News from Thailand – July 10, 2013

Thousands of farmers from the five southern provinces protested yesterday in Pran Buri (Prachuap Khiri Khan) against the low milk price paid by the Dairy Farming Promotion Organization of Thailand.

They find the price of 18 baht per kilo too low, because their wages and production costs have risen. In addition, in practice they usually receive 16,5 baht due to irregularities in the milk. The farmers demand 20 baht per kilo and they want the deduction to be used for a fund to improve milk quality. In the photo, a transvestite is given a milk bath.

– Combating human trafficking and in particular child labor is a top priority for Thailand. Chalerm Yubamrung, the new Minister of Employment, said this in a speech on Monday about his policy intentions for the ministry's staff. He promised to crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. Tomorrow the minister himself will take a look at the fish market Talad Talay Thai in Samut Sakhon to see if there are children working there.

Thailand has been on the Tier 2 list of the US for four years Trafficking in Persons report. It lists countries that are doing too little to combat human trafficking. This year, the country escaped relegation to the Tier 3 list, which has trade sanctions.

In his speech, the minister asked the Labor Protection and Welfare Department to take care of the foreign workers at the Saha Farm group, one of Thailand's largest poultry exporters. On Friday, workers protested because they had not been paid. The arrears amount to 34 million baht. The department head has asked the company to pay the salaries by Monday at the latest.

– The Law Reform Commission member Sunee Chairot held a public hearing on Monday about the draft fisheries worker protection scheme. Employers complain that the legally required registration of their employees is difficult because they regularly run away. Sunee believes the registration process is important because it protects employees.

– The plan for a rail connection between Phrae and Chiang Rai has been shelved for 53 years and it finally seems to be happening. The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) plans to put the project out to tender early next year. The SRT is confident that the cabinet will approve the construction of the 325-kilometre-long section in double track.

Experts are currently conducting an environmental study into the construction. It is then assessed by the National Environment Board. The cabinet then decides whether the construction will go ahead. The construction will cost 60 billion baht. The work will take four years to complete.

Besides this line, there is another line that has been delayed for 19 years. This is a 347-kilometer connection with 14 stations between six provinces in the Northeast: Khon Kaen, Maha Sarakham, Roi Et, Yasoton, Mukdahan and Nakhon Phanom. Previous governments refused to allocate money for it.

This time, the SRT hopes to benefit from the 2 trillion baht that the government will borrow for intra-structural works. The SRT has put a consultant to work, who is conducting a feasibility study and making an impact report. The tender should take place in 2015. Construction will take 4 years.

– Next month, hearings will begin on water management projects, for which the government has allocated 350 billion baht. The hearings were ordered by the Administrative Court after the Stop Global Warming Association filed a complaint. The ministry hopes to have the text of the contracts ready within three months. The companies that will carry out the work have already been selected.

– Some Pheu Thai MPs believe that the party should take over the Ministry of Agriculture from coalition party Chart Thai. According to them, the staff has failed to comply with the government's water management policy. The takeover would also be good for the rice mortgage system. The government then has a stronger grip on it.

– Today begins Ramadan. The question on the government's lips is: will the resistance group Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN), with which peace talks are being held, keep to the agreement to observe a ceasefire during the month of fasting? The question is whether the BRN will actually do that, because it has set seven demands as a condition for a ceasefire, including the withdrawal of troops from the South.

Thailand and the BRN have agreed that in the event of violent incidents, they will contact each other via Malaysia (which is an observer in the peace talks) within 48 hours. The Thai delegation will then ask the BRN for suggestions on what to do with the groups responsible. At the end of Ramadan, the date for the next peace talk is set.

Banners condemning the 'Siamese colonialists' were found yesterday in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat. Literally it says: Cruel + Destructive + Deceiving + Smearing = Siamese colonialists. The text is also sprayed on road surfaces (photo).

– Much to the delight of their families, 11 prisoners from Bangkok Remand prison have been transferred to a prison in the South, so that they can receive visitors more easily. 43 other prisoners had previously been relocated as part of the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre's relocation program.

– Due to drug use, 32 monks, including two abbots, have to hand in their habit. They were caught during raids on 27 temples in Ban Mo (Saraburi). The monks have been taken to a rehabilitation center.

In Wat Rangsit in Pathum Thani, two monks were arrested yesterday who were in possession of speed pills. They also had to hand in their habit.

