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Monday, December 24, 2007

2005 Election Theme

THailand

2005 Election theme

Vote first, pay later

Are they really afraid of EC?
Probably not. They all afraid they won't have enough MP to set up the government!!!

Saturday, December 15, 2007

Court's ruling on the PTT's privatisation

Thailand - Official translation of the Supreme Administrative Court's ruling on the PTT privatization case

Panel of judges of the Supreme Administrative Court made known today (December 14th, 2007) its ruling on the PTT privatization case which opposes the Foundation for Consumers to the Cabinet, the Prime minister, the Minister in charge of Energy and the PTT plc. The plaintiffs claimed that the PTT privatization procedure is unlawful as it didn't respect the formailities prescribed in the Law of 1999 on the State Entreprise Corporatisation. The Supreme Administrative Court has to consider whether the PTT privatization procedure was unlawful as alleged by the plaintiffs and whether the Royal Decree determining the powers, rights and assets of PTT plc and the Royal Decree transforming PTT as a State enterprise into a public company are lawful.

On the first question, the Supreme Administrative Court considers that there is no illegality in the privatization procedure because there is no conflict of interests of the two members of the Committee in charge of overseeing the privatization. The court also deems legal the public hearing process as the advertisement prior to it has been sufficiently made in the local presses which have large national coverage both in Thai and in English.

As for the legality of the Royal Decree determining the powers, rights and assets of PTT plc and the Royal Decree transforming PTT as a State enterprise into a public company, the court considers that the gas transmission pipelines system and the land attached to it as well as the right of way are public domain. The PTT as a state enterprise according to the Law of 1978 on the Petroleum Authority of Thailand could possess this public domain as well as state power necessary for its functioning. The PTT as a public company is not entitled to hold this public domain and cannot exercice state power . Consequently the Cabinet must transfer the public domain comprising of the gas transmission pipelines system and the land attached to it as well as the right of way to the Ministry of Finance and must not entitle to PTT plc to exercice state power. In neglecting to do so, article 4 paragraph 2 of the Royal Decree determining the powers, rights and assets of PTT plc is unlawful and should, by way of consequence, affect the legality of the Royal Decree transforming PTT as a State enterprise into a public company. Nontheless the court is of the opinion that annulling the Royal Decree transforming PTT as a State enterprise into a public company would entail a forced delisting of PTT plc from the Stock Exchange of Thailand and would cause a great jeopardy to the financial, social and security state of the country. And as this illegality can be corrected, the Court, therefore, rules that the Cabinet, the Prime minister, the Minister in charge of Energy and PTT plc must do what is necessary to transfer the public domain comprising of the gas transmission pipelines system and the land attached to it as well as the right of way to the Ministry of Finance . The Court also rejects the plaintiffs's request to annul the the Royal Decree determining the powers, rights and assets of PTT plc and the Royal Decree transforming PTT as a State enterprise into a public company.

Secretariat General of the Administrative Courts.

The Nation

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

VCD decision before poll

PPP sec-gen Surapong says party did not solicit for Thaksin's assistance

December 11, 2007

The Election Commission is expected to decide whether to hold the People Power Party (PPP) accountable for the controversial video CDs before the December 23 election, but PPP secretary-general Surapong Suebwonglee has tried to pin the blame on one of the 111 banned political executives.

"The mastermind behind the distribution of the recorded remarks of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is among the 111 and none of the PPP candidates are involved in the matter," Surapong said yesterday.

He admitted that Thaksin's remarks could be construed as an attempt to sway votes for PPP candidates, a duty reserved for party executives, but he claimed the PPP had no involvement in soliciting Thaksin's assistance.

"If anyone speaking in favour of the PPP is assumed to be doing the job of a party executive, then the PPP has tens of thousands of party executives," he said, dismissing the allegation about Thaksin's domination of PPP.

He also said the party would look into the allegation that three Hong Kong businessmen tried to smuggle Bt60 million in cash into the country. The funds were allegedly destined for the PPP campaigning.

EC member Sumeth Ubanisakorn said the investigation into the distribution of Thaksin's remarks should be completed in three to seven days - well before the casting of votes.

"The EC will have to complete the fact-finding probe before determining charges and the culprits involved," he said.

Sumeth said the facts would show if the PPP was involved. The central issue, he added, was whether the release of Thaksin's remarks was timed to influence the voting outcome and not when the comments were actually made.

PPP leader Samak Sundaravej argued earlier that the comments were recorded before the start of campaigning.

EC secretary-general Suthiphon Thaveechaigarn said the EC would debate two key issues today - whether Thaksin acted as if he was a PPP party executive, which would have violated his five-year ban, and whether PPP was linked to distribution of VCDs.

Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said he wanted to defeat People Power at the polling stations instead of seeing it dissolved because of campaign violations.

"The PPP should abide by the election law in order to allow the people to pass judgement on it," he said.

He said the race had boiled down to a choice between him and PPP leader Samak as the next prime minister. "Voters will have to decide whether they want me or Samak to steer the country's future."

The PPP had become a constant target to be picked on, he said, starting from classified documents showing a plot to undermine it to the VCDs. And he was concerned over what might happen in the 10 days before the ballot.

Junta secretary-general Winai Phattiyakul said he would leave it up to the EC to rule whether Thaksin tampered with the electoral process. "It is clear that Thaksin wants to grab publicity to sway the outcome," he said.

Puea Pandin Party leader Suwit Khunkitti urged judicial proceedings to be fast tracked for cases involving Thaksin in order to put an end to bickering by the former PM's opponents and supporters.

The Nation

Watchdog barks at election officials

The election office in this northeastern province has recommended the transfer of five government officials for political prejudice.

December 9, 2007

"The five are suspected of involvement in the intimidation of political canvassers and other violations of the campaign rules," provincial election-committee chairman Kasem Wattanatham said yesterday.

