Sending food back to the kitchen?

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POLITICS
Next election could be in February 2017, Wissanu says
THE NATION

Govt may shorten 20-month road map; rules out appointment of ex-CDC members

BANGKOK: -- THE NEXT general election could be staged by February 2017, four months earlier than planned, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam yesterday told ambassadors, diplomats and representatives from international organisations from 66 countries.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856434-next-election-could-be-in-february-2017-wissanu-says/

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BANGKOK BLAST
Confusion over the identity of suspect
THE NATION



Lawyer to seek Turkey Embassy's assistance; Jakthip returns from Malaysia with 'useful info'

BANGKOK: -- THE LAWYER for Bilal Muhammed, one of the first men to be arrested in connection with the Bangkok bomb blast last month, will call on the Turkish embassy tomorrow to verify information given by his client.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856435-bangkok-blast-confusion-over-the-identity-of-suspect/

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UPDATE:

POLITICS
Reds leaders get jail sentence over invasion of Prem's home
THE NATION



BANGKOK: -- THE CRIMINAL Court yesterday sentenced four leaders of the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) to four years and four months in jail over their rally to lay siege to the Si Si Sao Theves residence of Privy Council chief General Prem Tinsulanonda.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856328-nattawut-veerakarn-weng-viphuthalaeng-sentenced-to-4-years-4-month-in-prison/page-3?p=9862844#entry9862844

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EDUCATION
'Wrong direction' blamed for Thai universities' ranking drop
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- THAI UNIVERSITIES' drop in the latest QS World University Ranking reflects the wrong direction taken in the Kingdom's higher education sector, education expert Pavich Thongroj said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856436-wrong-direction-blamed-for-thai-universities-ranking-drop/

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NEW CONSTITUTION
Ex-NRC member skeptical of reforms under new council
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- A FORMER member of the National Reform Council (NRC) has suggested that the high proportion of civil servants and military officers proposed for the new National Reform Steering Council needs to be reduced, saying they were part of the reason for the impasse in attempts to bring about reforms in the past.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856437-new-thai-constitution-ex-nrc-member-skeptical-of-reforms-under-new-council/

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Storms and Flooding Hits Pattaya

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856408-storms-and-flooding-hits-pattaya/

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380 stranded tourists rescued from Pattaya Island



PATTAYA: -- Special permission was granted by the Harbor Office in Pattaya on Wednesday to rescue 380 stranded tourists on Larn Island who were unable to travel back to Pattaya due to the current extreme weather conditions caused by Tropical Storm Vamco.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856438-380-stranded-tourists-rescued-from-pattaya-island/

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Damage, floods as Vamco hits many parts of the Kingdom
THE NATION


More than 10 small fishing boats capsized in Chon Buri

BANGKOK: -- SOME 400 Thai and foreign tourists were stranded on Koh Lan in Chon Buri's Bang Lamung district yesterday afternoon due to two-metre-high waves and high winds in the Gulf of Thailand.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856440-damage-floods-as-vamco-hits-many-parts-of-thailand/

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Ranger killed in Pattani roadside blast
The Nation



PATTANI: -- A volunteer paramilitary ranger was killed by a roadside bomb in Pattani's Panare district yesterday morning. Phutthapong Homsung, 22, was patrolling the route with his six-member team, when the explosion killed him.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856442-ranger-killed-in-pattani-roadside-blast/

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School director ousted pending probe
The Nation



CHIANG MAI: -- The director of a school in Chiang Mai province was removed from office after more than 1,500 students staged a protest demanding his dismissal.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856443-chiang-mai-school-director-ousted-pending-probe/

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Prayut wants urgent plan on drought
JEERAPONG PRASERTPONKRUNG
THE NATION



FARMERS NEED CLEAR EXPLANATION AND HELP IF THEY NEED TO SKIP CROP, SAYS PM

BANGKOK: -- PRIME MINISTER General Prayut Chan-o-cha has demanded that authorities present within two weeks clear measures on how to help farmers cope with drought - and explain if they are to be asked to skip growing rice.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856444-prayut-wants-urgent-plan-on-drought/

