Stars of public and private research align for Thailand’s ambitious space mission
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
A top Thai public university has teamed up with a private company in what could be a giant leap for Thailand’s ambitious space plans.
The Excellence Center of Space Technology and Research (Ecstar) at King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang this week inked a five-year partnership with Terospace Co Ltd to research space technology.
Ecostar chief Charnwit Munikanont said the cooperation will focus on exchanges of knowledge, experience and academic data while also training personnel in the space research field, with a focus on new technology.
“Space technology will contribute significantly to the country’s development and increase our competitive advantage, especially in terms of innovation,” he said.
Terospace chairman Bawonrat Kanjanarat said the five-year agreement covers satellite big data, satellite imagery processing, artificial intelligence, a low-earth-orbit satellite constellation, and other space-related research.
Among those hailing the collaboration as a big step for Thailand’s space industry was Settapong Malisuwan, vice chairman of the House panel on communications, telecommunications, and digital economy and society.
He said the research partnership will strengthen Thailand’s space capability by driving development of knowledge and technology, as well as helping forge a skilled space-related workforce, which the country currently lacks.
“Thailand still has a lot of room to grow in space research and economy. We need to act now or risk losing opportunities and a chance to catch up with others,” he said.
The research partnership comes just a week after Nasa agreed to assist Thailand’s space industry as part of the SERVIR-Southeast Asia programme to tackle regional climate change and natural disasters.
Taiwanese actress grateful to Chuwit for exposing police extortion
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
Taiwanese actress Charlene An (An Yu-qing), who was the victim of a Bangkok police shakedown earlier this month, thanked ex-politician and massage parlour tycoon Chuwit Kamolvisit for blowing the whistle.
In a Facebook post, Chuwit said a Singapore national who paid the police 27,000 baht on An’s behalf will meet him today.
Chuwit added that he would personally cover the Singaporean’s travel expenses.
In response to Chuwit’s post on Monday, An said she was thankful that the former politician had finally uncovered the truth. Her message was in both Thai and English.
Chuwit replied to An in Chinese, saying he was sorry on behalf of all Thais and hoped Taiwanese people would forget about this incident and continue visiting Thailand.
“I believe you will still find Thailand an attractive destination,” Chuwit said in the response.
Her allegations made national headlines in Taiwan, much to the dismay of Thai tourism operators.
The 33-year-old actress said police stopped their Grab taxi at a checkpoint close to the Chinese Embassy on Ratchadaphisek Road at about 1am on January 5 and detained the group for two hours. She said police eventually released the group in return for a payment of 27,000 baht. The reason for the shakedown was a vaping device, that the actress said she did not own.
Bangkok PM2.5 readings to hit dangerous levels until Feb 4
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
The quality of air in 36 areas around Greater Bangkok fell to unsafe levels on Tuesday morning, reports from the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) show.
PM2.5 (particles less than 2.5 micrometres in diameter) were in the range of 40-69 micrograms per cubic metre (μg/m3) in most areas.
Thailand’s standard for safe levels of PM2.5 is 50μg/m3 or lower, while the World Health Organisation puts it at 12μg/m3 or lower.
Exposure to fine dust particles can be dangerous for people with chronic respiratory problems and can cause eye, nose, throat and lung irritation as well as shortness of breath among others.
As of 7am, the top 10 most polluted districts in Bangkok were:
• Nong Khaem: 69μg/m3
• Taling Chan: 60μg/m3
• Thawi Watthana: 60μg/m3
• Khlong Sam Wa: 60μg/m3
• Lat Krabang: 60μg/m3
• Nong Chok: 60μg/m3
• Phasi Charoen: 59μg/m3
• Pathumwan: 59μg/m3
• Bangkok Yai: 58μg/m3
• Din Daeng: 57μg/m3
BMA warned people to be prepared for air pollution readings to surge until Saturday (February 4) due to poor air circulation.
It also advised residents in areas where the air quality is bad to avoid outdoor exercise and check the air quality before stepping outdoors.
