Thai royal insult law may have been misused: govt

BANGKOK, October 14, 2011 (AFP) – Thailand on
Thursday accepted its controversial royal insult laws may have been
misused and could “inadvertently” have affected freedom of expression,
in response to UN concerns.

The aim of lese majeste legislation, which prohibits criticism of the
monarchy and is punishable with up to 15 years in prison, “is not to
limit” freedoms of speech or academic discourse, the Thai Foreign
Ministry said.

“Be that as it may, in recent years, there have been cases where the law
has been enforced in such a way that may not be in line with its
purpose of protecting the dignity of the monarchy and may in some cases
inadvertently affect people’s freedom of expression,” it said.

It said the government recognises “potential issue arising from the
application of this law and also wishes to prevent the misuse of the
law”.

The statement comes after Frank La Rue, United Nations special
rapporteur on freedom of expression, called on Thailand to amend the
laws, saying a recent increase in legal cases highlights the urgent need
for reforms.

La Rue said such laws “encourage self-censorship and stifle important
debates on matters of public interest, thus putting in jeopardy the
right to freedom of opinion and expression”.

The foreign ministry statement said the lese majeste law works “in a
similar way” as libel law does for commoners, stressing that individuals
must be “accountable” for the views they express.

It added that a special committee in the Royal Thai Police headquarters had been set up to scrutinise potential prosecutions.

Academics have noted a sharp increase in new royal insult cases in
recent years and rights groups have expressed concern that the law was
used to suppress freedom of expression under the previous government.

On Monday, a US citizen Joe Wichai Commart Gordon pleaded guilty in a Thai court to charges of insulting the monarchy.

He was arrested in May during a holiday in the kingdom and accused of
translating a banned unauthorised biography of King Bhumibol Adulyadej
into Thai and publishing it on the Internet while living in the United
States.

Thailand’s royals are an extremely sensitive subject in the politically divided country.

King Adulyadej, 83, the world’s longest-reigning monarch and revered as a
demi-god by many Thais, has been in hospital since September 2009.

– ©Copyright AFP 2011-10-14 | AFP News Sponsor

Published with written approval from AFP.

Thai PM moves to soothe Bangkok flood panic

BANGKOK, October 14, 2011 (AFP) – Thailand’s premier
moved Friday to reassure Bangkok’s 12 million residents over a looming
flood crisis, after one of her ministers briefly sparked panic with an
evacuation warning.

Science minister Plodprasop Suraswadi rushed out of a flood briefing
late Thursday to say that several areas in Bangkok’s northern suburbs
were at risk of being submerged by up to one meter (3.3 feet) of water
after a dyke burst.

But the authorities quickly backtracked, causing confusion among
residents who have been braced for floodwaters to reach the capital
after causing havoc  across northern and central Thailand, leaving at
least 289 people dead.

Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra said on Friday that the situation was under control.

“The water level is stable and not increasing. So I would like to ask people not to panic,” she told reporters.

“Minister Prodprasob wanted to update the people about the situation
because he was concerned that they were anxious about it,” Yingluck
explained.

“So he just reported about the possibility of what might happen to the people, and nothing happened. Everything was normal.”

Some residents in the affected areas rushed to move their belongings to higher ground after the warning.

In the Bangkok suburb of Saimai, local authorities received hundreds of
phone calls from concerned residents, district chief Nongpanga Boonpaksa
told AFP by telephone.

“After last night’s announcement people in Saimai were panicky. There
were some frantic traffic jams in our district because people were
trying to move their cars to higher places but the situation later
returned normal,” she said.

About 110,000 people around the country have sought refuge in shelters
in the face of the floods that have destroyed crops, inundated hundreds
of factories and damaged the homes and livelihoods of millions of
people.

Currently 26 out of 77 provinces are affected, but conditions in inner
Bangkok and at most of Thailand’s top tourist destinations are normal.

The capital is, however, bracing for a large amount of run-off water to
reach the city along with seasonal high tides that will make it harder
for the flood waters to flow out to sea.

Bangkok residents have thronged supermarkets in the capital to stock up
on instant noodles and other non-perishable food, while flashlights have
been flying off the shelves.

Sandbags have been piled in front of homes and businesses in preparation
for possible inundation, while some residents have opted to leave their
vehicles in multi-storey carparks in the city to avoid possible
flooding.

Central Bangkok is protected by flood walls and the authorities have
piled sandbags along the Chao Phraya River to try to keep water out of
nearby areas, whose residents are no strangers to seasonal floods.

The authorities have said they will dredge and drain canals in the capital to allow more water to flow through.

The floods have dealt a heavy blow to Thailand’s economy, leaving hundreds of factories under water.

Japanese automakers including Toyota have suspended production in the
kingdom due to water damage to facilities or disruption to parts
supplies.

The ancient city of Ayutthaya, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) upriver of
Bangkok, has been badly affected and the UN cultural organisation
UNESCO said it would launch a mission to the World Heritage site to
assess the impact.

– ©Copyright AFP 2011-10-14 | AFP News Sponsor

Published with written approval from AFP.

627 Bangkok communities under water

The Nation

As of press time yesterday, 627 communities had been
flooded in Bangkok, with water levels as high as 70 centimetres in some
spots. These flood-hit areas are in 20 of Bangkok’s 50 districts.

