Seven Bombs Go Off In Bangkok - New Year Countdown Cancelled

[Jai Dee]

Public Health Ministry readies hospitals in BKK for accommodating blast victims

Public Health Minister Mongkhol Na Songkhla (มงคล ณ สงขลา) has mobilized highly qualified doctors from state and private hospitals to care for the victims of the multiple bomb blasts in the capital.

The Minister said he has ordered for gathering of emergency doctors from hospitals in order to provide assistance to the injured to the fullest extent. He has also told hospitals to care for these patients to the best of their ability without worrying about the expenses, as the Ministry of Public Health will handle all the costs.

The most recent reports indicate there is a total of 28 people wounded from the explosions. Of this number 14 are male and 14 are female. 14 have been admitted as inpatients. 2 of the wounded are in serious condition. 2 people died from the explosions, both of them men.

Permanent Secretary for Public Health Prat Bunyawongwiroet (ปราชญ์ บุณยวงศ์วิโรจน์) said those who were in the vicinity of the explosions when they occurred may be experiencing hearing trouble. He said that if the condition does not improve by tomorrow they should get check-ups at hospitals.

Md. Chetsada Chokedamrongsuk (เจษฎา โชคดำรงสุข), director of Ratchavithi (ราชวิถี) hospital, which handled 16 patients, said the hospital is reserving another 30 beds and tripling the amount of medical staff in preparation for the situation.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 31 December 2006

[thaihome]

Thaksin behind the bombings...? That doesn't make sense since he would have cut-off a possible return to Thailand forever.

It's beginning to look like a '24'-scenario with Jack Bauer....

LaoPo

=========

I think you need to try to imagine the sort of legal battles that the former PM is facing and how serious they are to get an idea how much motivation they might be on his side - not necessarily him, but his supporters - to be involved in such incidents as we've seen tonight.

Just from what we've seen in the press in recent weeks, he would probably face many years of tortuous litigation. And when you look at the way things are going - eg military people taking over management of the new airport and ferreting through the contracts there (which are allegedly a can of worms for him and many others), plus possible cases linked to the Drug War killings - he must be very very worried re the future, I would think.

Some people looking into the killings during the war on drugs say it's likely many thousands of people were killed; that investigators of the National Human Rights Commission say people disappeared and are believed to have been killed in hundreds if not thousands of villages right across the North - it should be the subject of a documentary to really bring home what went on, because it was effectively the work of Thai death squads. Many hilltribe people who were not registered as Thai citizens were reportedly just wacked; the toll could easily be 6000 - not the silly 2500 figure we see constantly repeated in the press. All of that extraordinary wave of killing can, media people here say, be drawn right back to the PM and some of the highly emotive speeches he gave to police and local officials; speeches that urged extrajudicial treatment.

But even if nothing happens on the above that might directly implicate the former PM, his massive Shin deal is in tatters. iTV can be taken at a moment and I would have thought ownership of the satellite licence (ShinSat) simply won't be allowed to leave the country. That pretty well just leaves the mobile phone firm AIS, and even that would be blocked under the latest Foreign Biz Law moves.

The coup will cost the former PM $1 billion+ on the Shin deal alone. If the Monson case gets the go ahead it could strip him of another huge sum. And put him behind bars for years. Probably, there are a lot of cases that could see him jailed for many years.

If the Surayud government were to pass a proper witness protection law things could open up dramatically. The current government has only just offered incentives - in the form of 25% of assets for people linked to offences to roll over and say what they know.

Having watched things closely for the last few years I think there is actually a staggering list of misdeeds and corruption. This AEC panel set up to probe such things would need several years to sort through it all. I truly believe the previous government was like an organised crime gang and that the cupboard is full of a lot more than just skeletons.

One or two people have already started to "sing" to AEC panels, as can be evidenced by the death threats they received a couple of weeks back. There's a fair chance that a whole range of former ministers face very serious repercussions.

But if you look at the potential threat that a man of such wealth could pose - particularly when he had/has some cohorts with very bad reputations (ie people from Buri Ram and former ministers prepared to round up forestry officials to physicall attack opponents) - it's no wonder that some experienced Thai journos have been predicting for some time that Thaksin was NEVER going to be able to return.

