#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012286

The Tourism Commission listens to complaints from elephant and tiger attraction operators affected by Covid-19 on Sunday.

Thailand’s elephant and tiger attractions have run out of money and options, says operators, who pleaded for government assistance on Sunday.

The message was delivered at Tiger Kingdom in Chiang Mai, where tourism commissioner Sirinthorn Ramsut and Pheu Thai MPs met with zoo operators to seek a path out of the business downturn caused by Covid-19.

Sirinthorn highlighted the government’s low-interest loan programme to revive businesses but said it was still insufficient and difficult to access.

Pacha Rattanaphan, president of Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association, said Thailand’s five tiger attractions had run out of cash after failing to secure financial credit from banks.

He added that elephant sanctuaries faced difficulty securing loans as their land was often undocumented. He called on the government to allow the sanctuaries to put up their elephants as collateral for loans to buy animal feed in the absence of income from tourists.

He also urged authorities to develop sustainable-crop projects to feed tigers and elephants.

The managing director of Khum Sue Trakarn, which operates two Tiger Kingdoms in Chiang Mai and one in Phuket, said their income had dropped from almost 1 million baht per day pre-Covid to zero over the past two years.

“The company still has to bear the burden of feeding and housing the existing 220 tigers,” Kochakorn Chaibutr said. “We used to have about 400 employees but now only 30 per cent of the workforce is left. The company still needs working capital for expenses of 4-5 million baht per month. Kochakorn called on the government to find a financial institution that would loan money to his company.

Wittaya Phongsiri, owner of the Lanna Kingdom Elephant Sanctuary in Chiang Mai’s Mae Taeng district, said elephant attractions in the northern province have suffered for the past two years of the pandemic.

He demanded three things from the government – suspension of all debt repayments for elephant businesses until the Covid situation improves, a financial institution that would provide low-interest business loans, and help with expenses for feeding the elephants, which he called a living heritage of the Thai people.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012285

Soldiers nabbed 264 illegal Myanmar migrants trying to sneak across the Kanchanaburi border in eight instances over Friday and Saturday. These migrants apparently relied on four Thai men, who were also arrested.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered relevant agencies to monitor Thailand’s porous borders more closely and take stringent action against human traffickers.

“Tight patrols need to be put in place along Thailand’s borders and natural channels. Nobody should be allowed to get away, not even if they are government officials,” government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana quoted the premier as saying.

Apart from tackling the human-trafficking problem, the prime minister has also called on authorities to crack down on call-centre scammers.

These scammers generally make intimidating phone calls to people and scare them into transferring money. Prayut advised people to not get talked into transferring money or investing in get-rich-quick schemes offered by strangers.

Instead, he said, people should consult with government officials or local police first.

They can also seek advice from cyber police by calling (081) 866 3000.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012282

With Valentine’s Day due to arrive on Monday, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said Thai couples should learn “how to love without getting a Covid-19 infection”.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic is not yet over, Prayut said couples should make adjustments to express their love safely in the new normal.

He said sending gifts to one another and meeting via video calls is an expression of true love because couples can protect each other from infection.

“The prime minister also hopes this Valentine’s Day will bring love and unity among the people of Thailand. He wants to see everybody caring for each other and helping one another win this battle against Covid-19,” government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said on Sunday.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012281

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has called on relevant agencies to find ways of safely reopening Thai-Malaysia border crossings in the South by March.

The borders crossings in Songkhla, Yala, Narathiwat and Satun provinces were initially scheduled to reopen in January, but the plan was postponed due to the recent Omicron outbreak.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012280

Apart from Valentine’s Day and Makha Bucha, the second most important day in the Buddhist calendar, Thailand has also been celebrating “Love Hornbills Day” on February 13 every year since 1997.

The date was chosen to mark the fact that these birds are monogamous and mate for life. Legend has it that female hornbills and chicks will starve to death if the male partner does not return from hunting.

Research shows that these birds are key to the ecosystem as their presence and numbers are an indicator of a forest’s condition and fertility.

At last count five years ago, Thailand had 3,000 hornbills with most of them being spotted in Nakhon Nayok’s Khao Yai National Park and Narathiwat’s Budo Su-ngai Padi National Park.

The hornbill population in Thailand has been dwindling due to deforestation and hunting. They apparently fetch a high price in the black market as these birds are seen as a “symbol of prestige”.

The birds are covered by the 1992 Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act and people caught possessing, buying or selling them can face up to four years in prison and/or a fine of 40,000 baht.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012276

Thailand’s cyber police task force along with officials from the Digital Economy and Society Ministry have brought back 21 suspects who allegedly operated call centres in Cambodia targeting Thai people.

The suspects were hunted down in a joint Thai-Cambodian crackdown in three locations on Friday morning.

The first site was YN Hotel in Phnom Penh, where two suspects were arrested. The hotel’s fourth to eighth floors were used as residential quarters, while a call centre operated from the ninth floor. This gang allegedly conned people into investing in digital currency via the Digital Alliance website. The victims, mostly Thais, have lost up to 200 million in this scam.

