Pets are like marriage, both need long-term commitment: veterinarian
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
Nongluck Ajanapanya
If you are thinking about getting a puppy or kitten as a Valentine’s Day gift for your loved ones or even for yourself, think twice.
Dogs and cats may appear cute when they are young, but their charm may wear off as they get older, warned Nawaporn Chounpreecha, veterinarian and marketing director of Thonglor International Pet Hospital.
Besides, she said, if the pet is a gift from a boyfriend or girlfriend, it can get easily dumped if the couple splits up, adding that all animals are living beings and have feelings like humans do.
“So instead of just falling in love with their appearance, which can be short-lived, it is better to study the animal you want to adopt,” she said.
According to her, each breed and pedigree has its own distinct personality. Some dogs and cats may be fierce, some can be very sensitive, while others may fall ill easily. These characteristics can pose problems for owners in the long term if they don’t first understand and seek advice on how best to handle them.
Not understanding or being prepared for the pet can result in the owner dumping them by the roadside or temples, she said.
Nawaporn Chounpreecha
Nawaporn was speaking in response to a survey conducted by the College Management Mahidol University, which revealed that more than 49% of Thais prefer pets to having children, while others said they want a companion to get over their loneliness.
However, the veterinarian pointed out that getting a pet is like getting married – it needs a long-term commitment of more than 10 years at least.
“You must be responsible not just for your pet, but also the community you are bringing the pet into,” she said, adding that the number of Thais raising dogs and cats has grown dramatically in recent years.
Boonpaween Boonmechote, who owns five dogs and two cats, said that apart from giving them love and care, he has to budget every month for their food, vitamins, care products and medical check-ups – which he admits can add up to quite a lot. However, he said, he is willing to pay because they are all part of his family.
“My fatigue vanishes when I return home from work and they are there to greet me,” he said.
Unfortunately, not all Thais share his sentiments. According to the Department of Livestock Development, Thailand will have approximately 1.92 million stray dogs and cats by 2027, with the potential of this rising to 5 million over the next 20 years.
Most of the strays are expected to be in Bangkok, posing a significant problem in terms of hygiene, disease and financial burden on the government.
The most common reasons for cats and dogs being abandoned is the heavy cost of raising them and some owners’ inability to cope with some of their behaviours. Many pets are also abandoned when they get ill or old.
Though the government has been trying to implement a registration system for pet owners since 2018, the rate of pets being abandoned is still alarmingly high.
Experts warn that Thailand needs stricter pet ownership laws, as well as a more defined system of dealing with abandoned animals as Thailand’s pet market grows.
According to the Commerce Ministry’s Department of Business Development, the Thai pet market will grow at an average annual rate of 8.4% to 66.75 billion baht by 2026.
Having pets as a companion should not cause social issues if people think carefully before becoming pet owners, Nawaporn said.
Thai sniffer dogs become stars of earthquake rescue efforts
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
Thailand’s search and rescue team searching for survivors of Monday’s devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria has drawn applause on social media for its 43 people – and two canines.
The female Golden Retrievers in the team from Urban Search and Rescue Thailand have become social media stars in Thailand because many Thais were unaware of the vital role sniffer dogs play in search and rescue missions.
Photos of seven-year-old Sierra and six-year-old Sahara have been shared widely on social media, along with an outpouring of concern for those affected by the catastrophe.
The team left Thailand on Thursday and started work on Saturday in Hatay, a southern Turkish province on the Mediterranean coast that borders Syria.
The temperature dropped to 2 degrees Celsius at their base. Both canines were put in sleeping bags to keep them warm while waiting to start their work.
Sierra and Sahara, from the Environmental and Social Foundation, had passed training certified by the International Rescue Dog Organisation.
Their main task is to search for earthquake victims in the rubble and signal to their handlers if they find someone. The canines’ handlers are their unnamed owners.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in southern Turkey and northern Syria, leaving about 24,000 people dead and affecting millions more in both countries.
As of Saturday afternoon, the number of dead reached 24,000 – 20,665 in Turkey and more than 3,500 in Syria.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, acting on behalf of the Thai government, donated 5 million baht (about US$149,000) to the relief effort through the Turkish Embassy in Thailand.
The Thai Red Cross Society also donated 2 million baht (about $60,000) to the Red Crescent societies of Turkey and Syria, and is urging members of the public to make personal donations.