Their superiors will decide whether to launch disciplinary proceedings or reinstate them after the balloting, he said.

Provincial authorities are investigating eight complaints of vote-buying, he said. Law-enforcement officers are acting on a tip-off about irregular money movements in 20 locations ready to be paid out in exchange for votes.

Candidates and their ground operatives have devised new gimmicks to secure votes, he said. For example, some canvassers will give Bt20,000 to Bt30,000 to a grocer, and the villagers will pick up the pre-paid goods later.

In Chiang Rai, the 17 Northern Provinces Kamnan and Village Headmen Association issued a statement calling on its members to stop canvassing for votes.

Association chairman Inwan Bangngern said candidates were trying to recruit canvassers among public-health volunteers, village volunteers and the elderly to replace kamnan and village headmen.

Election Commissioner Sodsri Satayatham arrived in the province to launch an awareness campaign for absentee voting next weekend.

Commenting on the fierce vote-buying, Sodsri said the EC would tighten its monitoring in the final week of campaigning.

She said she had read the news reports about the intimidation of campaigners for the People Power Party but found that the PPP had made complaints only to attract publicity and had not asked the EC for action.

In Bangkok, EC chairman Apichart Sukhagganond rebuffed suspicions of half-baked efforts to suppress vote-buying, saying his agency was fighting money politics with all means available to it.

The Nation

Buri Ram

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Football on a political pitch

Reactions were mixed regarding the arrival of football manager Sven-Goran Eriksson and the signing of three young Thai players to the Manchester City Football Club.

November 17, 2007

My take: More details reported on Sven visit with views from Thai reporter.

On the one hand, many people were happy for the three athletes. It's a dream come true to play in one of the world's most watched leagues. For the fans here there has never been such an achievement by local players.

On the other hand, it's hard not to sense a "political atmosphere" when Thaksin Shinawatra's children accompany one of the world's top coaches on a conspicuous signing mission.

Eriksson's presence was by all means meant to send a message that "This is real!" The English football club has signed up Thai players Kiatprawut Saiwaeo, Teerasil Daengda and Suree Sukha. The timing couldn't be better: Manchester City now ranks third in the Premier League table.

Eriksson may or may not be aware that his visit was well scheduled - over a month before the general election and on the same day as the People Power Party's first major rally in Bangkok, where Thaksin's recorded speech was supposed to be broadcast to supporters. The plan was abruptly cancelled by the party.

Whether the Blues' move has political implications or not, yesterday was the day that Thaksin originally planned to deliver two speeches - to Thai football fans and to PPP's supporters.

It's hard for the public to tell sports from politics. Thaksin's image was seen during the PPP's campaign. Likewise, there was a cardboard model of him in a Blues jersey walking around the Conrad Hotel, where the press conference took place.

Sceptics question whether his trip and the signing are really necessary at this time. Under normal circumstances, such a historical move should have been celebrated with the presence of Thai ministers - at least from the Sports and Tourism Ministry - but attending the press conference were only Thailand's Football Association and the Chon Buri Football Club.

The press was also dubious about whether the club knew the Thai players well enough, as the video presentation at the press conference got the name of Kiatprawut as Kiatprapong. Some wondered whether Eriksson knew the three well enough to sign them.

During the conference, a member of the press asked Eriksson whether the signing was a direct order from the club's owner or Eriksson's decision. Surely it could mean the decision was due to more than football. However, he confirmed that the signing was his idea.

"We're a football team, and players are football-players. We never discuss politics," Eriksson said later in an interview aired on TITV.

Eriksson could have sensed from that kind of question that the local and international journalist crowd was signalling that it was not all about football.

Nevertheless, he appeared friendly and did the job of an ambassador of his club well. He was polite enough to slow down when someone wanted to take his photograph while he was walking.

At the nearly two-hour exclusive press luncheon, Eriksson spoke little. About 20 people were at the table, including members of the press, especially those covering English football, and Manchester City's management, including Panthongtae Shinawatra.

Pairoj Piampongsarn, a club board member sitting next to Eriksson, talked about the club's ambitions following Thaksin's goal to boost the profile of the club in Asian markets. The idea is that the Premiere League should adopt a give-and-take approach. The region is one of the biggest markets for the league, so it should provide a chance for Asian players to show their stuff in the league.

"The FA's [English Football Association's] regulation is rather strict and not so open to foreign players. I've met them and expressed my thoughts," Pairoj said.

Pairoj also told the press that they were all welcome to watch the matches in England. "We have about 40 seats for each game."

Thaksin's daughters Pinthongta and Paethongtarn walked around the table after the Thai lunch and handed a Manchester City jersey to each guest as a souvenir. Markers were prepared as the Man City manager got ready to autograph the team's shirts for guests.

Eriksson became busy again as he signed shirts and posed with guests. There was no sign of unwillingness, and the luncheon ended almost one hour earlier than scheduled at 3pm, as the manager had to go to another TV interview.

The manager excused himself and bid farewell to all the guests. The Swedish coach's job was nearly finished, and he was scheduled to fly home yesterday evening.

Without a doubt his visit boosted the profile of Manchester City and fanned the hopes of this football-crazy nation. By the time he arrives back in England, Eriksson will surely realise that there is a very blurred line between politics and soccer in the case of Manchester City. Strange as it seems, his club's chairman Thaksin probably doesn't mind keeping it that way.

Veena Thoopkrajae

The Nation

City Sign Thai Trio

My take: Why now? The election in Thailand is near. Thaksin needs his nominee party PPP to win so it's time to make some good news and win the votes from football-lovers all over the country. He will be on the news on TV, newspapers, and sport newspaper for this. Yes, it's free. This is what he's so good about, be the news and get publicity (for free).