In terms of who benefits from a wave of bombings in the capital, you can probably suggest 1/ militants from the South, 2/ former govt heavyweights 3/ coup leaders.

However, the intelligence to date heavily suggests no 2 -

What would be the purpose of such bombings?

Probably to destabilise the current government to a major extent; to literally "knock a wheel off the car"; sink the economy and put them into a crisis that might derail or seriously impair some of the legal moves that are hugely threatening to much of the previous Cabinet. Make no mistake, some heavies are going down and they hate it - they have a lot of wealth to fight what's going on, and tonight, the gloves have probably come off.

From all the posts this is certainly the most informative and realistic one. Thank you!

Except I'm trying to figure out the coup is going to cost Taksin the Shin deal. It may indeed cost Temask (aka Singpore) a bunch, but Taksin (and family) got their money the first day.

Otherwise, a pretty good post, although somewhat from a western perspective of a very complex situation. Keep in mind, Taksin is not the richest person in Thailand.

TH

[Jai Dee]

Narenthorn EMS center affirms fatalities from the recent Bangkok bombing

The director of the Narenthorn EMS center affirms fatalities from the recent Bangkok bombing.

MD Surachet SatitNiramai (สุรเชษฐ์ สถิตนิรามัย), the director of the Narenthorn EMS center, reports that emergency personnel have rescued bomb victims from the bomb scenes throughout the Bangkok Metropolitan area. Fatalities have been confirmed with bomb victims being delivered to nearby public and private medical facilities. 13 victims have arrived at Rajawithee Hospital, with 1 confirmed fatality, and 2-3 critical cases.

Meanwhile the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital has received 6 victims, 1 of those critical. Paolo (เปาโลฯ) Hospital has received 1 victim, Phramongkutklao (พระมงกุฎเกล้า) Hospital has received 3 victims, while the Kluay Nam Thai Hospital (กล้วยน้ำไท) is verified its bomb victim patient load.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 31 December 2006

[LaoPo]

..... In terms of who benefits from a wave of bombings in the capital, you can probably suggest 1/ militants from the South, 2/ former govt heavyweights 3/ coup leaders.

However, the intelligence to date heavily suggests no 2 -

What would be the purpose of such bombings?

Probably to destabilise the current government to a major extent; to literally "knock a wheel off the car"; sink the economy and put them into a crisis that might derail or seriously impair some of the legal moves that are hugely threatening to much of the previous Cabinet. Make no mistake, some heavies are going down and they hate it - they have a lot of wealth to fight what's going on, and tonight, the gloves have probably come off.

A few remarks:

1. whoever is behind the bombings, nobody is benefitting -on the long term-, nobody.

2. Unless you have direct and inside info with/from 'Thai intelligence', all possible 'attackers/groups' are so far speculation, including #'s 1, 2 and 3; there could be other individuals/groups.

3. To destabilise the (a) country to a 'major' extent, sink the economy or put them into crisis one (a group) would need to do a lot more harm than some small bombs. Examples enough: look at the daily bombings and killings in Iraq, the Bali bombing, the Thai-bombs and destruction in the deep South; they all failed to bring the (a) Government down or sink the economy or put them into a crises they coulnd't recover from.

It's dangerous and premature to point a finger at a certain group at this stage.

Plain and simple: we don't know what's going on behind the (government) scene....and: believing an 'intelligence source' who's talking to the Thai press.....hmmmm

LaoPo

[mitrapaap]

Thaksin behind the bombings...? That doesn't make sense since he would have cut-off a possible return to Thailand forever.

It's beginning to look like a '24'-scenario with Jack Bauer....

LaoPo

=========

I think you need to try to imagine the sort of legal battles that the former PM is facing and how serious they are to get an idea how much motivation they might be on his side - not necessarily him, but his supporters - to be involved in such incidents as we've seen tonight.

Just from what we've seen in the press in recent weeks, he would probably face many years of tortuous litigation. And when you look at the way things are going - eg military people taking over management of the new airport and ferreting through the contracts there (which are allegedly a can of worms for him and many others), plus possible cases linked to the Drug War killings - he must be very very worried re the future, I would think.

