EXTENSIONS
There's no room for complacency when it comes to security
GRAHAM K. ROGERS
I am working through the System Preferences in OS X, and am now at the letter S, which means Security, Sharing, Software Update, Sound, Speech, Spotlight and Startup Disk. For now, I will skip Q (for Quick Time).
Security is a high priority for all users. While Mac users claim that OS X is more secure than other operating systems, there is no room for complacency. The Security Preferences section is there to be used. It works with other parts of System Preferences (like Accounts and Sharing) for a safer environment if used properly. The Security Preference pane has three sections: General, File Vault and Firewall.
In the General panel is a check box for a password if the computer is in sleep mode or the screensaver active. This is a simple and effective first line of defence. I use this in conjunction with Active Screen Corners - moving the cursor to (in my case) the bottom right of the screen turns on the screensaver and the computer is safe from prying eyes. The only way to circumvent this (if, for example, the computer is stolen) is to restart the computer.
The FileVault panel of the Security Preferences in OS X, 10.5, Leopard.
The second checkbox prevents automatic login. Used with the screensaver lock, Firmware Password Utility and tracking software, this may help us recover a stolen computer.
OS X allows a multi-user environment, although some prefer a single user account. A check box locking each preference pane will prevent other users changing the OS settings.
If essential tasks are not running, activating the next check box will automatically log the user out after a certain time. The time can be selected in a small panel. The default is 60 minutes. Secure virtual memory is used to ensure that any data, such as passwords, in virtual memory is erased.
Finally, in this panel, is a box to disable the infrared receiver used by the remote control. This prevents others using another remote control and accessing media (music, photos, movies). For additional security, the remote device itself can be paired with the computer, also ensuring that others do not have access.
The second panel in Security Preferences focuses on what Apple calls FileVault. The icon (a house with a safe dial superimposed) signifies the ability to lock the user's Home folder by way of encryption. If users have this activated, files are decrypted and encrypted while working. A user enters the account as normal, using the password. There are two parts to this feature - the file vault protection itself, which needs a considerable amount of hard disk space for the file swapping that will occur; and the Master Password. Apple calls this a "safety net" as it will allow unlocking of any File Vault account. If this master password is lost, then you can kiss goodbye to your data, and not even Apple can help. An extended discussion of FileVault by F. J. de Kermadec can be found at the O'Reilly, MacDev Centre at http://www.macdevcenter.com/pub/a/mac/2003/12/19/filevault.html.
Anyone who does not use a firewall these days is asking for trouble. There were significant changes to the firewall in OS X Leopard. It is now application-focused rather than port-focused. It allows a program the correct access instead of specifying port numbers. There are three settings: Allow all incoming connections; Allow only essential services; and Set access. The first is too open for proper security. The second is too harsh limiting operations to only a small list of allowed connections. Updating from 10.4 will default to this setting. The third option is right for most users although may need a little fine-tuning to optimise operations.
As new applications are installed, they will access the internet and many will need incoming connections to be allowed. Examples are Safari and Firefox. It is safe to block some applications. I prevent Skype from making incoming connections but I am still able to call out. It is easy to change this if required with a click in the panel that lists the applications and their status. We can also add an application if it does not make an automatic request. For outgoing connections, a third-party utility like Little Snitch is essential.
The Firewall panel also has a button marked Advanced. This reveals a further panel with two additional settings. The first enables firewall logging; and the log, if we ever take the time to read it, can reveal some interesting or disturbing information. I see this morning that CAT, a local ISP and my web host have all probed my Mac. The log may only be accessed by an Admin user.
The other check box in the Advanced panel allows activation of Stealth mode, so that any outside probing that occurs (such as that shown in the logs) will have no response. The computer will not even appear to exist. Anyone who ignores security is taking a gamble.
Graham K. Rogers has OS X-flavoured web pages, with links to an RSS feed and a weekly podcast at http://www.extensions.in.th/index4.html.
Showing posts with label General News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label General News. Show all posts
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Electronic book sets new standard
Electronic book sets new standard
Up to 92,183 pages stored in one volume
By Nucharee Rakrun
A retired civil servant has devised an electronic book which he thinks may hold the largest content of any book in the world and which will be a candidate for the Guinness Book of World Records.
Sonchai Wutthachusilp, a 62-year-old pensioner, said an electronic book generally holds the content of only one book.
But his electronic book offers a reader a compilation of 949 books with a total of 92,183 pages, he said.
The content of his electronic book is mostly taken from school textbooks at prathom (secondary school) and mathayom (high school) levels plus a variety of books on general knowledge from the Education Ministry and the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry.
He started his electronic book project in 2004 and several copies have been donated to schools and public libraries to encourage children and members of the public to read more. The project was completed this year.
Mr Sonchai donated one of his e-books to a provincial public library in Nakhon Si Thammarat on Friday.
He said he bought copyrighted e-book system software for 120,000 baht to create his electronic book.
Mr Sonchai worked as an educational supervisor at the office of the Nakhon Si Thammarat education service Zone 1 before retirement in 2006.
An avid computer buff, he spent a lot of time reading up on technology and electronic equipment and never stops inventing new gadgets.
While in the civil service, Mr Sonchai received awards in recognition of his inventive mind, which helped develop learning and teaching materials.
He was given an honorary degree in science by Rajabhat Nakhon Si Thammarat University in 1999.
Up to 92,183 pages stored in one volume
By Nucharee Rakrun
A retired civil servant has devised an electronic book which he thinks may hold the largest content of any book in the world and which will be a candidate for the Guinness Book of World Records.
Sonchai Wutthachusilp, a 62-year-old pensioner, said an electronic book generally holds the content of only one book.
But his electronic book offers a reader a compilation of 949 books with a total of 92,183 pages, he said.
The content of his electronic book is mostly taken from school textbooks at prathom (secondary school) and mathayom (high school) levels plus a variety of books on general knowledge from the Education Ministry and the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry.
He started his electronic book project in 2004 and several copies have been donated to schools and public libraries to encourage children and members of the public to read more. The project was completed this year.
Mr Sonchai donated one of his e-books to a provincial public library in Nakhon Si Thammarat on Friday.
He said he bought copyrighted e-book system software for 120,000 baht to create his electronic book.
Mr Sonchai worked as an educational supervisor at the office of the Nakhon Si Thammarat education service Zone 1 before retirement in 2006.
An avid computer buff, he spent a lot of time reading up on technology and electronic equipment and never stops inventing new gadgets.
While in the civil service, Mr Sonchai received awards in recognition of his inventive mind, which helped develop learning and teaching materials.
He was given an honorary degree in science by Rajabhat Nakhon Si Thammarat University in 1999.
Discipline demanded of royal chariot pullers
Discipline demanded of royal chariot pullers
Soldiers say funeral is serious business
By Wassana Nanuam
Expecting young men to abstain from partying for months at a time might sound like too much to ask, but it's serious business for the 221 soldiers selected to pull a royal chariot carrying the funeral urn of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana. In the next three months, the soldiers from the army's Ordnance Department have been told to observe strict discipline.
They were chosen from more than 600 soldiers to pull the 14-tonne royal chariot on Nov 15 when the body of the late princess will be moved from the Grand Palace to the crematorium at Sanam Luang. The day before that, a royal merit-making ceremony will be held at the crematorium site.
The cremation itself will take place on Nov 16, with the ashes gathered the following day.
A royal merit-making ceremony will take place on Nov 18 for the ashes, which will be put in an urn the next day.
Chariot pullers are 170-177cm tall. They cannot be too tall or the procession will look out of sync. They all must be under 45 years old and physically fit.
Non-commissioned officer student Watchara Srichaiwan, 21, said he had no hesitation in accepting the mission.
''I want to be part of the historic ceremony and one day tell my children about my greatest honour. My family will be very proud of me,'' he said.
Col Arwut Aimwong, assistant to a chariot-pulling training director, said the selected soldiers will be booted off the team if they fail to turn up for any rehearsals or are found in bars.
''They have to take care of themselves and, most importantly, always stay fit,'' he said.
In addition to the 221 chariot pullers, 79 soldiers will pull another chariot carrying the Supreme Patriarch, 40 will lift the royal urn in an ancient elevator system and 34 will supervise the spare parts of the vehicles used in the procession.
More than 2,000 soldiers will march in the grand ceremonial procession.
Soldiers say funeral is serious business
By Wassana Nanuam
Expecting young men to abstain from partying for months at a time might sound like too much to ask, but it's serious business for the 221 soldiers selected to pull a royal chariot carrying the funeral urn of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana. In the next three months, the soldiers from the army's Ordnance Department have been told to observe strict discipline.
They were chosen from more than 600 soldiers to pull the 14-tonne royal chariot on Nov 15 when the body of the late princess will be moved from the Grand Palace to the crematorium at Sanam Luang. The day before that, a royal merit-making ceremony will be held at the crematorium site.
The cremation itself will take place on Nov 16, with the ashes gathered the following day.
A royal merit-making ceremony will take place on Nov 18 for the ashes, which will be put in an urn the next day.
Chariot pullers are 170-177cm tall. They cannot be too tall or the procession will look out of sync. They all must be under 45 years old and physically fit.
Non-commissioned officer student Watchara Srichaiwan, 21, said he had no hesitation in accepting the mission.
''I want to be part of the historic ceremony and one day tell my children about my greatest honour. My family will be very proud of me,'' he said.
Col Arwut Aimwong, assistant to a chariot-pulling training director, said the selected soldiers will be booted off the team if they fail to turn up for any rehearsals or are found in bars.
''They have to take care of themselves and, most importantly, always stay fit,'' he said.
In addition to the 221 chariot pullers, 79 soldiers will pull another chariot carrying the Supreme Patriarch, 40 will lift the royal urn in an ancient elevator system and 34 will supervise the spare parts of the vehicles used in the procession.
More than 2,000 soldiers will march in the grand ceremonial procession.
Prison clinic beating back tuberculosis in inmates
Prison clinic beating back tuberculosis in inmates
110 prisoners cured after 6-month course
By Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
Contracting tuberculosis is a persistent threat for prison inmates, a high-risk group. One inmate, Sitthichai Daokaew, contracted tuberculosis from prisoners two years ago while being imprisoned in Khon Kaen. He wondered if he would ever get better.
However, his condition improved after being sent to Nong Khai for treatment in the provincial prison's clinic, which has been successful in treating patients with the disease.
A total of 110 prisoners infected with TB have been cured after six months of treatment.
Tuberculosis still remains a serious health threat in prisons.
Over 1,557 prisoners were found infected with TB. One-third were also HIV positive.
The rate of multi-drug resistant TB among prisoners was 6-10 per 100,000 population which is higher than 1.6 per 100,000 people in the general population, mainly due to over-crowding and inconsistent treatment.
Prisons across the country housed 168,656 prisoners last year, according to the Corrections Department.
Surasak Kosupat, a doctor responsible for TB control in Nong Khai, said provincial health authorities had worked with the department to curb TB infections and new cases in the northeastern prison.
Every month doctors and health staff check prisoners for tuberculosis. The standard DOTS treatment is available for TB-infected prisoners.
DOTS stands for Directly Observed Treatment, a short course strategy recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for TB control.
Prisoners are checked for the disease every two weeks when saliva samples are sent to hospital for a lab test.
New prisoners are asked about their medical history and whether they have any TB-related symptoms.
Group discussions between TB-infected and healthy prisoners are encouraged so they can share information and learn from each other to prevent the disease spreading.
Such an integrated approach could help curb tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases, Dr Surasak said.
He said eight prisoners found infected with TB were sent to the provincial prison for treatment. Two had multi-drug resistant TB.
These TB infected prisoners would stay in a ventilated cell for two months. Each TB patient could transmit the disease to 10 people according to the WHO.
''Even though they are prisoners, we have to ensure that they can stay healthy and are able to work like anyone else when they return to society,'' Dr Surasak said.
Thailand ranks 18th on the list of countries for the prevalence of TB.
Of 91,000 new cases reported each year, more than 40,000 patients are carriers who can transmit the disease.
However, the real problem is thought to be bigger, with only 72% of potential cases diagnosed and treated.
This rate is lower than WHO's standard of 80%.
110 prisoners cured after 6-month course
By Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
Contracting tuberculosis is a persistent threat for prison inmates, a high-risk group. One inmate, Sitthichai Daokaew, contracted tuberculosis from prisoners two years ago while being imprisoned in Khon Kaen. He wondered if he would ever get better.
However, his condition improved after being sent to Nong Khai for treatment in the provincial prison's clinic, which has been successful in treating patients with the disease.
A total of 110 prisoners infected with TB have been cured after six months of treatment.
Tuberculosis still remains a serious health threat in prisons.
Over 1,557 prisoners were found infected with TB. One-third were also HIV positive.
The rate of multi-drug resistant TB among prisoners was 6-10 per 100,000 population which is higher than 1.6 per 100,000 people in the general population, mainly due to over-crowding and inconsistent treatment.
Prisons across the country housed 168,656 prisoners last year, according to the Corrections Department.
Surasak Kosupat, a doctor responsible for TB control in Nong Khai, said provincial health authorities had worked with the department to curb TB infections and new cases in the northeastern prison.
Every month doctors and health staff check prisoners for tuberculosis. The standard DOTS treatment is available for TB-infected prisoners.
DOTS stands for Directly Observed Treatment, a short course strategy recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for TB control.
Prisoners are checked for the disease every two weeks when saliva samples are sent to hospital for a lab test.
New prisoners are asked about their medical history and whether they have any TB-related symptoms.
Group discussions between TB-infected and healthy prisoners are encouraged so they can share information and learn from each other to prevent the disease spreading.
Such an integrated approach could help curb tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases, Dr Surasak said.
He said eight prisoners found infected with TB were sent to the provincial prison for treatment. Two had multi-drug resistant TB.
These TB infected prisoners would stay in a ventilated cell for two months. Each TB patient could transmit the disease to 10 people according to the WHO.
''Even though they are prisoners, we have to ensure that they can stay healthy and are able to work like anyone else when they return to society,'' Dr Surasak said.
Thailand ranks 18th on the list of countries for the prevalence of TB.
Of 91,000 new cases reported each year, more than 40,000 patients are carriers who can transmit the disease.
However, the real problem is thought to be bigger, with only 72% of potential cases diagnosed and treated.
This rate is lower than WHO's standard of 80%.
Surin calls for reform in Muslim schools
Surin calls for reform in Muslim schools
Time for an overhaul, says ex-foreign minister
By Achara Ashayagachat
Southern Muslim academics should embrace reform and move away from the siege mentality so a new generation of Muslims can move forward in an increasingly globalised world, said Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan.
Traditional madrasas, or pondok schools, as well as university-level Islamic study courses, needed an overhaul to be able to compete with mainstream education systems and need to explain things from an Islamic perspective, Mr Surin said.
He was speaking in Pattani yesterday at an international conference on Educational Systems in Majority and Minority Muslim Societies: Strategies and Perspectives.
''I am myself a product of the pondok system and my family is still running a pondok. But I did not limit myself to the confines of a pondok as I consider it is my right to study the science and technology out there,'' said the former foreign minister.
The pondok at Ban Tad in his native Nakhon Si Thammarat province, with financial support from the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, is considered a modernised pondok pioneering the so-called curriculum pondok reform (CPR).
He felt the choice of subjects should not be imposed on learners.
''We are entitled to learn any subject Allah could offer,'' he said.
He urged educators and academics in the three southernmost provinces to improve their qualifications to help enhance the overall academic standards of the southern region.
Mr Surin said that being competent academically and learning science is a way of instituting reform.
''But are we ready to do that? I'm not sure,'' he said.
He noted that some Muslims in Thailand and elsewhere needed to abandon their long-held siege mentality.
''We have to feel equal and ready to interact with the outside,'' he said.
He called on southern educators to come up with a plan of action that could increase the number of pondok students able to enrol in mainstream universities.
''If we fail to improve our quality in training our teachers, don't blame the world or complain about the system because we are responsible for what we are doing,'' Mr Surin said.
