Bhumjaithai MP Chada Thaiseth insisted in a Facebook post on Monday that he did not slap Chartthaipattana MP Nuttavood Prasertsuvan, but only knocked his phone out of his hand.
Chada reportedly rushed at Nuttavood after he was told that he was “jumping the queue” during the 2023 budget bill debate and allegedly slapped him in the face and knocked over his phone.
Nuttavood was holding up his phone at that time to prove he was speaking out of turn.
Before exploding, Chada had tried to explain his point but Deputy First Speaker Suchart Tancharoen had turned off his microphone.
Chada said Nuttavood had every right to speak but was angry that the latter had used his words against him.
He also said that he understood why Nuttavood was holding up his phone, and admitted that it was wrong of him to knock it out of his hand, but insisted he did not slap the other MP.
Chada also applauded Nuttavood for not fighting back and worsening the issue and apologised profusely for his behaviour. He also apologised to the public, though added that he did not worry about the chatter on the net.
Nuttavood responded to Chada’s post on Tuesday by saying he appreciated the apology and wished the latter a happy birthday.
Chants of “equal marriage” and “LGBTQ+ rights” filled the air on Sunday afternoon as Bangkok’s first official Pride parade took place in Silom.
Thousands of well-wishers and the LGBTQ+ crowd turned up in a show of support for Bangkok’s first official Pride parade organised by Bangkok Naruemit Pride, which was a celebration of Thailand’s LGBT+ community. The parade started at 4pm at Maha Uma Devi Temple and made its way to Silom.
The colourful parade filled with rainbow flags was joined by supporters of all genders, activists, sex workers, politicians, celebrities, representatives from the private sector, beauty queens who were all encouraged in a Facebook post by Bangkok Pride to “Dress up in anything that expresses yourself with confidence, pride, and dignity”.
The colours of the rainbow brought cheer and joy from people singing LGBTQ+ anthems like “I kissed a girl” by Katy Perry and Madonna. Many also paraded with signs voicing their concerns about marriage equality, legalised abortions, legalising sex work.
Engaged couple Anticha Sangchai and Vorawan Ramwan wore white wedding dresses and were cheered on by thousands as they got married in the middle of the event.
Newly elected Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt also joined the parade, jumping around with the symbolic rainbow flag. He had earlier said at a press conference that “Bangkok is a city of diversity in many aspects, not just sexual diversity. We can live happily when we can accept diversity,”
He added that as per his plan, June would be designated ‘Pride month’. Every month is correlated to Bangkok’s celebration of festivals.”
“It’s the first time that a Bangkok governor has joined a gay event. I used to be an adviser to one of the governors and he did not even want to come,” said Pakorn Pimton, a veteran gay activist.
“I wish more LGBTQ+ people would come out to the parade. From what I observed, I think this pride event saw many more non-LGBTQ+ participants than LGBTQ+ themselves,” he said.
Pakorn had organised the “Bangkok Gay Festival” in 1999 and he has continued to hold the event for 23 years since then with many forms of activities. He said he would hold another one in October this year.
Thailand’s social media was filled with mixed messages with many people expressing through the hashtag #BangkokPride2022 that this felt like a ray of hope and celebrating Pride.
One of the first big moves and very proud to be in the community. Hope we get more recognized next year and I’ll absolutely be there with you all. #นฤมิตไพรด์#Pride2022
Regarding the current situation of the LGBTQ+ community, Kittinun Daramadhaj, president of the Rainbow Sky Association of Thailand, posted on his Facebook that Thai Parliament is set to vote on June 8 on a bill introducing same-sex unions with almost the same legal rights as married couples.
Due to its relatively high tolerance to sexual diversity, Thailand is regarded as a “utopia” for LGBTQI+ people by many foreign visitors who experience abus in their home countries. However, the Kingdom still does not legally recognise same-sex marriage, and discrimination against sexual diversity remains.
Prior to Covid-19, Pride parades were held in Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket. In the capital, the events were organised by Silom nightlife business operators.
LGBTQ+ history
In the late 2010s, Bangkok, unlike other parts of the world, held LGBT pride parades during the cultural holiday, “Loy Krathong”, in November.
The parades, however, were not warmly received at a time when LGBT and human rights were still taboo topics. The parades were organised by Silom district gay business owners without the support of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration or the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
The BMA and Silom district officials were quoted as suggesting that blocking the street could result in complaints from Silom residents. As a result, one lane of Silom was dedicated to floats, while the remaining lanes could be used by buses and automobiles.