--Manchester City have officially signed three Thailand internationals – Suree Sukha, Kiatprawut Saiwaew and Teerasil Dangda.

City boss Sven Goran Eriksson unveiled the trio at a press conference in Bangkok on Friday.

The high-flying Premier League club have been active in Asia during the international break and have already offered three players from Chinese Super League outfit Shanghai Shenhua a trial in England.

"Before Dr. Thaksin (Shinawatra) became the club's chairman, we wanted to acquire so many players from different countries but we didn't have the money," Eriksson told a throng of reporters.

"Now with Dr Thaksin's support, we can together work to achieve his dream of developing football in Asia and especially in Thailand, and also to make Manchester City a global brand."

Right-back Suree was one of the most impressive players at the recent Asian Cup and, like centre-back Kiatprawut, plied his trade for Thailand league leaders Chonburi. Teerasil joins from second division outfit Muang Thong Jok United.

Due to work permit issues, the trio are likely to be farmed out to clubs in Belgium or elsewhere for the foreseeable future.

http://goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=483293

Friday, November 2, 2007

Long Live the King of Siam

Long Live King of Siam by Kelly Newton

Download: http://rapidshare.com/files/65791324/Long_Live_King_of_Siam.mp3


The King of Siam
=================================

Ever since I saw the face of this man
The king of Thailand, The king of Siam
I felt in love with his soul loves this land

It's in his eye, it's in his heart, it's in his hand
He is the husband, the father and the king
A great photographer , musician so many things
The way he lives his life is something to be hold
His grace, his wisdom , an example to the world
Long live the king of Thailand
Long live the king of Siam
And in the time when the rain came flooding down
He saved the city with a building of the dam
In time of conflicts, he has always been there
To stop the fighting just like the father who really cares
Long live the king of Thailand
Long live the king of Siam
I'm watching wonder at the things he understands
His love for his people, his love for this land
His working a great culture, he is one of a kind

His vision for the future way ahead of their time
Long live the king of Thailand
Long live the king of Siam


Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Thailand: Martial law lifted in 221 districts ahead of election

Martial law lifted in 221 districts

The Cabinet Tuesday ordered the lifting of martial law in 221 districts and decided to maintain the martial law in 179 districts.

The Nation

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Buddhists mourn revered monk

Luang Phor Panya achieved fame for teaching a pure faith

The death of 96-year-old Luang Phor Panya Nantha Bhikku, one of the foremost monks and spiritual leaders, has left a big vacuum in Thai Buddhism.

Luang Phor Panya was considered a towering figure in Buddhism because he, like his mentor the late Than Buddhadas Bhikku, strictly followed the teaching of Lord Buddha in its original form, without any embellishments. He adhered to Buddhism in its purest form and went about to propagate Buddhism, at home and abroad, in the most practical sense.

His wisdom grew out of his association with Than Buddhadas of Wat Suan Mokkhapalaram in Chaiya, Surat Thani. Than Buddhadas recommended that he thoroughly study Pali, the language that Lord Buddha used to give his sermons, so he could read the original version of the "Tripaka", which represents a compilation of the Buddha's teaching in his own words.

He served as abbot of Wat Cholprathan Rangsarit in Pakkred, Nonthaburi, for 20 years until his death yesterday. Before he had served at Wat U-mong in Chiang Mai for 38 years. Under his guidance, Wat Cholprathan Rangsarit has become a source of spiritual inspiration and learning for millions of Thais, who like his hard-hitting and easy-to-understand style of preaching.

As Thai monks are the spiritual or opinion leaders in society, politicians flock to them to get support and, by association, hope to win votes from the people.

The Democrats, particular Sanan Khachornprasat as well as Chuan Leekpai, have found a sanctuary at Wat Cholprathan Rangsarit.

Wat Thammakai of Thamma Chaiyo in Pathum Thani has become a political base for the now-defunct Thai Rak Thai.

Lung Phor Khoon of Wat Ban Rai in Nakhon Ratchasima is the rendezvous for the Northeastern politicians, who come to let him knock on their heads as a blessing. Luangta Mahabua of Wat Pa Ban Tad in Udon Thani has also earned respect from the Northeastern politicians, as well as media tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul.

All of these opinion-leader monks are in their eighties, while the Supreme Patriarch is in his early nineties.

Luang Phor Panya's last wish was that he would like to live until 100 so that he could witness the completion of a temple built in the middle of a pond in Wang Noi, Ayutthaya, which would serve as a religious centre for the propagation of Buddhism.

Luang Phor Panya was a monk of real action, relying on his sermons to win over the hearts of millions of Thais. He never produced amulets or got involved in any business-like activities to raise money for his temples. The money he got came solely from those who had faith in him and in his teaching.

He was the first monk to mingle with his people by standing in front of them and preach the language and content that they could understand and apply immediately to their daily lives. Traditionally, Thai monks sit in an elevated chair, hold a long leaf with the Buddha's teaching written onto it and preach to their followers.

The most frequently asked question posed to him was: "Where will we go after we die?" Luang Phor Panya would reply tersely: "You go to the graveyard after your death." His followers would laugh.

But he explained: "We should not pay attention to where we go after our death. We only need to pay more attention to how good we are at the present moment. If we do good deeds now, we will be better off after our death."

He was not afraid to speak against the authorities or his fellow monks if he felt that they were wrong. On one occasion, he criticised some monks who did nothing but eat and sleep. "They eat in the morning and then go to sleep. Then they eat before noon and then go back to sleep again," he said.

His comment caused a stir in the hierarchy of Thai monks, most of whom were more interested in pursuing worldly gains than spiritual enlightenment.

Reporters liked to flock to his temple to get his opinions on the political situation. He criticised corruption among politicians. Some generals, who entered politics, got mad at him and tried to censor his comments on air. But they could not touch him because he spoke live on air without any prepared script.

