News from Thailand – November 23, 2013

The World Guinness Record for the largest human Christmas tree was broken yesterday. In front of the Siam Paragon shopping centre, 852 schoolchildren dressed in green and red hooded sweatshirts broke the old record of 672 participants set in Germany in 2011.

A hearing on the construction of a waterway in Samut Songkhram came to an abrupt end yesterday with WFMC officials fleeing as they were treated to booing, clapping and a whistle concerto by some XNUMX angry residents.

The mood at the hearing turned when it turned out that there were not enough survey forms. Those present, mostly students, residents and activists, ignored the forms and instead submitted a petition against the construction to the governor of the province and the Water and Flood Management Committee (WFMC) with 22.473 signatures. According to the opponents, the procedure is not transparent and the waterway does not benefit the residents.

After the WFMC left with shouts of 'Get out', the irritation of those present increased even further because the WFMC had not taken the boxes with the petition. Students had tried to hand over the boxes, but they were stopped by the police. This led to some pushing and pulling, in which one student was slightly injured.

The construction of the waterway is part of the waterworks, for which the government has allocated an amount of 350 billion baht. The 281-kilometer waterway will run from Khanu Woralaksaburi in Kamphaeng Phet to Samut Songkhram and aims to accelerate the drainage of water from the Ping River to prevent flooding in the Central Plains. The construction takes up half of the total budget.

Yesterday's hearing was observed by senators and Human Rights Commission officials. A senator promised to bring the shortage of questionnaires to the attention of the Supreme Administrative Court. The results of the hearing will be announced in the Province House within a few weeks. "We will see if our vote against the project is reflected," said Senator Surachit Chiravej.

See also Wasant's comments further down in the news section.

– The PR department of the Ministry of Defense acknowledges that the peace talks with resistance group BRN are still not bearing fruit because the violence in the South continues unabated. Several deadly attacks on local leaders and politicians have taken place since the beginning of this month.

So far, BRN and Thailand have met three times. The next meeting has been delayed for months. The government is still preparing a response to the five demands that the BRN made in April regarding the progress of the talks.

Thai delegation leader Paradorn Pattanatabut expects talks to resume early next month. "We've made some progress in starting talks with groups other than the BRN."

– The National Anti-Corruption Commission's investigation into the 312 MPs who approved the Senate bill is not hampered by Pheu Thai's rejection of Wednesday's Constitutional Court verdict.

"Pheu Thai's rejection has nothing to do with the work of the NACC," said Vicha Mahakhun, NACC member and spokesperson. 'All government departments are bound by the Court's verdict. The NACC cannot go any other way. She must base her investigation on the verdict.'

There are five petitions with the NACC requesting that impeachment proceedings be initiated against the relevant parliamentarians and/or that they be prosecuted criminally. The presidents of both chambers are also under fire for their role during the parliamentary debate. The NACC is also investigating a vote where an MP used colleagues' electronic voting cards. The results of the NACC investigation will go to the Criminal Division Holders of Political Positions of the Supreme Court.

The UDD (red shirts) asked the NACC yesterday to scrap the case. According to the UDD lawyer, the NACC is not competent. "The legislators have done their duty and their actions have nothing to do with corruption." The UDD and Pheu Thai will file charges on Monday, including for lèse majesté, against five of the nine judges of the Constitutional Court. The Court ruled on Wednesday that the proposal to allow the Senate to be elected in its entirety and no longer to appoint half, was against the constitution by a vote of 5 against 4.

– A first-year student of the Bangkok College of Industrial Technology was shot dead yesterday while he was waiting at a bus stop in Saphan Sung. A fellow student was injured. The two were shot at from a passing motorcycle. They are believed to be victims of a feud between two vocational schools. The injured student stated that they had never been guilty of violence.

– Even more student violence. Four students of the Ayutthaya Technical Commercial School were injured by a ping pong bomb. One student lost four fingers. According to witnesses, the songthaew in which the foursome were, pursued by students from the Ayutthaya Ship Building Industrial Technology College.

– Residents of Wang Nam Khieo (Nakhon Ratchasima) and Na Di (Prachin Buri) want to stop the demolition of illegally built houses and holiday parks in Thap Lan National Park. They handed over this demand yesterday during the visit of Minister Vichet Kasemthongsri (Environment) to the park. The residents want land deeds to be issued to people who have been using the land for a long time.

– A 7-year-old boy from Myanmar, who was crying on the side of the road in Thong Pha Phum (Kanchanaburi), appears to have been used as a drug courier. In his backpack, the police found almost ten thousand methamphetamine pills. The boy said he traveled to Thailand with his uncle and two others and was left behind on the way.

– The body of the Chinese tourist (20) who drowned at the Phromthep Cape in Phuket on Wednesday was found seven kilometers away yesterday. Together with another Chinese student, he had slipped on the rocks and ended up in the water. The other was rescued and was only slightly injured.

Comments

– The hearings on the water management works are a farce. Opponents are banned or limited seats, interested people must register online or at county and county offices, police are in large numbers to deter unregistered participants, supporters are mobilized, and sessions are split into smaller group meetings.

Wasant Techawongtham cracks in Bangkok Post some hard notes about the hearings that the government initially did not want to hold, but which have been forced to go to court. Wasant calls the planned works (amounting to 350 billion baht) the government's most treacherous project due to its potentially damaging impact on the environment as well as on the livelihoods and lifestyles of local communities across the country.

