Thailand Live Thursday 16 Oct 2014

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Princess Maha Chakri opens World Food Day celebration 2014

BANGKOK, 16 October 2014 (NNT) - Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn yesterday (Oct 15) proceeded to the FAO regional office for Asia and the Pacific in Phra Nakhon District, to open a celebration to mark World Food Day 2014, on 16 October.

As the FAO has declared 2014 the International Year of Family Farming, its theme for the World Food Day celebration this year is also centered on that topic which is Family Farming: “Feeding the world, caring for the earth”. The theme has been chosen to raise the profile of smallholder farmers, particularly those in the Asia-Pacific region, where 80% of agricultural producers are living in.

After the opening ceremony, Her Royal Highness also awarded five outstanding farmers from five countries namely the People’s Republic of China, India, Myanmar, New Zealand and Thailand. Mr. Patpong Mongkhonkanjanakhun (พัฒน์พงษ์ มงคลกาญจนคุณ) a farmer from Kanchanaburi, has been honored for his success in integrated farming.

The World Food Day is celebrated on an annual basis to draw attention to about 800 million people who are facing famine and malnutrition around the world. FAO has projected that the world will have to step up food production by 60% to sufficiently feed a population of over 9,000 million by 2050.


-- NNT 2014-10-16

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Thai PM faces protest on first outing on world stage
Milan, Italy | AFP |

MILAN: -- Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha is expected to be greeted by protests Thursday as he makes his first outing on the world stage since seizing power in a military coup in May.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768737-thai-pm-faces-protest-on-first-outing-on-world-stage/

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River coffee shop riles officials
The Nation


Photo from : http://paapaii.com/

CHIANG MAI: -- Provincial Port Office in Chiang Mai province is planning to take action against a coffee shop that has become famous after setting up tables and seats in the middle of Tha Chang River in Hang Dong district. Customers can soak their feet in the water while sipping coffee.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768738-chiang-mai-river-coffee-shop-riles-officials/

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ELECTION
Prayut will not commit to poll date
The Nation

Deputy Premier indicates early 2016; NLA to meet over impeachment cases

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday refused to say exactly when the elections would be called, saying the timeframe would depend on when Thailand achieves its goals in accordance with the National Council for Peace and Order's reform roadmap.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768739-prayut-will-not-commit-to-poll-date/

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KOH TAO'S MURDERS
Petition seeking new probe to be handed to PM Cameron
The Nation


David Cameron. File photo - source Internet

BANGKOK: -- A British newspaper reported that a petition with more than 65,000 signatures would soon be handed to Prime Minister David Cameron's Office asking for a reinvestigation into the Koh Tao case and outlining fears that Thai investigation into the September 15 murders was "flawed".

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768740-koh-tao-murders-petition-seeking-new-probe-to-be-handed-to-pm-david-cameron/

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PRAYUT
PM loses his cool

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha lost his temper with a veteran reporter at a press conference on Tuesday, following a Cabinet meeting at Government House.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768741-pm-prayut-loses-his-cool/

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NATION ANALYSIS
'The boss knows best'
Pakorn Puengnetr,
Pravit Rojanaphruk,
Nitipol Kiravanich
The Nation

Aides concerned by PM's 'loose cannon' style, but fear offering too much advice

BANGKOK: -- Close aides and advisers of Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha are concerned about his tendency to shoot his mouth off, but nobody in the inner circle has the courage to tell him how he should conduct himself in the public domain.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768742-thai-analysis-the-boss-knows-best/

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EDITORIAL
Problem with bribery not confined to traffic cops
The Nation

The Royal Thai Police must broaden their focus to the whole force

BANGKOK: -- The Metropolitan Police Bureau has come under fire for its decision to extend a Bt10,000 reward to traffic policemen who arrest anyone proffering bribes in a bid to escape punishment. Two Bangkok policemen were the first to receive the reward this week when a motorist caught on camera breaking road laws offered them money to drop the charges.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768743-problem-with-bribery-not-confined-to-traffic-cops-thai-editorial/

