News from Thailand – September 11, 2014

You sometimes see rare birds. Abbot Luang Pu Pim of Wat Weruwan in Chaiyaphum lay down in a coffin on Tuesday evening to meditate and die. That would happen at 21 p.m. on September 9, he had predicted in 1995.

Yesterday, local authorities and elderly monks ended the 65-year-old abbot's 'Lent' and took him to hospital (pictured). The abbot said he was tired and weak.

The abbot's action attracted great interest; the newspaper talks about thousands of followers. Initially, they did not want to allow the rescue crew. But they gave up their resistance after being asked: Do you then want a good monk to die? It took the rescuers an hour to convince the abbot to leave his deathbed.

The abbot's daughter says her father died earlier in a cave and miraculously rose from the dead. [It's been shown before.]

– 10 million baht for a faulty repair. Villagers who depend on Thailand's longest wooden bridge in Kanchanaburi think it's outrageous that the province's contractor will receive that amount. They are going to ask the NCPO (junta) to reverse the decision of the province. The villagers point out that the contractor not only missed the deadline, but also proved unable to complete the work when he was given an additional XNUMX days.

Last Thursday, the contract was canceled by the province. The contractor was hired to repair 70 meters of the 850-meter bridge, which was washed away by a strong water current last year. The work is now being completed by soldiers from the 9th Military Engineer Regiment and local carpenters.

In a previous message it was said that the contractor had used too thin boards, but I don't read that this time. It does say that the company has changed the landscape at the foot of the bridge resulting in erosion of the bank, but I don't understand what that means.

– A company in Bang Phli (Samut Prakan) that places nurses in factories and companies received a visit yesterday from police, soldiers, public health officials and activists (photo home page). The nurses would be unlicensed.

De task force, as the newspaper refers to the 'visitors', came across a list of XNUMX nurses and doctors who have been put to work in companies in Bangkok, Samut Prakan and some eastern provinces. Medical devices and medicines (antibiotics, cough syrup and medicines for flatulence) have been seized for further investigation. The company would not have a license to sell or supply medicines.

The employment is required by law for companies with more than two hundred employees. The companies must have an occupational health service with a nurse, bed and medicines. The raid is a follow-up to last week's business checks in Phra Pradaeng and Phra Samut Jedit. It turned out that many companies employed unqualified nurses and assistants.

– The Association of the Provincial Administration Organizations welcomes the proposed bill that sets stricter rules for government procurement and rental. At present, only rules of the Prime Minister's Office apply.

Secretary-General Chatree Yuprasert does not expect the proposed legislation to end corruption overnight. "At best, it helps reduce corruption in public procurement and promotes transparency in procurement." He points out that there are already some laws related to corruption that must be followed by officials. But to stop corruption, a conscience is needed, he says.

– Mayor Sitthichai Charoenthanachinda of tambon Tha Sao (Ayutthaya) calls on the NCPO to allow local elections again. According to him, the current procedure with appointed representatives leads to nepotism and appointments of people who don't know what to do. Even worse, they often don't even live in the province where they were appointed.

Sitthichai also raises a new accusation against Minister Panadda Diskul (PM's Office), who has previously come under fire for his statements about wasting money at the local and provincial level. Sitthichai says provincial authorities under the Ministry of Interior are guilty of extensive corruption. And let Panadda of all people have worked there before. [In which function the article does not mention.]

– It's an open door: Thailand's education is of abysmal quality, as confirmed once again by the annual Global Competitiveness Report 2014-2015, released last week by the World Economic Forum in Geneva. The report includes a ranking of 144 countries, ranked by the quality of primary and higher education. The list is based on opinions [of?] and not measurements of learning outcomes.

Thailand ranks 90th in the quality of primary education, 87th in higher education and 81st in mathematics and physics. Small consolation is that the other Asean countries are not faring much better. [Unless I have the ranking misinterpret and a higher number indicates a higher quality, if you know what I mean.]

– Prime Minister Prayuth reigns over his grave, because in the policy statement of the new cabinet he will also tell how future governments should govern the country. Tomorrow he will explain his ideas in the NLA (emergency parliament), but today the newspaper can already report on it because the 23-page statement was released yesterday.

I will not mention what Prayuth will say about this. Those interested can read it in Prayuth vows 'blueprint' for future PMs (see the newspaper's website).

Prayuth's policy focuses are infrastructure, border security, maritime security, cross-border crime, the deep South, defence, promoting good relations with foreign countries and combating corruption, human trafficking, social inequality and squatting of government land, as well as improving healthcare. In short, a whole laundry list of good intentions.

