| 21st March |
Som Tam and Truffles... |
|
| |
Bangkok culinary event leaves a bad taste
Permalink |
See
full article from the
Guardian
|
It
must have seemed like a good idea at the time. Invite the wealthiest and
most loyal guests from around the world, feed them a 10-course dinner
cooked by three French Michelin-starred chefs and give them a luxurious
place to lay their heads for the night, all on the house.
Then whisk them off to the slums of Kolkata or Bangkok's backstreets, so
the 50 high-rollers could witness life on the other side of the tracks
and perhaps put their hand in their pocket.
But the luxury Bangkok hotel, lebua at State Tower, hit a snag with the
event it coined "emotional tourism". It got more emotion than it
bargained for when the French media saw it as a poverty tour for the
rich, triggering a mighty furore.
Within days the trio of elite French chefs withdrew. Alain Soliveres of
the Michelin two-star Taillevent in Paris, Jean-Michel Lorain of the
three-star La Côte Saint Jacques in Burgundy, and Michel Trama from the
three-star Les Loges de L'Aubergade in south-west France, all made their
excuses.
You can't see people living in misery and then go back to Bangkok to
eat foie gras and truffles, said Soliveres: It started an
enormous, enormous scandal in France. I had no choice but to boycott the
meal.
Lorain called the event unhealthy and morally unjustifiable in an
email to lebua executives.
Menus will now be rewritten for the event in April and the poverty tour
has been scaled back to just a trip to the "elephant village" of Surin
in Thailand's north-east, where rice farmers struggle to survive. The
free dinner and tour for the most loyal lebua customers that will cost
the hotel £150,000 is a far cry from its effort of last year when it
charged for a "million baht meal" (£15,800) cooked by Michelin-starred
chefs to raise money for charity.
None of the European, American and Asian guests - bankers, executives
and casino owners - have backed out. A Dutch publisher of luxury travel
guides, Nick Zirkzee, has already pledged 5% of the profits of a new
book to people of Surin.
|
| 15th March |
Eco Whatever... |
|
| |
Tourism Mega-Projects
Permalink |
From the
Nation
|
The
projects are part of a five-year tourism development plan starting this
year. Minister Weerasak Kowsurat said he would soon propose the plan to
the Cabinet for approval.
Weerasak gave an outline of the projects to ministry officials:
- The first project aims to create a "civilisation tourism route"
between Thailand and Burma. It is expected to require funding of Bt40
million this year and another Bt225 million over the next two years.
- The second is building eco-tourism, which is expected to consume
Bt900 million to Bt1 billion.
- The third is the "Thailand Riviera" project, which was initially
proposed some years ago. It aims to build new tourism magnets along
the Gulf of Thailand. This project will require Bt260 million this
year and Bt500 million in the next two years.
- The fourth is promoting the Mekong River as a new destination. It
will require Bt130 million this year and another Bt420 million through
2009 and 2010.
- The last project calls for the building of the Thai-Khmer cultural
route. It is budgeted at Bt500 million.
The projects are intended to attract more global tourists as well as
encourage domestic tourism, Weerasak said.
|
| 14th March |
Splat the Mossies... |
|
| |
Dengue fever on the increase
Permalink |
From the
Bangkok Post
|
The
Public Health Ministry issued a warning yesterday, saying the country is
experiencing the worst outbreak of dengue fever in a decade, with more
than 4,000 people infected by the virus in only two months.
A total of 4,393 people fell ill between Dec 30 last year and Feb 23,
with six deaths reported. Children and teenagers aged from seven to 14
were a high risk, officials said.
More than half of the dengue infections and fatalities were in central
provinces, followed by the South and the North, said permanent secretary
for public health Prat Boonyawongwirote.
The surge in dengue fever infections was mainly because of climate
change which accelerated the life cycle of the mosquito, enabling them
to produce a minimum infective dose of the dengue virus faster than
before, he added.