''The whole world is our bazaar and we are an agent of change. We are the vendors of today, not from the era of the past,'' he added.
Sumeth Yamnoon, the secretary-general of the Office of the Higher Education Commission (Ohec), said the government could not empower the pondok system unless it put forward its own reform proposals. However, some concrete efforts have been made in that direction, he said.
Prince of Songkla University is now partners with other tertiary institutes in the region, including Thaksin and Ratjabhat universities, to provide academic assistance to the pondok schools in their own areas, said Mr Sumeth.
The Ohec was also opening more opportunities for pondok teachers to take a one-year diploma course to refresh their knowledge and sharpen their skills in such subjects as mathematics and science.
Time for an overhaul, says ex-foreign minister
By Achara Ashayagachat
Southern Muslim academics should embrace reform and move away from the siege mentality so a new generation of Muslims can move forward in an increasingly globalised world, said Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan.
Traditional madrasas, or pondok schools, as well as university-level Islamic study courses, needed an overhaul to be able to compete with mainstream education systems and need to explain things from an Islamic perspective, Mr Surin said.
He was speaking in Pattani yesterday at an international conference on Educational Systems in Majority and Minority Muslim Societies: Strategies and Perspectives.
''I am myself a product of the pondok system and my family is still running a pondok. But I did not limit myself to the confines of a pondok as I consider it is my right to study the science and technology out there,'' said the former foreign minister.
The pondok at Ban Tad in his native Nakhon Si Thammarat province, with financial support from the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, is considered a modernised pondok pioneering the so-called curriculum pondok reform (CPR).
He felt the choice of subjects should not be imposed on learners.
''We are entitled to learn any subject Allah could offer,'' he said.
He urged educators and academics in the three southernmost provinces to improve their qualifications to help enhance the overall academic standards of the southern region.
Mr Surin said that being competent academically and learning science is a way of instituting reform.
''But are we ready to do that? I'm not sure,'' he said.
He noted that some Muslims in Thailand and elsewhere needed to abandon their long-held siege mentality.
''We have to feel equal and ready to interact with the outside,'' he said.
He called on southern educators to come up with a plan of action that could increase the number of pondok students able to enrol in mainstream universities.
''If we fail to improve our quality in training our teachers, don't blame the world or complain about the system because we are responsible for what we are doing,'' Mr Surin said.
''The whole world is our bazaar and we are an agent of change. We are the vendors of today, not from the era of the past,'' he added.
Sumeth Yamnoon, the secretary-general of the Office of the Higher Education Commission (Ohec), said the government could not empower the pondok system unless it put forward its own reform proposals. However, some concrete efforts have been made in that direction, he said.
Prince of Songkla University is now partners with other tertiary institutes in the region, including Thaksin and Ratjabhat universities, to provide academic assistance to the pondok schools in their own areas, said Mr Sumeth.
The Ohec was also opening more opportunities for pondok teachers to take a one-year diploma course to refresh their knowledge and sharpen their skills in such subjects as mathematics and science.
Jaruvan sues show for defamation
Jaruvan sues show for defamation
Host and co-hosts named in complaint
Auditor-General Jaruvan Maintaka has filed a defamation suit against the host and co-hosts of the Khwam Jing Wan Nee (The Truth Today) programme on the NBT channel.
In a complaint filed on her behalf by Thirachai Suansawat, who is attached to the Office of the Auditor-General in Region 10, Khunying Jaruvan accused Veera Musikapong, the host of the programme, and his co-hosts Nattawut Saikua and Jatuporn Prompan of making false accusations against her and slander.
Mr Nattawut is also deputy government spokesman and Mr Jatuporn is deputy spokesman for the ruling People Power party.
According to the complaint, the programme's hosts made four false allegations against her during shows broadcast on July 31 and Aug 1.
They alleged Khunying Jaruvan had lobbied the senate to select her as auditor-general and that she dishonestly amassed wealth.
They also claimed that the state audit agency flouted regulations involving expenses related to a trip to Europe and that Khunying Jaruvan tried to lift the value of her land by hatching a scheme to relocate the state audit office to her neighbourhood.
The hosts claimed to have received their information from officials at the Office of the Auditor-General.
Her complaint claimed the hosts of the programme did not make honest comments and intended to defame Khunying Jaruvan, accusing her of abusing her authority and seeking personal benefit from her position.
Host and co-hosts named in complaint
Auditor-General Jaruvan Maintaka has filed a defamation suit against the host and co-hosts of the Khwam Jing Wan Nee (The Truth Today) programme on the NBT channel.
In a complaint filed on her behalf by Thirachai Suansawat, who is attached to the Office of the Auditor-General in Region 10, Khunying Jaruvan accused Veera Musikapong, the host of the programme, and his co-hosts Nattawut Saikua and Jatuporn Prompan of making false accusations against her and slander.
Mr Nattawut is also deputy government spokesman and Mr Jatuporn is deputy spokesman for the ruling People Power party.
According to the complaint, the programme's hosts made four false allegations against her during shows broadcast on July 31 and Aug 1.
They alleged Khunying Jaruvan had lobbied the senate to select her as auditor-general and that she dishonestly amassed wealth.
They also claimed that the state audit agency flouted regulations involving expenses related to a trip to Europe and that Khunying Jaruvan tried to lift the value of her land by hatching a scheme to relocate the state audit office to her neighbourhood.
The hosts claimed to have received their information from officials at the Office of the Auditor-General.
Her complaint claimed the hosts of the programme did not make honest comments and intended to defame Khunying Jaruvan, accusing her of abusing her authority and seeking personal benefit from her position.
Discovery causes concern in South
'Warfare bibles' found in suspected insurgent houses
Discovery causes concern in South
By Assawin Pakkawan
Insurgents in the South may be using tactics learned from old ''warfare bibles'' from the communist era, which have been discovered in the houses of suspected insurgents in Narathiwat, according to an intelligence source.
Books on military strategy from Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong and from two famous Vietnamese generals were recently found in houses belonging to suspected insurgents in Tanyong Limor, a village in Narathiwat's Rangae district.
The discovery has caused concern among authorities, who fear the insurgent network could be more complex and sophisticated than many previously thought.
The source said the books on warfare detailed the political ideas and military strategies of Mao and of Van Tien Dung and Vo Nguyen Giap, the two Vietnamese generals who were revolutionary figures of the People's Army of Vietnam.
The source said militant groups still used guerilla tactics and had no known permanent command centre. Also, most of the insurgents were educated.
''Now the insurgent groups are trying to seek sympathy from Islamic schools,'' the source said.
''They trick security personnel into mounting a raid on such schools to arrest religious teachers and students. The end result is a widened distrust and misunderstanding towards state authorities,'' the source said.
The most serious concern for authorities was the spread of radical ideas developed by Bersatu leader Wan Kadir Jehman and the circulation of the violence-provoking books in Pattani, the source added.
Meanwhile, Salae Himmud, the deputy chairman of the Phatthalung Provincial Islamic Committee, yesterday called on misguided religious leaders to redeem themselves by observing and adhering to the sanctity of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts early next month.
He said the holy period presents a timely opportunity for rogue spiritual leaders to reform themselves before it was too late.
Discovery causes concern in South
By Assawin Pakkawan
Insurgents in the South may be using tactics learned from old ''warfare bibles'' from the communist era, which have been discovered in the houses of suspected insurgents in Narathiwat, according to an intelligence source.
Books on military strategy from Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong and from two famous Vietnamese generals were recently found in houses belonging to suspected insurgents in Tanyong Limor, a village in Narathiwat's Rangae district.
The discovery has caused concern among authorities, who fear the insurgent network could be more complex and sophisticated than many previously thought.
The source said the books on warfare detailed the political ideas and military strategies of Mao and of Van Tien Dung and Vo Nguyen Giap, the two Vietnamese generals who were revolutionary figures of the People's Army of Vietnam.
The source said militant groups still used guerilla tactics and had no known permanent command centre. Also, most of the insurgents were educated.
''Now the insurgent groups are trying to seek sympathy from Islamic schools,'' the source said.
''They trick security personnel into mounting a raid on such schools to arrest religious teachers and students. The end result is a widened distrust and misunderstanding towards state authorities,'' the source said.
The most serious concern for authorities was the spread of radical ideas developed by Bersatu leader Wan Kadir Jehman and the circulation of the violence-provoking books in Pattani, the source added.
Meanwhile, Salae Himmud, the deputy chairman of the Phatthalung Provincial Islamic Committee, yesterday called on misguided religious leaders to redeem themselves by observing and adhering to the sanctity of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts early next month.
He said the holy period presents a timely opportunity for rogue spiritual leaders to reform themselves before it was too late.
Plan to start monkey business
Plan to start monkey business
South African investors want to stock Phuket islands with primates
By Achadtaya Chuenniran
South African investors plan to populate two deserted islands with monkeys as a tourist attraction in the resort province of Phuket.
Tony Blignaut, chief executive officer of Monkeyland South Africa Co, recently led a team to meet Phuket governor Niran Kalayanamitr to discuss their proposed monkey island project.
Under the plan two islands, Koh Thanan in tambon Wichit municipality and Koh Elle in tambon Rawai in Muang district, have been chosen as sites for the project, pending negotiations with local administrative agencies.
Koh Thanan would be developed as the main tourist island, housing local and foreign species of monkeys, while Koh Elle would be used as a reseach centre for the animals or serve as a nursery for monkeys, said a source in Phuket.
The firm wants to develop Koh Thanan as a new tourism destination in Phuket. The island is only 10 minutes by boat from nearby Chalong bay.
The firm has so far spent a large amount of money conducting a feasibility study of the project.
The source said monkeys would be imported from several countries, including Malaysia, Singapore and South Africa, to stock the islands. It is estimated that about 100 monkeys would be brought from outside Phuket.
The firm could rent the islands from the government or enter into a joint investment with local authorities. Both islands are public land.
Under the plan, a pier would be built on one of the islands. There would be about 40 shops, all operated rent-free by local residents, said the source. Food and water for the monkeys would be provided by the project developer.
Mr Niran welcomed the proposed project, but said investors would have to consult with the local administrative agencies which supervised the islands.
Kreetha sae Tan, chairman of the tambon Wichit municipality, said the municipality had to first look at the project's feasibility study and consider its ecological impact on the area.
So far, there have been no talks between the municipality and the project developer, he said.
Arun Solos, chairman of the tambon Rawai municipality, said the municipality would listen to residents' concerns about the project before making a decision.
South African investors want to stock Phuket islands with primates
By Achadtaya Chuenniran
South African investors plan to populate two deserted islands with monkeys as a tourist attraction in the resort province of Phuket.
Tony Blignaut, chief executive officer of Monkeyland South Africa Co, recently led a team to meet Phuket governor Niran Kalayanamitr to discuss their proposed monkey island project.
Under the plan two islands, Koh Thanan in tambon Wichit municipality and Koh Elle in tambon Rawai in Muang district, have been chosen as sites for the project, pending negotiations with local administrative agencies.
Koh Thanan would be developed as the main tourist island, housing local and foreign species of monkeys, while Koh Elle would be used as a reseach centre for the animals or serve as a nursery for monkeys, said a source in Phuket.
The firm wants to develop Koh Thanan as a new tourism destination in Phuket. The island is only 10 minutes by boat from nearby Chalong bay.
The firm has so far spent a large amount of money conducting a feasibility study of the project.
The source said monkeys would be imported from several countries, including Malaysia, Singapore and South Africa, to stock the islands. It is estimated that about 100 monkeys would be brought from outside Phuket.
The firm could rent the islands from the government or enter into a joint investment with local authorities. Both islands are public land.
Under the plan, a pier would be built on one of the islands. There would be about 40 shops, all operated rent-free by local residents, said the source. Food and water for the monkeys would be provided by the project developer.
Mr Niran welcomed the proposed project, but said investors would have to consult with the local administrative agencies which supervised the islands.
Kreetha sae Tan, chairman of the tambon Wichit municipality, said the municipality had to first look at the project's feasibility study and consider its ecological impact on the area.
So far, there have been no talks between the municipality and the project developer, he said.
Arun Solos, chairman of the tambon Rawai municipality, said the municipality would listen to residents' concerns about the project before making a decision.
Vaccination scheme to be expanded
Vaccination scheme to be expanded
Bid to prevent possible human pandemic and reduce influenza treatment costs
By Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
Thailand plans to extend the influenza vaccination programme to protect those in the high-risk group and prevent a possible outbreak of human flu pandemic in a bid to reduce the huge flu treatment costs involved annually.
Research on the economic evaluation of a seasonal influenza vaccine is currently being undertaken among 2,000 elderly people considered the most vulnerable group in Phitsanulok and Udon Thani to study if the vaccine programme could help cut the cost of treatment in the coming years.
The one-year study, scheduled for completion in August next year, is expected to identify the age group that should be prioritised for the national influenza vaccination scheme, enhance the prevention programme and financially help lighten the state's health-care and treatment burden, said Jongkol Lertiendumrong, a researcher attached to the International Health Policy Programme.
Out-patient treatment seekers for influenza and other acute respiratory illnesses exceed 900,000 cases each year. Up to 75,000 of the victims need hospitalisation due to severe complications, costing the state around two billion baht in treatment costs, according to a Public Health Ministry report.
An estimated 26 million Thais would contract the deadly virus and hundreds of thousands would die in the event of an outbreak, bringing the national economy to its knees.
More than 90% of influenza deaths have occurred in people aged 65 years or older, according to the World Health Organisation.
In Thailand, this group accounts for six million of the population.
However, health authorities are finding it difficult to provide free vaccine services due to an inadequate budget.
Only 100,000 of the elderly suffering from problems like asthma, bronchitis, cancer, diabetes, heart diseases, kidney failure are annually shortlisted for the anti-flu vaccines.
The other 300,000 doses are reserved for doctors and health professionals.
Dr Jongkol said the study's findings would enable health authorities to effectively expand the vaccination programme for a larger number of the population as part of preventive measures and preparations to deal with the worst case scenario - a flu pandemic.
"The current anti-flu measures and the vaccine stocks will not be enough if there really is an outbreak of a pandemic," warned virologist Prasert Thongcharoen.
He said the H5N1 strain of the flu virus could mutate into a more deadlier form that could enable it to jump from human to human, unlike today when it can only cause animal to human infections.
Scientific research and development of vaccines for local use was a must during the pre-pandemic phase along with the stockpiling of the anti-viral medicine oseltamivir so that the country would be in a position to cope with the severest outbreak, he added.
An industrial-scale vaccine manufacturing plant, under construction in Saraburi's Kaeng Khoi district, expected to be completed in three to five years, will have the capacity to produce enough doses for the entire population.
Bid to prevent possible human pandemic and reduce influenza treatment costs
By Apiradee Treerutkuarkul
Thailand plans to extend the influenza vaccination programme to protect those in the high-risk group and prevent a possible outbreak of human flu pandemic in a bid to reduce the huge flu treatment costs involved annually.
Research on the economic evaluation of a seasonal influenza vaccine is currently being undertaken among 2,000 elderly people considered the most vulnerable group in Phitsanulok and Udon Thani to study if the vaccine programme could help cut the cost of treatment in the coming years.
The one-year study, scheduled for completion in August next year, is expected to identify the age group that should be prioritised for the national influenza vaccination scheme, enhance the prevention programme and financially help lighten the state's health-care and treatment burden, said Jongkol Lertiendumrong, a researcher attached to the International Health Policy Programme.
Out-patient treatment seekers for influenza and other acute respiratory illnesses exceed 900,000 cases each year. Up to 75,000 of the victims need hospitalisation due to severe complications, costing the state around two billion baht in treatment costs, according to a Public Health Ministry report.
An estimated 26 million Thais would contract the deadly virus and hundreds of thousands would die in the event of an outbreak, bringing the national economy to its knees.
More than 90% of influenza deaths have occurred in people aged 65 years or older, according to the World Health Organisation.
In Thailand, this group accounts for six million of the population.
However, health authorities are finding it difficult to provide free vaccine services due to an inadequate budget.
