#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Tension boils over as protest leaders report to police

NationalAug 28. 2020

By THE NATIONScuffles broke out as Jatupat Boonpattararaksa and 14 other anti-government protester leaders reported to answer charges at Samranrat Police Station in Bangkok on Friday (August 28).

The protesters were charged with violating the emergency decree and offences related to traffic and disease control laws over their participation at the Free Youth rally at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument on July 18.

Jatupat, better known as Pai Dao Din, travelled to the station with his co-accused from the October 14 Memorial, where they and around 100 supporters had camped overnight for a protest dubbed “Camp Not Jail”.

Dozens of anti-government activists have now been summoned or arrested over protests that began in June.

On hand to monitor events at the station were United Nations officials, academics, and Move Forward politicians, but they were barred from getting close to the protesters by barriers erected by police.

Also outside the station were around 100 supporters of the protesters, some of whom tried to cross the barriers, sparking scuffles with police. Among them was singer Chaiamorn Kaewvibulphan, who splashed blue paint on officers in what he described was “artistic” retaliation for police harassment of protesters.

Jatupat spent almost two years in jail from 2017 to 2019 after being found guilty of lese majeste for sharing a BBC Thai profile of His Majesty the King. In 2014 he was among the first to use the three-finger salute of defiance against dictatorship, which has now been adopted by the nationwide student-led anti-government campaign.

The protesters are calling for dissolution of Parliament, a new Constitution and an end to harassment of activists. Some are also calling for monarchy reforms.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Thai Airways brings more Thais home from Taiwan

NationalAug 28. 2020

By The Nation

Thai Airways International (THAI), in collaboration with the Foreign Ministry, on Thursday (August 27) brought back Thai nationals stranded in Taiwan for the fourth time.

A total of 228 Thais, who had registered with the Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei, landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 4.50pm. THAI also delivered cargo on the round-trip flight.

Sqn Leader Anirut Sangrit, vice president of the airline’s Flight Operations Department, said THAI is always prepared to operate special flights to fly Thais home during this difficult time.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Khon Kaen squatters to be given title deeds in bid to close income gap

NationalAug 28. 2020

By THE NATION

The Treasury Department is offering title deeds for 1,100 plots under its jurisdiction to farmers and locals in Khon Kaen province to help promote earnings and cut down on economic disparity.

Deputy Finance Minister Santi Phromphat said on Friday (August 28) that the Treasury Department was offering title deeds to 1,100 farmers and residents of Nonsomboon sub-district in Khon Kaen’s Ban Haed district as part of the “Thanarak Pracharat” campaign.

“This campaign is part of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Deputy PM General Prayut Wongsuwan’s policies to promote earning opportunities for local people, reduce income disparity and drive the grassroots economy forward,” he said.

“The land offered to Khon Kaen locals came from the Public Health Ministry’s Department of Disease Control, which returned the land to the Treasury Department after shutting down the Leprosy Treatment Centre on the site earlier,” Santi said.

“Since locals were already illegally farming or occupying the land, the department decided to offer them title deeds so they can become legal tenants at the ultra-low rate of Bt200 per rai per annum for farmers and Bt0.5 per square wah per month for residences. The government is also offering a grace period of one year for rents, which should help alleviate people’s financial burden due to Covid-19,” the minister said.

“These title deeds can also be used as a collateral for loans taken at state-run financial institutes, which should be very useful in case they wish to expand their farming business or rebuild their homes,” Santi said.

The department has more than 12 million rai of land under its jurisdiction that has not been utilised, the minister said.

“So far, the department has surveyed and allotted more than 10,000 plots of land in six provinces. The next land title deed handout will take place in Nakhon Sawan on September 11.”

“The department also aims to offer 1.05 million rai of land to over 73,000 people by the end of 2022, because the latest land-survey technology has accelerated ownership verification process from one to two years per plot to just one to two months,” he added.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Sukhothai picks up the pieces after being ravaged by floods

NationalAug 28. 2020

By The NationThe flood situation in Sukhothai province is seeing an improvement, while the Department of Empowerment of Persons With Disabilities (DEP) has offered Bt3,000 cash relief to disabled people who are impacted by the inundation.

On Thursday (August 27), the level of Yom River dropped and water that had inundated residential areas were drained until some roads became passable.

Sukhothai is one of the worst-hit by floods in the country.

Soldiers in the province were sent to remove floating branches entangled in houses and clear the path so that residents could return to their homes.