Some people looking into the killings during the war on drugs say it's likely many thousands of people were killed; that investigators of the National Human Rights Commission say people disappeared and are believed to have been killed in hundreds if not thousands of villages right across the North - it should be the subject of a documentary to really bring home what went on, because it was effectively the work of Thai death squads. Many hilltribe people who were not registered as Thai citizens were reportedly just wacked; the toll could easily be 6000 - not the silly 2500 figure we see constantly repeated in the press. All of that extraordinary wave of killing can, media people here say, be drawn right back to the PM and some of the highly emotive speeches he gave to police and local officials; speeches that urged extrajudicial treatment.

But even if nothing happens on the above that might directly implicate the former PM, his massive Shin deal is in tatters. iTV can be taken at a moment and I would have thought ownership of the satellite licence (ShinSat) simply won't be allowed to leave the country. That pretty well just leaves the mobile phone firm AIS, and even that would be blocked under the latest Foreign Biz Law moves.

The coup will cost the former PM $1 billion+ on the Shin deal alone. If the Monson case gets the go ahead it could strip him of another huge sum. And put him behind bars for years. Probably, there are a lot of cases that could see him jailed for many years.

If the Surayud government were to pass a proper witness protection law things could open up dramatically. The current government has only just offered incentives - in the form of 25% of assets for people linked to offences to roll over and say what they know.

Having watched things closely for the last few years I think there is actually a staggering list of misdeeds and corruption. This AEC panel set up to probe such things would need several years to sort through it all. I truly believe the previous government was like an organised crime gang and that the cupboard is full of a lot more than just skeletons.

One or two people have already started to "sing" to AEC panels, as can be evidenced by the death threats they received a couple of weeks back. There's a fair chance that a whole range of former ministers face very serious repercussions.

But if you look at the potential threat that a man of such wealth could pose - particularly when he had/has some cohorts with very bad reputations (ie people from Buri Ram and former ministers prepared to round up forestry officials to physicall attack opponents) - it's no wonder that some experienced Thai journos have been predicting for some time that Thaksin was NEVER going to be able to return.

In terms of who benefits from a wave of bombings in the capital, you can probably suggest 1/ militants from the South, 2/ former govt heavyweights 3/ coup leaders.

However, the intelligence to date heavily suggests no 2 -

What would be the purpose of such bombings?

Probably to destabilise the current government to a major extent; to literally "knock a wheel off the car"; sink the economy and put them into a crisis that might derail or seriously impair some of the legal moves that are hugely threatening to much of the previous Cabinet. Make no mistake, some heavies are going down and they hate it - they have a lot of wealth to fight what's going on, and tonight, the gloves have probably come off.

From all the posts this is certainly the most informative and realistic one. Thank you!

Except I'm trying to figure out the coup is going to cost Taksin the Shin deal. It may indeed cost Temask (aka Singpore) a bunch, but Taksin (and family) got their money the first day.

Otherwise, a pretty good post, although somewhat from a western perspective of a very complex situation. Keep in mind, Taksin is not the richest person in Thailand.

TH

The way I read the post Taksin is not the main player anymore. He is in England, probably can't come back anymore and that's it. But there seems to be a bunch of people still in Thailand that cannot be interested in the actual government investigating all done deals, contracts and accounts. They have much more to fear than Taksin. Personally I like the new government because it dares to investigate and speak out what it finds.

[kayo]

Happy New Year People in Thailand and related time zones! :D

[Gluestick]

happy new year!

[Johpa]

Wow, the farang circus is a real three-ring affair and all the gossipy old ladies are turbo-charged tonight.

No matter what happens, from earthquakes in Taiwan to early closure of bars to airport openings to Internet slow-downs to global warming, the grannies on steroids have all the answers... and the answers are inevitably the same:

• T.I.T
  
• Tourists and foreign investors will stop coming
  
• Thaksin is to blame
  
• The police are to blame
  
• The Muslims are to blame
  
• TRT is to blame
  
• The junta is to blame
  
• This would never happen in Europe
  
• This would never happen in UK
  
• It's a feudal system
  

Some of you need to make a few New Year's resolutions to get a life, to stop assuming if you ruled the world it would be a better place, and to stop clenching your butt cheeks 24 hours a day.

Sawatdee pii mai

Heheheheeee,, How very, very true!

,

the pair of you are not being resonable on the posters. while some of the posts are pure specualation. quite a few are resonable. all you do is just attack everyone.

