Thailand Live Monday 4 May 2015

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Phetchabun hard hit by hailstorms

BANGKOK, 4 May 2015 (NNT) - Hailstorms have struck many villages in Lom Sak district, Phetchabun province, damaging houses and uprooting trees. Local administrative officers have urgently provided initial assistance for the affected people.

Lom Sak district was on Sunday hit by storms and hails. Strong winds blew many houses down and brought fallen trees and broken branches to block the roads. Local people as well administrative officers later came to remove them and helped those who were affected by the storms.

Lom Sak district chief Somyot Rodchaem said 44 households in four villages were affected by the storms on Suday. The district and local administrative organizations were urgently helping the villagers in Lom Sak, hit by storms twice earlier this year, said the district chief.


-- NNT 2015-05-04

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Survey:

Are More or Fewer Westerners Relocating to Thailand?

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822266-are-more-or-fewer-westerners-relocating-to-thailand/

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NRC schedules no meeting until May 6

BANGKOK, 4 May 2015 (NNT) - The National Reform Council has scheduled no meeting until after the long holiday in the country to review various reports from its committees.

NRC President Thienchay Kiranandana has issued an order to cancel all meetings during May 4 and 5 and to schedule a special session on May 6 instead.

Agendas included in the meeting after the long holiday are such as the review of a report from the public administration reform committee related to the restructuring of the administrative power of central, regional and the local state agencies as well as the improvement of the government’s efficiency.

The NRC is also set to look at four proposed changes of the charter draft, including the parts related to the administrative reform, the promotion of the virtue system at all ministries, the ban on all political office holders from any intervention into governmental administration, and the limitation of rights and freedom of security officers and civil servants as well as state employees when it comes to political affairs.


-- NNT 2015-05-04

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Family dies in drink-related road crash in North Pattaya



PATTAYA: -- The drink-related road incidents in Pattaya over the Labor Day weekend have already claimed lives but on Sunday Night a Husband & Wife along with their 2 year old child were killed in a single-vehicle drink-related road crash in North Pattaya.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822319-family-dies-in-drink-related-road-crash-in-north-pattaya/

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Murder Suspect from recent North Pattaya shooting gives himself up to Police



PATTAYA: -- A 24 year old man, who resides in Bangkok, and is currently wanted on an arrest warrant relating to a case of murder from 20th April, gave himself up at Pattaya Police Station on Sunday and claimed he was innocent.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822321-murder-suspect-from-recent-north-pattaya-shooting-gives-himself-up-to-police/

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Homeless man found dead in empty beer bar on Pattaya Beach



PATTAYA: -- The discovery of a body of a homeless man, who was known to sleep in an abandoned beer bar on Pattaya Beach Road, was made on Sunday afternoon.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822322-homeless-man-found-dead-in-empty-beer-bar-on-pattaya-beach/

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Thai press one of the more restricted in Asean: SEAPA
The Nation



Group rates thai media closer to myanmar's level but not all agree

BANGKOK: -- THAILAND'S fourth estate has turned from being fairly free to one of the most restricted in the region, standing beside Myanmar and Malaysia, the Southeast Asian Press Alliance said on World Press Freedom Day yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822323-thai-press-one-of-the-more-restricted-in-asean-seapa/

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SONGKHLA
Survivor believes more than 500 killed in camps
Krissana Thiwatsirikul,
Mary Bradley,
Somjit Rungjamrasrassamee
The Nation



Migrant reveals many who could not afford to pay ransom were shot or clubbed to death; special police team set up

BANGKOK: -- KURAMIA, a migrant, paid out Bt95,000 in ransom to save his nephew Kazim, who was being held at a border camp. But he never saw him alive. His nephew's was among 26 bodies recently exhumed from a mass-grave site in Songkhla's Sadao district.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822324-survivor-believes-more-than-500-killed-in-camps/

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IUU
EU group here soon to review moves to fight illegal fishing
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- A WORKING group from the European Union will come to Thailand this month to review the government's progress in cracking down on illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822325-eu-group-here-soon-to-review-moves-to-fight-illegal-fishing/

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LOTTO
Lottery changes a bid to reduce 'grey money': govt
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- THE government says its move to try and solve the problem of expensive state lottery tickets is a bid to |control so-called "grey money".

