Thailand Live Wednesday 28 Jan 2015

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NRC's reconciliation study committee proposes help for victims of political conflicts

BANGKOK, 28 January 2015 (NNT) - A National Reform Council committee has suggested the setting up of a new body to help victims of the political conflicts of the past decade.

Mr. Boonlert Kachayuthadej, vice chairman of the NRC’s committee in charge of the study of approaches to national reconciliation, said that the committee has just resolved to prepare a proposal for the government.

Mr. Boonlert stated that the proposal calls for the setting up of a new committee to oversee the treatment of, and to offer justice to people, who have been affected by political crises in 2005 and 2014.

He added that, in order for the proposed establishment to be legally empowered, the government should issue an order to back the plan.

He went on to say that members of the new committee must be people accepted by all parties.


-- NNT 2015-01-28

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DEEP SOUTH
Border police hurt, 3 RKK-trained insurgents nabbed
The Nation



YALA: -- THREE Border Patrol Police were wounded by a roadside bomb in Yala province yesterday, hours after a civilian was shot and wounded. The attacks were thought to have been committed by insurgents.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795464-thai-border-police-hurt-3-rkk-trained-insurgents-nabbed/

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RETAIL
Billions to be spent upgrading Ratchaprasong
Pichaya Changsorn
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- RETAIL and property giants yesterday announced a combined Bt60 billion worth of investment projects to turn the Ratchaprasong area into one of the top downtown districts in Asia, rivalling Singapore's Orchard Road, Japan's Ginza and Hong Kong's Central district.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795465-billions-to-be-spent-upgrading-bangkoks-ratchaprasong/

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UPDATE:

5-day break in May backed by Cabinet
Jeerapong Prasertpokrung
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The Cabinet yesterday approved a proposal to make May 4 a public holiday to extend the holiday period between Labour Day and Coronation Day to five days.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795307-five-day-holiday-in-may-awaits-prayuts-approval/page-2#entry8995768

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Prayut rebuts US snub
The Nation



PRIME MINISTER SAYS COUP WAS STAGED TO 'SAVE DEMOCRACY', INSISTS MARTIAL LAW NECESSARY

BANGKOK: -- PRIME MINISTER General Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday launched a full rebuttal against Daniel Russel, the visiting US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, saying the coup was staged to save democracy and that martial law would not be lifted because it could lead to political disturbances.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795344-pm-prayut-intl-community-has-better-understanding-of-situation-in-thailand/page-2#entry8995776

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CDC hacks back powers of Election Commission
KRIS BHROMSUTHI
THE NATION January 28, 2015 1:00 am

FRAUD CASES TO BE HANDLED BY COURT OF APPEAL, SELECTION PROCESS REVAMPED

BANGKOK: -- CONSTITUTION Drafting Committee (CDC) members yesterday inserted an article into the new charter that would greatly reduce the power and responsibility of the Election Commission in comparison with the provisions of the previous charter.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795466-cdc-hacks-back-powers-of-election-commission/

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2 Samut Sakhon factories 'emit noxious fumes'
Manop Pruettiwarodom
The Nation
Samut Sakhon



BANGKOK: -- LOCALS IN tambon Bang Krachao are calling on relevant authorities to investigate and take action against two local factories that they believe are emitting harmful chemicals in the air.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795467-2-samut-sakhon-factories-emit-noxious-fumes/

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ANTI-CORRUPTION
Most firms ready for internal anti-graft policies, survey suggests
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Three-fourths of Thai business leaders are ready to push for the establishment of an internal anti-corruption policy at their organisations, while 78 per cent believe the private sector will play a more active role along with the government in fighting corruption over the next one to two years, according to a survey conducted by the Private Sector Collective Action Coalition Against Corruption (CAC) during October and November.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795468-most-thai-firms-ready-for-internal-anti-graft-policies-survey-suggests/

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EU, Japan QE could boost Thai exports
Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation


Nuntawan

BANGKOK: -- Despite many countries launching quantitative-easing (QE) measures to stimulate their economies, the uncertain global recovery and the consequent fluctuations in exchange rates remain major negative factors that could hold back Thai exports this year, for which the Commerce Ministry has projected 4-per-cent expansion.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795469-eu-japan-qe-could-boost-thai-exports/

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STOPPAGE TIME
Corruption versus Democracy: Dead man talking
Tulsathit Taptim

BANGKOK: -- The Angel and Demon have become equally tired. They have crossed swords over the Kingdom of Thailand for too long, with Corruption in the process trying to convince Democracy that they'd better sign a pact. The Demon has been determined and persuasive, and what happened on Friday in the interim Parliament only made him more so.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795470-thai-opinion-corruption-versus-democracy-dead-man-talking/

