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Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Deputy PM Chavalit resigns
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Members of the public were out in force this morning to assist the scores of injured when the government staged a violent crackdown on protesters. Photo courtesy of 'The Nation' newspaper.
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BANGKOK (The Nation): Deputy Prime Minister Gen Chavalit Yongchaiyudh tendered his resignation this morning to take responsibility for police brutality against anti-government demonstraters in Bangkok last night. For photos of the violence, click here.
Gen Chavalit was deputy prime minister in charge of security. He is reported to have resigned in shame at the use of violence by the government of Prime Minister Somchai Wongsat, who just last week had offered to make peace with the protesters.
Police fired tear gas and used force to disperse the protesters who blocked and surrounded Parliament this morning.
The protesters wanted to prevent access to Parliament by MPs who were scheduled to attend a policy debate of the increasingly unpopular Somchai government. Following the debate, Somchai, who is the brother-in-law of disgraced prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, had to climb a fence to escape from the compound.
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Phuket, Thailand
15:46
local time (GMT +7) |
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Guns seized at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint
TAH CHAT CHAI: Provincial and regional police held a press conference on October 5 to announce the seizure of 10 guns recovered during random checks at the Tah Chat Chai road checkpoint over a three-day period.
The press conference was conducted jointly by Police Region 8 Commander Lt Gen Santarn Chayanon and Phuket Provincial Police Commander Apirak Hongthong.
The seizures followed a handover in authority of the checkpoint from the regional to provincial police, in line with a policy to crack down on hired gunmen and other criminals coming to, and leaving, the island, Maj Gen Apirak said.
The crackdown involves more frequent searches and the addition of advanced detection technology to help police locate contraband items stashed inside vehicles, police said.
Also seized was a variety of other weapons and illegal drugs.
Similar “X-ray” inspections were conducted at checkpoints in Tung Tong and Kathu over the same period, but these failed to recover any weapons, the press conference was told.
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Phuket, Thailand
15:08
local time (GMT +7) |
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Phuket PAD mobilizes to join Bangkok protest
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Natjarong Ekpermsup (2nd from left) was the key speaker in this morning’s press conference by the Phuket PAD, which is also known by the English-language name “Phuket Watch”.
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PHUKET CITY (Gazette, Nation): Following the clash between People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) supporters and police outside Parliament in Bangkok early this morning, the Phuket PAD held a press conference at the ASTV office at 9 am to discuss their response.
Led by Natjarong Ekpermsup, a panel of PAD representatives told the press that the Phuket PAD will now mobilize as many Phuket PAD members as possible to join the protest in Bangkok.
“We accuse the police in Bangkok of using not only tear gas, but also war weapons against the protesters, which led to injuries that included a broken leg,” Mr Natjarong said.
“When we go up there, we will equip ourselves with gas masks, saline solution to clean our eyes and all the other things we will need to protect ourselves,” he added.
There are about 400 Phuket people protesting at Government House, some of whom are serving as “guards” at that protest site, he said.
Yesterday, Mr Natjarong told the Gazette his group had no plans to take any action until the end of the 10-day Vegetarian Festival, at which time some of its members would travel to Bangkok to join the protest.
The Vegetarian Festival ends at midnight tonight.
Over the next few days, the Phuket PAD will likely resume its “monitoring” activities at Saphan Hin, which consist of PAD supporters meeting to watch ASTV network broadcasts of events in the capital.
ASTV is owned by Sondhi Limthongkul, a core PAD supporter.
The protest in the capital has now split into a two-part siege, with some PAD protesters still encamped at Government House while some 2,000 “second-generation” protesters remain around Parliament.
Protesters are aiming to keep the new members of parliament from convening today as they are scheduled to hear recently installed Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat’s policy address.
Around dawn today, police fired 40 to 50 canisters of tear gas at more than 4,000 anti-government protesters who were blocking access to Parliament on Pichai Rd.
At least three people were seriously injured in the incident.
Police secured one entrance to the Parliament and some policemen were stationed inside the Parliament compound.
In the latest development Deputy Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh submitted his resignation to the prime minister to show responsibility over the use of force against protesters.