The last outbreak in Thailand was reported in 1998 when 129,954 people
were found to be infected with dengue fever, leaving 424 dead.
Dr Prat said epidemiologists and provincial health offices have been put
on full alert to monitor the disease. Each province is required to
persuade people to work with health officers to regularly destroy
mosquito larvae in water sources.
|
| 10th March |
Keeping Young Adults Out of Pubs... |
|
| |
Drinks company databases pub goers...why?
Permalink |
What does anyone gain from this scheme? Seems to set people up for
burglary and blackmail opportunities. Or perhaps its just so the bars can
send junk mail.
From the
Nation
|
Before
gaining entry to a pub, one has to display an identification card.
However, the next time just your finger will do.
A new technology using a fingerprint scan has been developed to help
verify the age of pub patrons. The technology has been launched by
Diageo Moet Hennessy, a leading importer and distributor of premium
alcoholic beverages.
The company's vice president of marketing, Zanita Kajiji, said the
project involved establishing fingerprint scan kiosks at the gates of
popular pubs. The kiosk will be used by pubs to verify that their
patrons' age is above 20 - the legal requirement to enter a pub.
The kiosk machine is designed to record the customer's basic personal
information such as first name, last name, address, and most
importantly, date of birth. The kiosk is equipped with magnetic card
reader, camera and fingerprint scanner.
The system requires a first-time registration for which the customer's
identification card is scanned and the information on it is read. Next,
the camera clicks an image of the ID card. Lastly, the machine scans the
index finger of the right hand. In all, three types of information -
personal details, picture and fingerprint - are collected, encrypted and
transmitted to the company's server. The process takes only a few
seconds.
Zanita said that the next time the customer visits the pub, instead of
displaying his ID card, he just needs to get a fingerprint scan which
works as verification. The machine matches his fingerprint scan with the
one in the database and verifies the age of the patron.
The kiosks will be connected via a virtual private network to the
company's server, which is hosted at True Internet. All the customer
information in different pubs will be kept in the same database server.
If that person goes to another pub, they will not need to register
again, Zanita said.
She said registration had to be on a voluntary basis because it involves
giving out personal information and invokes privacy rights: We have
got a good response. The customers are willing to use this process, as
it is so convenient and trendy. Thailand is the first country in which
we have launched the fingerprint-scan project.
From the 12 pubs participating in the trial, the company received
registrations from 20,000 people or 60% of total customers. The company
wants to encourage 100% participation from the pubs' customers.
The firm plans to roll out the Bt50-million project across 100 pubs in
the country by year-end. It will bear the cost of installing the kiosk,
the virtual private network and maintaining the server.
|
| 2nd March |
Xpress Nation... |
|
| |
Thailand to get free newspaper from The Nation
Permalink |
Spotted by
Pattaya
Rag
See
full article
from
The Inquirer
|
The
launch of Daily Xpress, Thailand's first ever free newspaper, to be
published in English with a compact form, will take place along with the
transformation of The Nation into a paper with a firm focus on in-depth
business and political coverage.
Daily Xpress will have an audited print run of 100,000 copies daily,
making it the largest-circulated English daily newspaper in Thailand.
Tulsathit Taptim will be editor of Daily Xpress. The Nation's managing
editor, Thanong Khanthong, will replace Tulsathit as editor of The
Nation, a founding member of Asia News Network.
The younger generation of sophisticated readers is a largely
unfulfilled or untapped market as far as English language media is
concerned. And we hope Daily Xpress, with a focus on lifestyle, human
interest news, talk of the town events, entertainment and fun, will help
serve their needs for a new kind of media, said Tulsathit.
He said Daily Xpress also aims to promote the concept of citizen
journalism and readers' interaction by publishing reader-generated
content.
The Nation readers, starting on March 5, will get a double package of
news - in broadsheet and compact forms. With Daily Xpress also delivered
to present and future Nation subscribers, it means Nation readers are
treated to 72 pages of in-depth news, analyses and trendy lifestyle and
entertainment reports on most days.