Luang Phor Panya began his brilliant career as a monk in Nakhon Si Thammarat.

Behind the railway station in Nakhon Si Thammarat, he stood on a beach and preached to the common people. What he aimed to do was to remove the misunderstanding about Buddhism among the common people, most of whom were preoccupied with the issues of life after death, Heaven and Hell.

He, along with 40 other monks, pioneered a programme to propagate Buddhism abroad. He was accompanied by Phra Lokanart, an Italian who became a Buddhist monk in Thailand, on the foreign trips to conduct sermons and attended seminars.

In 1949, he moved up north to stay in Chiang Mai. He was asked by Than Buddhadhas and Chao Chuen Siroros to help revive Buddhism in Chiang Mai and served at Wat U-mong, near Doi Suthep and Chiang Mai University.

His fame began to spread quickly until he was well-known throughout the North. He was known as a Dharma Warrior, who was bold to combat ignorance and other wrong beliefs in religious matters among the Thais.

It was not until 1987 that he moved down to Nonthaburi at the invitation of ML Chuchart Kamphu, the director-general of the Irrigation Department, to establish the Wat Cholprathan Rangsarit.

Lung Phor Panya's death has made it very difficult for other monks to follow suit to keep Thai Buddhism vibrant.

An era has ended.

The Nation

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Myanmar not Burma

Myanmar not Burma

The fact is they changed the country name for some time now and they prefer to be called as Myanmar. Give them some respect and use the right name despite the situation right now. More on Myanmar soon...

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Malaysia may be asked to arrest Surin of Kularb Kaew

Criminal Court on Tuesday issued an arrest warrant for Surin Upatkoon who has been accused of acting as nominee for foreign companies through his stockholdings in Kularb Kaew Co, Ltd.



Police told the court that Surin failed three times to appear before police to hear the charges.

Kularb Kaew is one of the companies used by Temasek Holdings of Singapore to acquire Shin Corp from the Shinawatra family.

Surin's lawyer on Monday presented a medical report from a Malaysian hospital to the police, asking for delaying the hearing.

The report shows that Surin suffered from an irregular heartbeat, making it impossible for him to appear before the police to hear the criminal charges against him.

However police said the report is not credible because it is not accompanied by a notarisation from any Thai agency such as a Thai embassy or Thai Consul.

Police believed that Surin only wanted to buy time and escape from having to face the charges.

Chief Investigator Pol Maj Gen Wisut Wanitbutr, anti-economic crime department, said if Surin failed to surrender, he will ask Malaysia to arrest and extradite him.

"Thailand and Malaysia have signed extradition treaty, so we are eligible to ask Malaysia to arrest and extradite him.

The Nation

Monday, September 24, 2007

One reason Thailand is not and was not a democratic country

Wikipedia describes democracy as "a small number of related forms of government. The fundamental features of democracies include government based on majority rule and the consent of the governed, the existence of free and fair elections, the protection of political minorities, respect for basic human rights, equality before the law, due process, and political pluralism"

If I follow this description, Thailand might not even have a real "democracy" or have been a democratic country at all!! On a ground of free and fair election alone, could you consider votes come from voters that accept money from politician(s) to vote a free and fair election? For me, HELL NO!!

If you're still confused, let me tell you, Thai politicians buy vote. This has happened for so many elections in the past despite how good the constitution is. This has happened in EVERY part of Thailand but pin point to the rural area. So when politician claims "he protects democracy", it's never happened. Because how they've become senators, ministers or even prime minister was not democratic and there was no democracy for him to protect in the first place.

Buying vote will not disappear from Thailand any time soon as long as Thai people prioritized money before their rights. Accepting money to vote has become a custom to many Thais. There's a say "no money no vote" to describe this behavior of rural voters.

Elected government didn't come from true people. Therefore, they didn't do everything for the people. When the governments didn't do the good for the people but for their own sake, elected or dictated feel much the same.

So next time you hear we are democratic country, think hard and long.

By the way, many articles on the web don't recommend Wikipedia site as a good source for research.

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Friday, September 21, 2007

Bloodless Coup: 1 Year ago

A year ago, a successful bloodless coup had been carrying out-- among the confusion whose side did they do it for. When the dust settled, people set out to celebrate the unusual event. Flowers for the soldiers could be seen where ever they were. Flowers were most from the people who couldn't bear over-the-limit corruption of Thaksin's government.

Most Thais get used to pay bribe for a little convenience, buy driver license, tip the cop when they get traffic ticket, pay school to get their children in, bribe authorities to get construction permit faster and pay a little more to have it build more then the laws allow, cop set up a system to get bribe money (under-table money - in Thai) from business to have their trucks carry over-the-limit weight of goods on the hi-way and so on with almost everything in their life that deal with authorities.

So when Thai people couldn't take full-of-corruption government any more, that really means something.

Until today, the junta and the government have fought tirelessly (I guess) with the old power that try everything they could to get back to power. To get back to power means they could erase everything the junta appointed government has been doing and has done, including all the investigations and probes and blame it on "undemocratic way".

Interestingly, the junta is also afraid of the old power will get back at them (check bill - in Thai) once they regain the power. What could tons of money and power will buy them unfortunated events when they make a revenge? One could imagine. It would be so bad not only to individual in junta team but also to generations in their family.

In one year, you can see how Thaksin were so good in using the media to his advantage telling his one-side story (always a good side). You can see how good is his staff in doing their jobs in any media available. You can go to wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org) reading on Thaksin article and see how it's been done. Not only in Thaksin topic but also related topic such as "efficiency economy", all are so biased.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Beloved Phuket

Dead pilot "loved Phuket view from above"

Captain Arif Mulyadi once told his son that of all the places he had flown, Phuket had the worst weather. But it also had the most beautiful scenery from above.



