Thailand Live Monday 27 Apr 2015

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NEPAL DISASTER
World rallies on social media outlets to help Nepal
ASINA PORNWASIN
THE NATION



BANGKOK: -- FOLLOWING the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that rocked Nepal's capital Kathmandu and its surrounds on Saturday - resulting in a death toll nearing 1,900 yesterday - the assistance from countries, humanitarian organisations, companies and individuals has been great and swift.

Much of the assistance has been recorded online, including:

@kathmandupost: "Canada announces $5 million for emergency relief programmes; Russia to send a rescue team, to land later on today. #NepalEarthquake #Nepal."

@STcom said that the Singapore government had contributed $100,000 towards this appeal as seed money. More details on the appeal and the various channels to donate would be released soon.

@SGRedCross: "We have disbursed SGD50,000 worth of relief items to #NepalQuake and will be launching a public appeal for funds."

CNN iReport asked people to share their stories. @cnnireport: "Are you searching for someone after the #NepalQuake? You can share your story: http://ireport.cnn.com/topics/1236600."

USAID deployed a Disaster Assistance Response team to the region and is providing an initial $1 million in emergency assistance "as we assess humanitarian needs in cooperation with the Government of Nepal. USAID is also activating an Urban Search and Rescue Team to accompany disaster experts".

@W7VOA: "@USAID deploying Disaster Assistance Response Team to #NepalQuake region & providing initial $1 million in emergency assistance."

The World Food Program, launched to raise money to help people affected by the earthquake, said: "WPP is responding to those affected by the #NepalQuake. Here's how you can help https://give.wfp.org/5279/…"

@UNICEF_Thailand: "Donate online to help children in Nepal at https://www.unicef.or.th/supportus/campaign/Earthquake_Nepal."

Other donation channels are at https://www.facebook.com/unicefthailand/photos/a.148550029631.115556.125003539631/10152826736554632/?type=1&theater, and https://twitter.com/UNICEF_Tha…/…/592190691800813569/photo/1.

In response to the tragedy, Google launched the Google Personal Finder - https://google.org/personfinder/2015-nepal-earthquake - by offering two features: "I'm looking for someone" and "I have information about someone".

@AKunrojpanya, Google Thailand's communications and public affairs manager, tweeted: "In Nepal or trying to contact loved ones there? Google person finder is now available https://t.co/iczEJJh39h #NepalEarthquake #Nepal."

Meanwhile, Facebook launched a safety tool for people in affected areas called Safety Check as a new feature where users either mark themselves or their friends and family as "safe".

Mark Zuckerberg, founder and chief executive of Facebook, posted on his timeline [facebook.com/ zuck/posts/10102050030813611?__mref=message] that Facebook activated Safety Check at www.facebook.com/safetycheck/nepalearthquake for people affected by the earthquake in Nepal. It's a simple way to let family and friends know you're okay. "If you're in one of the areas affected by the earthquake, you'll get a notification asking if you're safe, and whether you want to check on any of your friends. When disasters happen, people need to know their loved ones are safe. It's moments like this that being able to connect really matters. My thoughts are with everyone who's been caught up in this tragedy."

Crowdfunding platform Taejai.com also launched a campaign to get people to donate money, with the target of Bt300,000 in six days.

How to donate:

Donate to help children in Nepal: Donate online at https://www.unicef.or.th/supportus/campaign/Earthquake_Nepal-Donate offline at•Bangkok Bank, Ko Pho Branch, Current Account, Account No. 201-3-01324-4; Krung Thai Bank, Banglamphu Branch, Current Account, Account No. 167-6-00662-1; Bank of Ayudhya, Banglamphu Branch, Current Account, Account No. 011-0-06153-6; Kasikorn Bank, Banglamphu Branch, Current Account, Account No. 008-1-09766-6; Siam Commercial Bank, Banglamphu Branch, Current Account, Account No. 003-3-10443-3. Please fax pay slip to 02-356-9229 or 02-281-6033 and write "for Nepal" on the slip.

Please also provide your name and address so we can send you a receipt.

Thank you.

Phra Kru Pariyat Photivithet Mahasupoj has raised a funds and donation centre for supplies at Wat Thai Lumpini.

Donate to the account titled "Construct and Renovate Wat Thai Lumpini Nepal", Bangkok Bank's Talad Plu branch, account number 1150868584. Please indicate in the pay in "help victims from Nepal quakes" and send mail to [email protected].