Only 100,000 of the elderly suffering from problems like asthma, bronchitis, cancer, diabetes, heart diseases, kidney failure are annually shortlisted for the anti-flu vaccines.
The other 300,000 doses are reserved for doctors and health professionals.
Dr Jongkol said the study's findings would enable health authorities to effectively expand the vaccination programme for a larger number of the population as part of preventive measures and preparations to deal with the worst case scenario - a flu pandemic.
"The current anti-flu measures and the vaccine stocks will not be enough if there really is an outbreak of a pandemic," warned virologist Prasert Thongcharoen.
He said the H5N1 strain of the flu virus could mutate into a more deadlier form that could enable it to jump from human to human, unlike today when it can only cause animal to human infections.
Scientific research and development of vaccines for local use was a must during the pre-pandemic phase along with the stockpiling of the anti-viral medicine oseltamivir so that the country would be in a position to cope with the severest outbreak, he added.
An industrial-scale vaccine manufacturing plant, under construction in Saraburi's Kaeng Khoi district, expected to be completed in three to five years, will have the capacity to produce enough doses for the entire population.
Maid in Thailand a risky business
Not Quite THE NEWS
Maid in Thailand a risky business
Kaeng som, a sour soup made of tamarind paste and cooked by your new maid may be delicious and impressive. But at the same time, it could also be dangerous for you.
Chief of the Bang Khun Non police station Sarawuth Jitrabieb said Nongnuch Tabthong, 25, was arrested on Tuesday at the Panjamitr Nursing Home on charges of stealing valuables.
The firm is a supplier of maids, babysitters and elderly caretakers to private homes.
The charge was filed by Phetpaya Chotfeung, 61, manager of the firm on Feb 20.
On that day, she hired Mrs Nongnuch and allowed her to spend the night at her house in order to pass her on to a maid seeker the next morning. But the ungrateful maid put weed-killing herbicide into the kaeng som the home owner had cooked for dinner.
That caused the house owner to lose consciousness. After awakening from a deep sleep, Mrs Phetpaya could not find Mrs Nongnuch and her gold necklace and bracelet, altogether weighing five baht.
Pol Col Sarawuth quoted Mrs Nongnuch as admitting later that she had applied for a job at many maid recruitment centres. On June 2, she landed a job as a housekeeper at a condominium in the Ramkhamhaeng area. On the first working day, she used the same treacherous trick and fled with a television set and two mobile phones.
The tactic was re-employed on July 21 when she was employed as a caretaker for an elderly person in Min Buri district, where she stole many valuables, worth up to 152,000 baht, from the house.
However, Mrs Nongnuch finally ran out of luck when the woman returned to Panjamitr again in search of a job and Mrs Phetpaya immediately recognised her and took her to the police.
During the interrogation, Mrs Nongnuch said that she believed no one at Panjamitr would remember her because what she did was many months ago.
She said the reason why she had to do what she did was because her husband had left her and she had two children to take care of in Phichit.
She said a friend had advised her to lace her employers' food with small amounts of herbicide as that would cause them to only lose consciousness and allow her to strip them of their valuables.
Learning curve
You can run but you can't hide.
The warning by boxer Muhammad Ali to his opponents could be applied to the cat-and-mouse game between Yothinburana school executives and the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Last Thursday, school director Manop Noppasirikul announced that all classes would be cancelled on Friday to avoid a planned PAD rally opposing a plan to move the school to another area to make way for the construction of the new parliament. He cited police concern and the closure of many roads in the area, which could cause traffic congestion, as a reason for the cancellation of classes.
Hours later, the PAD countered the school move by changing its mind and decided to stage the rally tomorrow in support of the students and parents unhappy with the school relocation plan.
The PAD suspects the parliament construction project is not transparent as it was approved hastily by the government and could damage the country.
The school has made no announcement that classes would not resume tomorrow.
On the horns of a dilemma
The good old days for buffalo raisers at the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary in Khuan Khanun district in Phatthalung look to be numbered.
Suthin Kaewgla, owner of almost 50 buffaloes which he inherited from his father 20 years ago, raises and sells the animals.
The earnings have been used to support the family and the education of his children.
The buffaloes are raised in the Klong Na Ream field near the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary in the southern province.
But now he faces a problem. The grassland has been encroached on by farmers encouraged by the authorities to plant oil palm trees and those wanting to turn the land into rice fields due to the high paddy prices.
"In the past, there were around 2,500 buffaloes in the Talay Noi wetland, but some have now gradually been sold for as little as 6,000 baht. If the government does nothing to help the remaining buffaloes, they will be at risk of extinction like the Pygmy elephant, which was no longer in existence," said Mr Suthin.
Wichit Buadaeng, secretary for the Thai buffaloes conservation club, urged the government to quickly find a way to deal with land encroachers or there will be no place left for farmers to raise their cattle.
Buffaloes have been part of the rural life, attracting visitors to the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary to see the rich eco-system there, he said, but warned that failing to tackle the problem could mean this will only be a memory in the not-too-distant future.
Permsak Khongkaew, head of the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary office, said officers in charge are not sitting idly as they had filed lawsuits against the intruders and many cases have been suspended and other officers are continuing the evidence-gathering process to prepare for taking action.
Maid in Thailand a risky business
Kaeng som, a sour soup made of tamarind paste and cooked by your new maid may be delicious and impressive. But at the same time, it could also be dangerous for you.
Chief of the Bang Khun Non police station Sarawuth Jitrabieb said Nongnuch Tabthong, 25, was arrested on Tuesday at the Panjamitr Nursing Home on charges of stealing valuables.
The firm is a supplier of maids, babysitters and elderly caretakers to private homes.
The charge was filed by Phetpaya Chotfeung, 61, manager of the firm on Feb 20.
On that day, she hired Mrs Nongnuch and allowed her to spend the night at her house in order to pass her on to a maid seeker the next morning. But the ungrateful maid put weed-killing herbicide into the kaeng som the home owner had cooked for dinner.
That caused the house owner to lose consciousness. After awakening from a deep sleep, Mrs Phetpaya could not find Mrs Nongnuch and her gold necklace and bracelet, altogether weighing five baht.
Pol Col Sarawuth quoted Mrs Nongnuch as admitting later that she had applied for a job at many maid recruitment centres. On June 2, she landed a job as a housekeeper at a condominium in the Ramkhamhaeng area. On the first working day, she used the same treacherous trick and fled with a television set and two mobile phones.
The tactic was re-employed on July 21 when she was employed as a caretaker for an elderly person in Min Buri district, where she stole many valuables, worth up to 152,000 baht, from the house.
However, Mrs Nongnuch finally ran out of luck when the woman returned to Panjamitr again in search of a job and Mrs Phetpaya immediately recognised her and took her to the police.
During the interrogation, Mrs Nongnuch said that she believed no one at Panjamitr would remember her because what she did was many months ago.
She said the reason why she had to do what she did was because her husband had left her and she had two children to take care of in Phichit.
She said a friend had advised her to lace her employers' food with small amounts of herbicide as that would cause them to only lose consciousness and allow her to strip them of their valuables.
Learning curve
You can run but you can't hide.
The warning by boxer Muhammad Ali to his opponents could be applied to the cat-and-mouse game between Yothinburana school executives and the People's Alliance for Democracy.
Last Thursday, school director Manop Noppasirikul announced that all classes would be cancelled on Friday to avoid a planned PAD rally opposing a plan to move the school to another area to make way for the construction of the new parliament. He cited police concern and the closure of many roads in the area, which could cause traffic congestion, as a reason for the cancellation of classes.
Hours later, the PAD countered the school move by changing its mind and decided to stage the rally tomorrow in support of the students and parents unhappy with the school relocation plan.
The PAD suspects the parliament construction project is not transparent as it was approved hastily by the government and could damage the country.
The school has made no announcement that classes would not resume tomorrow.
On the horns of a dilemma
The good old days for buffalo raisers at the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary in Khuan Khanun district in Phatthalung look to be numbered.
Suthin Kaewgla, owner of almost 50 buffaloes which he inherited from his father 20 years ago, raises and sells the animals.
The earnings have been used to support the family and the education of his children.
The buffaloes are raised in the Klong Na Ream field near the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary in the southern province.
But now he faces a problem. The grassland has been encroached on by farmers encouraged by the authorities to plant oil palm trees and those wanting to turn the land into rice fields due to the high paddy prices.
"In the past, there were around 2,500 buffaloes in the Talay Noi wetland, but some have now gradually been sold for as little as 6,000 baht. If the government does nothing to help the remaining buffaloes, they will be at risk of extinction like the Pygmy elephant, which was no longer in existence," said Mr Suthin.
Wichit Buadaeng, secretary for the Thai buffaloes conservation club, urged the government to quickly find a way to deal with land encroachers or there will be no place left for farmers to raise their cattle.
Buffaloes have been part of the rural life, attracting visitors to the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary to see the rich eco-system there, he said, but warned that failing to tackle the problem could mean this will only be a memory in the not-too-distant future.
Permsak Khongkaew, head of the Talay Noi wildlife sanctuary office, said officers in charge are not sitting idly as they had filed lawsuits against the intruders and many cases have been suspended and other officers are continuing the evidence-gathering process to prepare for taking action.
Gold and silver for Thai boxers in Beijing
Gold and silver for Thai boxers in Beijing
Somjit takes Olympic title in the final fight of his career, while Manus misses out on becoming the country's first two-time champion
By Wanchai Rujawongsanti
Somjit Jongjohor landed the biggest prize in the final fight of his career, but Manus Boonjumnong failed to become Thailand's first two-time Olympic champion when both fighters contested the boxing finals in Beijing last night.
Flyweight Somjit fulfilled his dream of winning an Olympic gold medal by thrashing Cuba's Andris Laffita Hernandez 8-2, while defending light-welterweight champion Manus was hammered 12-4 by Felix Diaz of the Dominican Republic.
With the 29th Olympiad ending today, Thailand finished its Beijing campaign with two gold and two silver medals.
The other medallists for Thailand were weightlifting champion Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon and taekwondo silver medallist Buttree Puedpong.
At the Workers' Gymnasium last night, Somjit was expected to face his toughest opponent in Beijing in the 51kg final, but it turned out to be one of the easiest fights in the 33-year-old's career.
Using his reach advantage to the maximum, Somjit had a light workout against Hernandez and went 2-0 ahead in the opening round. He almost hit his target at will and built a 6-0 lead at the halfway stage.
The Cuban ran out of steam and saw himself fall 8-1 behind after three rounds. Somjit then danced around in the fourth and final round to win 8-2.
He held a picture of His Majesty the King above his head as he paraded around the ring after his victory.
"I waited patiently for this for 12 years and I finally did it," said Somjit, who burst into tears after winning the most prestigious title of his career.
"Had I not been patient, I would have been an average boxer. I would like to thank everybody who gave me moral support."
The boxer from Buri Ram said he fought to his game plan by using his reach advantage to fend off Hernandez's challenge, and his tactics frustrated his opponent.
"I was confident that I was going to win after the first round," Somjit said. "He did not have jabs and only tried to land a big left hand."
Somjit will receive government and corporate bonuses in the region of 20 million baht.
He said he would save part of it for his family and would also try to help society.
He has bought sports equipment for rural schools and given scholarships to poor students for the past four years and will continue doing so.
He announced his retirement after 12 years of amateur boxing and will pursue a career in coaching.
He said he believed he could do well in his new job as he had worked with several great coaches, including Cuba's Juan Fontanils.
Somjit again saved the face of Thai boxing as the sole winner in a major tournament after Manus failed to win his second Olympic gold.
Somjit was the only Thai champion at the 2003 World Championships in Bangkok and was also the only Thai boxer to win gold at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea.
In the 64kg final, Manus was the heavy favourite against the unfancied Diaz, but it was Diaz who proved to be much stronger than the Thai, who was hit with a big combination of punches and was knocked down once.
The Ratchaburi star beat formidable opponents in world champion Serik Sapiyev of Kazakhstan in the quarter-finals and Cuba's Roniel Iglesias Sotolongo in the semi-finals, but ran out of steam in the gold medal bout.
The 28-year-old Thai scored the first point of the fight, but Diaz rallied to lead 2-1 after the first round, and it was all square at 2-2 at the halfway mark.
But Manus saw the writing on the wall in the third round when Diaz threw everything at him to romp to a 10-3 lead as the Thai received an eight count late in the round.
Because Manus is not a puncher, he could not do much in the final round and lost 12-4. It was the Dominican Republic's first gold medal ever in the boxing ring.
"I apologise to everybody for my failure," Manus said after one of the worst defeats of his career.
Manus complained that he should have scored several more points in the first round and said his opponent scored points even when he did not land good shots. "I felt discouraged that I did not get the points when I deserved them," he said.
However, he said he was happy with his Olympic campaign and he considered reaching the final to be a success as he was handed a tough draw.
Although he failed to become Thailand's first two-time Olympic champion, he made history by being the first Thai to have won more than one Olympic medal.
"I am happy to make history for Thailand by winning two Olympic medals," said Manus.
Manus blew millions of baht in bonuses on partying and gambling after winning his Athens gold medal. This silver medal will still earn him millions of baht in bonuses from the government and private companies.
He has repeatedly said he is a changed man. After his loss, he vowed not to become a playboy again and said he plans to use the bonuses to build a block of apartments for rent.
Somjit takes Olympic title in the final fight of his career, while Manus misses out on becoming the country's first two-time champion
By Wanchai Rujawongsanti
Somjit Jongjohor landed the biggest prize in the final fight of his career, but Manus Boonjumnong failed to become Thailand's first two-time Olympic champion when both fighters contested the boxing finals in Beijing last night.
Flyweight Somjit fulfilled his dream of winning an Olympic gold medal by thrashing Cuba's Andris Laffita Hernandez 8-2, while defending light-welterweight champion Manus was hammered 12-4 by Felix Diaz of the Dominican Republic.
With the 29th Olympiad ending today, Thailand finished its Beijing campaign with two gold and two silver medals.
The other medallists for Thailand were weightlifting champion Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon and taekwondo silver medallist Buttree Puedpong.
At the Workers' Gymnasium last night, Somjit was expected to face his toughest opponent in Beijing in the 51kg final, but it turned out to be one of the easiest fights in the 33-year-old's career.
Using his reach advantage to the maximum, Somjit had a light workout against Hernandez and went 2-0 ahead in the opening round. He almost hit his target at will and built a 6-0 lead at the halfway stage.
The Cuban ran out of steam and saw himself fall 8-1 behind after three rounds. Somjit then danced around in the fourth and final round to win 8-2.
He held a picture of His Majesty the King above his head as he paraded around the ring after his victory.
"I waited patiently for this for 12 years and I finally did it," said Somjit, who burst into tears after winning the most prestigious title of his career.
"Had I not been patient, I would have been an average boxer. I would like to thank everybody who gave me moral support."
The boxer from Buri Ram said he fought to his game plan by using his reach advantage to fend off Hernandez's challenge, and his tactics frustrated his opponent.
"I was confident that I was going to win after the first round," Somjit said. "He did not have jabs and only tried to land a big left hand."
Somjit will receive government and corporate bonuses in the region of 20 million baht.
He said he would save part of it for his family and would also try to help society.
He has bought sports equipment for rural schools and given scholarships to poor students for the past four years and will continue doing so.
He announced his retirement after 12 years of amateur boxing and will pursue a career in coaching.
He said he believed he could do well in his new job as he had worked with several great coaches, including Cuba's Juan Fontanils.
Somjit again saved the face of Thai boxing as the sole winner in a major tournament after Manus failed to win his second Olympic gold.
Somjit was the only Thai champion at the 2003 World Championships in Bangkok and was also the only Thai boxer to win gold at the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea.
In the 64kg final, Manus was the heavy favourite against the unfancied Diaz, but it was Diaz who proved to be much stronger than the Thai, who was hit with a big combination of punches and was knocked down once.