After reading through over a dozen pages of posts, I have to agree that Khaojai's post was one of the few reasonable posts in this over extended and redundant thread where the vast majority of posts, those not quoting news sources, are indeed pure speculation, and not very well informed speculation at that.

[The Dude]

The Dude says that these bombings are a major bum trip and he sends his condolences for the victims. May this never happen again.

Edited December 31, 2006 by The Dude

[thaihome]

dispite all this.

At midnight the Bangkok sky light up with spectacular fireworks shows and the sounds of people celebrating the New Year carried through the air.

The spirit of the Thai people cannot be kept down.

TH

[Jai Dee]

Six bombs hit Bangkok's key areas

At least 20 people have been injured in Bangkok night after six bombs exploded in the Thai capital as revelers were preparing to bring in the New Year. Two died. The six explosions happened within 90 minutes of each other across Thailand's capital, and began at 5:20 pm at downtown Bangkok's Sukhumvit Road.

The first blast on Sukhumvit Road did not injure anyone. However, the most serious blast happened at Victory Monument in central Bangkok at 5:30 pm where thirteen people were injured, two seriously.

Two bombs then hit police traffic posts almost simultaneously at about 6:00 pm. One was at an intersection in the north of the city and injured two, and another exploded in the northern suburb of Nonthaburi. No one was injured there.

At about 6:30 pm a bomb exploded near a Chinese temple in Klong Toey district, injuring five people including one child. It was a bomb put in a garbage can in the centre of a fresh market of Klong Toey.

The sixth bomb was put in a garbage can in a suburb on the way to Bangkok's new airport.

It is not clear if anyone was injured there, or what time it happened.

Police urged people to be careful as they celebrated New Year, and asked the public to report any suspicious incidents.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 31 December 2006

[Jai Dee]

Names of victims injured in the Bangkok bomb blast

14 people injured in the bomb blasts were immediately rushed to Ratchavithi Hospital, One died. The dead was reportedly Mr. Songkran Kanchana. Mr. Samruey Sida (สำรวย ศรีดา) was seriously injured. 12 others wounded had been admitted to hospital.

Seven were wounded in the bombing at Klong Toey market, all of them were sent to Chulalongkorn Hospital.

However, Mr. Suvitchai Nak-iam (สุวิทย์ชัย นาคเอี่ยม), 61, security guard at a nearby shrine, died in the hospital.

Mr. Khampan Artyotha (คำพันธ์ อาจโยธา) was seriously wounded and is still under the ICU's care.

Five others wounded are Mrs. Bai Wongsa (บาย วงศา) , Miss Tansini Mangkornpan (ทันศิณี มังกรพันธ์), Mr. Kamchat (กำจัด) with unknown surname, Miss Arisa Tor-dok (อริศา ต่อดอก) and Mr. Khamdi Manisaeng (คำดี มณีแสง).

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 31 December 2006

[Jai Dee]

Police officers examine a bus stop near Victory Monument after a bomb exploded yesterday evening killing one and injuring 17.

Source: The Nation - 1 January 2007

[Amethyst]

I heard theres a bomb blast somewhere near Gaysorn Plaza ..can anyone confirmed this??

Edited December 31, 2006 by tytus

[Pepe']

Thai TV reporting 5 dead at Victory Monument.

I was just there a few weeks ago for the first time connecting to the sky train.

Makes it a little more spooky for me.

Thank Buddha not more people were hurt or killed.

[Jai Dee]

Attacks wreck NY's parties across nation

There was panic in many areas of Bangkok and in several other parts of the country last night in the wake of the coordinated six-bomb attack across the capital city.

New Year countdowns and other celebratory parties were cancelled, including two much-awaited events at CentralWorld and Sanam Luang, where people gathered briefly and dispersed after learning of the attacks.

All major stores located near CentralWorld at Rajdamri Inter-section were closed following security concerns.

Security was also beefed up at a number of New Year countdown parties held in Phuket and Hat Yai district in Songkhla province. An event in Chiang Mai was called off.

Military and police officers based in Pattaya called an urgent meeting to heighten security measures at key countdown sites where a large number of Thai and foreign tourists were expected. Naval military police were dispatched around Pattaya streets to ensure extra protection - a rare and unusual sight in this seaside tourist city.

