News from Thailand – February 25, 2013

The 17-year-old Thai Ariya Jutanugarn, who made her debut as a professional, failed to win the Honda LPGA Thailand golf tournament in Pattaya yesterday. Although she hit a hole-in-one on the twelfth hole, it went wrong on the eighteenth and final hole. Her ball ended up in the bunker (sand pit), was unplayable and that cost a penalty drop.

In the end, she needed eight strokes on the par-5 hole. South Korea's Park Inbee then collected the coveted trophy and prize money of US$225.000, Ariya collected the still not inconsiderable amount of US$140.305 and won a Honda CRV for the hole-in-one. But she was in tears. American Stacy Lewis, who had led the tournament through the first two rounds, tied for third place with a Spanish and South Korean player.

– Insurgents in the South retaliated this weekend with 29 near-simultaneous bombings and arson attacks in six districts of Pattani for the failed February 13 attack on the Narathiwat Marine base, which killed XNUMX of their comrades. Seven defense volunteers were injured in one of the bomb attacks, but no other injuries or deaths occurred.

Of the 29 attacks, 8 took place in Yarang, 7 in Muang, 7 in Yaring, 4 in Nong Chik, 2 in Sai Buri and 1 in Khok Pho.

• In Muang a bomb could be defused in time; later, car tires were set on fire in four places, followed by arson in a telephone mast and a bomb attack that injured the defense volunteers.
• In Yaring, a school building and an empty house were set on fire, car tires were set on fire in three places and a transformer was shot at, causing it to fail. A fire engine also went up in flames. There were also several arson attacks.
• In Nong Chik, Sai Buri and Khok Pho, car tires were also involved, in a total of nine places.

– The lunch meeting of the defense ministers of Thailand and Cambodia will not take place tomorrow. He seems to have fallen victim to a political sparring in the run-up to the Preah Vihear case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

Initially, the gentlemen were to have lunch in a tent near the temple, in the 4,6 square kilometer area disputed by both countries. But the Thai Foreign Ministry didn't think that was a good idea; it could damage the case in The Hague. So the appointment was moved to a hotel in Surin, something Cambodia initially agreed to. But now Cambodia has withdrawn after all.

An attempt will be made to reschedule the appointment at a later date, according to a Defense Ministry source. But I think: from delay comes cancellation.

– Thailand should take an example from Brazil when it comes to combating child labour. Maurizio Bussi, director of the ILO offices in Thailand, Cambodia and Laos, recently gave this advice during a forum in Bangkok. The forum, dedicated to Brazilian practice, was attended by inspectors from the Thai Labor Inspectorate and representatives from the Fishery Association of Thailand.

According to Bussi, the government and politicians in Brazil are determined to end child labor, following the guidelines of the ILO (International Labor Organization). The government has made a significant budget available to solve the problem and help all parties to eradicate child labour. As a result, child labor in the fishing industry has ended and Brazil has been removed from the human trafficking list.

According to Bussi, (unannounced) inspections by the Labor Inspectorate are an important means of forcing employers to comply with the law.

– Panic among 1.600 students of E-sarn University in Khon Kaen. All courses that were given there have been declared invalid by the Council of State. The bad news was announced yesterday by former rector Sumon Sakolchai during a meeting with five hundred students who followed a bachelors, masters and graduate course.

The Council of State considered the validity of the courses at the request of the Ministry of Education, which ordered the university to close in October after it became known that it had sold diplomas to students. The decision of the Council of State means that all students must re-register elsewhere. This concerns 51 students who are studying for a bachelor's degree, 1.257 for a master's degree and 257 graduates.

– After the Ministry of Health had made a plea for the Western toilet seat to prevent joint diseases and the cabinet decided to make this official government policy, thought Bangkok Post: Come on, let's see what the population thinks about that. The outcome will not surprise anyone: the majority prefers to keep squatting.

Some comments: It is unhygienic to share the toilet seat with others in public toilets. I don't think public toilets are clean. Most British style toilets in public places are filthy, probably from misuse and not being kept clean properly.