– More than 640 monitor lizards were caught yesterday in Amphawa (Samut Songkhram) because they wreaked havoc in the fish farms of residents. They go to the Khaoson Wildlife Breeding Center in Chom Bung (Ratchaburi). Monitor lizards (monitor lizards) are protected animals.

- A restriction on freedom of the press: This is what the attendees of a meeting of media people yesterday called the intention of media watchdog NBTC to give itself the authority to ban programs that could undermine or overthrow the monarchy or that threaten national security and public safety. manners.

The meeting was attended by members of the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, Thai Journalists Association, News Broadcasting Council and National Press Council of Thailand.

– The Royal Thai Police (RTP) will not (yet) receive an extra budget for the completion of 396 police stations, the construction of which was halted last year because the contractor no longer paid the subcontractors. The RTP had asked for 900 million baht.

The government has asked for further details about how the money will be spent. The compensation demanded by the contractor from the police must also be taken into account. The RTP has also requested permission to postpone completion of construction until 2015.

– The army is discussing today the audio recording of an alleged conversation between former Prime Minister Thaksin and Deputy Minister Yutthasak Sasiprasa (Defense), which was posted on YouTube last week.

The main topic of discussion was Thaksin's return to Thailand without having to go to prison. Thaksin was sentenced in absentia to 2008 years in prison in 2 for abuse of power. The Defense Council and the National Security Council should support his return by asking the cabinet to grant an amnesty to Thaksin.

The talk took place in Hong Kong on June 22, eight days before the cabinet was changed and Yutthasak was named deputy minister. See the attached overview for the other topics of discussion.

Air Force Commander Prajin Jantong yesterday did not answer the question whether the army top still has confidence in the minister. Asked if it is acceptable for Thaksin to return, he said the armed forces adhere to two principles: to unite the population and to uphold the law. He confirmed that the summit is discussing the possibility of a cabinet decision on amnesty. "Then we'll make our position known."

Prajin said he still has faith in Army Commander Thanasak and Army Commander Prayuth Chan-ocha, although it seems (from the audio recording) that they already know about the plot to bring back Thaksin.

Economic news

– Starting at the end of this month, the government will auction rice two to three times a month, each time about 200.000 to 300.000 tons, provided that a price is not below the market price. Minister Niwatthamrong Bunsongpaisan (Trade) promises to release all information on government sales as well as the loss figures of the mortgage system.

The delivery of rice to countries with which Thailand has an agreement is being accelerated. Volume and destination are also disclosed, the price is not.

According to the government, the loss on the mortgage system in the 2011-2012 season is 136 billion baht. That figure is based on all expenses, including management costs, interest and the estimated value of the inventory. The value is based on the lowest market price on January 31 this year. No figures are yet available for the 2012-2013 season. The Ministry of Finance estimates that the loss on the first harvest is 84 billion baht.

Farmers who offer their paddy for the mortgage system receive 15.000 baht for a ton of white rice and 20.000 baht for a ton of Hom Mali (jasmine rice), prices that are about 40 percent above the market price. There was some talk that 12.000 baht would be paid for white rice, but the government quickly backed down under pressure from threatening protests.

– Energy giant PTT Plc expects biofuel made from algae to be produced at a competitive price by 2017. Between 2008 and 2012, PTT did extensive research into the use of algae, which cost a hefty sum of 100 million baht. In the coming years, the research will be continued in collaboration with research institutes in Thailand and abroad.

PTT has set up pilot farms in Rangsit and Map Ta Phut in collaboration with the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research, the National Science and Technology Development Agency and Mahidol and Chulalongkorn University.

At the moment, the production of biofuel based on algae costs four to five times as much as the production of biofuel based on palm oil, but PTT's Pailin Chuchottaworn expects this difference to be eliminated within a few years.

PTT recently teamed up with the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) to find suitable types of micro-algae to make biofuel. CSIRO is one of the world's leading research institutes in this field. She has found that 10 of the 247 species have a favorable biochemical composition and contain high levels of fatty acid to produce biofuel. But to make commercial production viable, new algae with a higher yield must be found.

– Tesco Lotus in China wants to increase sales of fruit, vegetables and other products from Thailand with the aim of doubling the value. Chinese consumers trust Thai food for its safety and quality, said Jenny Kian, director of food imports for Tesco China. Tesco also plans to import products such as sweet chilli sauces, biscuits, seaweed, jams and Otop products. Tesco currently has 132 branches in China with 4,4 million customers every week. [Otop means One Tambon One Product. It is a program that aims to get villages to specialize in one product.]

www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post