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Foreigner Drowns in waters off Jomtien Beach



PATTAYA: -- On Tuesday Night a foreign man drowned in waters off Jomntien Beach, opposite the entrance to Soi 7.
Police and medics rushed to the scene and CPR was administered to the victim who could not be saved and was pronounced dead-at-the-scene by a Doctor.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795471-foreigner-drowns-in-waters-off-jomtien-beach/

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Woman dies in early morning road crash in North Pattaya



PATTAYA: -- A 33 year old woman was killed and a male motorcyclist, suspected of being drunk, was seriously injured in a late night road crash in North Pattaya in the early hours of Tuesday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795472-woman-dies-in-early-morning-road-crash-in-north-pattaya/

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Boyfriend and Girlfriend in knife fight at East Pattaya Factory Compound



PATTAYA: -- Police and medics were called to a Wood Factory in East Pattaya on Tuesday evening to deal with a man and woman involved in a drink-fuelled knife fight causing injury to both of them.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795473-boyfriend-and-girlfriend-in-knife-fight-at-east-pattaya-factory-compound/

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Three Laborers injured in scaffolding collapse at North Pattaya Construction Site



PATTAYA: -- Construction was halted at the site of a new 17-floor, 287 room Hotel in North Pattaya, on Tuesday Morning after a section of scaffolding collapsed injuring 3 Cambodian Laborers.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795474-three-laborers-injured-in-scaffolding-collapse-at-north-pattaya-construction-site/

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Police Question Crazed Spanish Man Near Asoke
Published by Stickboy BKK



BANGKOK: -- After several hours of yelling and harassing pedestrians on and around Asoke early Tuesday afternoon, police finally caught up with the crazed Spanish man responsible for the public disorder around 4.30pm.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795475-bangkok-police-question-crazed-spanish-man-near-asoke/

[Jonathan Fairfield]

YouTube replaces Adobe Flash Player with HTML5 video

Adobe’s Flash hasn’t had a good time of late, first with a recent security flaw that caused mild panic across the Internet, and now news that YouTube, the world’s most popular video website, has ditched Flash and will use HTML5 video instead.

The changes have been on the cards for a very long time. It was 2010 that Google (who owns YouTube) first announced the test version of the HTML5 video player. Last year, most of the content was already switched over to HTML5 in the most popular browsers, but now the switch has been flipped.

Even Steve Jobs, the former Apple CEO, had a thing against Flash, saying that it was a resource hog and wasn’t well suited for mobile devices. It was only a few years ago that Adobe also stopped official support for Flash on Android and other mobile devices.

Read more: http://tech.thaivisa.com/youtube-ditches-flash-for-html5-video/3415/

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Fatal RTA in Samui leads to dispute over who will pay for damage to a taxi

KOH SAMUI: -- On Saturday a Russian tourist was involved in a fatal accident with a local taxi driver. At around 2pm Martin Johannes drove into head on into the back a taxi at the front of Song Suzi near Paradise Chaweng fatally injuring himself.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795476-fatal-rta-in-samui-leads-to-dispute-over-who-will-pay-for-damage-to-a-taxi/

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Facebook: Internal glitch caused hour-long global outage

(AP) — Facebook said it suffered a self-inflicted outage lasting an hour on Tuesday that made its site inaccessible to users worldwide.

Read more: http://tech.thaivisa.com/facebook-internal-glitch-caused-hour-long-global-outage/3408/

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Gen Prayut insists democracy in Thailand will never die



BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha hit back at former prime ministerYingluckShinawatra asking whether democracy was already dead as the latter wrote in her Facebook page.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795479-pm-prayut-insists-democracy-in-thailand-will-never-die/

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BURNING ISSUE
Prayut and military may have misjudged US reaction
SUPALAK GANJANAKHUNDEE
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- PRIME MINISTER Prayut Chan-o-cha might have sensed the key message from Washington on relations between Thailand and the United States when he said on Monday that he realised the reason why Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel did not want to meet him.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795480-prayut-and-military-may-have-misjudged-us-reaction/

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DNA tests clear five men suspected of being serial rapist
Noppadon Sritaweekart
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- DNA TEST results have cleared five men from suspicion that one of them could be a serial rapist who has attacked 10 women, most of them in their 70s.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795481-dna-tests-clear-five-men-suspected-of-being-serial-rapist/

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Kanchanaburi factory closed after protests
The Nation

KANCHANABURI: -- A BRASS moulding factory in Kanchanaburi has been closed under martial law for polluting the air and water, pending further instructions from the Central Administrative Court to ensure better compliance with industrial regulations.

