Thai protestors target national airports now

Their suitcases lying stranded near the cars lining the highway to Phuket’s airport and about 15,000 foreign tourists swinging their hands in utter frustration as the anti-government protesters marched Friday on the island’s airport, the nation’s second-busiest, forcing a cancellation of all the nearly 120 daily flights.

“We don’t know what happened, we don’t know anything about Thai politics,” said one German tourist. “They keep telling us we are on standby, but they are still not sure if our flight can take off.”

Similar protests closed down the airport in nearby Krabi and the southern commercial centre of Hat Yai, cutting off air traffic to much of southern Thailand. Though Hat Yai has re-opened Thailand’s prized tourist destination, Phuket, still remains plagued by the protests.

The anti-government protests are centered on Bangkok, where up to 25,000 people have occupied the main government complex calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej. The protests turned violent Friday, with skirmishes between activists and police.

This political turmoil is taking its toll on the tourism industry of Thailand as Australia, Britain, South Korea and the United States have warned their tourists against traveling to Thailand.

“The current political stand-off will absolutely have an adverse effect on our tourism industry but the extent of the damage will depend on how long the turmoil lasts,” said Prakit Chinamourphong, president of the Thai Hotel Association.

How about investing in a property in Bangkok?

If you are in for investing your valuable money in some property in some far off country, you might as well give a thought to renting or investing in a property in Bangkok.

Think about this. The living costs in Western and European countries are already high and are again on a rise. Bangkok is comparatively cheaper and with a decent amount of money, you could buy a luxurious property in Bangkok. But a word of advice here. Get in touch with a s specialized Bangkok real estate agent. He will guide you better considering whether you want to build a place to reside or whether you will be here just for your holiday and you wish to invest in a property in Bangkok.

Undoubtedly, a specialized Bangkok real estate agent will tell you that there are plenty of things to do and see in Bangkok and that people coming here never get bored. With his guidance, you could always invest some of your money in a profitable business, may be upholstery cleaning brooklyn property in Bangkok situated in a wonderful location. As one of the world’s leading tourist destinations, Thailand represents the ideal place for investment.

The modern infrastructure, the blend of the culture and traditions with modernization, the wealth of upholstery cleaning st louis resources, and the convenient prices make Thailand the ideal destination for people all over the world. With adequate recommendations from a specialized Bangkok real estate agent, you will find out information about the properties that are worth investing in and about the best manners of increasing your profit.

Winners of ‘Thailand Through Your Eyes’

A painting competition ‘Thailand Through Your Eyes’ was held on August 20 and 21 at Bahrain Arts Society by the Royal Thai Embassy. This competition was held in order to promote better understanding of Thailand and its people. Participants were categorised into two age groups -eight to 13, and 14 and 20.

Winners were announced, honoured and awarded certificates this week at a ceremony on the society premises on Budaiya Road, which was attended by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Nazar Al Baharna, Thai Ambassador Suphat Chitranukroh and society president Ali Al Mahmeed.

Winners of the 14-20 age group were: First, Hussain Aqeel, who received BD400; second, Hend Ali Al Mahmeed, who received BD250; and joint third, Fatima Enas Mohammed Ali and Zahra Taher Al Bahrani, who shared the BD150 prize.

Joint first in the eight-13 age group were Avinash Sarandon and Vishal Thamizharasan, who shared the BD200 prize.

Joint second were Zahra Abdulrasool and Noor Adel Mousa, sharing the BD150 prize; and joint third were Roshna Sarandon and Zainab Hussain Al Mahdi, sharing the BD100 prize.

Cisco’s WiMax network in Mae Fah University

Though the Southeast Asian Kingdom of Thailand has a population of over 67.3 million citizens, according to an ITU report, only about 8.5 million have access to the Internet and only 600,000 have broadband services. Seeing this opportunity for broadband growth in Thailand, companies are trying to set their foothold here. Last week, NEC announced it is providing mobile WiMAX equipment to hospitals in Thailand.

Again, Mae Fah Luang University in Thailand will have the WiMAX network equipment from Cisco Systems deployed by TT&T. This will be Thailand’s first production in WiMAX network and Cisco’s first WiMAX win in the Asia Pacific market.

Mae Fah Luang University is located in the Chiang Rai province of north Thailand. “We chose Cisco because of its proven expertise and leadership in networking technology,” said Prachuab Tantinon, managing director of TT&T Public Company Limited. Tests conducted in a Bangkok school delivered broadband speeds under non line-of-sight conditions at ranges of 5-7 kilometers.

Key interest rate raised by Central Bank of Thailand

In order to combat the inflationary pressures in the Thailand economy, the central bank of the country raised its key interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.75% this Wednesday. The move was in line with market expectations.

The Bank of Thailand released a statement saying, “Given the elevated level of inflation and inflation expectations, as well as uncertainty of oil prices in the periods ahead, the MPC [monetary policy committee] assessed that the risks to inflation remained an important issue of concern.”