As the participants and floats moved alongside taxis, motorcycles, and buses, the parades in Bangkok were broadcast around the world.
Other large Thai cities, including Phuket and Pattaya, held their own pride parades, which mostly served as tourist attractions. When a pride parade was organised in Chiang Mai, several political legal groups staged a protest.
Pride parades, held in cities across the world, commemorate the Stonewall riots, which started when police raided the Stonewall Inn bar in New York City in June 1969.
Bangkok’s new governor officially met the country’s three religious leaders on Sunday for the first time after being officially endorsed.
Chadchart Sittipunt started the day with a visit to Wat Ratchabophit to meet Supreme Patriarch Somdet Phra Ariyavongsagatanana.
He was accompanied by a team of Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) executives.
The governor said it was an honour that the Supreme Patriarch made time to meet him and offer advice. He also gave offerings to the patriarch and explained what he had done so far in his new post.
After that, Chadchart headed to the archdiocese of Bangkok to meet Archbishop Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij.
The archbishop congratulated Chadchart and voiced his concerns about the challenges he will face as governor, especially since Bangkokians expect a lot from him.
He also said that unity and cooperation will be beneficial to society and the BMA as a whole.
The archbishop also gave Chadchart several books and led him to the Assumption Cathedral.
Chadchart responded by saying the BMA was ready to help all religious groups and ensure communities become strong.
He then headed to the Central Islamic Council to meet with Arun Boonchom, chair of the honorary board of the Sheikhul Islam Office.
The head of the Islamic community, Chularatchamontri Sheikhul Islam Aziz Phitakkumpon, was also present and congratulated Chadchart.
Aziz also blessed Chadchart and said he hoped the new governor can implement his policies and plans successfully so Bangkok becomes a great place to live in like other big metropolises.
Over 50 per cent of Thais are doubtful that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will complete his four-year tenure in March next year, according to the results of a new opinion poll.
The telephone poll conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida Poll) surveyed 1,326 people from May 30-June 1. Respondents aged 18 and above were randomly sampled from all regions, education and income levels, and professions. Nida said the survey’s accuracy level was 97 per cent.
Asked whether they thought Prayut would complete his full term:
– 46.23 per cent of respondents said yes.
– 28.81 per cent said no.
– 24.96 were not sure.
Those who answered yes were excluded from the rest of the poll.
The respondents who answered no and not sure were asked to name three reasons that could prevent Prayut from serving his full four-year term as prime minister:
– 45.58 per cent said Prayut would dissolve the House.
– 32.68 per cent said he would be disqualified by a Constitutional Court ruling.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s absence was not felt too much at the Pheu Thai event in Surin because her older brother Panthongtae was present.
Paetongtarn said in a Facebook post on Saturday that she had tested positive for Covid-19 after visiting her father Thaksin and aunt Yingluck in Singapore. The Shinawatra siblings, Thaksin and Yingluck, are former prime ministers living in self-exile.
Panthongtae, meanwhile, said he was meeting voters in Surin as a Pheu Thai member, not his sister’s representative. He also vowed to attend more party activities in the future.
Meanwhile, party leader Chonlanan Srikaew said he was sorry that Paetongtarn, dubbed the head of the so-called “Pheu Thai family”, could not attend the event.
However, he said, the party will focus on holding activities nationwide, especially in areas where competition for votes is high, to ensure Pheu Thai can capture enough hearts to win by a landslide.
He also said he was not worried about the seven Pheu Thai MPs who defied the party whip and voted for the budget bill on Friday. In fact, he said, the party will gain more support from this issue as those MPs will not be able to explain why they betrayed their party.
The party leader also expects Pheu Thai to re-establish its stronghold in Surin and regain all MP seats.
Separately, Democrat Party leader Jurin Laksanawisit said his party is also preparing for the next general election expected to be held in early 2023. He was in Phitsanulok to meet Democrat leaders in the lower North.
Jurin said the Democrat Party needed to start rebuilding its standing, adding that every member still adheres to the party’s ideology.
The National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) has issued a statement insisting its tests on the so-called GT200 bomb-detecting devices were done transparently and in line with international standards.