The Nation broadsheet will have more focus on business and political
information and we are moving to easier-to-use design and navigation of
news items and features. It will be published from Monday through
Saturday. Daily Xpress with expanded content and features will continue
to be delivered to Nation subscribers on Sunday.
|
| 1st March |
Caps Off... |
|
| |
Baht exchange rate soars as exchange controls lifted
Permalink |
From the Bangkok Post
|
The
Bank of Thailand announced on Friday it was reversing course and will
lift the 30% capital controls effective on Monday. The baht exchange
rate immediately leapt nearly 2% to 31.45 per dollar, the highest in
nearly 11 years.
The central bank decided to lift the capital controls because of the
improving economic situation, said central bank governor Tarisa
Watanagase.
The controls were imposed during the Surayud Chulanont administration in
an attempt to control the appreciation of the baht against the dollar.
They require that 30% of all incoming investments to be held by
financial institutions for up to one year.
Tarisa had fought the government on lifting the capital controls. The
BoT has predicted the baht will rise in value against the US dollar when
the controls are gone. The baht has already gained 7.4% this year, the
most of any of the top-10 currencies in Asia outside of Japan.
Mrs Tarisa said one effect of lifting the controls would be a merging of
the local, largely artificial exchange rate with the so-called offshore
rate found outside the country - which was 29.7 baht per dollar on
Friday.
|
| 28th February |
Back, Arrested and Bailed... |
|
| |
Thaksin has returned to Thailand
Permalink |
See
full article
from
Google News
|
Deposed
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra returned from 17 months in exile
to face corruption charges, receiving a hero's welcome from supporters
and vowing to restore his reputation following his ouster in a coup.
But Thai authorities rapidly detained the 58-year-old billionaire
politician and took him to a court appearance. There he was ordered to
post $267,000 in bail pending a hearing on March 12, said court
secretary Rakkiat Pattanapong.
Thousands of supporters — many dancing, beating drums and singing —
gathered at Suvarnabhumi International Airport for his arrival aboard a
Thai Airways flight from Hong Kong.
He had expected to face arrest after arriving on charges of graft and
abuse of power during his 2001-2006 time in office.
His return was seen as a test of the country's political stability, with
critics warning that the populist billionaire's homecoming could plunge
the country into renewed crisis.
Thaksin had tears in his eyes as he emerged to faced supporters. He
knelt and touched the ground with his forehead, hands clasped together
in the Thai greeting.
After posting bail, Thaksin proceeded to the Attorney General's Office
where he paid $33,530 in bail on another set of charges. In that case,
he and his wife are accused of concealing assets, said the office's
spokesman Thanatip Moonpruk.
Thaksin has said he is innocent of the charges against him, alleging
that they were politically motivated. A hearing on whether Thaksin would
be indicted was set for April 3.
Just hours after arriving, Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee said
that government would consult Thaksin, who is legally banned from all
political activity for five years, for economic advice. We can't
appoint him to any official position, but we'll ask him for advice on
the economy, Surapong told reporters.
|
| 27th February |
City Financial News... |
|
| |
Thaksin seeks to reclaim his transfer market kitty
Permalink |
...Oh and there are concerns that bigwigs will object to the return of
Thaksin and set in motion some serious opposition to the government
See
full article
from the
Times
|
Thaksin
Shinawatra, the Manchester City chairman, is expected to be arrested
when he returns to Thailand tomorrow after a 17-month exile, but, if
that news is likely to alarm the club and their supporters, he has moved
to assure City that he expects the process to allow him to clear his
name and to reclaim £800 million of frozen assets, some of which will go
to Sven-Göran Eriksson’s transfer kitty.