The retired lieutenant colonel was among the 88 people who died on Sunday in a plane crash on the Thai resort island of Phuket.

"Father promised to come home to see his grandsons on Sept 28," Arif's oldest son, Agung, told news portal detik.com on Monday.

He is returning home 10 days early, but not for the joyous family reunion that had been anticipated.

Arif's body arrived from Thailand yesterday morning (TUES) at SoekarnoHatta International Airport. He was buried at Pondok Ranggon public cemetery, southeast of Jakarta, yesterday.

He is survived by wife Lief Farikha; three children, Agung Bayu Hanggono, 29, Windi Hapsari Catu Pratiwi, 27, and Dimas Bayu Prakoso, 25; and two grandsons.

Arif was piloting the McDonell Douglas MD82 that crashed Sunday. The plane, operated by Thai budget airline OneTwoGo, broke into two and burst into flames on landing, killing 88 people and injuring 42 others.

Chairman of OneTwoGo, Udom Tantiprasongchai, told reporters in Bangkok that the pilot was "an experienced foreigner".

Arif, who graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1974, retired from the Air Force two years ago after serving for more than 30 years.

He piloted jet fighters for several years before flying transportation planes, according to soninlaw Lt Col (ret) Munir Umar. He finished his service as an instructor at the Air Force Academy.

"He started his pilot career outside the Air Force long before he retired. To my knowledge, he once worked for Star Air and Sempati, among others," Umar told reporters at Arif's home at the Halim Perdana Kusumah Air Force housing complex in East Jakarta.

Arif's wife was in Thailand on Monday to identify her husband's remains and accompany the body back to Indonesia.

Arif worked for OneTwoGo for several years. His wife joined him in Thailand, where the couple lived, while their children remained in Jakarta.

"Ibu (Arief's wife) just returned home two weeks ago. It was a routine visit, visiting her children and grandsons," Umar said. "Now she is returning here for a different reason."

The Nation by the Jakarta Post/Asia News Network

Monday, September 17, 2007

MD 82 Crashes History

There are total of MD 82 (McDonald Douglas) 18 crahses from 1981 up to Phuket crash today.

http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/aircraft_detail.cgi?aircraft=McDonnell+Douglas+MD-8

89 Killed - updated September 19, 2007

88 killed in Thai plane crash

A passenger jet crashed Sunday at Phuket International Airport in southern Thailand shortly after landing, killing 88 of the 130 people on board, according to Health Ministry officials.

Passengers and crew -- including dozens of European tourists --scrambled for the One-Two-GO plane's emergency exits, trying to escape as flames spread through the aircraft, witnesses said.

The Thai News Agency reported the aircraft that crashed was a U.S.-made McDonnell-Douglas 82.

The National Transportation Safety Board will assist the Thai government in the investigation, according to a statement on the NTSB's Web site.

Both the NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration usually deploy investigators to crash sites involving U.S.-made aircraft.

Erik Nihlen, a Swedish tourist who helped open an emergency exit door, told his mother that he and other passengers had feared the aircraft might crash as strong winds buffeted the plane during its second landing attempt.

"When they were up in the air, they thought something was not right," Maria Nihlen said. "Before the second [landing attempt], they knew that they were going to crash and they formed into position for an emergency landing and, well, then it happened."

She said her son -- who suffered only bruises -- was stuck in his seat belt as passengers climbed over him to get to the exit door, which was still closed.

"People were falling over him ... and then the shelf fell over him from above," she said. "But he and his friend managed to actually push hard away the people to be able to open the emergency exit door."

Many of the 43 survivors climbed out of an exit door onto the wing. John Gerard O'Donnell, an Irishman who spoke to the news media from his hospital bed, said that's how he escaped.

"I just can't get my head around what happened," said O'Donnell, whose face and arms were bandaged. "As the plane was landing, you could tell it was in trouble 'cause it kind of landed and came up again. Then the second time, it just smashed."

He said the exit door was "kind of crushed, but we got to squeeze through and onto the wing."

"My friend was outside, I seen him, he got out before me, and next thing it really caught fire then," O'Donnell said. "I just got badly burnt -- my face, my legs, my arms."

He said he had arrived Saturday in Bangkok and intended to spend the week in Phuket with his friend, who underwent surgery for his injuries.

William Harding, who witnessed the crash from another One-Two-GO aircraft that had landed just five minutes before, said he saw flames engulf the plane.

"After about five minutes of burning, there was a small explosion that blew off the top of the plane," he said. "My friend [who also witnessed the crash] ... was saying that in that flight, some of the crew jumped at the last minute and the plane kind of burst into flames."

The aircraft, operated by Thai low-cost carrier One-Two-GO, crashed shortly after landing. The passenger jet skidded off the runway during a landing attempt amid heavy rain and strong crosswinds, according to Thai News Agency, Thailand's national news agency. The aircraft burst into flames shortly after impact, an eyewitness said.

A spokesman for the airline said Flight OG269 left Bangkok at approximately 2:30 p.m. local time and was scheduled to land in Phuket at approximately 3:50 p.m.

He said the plane was carrying 123 passengers and seven crew members.

The island of Phuket is a popular resort destination for international and local tourists.

Video showed dozens of ambulances and fire trucks on the scene, which was enveloped in black smoke.

Two hospitals treating survivors detailed their nationalities as: Australian: 1, Austrian: 1, British: 8, Dutch:1, German: 4, Iranian: 3, Irish: 3, Italian: 1, Swedish: 2, Thai: 14.

Flights from Phuket International Airport were canceled after the crash, affecting four flights to Bangkok and Hong Kong and about 1,000 passengers, according to TNA (Thai News Agency).