Police seek to extend detention of 5 suspects in programmer’s assault, hunt for 2 more
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
Police sought court permission on Saturday for further detention of five people accused of assaulting and robbing a programmer of an online gambling platform.
Investigators from Bangkok’s Chokchai Police Station asked the Criminal Court for the detention of the accused for another 12 days pending the completion of an investigation.
Police opposed a bail request by the accused on grounds that the offences carry heavy penalties and they could escape during temporary release. Police also argued that the accused could interfere with evidence and witnesses.
On February 6, the programmer filed a police complaint, saying he was assaulted, extorted, detained and robbed by the five suspects last month after they suspected him of skimming money from the illegal gambling website’s revenue.
The programmer, who was not identified by police, also claimed that a senior police officer holding the rank of major-general who allegedly owns this gambling website had ordered the assault.
The complainant told police that he had worked as a programmer for the online gambling platform for over five years and was responsible for providing advice to customers about money deposits and withdrawals.
His alleged assailants, who acted as administrators of the website, later suspected him of hiding some money for himself. They told him to meet them at a coffee shop in Chonburi on January 12 and began attacking him when he denied any knowledge of the missing money.
They then took his phone and tablet computer before transferring 25,000 baht from his bank account through a mobile application. They later took the programmer to his home in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao area and helped themselves to some of his belongings.
The five accused – three men and two women – were identified as Patchawan Pumriab, Montri Kasa, Chaichana Chuayboonnak, Ramita Sudjit, and Thanet Lekbanjong. They were arrested on Friday.
Police are still hunting for two other men allegedly involved in the incident but still at large. They were identified as Krissada Jamjamras and Suthat Pimsen.
Leatherback hatchlings emerge from ‘turtle beach’ this morning
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
About 80 leatherback hatchlings emerged from their nest on a beach in Phang-nga province and raced into the Andaman Sea before dawn this morning.
The first hatchling emerged from the nest on Bang Khwan beach in Takua Thung district at about midnight on Friday, officials from a local conservation centre said.
The first group to emerge made paths around the nest for their siblings to follow to the sea, officials from the district’s Marine and Coastal Resources Conservation Centre said.
Female leatherback sea turtles began digging four nests on the beach in December last year.
The 78 that made it to the sea before dawn were from the fourth nest, which had 116 eggs,
Eight more are receiving care at the conservation centre. Five died, and 25 eggs were not fertilised, officials said.
Their mother dug the nest on Bang Khwan beach on December 17. The eggs took 56 days to hatch.
3 Thais, 1 Malaysian get death penalty for murder of businessman
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
The Songkhla Provincial Court on Friday sentenced four of six defendants to death for the murder of a Malaysian businessman in 2015.
He was killed following a legal dispute over a debt of about 270 million baht.
Lee Ah Han, 54, had been involved in a legal dispute with another Malaysian national who reportedly owed him 35 million ringgit (about 270 million baht).
Lee was killed to wipe out the debt, police said.
On December 4, 2015, Lee and his wife were shot by a man using an automatic rifle while they were in their black Mercedes-Benz S300 on Kanchanawanit Road in Hat Yai district.
They had been trailed by three vehicles. Lee’s wife was injured but survived.
The three vehicles were driven by a group comprising one Malaysian man, four Thai men, and one Thai woman.
The arrest of one of the suspects
Three of the men, including the Malaysian national, and the woman plead innocent. All received the death penalty.
The shooter and his driver, both Thai, admitted their guilt and were sentenced to life in prison.
Thirty witnesses were questioned during the trial.
Provincial attorneys carefully reviewed the evidence and interviewed the witnesses because it was a high-profile, violent crime, said Kosolwat Inthujanyong, deputy spokesman of the Office of the Attorney General.
Kosolwat said that the pair who pleaded guilty initially said they were innocent.
After learning that their accomplices – who had hired them to murder Lee – were trying to blame the murder entirely on them they admitted their guilt, Kosolwat said.
Executions in Thailand are done by lethal injection.
Jet-ski championship will electrify Thailand’s image globally
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
Phuket will host an international jet-ski tournament in March to showcase Thailand’s marine attractions globally and promote the use of electric engines for jet skis and boats, Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn told reporters on Friday.
The WGP#1 Offshore World Championship 2023 will be held on the resort island from March 16 to 19, Phiphat said.
It will promote Thailand as a global destination for marine sports and will be broadcast on the channels of Eurosport which reach 155 million households worldwide.
