News from Thailand – August 28, 2014
Free publicity is never gone, so keep a so-called photo op: something that the media, with its photographer and cameraman, are only too happy to receive. It is a well-known PR ploy and the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) also used it by publicly checking staff and contract workers for drugs at Hua Lamphong station.
The aim was to boost public confidence, which has suffered a serious blow after the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl by a railway employee. Blood and urine were taken from about three hundred employees and they were questioned. Yesterday was the last of three days. No one tested positive.
According to deputy director Somkit Luacha, this is not the first time the SRT has done this. Tests have also been held in the past. The suspect in the rape and murder had been taking drugs and drinking with colleagues on board the train. The city of Bangkok has pledged to help those who test positive by admitting them to a drug rehabilitation program.
– Even more railways. A feasibility study will be conducted in October into doubling the track on two routes: Nong Khai-Mab Ta Phut (737 km) and Chiang Khong-Ban Phachi (655 km). The study is carried out by an external consultant and lasts one year. The lines should be there in 2021.
Not the SRT but a new government department will be responsible for the investment; the SRT remains responsible for the timetable. According to Chaiwat Thongkamkoon, deputy director general of the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning, China is interested in a joint investment in track construction in Thailand. The country views the two routes as the gateway to commercial destinations in China. China is also going to build the high-speed rail linking Laos with Thailand. [In Laos?]
– A forum on the role of state oil company PTT Plc ended yesterday without a joint conclusion from the participants. They have agreed to put their arguments in writing and submit them to the Supreme Administrative Court.
The forum was held at the initiative of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha. On Friday, he called on the parties involved to put their heads together. The forum consisted roughly of two parties. On the one hand, groups who believe that energy prices can be lower if PTT (privatized in 2001) operates in the interest of the population and not primarily of its shareholders. On the other hand, representatives of PTT, the Ministry of Energy and related services. The well-known action monk Luang Pu Buddha Issara acted as moderator.
The main talking point was the management of the pipelines and other assets. The Administrative Court has ordered PTT to hand it over to the state, but that has only partially happened. There was also discussion about pricing, price differences and alleged favoring of industrial customers.
– The naval chiefs of the Asean countries will jointly tackle maritime challenges and will maintain close ties with each other in the run-up to the Asean Economic Community (AEC), which will come into effect at the end of 2015.
That's what they promised yesterday at the eighth ASEAN Navy Chief's Meeting. Or, in the words of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Tanasak Patimapragorn, "We are related because we communicate in the same language, which is the military language."
During the meeting, Thailand proposed to organize joint naval exercises in 2017. Asean will then be 50 years old. It would also be the first exercises after the formation of the AEC. So far, the exercises have been organized by Thailand and Malaysia. Laos was the only Asean country not to attend the meeting.
– Next month, Thailand will have a cabinet including five deputy prime ministers, says coup leader and interim prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha. He announced this yesterday during a meeting with Thai and European businessmen. Prayuth explained to them the policy he envisions for the year that the interim cabinet will lead the country. He also once again defended the military coup and urged them not to worry about the political situation.
"The NCPO (junta) understands that business is focused on investment, wants to see sustainable solutions in the country and has no intention of getting involved in internal politics, but we value your opinions."
– A police officer convicted in connection with the jewelery theft from the Saudi royal family in 1989 will not be released. The Supreme Court upheld his seven-year sentence. He has been there for two years and six months. The jewels were stolen by a Thai employee at the time. Officers switched some for fake jewelry before handing them over as evidence. The man in question is one of seven agents who have been prosecuted. The message does not mention the others.
– Follow up on it message yesterday about the raid on Sirinat National Park, where illegal holiday homes have been built. The Land Department has found that the land deeds for five lots are illegal. They were obtained on the basis of documents relating to other grounds.
The Land Department has investigated 23 cases of suspicious land ownership (1.412 rai). Eight plots were in order, five were not in order. The others are still under investigation based on aerial photographs. How to proceed with the five is still being considered. Those involved can already appeal against the outcome of the investigation.
The article further elaborates on a disagreement with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP). The DNP believes that only two of the five are illegal. Both services also disagree about the eight.
– Every year in Thailand 300.000 people die from so-called NCDs: noncommunicable diseases and there are more than in other countries, says the Health Promotion Policy Research Center. The biggest killers are high blood pressure and diabetes.
The NCD cases cost the government 200 billion baht a year, the center has calculated. Every year the number increases by eight thousand. NCDs make up 73 percent of all deaths (63 percent worldwide). That should be a signal for the government and citizens to be more alert to the problem, says director Thaksapon Thamrangsi.
The Thai Health Promotion Foundation sees the solution in healthier behavior (no smoking, no alcohol), a better diet (less sugar and salt) and exercise. Treatment alone is not enough. "If the government invests in prevention, a patient will cost 12 baht," says Thakspon. And that is a pittance compared to the cost of treatment.
– The persons appointed to administrative bodies at the local level are not making much of it and therefore decision number 85 of the junta should be revoked, say local administrative bodies who attended a seminar organized by the National Municipal League of Thailand yesterday. Decree number 85 is the suspension of all local elections. Vacant places had to be filled by named persons. The aim of the measure is to curb the influence of national politicians at the local level.
NCPO spokesman Withai Suvaree says that the interim cabinet to be formed will look into the matter. Changes are possible but the suspension will be maintained until a new constitution is in force.
– The Uthenthawai campus of the Rajamangala University of Technology was closed for three days yesterday after a fatal attack on a student. On Tuesday night, a female student was killed and a male was wounded when a man on a motorcycle shot at waiting passengers at the bus stop where they were standing. Police have not yet seen the man on CCTV footage. Bullet cartridges were not found. The reason for this is as yet completely unclear.
– The Ministry of Employment will provide temporary border passes to foreigners who live in a so-called special economic zone to work.
They may travel to Mukdahan, Songkhla, Sa Keao, Trat and Tak in the morning, but they must return to their home country in the evening. There may also be seasonal passes for extended stays with certain types of work. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is discussing the new system with neighboring countries.
The cards will be issued by setting up a new oneone stop service center. It will also include someone from Immigration, which is not the case with the current centers [which issue temporary work permits]. The new center [or will there be one in every economic zone?] will also deal with wages, benefits and housing.
– Chanaichon Kerdthes reported to the police yesterday. He is the construction contractor of the flat in Pathum Thani that collapsed on August 11, killing 14 workers. He is charged with negligence. The flat collapsed when concrete was poured on the roof and the construction was not designed for that. The man was released on bail of 100.000 baht. If found guilty, he could face up to 10 years behind bars.
www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post