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No attitude adjustment for those who toe the line, NCPO assures
JITRAPORN SENWONG
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- THAIS STILL have full rights and freedoms in every way "as long as their expression remains [in accordance with] the set rules and regulations," the spokesman of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856445-no-attitude-adjustment-for-those-who-toe-the-line-ncpo-assures/

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BURNING ISSUE
Why law experts will likely shun charter-drafting team
ATTAYUTH BOOTSRIPOOM

BANGKOK: -- NOW THAT the National Reform Council has rejected the former Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC)'s draft charter, it will be difficult to find people who will be willing to help write a new constitution draft.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856446-thai-politics-why-law-experts-will-likely-shun-charter-drafting-team/

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PM buoyed by new economic measures
THE NATION


HAPPY HOUR Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and his economic tzar, Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, enjoy lunch with journalists and government officials at Government House.

BANGKOK: -- REVIVING the country's sluggish economy remains one of the biggest challenges after running the country for more than a year, Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said yesterday.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856447-pm-prayut-buoyed-by-new-economic-measures/

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EDITORIAL
Focus on 'human trafficking' is blinding the police
The Nation

Deeper issues lie at the heart of the Uighurs' presence in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- Police chief General Somyot Poompanmoung says a people-trafficking network that "moved Uighurs from one place to another" perpetrated the August 17 terrorist attack in Bangkok that killed 20 people and injured 130, many of them Chinese tourists.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856448-focus-on-human-trafficking-is-blinding-the-thai-police/

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THAI TALK
Thailand must face transition to the 'new normal'
Suthichai Yoon
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Prediction, goes the old joke, is dangerous, especially if it's about the future. In Thailand, talking about tomorrow is an especially risky business as nobody is quite sure about today, since lessons from yesterday are still unclear and undefined.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856449-thailand-must-face-transition-to-the-new-normal/

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TELL IT AS IT IS
KTB offenders: Paying for the sin of the 'big boss'
Pornpimol Kanchanalak
Special to The Nation

BANGKOK: -- On August 26 the Supreme Court's criminal division for political officeholders returned a guilty verdict against 19 former Krung Thai Bank employees for colluding on and abetting the irregular approval of a Bt9-billion loan.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856451-ktb-offenders-paying-for-the-sin-of-the-big-boss/

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UPDATE:

Pattaya partially submerged from heavy rains

PATTAYA: -- A large part of Pattaya went under water and traffic was brought to almost standstill after the city was lashed by heavy rains for about three hours as a result of depression Vamco which was sweeping across the eastern region and the central plains.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856408-storms-and-flooding-hits-pattaya/?p=9862918#entry9862918

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Policy interest rate kept at 1.5 percent



BANGKOK: -- The Monetary Policy Committee has agreed unanimously by 7:0 votes to maintain policy interest rate at 1.5 percent to reflect the slow economic recovery and export contraction.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856452-policy-interest-rate-kept-at-15-percent/

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Prayut uses Article 44 to extend NACC boss's term
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha resorted to Article 44 again yesterday, this time to extend Panthep Klanarongran's term as chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) until the new chairman is appointed.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856453-prayut-uses-article-44-to-extend-nacc-bosss-term/

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Thailand bomb blast puts spotlight on China crackdown on Uighurs
NATHAN VANDERKLIPPE

BEIJING — The Globe and Mail - When Thai authorities this week linked the trafficking of Chinese Muslims with the deadly bomb blast at a Bangkok temple, they placed the horrific attack squarely inside a much larger issue facing China, which has witnessed mounting hostility among its minority Uighur people.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856455-thailand-bomb-blast-puts-spotlight-on-china-crackdown-on-uighurs/

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Newly freed Thai journalist forced to quit newspaper
PAPITCHAYA BOONNGOK, Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — A Thai journalist just freed from detention by the military government said Wednesday he has resigned under pressure from his newspaper.

Pravit Rojanaphruk said The Nation newspaper asked him to leave because of pressure it received after he was detained, which he indicated came from both within the publishing group and from outside. He did not say exactly what sort of pressure the newspaper received, aside from a call for people to come out and protest against him.

He said he agreed to quit because he considered the newspaper to be like his own home, which he didn't wish to destroy.