Thaksin, the former Prime Minister of Thailand, is due on a flight from
Hong Kong to Bangkok this evening for his first visit to his homeland
since he was overthrown from government in a bloodless coup in September
2006. He has told confidants that he expects to be arrested on
corruption charges relating to his time in power, but that he believes
that he will be bailed immediately, allowing him to start the
negotiation process with the ruling People’s Power Party, which is
regarded in some quarters as a proxy for Thaksin while he is barred from
political office.
With fears in Bangkok that his return might spark riots, such are the
conflicting emotions he arouses in his countrymen, sources in Thailand
have suggested that the process might not be quite so straightforward as
Thaksin has been led to believe. But the 58-year-old has assured his
colleagues in Manchester that his return to Bangkok will bring benefits
to City, who were unable to invest as much money as Eriksson hoped in
the January transfer window due to the fact that Thaksin’s assets were
frozen. The chairman and owner has assured the club that some of those
funds will be given to Eriksson to strengthen his squad in the summer.
|
| 25th February |
Popularist TV... |
|
| |
Government promises free sports TV channel
Permalink |
From the Bangkok Post
|
The
Thai government have announced plans to launch a 24-hour, free-to-air
sports television channel within the next six months.
PM's Office Minister Jakrapob Penkair revealed the project after a
meeting with Tourism and Sports Minister Veerasak Kowsurat yesterday.
'The government has broadcasting frequencies ready to facilitate this
new channel, Jakrapob said.
The channel would eventually fund most of its running costs through
advertising revenues so that it could be less dependent on the state.
|
| 23rd February |
Samak Revives Thaksin's Drugs Policy... |
|
| |
Making a killing in the opinion polls
Permalink |
See
full article
from the BBC
|
Thai
Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej is planning to revive a controversial
anti-drugs campaign which reportedly killed 2,500 people.
Samak, elected in December polls, promised a decisive, and quite
possibly bloody campaign against drug dealers.
He said he would use the same ruthless tactics as his political patron
and predecessor, Thaksin Shinawatra.
I will not set a target for how many people should die, said
Samak: We will pursue a suppression campaign rigorously. There will
be consequences.
While Thaksin's 2003-2004 campaign enjoyed popular support and did,
briefly, curb Thailand's rising drug problem, it resulted in some 2,500
deaths.
Human rights groups accused police of extra-judicial killings, saying
many of the dead were later proved to have been innocent.
On Wednesday, Thai Interior Minister Chalerm Yubamrung said the new
campaign would go ahead, even if thousands had to die: When we
implement a policy that may bring 3,000 to 4,000 bodies, we will do it,
said Chalerm, himself a former police captain.
The target of the new drugs crackdown is the illegal methamphetamines
industry. Many of the drugs are made in neighbouring Burma, and smuggled
into Thailand and beyond.
|
| 22nd February |
Legally Dry for Buddha... |
|
| |
Deputy Prime Minister suggests law against drink on Buddhist holidays
Permalink |
Although alcohol is already banned on Buddhist special days it is
actually voluntary (on the pain of serious hassle from the authorities
for bars that don't comply)From the Bangkok Post
|
All
sales of alcohol should be banned on religious holidays, according to
Deputy Prime Minister Surapong Suebwonglee. Surapong, also finance
minister, came up with the proposal during merit-making to mark Makha
Bucha Day.
To mark the Buddhist religious holiday, the temple and Thai Health
Promotion Foundation held a campaign to keep temples free from alcohol.
Backing the campaign, Surapong said he would seek an amendment to the
Alcohol Control Act to prohibit sales of alcohol on Buddhist holidays.
Surapong said the ban would complement existing measures to curb alcohol
consumption.
The Alcohol Control Act currently bans alcohol from areas near religious
sites, state offices, educational institutions, registered dormitories,
petrol stations and public parks.
|
| 20th February |
Dengue Fever... |
|
| |
Empty open water containers
Permalink |
See
full article from
International Herald Tribune
|
Dengue
fever has sickened more than 2,800 people and killed four in Thailand
this year, sparking worries about a possible wider outbreak despite
efforts to control the disease, the health ministry have said.