DEP director-general Thanaporn Promsuwan visited disabled people who were affected by the flood in Muang Sukhothai, Si Samrong and Sawankhalok district.

The department, together with provincial organisations, has offered aid packages, portable toilets and Bt3,000 cash to 50 families and a total of 2,000 disabled members and planned to rehabilitate jobs and rebuild damaged houses.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Trade between China, Asean expands despite pandemic

NationalAug 28. 2020

By The Nation

China-Asean trade has expanded 6.6 per cent year on year at Bt11 trillion in the first seven months of this year despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the Chinese customs bureau was quoted as saying.

Xinhua news agency said trade between China and Vietnam alone has expanded 18.1 per cent in the first half of this year, making it the strongest bilateral trading partnership in Asean.

Agricultural products and electronic devices are behind the growth in trade between China and the Asean, which has ousted European Union from its role as China’s largest trading partner.

Analysts say the pandemic reduced demands in the European Union, though consumption continued to expand in Asean due to free-trade agreements and improved collaboration of the supply chain.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Govt agency names role models for sustainable community-based tourism

NationalAug 28. 2020

By The Nation

In a move to bring community-based tourism up to international standards, the Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (Dasta) has chosen Chiang Mai’s Nai Wiang area and Loei’s Chiang Khan district to serve as role models in the first year.

Chuwit Mitrchob, acting director for Dasta, said they aim to nominate Nai Wiang and Chiang Khan as sustainable destinations in 2022, so the Top 100 index becomes more concrete.

They will then move on to Na Kluea area in Chonburi, Muang Kao in Sukhothai, Koh Mak in Trat and Suphanburi’s U-Thong district.

“Sustainable tourism has been introduced for a while now, but no clear or concrete criterion set so far,” Chuwit said. “However, the Sustainable Destinations Top 100 index will help answer questions, because it has clear requirements in both quality and quantity.”

The index will be acknowledged by Internationale Tourismus-Börse Berlin (ITB), and Thai tourism brands will be more accepted at the international level, benefiting and preserving the traditional lives of locals.

The project also corresponds to the government’s national strategy on eco-tourism and will focus on key criteria, making tourism in Thailand more responsible and sustainable.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Significant support in Isaan for protesters, study shows

NationalAug 28. 2020

By THE NATION

Most people in the Northeast support and agree with the demands made by young protesters, a survey conducted by Khon Kaen University shows.

The survey, conducted between August 21 and 23 on 1,167 respondents, was released on Friday (August 28). The respondents were divided into two groups, the 16 to 30 year olds, and those aged 31 and older.

Of the many issues put forward, 93. 2 per cent of the younger group said they agreed that the government is using administrative tools to threaten protesters, while only 76. 2 per cent of the older group were in agreement.

Of the younger group, 96.3 per cent agreed that the Constitution needs to be amended and Parliament dissolved, while only 77.8 per cent of the older group agreed.

Moreover, 97.7 per cent of the younger group said they supported political movement in the country, and 92.8 per cent rejected the notion that protesters were being brainwashed or controlled by politicians. Of the older group, 78.3 per cent agreed with there being political movements, and 69.4 per cent disagreed to the brainwashing idea.

Meanwhile, only 56.5 per cent of the younger group agreed that the protests will result in violence, while 74.2 per cent of the older group said they saw the possibility of clashes.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Strict controls on borders as Myanmar sees big jump in Covid-19 cases

NationalAug 28. 2020Chatchai Promlert 

By The Nation

The Interior Ministry has ordered 10 provinces close to the Myanmar border to tighten scrutiny because of the increasing number of Covid-19 cases in the neighbouring country.

Chatchai Promlert, the ministry’s permanent secretary, on Friday told the provincial governors and local administratiom agencies to especially keep a watch on illegal entry across the border.

On Thursday, the government’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) reported a second wave of Covid-19 outbreak in Myanmar. Since August 16, there have been 580 cases, most of them in Sittwe, the capital of the northern Rakhine State, leading to a lockdown of since August 20.

Chatchai emphasised on surveillance in border areas of the 10 provinces: Kanchanaburi, Chumphon, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Tak, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Phetchaburi, Mae Hong Son, Ranong and Ratchaburi, as needed. He urged the officials to strictly follow the CCSA’s virus prevention measures.

Meanwhile, Pasakorn Boonyalak, deputy governor of Chiang Rai province, called for a meeting on Thursday (August 27) with border agencies to discuss measures on preventing the spread of Covid-19 after 20 new cases were reported in Sittwe of Rakhine State in Myanmar.