From Wat Thai Kusinara Chalermrat, India

From Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan:

Donate at the account titled "Help the quake victims in Nepal" Siam Commercial Bank's Wongwian Odian, account number 1792046847. Please send a copy of a transfer slip to [email protected], fax 02-621-1816 (Phra Vichit Thammaporn, deputy abbot of Wat Saket).

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/World-rallies-on-social-media-outlets-to-help-Nepa-30258817.html


-- The Nation 2015-04-27

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Survey:

Why do Expats Relocate to Thailand?

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820081-survey-why-do-expats-relocate-to-thailand/

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NEW CONSTITUTION
'Amend charter as we said and the NRC will back it'
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- THE National Reform Council would vote to pass the draft charter if the Constitution Drafting Committee alters the text in ways the NRC has suggested, NRC whip spokesman Wanchai Sornsiri said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820469-new-thai-constitution-amend-charter-as-we-said-and-the-nrc-will-back-it/

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POLITICS
The people decide, not MPs: PM
THE NATION

Politicians have no right to decide whether election should be put off

BANGKOK: -- THE PEOPLE and not the politicians have the right to decide whether the current government should relinquish power or postpone the general election, Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820470-the-people-decide-not-mps-pm-prayut/

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Poor man's fish can make some rich

Chumphon: Thai researchers have succeeded in creating a giant “Pla Mor” (Climbing perches) that weighs up to one kilogram and is tipped as a new kind of economic fish for nationwide local consumption.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820370-poor-mans-fish-can-make-some-rich/

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Necklace snatcher disappears into drainage canal

Bangkok:- A man who snatched a gold necklace from a Myanmar woman mysteriously disappeared into a Bangkok drainage canal Sunday, police said.

Police scratched their head after the alleged robber disappeared. Police and Portecktueng Foundation officials spent over six hours but failed to locate the alleged necklace snatcher.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820423-necklace-snatcher-disappears-into-drainage-canal/

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Female staff for national police chief killed

Bangkok: – Thung Song Hong police are investigating the killing of Sergeant Napapat Nuan-iad, a female staff officer for national police chief General Somyos Pumpanmuang.

After the discovery of Napapat’s death yesterday, police close to the investigation said Somyos had ordered to hush up the case, Thairath newspaper reported.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820405-female-staff-for-national-police-chief-killed/

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Landslide blocks main tourist site in Prachuab Khiri Khan

Prachuab Khiri Khan: A landslide has blocked the only walkway to one of Thailand’s amazing attractions, the Phraya Nakhon Cave in this southern province. Strict safety measures are being observed.

Inside this natural cave is a royal pavilion that shines gloriously under the sunlight. Although it is a cave, this place enjoys the sun through a big hole on its top. The elaborate pavilion was erected in 1890 for King Rama V’s visit. After many kings of Thailand came to this cave, it becomes a popular destination.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820373-landslide-blocks-main-tourist-site-in-prachuab-khiri-khan/

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Public donations exceed Bt 1 million for homeless father and daughter

Uttaradit: – As of yesterday, a video clip depicting the father and daughter crying and looking on their home burning down has attracted 145,798 Likes and 2,393 Shares.

The public donations deposited in a bank account opened for the two have surpassed 1 million baht.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820408-public-donations-exceed-bt-1-million-for-homeless-father-and-daughter/

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NEPAL QUAKE
'Missing' Thais alive and well, ministry says
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- FOREIGN Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said late yesterday that the Thai Embassy in Kathmandu had found that six Thai medical students unaccounted for since the massive earthquake struck Nepal on Saturday were safe.

The group went to Kathmandu on Thursday. The last time they could be reached was on Friday through Line and social media.

They were thought to be staying in Ghorepani, a famous trekking village in the country's central north.

The six Srinakharinwirot University students were identified as Jessada Supapitiporn, Dnuwit Jaikeaw, Wasin Chaiwanon, Naruedol Nakhan, Thansuda Auttavin and Nuanchan Chianpattanarak.

A group of 20 Thai officials, their families and those staying in towers had taken refuge in the embassy's compound, but did not want to return to their homeland, Foreign Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said.

Some 30 Thais residing in the Nepali capital were all safe, as well as a group of 34 Thais attending a meeting in the village of Nagarkot, about 30 kilometres away from Kathmandu.