“The WGP#1 Offshore World Championship 2023 will promote an eco-friendly approach for sporting events by introducing jet skis using 100% electric engines,” the minister said.
“We hope to [completely] replace fossil-fuel jet skis in the tournament with electrical ones over the next three to five years, which will serve as a model for other boats in Phuket,” he added.
The event’s opening ceremony will take place on March 16. The second day will be dedicated to showcasing Phuket’s marine attractions.
Races for the world championship title will take place on March 18 and 19 on a route two to three kilometres offshore, from Laguna Beach to Phrom Thep Cape and back. The two-lap races cover 120km.
Athletes from around the world will compete, including world champion Jean-Bruno Pastorello, said Phiphat.
The tournament is a collaboration between the Sports Authority of Thailand and Laguna Phuket Hotel Group, which will provide accommodations.
Salvaging the HTMS Sukhothai is costly and perilous, navy chief says
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2023
Salvaging the Sukhothai from the Gulf of Thailand could cost over 200 million baht, Royal Thai Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Choengchai Chomchoengpaet said on Friday.
The ship sank to a depth of about 50 metres and recovering it could cause damage that will make it more difficult to determine why it sank, the admiral said.
The navy is carefully selecting qualified contractors to salvage the vessel, Choengchai added.
The corvette-class ship sank about 20 nautical miles (32 kilometres) off the coast of Prachuap Khiri Khan’s Bang Saphan district on December 18 in stormy weather with 105 crew onboard.
Seventy-six members of the crew were rescued, the bodies of 24 were found recovered, and five remain missing.
Two million baht has been paid in compensation so far to the families of the deceased from the ship’s group life insurance policy and the navy’s Ruam Jai Fund, Choengchai said.
The navy is waiting for the court to declare the five missing crew members as missing persons to start paying the compensation to their families, he added.
Choengchai said the committee investigating the cause of the accident had finished interviewing 289 witnesses – surviving crew members, ship mechanics, and volunteers who participated in the search and rescue mission.
The navy is reviewing the witness statements and will determine the reason why the vessel sank after it examines the salvaged ship, he added.
An initial investigation by the navy’s Quartermaster Department found that the Sukhothai had 130 life jackets on board before it sank, which was a sufficient number for its 105 crew, Choengchai said.
The navy is also investigating why some crew members found, both alive and dead, were not wearing life jackets, he added.
Police received over 200,000 complaints of online fraud, inflicting THB30 billion in losses on victims over past year
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2023
Most victims of romance scams are people in their 40s as they are the main targets of criminal gangs preying on those seeking true love online.
Police Lt-Colonel Tananat Kangruambut, an inspector at the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, said on Friday that people in this age group tend to become easy targets as their relationships with their spouses were on a decline.
“Their spouses work so hard they have no time for intimate relationships for a long time,” he said.
According to him, online criminals carefully studied their potential victims through their public profiles before approaching them with seeming sincerity. These criminals use fake profile photos and invented profiles and backgrounds to chat with their victims to help ease their loneliness while gaining their trust.
“When the criminals manage to win the hearts of their victims, they create a feeling of bonding in those who fall prey. They then start to trick their victims to transfer money to them,” the police officer said.
He said the victims often do not consult anyone as they blame themselves for the mistake of getting involved in a secret affair. He was speaking at a seminar on online fraud organised by the Thai Journalists Association at Asia Hotel in Bangkok.
Online fraud, including romance scams, has become a serious problem for Thailand, judging by the number of complaints filed with the Royal Thai Police.
More than 200,000 complaints with losses totalling over 30 billion baht were filed between March 1, 2022, and January 31 this year, according to the officer. The online complaints were submitted to the Thaipoliceonline.com website.
Tananat said that in many cases, the victims told police investigators that they would commit suicide unless the culprits were arrested and their money was returned. “They lost a lot of money and they were at the wits’ end.”
At that point, police have to seek help from the Department of Mental Health, he said.
The department’s director-general, Dr Amporn Benjaponpitak, who was a speaker at the seminar, said on Friday that their families should be open-minded with the victims and understand their plight. She suggested that the victims should not be embarrassed about their mistakes.
“You should avoid saying something like ‘I had warned you’, or ‘You should not have fallen for people like this’. Instead, you should offer them encouragement. Tell them that they have to start anew and move on,” she said.
Misty mornings and starry nights from Phayao’s Doi Phu Langka
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2023
Intrepid travellers now have a new destination from where they can enjoy a sea of morning mist and bright stars – the top of 1,720-metre-high Doi Phu Langka in Phayao province.