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822326-thai-lottery-changes-a-bid-to-reduce-grey-money-govt/

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PTT
Ombudsman wants state to take back PTT pipelines
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- THAILAND'S Office of the Ombudsman has renewed its call for the government to take back offshore natural gas pipelines worth an estimated Bt68 billion from PTT Plc,which it said were illegally possessed by the partly state-owned energy firm.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822327-ombudsman-wants-state-to-take-back-ptt-pipelines/

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EDITORIAL
Science education imperative for the future
The Nation

Humans risk being their own worst enemies; we need greater public understanding of new technologies

BANGKOK: -- Before he passed away in 1996, leading American cosmologist Carl Sagan called for a virtual revamp of education.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822328-thai-editorial-science-education-imperative-for-the-future/

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46 condo units seized in UFUN raid
Angsuma Sridokkham
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- POLICE SEIZED 46 condominium units yesterday at a project on Sukhumvit Soi 66/1 in Bang Na in Bangkok that were bought by suspects in the alleged UFUN pyramid scheme.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822329-46-condo-units-seized-in-ufun-raid-in-bangkok/

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Officials face probe over Pak Chong land grab
Piyanut Tumnukasetchai,
Prasit Tangprasert
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- NINE OFFICIALS look set to face a probe from an anti-graft agency over allegations they played a role in illegal land grabbing, an informed source said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822331-officials-face-probe-over-pak-chong-land-grab/

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Call for tougher penalties for EIA violations
Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation



Experts say assessment process has major problems; project owners often cheat and audits are not done

BANGKOK: -- EXPERTS have identified two major weaknesses in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process - monitoring and auditing, and the need for wider public participation when EIA reports are done.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822332-call-for-tougher-penalties-for-eia-violations/

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Storms still brewing in Nakhom Phanom
The Nation



NAKHON PHANOM: -- The residents of Nakhom Phanom still have to remain vigilant for more summer storms after a storm struck 144 houses in Muang's three sub-|districts for just one hour on Saturday.

Weerasak Wichiensaen, director of the Provincial Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, said yesterday the storm caused at least Bt50 million in damages and affected over 2,000 homes in four districts - Muang, Sri Songkhram, Tha Uthen, and Pone Sawan - last month alone.

That did not include assistance of up to Bt30,000 that the office approved for each affected family. Sri Songkhram was the hardest hit with 1,200 houses smashed.

Governor Adisak Thep-ard urged locals in the province to remain on alert for more summer storms this season.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Storms-still-brewing-in-Nakhom-Phanom-30259268.html


-- The Nation 2015-05-04

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Campbell River family raising money to get son home after scooter crash in Thailand
By Marlisse Silver Sweeney


Source: Internet

VICTORIA, BC: -- Just four hours after Jason Hoffman arrived in Phuket, Thailand in mid-April, he was involved in a serious scooter accident.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822334-canadian-family-raising-money-to-get-son-home-after-scooter-crash-in-thailand/

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Italy: At least 10 migrants found dead in sea off Libya
By FRANCES D'EMILIO

ROME (AP) — Italy's Coast Guard and Navy as well as tugs and other commercial vessels joined forces to rescue migrants in at least 16 boats Sunday, saving hundreds of them and recovering 10 bodies off Libya's coast, as smugglers took advantage of calm seas to send packed vessels across the Mediterranean.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822335-italy-at-least-10-migrants-found-dead-in-sea-off-libya/

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Baltimore mayor lifts curfew 6 days after riots
By BEN NUCKOLS and DAVID DISHNEAU

BALTIMORE (AP) — Six days after riots sparked by Freddie Gray's death, Baltimore's mayor lifted a citywide curfew Sunday and faith leaders called for continued activism until justice is achieved.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822336-baltimore-mayor-lifts-curfew-6-days-after-riots/