And if all that wasn't enough, the hearings are being led by Deputy Prime Minister Plodprasop Suraswadi, Thailand's "most arrogant public servant." Wasant: 'Plodprasop behaves like a mandarin in the imperial court, who sticks his tongue out at the law and the people who pay their salary with impunity.'

This farce must stop and a decent, meaningful public participation process must take its place, said Wasant, the paper's former editor.

Warning

– Loyal blog reader Kees Roijter reports the following: A message from Thailand has appeared on Pon's [his wife] Facebook with a warning for people on their way to the North. A Thai refueled 10 kilometers before the town of Phrae. After continuing his journey, he saw something flapping from his fuel filler flap. He stopped and it turned out that his fuel cap had a plastic bag with 5 pills (yaba).

Shortly afterwards he was arrested by the police. A cop went straight to his gas cap. The agent was unlucky, because the man had already thrown the bag away. The cops ransacked the entire car, but that also yielded nothing. It is said that someone who is 'caught' should pay 30.000 baht, an amount that is shared between the police and the tank attendant. Advice: stay with it when you fill up.

Varies

– One group is extremely unhappy with the whistling protests and that is the security guards and traffic controllers of Bangkok, writes Guru, the naughty Friday sister of Bangkok Post. Editor-in-chief Sumati Sivasiamphai quotes a Yellowline watchers on the platform of BTS Asok: 'All these people are making noise about nothing. This isn't working out. I'm the one who's supposed to give people a headache.' [On the BTS platforms, a yellow line indicates how far you can stand from the edge of the platform.]

A Poor Waver says his job has become a lot more difficult. He directs cars in and out of a parking garage. 'Cars should only drive or stop on our dictatorial whistle. With all those protesters adding their whistles to the mix, drivers get confused and don't know if they should pull up. It's chaos.'

Political news

– Prime Minister Yingluck has canceled her planned visit to the Prime Minister of Singapore next Tuesday and Wednesday. Yingluck must then appear in parliament, where at the request of the opposition party Democrats a so-called censor debate is held, culminating in a vote of no confidence against her and Minister Charupong Ruangsuwan (Internal Affairs).

The government whips* have set aside two days for the debate: Tuesday and Wednesday. Wednesday is the last meeting day, after which parliament will go into recess until next year. Opposition party Democrats says it needs three days.

Tuesday's cabinet meeting has been moved to Monday and the mobile cabinet meeting on November 29 and 30 in the southern province of Songkhla will continue, although Minister Somsak Pureesrisak (Tourism and Sports) thinks it should be canceled.

When he visited Satun on Thursday, he was treated to a flute concert by anti-government protesters and he did not like that. After meeting with tourism operators and officials, he hurriedly returned to Bangkok. What happened in Satun could be an indication of bigger rallies if the Prime Minister visits Songkhla. Protests and whistling happen even in a quiet town like Satun.'

* A whip is a person who, prior to a vote in parliament, must ensure that members of his own party are present and vote for the correct proposal. The term is used in British, American and Canadian politics. There is no such function in the Netherlands, if only because it would be illegal. The Dutch Constitution stipulates that members of parliament vote without burden or consultation. (Source: Wikipedia)

Economic news

– The World Bank will publish its forecast for the growth of gross domestic product next month. Kirida Bhaopichtr, senior economist for Thailand, has already announced that it will be lower than the earlier forecast. The mediocre third quarter and weak exports are the culprits. Earlier this year, the bank fell from 4,5 to 4 percent.

The Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) is also about to reduce its forecast from 3,7 to 3 percent. The new forecast is based on the National Economic and Social Development Board's estimate that exports will not grow this year. The FPO says the fundamentals of Thailand's economy remain strong despite slow growth in domestic spending and investment in both the public and private sectors.

The new forecast, which will be announced next month, is based on low inflation and unemployment of only 0,6 to 0,7 percent. In contrast, financial reserves remain healthy and financial institutions are still strong, said FPO Director General Somchai Sujjapong.

Somchai expects the Bank of Thailand's Monetary Policy Committee to review the policy rate will remain at 2,5 percent. “As a result, we have been able to maintain modest growth despite the volatile global economy,” he says.

– The political tensions have not left the stock market untouched. On Thursday, the SET lost 28,95 points and finished below the 1400 point mark. The baht fell to its lowest level in two months amid reports that the US FED will stop buying Treasury bills in the coming months. The baht dollar rate is now 31,79/82 (minus 0,5 percent).

Boonchai Kiattanavith, director of Thanachart Fund Management, is not too concerned about the political tensions. “We got through it before too. After the violent riot of 2010, our economy and stock market have recovered in a short time.' He expects the SET to fluctuate between 1.350 and 1.400 points over the next 6 months. The base is still strong. Some listed companies are still growing and others are paying dividends of up to XNUMX percent.'

– The Thai business community is more pessimistic than optimistic about the prospects for next year. This is evident from the quarterly report of Grand Thornton Thailand. Businesses are particularly concerned about the broader macro economy. Only 2 percent of the respondents expect growth, compared to an average of 17 percent last year. There are also fewer plans for investments: in the second quarter, 18 percent said they would still invest, in the third quarter that was 4 percent.

Grand Thornton expects growth to recover in 2014 as the economies of Thailand's major trading partners are performing well and tourism is booming. A major concern is the lack of trained personnel.

www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post

---

Submitted communication

Looking for a nice gift for Sinterklaas or Christmas? Buy The Best of Thailand Blog. A booklet of 118 pages with fascinating stories and stimulating columns from eighteen bloggers, a spicy quiz, useful tips for tourists and photos. Order now

---