The airport is the second-busiest in Thailand, according to the airport's Web site. It's about 32 kilometers from downtown Phuket.



Tragedy in Phuket

50 Foreigners among 88 killed in Phuket plane crash

Eighty-eight people, 50 of them foreigners, were killed when a budget commercial airliner crashlanded at Phuket Airport in bad weather conditions Sunday afternoon, officials said.

Forty-two people survived in the first local disaster for lowcost airline industry since its introduction a few years ago.

One Two Go Flight OG 269 lost balance while touching down and skidded off the runway. The MD82 plane slammed into trees and an earth embankment, exploding and breaking in two, witnesses and officials said.

Health Minister Mongkol Na Songkhla said 87 people died and 43 people survived. There were a total of 130 passenger and crew on the plane.

Of the 43 survivors, 15 are Thais and 28 foreigners.

The verification of identities of both the dead and injured were far from complete at press time.

Deputy Transport Minister Sansern Wongchaum earlier said that there were 78 foreigners on board. Tourists from Australia, Austria, Britain, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands were being treated at main provincial hospitals.

A surviving Thai passenger said the plane "landed hard" and "bounced" and then skidded off the runway. Air Transport Department chief Chiasak Angkauwan said, "the airplane requested to land but due to the weather in Phuket strong wind and heavy rain maybe the pilot did not see the runway clearly."

One survivor told of a fast drop in altitude by the airplane and sudden brief jerk upward. He said they plane then crashlanded and exploded. He saw several fellow passengers on fire.

It was not immediately clear if the pilot, who was reportedly killed, was attempting to pull the aircraft up in the last minute when it crashlanded. He had reportedly been allowed to circle the airport to wait for improvement in weather conditions.

An official at the Phuket Airport control tower, who asked not to be named, said the pilot had been told of bad weather conditions, especially very strong winds. Shortly before the illfated flight crashlanded, another lowcost airliner originating from Hong Kong had successfully touched down, he said.

Officials said victims could have died on impact, or from suffocation or fire resulting from explosions. According to an initial account, the plane's fuselage was torn open in the accident, some of the survivors were those thrown out through the opening.

Flight OG 269, approached the Phuket airport at about 3.40pm from Bangkok. Phuket had earlier been hit by heavy rains.

Eyewitnesses said the impact of the crash caused the plane to break in two and they heard loud explosions.

Rescue teams and navy personnel were involved in the rescue operation. Bodies were piled up in the smouldering wreckage. All flights in and out of the Phuket airport have been cancelled.

An Irish tourist, identifying himself only as "John", said he was on board the flight. He and his friend survived with bruises all over their bodies.

"We sat on the 18th row. The weather was real bad and there were lots of unusual noises during the landing. Something was obviously wrong [during the landing]," he said. He and his friend escaped through the emergency door.

Meanwhile Transportation Minister Thira Haochareon said Phuket International Airport was temporary closed after the crash. He said the body of the aircraft hit the runway and was on fire. The air traffic control source said the aircraft's right wing made contact with the runway at the initial stage of the accident.

MacDonnel Douglas MD82 has a passenger capacity of 175 seats, with flight ceiling of 37,000 feet and flight distance of 3,500 kilometres.

AFP reported that the accident was witnessed from the sky. It said Marine Keisel, from Paris, was aboard a plane behind the one that crashed and saw the accident happen.

"When the plane landed it caught fire," she told AFP at Phuket airport. "We could see the fire coming out of it. It was chaos inside my plane."

Authorities say they will not make any assumption regarding the cause of the tragedy until investigation is completed, although bad weather was obviously a problem at the airport over the weekend. An American pilot who landed just prior to the One Two Go plane reportedly told CNN that the landing was one of the toughest he had ever undertaken - indicating that the weather conditions were severe.

Like several other airlines, One Two Go has reportedly undergone manpower changes. The boss of One Two Go and Orient Thai budget airlines, Udom Tantisprongchai, is said to have replaced several of his Western and Thai pilots - allegedly to cut costs and reduce the chance of work disputes _ with crews with Indonesian and Philippine pilots.

However, authorities insisted it was too soon to presume anything, including whether human errors played a part in the tragedy.

Certain reports said the pilot was given permission to abort the landing in the final minutes.

Communications between the pilot and the air traffic controller and their judgements _ information contained in the black box could shed some light on the tragedy. Some aviation sources said an instruction or decision to land in Krabi could have been taken in extreme weather conditions.

Last night a swarm of media had descended on the office of One Two Go, near the intersection of Asoke and Sukhumvit. With the high death toll and the fact that it took place in the heart of Thailand's tourism industry, the issue of whether or not there were human errors involved could become hot up very soon, the aviation sources said.

The Nation, September 17, 2007

Friday, September 14, 2007

Quote of the day


Human knowledge belongs to the world

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

NBIA Flaws


NBIA or Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok

This picture shows King Power (who dominates all duty free commercial area in the airport and exceeds the square meter indicates in the contract) booth obstructs emergency exit. In an emergency, this could post serious problems if airport user couldn't see
the sign and the exit.










This is covered-way from parking structure to passenger building. This gap made the floor gets wet and slippery when it rains. Later, additional roof was built to close the gap.

Monday, September 10, 2007

Illegally Move?

Thaksin 'moved billions abroad'

AEC spokesman says funds were shifted shortly before, after coup


Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra transferred "a large amount of money" to his overseas bank accounts shortly before and after the military coup on September 19 last year, Assets Examination Committee secretary Kaewsan Atibodhi said yesterday after the panel's meeting on "a very big issue".

The total amount could be "at least Bt50 billion", according to an AEC source.

Kaewsan did not comment whether the money could be part of Thaksin's undeclared assets or whether it might be subject to AEC seizure.