A total of 2,824 cases of the mosquito-borne illness were detected in
Thailand from Jan 1-Feb 9, compared to 1,702 cases with no fatalities
reported during the same period in 2007, the ministry said in a
statement.
Countries across Southeast Asia experienced the worst outbreaks of
dengue fever in years in 2007, with Thailand reporting about 60,000
cases and 29 fatalities. Large outbreaks also occurred in Indonesia,
Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia.
The dengue virus causes severe joint pain, high fever, nausea and a
rash. In the worst cases it can lead to internal bleeding, liver
enlargement, circulatory shutdown and sometimes death. There is no known
cure or vaccine.
Scientists fear rising temperatures and longer rainy seasons — like
Thailand experienced last year — will allow more mosquito-borne diseases
such as dengue and malaria to flourish.
The mosquitoes that carry the dengue virus have also been able to
adapt to climate change, becoming more resistant to dry weather and
breeding faster, ministry official Praj Boonyarowong said in the
statement.
The ministry advised people to protect themselves from mosquitoes by
ridding their homes and surroundings of flower pots, old tires and
discarded bottles or cans where stagnant water can collect and allow the
insects to breed.
|
| 7th February |
Valentine's Day Nonsense... |
|
| |
Thailand's silly season
Permalink |
From the Bangkok Post
|
The
Ayutthaya council yesterday called for strict monitoring of love nests
for underage couples on Valentine's Day. They range from love motels to
internet cafes. Council chair Jiraphan Pimpan voiced concerns that
several love motels have cropped up around the city and that all
outbound highways in every direction lead to such motels.
She urged police and related agencies to step up checks at motels which
the council has found to have allowed minors, who usually arrived on
motorcycles. Motel operators should make sure that their customers are
not minors by requesting their identity cards at check-in, she said.
The council's survey also identified six locations that young couples
chose for promiscuous behaviour or even premature sex. They include
three public parks. Teens were found to have got carried away in the
provincial sports stadium, particularly the area on the back of a
basketball field. Other locations include karaoke rooms, internet cafes
and isolated corners in department stores.
Authorities should strictly monitor and prevent premature sex in
these locations throughout the year, she said. The sale of
condoms at grocery stores also encourages sex among youngsters.
Media hype surrounding Valentine's Day had encouraged teens to skip
classes to engage in sexual activity, she said
|
| 7th February |
Tie Rack Thai Cabinet... |
|
| |
Samak announces his cabinet ministers
Permalink |
See
full article
from the
BBC
|
Thailand's
king has sworn in a new cabinet packed with allies of Thaksin Shinawatra.
The powerful defence, interior, foreign affairs and finance portfolios
were all given to lawmakers loyal to the former prime minister.
New PM Samak Sundaravej took on defence while Noppadon Pattama,
Thaksin's legal adviser, became foreign minister.
Samak becomes only the third civilian to hold the position of defence
minister. The prime minister said earlier he wanted the role in order to
facilitate communication with military leaders who had led the coup.
Party Secretary-General Surapong Suebwonglee, a medical doctor, was
given the finance ministry, while deputy party leader Chalerm Yoobamrung
took on the interior portfolio.
Thaksin's brother-in-law, Somchai Wongawat, was named education
minister.
The BBC's Jonathan Head, in Bangkok, says that no-one in Thailand is
under any illusions that this is a cabinet of the best and the
brightest, with even Samak admitting that the image of the government is
a little ugly.
Posts appear to have been distributed either on the basis of rewarding
smaller parties for joining the coalition, or loyalty to Thaksin, who is
assumed to be the PPP's main financier.