July’s consumer price inflation surged to 9.2% year-on-year, up from 8.9% year-on-year. Wednesday’s rate hike was the “second straight monthly hike after maintaining the rate steady since August 2007,” said analysts at Action Economics. “While balancing risks of higher inflation against slower growth, it [the central bank] saw the need to tighten in order to contain inflation expectations,” they added. In Bangkok, the SET stock index closed up 1.1%.

Thailand to provide tax benefits to E85 model vehicle manufacturers

Western manufacturers of vehicles capable of using E85 - fuel with up to 85 per cent ethanol – will get tax benefits in Thailand despite opposition to the plan from Japanese car makers.

Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, addressing his weekly “Talking Samak Style” TV program the week before, said the government decided to offer tax breaks for imported E85-compatible vehicles despite a request from Japanese auto manufacturers to delay the plan by two years.

Japan is opposing this plan because Japan will be able to come out with its E80-compatible models for exports only after two years where as several US and European auto manufacturers already produce E85-compatible models.

The Thai automobile market is dominated by Japanese manufacturers, nearly all of whom have set up assembly and manufacturing plants in Thailand to avoid high import taxes on completely built-up vehicles. Thailand has decided to promote the production of E85, using locally produced ethanol from various agricultural commodities such as sugar and tapioca so as to reduce its dependency on imported fuels.

Weather and pilot responsible for the One-Two-Go Jetliner crash

This is in connection with the The MD82 aircraft, the low-cost One-Two-Go Airlines Jetliner which skidded off the runway after touching down on a flight from Don Mueang airport in Bangkok, and crashed into the treeline beyond the end of the landing zone, bursting into flames. This happened an year ago when the budget carrier with 130 people on board crashed and burned while landing at Phuket Airport. Both pilots also died in the accident.

Now, the investigating committee on this accident has concluded that the accident was due to pilot error and poor visibility, a senior Transport Ministry official said Tuesday.

Aviation Department director-general Chaisak Angkasuwan quoted the committee report as saying that the aircraft accident September 16 should be attributed to the failure of the pilot and co-pilot who did not follow proper safety measures. Poor weather at the time of the accident was another factor, according to the committee report.

Thailand leads South Asian countries in Olympics 2008

29th Olympiad which ended this Sunday again saw Thailand as the leading winner among all its South Asian rivals with four medals—two golds and two silvers. Indonesia, with one gold, one silver and three bronzes, has the most number of medals with five. Malaysia, Singapore and even Vietnam have a silver each.

Thailand’s two golds came with the victory of veteran boxer Jongjohor Somnit and woman weightlifter P. Jaroenrattanatarakoon. With this, Jongjohor became the third Thai to win a boxing gold medal in the Olympics. Jaroenrattanatarakoon topped the women’s 53-kg division in weightlifting two days after the Aug. 8 opening ceremonies to become the first Southeast Asian gold medalist in Beijing.

The veteran Boonjumnong had won the light welterweight boxing title in Athens four years ago. However, this time he lost badly to Felix Diaz of the Dominican Republic, 12-4, in the gold medal match and had to be satisfied with a silver. Thailand’s other silver was won by Buttree Puedpong, who lost to China’s Wu Jingyu in the gold medal match of taekwondo’s women’s under-49kg category.

With its two golds in Beijing, Thailand overtook Indonesia in the number of golds won with seven. With four silvers and 10 bronzes and a total of 21, Thailand still trails Indonesia in the all-time medal count. The Philippines is third with nine medals consisting of two silvers and seven bronzes.

Japan to help Thailand develop its Nuclear Power Plants

By Shigeru Sato and Yuji Okada

Aug. 22 (Bloomberg) — Thailand has asked Japan to help build its first nuclear power plants as Southeast Asia’s second- biggest economy seeks to reduce reliance on gas, oil and coal.

Energy Minister of Thailand, Poonpirom Liptapanlop, has asked Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshihiro Nikai for reactor-operation expertise and advice on nuclear legislation and developing workers for the industry.

Thailand wants to build its first nuclear power plant so as to reduce its dependence on gas, oil and coal which serves more than 70 percent of its power needs. The country plans to complete a 2,000 megawatt-nuclear power station in 2020 and a further plant with the same capacity the following year. The two planned nuclear plants may generate 10 percent of the country’s electricity and for this they may require an investment of about $6 billion, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand had said earlier.

On the other hand, Japan wants markets for its nuclear reactors and plant parts. Hitachi Ltd., the nation’s third-biggest builder of nuclear plants, and partner General Electric Co. have started informal talks with Thailand, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian nations to sell newly developed mid-sized reactors.

Gary Glitter back in Thailand but denied entry

Disgraced rocker Gary Glitter, who had been deported to Thailand after he refused to board a plane for US, is back in Bangkok again Thursday after Hong Kong denied him entry. Hong Kong immigration officials had refused him entry into the country after interviewing him.

Police Col. Worawat Amornwiwat said the Glitter would not be allowed to enter Thailand and Glitter’s airline, Thai Airways, should ensure he continues on his originally planned journey to England.