The statement released on Saturday said the NSTDA had been hired by the Royal Thai Army for 7.57 million baht or 10,000 baht per piece to test 757 GT200 devices to confirm they were useless pieces of plastic.
It said NSTDA’s Electrical and Electronic Products Testing Centre first tested 320 pieces in September last year and then another 437 pieces on May 12 this year.
The statement also clarified that it had been hired by the Army Ordnance Department to test if the GT200 devices did actually do the job claimed by the distributor. NSTDA was also asked to cut open each piece to collect detailed evidence to use in the lawsuit against the seller.
NSTDA also tested the devices’ ability to measure electromagnetic and static electricity, the statement said. It added that the 7.57 million baht fee was based on the cost of materials and devices needed for checking, laboratory fees, hiring specialists as well as drugs and bombs for testing.
The Royal Thai Army had reportedly been duped by a British company and a Thai distributor into buying these devices with the belief that they can be used to detect both drugs and bombs.
The hiring of NSTDA to recheck the GT200 devices was raised in Parliament by Move Forward Party MP Jirat Thongsuwan during the budget bill’s first reading this week.
Jirat asked why the Army had wasted 7.5 million baht when it already knew that the so-called GT200 were nothing but pieces of plastic with no electronic circuits inside.
The UK-based Global Technical Ltd had reportedly sold 1,398 bogus substance detectors via its Thai distributor Avia Satcom Co for more than 1.13 billion baht to at least 15 government agencies between 2005 and 2010.
On Friday, Defence Ministry spokesman General Kongcheep Tantravanich explained that NSTDA had been hired at the advice of the Attorney-General’s Office to collect evidence to use in the legal battle against the distributor.
He explained that the Army had won the first lawsuit and the Central Administrative Court ordered the distributor to pay a compensation of 683 million baht, but the company appealed and took the case to the Supreme Administrative Court.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who leads the so-called “Pheu Thai family”, tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday after visiting former prime ministers Thaksin and Yingluck Shinawatra in Singapore. Thaksin is Paetongtarn’s father while Yingluck is her aunt.
Paetongtarn apologised to residents of Surin for not being able to meet them at a Pheu Thai event planned for today (Sunday) at Rajamangala University of Technology Isan’s Surin campus. She promised to meet with them in future.
The event was organised for farmers and innovation groups to air their problems as part of the party’s efforts to tackle poverty and other challenges in Surin.
Surin has seven MP seats – five belong to the opposition Pheu Thai party and the other two are held by Bhumjaithai and Palang Pracharath of the government coalition.
Paetongtarn’s no-show in Surin was another blow to Pheu Thai in south Isaan. It comes as three of its MPs in neighbouring Si Sa Ket are facing expulsion from the party for voting in favour of the government’s 2023 budget bill. The trio of rebel MPs are expected to join Bhumjaithai.
In all, seven Pheu Thai MPs defied the party whip and voted for the budget bill on Friday.
The rebellion is set to make south Isaan a key battleground at the next general election, expected no later than early 2023.
Paetongtarn is also Pheu Thai’s public participation and innovation adviser, while speculation is growing that she will be the party’s prime minister candidate at the next election.
An opposition MP’s allegation about a fake bomb and narcotic detector at the parliamentary debate on the 2023 Budget Bill earlier this week has spawned online exchanges between government critics and supporters.
Move Forward MP Jirat Thongsuwan said during the House debate on Thursday that the Defence Ministry spent as much as THB7.57 million to hire the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) to examine 757 GT200 devices, or THB10,000 per device.
Jessada Denduangboripant, a lecturer at Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Science, later wrote in his Facebook post that, “GT200 is amazing. It can waste the state budget all the time. The devices have been locked up for 14 years, but they are still moved out to waste the budget. It’s really a tool to make money.”
He described the device as little more than a “divining rod”.
The GT200 is a fraudulent “remote substance detector” that was claimed by its manufacturer, UK-based Global Technical Ltd, to be able to detect, from a distance, various substances including explosives and drugs.
In 2010, the UK government warned foreign governments that the GT200 is “wholly ineffective” at detecting bombs and explosives. Three years later, Global Technical owner Gary Bolton was convicted on two charges of fraud relating to the sale and manufacture of the GT200 and sentenced to seven years in prison.
In Thailand, military and provincial units reportedly had procured over 800 GT200 devices since 2004. All the devices were tested and found to be completely ineffective in detecting bombs or narcotic drugs as claimed by Global Technical.