The mountaintop in the northern province’s Pong district is part of Tham Sakoen National Park, which spans 250 square metres across Phayao and Nan.
Doi Phu Langka is some 100 kilometres from Phayao town, with the last 12km covering the scenic PY4020 Road.
The mountaintop is covered in a forest of castanopsis trees and a field of bright pink “Malabar melastome” wildflowers. It also offers a beautiful sunset and a view of the sun peeking through the sea of mist in the morning.
Visitors can camp overnight to enjoy cool breezes and a sky full of stars. Tents and other equipment can be rented from the park.
The PY 4020 Road also leads to the Pang Kha Royal Project Development Centre, which helps local farmers grow vegetables and fruits with the goal of helping them make a sustainable income and improve their livelihoods.
For more information on getting to Doi Phu Langka, call the Phayao Rural Roads office at (054) 887070 or the Department of Rural Roads 1146 hotline.
Future of Thailand Series: Experts hold forth on challenges, and ideas to rejuvenate economy
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2023
Farida Waller
Tammy Tameryn Somhar
Thailand’s ageing society, labour shortages and geopolitics were among the key topics discussed at a conference on kickstarting the economy.
Business leaders and politicians gathered to discuss the mechanisms driving the Thai economy and formulate policies to push it forward.
The conference, organised by Post Today and Nation Group, was held at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok on Thursday.
During the conference, two panel discussions were held, one focusing on the strategy of driving the Thai economy and the second on developing economic policies.
The first panel was led by Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi, former secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development, and included Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, president of the Thai Hotels Association, Visit Limlurcha, vice president of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, and Napas Paorohitya, chief marketing officer at Bumrungrad International Hospital.
Supachai Panitchpakdi, former secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development
Critical economic reforms
Supachai said five economic reforms would strengthen the Thai economy. Among them is loosening restrictions and encouraging consumer spending, he said. Upskilling and reskilling workers, as well as having adequate food, energy and healthcare in case of sudden emergency scenarios. Having allies at the global level and geopolitics are also crucial for the national economy, he said.
“We need to be resilient and never give up in any crisis,” he added.
Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, president of the Thai Hotels Association
Marisa said that the hospitality industry in the Asia-Pacific region saw the slowest recovery rate globally, growing by just 23%.
Tourism, however, is expected to see a 70% jump and generate a trillion baht in revenue this year, she added.
“Travel trend predictions for this year are ‘revenge’ travel, family travel [from India and the Middle East], and sustainability travel,” Marisa said.
She suggested that the government had set travel trends as part of the national agenda and monitor it closely, as it affects many industries.
Visit Limlurcha, vice president of the Thai Chamber of Commerce
Meanwhile, Visit said Thailand’s exports have risen by 27%, especially sugar and molasses, vegetable and animal fat as well as frozen and processed chicken and animal feed. Thailand is currently the second biggest exporter of food in Asia and 13th in the world.
“The supply of wheat and corn has dropped by 30% and 40%, respectively, due to the Russia-Ukraine war, resulting in inflation and high food prices,” Visit added.
This surge in prices and drop in supply has hit developing and undeveloped countries the hardest.
Labour shortage a worry
The biggest cause for concern is labour shortages and an ageing society, both Marisa and Visit said.
“The future trend in the food industry is leaning towards more protein intake and wellness,” Visit said.
Also, in line with sustainability and environment protection goals, the government should push for plant-based diets and protein derived from insects.
Napas Paorohitya, chief marketing officer at Bumrungrad International Hospita
Napas from Bumrungrad Hospital said that the pandemic had taught people to take better care of themselves, which has bolstered medical tourism and the wellness industry over the years.
From 2020 to 2025, medical tourism is expected to account for 9.9% of total arrivals and contribute 7 trillion baht in revenue by 2028.
However, Napas said that Thailand attracts four times more medical tourists than Singapore, but their total revenue contribution is just 19%. This shows we’re still not doing enough, he said.
“Thailand only covers 2% of the global medical tourism market due to the limited pool of talent in the medical industry,” Napas added.
Policy imperatives
The second panel discussion was led by Democrat Party leader and Commerce MinisterJurin Laksanawisit. Also participating were Natural Resources and Environment MinisterVarawut Silpa-archa, who is also Chartthaipattana Party leader, Move Forward Party leader Pita Limjaroenrat, Chart Pattana Kla Party leader Korn Chatikavanij, Thai Sang Thai Party’s economics board chairman Supant Mongkolsuthree, former finance minister and ex-Palang Pracharath Party leader Uttama Saowanayon along with Kittirat Na-Ranong, deputy leader of Pheu Thai, the key opposition party.