The Ratchaburi star beat formidable opponents in world champion Serik Sapiyev of Kazakhstan in the quarter-finals and Cuba's Roniel Iglesias Sotolongo in the semi-finals, but ran out of steam in the gold medal bout.
The 28-year-old Thai scored the first point of the fight, but Diaz rallied to lead 2-1 after the first round, and it was all square at 2-2 at the halfway mark.
But Manus saw the writing on the wall in the third round when Diaz threw everything at him to romp to a 10-3 lead as the Thai received an eight count late in the round.
Because Manus is not a puncher, he could not do much in the final round and lost 12-4. It was the Dominican Republic's first gold medal ever in the boxing ring.
"I apologise to everybody for my failure," Manus said after one of the worst defeats of his career.
Manus complained that he should have scored several more points in the first round and said his opponent scored points even when he did not land good shots. "I felt discouraged that I did not get the points when I deserved them," he said.
However, he said he was happy with his Olympic campaign and he considered reaching the final to be a success as he was handed a tough draw.
Although he failed to become Thailand's first two-time Olympic champion, he made history by being the first Thai to have won more than one Olympic medal.
"I am happy to make history for Thailand by winning two Olympic medals," said Manus.
Manus blew millions of baht in bonuses on partying and gambling after winning his Athens gold medal. This silver medal will still earn him millions of baht in bonuses from the government and private companies.
He has repeatedly said he is a changed man. After his loss, he vowed not to become a playboy again and said he plans to use the bonuses to build a block of apartments for rent.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Nan kids connect with their roots
Nan kids connect with their roots
The Nan Provincial Administration Organisation is sponsoring a cause that allows youngsters in the province to connect with their cultural roots.
The provincial administration is reaching out to young people through a project called "Learning Locality, the Homeland of Nan Province."
"Nan is a very liveable province. People are nice, and there are many tourist attractions," wrote Soisunee Thipunkaew, a Matthayom 1 (Grade 7) student at Nanthaburi Witthaya School in Nan.
That comes from an essay she wrote, which won first prize in an essay contest attached to the project.
Soisunee joined the contest after taking part in a study tour to cultural heritage sites in the province.
Sakuntala Langkajai, a fellow student at the school, described in her essay how indelible Nan's rich cultural heritage is in the memory of locals and visitors.
Another student, Phetcharat Chaiyong, wrote that people born and raised in Nan should take an interest in cultural studies about the province.
Knowledge can then be passed on to future generations.
Students and their friends who joined the project said the study tour opened their eyes to the wealth of historical value in Nan and what cultural elements bind the people together.
More than 50,000 young students in Nan are targeted by the project which began last year and will run until the end of the next fiscal year.
The project has become part of the development plans of several local administration bodies in Nan.
Narin Lao-araya, the president of Nan Provincial Administration Organisation, said that the project was the result of a survey which found children in Nan knew little about their hometown. Some of them did not even know that they were living in Nan province.
Nan children should have a chance to learn about their hometown.
Thanoo Pholbun, a committee member of Nan Youth Council, said Nan is the first province in Thailand to have run such a project.
He said similar schemes should be encouraged in other parts of the country. - Rarinthorn Petcharoen
The Nan Provincial Administration Organisation is sponsoring a cause that allows youngsters in the province to connect with their cultural roots.
The provincial administration is reaching out to young people through a project called "Learning Locality, the Homeland of Nan Province."
"Nan is a very liveable province. People are nice, and there are many tourist attractions," wrote Soisunee Thipunkaew, a Matthayom 1 (Grade 7) student at Nanthaburi Witthaya School in Nan.
That comes from an essay she wrote, which won first prize in an essay contest attached to the project.
Soisunee joined the contest after taking part in a study tour to cultural heritage sites in the province.
Sakuntala Langkajai, a fellow student at the school, described in her essay how indelible Nan's rich cultural heritage is in the memory of locals and visitors.
Another student, Phetcharat Chaiyong, wrote that people born and raised in Nan should take an interest in cultural studies about the province.
Knowledge can then be passed on to future generations.
Students and their friends who joined the project said the study tour opened their eyes to the wealth of historical value in Nan and what cultural elements bind the people together.
More than 50,000 young students in Nan are targeted by the project which began last year and will run until the end of the next fiscal year.
The project has become part of the development plans of several local administration bodies in Nan.
Narin Lao-araya, the president of Nan Provincial Administration Organisation, said that the project was the result of a survey which found children in Nan knew little about their hometown. Some of them did not even know that they were living in Nan province.
Nan children should have a chance to learn about their hometown.
Thanoo Pholbun, a committee member of Nan Youth Council, said Nan is the first province in Thailand to have run such a project.
He said similar schemes should be encouraged in other parts of the country. - Rarinthorn Petcharoen
A cultural heritage
@ THAILAND
A cultural heritage
Winai Prabripu has set up a gallery in his home which has become very popular, particularly with children, writes Naowarat Suksamran in Nan
Aprivately-owned art gallery has started a new awareness of works of art deeply rooted in the northern Lanna tradition.
The Nan Riverside Art Gallery gives local people, particularly children, exposure to contemporary works by various famous artists from across the country.
Visitors also get the opportunity to gain an appreciation of the work of local artists from the province.
Winai Prabripu, a well known artist from Nan, spent his own money setting up the gallery, which also serves as his studio and his house.
Opened to the public in April, 2004, the art gallery is on the banks of the Nan river in Muang district and there is accommodation on the premises for those organising exhibitions there.
The gallery also boasts reproductions of the newly-discovered old murals in the main chapels of the famous Wat Nong Bua in Tha Wang Pha district and Wat Phumin in Muang district.
According to arts experts, the murals are the oldest ever discovered in the province.
Efforts are now underway to preserve and study the murals, which contain a treasure trove of knowledge.
It is said the murals were created by Nan Buaphan, an ethnic Tai Lue artist in Nan, who lived more than 100 years ago.
The murals at Wat Nong Bua are believed to have been painted between 1867 and 1888 and the murals at Wat Phumin were painted between 1900 and 1903.
"Whispering" is one of the famous murals at Wat Phumin. The murals depict a collection of tales from the previous lives of the Lord Buddha, which are known as Chadok..
The paintings also provide an insight into the cultural life of people in Nan province in the old days.
Mr Winai has conducted extensive research into the old murals at the two temples and has written many articles about them and the artists who created them.
Mr Winai spent 25 years immersing himself in the art scene in Bangkok and visiting famous galleries in Europe and the US before settling down in his home province.
"Even though I am a native of Nan, there are a lot of things about the province I am not aware of," he said.
"I have returned to my home province and set up the art gallery as a local learning centre.
"Also, I can devote myself more to studying the history of ancient artists here," the 54-year-old artist added.
Government agencies have tried to help promote the gallery as a tourist attraction and many tour companies have now included the gallery in their itineraries.
Mr Winai said the gallery is not solely for commercial purposes. His gallery is mainly a place where the public and artists are brought closer together.
Activities such as art camps are regularly organised in the gallery grounds so children can express themselves through art and painting.
Mr Winai is now trying to link up with other groups of artists in the North and artists from the Fine Arts Department to establish a strong network of local artists.
The proudest moment for Mr Winai came when Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn recently visited his gallery.
Mr Winai said the princess spent a long time touring the gallery, carefully studying each work of art on display there.
The princess also painted some pictures of the scenery nearby and gave her permission for her paintings to be hung on the gallery walls.
Sitthituch Thitikul-kasemsak, another local artist in Nan, agrees that the gallery stimulates children's interest in the arts and enhances a sense of belonging for the young people from Nan.
They always raise thought-provoking questions, such as what determines the value of paintings, said Mr Sitthituch.
Authorities have also lent their support by putting up roadside signposts directing people to the gallery.
Mr Winai's gallery has now inspired other like-minded artists to consider turning their house into galleries and opening them to the public, Mr Sitthituch said.
"Some of them are teaching arts at their houses, which draws in a lot of children," Mr Sitthituch said.
He hopes the gallery and the arts-related activities will help make locals proud of the cultural identity of their home province.
More new artists would add vibrancy and colour to the emerging art scene of the North, which has a long history.
A cultural heritage
Winai Prabripu has set up a gallery in his home which has become very popular, particularly with children, writes Naowarat Suksamran in Nan
Aprivately-owned art gallery has started a new awareness of works of art deeply rooted in the northern Lanna tradition.
The Nan Riverside Art Gallery gives local people, particularly children, exposure to contemporary works by various famous artists from across the country.
Visitors also get the opportunity to gain an appreciation of the work of local artists from the province.
Winai Prabripu, a well known artist from Nan, spent his own money setting up the gallery, which also serves as his studio and his house.
Opened to the public in April, 2004, the art gallery is on the banks of the Nan river in Muang district and there is accommodation on the premises for those organising exhibitions there.
The gallery also boasts reproductions of the newly-discovered old murals in the main chapels of the famous Wat Nong Bua in Tha Wang Pha district and Wat Phumin in Muang district.
According to arts experts, the murals are the oldest ever discovered in the province.
Efforts are now underway to preserve and study the murals, which contain a treasure trove of knowledge.
It is said the murals were created by Nan Buaphan, an ethnic Tai Lue artist in Nan, who lived more than 100 years ago.
The murals at Wat Nong Bua are believed to have been painted between 1867 and 1888 and the murals at Wat Phumin were painted between 1900 and 1903.
"Whispering" is one of the famous murals at Wat Phumin. The murals depict a collection of tales from the previous lives of the Lord Buddha, which are known as Chadok..
The paintings also provide an insight into the cultural life of people in Nan province in the old days.
Mr Winai has conducted extensive research into the old murals at the two temples and has written many articles about them and the artists who created them.
Mr Winai spent 25 years immersing himself in the art scene in Bangkok and visiting famous galleries in Europe and the US before settling down in his home province.
"Even though I am a native of Nan, there are a lot of things about the province I am not aware of," he said.
"I have returned to my home province and set up the art gallery as a local learning centre.
"Also, I can devote myself more to studying the history of ancient artists here," the 54-year-old artist added.
Government agencies have tried to help promote the gallery as a tourist attraction and many tour companies have now included the gallery in their itineraries.
Mr Winai said the gallery is not solely for commercial purposes. His gallery is mainly a place where the public and artists are brought closer together.
Activities such as art camps are regularly organised in the gallery grounds so children can express themselves through art and painting.
Mr Winai is now trying to link up with other groups of artists in the North and artists from the Fine Arts Department to establish a strong network of local artists.
The proudest moment for Mr Winai came when Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn recently visited his gallery.
Mr Winai said the princess spent a long time touring the gallery, carefully studying each work of art on display there.
The princess also painted some pictures of the scenery nearby and gave her permission for her paintings to be hung on the gallery walls.
Sitthituch Thitikul-kasemsak, another local artist in Nan, agrees that the gallery stimulates children's interest in the arts and enhances a sense of belonging for the young people from Nan.
They always raise thought-provoking questions, such as what determines the value of paintings, said Mr Sitthituch.
Authorities have also lent their support by putting up roadside signposts directing people to the gallery.
Mr Winai's gallery has now inspired other like-minded artists to consider turning their house into galleries and opening them to the public, Mr Sitthituch said.
"Some of them are teaching arts at their houses, which draws in a lot of children," Mr Sitthituch said.
He hopes the gallery and the arts-related activities will help make locals proud of the cultural identity of their home province.
More new artists would add vibrancy and colour to the emerging art scene of the North, which has a long history.
Prison portraits
Prison portraits
Inmates trained as painters get in touch with themselves through art - and also find their talents in demand from other convicts, who want pictures done of family and friends
Jetjaras Na Ranong
Art can soften the hearts and allow inmates in Bang Khwang prison to explore their hidden talents and express themselves.
The first-ever art therapy class initiated by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn for inmates has just concluded with a collection of more than 300 works of art.
The inmates' artworks were put on display at a makeshift art gallery inside Bang Khwang prison on Tuesday.
It was a climax of the summer art class, offered to 69 prisoners from March 12 to May 31 for two hours a week for a total of 40 hours, said Corrections Department chief Nathee Chitsawang.
He said inmates learned first-hand from national artists and experts who were eager to lend a helping hand.
The Princess wanted the class to equip them with skills to make a living after they leave the prison.
However, only 52 inmates passed the course and were awarded a certificate. Prizes were granted to artists on Mother's Day, Aug 12.
"I was inspired by the photo of my cellmate's wife breast-feeding a baby," said the winner. "Painting helps cool me down and makes me concentrate."
Other striking paintings include a self-portrait of an inmate in jail while his mother falls ill outside, a picture of a dove, and a finger reaching out from a cell.
Most paintings come from photos, such as scenic views and nude pictures.
Prison artists are busy sharpening their skills with fellow inmates asking them for paintings of their children, wives or relatives.
Most artworks were given to the subject of the panting as a surprise birthday present.
"The art class is not just a candle, but a spotlight which shows me the way. I know I will not be jobless out there and will not return to a life of crime," said one prison painter.
Inmates trained as painters get in touch with themselves through art - and also find their talents in demand from other convicts, who want pictures done of family and friends
Jetjaras Na Ranong
Art can soften the hearts and allow inmates in Bang Khwang prison to explore their hidden talents and express themselves.
The first-ever art therapy class initiated by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn for inmates has just concluded with a collection of more than 300 works of art.
The inmates' artworks were put on display at a makeshift art gallery inside Bang Khwang prison on Tuesday.
It was a climax of the summer art class, offered to 69 prisoners from March 12 to May 31 for two hours a week for a total of 40 hours, said Corrections Department chief Nathee Chitsawang.
He said inmates learned first-hand from national artists and experts who were eager to lend a helping hand.
The Princess wanted the class to equip them with skills to make a living after they leave the prison.
However, only 52 inmates passed the course and were awarded a certificate. Prizes were granted to artists on Mother's Day, Aug 12.
"I was inspired by the photo of my cellmate's wife breast-feeding a baby," said the winner. "Painting helps cool me down and makes me concentrate."
Other striking paintings include a self-portrait of an inmate in jail while his mother falls ill outside, a picture of a dove, and a finger reaching out from a cell.
Most paintings come from photos, such as scenic views and nude pictures.
Prison artists are busy sharpening their skills with fellow inmates asking them for paintings of their children, wives or relatives.
Most artworks were given to the subject of the panting as a surprise birthday present.
"The art class is not just a candle, but a spotlight which shows me the way. I know I will not be jobless out there and will not return to a life of crime," said one prison painter.
Who owns state media?
INPrint
Who owns state media?
A local daily argues that the taxpayers who foot the bill should be in control of the airwaves
KAMOL HENGKIETISAK
Who owns the state-controlled radio and television stations? The question will keep coming up as long as no authority gives a final verdict. The government says that state media should be a mouthpiece for the government, while opponents argue that it belongs to the people as these stations are established and operated using the taxpayers' money, noted a Thai Rath editorial.
Prime Minister Samak was piqued when the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) decided to set up a working committee to investigate the government TV Channel 11 (NBT) director for allowing the hosts of the programme Today's Truth to air what many feel is government propaganda attacking the opposition.
Mr Samak said that the programme - which is broadcast for 45 minutes, 6 days a week - was "good", as it never used crude words or belittled anyone. He questioned why anyone would petition the NCCC with a claim of bias. He then cited the example of ASTV, owned by Manager Media Group, which broadcasts 24 hours a day, often showing speakers for the Peoples's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) using crude words. Yet, said Mr Samak, no one is petitioning the NCCC to investigate this satellite TV channel.
The Thai Rath editorial said the PM's remarks could be misleading to the general public. In fact, the Public Relations Department has already asked the court to shut down the ASTV broadcast because it was operating without a licence. However, the Manager Media Group sought a temporary injunction from the court allowing it to continue broadcasting until the case is given a final judgement. The temporary protection to continue broadcasting is not the same as permission to continue attacking or libelling other people. The temporary injunction was granted in accord to the article 45 of the 2007 Constitution that guarantees freedom of expression.
ASTV is on the same footing as thousands of community radios that operate without a licence but keep broadcasting under the protection of Article 45.