The anti-graft panel has ordered a freeze on more than Bt60 billion in Thaksin family money earned from the sale of their shares in the telecom giant Shin Corp to Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

Thaksin has never said publicly whether he has monetary assets in overseas bank accounts.

Speaking after attending a five-hour meeting of AEC members yesterday, Kaewsan said Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont had been informed of the newly discovered transfers of money and had authorised the making public of the matter after another AEC meeting to further discuss the issue on Monday.

The transfers became known after Thaksin threatened to sue banks for allegedly freezing some of his money deposited with them, according to a Swiss newspaper.

A legal adviser for Thaksin Shinawatra, Noppadon Pattama, on Thursday backtracked on Thaksin's reported statement, saying that the article was inaccurate. He denied that Thaksin had told Swiss newspaper Mittelland Zeitung he would sue a Swiss bank for freezing his accounts and revealing a customer's confidential records.

Prime Minister Surayud, who was in Sydney, yesterday told Thai expatriates there that Thai people should not worry about a possible return of "the old power clique", referring to political groups loyal to his deposed predecessor.

"We have to be firm that good will eventually defeat evil. Not too long from now our justice procedures will show a clear picture that there was a massive policy of corruption," the PM was quoted as saying by the Thai News Agency.

He noted that concern was rising after the national referendum on the draft constitution, in which as many as 10 million people voted against it, many of them Thaksin's supporters in the North and Northeast.

The premier was talking to about 300 members of the Thai expatriate community during his visit to Wat Buddharangsee Buddhist temple in Sydney.

The premier told the Thai expats that his government was leading the country out of the political crisis and back to democracy. He said that despite obstacles he and his Cabinet were not disheartened in their attempts to solve the country's problems.

Earlier in the day, Surayud had a luncheon meeting with Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders attending their 15th summit in Australia.

During brief, casual discussion US President George W Bush expressed hope to Surayud that the Thai government would hold a clean and fair election as the country returned to democratic rule.

The prime minister gave assurances to the US president that the general election, tentatively scheduled for December 23, would be held in a fair and clean fashion, according to the TNA.

Surayud quoted Bush as saying that the US president had been kept informed about Thailand's political affairs and that he was aware the prime minister was committed to holding a general election this year.

The Nation - Sat, September 8, 2007


Thaksin Definitely Concealed Assets Aboard

Thaksin may have to face new charges

AEC said to have evidence ex-PM, wife illegally held shares in Shin Corp through nominee Winmark

The Assets Examination Committee will today decide whether to press charges against former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra of attaining unusual wealth and concealing assets.

The AEC subcommittee investigating allegations of irregularities and vested interest against the ex-PM, led by Klanarong Chantik, planned to suggest to the full meeting today that charges be filed against Thaksin for hiding his wealth, according to a source.

The accusation against Thaksin is that he violated the anti-graft law by failing to report to the National Counter Corruption Commission his shareholding in Shin Corp after becoming prime minister, the source said.

"The subcommittee has found that Thaksin and his wife Khunying Pojaman Shinawatra were still holding shares in Shin Corp after he assumed office," the source said.

The AEC would produce evidence to prove the claim and to show that it was not biased against Thaksin.

The source said its evidence would point out that Thaksin and Pojaman held the shares in question through nominees. "This has something to do with Winmark, a company registered in the British Virgins Islands," said the source, referring to Thaksin's offshore firm.

AEC secretary Kaewsan Atibodhi gave a hint last Friday that there would be big news about Thaksin this week.

According to another source, it was likely that the AEC would decide whether to order more of Thaksin's assets to be frozen, possibly as much as Bt50 billion, as its subcommittee found grounds to believe that the deposed premier was "unusually rich".

Meanwhile, Thaksin's legal adviser Noppadon Pattama yesterday urged the government not to waste taxpayers' money by trying to extradite him or freeze his assets abroad.

Noppadon insisted Thaksin did not have any assets hidden abroad, and in fact his only overseas asset was the Manchester City Football Club.

He had earlier denied that Thaksin had told Swiss newspaper Mittelland Zeitung he would sue a Swiss bank for freezing his accounts and revealing a customer's confidential records.

Noppadon was speaking at a press conference yesterday at which he also defended the Thaksin cabinet over its implementation of the two-and three-digit lottery scheme. He said the lottery was legitimate and revenues from the lottery were used with transparency.

The former premier's legal counsel also expressed confidence that the United Kingdom would not allow Thaksin to be extradited because the legal proceedings against him were against the rule of law.

"Thaksin is being politically harassed. What the public prosecutors are doing is just trying to discredit him on the international scene,'' he said.

In a related development, AEC spokesman Sak Korsaengruang said yesterday the panel would try to find a solution to the translation problem of the CTX scanner contract as the Foreign Ministry had yet to translate more than 1,400 pages of documents, citing a shortage of time and translators.

The AEC needed the contract as part of the evidence to incriminate Thaksin and his Cabinet over the alleged corruption in the scanner purchase.

Sak said AEC chairman Nam Yimyaem had already endorsed a request to Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont to order the Foreign Ministry to translate the documents. The AEC could not hire a private company to translate the highly confidential contract as it might be leaked to the public.

He said the AEC had the right to check the overseas assets of Thaksin.

