pitsanu Phutthawong, chief of the Office of the General Prem Tinsulanonda Statesman Foundation, insisted Prem had only acknowledged the proposal but had not accepted it.

Yet Saiyud reiterated that his statement about Prem accepting the proposal on Saturday was the truth, adding that he had discussed the issue with the elder statesman on Friday for about an hour.

He added that after the discussion, he had told Prem he would tell the press about his plan, and Prem had said nothing to stop him telling the media.

Saiyud said Prem's aide on Sunday called him saying he had misunderstood the Privy Council president's intention.

Later, in a phone call, Saiyud was told that he had misunderstood Prem and that he had not agreed to the proposal.

"Prem called asking to meet me, but then later he had his aide call me. I think I deserve some respect. I got to meet him without making an effort. It was Prem who invited me," Saiyud said.

He said he met Prem at around noon after Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva announced that he was ready to help end the political deadlock and avoid further violence by holding talks with some prominent figures and parties to seek a solution for the country.

Saiyud said he told Prem he did not think Abhisit would be able to achieve his objectives because the country was in a crisis.

"To solve the problems, we have to resort to royal power."

He added that his group would go ahead with drafting a plea to the King to help defuse conflicts facing the country.

The group consists mainly of retired high-ranking military commanders, government officials and academics.

Saiyud also said his proposal was within the frame of law and had nothing to do with the Constitution's Article 7 or an attempt to seek a royally appointed prime minister.

When asked for a response to Saiyud's complaint that he did not get the respect he deserved from Prem, Pitsanu said it was a misunderstanding and that the elder statesman would not seek to meet the group again to discuss this proposal.


-- The Nation 2014-04-29

ASSAULT
Monk 'will have guards surrender'
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Police say Phra Buddha Issara, leader of the People's Democratic Reform Committee at the Chaeng Wattana Road rally site, has told them he will ask for five PDRC guards who allegedly attacked a military intelligence officer last week to turn themselves in.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722230-assault-phra-buddha-issara-will-have-pdrc-guards-surrender/

PRO-GOVERNMENT CAMPAIGNS
Red shirts plan major rally in May
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Deputy Commerce Minister Nuttawut Saikuar, who is also secretary-general of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD), said the UDD would call a major rally on Aksa Road in Nakhon Pathom in a show of force next Tuesday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722121-nattawut-red-shirts-to-stage-major-rally-next-month/#entry7750515

WEATHER
Storms hit capital
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- Storms hit several areas in Bangkok yesterday, felling advertising signs and damaging more than 30 homes and 10 vehicles in Bang Khen district.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722231-storms-hit-bangkok-damaging-homes-and-vehicles/

FLU
Vaccines against three strains of flu available
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Vaccination against three strains of influenza will be provided free of charge at government hospitals from tomorrow to five groups of people considered to be most at risk, Public Health Ministry permanent secretary Narong Sahametapat said yesterday.

Up to 3.4 million doses of vaccines against H1N1, H3N2 and Type B influenza have been made available, he said. The vaccines need to be used up by July 31 and provide immunity for a year.

The at-risk groups are medical personnel, people aged 65 and above, women who are more than four months into a pregnancy, children between the ages of six months and two years, and people suffering from chronic disease.


-- The Nation 2014-04-29

Ten years on from Krue Se, but no closer to truth
Don Pathan
Special to The Nation
Yala


Security officials investigate the site of an attack in Pattani

YALA: -- Thai security forces blamed 'drug-crazed Islamists' for the mosque stand-off that ended in slaughter; now they say family feuds are behind the latest wave of violence in the deep South

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722232-ten-years-on-from-krue-se-but-no-closer-to-truth/

EDITORIAL
Porchalee case demands urgent attention
The Nation

Practice of forcibly "disappearing" defenders of human rights is growing in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- With the mystery over the disappearance of a Thai Karen human rights activist growing deeper by the day and the story becoming more entangled, agencies involved must step up their efforts to discover the truth.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722233-thai-editorial-porchalee-case-demands-urgent-attention/

Multi-Million Baht ATM robbery in Jomtien



PATTAYA: -- In the early hours of Monday a multi-million Baht robbery of an ATM situated outside of a Concrete Company took place.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722234-multi-million-baht-atm-robbery-in-jomtien/

UPDATE:

PM says give Abhisit the chance to try out his political initiative



BANGKOK: -- Caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra today (Monday) pleaded with all parties concerned not to pre-judge the sincerity of Democrat party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva but to give him the chance to try out his initiative to resolve the political stalemate in a peaceful manner.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722119-yingluck-says-abhisit-should-be-given-chance-to-seek-solution/page-3#entry7750565

Survey shows 44 percent of Thai youths have tried electric baraku smoking



BANGKOK: -- A recent random survey of 2,426 Thai youths aged between 13-18 shows that 78 of them knew about electric baraku and 44 percent of them admitted that they had tried electric baraku smoking before.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722235-survey-shows-44-percent-of-thai-youths-have-tried-electric-baraku-smoking/

THAI labour union threatens to protest if…



BANGKOK: -- The labour union of Thai Airways International has threatened to stage a protest if Mr Amphon Kitti-amphon, the former board chairman, is reappointed a board member at a general meeting of the company on Tuesday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722236-thai-labour-union-threatens-to-protest-if/

Political violence will drive Thai society deeper into chaos, academic warns
The Nation


Jatuporn Promphan, chairman of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship, at the funeral of Kamol Duangphasuk, aka Mainueng Kor Kuntee, who was killed by an unidentified gunman last Wednesday.

BANGKOK: -- Thais run the risk of plunging society deeper into political turmoil if they seek to use violence in the hope of doing something that they believe to be good, a leading expert on non-violence has warned.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722237-political-violence-will-drive-thai-society-deeper-into-chaos-academic-warns/

Reckless maintenance caused accident during parachute drill
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Recklessness among officials in charge of static-line maintenance is the cause behind the deaths of two police cadets during a parachute drill in Phetchaburi.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722238-reckless-maintenance-caused-accident-during-parachute-drill-in-phetchaburi/

NBTC panel orders MCOT to stop broadcasting analog Channel 3 shows on digital network
Usanee Mongkolporn
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The broadcasting committee of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) yesterday ordered MCOT to remove Channel 3 analog programmes from its digital TV network, saying that carrying the channel was against regulations.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722239-nbtc-panel-orders-mcot-to-stop-broadcasting-analog-channel-3-shows-on-digital-network/

Thailand detains 212 fortune seekers
Star Online Report

BANGKOK: -- Thailand navy have detained 212 Bangladeshi nationals and kept at the country’s immigration detention centre for quizzing.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722244-thailand-detains-212-fortune-seekers/

New US sanctions target Russian officials and companies

WASHINGTON: -- The US has imposed sanctions on seven Russian individuals and 17 companies it says are linked to President Vladimir Putin's "inner circle".

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722246-us-sanctions-target-key-putin-aides/

Egypt: Brotherhood's Badie among mass death sentences

CAIRO: -- A judge at a mass trial in Egypt has recommended the death penalty for 683 people - including Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammed Badie.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722247-egypt-death-sentence-for-brotherhood-chief/

Ohio increases execution drug levels after row

(BBC) The US state of Ohio plans to increase the dosage of death-penalty drugs after a murderer took nearly half an hour to die from a new cocktail of chemicals.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722248-us-ohio-increases-execution-drug-levels-after-row/

Indian police probe British death after body found

DELHI: -- Police in India are treating the death of a British man whose body was found dumped in a market in Delhi as a possible murder.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722255-indian-police-probe-british-death-after-body-found/

Dutch woman murdered, baby critical in Cambodia: police

PHNOM PENH, April 29, 2014 (AFP) - A Dutch woman was found stabbed to death Monday while her two-year-old baby daughter was critically wounded in an attack at their home in the Cambodian capital, according to police.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722256-dutch-woman-murdered-baby-critical-in-cambodia-police/

N Korea 'warns of live firing drill'

SEOUL: -- North Korea has announced it will conduct live firing drills near its disputed maritime border on Tuesday, South Korea's defence ministry says.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722259-n-korea-warns-of-live-firing-drill/

US-set Middle East peace deadline expires

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722260-us-set-middle-east-peace-deadline-expires/

US homeowner shoots German exchange student dead

MISSOULA, United States - A US homeowner who shot and killed a 17-year-old German high school exchange student he suspected of breaking into his garage was charged with homicide on Monday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722264-us-homeowner-shoots-german-exchange-student-dead/

Microsoft to drop Nokia brand says executive

San Francisco - Microsoft is to drop the Nokia brand in favour of an as yet undecided new name for its smartphone division, Stephen Elop, former Nokia head and now the Executive Vice President of Microsoft's Devices Group said Monday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/722265-microsoft-to-drop-nokia-brand-says-executive/