As per Worldometers, Myanmar had 602 confirmed Covid-19 cases as of 2am on Friday, and in response, the country has ordered all schools closed.

Authorities are concerned about the districts of Mae Sai, Mae Fah Luang, Mae Chan and Chiang Saen, as they are on the borders of Myanmar and Laos. The Pha Muang Force, a team of rangers, soldiers and local police, installed barbed wire fence and surveillance cameras to detect movement and is also patrolling the natural channels with drones to prevent unauthorised entry of both Burmese and Thais stranded in Myanmar.

If there is any sign of smuggling across the border, arrests will be carried out immediately, the authorities said.

Colonel Chatree Sanguantham, chief of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment Task Force, said 332 people trying to make their way into the country through natural channels have been returned to their country of origin in cooperation with the Mae Sai communicable disease control outfit.

Pasakorn said Chiang Rai has been clean of Covid-19 for more than 100 days and that borders will be strictly guarded to ensure there are no new cases.

Meanwhile, approximately 10,000 Chinese tourists are reportedly stranded at the King Roman Casino on the Laos side of the Chiang Saen border, and many have been trying to make their way across the Mekong River into Thailand, so they can be deported to China.

In the past month, 18 such people were caught and made to return by foot because there are no guidelines on supporting such groups.

Separately, Chaiyapruek Chianthanrak, chief of Mae Sot district in Tak province, called an urgent meeting on Thursday to discuss the Covid-19 situation in Rakhine state.

He said that since Mae Sot is on the border with Myanmar, related officials should ensure that they do not let any infected Myanmar citizens cross the border.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Six arrivals, including medical tourist, test positive for Covid-19

NationalAug 28. 2020

By The Nation

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) reported six new cases in state quarantine over a 24-hour period on Friday (August 28), the 95th day without any domestic cases in Thailand since May.

The infected persons, three Thais and three foreigners, were all asymptomatic.

Among them is a 45-year-old Thai welder in state quarantine in Bangkok, who returned from Uzbekistan on August 13 and tested positive on Monday and 36-year-old Thai woman who returned from the Philippines on August 15, and tested positive in the Chonburi state quarantine on Thursday.

A 44-year-old Thai woman and a 62-year-old American man who holds a Thai work permit travelled in the same flight from Germany on August 22. The American man, staying in an alternative state quarantine in Bangkok, and the Thai woman in a state quarantine facility in Samut Prakan were both found positive on Wednesday.

A 36-year-old Ethiopian woman, who is here for medical treatment, and her 34-year-old husband arrived on Wednesday and checked into an alternative hospital quarantine in Bangkok. Both of them checked positive on the same day.

As of Friday, the total number of confirmed cases in Thailand stood at 3,410 (473 found in state quarantine), of whom 115 are in hospital and 3,237 have recovered and discharged. The death toll remains unchanged at 58.

Globally, the total number of confirmed cases rose to 24.6 million (7.6 million active cases), up by 282,000. Of them, 17 million have recovered, while 835,000 have died so far.

Thailand ranks 120th in terms of most cases in the world, while the list is led by the US with 6.04 million infections, followed by Brazil 3.76 million, India 3.38 million, Russia 976,000 and Peru with 622,000.

#ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

Gambler denies he is working for the government

NationalAug 28. 2020Apirak Chai-anon 

By The Nation

Well-known gambling tycoon Apirak “Sia Poh” Chai-anon on Friday (August 28) denied having anything to do with a task force set up to tackle online gambling after photographs of him participating in a meeting with the House committee on legal affairs, justice and human rights were published on Thursday.

Apirak was reportedly invited by Palang Pracharat Party MP Arun Sawasdee to advice the task force as he has earned a name for himself for being a successful gambler in international casinos.

“Don’t be jealous. The government invited me to find a way of bringing money into the country. I will accept the position of adviser, but will not get into politics. I will also not act like stupid online influencers, who believe they’re smart and want to be powerful in the country for their own benefit,” he said in a Facebook post.

News that the ruling party had appointed Apirak and another possible gambling tycoon Pol Lt-Colonel Santhana Prayoonrat to advise the task force on tackling online gambling issues created a furore on Thai social media.

Many netizens raised questions as to why the government would appoint gamblers.

However, Apirak later posted another message saying he did not accept the job as he does not know how to handle such a task and that the media must have made a mistake.