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THAI TALK
Reform blueprint might just be a red herring to divert public attention
Suthichai Yoon
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- At first glance, the "reform blueprint" released by the Defence Ministry Permanent Secretary's Office to members of the newly formed National Reform Council (NRC) looks rather suspicious.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768744-thai-reform-blueprint-might-just-be-a-red-herring-to-divert-public-attention/

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Russian Tourists injured in Minivan versus Car crash in Jomtien



PATTAYA: -- On Tuesday Night, Police and medics were called to the scene of a road crash in the Na-Jomtien area involving a Minivan carrying 5 Russian Tourists and a car containing 3 people.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768745-russian-tourists-injured-in-minivan-versus-car-crash-in-jomtien/

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1 Cambodian killed, 4 injured at Constructors Campsite knife attack in Jomtien



PATTAYA: -- Late on Tuesday Night, Police and rescue services were called to a Constructors Campsite in Jomtien to deal with a multiple stabbing incident which led to one fatality and injuries sustained to four others, all Cambodian workers.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768746-1-cambodian-killed-4-injured-at-constructors-campsite-knife-attack-in-jomtien/

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PM orders help for a woman who set fire upon herself



BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha has ordered authorities to look after a woman who set herself on fire in front of the complaints centre at the Government House apparently in a fit of stress over the failure to settle a huge debt.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768748-pm-prayut-orders-help-for-a-woman-who-set-fire-to-herself/

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BURNING ISSUE
Will drafting a new charter really mean reform?
Attayuth Bootsripoom

BANGKOK: -- The National Reform Council is expected to convene its first meeting next week. No more than 15 days after that the Constitution Drafting Committee will be established to write a new charter to replace the one abolished after the coup in May.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768749-will-drafting-a-new-thai-charter-really-mean-reform/

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'Big rings behind luxury car scam'
Piyanut Tumnukasetchai
The Nation



False declarations made to show they have been assembled in Thailand, says DSI

BANGKOK: -- AN ONGOING investigation reveals that transnational rings are behind the smuggling of luxury cars into Thailand.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768750-thai-dsi-big-rings-behind-luxury-car-scam/

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Bank refuses to compensate
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- A Myanmar man filed a complaint with journalists at the Police Crime Suppression Division yesterday that a friend had stolen his personal documents to apply for a new ATM card and allegedly made off with his Bt76,000 in savings. He said the bank refused to compensate him for the lost money.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768751-thai-bank-refuses-to-compensate-foreigner/

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Appeal for warm clothes, food for dogs
The Nation



BURI RAM: -- As the chilly winter approaches, the northeastern province of Buri Ram has urged donations of old clothes, blankets or 40cm-radius concrete pipes to keep 1,600 dogs warm.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768752-buri-ram-appeal-for-warm-clothes-food-for-dogs/

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Couple demand answers
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- A Lop Buri couple, who had been robbed by five women of gold bars and ornaments, allegedly weighing 200 baht, as well as Bt200,000 cash in last July, filed a complaint at the police headquarters yesterday asking why police could only retrieve 20 baht of gold.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768753-gold-bars-couple-demand-answers-from-thai-police/

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Ebola outbreak: Jet passenger alert over US nurse

(BBC) US health officials are seeking 132 people who flew on a plane with a Texas nurse on the day before she came down with symptoms of Ebola.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768754-ebola-outbreak-jet-passenger-alert-over-us-nurse/

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Cellar slave girl: Salford couple must pay victim £100,000

LONDON: -- A deaf girl from Pakistan kept as a slave for nine years by a millionaire couple from Salford is to receive £100,000 in compensation.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768755-cellar-slave-girl-salford-couple-must-pay-victim-us160000/

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Piers in Greater Bangkok to be improved to meet international standard

BANGKOK, 16 October 2014 (NNT) - The Ministry of Transport is looking to improve the water transportation system in Greater Bangkok toward the international standard and to implement a shared electronic ticketing system with the electric trains and the buses.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768769-piers-in-greater-bangkok-to-be-improved-to-meet-international-standard/

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Pridiyathorn calls for system to weed out bad politicians

Deputy Prime Minister Pridiyathorn Devakula Thursday urged the National Reform Council to design a system that will effectively weed out bad politicians.