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Phuket, Thailand
12:18
local time (GMT +7) |
Monday, October 6, 2008
Phuket PAD to join Bangkok protest after Veg Fest
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Colorful plastic “hand clappers”, which are a common sight at PAD rallies in the capital, were a popular sales item at the entrance to Samkong Shrine last night.
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BANGKOK (The Nation, Gazette): Despite the recent arrests of two key People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders, the group’s Phuket members will refrain from taking any action in the province until the end of the Vegetarian Festival 2008 that ends tomorrow, its leadership has confirmed.
Following the arrest of core PAD leader Chaiwat Sinsuwong last Friday, Southern region PAD coordinator Sunthorn Rakrong said the PAD would launch protests at strategic locations, including along highways and at airports, train stations and city halls to protest against the arrest.
On Saturday however, Natjarong Ekpermsup, a committee member of the PAD Phuket branch, said that his group had no plans to protest locally against Chaiwat’s arrest, primarily because the annual Vegetarian Festival was still underway.
In fact, the local PAD had suspended its meetings for the duration of the event, he said.
After the festival, peaceful activities will resume in an effort to educate people – but without disturbing the local tourist industry, he added.
Yesterday, Maj General Chamlong Srimuang, one of the most charismatic and well-known of the PAD leaders, was arrested when he went to cast his vote in the Bangkok City election.
Arrest warrants for Chaiwat, Chamlong and seven other PAD leaders were issued on August 27, a day after PAD members took over Government House in Bangkok.
If found guilty of insurrection, they could face life imprisonment or even death.
Today, the Gazette again asked Mr Natjarong if the arrest of Gen Chamlong would spur the Phuket PAD to protest locally.
Again, Mr Natjarong reiterated that local PAD activities would remain on hold until after the Vegetarian Festival, at which time between 300 to 1,000 Phuket PAD members are expected to begin planning to travel to Bangkok to join some 400 other die-hard PAD members from Phuket who are already encamped in and around Government House.
The actual number would likely depend on how the continuing political crisis unfolds, he said.
The PAD is still very popular in Phuket, with many local shops airing ASTV broadcasts of the events all day long. However, the PAD’s popularity in Phuket did take a hit when its protests at the airport on August 29 turned ugly, resulting in an unprecedented two-day closure of the facility that hit the local tourist-based economy very hard.
After that, Mr Natjarong held a press conference denying that PAD members were involved and blaming the airport closure on “agitators” who sympathized with the PAD's cause.
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Phuket, Thailand
16:08
local time (GMT +7) |
Monday, October 6, 2008
Child Labor in Phuket shames Junta
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The image that caused a scandal in Burma is a common sight in Phuket, where Burmese labor is a key component of the construction, fishing and rubber tapping industries.
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PHUKET: Burmese daily newspaper True News was ordered by the Press Scrutiny and Registration Board of Myanmar to suspend publication for two months, following its publication on September 30 of a large image depicting a Burmese child working on a construction site in Phuket.
Mr Yeni, News Editor at The Irrawaddy, told the Gazette that, “An anonymous freelancer in Rangoon told us that the censorship board has ordered True News to suspend publication for two months due to a front page photograph that ran a caption reading: ‘A Burmese child working on a construction site in Phuket, Thailand’. Apparently the editors of True News were found guilty of not sending clear draft layouts to the Press Scrutiny Board.
“Another Rangoon source said that True News had submitted the layouts, but the Board failed to censor the photo. Major Tint Swe, head of the censorship board, was then reportedly scolded by Information Minister Kyaw Hsan for the oversight,” said Mr Yeni.
“The editors and reporters of True News are now afraid to give interviews with anyone outside Myanmar. We are unable to find out where, exactly, the construction site is in Phuket. We are very interested in covering stories about Burmese migrants in Phuket.
“The Junta are paranoid and strange. The Burmese regime is not like any other government; they focus only on how to control media, especially when they work with journalists outside Myanmar. With the exploitation of child laborers, the Junta feel that they have been exposed for lacking care for their own citizens. Later this year we plan to visit Phuket ourselves,” he added.
There will be a lot for them to report on here.
The plight of Burmese workers in Phuket is well known to island residents. They are commonly seen huddled into the back of trucks and at squalid workers’ camps across the island. The camps have mushroomed on the back of a real estate boom driven largely by foreign investment in recent years.