The subject of the panel discussion was “policy push” and was divided into two parts.
Economic measure or populism?
In the first part, each party representative shared their ideas on kickstarting the economy, before answering questions posed by the public and Nation Group editors.
Kittirat Na-Ranong, deputy leader of Pheu Thai
Kittirat’s idea was to reduce tax rates by 10%, boost the minimum wage to 600 baht, as well as cut loan interest rates and push up the interest offered for bank deposits.
Pita Limjaroenrat, Move Forward Party leader
Pita, however, disagreed, saying this would widen the income gap in Thailand. Instead, he said, the three-step process of boosting the economy would be amplifying the SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis, boosting GDP, reducing inequality and then formulating policies.
“Up to 99% of Thais are still in hell. We must turn problems into opportunities, and for this, I want to add a million jobs to the market,” the Move Forward leader said.
Varawut Silpa-archa ,Natural Resources and Environment Minister and Chartthaipattana Party leader
Varawut, meanwhile, suggested that the country’s resources create wealth and opportunity for everyone.
“Every generation should get a chance and hope. Nobody should be left behind and there should be welfare for all,” Varawut said.
Jurin Laksanawisit., Commerce Minister and Democrat Party leader
Jurin said his policy was to make money and strengthen the population and the nation.
“We need to focus on building soft power and modernising our identity. The prime minister must become the country’s salesman,” Jurin added.
Korn Chatikavanij, Chart Pattana Kla Party leader
“How do we kickstart the economy when only 14 million people hold social security cards and 6 million of them are blacklisted?” asked Korn.
Uttama Saowanayon, former finance minister and ex-Palang Pracharath Party leader
Uttama responded by saying, “We are living in the age of insecurity and instability,” adding that “democratic power is not populism”.
Thai Sang Thai Party’s Supant said his party’s policy is to “build a bad debt rehabilitation fund, boost income and create opportunities for people”.
Questions from the public
The first question the public asked was what the party leaders’ thoughts were about foreigners taking over Thai people’s jobs.
Kittirat pointed out that some occupations were reserved for Thais and foreigners were only allowed in some jobs.
As for combating the surge in fuel prices, Pita suggested that the government save energy by introducing electric public transportation.
Varawut, meanwhile, said the way to fix the rising household debt would be to strengthen the community system and use knowledge in the agricultural sector to create new products.
As for dealing with online scams, Korn suggested that the public be educated about the dangers of disclosing personal information.
Nation Group’s queries
When it was the Nation Group’s turn to pose questions, the editors presented the politicians with a “lucky draw”.
Varawut went first and picked a question on “What mechanism should be used to boost exports instead of just trade diplomacy?”
The minister said the best thing would be to “develop products that meet world standards and promote sustainability”.
Korn responded to his question on foreign ownership of land, by saying it depends on the timing and society’s acceptance.
As for Thailand’s moves to keep up with the global green movement, Uttama suggested it build a more successful bio-circular-green economic model.
Supant’s question was about what he believes the minimum wage should be, to which he responded: “It’s not about how much money one should get. It’s about how much money is left in people’s pockets at the end of the month.”
Replying to a question on how Thailand should act to gain a geopolitical advantage over China and the United States, Kittirat said: “The most important thing is to be neutral and sincere.”
The last question was what the most urgent economic policy should be, to which Pita said the first 100 days of any government should be spent improving agriculture, industry and tourism.
Nawaporn Chounpreecha
The arrest of one of the suspects
Supachai Panitchpakdi, former secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development
Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, president of the Thai Hotels Association
Visit Limlurcha, vice president of the Thai Chamber of Commerce
Napas Paorohitya, chief marketing officer at Bumrungrad International Hospita
Kittirat Na-Ranong, deputy leader of Pheu Thai
Pita Limjaroenrat, Move Forward Party leader
Varawut Silpa-archa ,Natural Resources and Environment Minister and Chartthaipattana Party leader
Jurin Laksanawisit., Commerce Minister and Democrat Party leader
Korn Chatikavanij, Chart Pattana Kla Party leader
Uttama Saowanayon, former finance minister and ex-Palang Pracharath Party leader
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