Pirate-themed floating restaurant seating 100 sinks off Pattaya
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
A salvage mission has been launched after a pirate-ship-themed floating restaurant sank off Pattaya on Monday.
The tourist boat, named Krakenian The Private of Pattaya, capsized in heavy seas about two kilometres from Pattaya city on Monday evening.
Fortunately, the tourist boat-restaurant was closed at the time due to bad weather, and no injuries or deaths were reported from the sinking.
Prachyaporn Ploymukda, the boat owner, told reporters on Monday night that the boat had succumbed to strong winds and high waves in the Gulf of Thailand.
“The rear part of raft boat sank after being swamped by waves,” she said.
The boat has operated as a pirate-themed restaurant since December, with capacity for about 100 customers, she added.
“The boat also offers squid fishing, music shows and karaoke rooms,” Prachyaporn said.
Bangkok teams up with Line to provide PM2.5 alerts
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has hooked up with Line to add a PM2.5 alert function for users of the popular messaging app.
PM2.5 is fine-dust air pollution that poses health risks, especially for people with chronic lung disease.
To check on PM2.5 levels, Line users can add @linealert as a friend, said BMA Environment Division director Praphas Leuangsirinapha on Monday, after signing the agreement with Line.
The Line Alert account uses BMA and government data on national hazards and disasters, offering updates, maps of risk areas, and lists of emergency contact numbers of agencies and nearby hospitals. Users also get tips and advice on how to stay safe in emergencies.
“With the addition of PM2.5 alerts, users can get real-time updates on air quality in Bangkok via reliable information from government agencies,” said Praphas. “We hope this feature will help people plan their travel and outdoor activities, as well as protect themselves against dust and other air pollution.”
Bangkok checks readiness of tourist coordination centre, tourist kiosks
TUESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2023
Chalermpol Chotinuchit, deputy permanent secretary of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, on Monday visited the tourist coordination centre on Phra Athit Road in Phra Nakhon district to check whether it was ready to welcome local and foreign tourists visiting the capital.
The city expects to welcome a growing volume of tourists, especially visitors from China after the country lifted travel restrictions on January 8.
After inspecting the centre, Chalermpol headed to Na Phra Lan tunnel near the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew), then to tourist kiosks at Tha Chang and Tha Tien piers to inspect facilities that ensure a smooth trip for tourists on the historical Rattanakosin Island.
The deputy permanent secretary suggested officials put up signs warning tourists of scammers and other dangers as well as making existing signs more visible. He also ordered a tourist kiosk to be set up at the entrance of Na Phra Lan tunnel to assist visitors seeking directions or other information.
There are 23 tourist service facilities in Bangkok, comprising the tourist coordination centre at Bangkok Tourism Division Building on Phra Athit Road, which opens Monday-Friday from 9am to 5pm, and 22 tourist kiosks throughout the city, open from Tuesday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm.
Tourist kiosks are available at tourist attractions, important buildings, and key transport hubs throughout Bangkok, including Tha Chang Pier, Tha Tien Pier, Phan Fa Pier, Chulalongkorn Hospital, Police General Hospital, MBK Centre, Odeon Circle, BTS Phaya Thai station, Hua Lamphong station, and Siam Paragon.
Thai feature films are about to take on a distinctly Chinese flavour after Hong Kong authorities agreed to pump millions of baht into moviemaking collaborations.
The Hong Kong Film Development Council and CreateHK announced key details of the Hong Kong-Asian Film Collaboration Funding Scheme to the Thai film community at the recent Bangkok ASEAN Film Festival.
The event marked the official introduction of the co-production support scheme, which aims to foster collaboration between Hong Kong and Thai filmmakers.
The inaugural Hong Kong-Asian Film Collaboration Funding Scheme will provide grants of up to nine million Hong Kong dollars (37.6 million baht) to a maximum of eight films.
Joining a festival panel to announce the collaboration were Hong Kong film directors Chan Kin Long and Ka Sing Fung, and their Thai counterparts Nattawut Poonpiriya and Aditya Assarat.