In the capital, armed soldiers in full combat gear were dispatched to provide security. Uniformed police officers at all Bangkok police precincts were mobilised and stationed at key locations.

In the inner city, all Bangkok branches of Central Department Store were closed down while all stores in Siam Centre, Siam Square and Siam Paragon did the same.

A large crowd at Big C Rajdamri went into a panic upon learning that a suitcase was found abandoned. A bomb disposal team later found that there was nothing inside.

At Seacon Square, thousands of shoppers left the compound after a bomb was found in a trash bin before it could explode.

Conflicting reports said earlier that a loud bang heard in the area was a electrical transformer ex-ploding.

In Nonthaburi, where a bomb was set off near a police box at Khae Rai Intersection, major department stores located not far way closed early.

Military officers of Army units based in the Northeast were been instructed to stay on alert in all 19 provinces in the region, which is a key political stronghold of the Thai Rak Thai Party, formed by ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Nakhon Ratchasima, Buri Ram, Surin, Ubon Ratchathani and Udon Thani were to be monitored especially closely.

Source: The Nation - 01 January 2007

[onethailand]

Gaysorn Plaza confirmed.

Also, one of the piers on the river - two injured.

[Krungthepian]

Except I'm trying to figure out the coup is going to cost Taksin the Shin deal. It may indeed cost Temask (aka Singpore) a bunch, but Taksin (and family) got their money the first day.

Otherwise, a pretty good post, although somewhat from a western perspective of a very complex situation. Keep in mind, Taksin is not the richest person in Thailand.

TH

(ThaiHome)

My understanding is the funds from the Shin deal are still in Thai banks; that the finance minister, Pridiyathorn, said a month or two ago that the money (from Temasak for the Shinawatras) was still here and had not been moved abroad. The money is legally in the Shinawatra name but the deal is still hanging in limbo while the courts assess various aspects.

I've also seen reports saying that this takeover would have had caveats that should protect, or largely protect, Temasek should something go wrong - as it has; that is allegedly standard in large takeovers. I'm not 100 per cent on this. Indeed, it's something that business or political reporters should clarify, because it's unclear.

I'd be interested seeing a legal opinion or the opinions of insiders who know the particulars of this deal on what the prospects are of Temasek getting a fat chunk of their money back if the great bulk of the deal is torpedo'd - by the courts and Surayud government (which oversees such things as satellite and TV licences), because, to me, that looks virtually certain to happen.

One thing that's always struck me about it is that Temasek were ludicriously naive about the way such a deal would go down with the Thai public. They overstepped the mark wildly, so there's not a lot of sympathy for them. Som nom na.

The only thing is will there be intervention to let Singapore partly off the hook - and minimise their losses? At present it looks like the Surayud govt will follow the courts - so they're gonna have to cut ownership to 49 per cent of all Shin companies .. "but we'll give you a couple of years to do it, cos you're a valued friend and neighbour".

A key issue may end up being, can Temasek take legal action against Shin to get their money back? Because the whole thing is unravelling to the point where there's a very strong argument for them to say they won't get anywhere near what they sort to buy. Could a Thai court in year or two in the future order the Shin deal to be scrapped or drastically re-jigged?

We need a lawyer to tell us that.

Happy New Year, by the way. Let's hope the injured recover promptly, and the families of the two who died can be somehow comforted amid their tragic loss.

[rcm]

my wife just said there were some more blasts .....they reporting on itv about it -seems to be some Foreigners been hurt

[Jai Dee]

COMMENT

We shall not be cowered

Whatever it was meant to be - an attempt to discredit the interim government, an expanded campaign of terror from the deep South, or the most serious warning yet that the peace and harmony of this Kingdom is facing its biggest and most menacing threat - we shall not let its masterminds have their way.

Thais must rise together to confront whoever was responsible for this most inhuman act, carried out with the most selfish reasons, and send them back a stronger message.

They want us to panic. They want us to point fingers, pass the blame and fight among ourselves. They want us to change our way of life. They want to aggravate our political turmoil. Whoever did it has great contempt for our national character and thus decided to put it to the acid test. Whoever did it looks with scorn upon Thais' love of peace and the nation's long-established unity. Whoever did it is pouring brutal insults on us as a nation.