“Thailand is not allowing him to enter the country and Hong Kong is turning him back so there is no choice for him now,’ Worawat said.”It is the responsibility of Thai Airways to take him out of the country.”

Lt. Gen. Chatchawal Suksomchit, chief of Thailand’s immigration police, said Glitter was denied entry because under Thai immigration laws those convicted of child sex abuse in a foreign country can be barred. Glitter, 64, was convicted in March 2006 of committing “obscene acts with children.” He served two years and nine months of a three-year sentence, which was reduced for good behavior.

Glitter has once seen glittering days when in 1970s he sold 18 million records and recorded a string of British top-10 hits. His most successful song, the crowd-pleasing anthem “Rock and Roll (Part 2),” had cracked the top 10 in the United States.

GM signs a deal with PTT

General Motors has signed a deal this Thursday with Thailand’s top energy firm PTT to collaborate on research into alternative fuels such as ethanol for cars. The deal was signed one day after GM announced a 445-million-dollar investment to build a new diesel engine plant and to upgrade an existing assembly plant in Thailand.

This research will concentrate on finding ways to enhance ethanol production from crops that are not used for food. The firms will also study hydrogen fuel, low-cost hybrid engines, and other fuel-saving technology in Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia

“The strategy will focus on alternative energy that is socially responsible, economic, environment-friendly and with practical technology. GM and PTT will cooperate to study possible markets as well as the infrastructure needed to realise benefits from increased use of alternative energy,” GM chief executive Richard Wagoner said in a statement.

How welcome are the new teacher visa regulations in Thailand?

The new teacher visa regulations in Thailand are surely going to create a mess and devastating effect on the foreign teachers in Thailand. With already heightened visa regulations from earlier this year, immigration will (most likely) require teachers to:

1. Teachers with Bachelor of Education or higher to attend a ‘Foreign Teacher Thai Culture Training Program,’ on top of a Non-immigrant and work visa.

2. Teachers with Bachelors (not in Education) will have to complete a 30 credit, one year, ‘Teachers Licensing Course’ with the ‘Foreign Teacher Thai Culture Training Program.’  The 30 credit course is to cost an exorbitant 60000 Baht (about $1800 US) which for many is well over a month’s salary.  Teachers do have the option to challenge the course by taking a four-part exam to receive.

3. Teachers without Bachelor degrees may do away with these regulations only if the principal at their respective school can vouch that their teaching abilities are ‘fantastic’ and that the school really needs the services of the teacher concerned.

Teachers in the Kingdom are frustrated and upset over the changes as there are teachers who have been in Thailand for many years and can speak Thai and probably know Thai culture better than most Thais. Also, the instructors who wish to teach in Thailand must be dedicated and committed to teach. The new regulations which are supposed to take place in the beginning of 2009 will do nothing but fill in the pockets of visa-officials and consume the valuable time and energy of some fine teachers.

Gary Glitter deported to Hong Kong from Thailand

Thailand deported and convicted British pedophile Gary Glitter to Hong Kong when he refused to board a plane to the U.K. 64 year-old Glitter’s real name is Paul Francis Gadd. Glitter had served a 33-month prison term in Vietnam for sexually abusing two girls, age 11 and 12. His sentence called for his deportation upon release. Glitter had earlier expressed his desire said in an interview from prison with a Vietnamese newspaper that he wanted to record a new album and did not want to return to the U.K. Instead, he preferred to move to Hong Kong or Singapore.

Glitter arrived in Thailand last night and refused to board a flight to the U.K. Convicted sex offenders arriving in Britain are met at the airport by police officers who interview them and apply for a court order instructing them to sign the Sex Offenders Register, according to the Home Office.

U.K. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said yesterday that Glitter would be “controlled” if he returned to the U.K. and that she didn’t want him to be able to travel abroad.

Thailand’s FDA approves medical product lines of Cardima Inc.

Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration has approved marketing of the medical product lines of Cardima Inc. in Thailand as reported by the company on Tuesday.

This Fremont company makes medical devices to treat an irregular heartbeat condition called atrial fibrillation. The company’s CEO, Robert Cheney, and partners stated approval in Thailand was significant because of the country’s popularity as a medical tourism destination and suggested Thailand could become a center of affordable atrial fibrillation treatment.

Man arrested under child sex tourism charge

In total income of Thailand Tourism prostitution plays a very significant part and and child sex in no exception despite the tight clutches of law. A Santa Barbara man, Michael Patrick Mahoney, has been charged with advertising on Craigslist for a guide who would help him find children to have sex with in Thailand.

Michael was arrested Saturday by federal agents at Los Angeles International Airport after he boarded a flight for Bangkok. He was carrying children’s stuffed animals, Disneyland shirts and chocolates. The investigation into Mahoney had already begun a week before after his ad on the Craigslist Web site was noticed by the immigration officials. They had an undercover agent posed as a travel guide and sent an e-mail offering to arrange meetings with children. Michael fell into their trap and was arrested.

Mahoney had his bond set at $100,000 Monday in federal court in Los Angeles. The 51-year-old faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of a child sex tourism charge.