The second location was a four-storey building opposite Sihanoukville’s Sokha Vegas Casino, where six suspects were arrested. This building housed a call centre and a team of workers who were forced to stay indoors by their Chinese boss. This call centre also targeted Thais with calls being made by people pretending to be police officers or officials from the Department of Special Investigation (DSI). This operation is believed to have scammed people out of 300 million baht.

The third location was the Chinatown GM Office in Sihanoukville where 13 people were arrested. This building also served as accommodation and a workplace for scammers who tricked people into playing games for money. The scammers pretended to be linked to the Central department store or PTT Group. Most victims were Thais, who lost at least 500 million baht in total.

The 21 suspects, many of whom are Chinese and Cambodian nationals, have been taken to Sa Kaew immigration headquarters for prosecution. Cambodian police, meanwhile, have launched a manhunt for others who may have been involved in the scam.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40012277

Arrest warrants were issued on Saturday against two Canadian gunmen who allegedly shot down a Canadian passport holder in Phuket’s Muang district on February 4.

The victim, identified as Jimi “Slice” Sandhu who carried a Canadian passport under the name Mandeep Singh, was wanted for crimes in both Canada and India.

Phuket police chief Pol Maj-General Sermphan Sirikong said the two suspected gunmen are believed to have flown out of Thailand on February 6. Investigators have contacted countries they may be in to capture and extradite them to face legal procedures in Thailand, he added.

“Investigators are also collecting evidence to see if there are more people involved in this case,” he said.

Sandhu sustained several gunshot wounds outside his rented beachfront villa on Rawai Beach on the night of February 4. After the shooting, the hitmen threw their pistols into the sea nearby, which were later found by the investigators. Each of the guns is legally registered to Thai nationals, who the police are hunting for.

Meanwhile, immigration records show that Sandhu landed in Thailand in 2016.

Sandhu, who moved to Canada with his family when he was seven, had come to Thailand to avoid an arrest warrant issued in Vancouver for his role in the killing of a rival Red Scorpion gang member. He had allegedly been working with a gang dubbed the “United Nations” and earned the nickname “Slice” from a prominent scar on his cheek, police said.

He is also wanted in India over drug trafficking charges.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40012275

A slick caused by the leakage of 5,000 litres of oil from an undersea pipeline off the coast of Rayong has washed up at Mae Ramphueng Beach, press reports said on Saturday.

The sand on the beach is now covered with a glossy film of slime with an oily smell despite Star Petroleum Refining (SPRC)’s efforts to disperse the oil with booms and blotting papers.

Tapong subdistrict mayor Taweep Saengkrachang echoed Deputy Transport Minister’s assumption earlier that the latest leak had been caused by SPRC’s inspection of the pipeline at the single point mooring (SPM) site.

As for the slick on the beach, he reckons it is accumulated from the initial spill of more than 40,000 litres of crude oil on January 25.

He also voiced concern that oil accumulated under the sea would wash up between March and April when the monsoon arrives.

Meanwhile, the Pollution Control Department has collected samples of the oil slick for tests.

So far, related agencies, including the Thai Navy, have been working hard to clear the slick with booms and chemical dispersants.

“A large slick is visible seven kilometres off the coast of Mae Ramphueng Beach and 10km from Samet Island,” press reports said.

This is a second leak after some 160,000 litres of crude oil was leaked from an SPRC pipeline about 17 kilometres from the Map Ta Phut Industrial Port.

Here’s what has happened so far:

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/in-focus/40012274

As part of moves to develop the capital’s canals and improve the lives of residents, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is getting ready to launch an electric boat service in the Saen Saep canal.

The new boat service will run from Wat Si Bun Rueang to the Minburi district office is expected to be launched this month. BMA has procured 12 electric boats for the project and has rebuilt eight damaged piers.

The service will run from 5.30am to 8.30pm daily from Monday to Friday, with boats departing every 15 minutes during rush hour and every 30 minutes otherwise. The last boat will leave the pier at about 7.30pm.

On Saturday, Sunday and public holidays, the service will be provided from 6am to 7pm, with boats departing every 30 minutes and the last boat leaving at about 6.30pm.

The piers served by these electric boats are:

• Wat Si Bun Rueang

• Phrommitpittaya School

• Seri Thai Pier 26

• Khlong Ras

• Rom Sai Village

• Red Mosque

• Lo Lae Yai Community

• Minburi Market

• Minburi District Office

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40012272

Public Health Ministry reported on Sunday (February 13) morning that in the past 24 hours there are 15,882 new patients who tested positive for Covid-19, 200 of whom are foreign travellers.

Death toll increased by 24, while 9,482 patients were cured and allowed to leave hospitals.

Cumulative cases in the country since January 1, 2022 are at 369,892.

Published : February 13, 2022

By : THE NATION