The worst-hit spots are in Klong Sam Wa district in the east of Bangkok,
where flood levels range between 30cm and 70cm. Some zones in inner
Bangkok, such as Phra Nakhon, Dusit, Sathorn and Yan Nawa, are also
flooded.

Officials of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) are rushing
to pile up sandbags along waterways that look set to swell or overflow.
They are also handing out relief items, including medicines, to flood
victims.

The BMA has designated 96 schools in 17 districts as possible shelters for up to 19,400 evacuees.

Masses of water are expected to hit the capital from the North today and downpours have also been forecast.

After checking the level of the Chao Phraya River near the capital’s
largest flower market, Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra said it
was higher yesterday than the 2010 peak.

“It has risen to 2.13 metres above the median sea level,” he said.

Last year, the river’s highest level in Bangkok stood at just 2.10 metres.

“We have to get ready to evacuate people living near the embankments,”
Sukhumbhand said, adding that the situation would be most worrying from
today to Monday.

– The Nation 2011-10-15

Thai city offers bounty for fugitive crocodiles

BANGKOK, October 16, 2011 (AFP) – The ancient Thai city of Ayutthaya,
which has seen its temple engulfed in the kingdom’s flood crisis, has
discovered a new menace lurking in the floodwaters — crocodiles.

Around 100 reptiles are thought to be on the loose after escaping from
farms in the area and authorities have issued a 1,000 baht ($33) bounty
for each crocodile caught alive, said Public Health Minister Vitthaya
Buranasiri.

“The crocodiles need to be captured to keep people safe,” he told AFP.

The creatures have been spotted in several areas of the former Thai capital, a World Heritage site and major tourist attraction.

Thailand’s worst floods in decades have inundated huge swathes of the
kingdom, swallowing homes and businesses, shutting down industry, and
forcing tens of thousands of people to seek refuge in shelters.

About 300 people have died in the disaster, although there have been no
known incidents of animal-related deaths resulting from the flooding.

The natural resource ministry has dedicated a hotline for people wanting to report wild animals on the loose in flooded areas.

“We are now coordinating with the fishery department for a hotline about
any loose animals in the flood areas, whether it is tigers, snakes or
crocodiles,” said an official, who said the department has received
“many phone calls”.

The ministry said government agencies have been dispatched to catch the
creatures, but was unable to disclose how many had been caught. The
hotline number inside Thailand is 1362.

– ©Copyright AFP 2011-10-16 | AFP News Sponsor

Published with written approval from AFP.

Govt scales down plan to give free tablet PCs

Chularat Saengpassa

Wannapa Khaopa

The Nation

Any school ready to use tablet computers for
teaching and learning will be given the tools early next year, Education
Minister Woravat Auapinyakul told Nation Multimedia Group (NMG)
yesterday.

He urged interested schools to prepare their teachers and students well
to embrace the opportunity, as only schools that can prove they are
capable of making use of the tablets will be chosen.

“We won’t distribute them to all Prathom 1 [Grade 1] students in every
school. We won’t force every school to take the tablets. Teachers should
be prepared for the technology. We are not concerned about students as
they’re from a generation ready and enthusiastic to learn from the
technology – but teachers of the older generation may find it difficult
to use such tools,” Woravat said.

Budget will be allocated for the tablet distribution project in
February, with distribution plans and their conditions completed in
January, he said.

Woravat has an idea to provide the tablets with basic specifications,
but if any schools want higher or advanced specifications, they can
apply for funds to get them.

As strong competition in the tablet market brings down prices, he
expects the tablets to be cheaper next year when the ministry buys them
in volume.

To make the tablets more varied and useful, e-contents in extra subjects
will be installed, some produced by the Office of the Basic Education
Commission.

The minister yesterday discussed with NMG executives and editors his
reason for a reshuffle of senior officials at the ministry – an issue
that has been in the spotlight for two weeks.

He has been accused of bias or using political influence in moving some of the officials.

“My consideration was based on their work performance. People at the
ministry know the chosen officials’ performance very well,” he said. A
senior official he chose was a cousin of a member of the Democrat Party
who had contested against him during the July election, but he did not
care because she demonstrated good working ability.

“However, when I find any who cannot do their jobs well, I will certainly reshuffle them again.”

Woravat was also criticised for being dominant as people have not seen
any concrete work from his two deputy education ministers. Under his
area-based education development policy, each minister is in charge of a
different region.

“The deputy ministers cannot do much now since it is the end of the
fiscal year. So, no budget is available for new projects. We’re now in
the process of creating the national strategic plan. I have had many
meetings late at night with senior officials to create the plan and it
will be finished this month. The 11th National Economic and Social
Development Plan will have to adjust so that it will link into our
education plan.

“The Education Ministry is a large agency with more than 500,000
personnel. We won’t work without the plan to be implemented next year,”
he said.

The plan will stimulate higher employment by targeting universities to
lead education development, passing on knowledge to schools, finding
strong points of each area and strengthening basic education and
students’ working skills. It will be based on each area’s strong points
with help from vocational institutes.

Proficient practitioners will equip students with working skills; but
the Government Teacher and Educational Personnel Act does not allow
people without professional teaching licences to teach.

Woravat said he would adjust some regulations to allow experts from different professions to be involved in teaching.

Woravat said he would host a meeting with education ministers from Asean
countries early next year to discuss how to prepare their education for
the Asean Economic Community, which comes into effect in 2015.

– The Nation 2011-10-06