The situation made international headlines earlier this year when 54 unregistered workers suffocated in the back of a truck in Ranong while en route to a construction site in Phuket.
A crackdown followed, and on June 11 former Kathu policeman Decho Kaewnabon was gunned down in front of his Patong home in a murder that remains unsolved.
Decho, dismissed from the force for involvement in Burmese labor rings, allegedly continued in the business. His murder is widely seen as a silencing killing ordered by other influential traffickers.
There have also been numerous extortion attempts made against Burmese workers and those who employ them, often by people posing as government officials.
One registered Burmese worker who resisted an extortion attempt was shot in the face and killed in Kathu on March 30. Although there were many witnesses, that case also remains unsolved.
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Phuket, Thailand
12:19
local time (GMT +7) |
Monday, October 6, 2008
Phuket to host huge medical tourism conference in ’09
PHUKET: In September 2009, Phuket will host more than 1,200 delegates of The World Medical Health Tourism Conference: A New Way Forward in 2009, Karon-based event organizers SOS Medical Tourism Services have announced.
Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB)’s participation and sponsorship of the event aims to promote Thailand as a destination for medical tourism, as well as for international meetings, conventions, exhibitions and conferences.
Thai Airways is also sponsoring the event, which is now beginning its international marketing campaign. Some major speakers were recently secured, both through a “call for papers” and by special invitation.
Local supporters range from community groups, tourism operators and resorts, including the Woraburi Phuket Resort, Millennium Resort Patong, The Moevenpick Resort, Karon Beach Resort of Kata Group, Aquamarine Resort, Cape Panwa Hotel and the Andaman Seaview Hotel group.
The organizers expect the event to cement Phuket’s reputation as “medical hub of Asia” as well as a prime destination for health and wellness services in Thailand.
Event activities will be based at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa where the formal conference will run for three days, though many pre-conference and post-conference activities are being planned.
The event is expected to bring a windfall to Phuket of about US$10 million over the two-week period.
For more information about the conference, visit: www.sosmedicaltourism.com
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Phuket, Thailand
12:08
local time (GMT +7) |
Sunday, October 5, 2008
PAD Leader Chamlong Arrested
BANGKOK (The Nation): Political peace efforts suffered another big blow this morning with the arrest of key PAD leader Chamlong Srimuang.
Eye-witnesses said Chamlong was arrested and detained at a voting booth for today's elections for Bangkok governor. Chamlong had gone there to cast his own vote. He was arrested at 8 am when the polling station opened.
His arrest comes after the first of the nine PAD core members, Chaiwat Sinsuwong, was captured on treason charges on Friday.
It was not clear if Chamlong, who is very close to Chaiwat, "intended" to be arrested, as is thought possible by some PAD observers.
The witnesses said Chamlong told the police who were approaching him: "Let me cast my vote first".
He was allowed to do so.
Chaiwat's arrest was described as a blow to the peace overture by the Somchai Wongsawat government, and Chamlong's capture is believed to have far greater repercussions. Widely popular, he is the most important PAD leader, along side media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul.
Pol Gen Suparp Muenkaew confirmed to NBT TV that he went to arrest Chamlong himself.
The former government of Samak Sundaravej charged Chamlong, Chaiwat and the seven other PAD core members with treason after they led the seizure of Government House. The PAD has been protesting inside Government House for several weeks, with the key leaders being careful not to leave the compound.
Channel 7 reported that other PAD leaders at Government House were informed of Chamlong's arrest immediately and were preparing to make moves in retaliation.
NBT reported that Chamlong wrote a letter to his supporters at 6:30 am and the letter was read at the rally site at Government House at 9 am.
The letter says:
"We all gather here to repay the gratitude of our motherland. We come here to do good for the country and repay our debt to the country. This is the duty of all Thais. Before we die, we must repay the debt to our motherland. No matter what will happen, let all remember that it's the duty of Thais to serve the nation, the religion and the King. I, Chamlong Srimuang, would like to remind all Thais that we were all born with a duty. No matter how tall we are, no matter how our complexion is, how poor or rich we are, we have the duty to repay the debt to the motherland. [Signed] Chamlong Srimuang, 6 am."
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Phuket, Thailand
11:12
local time (GMT +7) |
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