They had registered for air tickets and were about to return to Bangkok.

About 100 Thais reside in Nepal, 60 of whom live in Kathmandu, while 26,000 travelled to the Himalayan country last year, mostly on pilgrimages or for sightseeing.

The 7.69-magnitude quake is the worst in 80 years.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Missing-Thais-alive-and-well-ministry-says-30258818.html


-- The Nation 2015-04-27

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THAI told to ride out the turbulence
SUCHAT SRITAMA
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- Shareholders of Thai Airways International (THAI), out of fear for the future of their airline, are pressing management to put out more marketing efforts and prevent prying by politicians in order to ride out the current turbulence.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820477-thai-told-to-ride-out-the-turbulence/

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ANALYSIS
Exporters' wish for a weaker baht unlikely to be fulfilled
ACHARA DEBOONME
THE NATION


A Thai vendor prepares fresh fish for sale at the Mahachai seafood market in Samut Sakhon.A potential ban of fishery products from Thailand by the European Union will worsen export revenue./EPA

BANGKOK: -- To the dismay of exporters, most economists are convinced that the Bank of Thailand will stay put when it meets on the policy rate this week.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820480-thai-analysis-exporters-wish-for-a-weaker-baht-unlikely-to-be-fulfilled/

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EDITORIAL
Strong bureaucracy IMPORTANT TO POLITICS

But reforming bureaucrats is easier said than done

BANGKOK: -- The high-level purge at the Education Ministry has added to the list of bureaucratic questions relating to the political crisis. Each question has different aspects that should never be used as a blanket verdict on democracy or dictatorship. The questions only demonstrate the fact that Thailand's bureaucracy is weak, highly politicised, plus a tool and a source for corruption.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820482-thai-editorial-strong-bureaucracy-important-to-politics/

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REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE
US LACKS COHERENT POLICIES on Thailand

BANGKOK: -- The US Principal Deputy Assistant State Secretary for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, Scot Marciel, was in Bangkok last week to exchange views with Thai authorities and stakeholders. Like his boss, US Secretary of State John Kerry, he wanted to know about political reform - when exactly the upcoming election would be held and its likely aftermath.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820484-us-lacks-coherent-policies-on-thailand/

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Lertrat denies special interest move to secure Senate seats under new charter
NITIPOL KIRVANICH
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- LERTRAT RATTANAWANIT from the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) yesterday denied that there was any behind-the-scenes manoeuvring by special interest groups for them to be included among those eligible to run for the Senate under the new constitution.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820486-lertrat-denies-special-interest-move-to-secure-thai-senate-seats-under-new-charter/

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EDU UPDATE
School and family collaboration to help parents
The Nation

BANGKOK: - In response to the tendency of Thai children to have a lower intelligence quotient and emotional quotient, a joint project initiated by the National Reform Council and based on a school-family collaboration will be made mandatory, a press conference was told yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820487-thai-education-school-and-family-collaboration-to-help-parents/

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Hundreds of illegal workers apprehended
Chatchawal Sopapan
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Paramilitary rangers and police joined forces to crackdown on a major supplier of illegal workers in Sa Kaew's Aranyaprathet district and rounded up 408 Cambodian workers - 336 males and 72 females - before they were transported to employers yesterday.

The authorities are looking for the Thai investor behind the crime.

Burapha Task Force commander Maj-General Srisak Poonprasit said that after an investigation discovered that Cambodians were smuggled into the Kingdom and transported in a wooded area in Tambon Tha Kham, he assigned the Paramilitary Ranger Company 12 to work with Klong Leuk police to capture illegal workers and their agents.

The team destroyed a makeshift bamboo bridge on the Huai Phrom Hod canal that allowed the Cambodians to cross into the Thai side. Officers have been assigned to guard the area.

The undocumented workers told police that they looked for jobs in Thailand by paying a Bt2,000 fee per head to agents, who provided pick-up trucks or ban rides for them to go to labour jobs in Bangkok and the central and eastern regions.

They claimed that 1,000 Cambodians had been transported previously.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Hundreds-of-illegal-workers-apprehended-30258825.html


-- The Nation 2015-04-27

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Man dies from injuries after truck runs over his body
Eakkapop Thongtub

PHUKET: -- A 55-year-old Thai man died at Thalang Hospital after he was found lying on the ground with his intestines popped out of his body and two legs broken following a motorbike accident in Baan Manik on Saturday night (April 25).