Applications must be made by a Hong Kong production company, and the eligible projects must have a Hong Kong citizen or resident in at least one of three key roles – producer, director or screenwriter – with another taken by the Asian co-production country.
At least six out of 10 key crew positions must be filled by Hong Kongers, and at least 30% of the below-the-line budget must be spent in Hong Kong.
Applications for the collaboration are open from January until May, with the results to be announced in early 2024. Detailed guidelines and application forms will soon be available to download from the Hong Kong Film Development Council website at www.fdc.gov.hk
Buddhist monks, novices can pick up vocational skills in Ayutthaya
MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2023
Students at a vocational college in Ayutthaya do not wear blue or grey, instead, their uniforms are a bright saffron – the same colour as Buddhist monks’ robes.
This vocational school in Ayutthaya’s Bang Pa-in district is unlike any other, as it was specially created to impart vocational skills to monks and novices.
The College of Skills Enhancement for Monks and Novices was set up by Wat Niwet Thammaprawat Ratchaworawihan in 2016 to mark the 60th birthday of His Majesty King Rama X, while he was still the Crown Prince.
The temple, which came under the Royal Patronage of the Crown Prince, consulted the National Buddhism Office, Culture Ministry and the Office of the National Vocational Education Commission about opening a college to enhance the skills of monks and novices.
The college provides a technical diploma and a higher diploma. For the first semester in 2016, 109 monks and novices enrolled to study one of the five courses on offer, including welding, computers, mechanics, industrial technology and computer games and animation.
The college turned to other educational institutions and businesses to seek teachers.
This year, the National Buddhism Office announced that three courses would be available for the technical diploma, namely welding, mechanics and computers.
For the higher certification, three other courses are available, namely mechanics, industrial technology and computer games plus animation.
Monks and novices can apply for the course at the college website (admission.vec.go.th) or show up in person. Applications can be submitted until April 30.
Diver discovers ‘horrific destruction’ in Trang national park
MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2023
Hat Chao Mai National Park in Trang province on Monday promised to take action after a Facebook user posted photos of discarded fishing nets strangling coral and wildlife off the coast of Koh Kradan.
Park chief Parit Narasaritkul thanked a Thai tourist for raising the alarm.
Facebook user Tat Kewngaam on Sunday posted several photos he took of fishing nets wrapped around corals as well as wildlife on a dive trip near Koh Kradan.
He urged officials to take immediate action to prevent further damage to the reef, adding that he often came across such “horrific sights” of destruction during diving expeditions in the Andaman Sea off Trang.
“I have nothing against fishermen, but please check if your actions are affecting others,” he said.
Tat added that the photos were taken not far from the head office of Hat Chao Mai National Park.
On Monday, Parit said park officials had been dispatched to investigate the area. He also promised to tighten measures to prevent fishing boats from using nets in the national park.
“We will take legal action against any boats caught violating the law,” he added.
“The park thanks all tourists and locals who have been our eyes and ears in the mission to preserve marine resources for the future generation.”
Koh Kradan is a small, 2.4-square-kilometre island popular among tourists and divers due to its sandy beaches, clear waters and abundant coral.
Most of the island comes under the Hat Chao Mai National Park, which covers 231 sqkm of coastal Trang.
Bangkok police admit to extorting 27,000 baht from Taiwanese actress
MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 2023
Police officers at a checkpoint in Bangkok’s Huay Kwang district admitted to extorting 27,000 baht from a Taiwanese actress in exchange for letting her off after allegedly finding a vaping device on her.
A Royal Thai Police (RTP) source said policemen manning a temporary checkpoint in front of the Chinese embassy in the early hours of January 5 admitted to extorting the money while being interrogated separately on Sunday.
Pol Lt-General Thiti Saengsawang, commissioner of the Metropolitan Bureau, confirmed on Monday the reported confessions but did not provide details on the number of police officers in question, their rank, position or names. He added that the investigation team led by him has yet to make a formal announcement of the findings.