A team of soldiers yesterday visited the offices of TCC Nong Nokkaew Co and negotiated with some 100 protesting villagers before arranging a meeting between them and the firm's executives.

The troops finally produced |an order from the provincial industrial operations office for the firm to stop operating until it conforms to regulations and reached an understanding with the community.

To disperse the rally - in breach of the junta's ban on public gatherings of more than five people - soldiers from the Ninth Infantry Division based in the province ordered the suspension of business at TCC Nong Nokkaew Co, citing their authority granted under two articles of martial law.

The villagers cheered after learning of the closure order before leaving.

They had lodged a complaint with the provincial industrial operations office while calling on the firm to conduct a public hearing to sound out their opinions about its operations, which had been permitted, up till yesterday.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Kanchanaburi-factory-closed-after-protests-30252815.html


-- The Nation 2015-01-28

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Giant Sky Lantern Falls, Explodes in Chiang Rai
By Khaosod English


A car and electric pole in Chiang Rai province were damaged by a sky lantern filled with homemade explosives, 27 Jan 2015.

CHIANG RAI — A car and electric pole in Chiang Rai province were damaged by a sky lantern filled with homemade explosives today.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795482-giant-sky-lantern-falls-explodes-in-chiang-rai/

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Thailand Tourism Forum: Thailand registers record year end growth

BANGKOK, Thailand – Thailand's tourism industry has turned the corner after a very difficult 2014, bouncing back in the fourth quarter with strong growth, according to data released exclusively at Thailand Tourism Forum 2015 by STR Global.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795484-thailand-tourism-forum-thailand-registers-record-year-end-growth/

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Secret talks in Jordan try to win release of hostages
By ZEINA KARAM and YURI KAGEYAMA

BEIRUT (AP) — Secret talks were underway Tuesday in Jordan in the presence of a Japanese envoy to secure the freedom of a Japanese journalist and a Jordanian pilot captured by Islamic State extremists and purportedly threatened with death within 24 hours.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795488-secret-talks-in-jordan-try-to-win-release-of-hostages/

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Gunmen storm Libya hotel, killing American, 9 others
ESAM MOHAMED, Associated Press

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — In the latest sign of Libya's descent into chaos, gunmen stormed a luxury hotel used by diplomats and businessmen in the capital on Tuesday, killing 10 people, including an American, a French citizen and three people from Eastern Europe.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795376-gunmen-at-libyan-luxury-hotel-take-hostages;-3-guards-dead/#entry8995954

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Michelle Obama navigates limits on women in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — For first lady Michelle Obama, just a few hours in Saudi Arabia were enough to illustrate the stark limitations under which Saudi women live.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795491-michelle-obama-navigates-limits-on-women-in-saudi-arabia/

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Inquiry: Ex-KGB spy Litvinenko may have been poisoned twice
JILL LAWLESS, Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned with radioactive polonium not once but twice, a British judge was told Tuesday, as an inquiry opened into the slaying one lawyer called an act of nuclear terrorism ordered by Moscow.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795493-inquiry-ex-kgb-spy-litvinenko-may-have-been-poisoned-twice/

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US blizzard wasn't a bust, but it was a miss for many
SETH BORENSTEIN, Associated Press
GEOFF MULVIHILL, Associated Press

In the wild world of winter weather, location is everything. So small last minute changes in the air morphed what was supposed to be crippling deep snow into a handful of inches (a few centimeters), leading forecasters to apologize, politicians to explain themselves and some Northeast residents wondering where the much-hyped snow went.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/795495-us-blizzard-wasnt-a-bust-but-it-was-a-miss-for-many/

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MOPH encourages vendors to stop using foam

PRACHUABKIRIKHAN, 28 Jan 2015, (NNT) - A seminar on restaurant, food stall and fresh market development, and the negative effects of using styrofoam packs and plastic bags has been held in Prachuabkirikhan for food vendors in 8 provinces in the Western and Central regions.

The meeting served as a venue for food business operators to exchange ideas and experiences while enhancing their potential in developing hygienic food.

Later in the day, Department of Health and a representative of the province’s private sector signed an MoU on reduction of plastic and foam uses. The vendors agreed to do their best to follow the policy.

Foam and plastic containers have been found to predispose consumers to prostate cancer, liver cancer, breast cancer, and Alzheimer's disease, to say the least.

As the price of bio-foam containers has dropped sharply to roughly two baht apiece, the private sector said the campaign will likely be more successful than it has been in the past.

The Department of Health also handed out green-food vendor stickers to participating vendors, allowing consumers to easily spot them.

-- NNT 2015-01-28