The editorialist said if Mr Samak or anyone in the government deem they are being libelled by ASTV, they can launch a lawsuit in the criminal court.
The Thai Rath editorial noted further that ASTV is owned by a private company and was not set up using tax money. Even if someone petitions the NCCC to investigate the ASTV, the NCCC will not accept the case because it is beyond its jurisdiction, which is confined to only politicians and government officials.
Today's Truth is broadcast on the taypayer-funded government TV channel and is controlled by politicians and state officials. For this reason, the NCCC is empowered to investigate the complaint.
The present ownership controversy stems from two different schools of thought. One side cites the constitution, which says TV and radio frequencies are a national resource which must be used for the benefit of the people as a whole. This thinking reflects democracy in action.
The other side, which is in control of the executive branch, argues that since it is state media, it must serve as a mouthpiece for the government. This thinking reflects authoritarianism.
The Thai Rath editorial concluded that it was in the former camp, that since state media is paid for by the people it must be used for their benefit and kept free from political dominance. They must report news and opinions in an unbiased manner, allowing the opposition equal time.
Thaksin asks followers
to be patient
In a faxed message from London, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra said, "When the time is appropriate, I will reveal the truth to all. Today is not my day. May my supporters be patient for a while." Though the message was circumspect, it was clear that Thaksin will fight to the end and will not take his hands off politics, said Nongnuch Singhadecha, a Matichon writer.
Therefore, those who are predicting Thailand's politics will calm down may have been hasty.
Some may think that since his nearly 70 billion baht in assets has been frozen in this country, it will be hard for Mr Thaksin to finance further political activities. Nongnuch said this was a misconception, as was the assumption Mr Thaksin will be less influential now that he has sought political asylum in England.
Nongnuch noted that Thaksin has hired a famous overseas PR firm to regularly publicise news of his movements. This means that Thaksin still wants to communicate with his supporters in the former Thai Rak Thai party. Marketing principle states that a brand, no matter how good it is, will disappear from the public eye if it is not repeatedly advertised.
The same can be said about the "Thaksin brand." Nongnuch predicted there will be regular messages flowing from Mr Thaksin to his supporters in Thailand.
When he returned to Thailand earlier this year, he laid low to avoid negatively affecting his pending court cases. Now that he sees this as a lost cause (his wife was sentenced by the Criminal Court to three years in jail for tax avoidance), he would rather fight his cases extra-judicially by rallying his troops to put pressure on the law courts.
A Credit Suisse analyst said it would not be hard for Mr Thaksin to control or influence his political supporters while living in exile in London, as he did successfully after the coup in 2006. He was instrumental in rallying the dissolved Thai Rak Thai party to form the People Power party, which contested and won the general election in December 2007.
The analyst pointed out that if there were a House dissolution today, the PPP or a new political party under Thaksin's control would still win the general election. It might not be a landslide, but would be enough to make the party a core member of a coalition government.
Ms Nongnuch also discounted speculation that the PPP would disintegrate and form several new parties. As long as Thaksin still has money, the various factions in the PPP will rally together to extract financial and political rewards from the Big Boss.
As long as the "Thaksin brand" still sells well in the North and Northeast, every faction in the PPP will compete to use his good name to attract votes. Acting against Thaksin would almost guarantee defeat in the next general election.
Ms Nongnuch said she believed that Thaksin still has a lot of money stashed overseas. After all, even when his assets in Thailand were frozen in 2006, he still had enough money to buy Manchester City Football Club.
Ms Nongnuch then turned to comment on current Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, who she said was outwardly courting both the military and the monarchy. She believed this was done to lessen the number of enemies that he has to face, as he has his hands full in dealing with the constant dissent from PPP members who may think he is not loyal enough in defending Mr Thaksin.
Ms Nongnuch further conjectured that Mr Samak plays the role of protector of the institution of the monarchy institution with the hope that the judicial branch would take notice in deliberating a case which could lead to the dissolution of the PPP, as well as a corruption case against him from when he was Bangkok governor. If either case goes against him he will be forced to leave his post.
Mr Samak is treading carefully, said Ms Nongnuch. He does not want to antagonise Mr Thaksin because he doesn't want to create enemies within the PPP. At the same time he must act in a way befitting the country's prime minister. For this reason, he allowed Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag to issue a statement defending the justice system in Thailand against the charge of interference levelled by Mr Thaksin when he sought political asylum in England.
As for Mr Thaksin, his fight still goes on. He will try to rally his troops to amend the constitution or enact legislation that will spare him jail time and recover his frozen assets in Thailand, concluded Matichon.
Dissolution can be less severe
When Thai Rak Thai party was dissolved, all its 111 executives were banned from politics for five years. That was the decision of the Constitution Tribunal during the time of the coup, noted a Thai Rath writer.
But the pending cases involving dissolution of political parties under the 2007 constitution may be different.
It is true that if a party executive is red carded by the Election Commission, and this is upheld in court, the involved party will face dissolution. However, it is possible that in this event the new Constitution Court might decide to dissolve the political party and punish the guilty executive but spare other party executives who are not deemed to be involved in electoral fraud.
In this case politicians would not worry so much because they can set up a new party. But if the Constitution Court follows the precedent set by the Constitution Tribunal and punishes all party executives, it may mean the end of some parties whose existence depends much more on the party leader and key executives, such as Chart Thai party, held together by Banharn Silpa-archa. This is why Mr Banharn agreed to seek a constitutional amendment to do away with the article that allows party dissolution.
The fate of Chart Thai, PPP, Puea Pandin and Democrat parties depends on the Constitution Court's interpretation of the law, and whether it wants to set a strong precedent to reform Thai politics and provide a deterrent against vote-buying in the future, concluded Thai Rath.
Who owns state media?
A local daily argues that the taxpayers who foot the bill should be in control of the airwaves
KAMOL HENGKIETISAK
Who owns the state-controlled radio and television stations? The question will keep coming up as long as no authority gives a final verdict. The government says that state media should be a mouthpiece for the government, while opponents argue that it belongs to the people as these stations are established and operated using the taxpayers' money, noted a Thai Rath editorial.
Prime Minister Samak was piqued when the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) decided to set up a working committee to investigate the government TV Channel 11 (NBT) director for allowing the hosts of the programme Today's Truth to air what many feel is government propaganda attacking the opposition.
Mr Samak said that the programme - which is broadcast for 45 minutes, 6 days a week - was "good", as it never used crude words or belittled anyone. He questioned why anyone would petition the NCCC with a claim of bias. He then cited the example of ASTV, owned by Manager Media Group, which broadcasts 24 hours a day, often showing speakers for the Peoples's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) using crude words. Yet, said Mr Samak, no one is petitioning the NCCC to investigate this satellite TV channel.
The Thai Rath editorial said the PM's remarks could be misleading to the general public. In fact, the Public Relations Department has already asked the court to shut down the ASTV broadcast because it was operating without a licence. However, the Manager Media Group sought a temporary injunction from the court allowing it to continue broadcasting until the case is given a final judgement. The temporary protection to continue broadcasting is not the same as permission to continue attacking or libelling other people. The temporary injunction was granted in accord to the article 45 of the 2007 Constitution that guarantees freedom of expression.
ASTV is on the same footing as thousands of community radios that operate without a licence but keep broadcasting under the protection of Article 45.
The editorialist said if Mr Samak or anyone in the government deem they are being libelled by ASTV, they can launch a lawsuit in the criminal court.
The Thai Rath editorial noted further that ASTV is owned by a private company and was not set up using tax money. Even if someone petitions the NCCC to investigate the ASTV, the NCCC will not accept the case because it is beyond its jurisdiction, which is confined to only politicians and government officials.
Today's Truth is broadcast on the taypayer-funded government TV channel and is controlled by politicians and state officials. For this reason, the NCCC is empowered to investigate the complaint.
The present ownership controversy stems from two different schools of thought. One side cites the constitution, which says TV and radio frequencies are a national resource which must be used for the benefit of the people as a whole. This thinking reflects democracy in action.
The other side, which is in control of the executive branch, argues that since it is state media, it must serve as a mouthpiece for the government. This thinking reflects authoritarianism.
The Thai Rath editorial concluded that it was in the former camp, that since state media is paid for by the people it must be used for their benefit and kept free from political dominance. They must report news and opinions in an unbiased manner, allowing the opposition equal time.
Thaksin asks followers
to be patient
In a faxed message from London, former PM Thaksin Shinawatra said, "When the time is appropriate, I will reveal the truth to all. Today is not my day. May my supporters be patient for a while." Though the message was circumspect, it was clear that Thaksin will fight to the end and will not take his hands off politics, said Nongnuch Singhadecha, a Matichon writer.
Therefore, those who are predicting Thailand's politics will calm down may have been hasty.
Some may think that since his nearly 70 billion baht in assets has been frozen in this country, it will be hard for Mr Thaksin to finance further political activities. Nongnuch said this was a misconception, as was the assumption Mr Thaksin will be less influential now that he has sought political asylum in England.
Nongnuch noted that Thaksin has hired a famous overseas PR firm to regularly publicise news of his movements. This means that Thaksin still wants to communicate with his supporters in the former Thai Rak Thai party. Marketing principle states that a brand, no matter how good it is, will disappear from the public eye if it is not repeatedly advertised.
The same can be said about the "Thaksin brand." Nongnuch predicted there will be regular messages flowing from Mr Thaksin to his supporters in Thailand.
When he returned to Thailand earlier this year, he laid low to avoid negatively affecting his pending court cases. Now that he sees this as a lost cause (his wife was sentenced by the Criminal Court to three years in jail for tax avoidance), he would rather fight his cases extra-judicially by rallying his troops to put pressure on the law courts.
A Credit Suisse analyst said it would not be hard for Mr Thaksin to control or influence his political supporters while living in exile in London, as he did successfully after the coup in 2006. He was instrumental in rallying the dissolved Thai Rak Thai party to form the People Power party, which contested and won the general election in December 2007.
The analyst pointed out that if there were a House dissolution today, the PPP or a new political party under Thaksin's control would still win the general election. It might not be a landslide, but would be enough to make the party a core member of a coalition government.
Ms Nongnuch also discounted speculation that the PPP would disintegrate and form several new parties. As long as Thaksin still has money, the various factions in the PPP will rally together to extract financial and political rewards from the Big Boss.
As long as the "Thaksin brand" still sells well in the North and Northeast, every faction in the PPP will compete to use his good name to attract votes. Acting against Thaksin would almost guarantee defeat in the next general election.
Ms Nongnuch said she believed that Thaksin still has a lot of money stashed overseas. After all, even when his assets in Thailand were frozen in 2006, he still had enough money to buy Manchester City Football Club.
Ms Nongnuch then turned to comment on current Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, who she said was outwardly courting both the military and the monarchy. She believed this was done to lessen the number of enemies that he has to face, as he has his hands full in dealing with the constant dissent from PPP members who may think he is not loyal enough in defending Mr Thaksin.
Ms Nongnuch further conjectured that Mr Samak plays the role of protector of the institution of the monarchy institution with the hope that the judicial branch would take notice in deliberating a case which could lead to the dissolution of the PPP, as well as a corruption case against him from when he was Bangkok governor. If either case goes against him he will be forced to leave his post.
Mr Samak is treading carefully, said Ms Nongnuch. He does not want to antagonise Mr Thaksin because he doesn't want to create enemies within the PPP. At the same time he must act in a way befitting the country's prime minister. For this reason, he allowed Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag to issue a statement defending the justice system in Thailand against the charge of interference levelled by Mr Thaksin when he sought political asylum in England.
As for Mr Thaksin, his fight still goes on. He will try to rally his troops to amend the constitution or enact legislation that will spare him jail time and recover his frozen assets in Thailand, concluded Matichon.
Dissolution can be less severe
When Thai Rak Thai party was dissolved, all its 111 executives were banned from politics for five years. That was the decision of the Constitution Tribunal during the time of the coup, noted a Thai Rath writer.
But the pending cases involving dissolution of political parties under the 2007 constitution may be different.
It is true that if a party executive is red carded by the Election Commission, and this is upheld in court, the involved party will face dissolution. However, it is possible that in this event the new Constitution Court might decide to dissolve the political party and punish the guilty executive but spare other party executives who are not deemed to be involved in electoral fraud.
In this case politicians would not worry so much because they can set up a new party. But if the Constitution Court follows the precedent set by the Constitution Tribunal and punishes all party executives, it may mean the end of some parties whose existence depends much more on the party leader and key executives, such as Chart Thai party, held together by Banharn Silpa-archa. This is why Mr Banharn agreed to seek a constitutional amendment to do away with the article that allows party dissolution.
The fate of Chart Thai, PPP, Puea Pandin and Democrat parties depends on the Constitution Court's interpretation of the law, and whether it wants to set a strong precedent to reform Thai politics and provide a deterrent against vote-buying in the future, concluded Thai Rath.
Qualified beggars only Being a beggar will not be so easy anymore
the week IN REVIEW : AUGUST 16 - AUGUST 22
[B]HOME: Qualified beggars only Being a beggar will not be so easy anymore if draft legislation approved by the cabinet Tuesday becomes law.
The bill proposed by the Human Security and Social Development Ministry sets conditions for people who want to be beggars.
They must provide proof they are underprivileged, disabled, homeless or elderly without children to care for them. And this will be a reserved occupation, exclusively for Thais who must carry ID cards.
Would-be professional beggars will have to report to local administration organisations for approval and work permits.
Local agencies will be responsible for controlling beggars in their jurisdictions, while the Social Development and Welfare Department will have special centres to help them and programmes to care for them.
Those who force other people to beg, or exploit them, will be liable to criminal punishment, deputy government spokeswoman Suparat Nakboonnam said.
Passing the legislation into law would help the authorities get rid of the large number of foreign beggars in the country, she said. The bill will soon be handed to the government whips and then go to parliament for approval.
If passed, it will replace the 1941 Begging Control Act, which is outdated and begging for a makeover, Ms Suparat said.
Eight BMA officials on land scam charges
The National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) has resolved to charge former Bangkok governor Bhichit Rattakul and seven other senior officials of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration with allegedly colluding in a corruption scam related to a BMA land purchase. NCCC spokesman Klanarong Chanthik said the commission agreed to charge Mr Bhichit, his former secretary Somkad Suebtrakul and former director of Bang Sue district Chuan Pattanawaranon, and five other BMA officers, with colluding in a corruption scam involving Bang Sue district's purchase of a 270-million-baht land plot in 1997.
The land was intended to be a parking area for the BMA's garbage trucks.
The NCCC found the land was surrounded by other properties and did not have an exit to the main road, while the BMA paid a highly inflated price for the land, said Mr Klanarong.
As Mr Bhichit, who was then Bangkok governor, had approved the purchase, he was to be accused of violating articles 149, 151 and 157 of the Criminal Code, said Mr Klanarong.
Suspected killers surrender
Six young men suspected of killing a traffic policeman who tried to arrest illegal motorbike racers on Aug 13 have surrendered to police.
They denied killing Samrit Taemthong, 50, a traffic police officer from Vibhavadi station.
Their surrender came one day after Jirawat Putbumrung, 20, was apprehended in Lat Phrao district on an arrest warrant issued by the Criminal Court and charged with involvement in the officer's murder. Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Samrit was killed on Vibhavadi Rangsit road about 1am on Aug 13. He had gone to the area where more than 100 motorcyclists were racing.
A forensic examination found that he had been strangled to death.
Earlier, Pichai Iam-on, Mr Jirawat's lawyer and relative, told police that he would bring in six other suspects who were allegedly involved in the murder.
Students caned for absence, not protest
The caning of eight students at Yothinburana school was unrelated to their attendance at a protest against the relocation of the school to make way for a new government building, deputy secretary-general of the Basic Education Commission Mangkorn Kullavanich said Wednesday.
The commission asked school heads and the Office of Bangkok Education Zone 1, which supervises the school, about reports eight students were caned after they took part in the protest.
The school said they were caned as punishment for their unexplained absence from class.
The punishment had nothing to do with the students' participation in the protest on Aug 15, said Mr Mangkorn.