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State police won't release dashcam video of officer shooting
By JEFFREY COLLINS

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — When a white police officer in South Carolina chased a black man nine miles by car, then shot him to death in his driveway last year, the shooting apparently was captured on the officer's dashboard camera — a video that state police have steadfastly refused to release.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822337-us-state-police-wont-release-dashcam-video-of-officer-shooting/

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Mayweather takes his $100 million check and runs
By TIM DAHLBERG

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The check was for $100 million, a payday so mind boggling that Floyd Mayweather Jr. couldn't help but show it to a few reporters when the night was done.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822338-mayweather-takes-his-us100-million-check-and-runs/

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Arab coalition 'reconnaissance' troops land in Yemen
By AHMED AL-HAJ

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — With helicopter gunships hovering overhead, at least 20 troops from a Saudi-led Arab coalition came ashore Sunday in the southern port city of Aden on what military officials called a "reconnaissance" mission, as fighting raged between Iranian-backed Shiite rebels and forces loyal to the nation's exiled president.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822339-arab-coalition-reconnaissance-troops-land-in-yemen/

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Israeli Ethiopian protest against racism turns violent

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Several thousand people from Israel's Jewish Ethiopian minority protested in Tel Aviv against racism and police brutality on Sunday, shutting down a major highway and clashing with police on horseback long into the night.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822340-israeli-ethiopian-protest-against-racism-turns-violent/

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Maltese found dead in Bangkok hotel

Bangkok:- A Maltese man was found dead in a Bangkok hotel Sunday evening. Police suspected that he was killed by heroin overdose.

Pol Lt Khom Rodphao, an interrogator of Lumpini police station, was alerted at 7 pm that a foreign tourist died in a room of the Aloft Hotel on Soi Sukhumvit 11 in Bangkok’s Vadhana district.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822348-maltese-found-dead-in-bangkok-hotel/

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Husband and mianoi commit suicide to upset wife

Mahasarakham: – A man and his mistress (mianoi) died and left a note saying they took their own lifes out of spite for the man’s wife who tried to break off their relationship, police said.

Mahasarkham police station’s Lt Colonel Sompong Udomdet arrived at the scene after neighbours reported hearing gunshots inside the house on Thamwongsawat Road, Mahasakham Mueang district.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822345-husband-and-mianoi-commit-suicide-to-upset-wife/

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Drunken house owner dies in fire-engulfed home

Chiang Mai: –Oy (last name unknown), 50, died yesterday in a fire which started at her home before spreading to burn down other 20 shanty houses located at Chang Klan cemetery, Mueang Chiang Mai district.

Police and fire fighters spent more than one hour to put out the fire.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822346-drunken-house-owner-dies-in-fire-engulfed-home/

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Officer: Shooting at Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas

GARLAND, Texas (AP) — A provocative contest for cartoon depictions of the Prophet Muhammad in a Dallas suburb was put on lockdown Sunday night and attendees were being evacuated after authorities reported a shooting outside the building.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822360-officer-shooting-at-muhammad-cartoon-contest-in-texas/

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Thai PM orders crackdowns on drunk driving

Bangkok:- Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the Royal Thai Police to regularly set up road checkpoints to crack down on drunk driving following a tragic accident in Chiang Mai.

Deputy Government Spokesman Maj Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd said Monday that Prayut ordered police to set up road checkpoints regularly to check blood alcohol level of motorists.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/822361-thai-pm-orders-crackdowns-on-drunk-driving/

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Homeless man arrested for throwing bricks at six vehicles
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Police arrested a 26-year-old homeless man Monday morning after he allegedly threw bricks at a BMW car and five taxis coming down the Taksin Bridge on the Thonburi side at 2 am Monday.

He was identified as Nitipong Jiasarum. Police said the man acted under the influence of chemical glue he had inhaled.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Homeless-man-arrested-for-throwing-bricks-at-six-v-30259288.html

-- The Nation 2015-05-04

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Railway of Thailand reports all northern and Isaan trains are parked at Hua Lampong station due to a falling mobile crane at Don Muang station /Bangkok Post