No-one is sure how far the cabinet will be directed by Thaksin, our
correspondent adds. Although chosen by Thaksin to lead the PPP, Samak is
a forceful personality who may fight to get his own way as prime
minister.
|
| 6th February |
Propaganda... |
|
| |
Thailand to edit Wiki to provide more favourable articles
Permalink |
I will surely look forward to Pattaya being beautified and cleared of
all the criminality, at least in the Wiki world. Perhaps I will also get
a few more favourable bar reviews from anonymous sourcesFrom the Bangkok Post
|
The
Tourism Authority of Thailand has begun a new online campaign that
includes a plan to improve the "accuracy" of information in the
hundreds of articles about Thailand on Wikipedia, the popular online
encyclopaedia.
The project, with more targeted e-marketing, is expected to help travel
suppliers increase their revenue and also create a better reputation for
Thai tourism among travellers worldwide, according to Thapanee
Kiatphaibool, assistant director of marketing information technology for
the state agency.
|
| 1st February |
No more trips to Penang for Tourist Visas... |
|
| |
Tourist Visas being screwed down
Permalink |
From Thai Visa
|
The
Royal Thai Consulate in Penang is expected to impose stricter
rules regarding the issuing of Tourist Visas.
Thaivisa.com have been advised that the Royal Thai
Consulate-General in Penang as from February 1 2008, will only
issue Tourist Visas to those in possession of an air ticket
departing from Thailand to an international destination not
local in the same region. (i.e. not Vietnam, Malaysia or
similar.)
It is believed that the reason for the tightening of the rules
is to reduce the number of foreigners using tourist visas to
stay long term in Thailand, and not for tourism purposes for
which this visa is intended, therefore abusing the system.
Our source is from a reliable person, who normally provides us
with accurate information, and we have no reason to doubt the
accuracy of this information.
The new ticket rule is not officially confirmed as yet but faxes
have been sent to visa agents, stating that from tomorrow Feb.
1, everyone applying for a tourist visa should have an air
ticket out of Thailand and the region, to their home country.
|
| 30th January |
UN Stick their Necks Out... |
|
| |
Suggesting that long-necked tribes are being held against their will
Permalink |
From the BBC see
full article
|
For
years the prospect of visiting one of three "long-necked" Kayan villages
in this remote corner of north-western Thailand, close to the Burmese
border, has been a major lure for foreign tourists.
In return, the visitors have helped to provide a very modest income for
the Kayan women and their families, who are all refugees from Burma.
But in a dramatic intervention, the United Nations is now talking of the
need for a tourism boycott, amid allegations that the Kayan are being
trapped in a "human zoo".
The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) says that for the past two
years, the Thai authorities have refused to allow a group of 20 Kayan to
leave the country, despite firm offers to resettle them in Finland and
New Zealand.
The suspicion is that the women are being kept in Thailand because of
the central role they play in the local tourism industry.
We don't understand why these 20 are not allowed to start new lives,
said the UNHCR's regional spokeswoman, Kitty McKinsey. The Thai
authorities are treating them in a special way, she argued, pointing
out that some 20,000 other Burmese refugees had recently been allowed to
move to third countries: It's absolutely a human zoo. One solution is
for tourists to stop going.
|
| 30th January |
Budweiser Fans Protest... |
|
| |
Buddhists whinge at beer name
Permalink |
From the Bangkok Post
|
Representatives
from the Isan Buddhism and Culture Promotion Network and several
other groups in Northeast Thailand called on the company to
change the name of the beer to avoid tarnishing the reputation
of northeastern people.
They said the name Isan Beer could lead to a
misunderstanding that northeastern people of Thailand, fondly
called Isan people, are obsessed with drinking alcohol.
Such a misunderstanding, they claimed, could be deep-rooted to
become a negative value for the younger generation and
detrimental to the society and culture of the region.
They submitted an open letter to Khon Kaen governor and Boon
Rawd Brewery executives to demand a change of the name. They
also asked the company to stop advertising its product in the
media as well as supporting cultural events in the province.