According to the school, in Bangkok's Dusit district, only five students were caned by physical education teacher Suwattana Permpool on Monday. More than 500 students from the school had joined the march to Government House to demonstrate their opposition to the relocation plan, which would clear land for the new parliamentary site.
BoT to be more independent
The Bank of Thailand (BoT) will increase its political independence and accountability to the public in its conduct of monetary policy, central bank governor Tarisa Watanagase said Thursday.
She added that the new Bank of Thailand Act would improve checks and balances for the bank's operations, as an outsider would now act as the bank's chairman.
The law also calls for the appointment of more outsiders as directors than bank executives on the board. Mrs Tarisa said remarks by His Majesty the King on Tuesday highlighting the importance of maintaining monetary stability had given a morale boost to central bank officials.
INTERNATIONAL
Taliban kill 10 French troops
Taliban rebels ambushed a group of elite French soldiers on Monday as they climbed a mountain pass, killing 10 troops in a militant stronghold outside the capital. In a separate coordinated attack, a team of suicide bombers tried unsuccessfully to storm a US base near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
French paratroopers and a Foreign Legion soldier were among the dead, the biggest single combat loss for international forces in Afghanistan in more than three years. The group was on a reconnaissance mission in the Surobi district, about 30 miles east of the Afghan capital, when they were ambushed Monday afternoon, officials said Tuesday. Nato sent backup and said a "large number" of the attackers were killed in the long, drawn-out gunbattle.
France's top military official, Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, said most of the French casualties came in the minutes after the team was climbing a mountain pass. The fighting lasted until nightfall, he said.
Manila moves to flush out rebels from south The Philippines ordered troops to clear Muslim guerrillas out of several towns on the southern island of Mindanao on Monday after they attacked soldiers, burnt houses and forced hundreds of people to flee.
The attacks came days after government troops halted a fierce offensive against Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels in another part of Mindanao and was the latest outbreak of violence since a territorial deal with the group was halted earlier this month.
The previous week the military bombed MILF positions for four straight days, triggering an exodus of around 160,000 people, amid accusations the rebels had occupied Catholic farmlands.
The situation on the ground has deteriorated rapidly since the Supreme Court earlier this month halted a territorial deal between the MILF and Manila that was meant to re-open formal peace talks to end the conflict.
Thousands watch topless parade in New Zealand Thousands of spectators turned out to watch about 30 topless women take part in a so-called Boobs on Bikes parade through Auckland's main street Wednesday after a judge rejected a city council bid to stop it.
The council failed on Tuesday to get a court injunction to stop the parade organised by a self-confessed pornography baron, with Judge Nicola Mather saying it may be tasteless but "in a mature society the vast majority might consider it harmless".
Anti-pornography campaigners staged protests before and after the parade down Queen Street in New Zealand's biggest city. Parade organiser Steve Crow told reporters, "it's nice to see a few protesters exercising their right to free speech".
Crow, who organises the parade to publicise his annual Erotica Lifestyles Expo, said he started the parade in 2003 as a protest against sexual discrimination after a woman was arrested for baring her breasts in a city street.
A police spokeswomen could not estimate how many people watched the parade but said it was 'plenty more' than the 80,000 estimated to have turned out last year.
Rice in surprise visit to Baghdad
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived unannounced in the Iraqi capital on Thursday to meet with Iraqi leaders, including Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, to discuss the future of US forces deployed in Iraq.
Her arrival comes after 10 months of difficult negotiations on the US military presence in Iraq between Washington and Baghdad. Reports suggest a compromise draft is being considered by both governments.
Negotiations have been held up by disagreement over the timing of the final withdrawal of US forces from the country and the immunity of US soldiers from prosecution under Iraqi law. Ms Rice said no agreement had yet been reached, but that good progress had been made.
Fruit juice 'could
affect drugs' Drinking fruit juices may not be as healthy an option as thought - they could reduce the effectiveness of some medicines, it is being claimed. Research presented at a US conference suggested a chemical in grapefruit juice could stop anti-allergy drugs being absorbed properly.
A University of Western Ontario team said oranges, and possibly apples, had similar ingredients.
Grapefruit juice is already known to interfere with blood pressure drugs.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg - I'm sure we'll find more drugs that are affected this way," said Dr David Bailey of the University of Western Ontario.
Some medications apparently are made more potent by chemicals in fruit juices, while some are made less potent. Professor James Ritter, a clinical pharmacologist at King's College London, said: "The observation is very interesting. It will need more work to establish how important such interactions are in clinical practice and for what drugs and juices."
Deadly bombing in Pakistan The death toll from an attack by two suicide bombers outside Pakistan's biggest weapons factory complex rose to at least 70 on Friday, officials said, a day after the deadliest strike ever by the Taliban, which has said the bombings were in response to a fierce Pakistani military campaign, including fighter jets and helicopter gunships, that has unfolded over the past two weeks in the tribal region of Bajaur.
The insurgents warned of more attacks if the government continued its campaign, which the military says has led 200,000 people to flee their homes.
Following the resignation of President Pervez Musharraf on Monday, the twin suicide bombings underscored the Taliban's determination to safeguard their strongholds in the lawless tribal areas, no matter who holds power in Islamabad.
[B]HOME: Qualified beggars only Being a beggar will not be so easy anymore if draft legislation approved by the cabinet Tuesday becomes law.
The bill proposed by the Human Security and Social Development Ministry sets conditions for people who want to be beggars.
They must provide proof they are underprivileged, disabled, homeless or elderly without children to care for them. And this will be a reserved occupation, exclusively for Thais who must carry ID cards.
Would-be professional beggars will have to report to local administration organisations for approval and work permits.
Local agencies will be responsible for controlling beggars in their jurisdictions, while the Social Development and Welfare Department will have special centres to help them and programmes to care for them.
Those who force other people to beg, or exploit them, will be liable to criminal punishment, deputy government spokeswoman Suparat Nakboonnam said.
Passing the legislation into law would help the authorities get rid of the large number of foreign beggars in the country, she said. The bill will soon be handed to the government whips and then go to parliament for approval.
If passed, it will replace the 1941 Begging Control Act, which is outdated and begging for a makeover, Ms Suparat said.
Eight BMA officials on land scam charges
The National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) has resolved to charge former Bangkok governor Bhichit Rattakul and seven other senior officials of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration with allegedly colluding in a corruption scam related to a BMA land purchase. NCCC spokesman Klanarong Chanthik said the commission agreed to charge Mr Bhichit, his former secretary Somkad Suebtrakul and former director of Bang Sue district Chuan Pattanawaranon, and five other BMA officers, with colluding in a corruption scam involving Bang Sue district's purchase of a 270-million-baht land plot in 1997.
The land was intended to be a parking area for the BMA's garbage trucks.
The NCCC found the land was surrounded by other properties and did not have an exit to the main road, while the BMA paid a highly inflated price for the land, said Mr Klanarong.
As Mr Bhichit, who was then Bangkok governor, had approved the purchase, he was to be accused of violating articles 149, 151 and 157 of the Criminal Code, said Mr Klanarong.
Suspected killers surrender
Six young men suspected of killing a traffic policeman who tried to arrest illegal motorbike racers on Aug 13 have surrendered to police.
They denied killing Samrit Taemthong, 50, a traffic police officer from Vibhavadi station.
Their surrender came one day after Jirawat Putbumrung, 20, was apprehended in Lat Phrao district on an arrest warrant issued by the Criminal Court and charged with involvement in the officer's murder. Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Samrit was killed on Vibhavadi Rangsit road about 1am on Aug 13. He had gone to the area where more than 100 motorcyclists were racing.
A forensic examination found that he had been strangled to death.
Earlier, Pichai Iam-on, Mr Jirawat's lawyer and relative, told police that he would bring in six other suspects who were allegedly involved in the murder.
Students caned for absence, not protest
The caning of eight students at Yothinburana school was unrelated to their attendance at a protest against the relocation of the school to make way for a new government building, deputy secretary-general of the Basic Education Commission Mangkorn Kullavanich said Wednesday.
The commission asked school heads and the Office of Bangkok Education Zone 1, which supervises the school, about reports eight students were caned after they took part in the protest.
The school said they were caned as punishment for their unexplained absence from class.
The punishment had nothing to do with the students' participation in the protest on Aug 15, said Mr Mangkorn.
According to the school, in Bangkok's Dusit district, only five students were caned by physical education teacher Suwattana Permpool on Monday. More than 500 students from the school had joined the march to Government House to demonstrate their opposition to the relocation plan, which would clear land for the new parliamentary site.
BoT to be more independent
The Bank of Thailand (BoT) will increase its political independence and accountability to the public in its conduct of monetary policy, central bank governor Tarisa Watanagase said Thursday.
She added that the new Bank of Thailand Act would improve checks and balances for the bank's operations, as an outsider would now act as the bank's chairman.
The law also calls for the appointment of more outsiders as directors than bank executives on the board. Mrs Tarisa said remarks by His Majesty the King on Tuesday highlighting the importance of maintaining monetary stability had given a morale boost to central bank officials.
INTERNATIONAL
Taliban kill 10 French troops
Taliban rebels ambushed a group of elite French soldiers on Monday as they climbed a mountain pass, killing 10 troops in a militant stronghold outside the capital. In a separate coordinated attack, a team of suicide bombers tried unsuccessfully to storm a US base near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
French paratroopers and a Foreign Legion soldier were among the dead, the biggest single combat loss for international forces in Afghanistan in more than three years. The group was on a reconnaissance mission in the Surobi district, about 30 miles east of the Afghan capital, when they were ambushed Monday afternoon, officials said Tuesday. Nato sent backup and said a "large number" of the attackers were killed in the long, drawn-out gunbattle.
France's top military official, Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, said most of the French casualties came in the minutes after the team was climbing a mountain pass. The fighting lasted until nightfall, he said.
Manila moves to flush out rebels from south The Philippines ordered troops to clear Muslim guerrillas out of several towns on the southern island of Mindanao on Monday after they attacked soldiers, burnt houses and forced hundreds of people to flee.
The attacks came days after government troops halted a fierce offensive against Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels in another part of Mindanao and was the latest outbreak of violence since a territorial deal with the group was halted earlier this month.
The previous week the military bombed MILF positions for four straight days, triggering an exodus of around 160,000 people, amid accusations the rebels had occupied Catholic farmlands.
The situation on the ground has deteriorated rapidly since the Supreme Court earlier this month halted a territorial deal between the MILF and Manila that was meant to re-open formal peace talks to end the conflict.
Thousands watch topless parade in New Zealand Thousands of spectators turned out to watch about 30 topless women take part in a so-called Boobs on Bikes parade through Auckland's main street Wednesday after a judge rejected a city council bid to stop it.
The council failed on Tuesday to get a court injunction to stop the parade organised by a self-confessed pornography baron, with Judge Nicola Mather saying it may be tasteless but "in a mature society the vast majority might consider it harmless".
Anti-pornography campaigners staged protests before and after the parade down Queen Street in New Zealand's biggest city. Parade organiser Steve Crow told reporters, "it's nice to see a few protesters exercising their right to free speech".
Crow, who organises the parade to publicise his annual Erotica Lifestyles Expo, said he started the parade in 2003 as a protest against sexual discrimination after a woman was arrested for baring her breasts in a city street.
A police spokeswomen could not estimate how many people watched the parade but said it was 'plenty more' than the 80,000 estimated to have turned out last year.
Rice in surprise visit to Baghdad
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived unannounced in the Iraqi capital on Thursday to meet with Iraqi leaders, including Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, to discuss the future of US forces deployed in Iraq.
Her arrival comes after 10 months of difficult negotiations on the US military presence in Iraq between Washington and Baghdad. Reports suggest a compromise draft is being considered by both governments.
Negotiations have been held up by disagreement over the timing of the final withdrawal of US forces from the country and the immunity of US soldiers from prosecution under Iraqi law. Ms Rice said no agreement had yet been reached, but that good progress had been made.
Fruit juice 'could
affect drugs' Drinking fruit juices may not be as healthy an option as thought - they could reduce the effectiveness of some medicines, it is being claimed. Research presented at a US conference suggested a chemical in grapefruit juice could stop anti-allergy drugs being absorbed properly.
A University of Western Ontario team said oranges, and possibly apples, had similar ingredients.
Grapefruit juice is already known to interfere with blood pressure drugs.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg - I'm sure we'll find more drugs that are affected this way," said Dr David Bailey of the University of Western Ontario.
Some medications apparently are made more potent by chemicals in fruit juices, while some are made less potent. Professor James Ritter, a clinical pharmacologist at King's College London, said: "The observation is very interesting. It will need more work to establish how important such interactions are in clinical practice and for what drugs and juices."
Deadly bombing in Pakistan The death toll from an attack by two suicide bombers outside Pakistan's biggest weapons factory complex rose to at least 70 on Friday, officials said, a day after the deadliest strike ever by the Taliban, which has said the bombings were in response to a fierce Pakistani military campaign, including fighter jets and helicopter gunships, that has unfolded over the past two weeks in the tribal region of Bajaur.
The insurgents warned of more attacks if the government continued its campaign, which the military says has led 200,000 people to flee their homes.
Following the resignation of President Pervez Musharraf on Monday, the twin suicide bombings underscored the Taliban's determination to safeguard their strongholds in the lawless tribal areas, no matter who holds power in Islamabad.
End of the road for empty-handed UN envoy
BURMA
End of the road for empty-handed UN envoy
LARRY JAGAN
As the United Nations' special envoy to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari's current mission to help break the political deadlock between the military junta and detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi seems to have been a complete failure.
His efforts to establish a dialogue between the two sides has collapsed and he is leaving Burma empty-handed. Even Daw Suu Kyi _ the charismatic, leader of the National League for Democracy or NLD _ has refused to see him so far during this trip, although he met her on all his previous visits.
He also failed to meet any senior members of the country's ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). His failure to accomplish anything at all during this visit now raises serious doubts about his future role, and the UN's mediation efforts in Burma as a whole.
He is currently en route to Jakarta to see Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda and Asean's Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, to see if there is anything he and the UN can now resurrect from the mission to encourage the Burmese junta to make their transition to democratic rule more credible.
Mr Gambari was kept busy on his latest visit, meeting many groups nominated by the regime to brief him, almost all of them pro-junta. But he was unable to meet any senior representatives of the regime. Instead he has been left kicking his heels in Rangoon.
The senior leaders, including the strongman, Senior General Than Shwe _ who are all ensconced in their new capital Naypyidaw some 400km north of the old capital _ have kept him at arm's length, and insisted he could meet everyone he needed to in Rangoon. The key meeting he wanted _ with the opposition icon, Aung San Suu Kyi _ also did not take place.
The UN envoy originally planned to meet her at the State Guesthouse on Wednesday, but she did not show up, according to NLD sources in Rangoon _ although UN officials in Burma contacted by the Bangkok Post declined to confirm a meeting had in fact been scheduled. ''Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is refusing to see the UN envoy before he sees a senior representative of the SPDC,'' an opposition source close to the detained leader said on condition of anonymity.
She feels there is no point in meeting Mr Gambari at the moment, as he has nothing from the generals to report or offer, he said. ''She definitely won't see him if he does not meet a top member of the regime,'' he said.
Many members of the pro-democracy movement in Burma no longer trust the UN envoy and feel it is no longer in their interests to cooperate with the process.
For many Asian diplomats, though, Daw Suu Kyi's actions are an affront. ''It's un-Asian to let the envoy wait in vain for her to show up,'' said a Japanese diplomat. ''It seems unusually rude, to the extent that it gives the impression of being insensitive.'' It will only serve to further undermine Mr Gambari's credibility and strengthen the regime's belief that she is ill-tempered and uncompromising, the diplomat added.
This is the former Nigerian foreign minister's fourth trip to Burma since the brutal crackdown on the massive Buddhist monk-led protests last year and sixth visit to Burma since he replaced the previous envoy, Ismail Razali, more than three years ago.