A gas pump owner says that the conversion will cost him a lot of money, because not only the toilet has to be replaced, but also the water pipes have to be adjusted. His station has one sitting toilet and there is also squatting. "We try to keep it clean, but it's hard if the users don't help us."

A cleaner who works in the newspaper's building says that a squat toilet is much easier and faster to clean than a seat toilet. As a user, on the other hand, he prefers a sit-on toilet. "That's much more comfortable."

Under the Buildings Accessible and Usable for the Elderly and Physically Disabled Act of 2005, public buildings and gas stations are required to have a minimum of one seated toilet.

– The media has done it again. They must work harder to reveal the truth about the violence in the South. Publicize opinions and feelings of local people as they can help solve the problems there, Colonel Parinya Chaidirok, former spokesperson for the Internal Security Operations Command, said yesterday at a seminar organized by the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association following the attack. in Bacho killing 16 militants.

According to Parinya, the media has neglected their task for the past nine years since the violence resurfaced, but he did not provide any evidence. He also said that the media should sometimes exercise restraint in their reporting as it could affect the feelings of the local population.

– The head of the electoral commission in Bangkok has warned users of social networks that they are in violation if they campaign for a candidate on the night before the gubernatorial election. It carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a fine of up to 200.000 baht. The restriction does not apply to interpersonal, non-public contacts.

It is also forbidden to take a photo of the completed ballot paper, because that leads to the suspicion that someone receives money for his vote on presentation of the photo. Photography is allowed outside the polling station. Voters who do not show up must state the reason within seven days in order to retain their local voting rights.

According to Pheu Thai spokesperson Prompong Nopparit, people have complained about illegal voter registration in Phasicharoen, Bang Kae and Wang Thonglang districts.

Independent candidates for the post of governor lit a fire in the Royal Plaza yesterday in protest at election polls. They think they favor the two big rivals and mislead the voters.

– What happened in the night of February 14 to 15 in Nakhon Si Thammarat?

Scottish woman version (20): A pickup truck with four men pulled up next to me and the men took me into a building. There I was raped by two of them.

Suspect version, supported by CCTV footage: The woman had fallen in front of the restaurant and another man and I helped her. We followed her to the first floor of a building, where she lay down. She agreed to have sex, but it didn't work out because she was too drunk. Later I came back again, but again failed.

Police: The victim has not identified the man, she has no recollection of the incident. The case is a bit complicated because the victim has not given an actual account of the beginning. It's uncertain whether she invented it or was unable to remember.'

The woman left Thailand on Wednesday. The incident took place after she and her Scottish friend hit him hard and the friend had returned home.

– Thailand may have been promoted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) from the dark gray to the gray list of countries with dubious financial transactions, but much remains to be done to curb money laundering. The FATF has recommended that a new 'Know Your Customer' law be made that requires banks to inquire about their customers and verify their identities.

Thailand has recently introduced two laws: one to combat money laundering and one to combat terrorist financing. According to the FATF, controls on money transfers across the border should improve, companies should report their financial affairs to the authorities and monitor their financial transactions more closely.

– The Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan shifts from today to tomorrow because today is Makha Bucha Day. The parties that coincide with two other Buddhist holidays will also be moved: the party on May 24 will be moved to May 25, the party on July 22 will be moved to July 24.

– Macabre find: a human skeleton in a large water barrel in Bang Bo (Samut Prakan). The barrel was at an abandoned house. Police found a skull, bones, long pants and a shirt. There were two holes on top of the skull, presumably caused by a blow with a hard object. That must have happened at least a year ago.

– A man who thought he could beep to get food for his son, paid for it with his death. A long line of people had formed at a temple in Chiang Mai province, also waiting for food. When the man left the line, a commotion arose and two teenagers attacked him. One of them cut his neck with a broken beer bottle. The man, a Mon from Myanmar's Shan State, later died in hospital.

www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post