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820489-man-dies-from-injuries-after-truck-runs-over-his-body/

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Aftershocks terrify survivors of quake that killed 2,500
By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA and KATY DAIGLE

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Shell-shocked and sleeping in the streets, tens of thousands of Nepalese braced against terrifying aftershocks Sunday while digging for survivors in the devastation wrought a day earlier by a massive earthquake that ripped across this Himalayan nation and killed more than 2,500 people.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820490-nepal-aftershocks-terrify-survivors-of-quake-that-killed-2500/

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Japan's prime minister goes to US to showcase close ties
By MARI YAMAGUCHI

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived in the U.S. on Sunday for a weeklong visit to showcase the success of the alliance built from Tokyo's defeat in World War II, while promoting a political agenda based on still stronger military and economic ties.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820492-japans-prime-minister-goes-to-us-to-showcase-close-ties/

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Centenary of 1.5 million Armenian deaths marked in NYC
VERENA DOBNIK, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of people packed Times Square on Sunday to demand the U.S. government recognize the deaths of up to 1.5 million Armenians during World War I as genocide.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820494-centenary-of-15-million-armenian-deaths-marked-in-nyc/

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Australian caught with Marijuana and Crystal Meth in South Pattaya



PATTAYA: -- Following a tip-off, Pattaya Police arrested a 49 year old Australian on Sunday Night, who was allegedly caught with Marijuana, Crystal Meth and drug-taking paraphernalia.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820495-australian-caught-with-marijuana-and-crystal-meth-in-south-pattaya/

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Welder found dead in toilet close to new East Pattaya Market



PATTAYA: -- The body of a welder was found in a toilet located behind the construction of a new Market in East Pattaya on Saturday Night.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820496-welder-found-dead-in-toilet-close-to-new-east-pattaya-market/

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Two suspected drug dealers caught by Pattaya Police



PATTAYA: -- A Pattaya Police Motorbike and two Officers were on routine patrol on Sunday when they encountered two Thai Men who were later found to be carrying class 1 drugs.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820497-two-suspected-drug-dealers-caught-by-pattaya-police/

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Thai Airways International: Old habits die hard
BY JAMES LEE, ETN THAILAND CORRESPONDENT

BANGKOK: -- According to local media, some execs at Thai Airways are fearing to see foreign consultants come to help Thai Airways… as they might leak information to the competition.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820499-thai-airways-international-old-habits-die-hard/

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Australia says Indonesia gave 72 hours notice of executions

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Indonesia has given two Australians on death row 72 hours notice of their executions, Australia's foreign minister said Monday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820501-australia-says-indonesia-gave-72-hours-notice-of-executions/

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Inaccurate weather forecasts blamed on social media rumors

Bangkok: The Meteorological Department has blamed what appeared to be inaccurate weather forecasts on rumors spread on online social media.

Wanchai Sak-udomchai, director general of the Meteorological Department, said inaccurate weather forecasts have recently been widely shared by online social networkers and those who shared the wrong information claimed that got they it from his department.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820506-inaccurate-weather-forecasts-blamed-on-social-media-rumors/

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Private sector suggests farmers grow more corn for feed, as poultry farming increases

BANGKOK, 27 April 2015, (NNT) - The Thai Feed Mill Association has indicated that the demand for animal feed is rising . It called on farmers to grow more corn for feed production, as both chicken and duck farming increase in popularity.

The President of the association and Thai Chamber of Commerce Advizor, Phonsilp Patcharintanakul, said the increased demand for animal feed is in parallel with the growing number of livestock in the country. He estimated that this year the poultry industry would produce 1.5 billion chickens, an increase from last year’s 1.35 billion. The president also projected about 16 million swine and 31 million ducks would be raised in 2015.

Mr. Phonsilp indicated the growth in frozen poultry and swine meat exports had contributed to the increase in demand for livestock feed. He pointed out that the quantity of products exported would reach 600,000 tons this year, an significant increase on last year’s 579,466 tons.


-- NNT 2015-04-27

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KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Government official says death toll from Nepal earthquake rises to 2,789.

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KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) - Nepal police official says at least 3,218 people have been confirmed dead after massive quake.