In November last year, he smuggled out and made public a letter from the opposition leader which appealed to the country's military leaders to put aside their differences with her and to work together on national reconciliation for the sake of the whole country. This infuriated the regime, which denounced her claims in the state media for weeks afterwards.
The international community, especially China, has exerted substantial pressure on the junta behind the scenes to allow the UN envoy to visit the country. He originally wanted to return to Burma before the referendum that was held in May, despite the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis to Rangoon and the fertile and densely populated Irrawaddy delta to the west of the city. ''The regime's only interest in allowing Gambari back is to try to get him to endorse their roadmap,'' said Win Min, an independent Burmese academic based in Chiang Mai. ''They have forced the new constitution through a sham referendum, and now they are planning elections that are likely to be less than free and fair. They're not interested in anything else. They have no intentions of changing their minds or making concessions to the international community _ let alone starting a genuine political dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and other democratic or ethnic forces.''
Mr Gambari's priorities on this mission were to try to kick-start talks between the two sides, press for the release of all political prisoners and discuss the junta's roadmap and the planned elections in 2010. The UN envoy did, in fact, raise all these issues with the government during his meeting with Information Minister Kyaw Hsan earlier this week, but no response has yet been forthcoming. At least he did not get a ticking off this time, as he did when he met the government's spokesman last time. General Kyaw Hsan accused him of being ignorant, insensitive and irrelevant to Burma's future. And the envoy's offer to provide international observers for the referendum on a new constitution was also roundly rebuffed.
Although Mr Gambari may have avoided a dressing down this time, the regime obviously has no less contempt for him than previously. But this time the strategy seems to be to try to educate him so that he will accept the regime's roadmap to ''disciplined democracy''. On Thursday, the regime pressed on with its efforts to convince him with a long meeting with the chairman of the referendum commission. But the junta is unlikely to get any joy from Mr Gambari on this score.
''Individual governments are free to endorse or reject the roadmap,'' Mr Gambari said in an exclusive interview prior to his last trip to Burma in March.
''The UN's responsibility is to uphold international norms and standards, which countries apply in very different ways from one situation to another. It is not for the UN to take a position on the issue, beyond reporting objectively the views and concerns of all parties, which I have done and will continue to do,'' he added.
This time, though, Mr Gambari is also reportedly trying to prepare the ground for the forthcoming visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon later this year. He has passed a letter to Snr Gen Than Shwe from the UN chief, according to diplomats in Rangoon.
The planned visit, pencilled in for December, according to senior UN officials in New York, remains tentative.
''The SG has also indicated his intention to return to Burma, when conditions are right, to continue his dialogue with the Burmese leadership,'' senior UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told journalists earlier this week. That means Mr Gambari being able to continue his role in providing a channel of communication between the junta leaders and the pro-democracy opposition.
But for this visit _ with no meetings with either Aung San Suu Kyi or Than Shwe _ Mr Gambari has been left wondering what the next move can be.
For many analysts the ball is back in Asia's court, as they are the only ones the top general may listen to.
Indonesia in recent months has been active behind the scenes trying to get an international consensus on Burma, especially at several high-level informal meetings at the UN in New York. Now a member of the UN Security Council and an important state in Asean, the Indonesians have been taking a leading role in trying to find new ways of exerting international influence on Burma. They are working closely with China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, and India to convince the junta that they must make their roadmap credible to the international community.
Mr Gambari's failure will certainly increase international concern over the Burmese generals' intransigence. There will also be renewed pressure for Burma to be brought before the Security Council. Burma's Asian allies are also likely to be snapped into more concerted action.''Burma claims to have a new constitution and these elections [planned for 2010] will be multi-party elections, but what is important for us at Asean is to ensure that a more credible process is taking place,'' Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told journalists in Jakarta earlier this week.
Having taken over as the chair of the regional bloc for the next 18 months, Bangkok too is looking for ways to nudge the junta. Thailand's new Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag leaves for a two-day visit to Burma tomorrow. There is no doubt the roadmap will feature prominently during his talks with the regime.
End of the road for empty-handed UN envoy
LARRY JAGAN
As the United Nations' special envoy to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari's current mission to help break the political deadlock between the military junta and detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi seems to have been a complete failure.
His efforts to establish a dialogue between the two sides has collapsed and he is leaving Burma empty-handed. Even Daw Suu Kyi _ the charismatic, leader of the National League for Democracy or NLD _ has refused to see him so far during this trip, although he met her on all his previous visits.
He also failed to meet any senior members of the country's ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). His failure to accomplish anything at all during this visit now raises serious doubts about his future role, and the UN's mediation efforts in Burma as a whole.
He is currently en route to Jakarta to see Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda and Asean's Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, to see if there is anything he and the UN can now resurrect from the mission to encourage the Burmese junta to make their transition to democratic rule more credible.
Mr Gambari was kept busy on his latest visit, meeting many groups nominated by the regime to brief him, almost all of them pro-junta. But he was unable to meet any senior representatives of the regime. Instead he has been left kicking his heels in Rangoon.
The senior leaders, including the strongman, Senior General Than Shwe _ who are all ensconced in their new capital Naypyidaw some 400km north of the old capital _ have kept him at arm's length, and insisted he could meet everyone he needed to in Rangoon. The key meeting he wanted _ with the opposition icon, Aung San Suu Kyi _ also did not take place.
The UN envoy originally planned to meet her at the State Guesthouse on Wednesday, but she did not show up, according to NLD sources in Rangoon _ although UN officials in Burma contacted by the Bangkok Post declined to confirm a meeting had in fact been scheduled. ''Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is refusing to see the UN envoy before he sees a senior representative of the SPDC,'' an opposition source close to the detained leader said on condition of anonymity.
She feels there is no point in meeting Mr Gambari at the moment, as he has nothing from the generals to report or offer, he said. ''She definitely won't see him if he does not meet a top member of the regime,'' he said.
Many members of the pro-democracy movement in Burma no longer trust the UN envoy and feel it is no longer in their interests to cooperate with the process.
For many Asian diplomats, though, Daw Suu Kyi's actions are an affront. ''It's un-Asian to let the envoy wait in vain for her to show up,'' said a Japanese diplomat. ''It seems unusually rude, to the extent that it gives the impression of being insensitive.'' It will only serve to further undermine Mr Gambari's credibility and strengthen the regime's belief that she is ill-tempered and uncompromising, the diplomat added.
This is the former Nigerian foreign minister's fourth trip to Burma since the brutal crackdown on the massive Buddhist monk-led protests last year and sixth visit to Burma since he replaced the previous envoy, Ismail Razali, more than three years ago.
In November last year, he smuggled out and made public a letter from the opposition leader which appealed to the country's military leaders to put aside their differences with her and to work together on national reconciliation for the sake of the whole country. This infuriated the regime, which denounced her claims in the state media for weeks afterwards.
The international community, especially China, has exerted substantial pressure on the junta behind the scenes to allow the UN envoy to visit the country. He originally wanted to return to Burma before the referendum that was held in May, despite the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis to Rangoon and the fertile and densely populated Irrawaddy delta to the west of the city. ''The regime's only interest in allowing Gambari back is to try to get him to endorse their roadmap,'' said Win Min, an independent Burmese academic based in Chiang Mai. ''They have forced the new constitution through a sham referendum, and now they are planning elections that are likely to be less than free and fair. They're not interested in anything else. They have no intentions of changing their minds or making concessions to the international community _ let alone starting a genuine political dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and other democratic or ethnic forces.''
Mr Gambari's priorities on this mission were to try to kick-start talks between the two sides, press for the release of all political prisoners and discuss the junta's roadmap and the planned elections in 2010. The UN envoy did, in fact, raise all these issues with the government during his meeting with Information Minister Kyaw Hsan earlier this week, but no response has yet been forthcoming. At least he did not get a ticking off this time, as he did when he met the government's spokesman last time. General Kyaw Hsan accused him of being ignorant, insensitive and irrelevant to Burma's future. And the envoy's offer to provide international observers for the referendum on a new constitution was also roundly rebuffed.
Although Mr Gambari may have avoided a dressing down this time, the regime obviously has no less contempt for him than previously. But this time the strategy seems to be to try to educate him so that he will accept the regime's roadmap to ''disciplined democracy''. On Thursday, the regime pressed on with its efforts to convince him with a long meeting with the chairman of the referendum commission. But the junta is unlikely to get any joy from Mr Gambari on this score.
''Individual governments are free to endorse or reject the roadmap,'' Mr Gambari said in an exclusive interview prior to his last trip to Burma in March.
''The UN's responsibility is to uphold international norms and standards, which countries apply in very different ways from one situation to another. It is not for the UN to take a position on the issue, beyond reporting objectively the views and concerns of all parties, which I have done and will continue to do,'' he added.
This time, though, Mr Gambari is also reportedly trying to prepare the ground for the forthcoming visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon later this year. He has passed a letter to Snr Gen Than Shwe from the UN chief, according to diplomats in Rangoon.
The planned visit, pencilled in for December, according to senior UN officials in New York, remains tentative.
''The SG has also indicated his intention to return to Burma, when conditions are right, to continue his dialogue with the Burmese leadership,'' senior UN spokesperson Marie Okabe told journalists earlier this week. That means Mr Gambari being able to continue his role in providing a channel of communication between the junta leaders and the pro-democracy opposition.
But for this visit _ with no meetings with either Aung San Suu Kyi or Than Shwe _ Mr Gambari has been left wondering what the next move can be.
For many analysts the ball is back in Asia's court, as they are the only ones the top general may listen to.
Indonesia in recent months has been active behind the scenes trying to get an international consensus on Burma, especially at several high-level informal meetings at the UN in New York. Now a member of the UN Security Council and an important state in Asean, the Indonesians have been taking a leading role in trying to find new ways of exerting international influence on Burma. They are working closely with China, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, and India to convince the junta that they must make their roadmap credible to the international community.
Mr Gambari's failure will certainly increase international concern over the Burmese generals' intransigence. There will also be renewed pressure for Burma to be brought before the Security Council. Burma's Asian allies are also likely to be snapped into more concerted action.''Burma claims to have a new constitution and these elections [planned for 2010] will be multi-party elections, but what is important for us at Asean is to ensure that a more credible process is taking place,'' Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda told journalists in Jakarta earlier this week.
Having taken over as the chair of the regional bloc for the next 18 months, Bangkok too is looking for ways to nudge the junta. Thailand's new Foreign Minister Tej Bunnag leaves for a two-day visit to Burma tomorrow. There is no doubt the roadmap will feature prominently during his talks with the regime.
PostBag
PostBag
Consider, m'lud
As a European lawyer living in Asia and coming often to Bangkok, I would like to state the need for any European nation to show respect for the rule of law abroad. As substantive evidence shows, nothing leading to the prosecution of Thaksin Shinawatra or the conviction of his wife is demonstrative of any sort of judicial corruption in Thailand.
If anything, the judiciary of the Kingdom of Thailand has shown a level of integrity and independence in its procedure that is quite unparalleled in the world. It is clear to anybody with some legal training and full knowledge of the facts that what we have in front of us is a shrewd politician and his criminal convicted wife, using their excessive and allegedly ill-acquired means to avoid justice.
It is imperative for those in the political spheres of any country to help in the preservation of justice in the world and not to allow the political process to meddle in the sovereign rights of foreign institutions to do their job on behalf of their people.
At stake is not only the entitlement of the people of Thailand to see justice done regardless of class or socio-economic position, but also the economic well-being and development of the country.
Thailand has been suffering from lack of confidence from investors, local and foreign, who fear that the political situation is unstable and that investing in Thailand at this time is risky. Granting political asylum to a convicted criminal and to someone who is clearly and objectively suspect of criminal wrongdoing will send a message to the investment community that anyone with sufficient means in that country will be able to escape justice from illegal activities by fleeing to another country and seeking protection under false and self-serving claims.
ALEX RUIZ
Singapore
-----
An insult to refugees
Political asylum is guided in principle by international law. The 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees (to the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees) defines refugees as persons who flee their homes for fear of persecution on protected grounds.
Protected grounds include race, nationality, religion, political opinions and membership in any particular social group or social activities.
Fear of persecution. Not fear of prosecution. For Thaksin and his wife to apply for political asylum is an insult to all people who suffer from persecution for their beliefs, race and ethnicity.
The billionaire businessman and politician stands in line to seek asylum with refugees from the former Yugoslav republics, Sri Lanka, Somalia and Afghanistan.
Shame on Thaksin. Again.
C THOMAS JOY
-----
Games coverage lacking
It is surely common knowledge that track & field athletics is the prime and dominating sport at any Olympic Games. In fact, without track & field, there simply would not be an Olympic movement.
But the people responsible for coverage of the Games on Thai television seem unaware of this. Of the Olympic action in Beijing, they have somehow managed to almost completely ignore events taking place in the Bird's Nest Stadium.
All we have been allowed to see (in between hours of football, swimming and boxing) thus far have been the finals of the men's 100 and 200 metres, plus finals of the women's 100m and 100m hurdles.
I realise that Thailand's main medal hopes lie in weightlifting and boxing, and it is natural to feature these events on TV, but to almost completely ignore the athletics events demonstrates a total lack of just what is significant in this sport - and how important it is to the Olympic Games.
Thai television's coverage (or lack of it) regarding track & field can be summed up in one word: abysmal!
DAVID COCKSEDGE
Hua Hin
-----
Divining offerings
As an expat in Thailand, I have no time for superstitious mumbo-jumbo like lucky charms, auspicious days, fortune tellers and most other decidedly dodgy practices and beliefs.
But of late, I've been sorely tempted to consult a wizened soothsayer in order to divine the evening's TrueVisions smorgasbord of TV treats and ages-old repeats.
After all, not only is the printed guide more wrong than right these days, but the on-screen guide is often wildly inaccurate even during programmes being shown. As an example, I was watching Blackadder and Stableford recently on BBCE when, on-screen, True told me I was watching Not Going Out and The Weakest Link. So now, I just guess and hope for the best, which, by coincidence, seems to be exactly True's approach.
TV ADDICT
-----
CONTACT: BANGKOK POST BUILDING, 136 NA RANONG ROAD, KLONG TOEY, BANGKOK 10110
Fax: +02 2403666, email: postbag@bangkokpost.co.th
All letter writers must provide full name and address.
All published correspondence is subject to editing at our discretion.
Consider, m'lud
As a European lawyer living in Asia and coming often to Bangkok, I would like to state the need for any European nation to show respect for the rule of law abroad. As substantive evidence shows, nothing leading to the prosecution of Thaksin Shinawatra or the conviction of his wife is demonstrative of any sort of judicial corruption in Thailand.
If anything, the judiciary of the Kingdom of Thailand has shown a level of integrity and independence in its procedure that is quite unparalleled in the world. It is clear to anybody with some legal training and full knowledge of the facts that what we have in front of us is a shrewd politician and his criminal convicted wife, using their excessive and allegedly ill-acquired means to avoid justice.
It is imperative for those in the political spheres of any country to help in the preservation of justice in the world and not to allow the political process to meddle in the sovereign rights of foreign institutions to do their job on behalf of their people.
At stake is not only the entitlement of the people of Thailand to see justice done regardless of class or socio-economic position, but also the economic well-being and development of the country.
Thailand has been suffering from lack of confidence from investors, local and foreign, who fear that the political situation is unstable and that investing in Thailand at this time is risky. Granting political asylum to a convicted criminal and to someone who is clearly and objectively suspect of criminal wrongdoing will send a message to the investment community that anyone with sufficient means in that country will be able to escape justice from illegal activities by fleeing to another country and seeking protection under false and self-serving claims.
ALEX RUIZ
Singapore
-----
An insult to refugees
Political asylum is guided in principle by international law. The 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees (to the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees) defines refugees as persons who flee their homes for fear of persecution on protected grounds.
Protected grounds include race, nationality, religion, political opinions and membership in any particular social group or social activities.
Fear of persecution. Not fear of prosecution. For Thaksin and his wife to apply for political asylum is an insult to all people who suffer from persecution for their beliefs, race and ethnicity.
The billionaire businessman and politician stands in line to seek asylum with refugees from the former Yugoslav republics, Sri Lanka, Somalia and Afghanistan.
