News from Thailand- July 22, 2014
Sunannika Kritsanasuwan, second runner-up of the Miss Universe Thailand pageant, refuses to return her crown. Nam Phet, as she is nicknamed, has been disqualified because of sexy pictures of her on social media.
Nam Phet admits to working as 'pretty' but denies allegations of sexually indecent behavior. Prettys are women who, for example, pose with cars at the Motor Expo. Nam Phet calls that commercial presenter.
– The junta seems to be relaxing its additional measures to restrict the media. Meetings took place yesterday between Surasak Kanchanarat, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defense and in charge of the NCPO reform campaign, and representatives of the Thai Journalists Association (TJA), Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, National Press Council of Thailand and the News Broadcasting Council or Thailand. The four organizations are quite shocked Announcement 97, which means that anything even remotely reminiscent of criticism is prohibited.
The media is particularly uneasy about point 5 of the edict, said TJA president Pradit Ruangdit. Section 5 provides for an immediate ban on the sale, distribution or broadcast of messages deemed to threaten national security, insult others and criticize the NCPO. Soldiers, provincial governors and municipal and provincial police commanders have the authority to shut down businesses that do so. Point 3 has also aroused the resentment of the media. That is about criticism of operations of the NCPO and its staff.
According to Pradit, point 5 should be deleted or amended. Current law and professional ethics already provide for regulation of the media. They just need to be strictly enforced to ensure all media adheres to them. 'Some journalists ignore them for personal gain and that has repercussions for the entire profession.'
– Coupleider Prayuth Chan-ocha will be received in audience by the king tonight. Reportedly, the conversation is about the interim constitution that has been drawn up by the junta and is for signature by the monarch. The provisional constitution provides for the establishment of a legislative assembly, reform council and commission, which will draft the final constitution.
– Foreign investors are still concerned about the current political situation and are waiting for stability and growth, said Adrian Borg-Cardona, director of real estate company Lifestyle Assets Co. "But over time, when Thailand grows towards political and economic stability, they will undoubtedly return." Borg-Cardona said this yesterday after the meeting 'A Mirror of Thailand' organized by the Honorary Consuls Association.
The speaker there was former Prime Minister and Finance Minister Pridiyatorn Devakula, adviser to the NCPO. He said the junta is committed to pulling Thailand out of the "black hole." This is done, among other things, by accelerating the spending of funds from the 2014 budget. He laid out an agenda that aims to restore international confidence, boost the economy and make the country one of the world's most important trading nations.
– The municipality of Bangkok (BMA) continues to sweep the footpaths. After the Rattanakosin area, it's Tha Tian and Tha Chang's turn. There, too, all illegal street vendors must pack their bags. A previous attempt by the municipality failed because the street vendors pay mobsters to protect them. The new attempt must succeed, because the municipality is now supported by the army. The sellers have now received a leaflet with the municipality's plans for the footpaths.
Yesterday the street vendors at the Klong-Lot canal and the Supreme Court had to believe it. According to BMA adviser Wichai Sangprasai, 40 vendors from Khlong Lot have moved to Tha Chang and Tha Tian. A fruit seller in Tha Chang says she and other sellers have been there for XNUMX years. Most illegal vendors are outsiders, who occupy the sidewalks at night.
Illegal stalls have also been removed elsewhere in the city: at Bo Bae and in Ramkhamhaeng. Lottery ticket sellers had to clear the field on Ratchadamnoen Avenue at the Khok Wua intersection. The municipality has designated four locations where they are allowed to stand.
– Television station Bluesky is considering closing its doors because the money is running out. The station that broadcasted the protests of the anti-government movement live has not been allowed to broadcast for two months, causing revenues to dry up. Meanwhile, the staff has been paid.
The station will make a decision on closure in a week. It hopes that the ban on broadcasting will be lifted when the provisional constitution comes into force. Bluesky is one of fourteen TV stations that have been taken off the air by the junta.
– 136 schools in the South will have a fence around them to protect them against insurgents. This proposal from the Ministry of Education has been given the green light by the NCPO panel responsible for ending violence in the South. These are schools in remote places in Taha and Raman (Yala), Sai Buri and Kapho (Pattani) and Chanae, Cho Airong and Rangae (Narathiwat), which are now without a fence, making them an easy target for the insurgents.
The panel also approved the installation of more surveillance cameras in high-risk areas. This has been proposed by the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre. Coupleider Prayuth Chan-ocha has pushed for even more cameras across the South when the high-risk areas are covered.
The resumption of peace talks with the BRN separatist movement, which have been at a standstill since Ramadan last year, is imminent. Continuation is a priority for the NCPO, says the panel chair. However, he did not disclose details.
– Two teenagers were injured in a shooting in Sungai Padi (Narathiwat) on Sunday evening. One of the two is in serious condition. They were fired upon as they returned home on the motorcycle.
Before the explosion of four homemade bombs in Rangae on Sunday, the police have identified seven suspects on the basis of camera images. Arrest warrants are issued against them. No one was injured in the explosions.
– The complaints center Damrong Tham (Maintaining justice), which can be reached by telephone on number 1567, must function better. Coupleider Prayuth Chan-ocha has ordered all government departments to assist the ministry in this. Complaint centers should be set up throughout the country, where the population can submit complaints, receive advice or a response to their problems. The central complaints center was formed in 1994.
– Residents of a dump in Phraeksa (Samut Prakan) have asked the junta to close the dump. According to the residents, the landfill poses a threat to their health. After a few rain showers, they also had to deal with contaminated wastewater. The residents say that so far they have not received any response from government services for their complaints. In March, a fire broke out at the landfill that lasted six days, and two more fires broke out within two months.
– Cambodia's Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Tea Banh will visit Thailand next week for two days. The purpose of the visit is to strengthen ties between the two countries. Tea Banh is expected to declare his support for the junta.
– The body of the teenager who drowned in the sea on Mae Pim beach on Sunday was found yesterday. It had become entangled in a fishing net 500 meters from where it fell into the sea [?].
– Since the end of last month so-called one stop service centers have opened, 180.000 guest workers have registered. The NCPO announced this yesterday at the opening of a center in Prachuap Khiri Khan, a province with 14.000 unregistered migrants.
The centers are an initiative of the junta to end illegal labor and human trafficking. Migrants receive a temporary work permit, after which they have 60 days to apply for a permanent work permit.
– The NCPO says three hundred squatters have evicted Thap Lan National Park (Nakhon Ratchasima). They had planted crops and built huts. Firearms and rosewood logs were seized in the operation that began on Saturday by foresters, soldiers and police. According to the park head, the squatters were persuaded by local politicians to occupy the land last month.
Apart from Thap Lan, squatters are also evicted elsewhere, including in Pang Sida National Park. They are first talked to; when they refuse to leave, the judge is called in. Both parks are part of the Khao Yai-Dong Phayayen forest complex, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation expects to recover 4.000 rai within two months thanks to the military-led operation. The cleared ground is then reforested.
– Was it suicide? The family has doubts and pending an autopsy and study of the evidence, the cremation of former environmental activist Sutthi Archasai has therefore been postponed. Sutthi was found in his pickup truck in the garage of his home on Tuesday. He had a revolver in his hand. He died in hospital on Wednesday morning.
According to police, four shots were fired from the revolver. One hit Sutthi's temple, the others pierced the windshield and garage roof. The family wonders why he fired three times before taking his own life.
Sutthi led numerous environmental protests in Rayong province, most notably against the construction of a power plant. He has not manifested himself in recent years.
www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post