We must not let them. Our parties may have been cancelled, our fun spoiled and our confidence shaken, but we shall make them see that their acts of cowardice and bloodlust will only bring us all closer together. They must be shown that while stores have been evacuated and celebrations abandoned, a common resolution is taking shape. The casualties and shattered debris at all corners of the capital must give rise to a strengthened national soul, simply because it's the opposite of what the masterminds want.

We shall help each other. We shall be vigilant. We shall be united. We shall do our best as Thai citizens to bring better times back to our country.

And we shall let them know that they will never win.

Source: The Nation - 01 January 2007

[qualtrough]

Wow, the farang circus is a real three-ring affair and all the gossipy old ladies are turbo-charged tonight.

No matter what happens, from earthquakes in Taiwan to early closure of bars to airport openings to Internet slow-downs to global warming, the grannies on steroids have all the answers... and the answers are inevitably the same:

• T.I.T
  
• Tourists and foreign investors will stop coming
  
• Thaksin is to blame
  
• The police are to blame
  
• The Muslims are to blame
  
• TRT is to blame
  
• The junta is to blame
  
• This would never happen in Europe
  
• This would never happen in UK
  
• It's a feudal system
  

Some of you need to make a few New Year's resolutions to get a life, to stop assuming if you ruled the world it would be a better place, and to stop clenching your butt cheeks 24 hours a day.

Sawatdee pii mai

Heheheheeee,, How very, very true!

,

the pair of you are not being resonable on the posters. while some of the posts are pure specualation. quite a few are resonable. all you do is just attack everyone.

After reading through over a dozen pages of posts, I have to agree that Khaojai's post was one of the few reasonable posts in this over extended and redundant thread where the vast majority of posts, those not quoting news sources, are indeed pure speculation, and not very well informed speculation at that.

Well said and ditto.

[onethailand]

Another bomb at World Trade/Central World, in front of the Arnoma Hotel. At least one foreign female injured, leg ripped off.

Edited December 31, 2006 by onethailand

[Jai Dee]

Urgent: Two more bombs explode at Central World, Pratunam

More details to follow

Source: The Nation - Breaking News - 1 January 2006

[IMA_FARANG]

A dark dark dark day for Thailand, the government should have delt with this all 2 years ago, but they just left it to brew.

Not so, if you only knew the facts.

Foriegn intelligence has been feeding intel updates to Thailand for at least 2 years or more. But what do you do, tell the Thais to cancel all tourisim in Thailand? It's just not possible.

The other thing you'll never know is the intel warnings that stopped terrorist attacks before they happened.

Don't assume that what you don't hear about was ignored or wasn't happening.

I won't repeat any rumors because that is counter-productive.

Just remember that to many fundalmentalist Muslims, the Bars, Alchohol, and such are abominations.

They truely believe that to destroy that sort of thing is a cleansing of sin, and a religious duty.

You and I may not agree, but they have their own opinions.

And this is the Eid-al-Fathar feast, one of the holiest periods in the Muslim religious calender.

Edited December 31, 2006 by IMA_FARANG

[kayo]

BBC news just reported the same... They are already saying at least six farang have been injured. News comin in to BBC from France Presse.

[onethailand]

The Nation and the Post are not going to be able to keep pace with TV/radio reports. What I am posting is coming straight off the broadcasts.

Edited December 31, 2006 by onethailand

[PeaceBlondie]

Channel 3 is reporting that one or two bombs have been found undetonated, and the police are trying to disarm those bombs.

[FunkyGuru]

1993 an I was in Mumbai(Bombay for those who like), 8 and more Bombs went off, killing thousands,.

People of Mumbai(Bombay), stood up to the tragedy.

Moral of the story?

Don't be afraid of them terrorist! If you are terrorized; they win. If you are not, then they loose.

Have faith and trust in your own destiny.

[onethailand]

Seven known injured in latest Central World bombings. At least four are foreigners.

[Jai Dee]

Two more bombs went off near Central World Plaza

A bomb went off at about five minutes after midnight, at Saen Sab (แสนแสบ) bridge near the Central World Plaza. Many foreigners are among the injured.

At nearly the same time, another bomb blasted opposite Central World building. Nobody was injured.

Four bomb blasts were earlier reported at different spots in Bangkok. At least two victims died while several others received serious injuries.

Source: Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department - 01 January 2007