The RTP, already reeling from a series of scandals, was hit again when Taiwanese actress Charlene An (An Yu-qing) posted a TikTok video earlier this month alleging that she and her friends were stopped at the checkpoint in the early hours of January 5 and police planted a vaping device on her before demanding 27,000 baht to let her go free.
Thailand bans the import and sale of e-cigarettes and the possession of vaping devices is unlawful.
An claimed she and her friends were held at the checkpoint for two hours and were only let go after they paid the bribe. However, footage from several security cameras in the area proved that her allegations were inaccurate, as she was seen holding and using the vaping device before being stopped by the police. CCTV footage also showed that she and her friends were held at the checkpoint for 47 minutes, not two hours.
While footage from security cameras appeared to contradict her account, whistleblowing former politician and massage parlour tycoon Chuwit Kamolvisit came to her rescue on Monday, saying he had a clip showing one of An’s friends paying the bribe to a plainclothes policeman.
Chuwit also alleged that Metropolitan Police Bureau had deleted some footage to cover up the extortion.
Thiti said on Monday that investigators have now shifted to filing charges under Section 157 of the Criminal Code, which bans officials from carrying out malfeasance or nonfeasance.
“Several police officers will be charged,” he said without elaborating. “I want to apologise to everybody for some police officers’ actions that have damaged the image of Thailand and Thai society.”
‘CCTV clips not doctored’
Thiti denied that he had instructed officers to delete any video clips. He added that the body cams of police officers at the checkpoint will be sent to the Police Scientific Crime Detection Division to restore all clips that may have been overwritten or deleted.
An RTP source said on Monday that the case had been discussed extensively at the police headquarters and the transfer screening panel was told that each involved police officer confessed to extorting the money while they were being interrogated separately.
The source, who had also attended the meeting, said the bribe had been paid by a Singaporean member of the Taiwanese actress’s group.
Cover-up backfires
Huay Kwang police officers initially denied taking the bribe when An dropped the bombshell because they thought she was a foreigner and could do nothing. They also thought they could cover up the extortion because An did not file a police complaint against them.
The source added that the RTP has instructed the Metropolitan Police Bureau to re-check the backgrounds of the policemen in question to see if they had committed similar offences earlier. The source added that several complaints had been filed against Huay Kwang police officers of alleged extortion around the time of An’s incident.
The Taiwanese actress’s allegation has prompted National Police chief Pol General Damrongsak Kittiprapas to instruct the Metropolitan Police Bureau to have the Huay Kwang Police Station chief transferred to an inactive post immediately, RTP spokesman Archayon Kraithong said on Monday.
The spokesman also said that the police chief had instructed the Metropolitan Police Division 1 to set up a disciplinary panel to take both disciplinary and criminal action against the policemen in question.
The spokesman said the national police chief reminded all police stations to strictly follow regulations about setting up road checkpoints.
Raising questions
On Sunday, sources said the Metropolitan Police Bureau’s fact-finding committee spent all of Sunday reviewing the information and evidence and decided that:
• The checkpoint was not properly set up in line with Royal Thai Police regulations
• The police team at the checkpoint spent more than 40 minutes searching the group and did not find a vaping device, even though footage from several security cameras before and after the group was stopped showed the Taiwanese actress had a vaping device
• The police team did not report the seizure of the vaping device, nor did they file charges against the actress for having the vaping device in possession
As a result, the fact-finding panel concluded that the police team violated Section 157 of the Criminal Code by committing dereliction of duty. The case will be handed over to the National Anti-Corruption Commission to launch a graft probe against the team.
An claimed she and her friends were held at the checkpoint for two hours and were only let go after they paid the bribe. However, footage from several security cameras in the area proved that her allegations were inaccurate, as she was seen holding and using the vaping device before being stopped by the police. CCTV footage also showed that she and her friends were held at the checkpoint for 47 minutes, not two hours.
Thiti said on Monday that investigators have now shifted to filing charges under Section 157 of the Criminal Code, which bans officials from carrying out malfeasance or nonfeasance.
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