News from Thailand – October 4, 2014

Thailand jumped from tenth to sixth place on the Asian Games medal list yesterday, its highest position to date. The predicted gold medals were won: two bee sepak takraw, a sport only practiced in Asia, and boxing.

And it didn't stop there. Ramnarong Sawekwiharee finished third in taekwondo (54 kilos). Thailand now has 47 medals: 12 gold, 7 silver and 28 bronze. It's not raining medals today.

Pictured is boxer Wutthichai Masuk after his victory over South Korea's Lim Hyun-chul.

– The two Myanmarese suspected of the murder of the two British tourists on Koh Tao three weeks ago are not a scapegoat. There is 'solid forensic evidence' in the form of DNA proving their guilt, says Prime Minister Prayut. Their DNA matches the DNA found in the body of the British. And the mobile phone of a victim was found in the home of one of the suspects.

The DNA of the third Myanmarese arrested only matches the DNA found on a cigarette butt at the crime scene. He is currently considered a witness.

The British press, in particular, has no confidence in the police's investigation, and the Myanmar community is said to have tortured the suspects. According to Prayut, the British ambassador would be satisfied with the police investigation.

The two suspects had been working illegally for two weeks in the AC bar, where the British were on the night of the murders. They first killed the friend, then raped the woman who resisted fiercely, and killed her.

– Always feast: the mandatory declaration of possessions and obligations of members of parliament and ministers. This is now also known for the 195 members of the emergency parliament. The richest NLA member is Assistant Police Commissioner Jakthip Chaijinda; he and his wife are worth 962 million baht (equity minus debt). They also own 45 firearms and 47 paintings.

Some former army officers have a net worth of more than 100 million baht. The message does not mention who the 'poorest' NLA member is. Perhaps the Prime Minister's younger brother with a [poor] net worth of 79,8 million baht.

– It has been rejected as impossible before [I don't remember by whom], but the National Human Rights Commission is considering indicting Thaksin at the International Criminal Court in The Hague [not to be confused with the International Court of Justice] for crimes against humanity. That is how his 'war on drugs' can be qualified eleven years ago, according to the NHRC.

The police then received a license to arrest drug suspects dead or alive; That cost the lives of 2.500 alleged drug suspects. Authorities at the time claim that drug traffickers shot each other to avoid being apprehended by the police.

NHRC member Niran Pitakwatchara will go to The Hague with a delegation at the end of this year to discuss the possibilities. The commission wants to deal with not only Thaksin, but also those who pulled the trigger. Niran denies that there is a 'political persecution'. "It's time society knew what really happened."

– It must be a lucrative business: the theft of land to then sell it to housing projects. A police officer and a businessman in Nakhon Ratchasima are suspected by the local Agricultural Land Reform office. It has therefore lodged a complaint with the police.

The gentlemen are said to have had 300 rai of agricultural land excavated during an operation by the army. Damage: 10 billion baht. The legal search will be quite a job, because it is unclear who exactly owns the land.

– The Pathumwan Institute of Technology wants to open a new campus in Pichit, but that has nothing to do with the recent student quarrels, in which PIT students shot and killed two students from a rival study programme. The expansion of the PIT has been in the pipeline for four years, says the rector in response to reports that the PIT would like to move because the two institutes are now too close to each other.

– Sublime case of logic. The city of Bangkok says many toilets in the city are filthy because they are poorly maintained and hygiene is poor. Both the owners and users make a mess of it.

A council survey found that 85 percent of the shower hoses were contaminated, the floors were filthy, and 31 percent of the seats were not clean. Latches, doorknobs and faucets were also riddled with bacteria. The investigation, including at petrol stations, took place in the context of the presentation of the best toilet award.

– The well-known holiday park Ban Pa Ngam in Thap Lan National Park (Prachin Buri) will be razed to the ground, but when? Maybe with Sint Juttemis. The Supreme Court already granted permission for the demolition in June, but the Ministry of the Environment is leaving the sledgehammer in the closet for a while to sort out the details of the demolition operation. This is necessary to prevent civil servants from having to deal with legal repercussions.

The minister praised the forest rangers for their courage in enforcing the law without fear of pressure from 'influential figures'. The Thap Lan park chief says he needs a budget of 2 million baht for the demolition, but that is again being argued with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.

– I reported it yesterday: Siriraj hospital claims to have developed an antibody that could lead to an effective fight against Ebola. The World Health Organization WHO will check whether this is correct.

The project leader of the WHO Ebola research project has requested an antibody for testing in a Biosafety Level 4 laboratory in the US. Siriraj's research team will leave for the US in two or three weeks with the necessary documents and samples of the antibody in their suitcases.

– The number of Chevening [?] scholarships for a master's degree in England will triple in 2015-2016. Last year, eight Thai undergraduates received a scholarship. According to the British ambassador, Thailand ranks tenth in the world in the number of students studying in the UK.

– The King Mongkut's University of Technology is the only Thai university to appear on the list of the world's four hundred best universities. The KMUT is on it for the third consecutive year; in the The Times Higher Education World University Ranking 2014-2015 the KMUT occupies the 376th place.

– Units of five soldiers in each of Bangkok's districts are given the clean task of listening to residents' problems and passing them on to the responsible services. They must also educate residents about monarchy and democracy. The soldiers, 335 in all, form the so-called civil affairs operations unit. They receive a training course in preparation.

Major General Kampanat Ruddit, head of the First Army Corps, emphasizes that the operation is not aimed at dissidents. "We will focus on gathering information and will work with police, district offices and other services to quickly solve residents' problems."

– The new army commander has given his blessing to the reshuffle, the annual round of transfers in the armed forces. This year 371 officers will move. Wassana Nanuam, Military Affairs Reporter Bangkok Post, writes that some have been rewarded for their role in last year's political unrest and the May 22 coup. The shifts, she says, also aim to prevent a counter-coup. She bases this on statements made by an army source who whispered this to her.

– The new defense minister, together with his secretary of state, the newly appointed secretary general of the National Security Council (NSC) and the new army commander, visited Pattani and Yala. They received a briefing from the commander of the Fourth Army Corps.

Meanwhile, speculation is rife about the appointment of the new delegation leader for the peace talks with the southern resistance. Those talks have been going on for a year now. Named are the former secretary general of the NSC and general Surawat, a boyfriend of the current army commander.

("I will not allow anyone to take the wrapper off a toffee and eat half of it before it reaches the people." With this imagery, Prime Minister Prayut promised yesterday in his weekly TV talk not to accept corruption in the spending of public money. That danger is imminent because the government wants to accelerate spending over the next three months to stimulate the economy. If successful, this and early next year 250 billion baht will be pumped into the economy.

www.dickvanderlugt.nl – Source: Bangkok Post

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