Should the company ignore their protest, they said, they would
gather signatures of one million protestors to further submit
their demand to the government.
|
| 29th January |
Head Chef... |
|
| |
Samak Sundaravej is selected as prime minister
Permalink |
From the
Guardian see
full article
|
Thailand's
new parliament yesterday chose an irascible, septuagenarian television
chef as prime minister.
Samak Sundaravej, 72, is a veteran political operator and self-confessed
frontman for Thaksin, the former prime minister who still lives in
self-imposed exile despite the turnaround in his political fortunes.
The prime minister-elect - who openly campaigned as a proxy for Thaksin
- will set about forming a cabinet after Thailand's King Bhumibol
Adulyadej formally endorses his election.
But within minutes of his selection Samak, a charismatic yet deeply
divisive figure, vowed his life would not change and went off to a
popular market to buy groceries.
He also said he planned to revive his weekly cooking show - Tasting,
Grumbling - about spicy Thai food. It went off air a week ago after
the army-appointed government took over its host station.
We still have three months of our new cooking show on tape, Samak
said, as he wandered the market. The constitution does not prohibit a
prime minister from doing TV shows.
The famously pugnacious politician now heads a six-party coalition led
by his People Power party (PPP) that easily knocked Thailand's oldest
party, the Democrats, into second place despite its ill-concealed
opposition to the royalist-military elite that staged the 2006 coup.
Samak correctly gambled that his close alliance to Thaksin, who has an
enduring appeal to Thailand's impoverished masses despite the corruption
allegations against him, would propel him into the top job.
Soon after Samak and the PPP won the election he said he would help
Thaksin clear his name. Thaksin said he is considering returning home in
May, although there are outstanding warrants for his arrest over a land
deal he made while in office in 2003. His wife Potjaman Shinawatra has
already appeared in court and is on bail.
Thaksin's comeback and Samak's abrasive style could stir up divisions in
Thailand once again, with political commentators predicting a bumpy ride
ahead for a government that many say will survive only months.
Samak, a rightwinger in several army-backed governments that arrested
and killed opponents, is himself fighting a two-year sentence for
defamation and is the subject of corruption allegations over the
purchase of fire trucks while he was Bangkok governor.
|
| 27th January |
Sued... |
|
| |
The Return of Not Stickman
Permalink |
From
NotStickmanBangkok see
full article
|
About
this time last year a self styled John Galt was laying into the noted
Bangkok internet commentator, Stickman.
The fracas died down a few months later but Keith Summers/NotStickman/John
Galt's website has sprung back to life with the news that he is being
sued for slander by a businessman named Clayton Wade.
|
| 20th January |
All vs Democrats... |
|
| |
Samak announces 6 party coalition
Permalink |
From the Bangkok Post
|
Samak
Sundaravej, leader of the People Power party which won the election on
Dec 23, on Saturday unveiled a six-party coalition to govern the country
- probably with himself as prime minister.
We can move ahead. This will be a strong, capable government,
Samak told a packed press conference.
The five parties joining the pro-Thaksin PPP in the first post-coup
civilian administration are Chart Thai, Puea Pandin, Matchimathipataya,
Ruam Jai Thai Chart Pattana and Pracharaj. That leaves only the Democrat
party in the Opposition.
Puea Paendin leader Suwit Khunkitti, asked about joining the coaliation,
said Somebody has to govern and the electoral system has chosen the
PPP. We are happy to join with them in doing our duty.
Parliament is to meet on Monday to begin work. A government is expected
to be announced next week.
The new government represents about 315 of the total of 480 elected MPs.
Samak said this is strong enough to make a stable government, which is
true so long as the coalition holds.
A popular Thai maxim is that there are no permanent friends and no
permanent enemies in politics.
It is not certain that Samak will be premier. The fiery former minister
and Bangkok governor has made political enemies over the years, and
speculation continued on Saturday that he may be sidelined in his quest
to be prime minister.
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