– The witch hunt that is made on people who would live illegally in forests is not well received by human rights activists. This was revealed yesterday during a seminar organized by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). They believe that the plans of the NCPO (junta) should be revised.

According to Raman Ravisode of the Nan Land Reform Network [Nan is a province], the eviction of forest dwellers is based on inaccurate aerial photos; their historical rights are not taken into account. Saman advocated the issuance of land deeds to communities, a progressive land tax and the formation of a land bank with funds to compensate residents who are treated unfairly by the government.

NHRC member Niran Pitakwatcharam believes the government should immediately stop evicting villagers until evidence is gathered. The NHRC, he says, has received 20 complaints about NCPO eviction orders in Sakhon Nakhon, Chaiyaphum, Trang, Chumphon and Mae Hong Son.

A representative of the Isan Land Reform Network said that in June, XNUMX villages in XNUMX northeastern provinces faced eviction notices and in August villagers were evicted in XNUMX places.

According to an officer of the Internal Security Operations Command, 1 million rai are illegally used every year. The NCPO aims to free forests from illegal habitation within a year. Two years are allotted for reforestation. After that, Thailand's forest area should have increased from 31 to 40 percent of the country's total area.

– Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha will visit Sukothai province tomorrow, which has been badly hit by floods. He has ordered the army stationed in flood-affected areas to provide assistance.

The flooding in Sukothai is currently slowly decreasing, but now the problem threatens to move to the more southern provinces in the Chao Phraya basin. In Ayutthaya, flood defenses are being strengthened around Wat Niwet Thammaprawat, a historic temple on an island in the Chao Phraya.

Water levels in the province are gradually rising as the Chao Phraya dam in Chai Nat province is releasing more water. The water in Bang Pa-in, Bang Ban and Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya is expected to rise by 10 to 20 centimeters. A similar increase is expected in the districts through which the Noi and Pasak rivers run. If the increase continues for several days, orchards of banana trees and fields in Bang Ban will be flooded.

Farmers in Bang Rakam and Phrom Phiram (Phisanulok), on the other hand, want their fields to flood. The soil is too dry, the groundwater level is too low and pests multiply quickly.

– Thai Airways International (THAI) now has a super board of directors in addition to a board of directors. He must solve the financial problems of the heavily loss-making airline. Chairman of the super council becomes a member of the 'ordinary' council.

THAI has decided to waive a 7 billion baht loan from the Government Housing Bank. This is not necessary, because the cash flow and credit facilities are sufficient to cover the expenses until March 15, says acting Executive Board chairman Areepong Bhoocha-oom. Last month, the company is said to have made some more profit thanks to currency fluctuations and cost-cutting measures.

THAI hopes to end the year with a loss of between 5 and 7 billion baht, less than the previously expected 12 billion baht. A higher profit is expected for the fourth quarter; the occupancy rate has already risen to 78 percent.

– Latest news from the surrogacy front. In Chiang Mai, a surrogate mother gave birth to a baby, who was probably also conceived with the sperm of the Japanese Shigeta. The baby was born in a private hospital. The local office of the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security has asked the hospital to care for the baby for the time being until it takes over the care itself to prevent the baby from being taken to another country.

The surrogate mother earned 300.000 baht with her work. The child was born prematurely by caesarean section and is still in an incubator. Shigeta's lawyer guided the mother through her discharge from the hospital. He said to bring the mother back twice a day to breastfeed the child.

The case against the director of the All IVF clinic, who allegedly performed all IVF treatments for Shigeta, is still under investigation. Police need another month to hear witnesses. The case is then transferred to the court. The director was heard on Monday. Shigeta is said to have fathered a total of 15 babies with surrogate mothers. He has already brought three to Cambodia.

– Environmental organization Earth says that harmful levels of heavy metals have been found at a gold and copper mine in Loei province. This was shown by a study in 2013 in which 82 soil samples were taken in Wang Sapung and in two creeks through which water from the mine flows. Found are arsenic and manganese. The results of the study were announced yesterday at a seminar at Chulalongkorn University.

An environmental expert from Rangsit University took it a step further. He said he encountered chromium, lead, arsenic, copper, mercury and manganese in one of the creeks in November in concentrations that exceeded the sediment quality criteria set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

According to the director of the mine's parent company, arsenic was found in the creek as far back as 2004 and the mine was not yet operational. He does not believe in the pollution of surrounding villages. The villagers panic needlessly about the supposed consequences of the mine because 'there are no consequences'.

– Big shock on Koh Samui yesterday when a fighter jet broke through the sound barrier. Residents and tourists panicked and left their homes and hotels near the beach of Plai Laem, Lamai and Chaweng. Surat Thani-based Wing 7 has apologized.

www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post

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