The Nation - Mon, September 10, 2007

Thursday, September 6, 2007

ประชาธิปไตย กับ ไทยแลนด์

ไทยพร้อมสำหรับประชาธิปไตยแค่ไหน
อิรักล่ะ
จีน เป็นประชาธิปไตยหรือยัง

เมื่อปี 2475 เราพร้อมแล้วหรือ ประชาชนทุกคนเข้าใจในสิทธิ เสรีภาพ และประชาธิปไตยดีแล้วหรือ หรือสภาพเราตอนนั้น ถูกคนกลุ่มน้อยบังคับให้เป็นไป ให้ยอมรับโดยปริยายกับประชาธิปไตยแบบตะวันตก ที่อาจไม่เหมาะสมกับวิถีแบบไทยๆทั้งหมด

เหมือนกับที่แถบตะวันออกกลางถูกนักล่าอาณานิคมขีดเส้น แบ่งประเทศให้ โดยไม่สนใจว่าชนเผ่าต่างๆเคยอยู่กันมาอย่างไร จนผันเป็นความขัดแย้งตราบทุกวันนี้

อิรักสมัยซัดดัม ชนกลุ่มน้อยเป็นใหญ่ จึงอยู่มาได้ทั้งสองกลุ่ม อย่างสมดุล เมื่อถูกยัดเยียดประชาธิปไตยให้ในปัจจุบัน คนกลุ่มน้อยไม่อาจทัดคานคนกลุ่มใหญ่ได้ แล้วจะอยู่กันอย่างไร

ประเด็นจึงไม่ใชที่"่ประชาธิปไตย" แต่เป็นผู้เป็นใหญ่ หรือผู้นำ

หากมีคุณธรรม และความสามารถ ย่อมนำพาทุกคนในประเทศให้มีความสุข และก้าวไปพร้อมๆกันได้อย่างเท่าเทียม

ตราบใดที่ยังมีการซื้อสิทธิขายเสียง ประชาธิปไตยก็ไม่เคยเป็นประชาธิปไตยที่แท้จริง

Friday, August 31, 2007

Test picture upload from Picasa2

Test - uploading picture from picasa2

Posted by Picasa

Thursday, August 30, 2007

เศษเสี้ยวแห่งความคิด

blog นี้ ตั้งใจไว้ให้เป็นที่เก็บรวมเศษเสี้ยว ของความคิด ในช่วงเวลาแห่งชีวิต มิให้ตกหล่นหายไป เกี่ยวข้องกับทุกๆด้านของชีวิต สังคม การเมือง ชีวิต งานออกแบบ ดีไซน์ รูปภาพที่น่าสนใจ และอื่นๆ หวังว่าจะมีประโยชน์กับผู้ที่ผ่านมาพบเห็น และได้อ่าน อาจจะเขียนเป็นไทยบ้าง อังกฤษ บ้าง แล้วแต่ประสงค์ของโพสนั้นๆ

First day of the blog

This is the first post. Let's try on Thai language.

ไอสไตน์พูดว่า...



ในห้องเรียนวันหนึ่ง ไอสไตน์ถามนักเรียนว่า

' มีคนซ่อมปล่องไฟสองคน กําลังซ่อมปล่องไฟเก่า
พอพวกเขาออกมาจากปล่องไฟ ปรากฏว่า คนหนึ่ง
ตัวสะอาด อีกคนตัวเลอะเทอะ เต็มไปด้วยเขม่า
ขอถามหน่อยว่า คนไหนจะไปอาบน้ำก่อน '


นักเรียนคนหนึ่งตอบว่า
' ก็ต้องคนที่ตัวสกปรกเลอะเขม่าควันสิครับ '

ไอสไตน์ พูดว่า

' งั้นเหรอ คุณลองคิดดูให้ดีนะคนที่ตัวสะอาด เห็นอีกคนที่ตัวสกปรกเต็มไปด้วยเขม่าควันเขาก็ต้องคิดว่าตัวเองออกมาจากปล่องไฟเก่าเหมือนกัน ตัวเขาเองก็ต้องสกปรกเหมือนกันแน่ๆเลย ส่วนอีกคน เห็นฝ่ายตรงข้ามตัวสะอาด ก็ต้องคิดว่า ตัวเองก็สะอาดเหมือนกัน ตอนนี้ ผมขอถามพวกคุณอีกครั้งว่า ใครที่จะไปอาบน้ำก่อนกันแน่ '

นักเรียนคนหนึ่งพูดขึ้นมาด้วยความตื่นเต้นว่า

' อ้อ ! ผมรู้แล้ว พอคนตัวสะอาดเห็นอีกคนสกปรก ก็นึกว่าตัวเองต้องสกปรกแน่ แต่คนที่ตัวสกปรก เห็นอีกคนสะอาด ก็นึกว่าตัวเองไม่สกปรกเลย ดังนั้นคนที่ตัวสะอาดต้องวิ่งไปอาบน้ำก่อนแน่เลย ..... ถูกไหมครับ....'


ไอสไตน์มองไปที่นักเรียนทุกคน นักเรียนทุกคน ต่างเห็นด้วยกับคําตอบนี้
ไอสไตน์ ค่อยๆ พูดขึ้นอย่างมีหลักการและเหตุผล

' คําตอบนี้ก็ผิด ทั้งสองคนออกมาจากปล่องไฟเก่าเหมือนกัน จะเป็นไปได้ไงที่คนหนึ่งสะอาด อีกคนหนึ่งจะสกปรก นี่แหละที่เขาเรียกว่า 'ตรรก' เมื่อความคิดของคนเราถูกชักนําจนสะดุด
ก็จะไม่สามารถแยกแยะและหาเหตุผล แห่งเรื่องราวที่แท้จริงออกมาได้ นั่นคือ 'ตรรก'

จะหาตรรกได้ก็ต้อง กระโดดออกมาจาก 'พันธนาการของความเคยชิน'
หลบเลี่ยงจาก 'กับดักทางความคิด'
หลีกหนีจาก ' สิ่งที่ทําให้หลงทางจากความรู้จริง '
ขจัด ' ทิฐิแห่งกมลสันดาน '

จะหา ตรรก ได้ก็ต่อเมื่อ คุณสลัดหมากทั้งหมด ที่คนเขาจัดฉาก วางล่อคุณไว้

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