"Thanks The Nation for everything. After discussing with management I agreed to resign to save the paper from further pressure," Pravit said on his Twitter account.

Pravit was detained Sunday by soldiers and held incommunicado until Tuesday for what the military calls "attitude adjustment." He has been a rare outspoken critic, in newspaper columns and on Twitter, of the junta that has ruled since a military coup last year ousted a civilian government. Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha has harshly criticized journalists and other critics of the coup.

No comment was immediately available from the newspaper. When Pravit was detained, the editor-in-chief of The Nation publishing group, Thepchai Yong, urged Prayuth to have him released immediately and described the detention as "a direct threat to press freedom."

The action also brought sharp criticism from international human rights and media groups, and underlined the limits of freedom of speech under Thailand's junta.

It was the second time Pravit had been detained by the junta, which summoned large numbers of politicians and potential dissidents in the months after the coup, and recently appears to have resumed a crackdown on dissent. The junta says criticism could destabilize the nation, which it says needs unity after almost a decade of sometimes violent political conflict.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-09-17

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Outcry after Muslim teen is detained over homemade clock
By DAVID WARREN and JAMIE STENGLE

IRVING, Texas (AP) — A 14-year-old Muslim boy became a sensation on social media Wednesday and got an invitation to the White House after word spread that he had been placed in handcuffs and suspended for coming to school with a homemade clock that teachers thought resembled a bomb.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856456-us-outcry-after-muslim-teen-is-detained-over-homemade-clock/

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Hungarian police clash with migrants at Serbian border
By DUSAN STOJANOVIC and VANESSA GERA

HORGOS, Serbia (AP) — Baton-wielding Hungarian riot police unleashed tear gas and water cannons against hundreds of migrants Wednesday after they broke through a razor-wire fence and tried to surge into the country from Serbia. Crying children fled the acrid smoke and dozens of people were injured in the chaos.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856458-migrants-tear-gassed-by-hungary-police-at-serbian-border/

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US general: Only handful of Syrian fighters remain in battle
By DEB RIECHMANN and LOLITA C. BALDOR

WASHINGTON (AP) — No more than five U.S.-trained Syrian rebels are fighting the Islamic State, astoundingly short of the envisioned 5,000, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East told angry lawmakers on Wednesday. They branded the training program "a total failure."

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856459-us-general-only-handful-of-syrian-fighters-remain-in-battle/

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Syrian refugees seek new passports as a ticket to Europe
By KARIN LAUB

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — A months-old Syrian government decision to start issuing passports to Syrians who fled their war-ravaged country is quietly contributing to the large exodus of refugees to Europe.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856460-syrian-refugees-seek-new-passports-as-a-ticket-to-europe/

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BREAKING NEWS

Strong quake shakes Chile capital, causing buildings to sway

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — A powerful earthquake shook Chile's capital Wednesday night, causing buildings to sway and people to take refuge in the streets. Several strong aftershocks hits within minutes as tsunami alarms sounded in the port of Valparaiso and authorities issued a tsunami alert for the country's entire coast.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856461-powerful-79-earthquake-shakes-chiles-capital/

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GOP candidates vie to break out of Trump's shadow in debate
By JULIE PACE and STEVE PEOPLES

SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (AP) — The second GOP presidential debate is giving a prime-time stage to long shots trying to prove they're worthy of attention and to weakened veterans fighting to reassert their viability — all still struggling against the campaign's phenomenon, Donald Trump.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856467-gop-candidates-vie-to-break-out-of-trumps-shadow-in-debate/

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Japanese businesses believe Thailand will have prominent role in AEC

BANGKOK, 17 September 2015 (NNT) – Japanese businesses are still confident of making investments in Thailand as it is anticipated that Thailand will play a very prominent role in the Southeast Asia region once the ASEAN Economic Community takes shape, according to the Japanese Chamber of Commerce in Thailand.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856478-japanese-businesses-believe-thailand-will-have-prominent-role-in-aec/

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UPDATE:

Hawaii under tsunami watch after 8.3-magnitude Chile quake
JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER, Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii is under a tsunami watch after an 8.3-magtidue earthquake off the coast of north Chile.

Full story: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/856461-powerful-83-earthquake-shakes-chiles-capital/#entry9863360