For example, he said if a court reasonably accepts a corruption lawsuit against a politician, he and his family must be removed from politics without having to wait for the case to be finalised by the Supreme Court.

Pridiyathorn was making a speech on Thai economy at the Rama Gardens Hotel to help raise fund for a foundation to build the Black May 1992 Monument.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Pridiyathorn-calls-for-system-to-weed-out-bad-poli-30245577.html


-- The Nation 2014-10-16

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Thai stock index opens on Thursday at 1,540.90, falls 6.51 points /MCOT

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Army volunteer ranger killed in gunfire ambush in Yala's Yaha district /MCOT

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Temperature recorded at just six degrees Celsius on Doi Inthanon

CHIANG MAI, 16 October 2014 (NNT) - Officials of Doi Inthanon National Park recorded a low temperature of six degrees Celsius on Wednesday, the coldest ever for the year. Meanwhile heavy fog is occurring at many places in the North due to the temperature drop.

The temperature in Chiang Mai dropped by about two degrees Celsius on Wednesday, compared to the previous day, forcing more locals to don their sweaters and jackets. Although the low temperature recorded at Doi Inthanon, Thailand's highest peak, was only six degrees Celsius, the reading in downtown Chiang Mai was reported to be 22 degrees Celsius in the morning.

The weather station in Chiang Rai reported a temperature of 20.3 degrees Celsius, also a two degrees drop from the day before. Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department is forecasting that the temperature in upper Thailand will decline further beginning on Sunday.


-- NNT 2014-10-16

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Transport Minister inspected Chao Phraya River banks for flood-wall construction

BANGKOK, 16 October 2014 (NNT) - The Transport Minister has inspected the banks of the Chao Phraya River where the construction of flood wall is being planned.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768801-transport-minister-inspected-chao-phraya-river-banks-for-flood-wall-construction/

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Man arrested following bomb scare at HMAS Cerberus naval training base
Steve Lillebuen

MELBOURNE: -- A naval training base in Victoria is in lockdown following a bomb scare.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768807-australia-man-arrested-following-bomb-scare-at-hmas-cerberus-naval-training-base/

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Jumbo problem: elephant trafficking gets officials to reconsider laws
Nattha Thepbamrung


Jumbo problem: elephant trafficking gets officials to reconsider laws

PHUKET: -- Phuket authorities warned that the number of elephants need to be reduced following the discovery of six elephants being illegally transferred into Phuket.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768809-jumbo-problem-elephant-trafficking-gets-phuket-officials-to-reconsider-laws/

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Muzzled opposition reduced to song in post-coup Thailand

Bangkok, Thailand | AFP |

BANGKOK: -- His trademark televised diatribes have given way to misty-eyed songs, but in Thailand's stifling post-coup climate, the firebrand leader of the once mighty "Red Shirts" welcomes any chance to reach his supporters.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768813-muzzled-opposition-reduced-to-song-in-post-coup-thailand/

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Ministry of Commerce to provide affordable household goods to Thais as a present

BANGKOK, 16 October 2014 (NNT)-The Ministry of Commerce is discussing with major manufacturers of everyday goods the possibility of making their products more affordable. They will be offered under a new campaign dubbed ‘Popular Brand’.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768832-commerce-ministry-to-provide-affordable-household-goods-to-thais-as-a-present/

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UPDATE:

Mystery in May 29 Pak Chong luxury car fire last year divulged



BANGKOK: -- The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has revealed that the six luxury cars that caught fire and burnt in Nakhon Ratchasima while being delivered to customers on May 29 have proven to include two stolen cars from Malaysia and the rest illegally imported cars to avoid full import duty.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768750-thai-dsi-big-rings-behind-luxury-car-scam/page-3#entry8540608