Legal action was taken against its Thai distributor Avia Satcom whose executive Sitthiwat Wattakit was found by a court in 2018 to be guilty of fraud and sentenced to nine years imprisonment and a fine of THB18,000.
Chulalongkorn’s Jessada also wrote a series of Facebook posts criticising the Defence Ministry’s proposed budget for GT200 examinations.
“It’s hollow inside the device. Nothing. The Army does not need to hire the NSTDA to examine it for 10,000 baht each. That’s a waste of the taxpayer’s money,” he said.
His posts got “likes” from many Thai netizens who also left comments critical of the government and the military.
However, claims by Jessada and opposition MP Jirat were disputed by the Street Hero V3 Facebook page, which is viewed as pro-government.
According to the Facebook page, a check on the matter revealed that findings from the NSTDA examination would be used in a legal action filed with the Administrative Court against the Thai distributor of GT200 units. The petition by the relevant authorities seeks damages for breach of contract, it said.
It also said that the cost of examination was high because it requires in-depth scientific tests and measurements on the device’s efficiency involving electrostatic charges and magnetic field.
The 2023 budget bill passed its first reading after a vote in the House of Representatives in the early hours of Friday morning.
The lower house passed the 3.185-trillion-baht draft budget at 1am on Friday after a three-day debate. The bill has to pass two more readings in August.
Of the 472 MPs present, 278 voted in favour, 192 voted against, and two abstained.
The house will now appoint 72 committees to consider the budget bill and propose any amendments within 30 days. The committee meetings will begin on Monday at 2pm.
Of the 72 committees, 18 will be composed of Cabinet members and 54 formed by MPs from political parties, as follows: 15 from Pheu Thai, 11 from Palang Pracharath, 7 from Bhumjaithai, six from the Democrats, six from Move Forward, two from the Thai Economic Party, and one each from Chartthaipattana, Thai Liberal, Prachachart, New Economics, Puea Chat, Action Coalition for Thailand and the Thai Local Power parties.
After the vote, Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha said the budget would boost economic and social recovery from Covid-19, ensuring sustainable development, reducing inequality and disbursing aid throughout the country in a transparent manner.
Proceedings were disrupted when Suphan Buri MP Nuttawut Prasertsuwan (Chartthaipattana Party) objected to Uthai Thani MP Chada Thaiset (Bhumjaithai) speaking on Thursday at 9pm, saying Chada’s name was not on the debate list. This led to a heated argument between the two, prompting Deputy Speaker Suchart Tancharoen to ask both to sit down and turn off their microphones. Chada then reportedly walked towards Nuttawut and slapped him in the face before grabbing his phone and throwing it to the floor. Chada was later escorted out of the room by Chartthaipattana secretary-general Praphatra Photasuthol.
Bhumjaithai spokesman Natchanon Srikorkua later told press that the argument had been purely verbal, with no slap or throwing of phone. He added that other MPs might have told a different story as they didn’t witness it first-hand as he had done.
The Defence Ministry carefully spends its limited budget on weapon purchases to make sure that Thailand is well prepared to defend itself if necessary, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha told Parliament on Thursday.
Defending his government’s Budget Bill for fiscal 2023, General Prayut, who doubles as the defence minister, said the country’s defence budget has been “reduced a lot” over the past two years.
“Please understand that time is needed to prepare for [procurement of military weapons]. Thailand gets help from no one — we have to rely on ourselves. We have a domestic defence industry, but there are things that we need to buy,” Prayut said.
In response to criticism from opposition MPs, the PM said the Ministry of Defence was spending the limited budget carefully to ensure the country was ready for any form of security threats.
“Nobody can guarantee there is no such thing happening. So, there’s the need to acquire [military hardware] when the necessity arises,” he said.
Prayut also told the parliamentary meeting on the Budget Bill that the Border Police Bureau was allocated a large budget to construct their accommodations and border schools for rural children that they run.
He was responding to an observation by some opposition MPs that the allocated budget was “too high” and prone to irregularities.
The PM said the housing was needed to ensure high morale of the officers stationed in the border areas and required to stand by for various duties round-the-clock.
“The country’s peace and normalcy today can be attributed to those officials. If you damage the morale of police, soldiers and civil officers, who will want to work for you and maintain peace in the country?” Prayut asked.
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