Shame on Thaksin. Again.
C THOMAS JOY
-----
Games coverage lacking
It is surely common knowledge that track & field athletics is the prime and dominating sport at any Olympic Games. In fact, without track & field, there simply would not be an Olympic movement.
But the people responsible for coverage of the Games on Thai television seem unaware of this. Of the Olympic action in Beijing, they have somehow managed to almost completely ignore events taking place in the Bird's Nest Stadium.
All we have been allowed to see (in between hours of football, swimming and boxing) thus far have been the finals of the men's 100 and 200 metres, plus finals of the women's 100m and 100m hurdles.
I realise that Thailand's main medal hopes lie in weightlifting and boxing, and it is natural to feature these events on TV, but to almost completely ignore the athletics events demonstrates a total lack of just what is significant in this sport - and how important it is to the Olympic Games.
Thai television's coverage (or lack of it) regarding track & field can be summed up in one word: abysmal!
DAVID COCKSEDGE
Hua Hin
-----
Divining offerings
As an expat in Thailand, I have no time for superstitious mumbo-jumbo like lucky charms, auspicious days, fortune tellers and most other decidedly dodgy practices and beliefs.
But of late, I've been sorely tempted to consult a wizened soothsayer in order to divine the evening's TrueVisions smorgasbord of TV treats and ages-old repeats.
After all, not only is the printed guide more wrong than right these days, but the on-screen guide is often wildly inaccurate even during programmes being shown. As an example, I was watching Blackadder and Stableford recently on BBCE when, on-screen, True told me I was watching Not Going Out and The Weakest Link. So now, I just guess and hope for the best, which, by coincidence, seems to be exactly True's approach.
TV ADDICT
-----
CONTACT: BANGKOK POST BUILDING, 136 NA RANONG ROAD, KLONG TOEY, BANGKOK 10110
Fax: +02 2403666, email: postbag@bangkokpost.co.th
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Come Thursday, Democrats hail The One
RACE FOR WHITE HOUSE
Come Thursday, Democrats hail The One
ALAN DAWSON
On the eve of the Democratic Party convention to inaugurate new party king Barack Obama, authorities in Denver have raised the city's security alert from yellow to brown.
The governing city council was so fearful that bands of violent crazies are planning to stink up the area during the convention that they passed a hasty law last month which bans anyone from carrying bags of urine or faeces on city property and streets.
In dread that some demonstrators might do their doody in Denver, the city has simply ignored the US constitution ordering authorities to make ''no law... abridging the freedom of speech''. Protest is strictly limited. On the climactic day, all dissenters must speak from one football-stadium parking lot, or hold their peace.
From Monday Aug 25 through Wednesday Aug 27, Democrats will convene in the Pepsi Centre, home of the (hockey) Colorado Avalanche and (basketball) Denver Nuggets and venue of other exciting historical moments such as a Britney Spears concert. The arena holds around 20,000, which is big enough for crowds that will not see Barack Obama. They have pledged to hold ''the greenest convention in history'' with even the food (no fried items, please) vetted for political correctness.
Come Thursday, and Senator Obama will travel across the Interstate-25 expressway to the main Denver football stadium, largest enclosed area apart from a politician's ego. At Invesco Field at Mile High, 76,000 bottoms can hit reserved chairs, and it has altitude as well as attitude: a row of seats encircles upper tiers of the stadium at exactly 5,280 feet above sea level _ one mile.
But the main point is that Sen Obama is too big a deal for a mere indoor arena. And it is true. Invesco Field is sold-out for Thursday's speech by The One. Residents of host state Colorado were promised half the tickets to see the Obama speech, and there were 80,000 applications two weeks ahead of the event.
Political conventions are no longer contests, but rather choreographed celebrations.
Despite that, despite the fact Sen Obama is the presidential candidate, the Clintons are going to make him beat Senator Hillary one more time to make it official. More to the point, he will still have to endure prime-time, star-quality appearances by the whole Clinton clan at his personal show here in Denver.
On Tuesday night, Chelsea Clinton will speak to the convention about how wonderful her mother is. Mrs Clinton then will tell a nationwide audience and all Democrats how being a woman is a tough job in today's world _ not that she would hold that against the man who defeated her, of course. By coincidence, her speech is on the anniversary of American women getting the vote.
On Wednesday night, the ego of ex-president Bill Clinton will dominate the convention and news coverage, as Sen Obama continues to stay out of the spotlight. Both old Clintons have said a few times they don't think Sen Obama can even win the election. Some believe they don't want him to win, in order to allow Mrs Clinton to run again in four years.
Against the three Clintons, the winning candidate puts his wife on the speaker's stage on Monday to open the convention, and then will try to erase all memories of Tuesday and Wednesday with a fantastic climax at the football stadium on Thursday. Few doubt he will manage. By now, even the glib if somewhat bitter Mr Clinton knows that Sen Obama, operating from a script, is a super orator.
But out in the 5,000 square metres of Parking Lot J, adjacent to the northwest corner of the football stadium, protesters will be trying to do their bit to steal Thursday's attention away from Sen Obama as well. Despite Denver's Endangered Faeces Act, they could succeed.
On one side, in addition to the poop ban, Denver police have got a $50-million grant from the US government for security _ not far off the cost of the convention itself. Officers have stocked up on pepper spray. They also purchased _ irony alert _ a sound-emitting device said to make people defecate, and outfitted an entire warehouse with tiny cells to house the likely arrestees.
On the other, the protest group Re-create 68 will spend the entire week trying to provoke police into a confrontation like that of the Chicago convention in 1968, where police beat hundreds of people to the ground while bystanders chanted, ''The Whole World's Watching!''
It may seem incoherent for violent protesters to pick the anti-Bush party for its centrepiece demonstrations. But far-left groups in the Re-create 68 alliance believe the Democrats have sold out the radical anti-war and anti-American movements to President Bush and the Republicans, who will have their own convention in Minneapolis next week.
At its website (recreate68.org ) organisers say their slogan is ''Recreate 68! Back to the Future!'' They make no promise of peaceful protest at the convention, although ''neither Recreate 68 nor anyone else wants to see that kind of (Chicago) police violence repeated in Denver.'' Their goals: ''end the illegal occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan... humane immigration policy... replace free trade with fair trade, combat global warming and transform a corrupt, corporate-dominated political system into real democracy.''
All of that from one parking lot.
Come Thursday, Democrats hail The One
ALAN DAWSON
On the eve of the Democratic Party convention to inaugurate new party king Barack Obama, authorities in Denver have raised the city's security alert from yellow to brown.
The governing city council was so fearful that bands of violent crazies are planning to stink up the area during the convention that they passed a hasty law last month which bans anyone from carrying bags of urine or faeces on city property and streets.
In dread that some demonstrators might do their doody in Denver, the city has simply ignored the US constitution ordering authorities to make ''no law... abridging the freedom of speech''. Protest is strictly limited. On the climactic day, all dissenters must speak from one football-stadium parking lot, or hold their peace.
From Monday Aug 25 through Wednesday Aug 27, Democrats will convene in the Pepsi Centre, home of the (hockey) Colorado Avalanche and (basketball) Denver Nuggets and venue of other exciting historical moments such as a Britney Spears concert. The arena holds around 20,000, which is big enough for crowds that will not see Barack Obama. They have pledged to hold ''the greenest convention in history'' with even the food (no fried items, please) vetted for political correctness.
Come Thursday, and Senator Obama will travel across the Interstate-25 expressway to the main Denver football stadium, largest enclosed area apart from a politician's ego. At Invesco Field at Mile High, 76,000 bottoms can hit reserved chairs, and it has altitude as well as attitude: a row of seats encircles upper tiers of the stadium at exactly 5,280 feet above sea level _ one mile.
But the main point is that Sen Obama is too big a deal for a mere indoor arena. And it is true. Invesco Field is sold-out for Thursday's speech by The One. Residents of host state Colorado were promised half the tickets to see the Obama speech, and there were 80,000 applications two weeks ahead of the event.
Political conventions are no longer contests, but rather choreographed celebrations.
Despite that, despite the fact Sen Obama is the presidential candidate, the Clintons are going to make him beat Senator Hillary one more time to make it official. More to the point, he will still have to endure prime-time, star-quality appearances by the whole Clinton clan at his personal show here in Denver.
On Tuesday night, Chelsea Clinton will speak to the convention about how wonderful her mother is. Mrs Clinton then will tell a nationwide audience and all Democrats how being a woman is a tough job in today's world _ not that she would hold that against the man who defeated her, of course. By coincidence, her speech is on the anniversary of American women getting the vote.
On Wednesday night, the ego of ex-president Bill Clinton will dominate the convention and news coverage, as Sen Obama continues to stay out of the spotlight. Both old Clintons have said a few times they don't think Sen Obama can even win the election. Some believe they don't want him to win, in order to allow Mrs Clinton to run again in four years.
Against the three Clintons, the winning candidate puts his wife on the speaker's stage on Monday to open the convention, and then will try to erase all memories of Tuesday and Wednesday with a fantastic climax at the football stadium on Thursday. Few doubt he will manage. By now, even the glib if somewhat bitter Mr Clinton knows that Sen Obama, operating from a script, is a super orator.
But out in the 5,000 square metres of Parking Lot J, adjacent to the northwest corner of the football stadium, protesters will be trying to do their bit to steal Thursday's attention away from Sen Obama as well. Despite Denver's Endangered Faeces Act, they could succeed.
On one side, in addition to the poop ban, Denver police have got a $50-million grant from the US government for security _ not far off the cost of the convention itself. Officers have stocked up on pepper spray. They also purchased _ irony alert _ a sound-emitting device said to make people defecate, and outfitted an entire warehouse with tiny cells to house the likely arrestees.
On the other, the protest group Re-create 68 will spend the entire week trying to provoke police into a confrontation like that of the Chicago convention in 1968, where police beat hundreds of people to the ground while bystanders chanted, ''The Whole World's Watching!''
It may seem incoherent for violent protesters to pick the anti-Bush party for its centrepiece demonstrations. But far-left groups in the Re-create 68 alliance believe the Democrats have sold out the radical anti-war and anti-American movements to President Bush and the Republicans, who will have their own convention in Minneapolis next week.
At its website (recreate68.org ) organisers say their slogan is ''Recreate 68! Back to the Future!'' They make no promise of peaceful protest at the convention, although ''neither Recreate 68 nor anyone else wants to see that kind of (Chicago) police violence repeated in Denver.'' Their goals: ''end the illegal occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan... humane immigration policy... replace free trade with fair trade, combat global warming and transform a corrupt, corporate-dominated political system into real democracy.''
All of that from one parking lot.
Eviction move will backfire
EDITORIAL
Eviction move will backfire
No one can accuse Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej of lacking a flair for the dramatic. His approach to problem-solving while serving as Bangkok governor was to exile the problem to the provinces, a tactic not always appreciated by those living in rural communities.
Homeless people, stray dogs and noisy, polluting two-stroke motorcycles all received their orders to move out, normally just ahead of an image-building international event.
Now he has brought his moving and shaking to the office of prime minister. This time, though, the target is 1,700 slum communities, which, he told the National Economic amd Social Development Board a week ago, will have to relocate themselves outside the capital in the near future so he can create some more parks.
If this was a policy statement it was sorely lacking in detail. But if it was designed to provide a talking point and get a reaction, it succeeded. Representatives from poor communities descended on Government House to point out that this flew in the face of everything they had been promised.
The claim is a valid one because the Ban Mankong and Ban Ua-arthorn homebuilding and land-sharing projects were intended to replace the slums and avoid any more forced relocations of the type now contemplated. Their launch was backed by a vow from then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2003 to eradicate slums from Bangkok within five years, or by the end of 2008. He also promised to eliminate poverty but that did not happen either, as the nation's six million people currently living below the poverty line know well.
The Ban Mankong and Ban Ua-Arthorn housing projects were touted as the solution to the shortage of affordable accommodation and, while there were some successes, Ban Ua-Arthorn schemes gained notoriety as showpieces of corruption. This took the form of ill-fitting doors, roofs prone to blow away in the wind, holes and cracks in foundations, walls and ceilings, dangerous electrical outlets and all-round sub-standard construction. It can only be a matter of time before such low-quality, but not inexpensive, public housing projects begin to revert to slums again, completing a vicious circle. And whose fault will that be?
This appalling quality control was a disappointment because the housing projects had been seen as providing opportunities at the lower end of the market, during a time of soaring land prices fuelled by industrialisation and commercial development.
Now Mr Samak is proposing to order many who work at construction sites, factories and in the service industry to move out of their rickety homes and then keep going until they are out of the city altogether. Presumably their choice would then be to endure a long, arduous and expensive commute, or swell the ranks of the unemployed. Could he have failed to realise that much of the problem stems from populist government schemes to help the rural poor, which have had the side-effect of shifting the burden of poverty from the countryside to the slums of the capital? That rural-urban drift must be discouraged, and the defective low-cost housing developments fixed and upgraded.
Of course, new parks would be nice, but these have been promised before, only to suddenly turn into condos, shopping centres and office blocks because the locations are prime real estate. That is why activists leading the demonstrations this week are fearful of ''land grabs''.
There is plenty of suitable land available for landscaping as new public parks without kicking people out of their homes, and Mr Samak, as a street-smart former Bangkok governor, surely knows where it is.
Eviction move will backfire
No one can accuse Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej of lacking a flair for the dramatic. His approach to problem-solving while serving as Bangkok governor was to exile the problem to the provinces, a tactic not always appreciated by those living in rural communities.
Homeless people, stray dogs and noisy, polluting two-stroke motorcycles all received their orders to move out, normally just ahead of an image-building international event.
Now he has brought his moving and shaking to the office of prime minister. This time, though, the target is 1,700 slum communities, which, he told the National Economic amd Social Development Board a week ago, will have to relocate themselves outside the capital in the near future so he can create some more parks.
If this was a policy statement it was sorely lacking in detail. But if it was designed to provide a talking point and get a reaction, it succeeded. Representatives from poor communities descended on Government House to point out that this flew in the face of everything they had been promised.
The claim is a valid one because the Ban Mankong and Ban Ua-arthorn homebuilding and land-sharing projects were intended to replace the slums and avoid any more forced relocations of the type now contemplated. Their launch was backed by a vow from then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2003 to eradicate slums from Bangkok within five years, or by the end of 2008. He also promised to eliminate poverty but that did not happen either, as the nation's six million people currently living below the poverty line know well.
The Ban Mankong and Ban Ua-Arthorn housing projects were touted as the solution to the shortage of affordable accommodation and, while there were some successes, Ban Ua-Arthorn schemes gained notoriety as showpieces of corruption. This took the form of ill-fitting doors, roofs prone to blow away in the wind, holes and cracks in foundations, walls and ceilings, dangerous electrical outlets and all-round sub-standard construction. It can only be a matter of time before such low-quality, but not inexpensive, public housing projects begin to revert to slums again, completing a vicious circle. And whose fault will that be?
This appalling quality control was a disappointment because the housing projects had been seen as providing opportunities at the lower end of the market, during a time of soaring land prices fuelled by industrialisation and commercial development.
Now Mr Samak is proposing to order many who work at construction sites, factories and in the service industry to move out of their rickety homes and then keep going until they are out of the city altogether. Presumably their choice would then be to endure a long, arduous and expensive commute, or swell the ranks of the unemployed. Could he have failed to realise that much of the problem stems from populist government schemes to help the rural poor, which have had the side-effect of shifting the burden of poverty from the countryside to the slums of the capital? That rural-urban drift must be discouraged, and the defective low-cost housing developments fixed and upgraded.
Of course, new parks would be nice, but these have been promised before, only to suddenly turn into condos, shopping centres and office blocks because the locations are prime real estate. That is why activists leading the demonstrations this week are fearful of ''land grabs''.
There is plenty of suitable land available for landscaping as new public parks without kicking people out of their homes, and Mr Samak, as a street-smart former Bangkok governor, surely knows where it is.
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