Barkar Nash (Page 1,004)

Job-seekers from Myanmar said they had agreed to pay brokers B20,000 to B30,000 each

KANCHANABURI: Forty-two job seekers from Myanmar were arrested after illegally crossing the border into Sangkhla Buri district late on Wednesday night.

Soldiers, border patrol police and immigration officers were dispatched to tambon Nong Lu following a tip-off that a group of suspicious-looking people had been found at a forested area in Song Kalia village, said Col Thatchadet Arbuarat, deputy commander of the army’s Lat Ya task force, who was alerted at around 10pm.

By time the officers arrived, there was no one at the scene. The same informant told them that the people had boarded a vehicle headed towards a pier at Wat Wang Wiwekaram at Wang Ka village Moo 2 in tambon Nong Lu.

The team later found the men and women gathered near the Vajiralongkorn dam behind the pier. On seeing the officers, they ran into a nearby forest. All 42 people — 27 men and 15 women — were subsequently caught. All were Myanmar nationals without travel documents.

During questioning, they told authorities that they had travelled from Mandalay, Bago, Yangon and other parts of Myanmar. They entered Thailand via a natural crossing in Sangkhla Buri and were heading to promised jobs in Bangkok, Chon Buri, Phuket, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon and Rayong. Some were promised jobs in Malaysia.

The migrants told officers they had agreed to pay between 20,000 and 30,000 baht each to job brokers. The money was to be paid when they arrived at their destinations.

They were taken for body temperature checks as part of Covid 19-screening. All were normal. They were handed over to police at the Sangkhla Buri station for legal proceedings.

Large numbers of migrants continue to cross into Thailand illegally every day from Myanmar, where economic conditions have deteriorated considerably since the military seized power two years ago.

About 80,000 illegal border crossers, the vast majority of them from Myanmar, were estimated to have been caught in 2021. But as many as 100,000 more probably slipped past authorities and were now employed in various parts of the country, say groups that work with migrants.

Security video shows fall from sixth floor of shopping mall parking garage

PHUKET: A Russian man fell to his death from the parking garage of a shopping centre on this tourist island on Thursday morning.

Police were informed of the incident at Central Phuket in Muang district at about 8.20am.

They found the man’s body in a flower-patterned T-shirt, black shorts and a brown belt lying in a pool of blood on the concrete ground in front of the parking building of the shopping centre. His skull and right shoulder had been broken.

Security camera video showed the man entering the parking building alone and walking to its sixth floor. He then sat on a wall, turned his face to the inside of the building and leaned back.

Security guards heard the fall, rushed to the scene and called rescue workers and police. The foreigner succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

Clarifies his party’s stance on S112

Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul said on Wednesday he affirmed the party’s stance against amending Section 112, the lese majeste law, during a meeting with European Union (EU) ambassadors.

Speaking after meeting 17 diplomats from 13 European countries at the party’s head office, Mr Anutin said he told the delegation Bhumjaithai would only have one condition when forming a post-election alliance — that it would not work with any parties seeking to revise the lese majeste law.

He said the discussion touched on a number of issues including the political situation, the upcoming general election, post-election scenarios and Bhumjaithai’s policy approach toward the EU.

He said he told the EU delegation the party had not discussed prospective partnerships with any party and that it would respect the democratic process — including letting the party that wins the most House seats form a coalition first.

Mr Anutin said he gave assurances to the EU diplomats that Thailand was a step closer to democracy with the May 14 election, although the Senate’s role in co-selecting the prime minister remained an obstacle.

However, the Senate’s term will expire soon and so will its power to join the prime minister’s vote, he added.

Asked why EU ambassadors met with Bhumjaithai, he said he believed the delegation was seeking to meet parties likely to play a key role after the election.

Asked if the EU diplomats raised the party’s cannabis decriminalisation policy, he said the issue was raised and the party informed them the policy was successfully implemented.

The party would continue pushing for passage of a law to regulate its use. He added the passage of a cannabis control bill would be a condition of his party’s participation in the next government as well. Critics say the absence of regulation has severely hampered the policy rollout.

Mr Anutin said the party would support the formation of a constitution-drafting assembly to write a new charter, adding that if the charter is revised, it should be done by the people.

PPRP pitches help to farming families

Pheu Thai candidates are being told to engage more with voters through social media platforms to maintain the party’s edge ahead of the election.

In a crash course attended by some 200 election candidates on Wednesday, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, head of the “Pheu Thai Family”, told participants via video link that the party was faring well in many opinion polls.

The encouraging poll results bode well for members’ morale although she urged the candidates not be complacent, saying: “Anything can happen in 20 days leading up the polls.”

But they should not be too concerned as competitors are not adequately prepared for the polls, she said.

Ms Paetongtarn added some parties are reliant on social media to canvass for votes, which explains their improved ranking in some surveys.

However, she insisted social media remains an effective instrument for getting campaign messages across and so she urged the candidates to do more to expand their social media engagements in the run-up to the election.

“We need to put the word out that we have what it takes to change the entire country,” she said.

Pheu Thai leader, Dr Cholnan Srikaew, said the party’s candidates in many constituencies command wider local support than rival candidates.

He agreed they should use social media more to communicate campaign policies to voters.

Latest handouts

The Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) has pledged to give eight million farming families across the country 30,000 baht from an agricultural fund.

It is the latest campaign pledge by the PPRP as the May 14 election edges closer.

Charnkrit Detwithak, the party’s election strategy committee spokesman, said on Wednesday the fund is being submitted to the Election Commission for mandatory vetting.

He said the fund is intended to financially empower farming families and improve their living standards as many families struggle due to a lack of assistance money, he said.

The cash will be deposited into the bank accounts of eight million eligible families.

The outlay will also help stimulate the grassroots economy and raise domestic consumption, he said.

It is the most practical way to assist farmers, Mr Charnkrit said, adding the fund would not upset the country’s financial stability.

End to violence

The Prachachart Party is concentrating on finding a permanent solution to the southern violence and eradicating poverty by moving the country towards becoming a welfare state.

This message was conveyed by Pol Col Thawee Sodsong, the party secretary-general, at a debate in Muang district of Songkhla on Tuesday.

The debate was organised for parties competing for House seats in the South to showcase their vision for the region.

Pol Col Thawee said security woes in the southern border provinces of Yala, Pattani, Narathiwat and parts of Songkhla, brought on by ongoing insurgent violence, remain a pressing issue.

He insisted the violence must be tackled at its root and the living standards of locals improved. Poverty is a national problem that can be fixed by creating a welfare state, he said.

Among the party’s top priorities is to give people equal access to welfare as well as offer 20 rai of farmland to each farming family, and free and quality education.

Dos and don’ts

The Democrat Party has kickstarted a “4 dos” and “3 don’ts” campaign to make clear where it stands on political and social issues.

Democrat leader Jurin Laksanawisit led a gathering of party heavyweights to explain the campaign at the Democracy Monument on Ratchadamnoen Avenue on Wednesday.

With the “4 dos”, the party has vowed to preserve and strengthen the constitutional monarchy, forge an honest democratic system, create a “full-stomach” democracy by building up wealth, skilled people and a strong nation, as well as eradicate illicit drugs through an eye-for-an-eye approach.

The party also voiced support for the use of cannabis for medical purposes although it was against a full liberalisation policy.

Cannabis decriminalisation was the flagship policy of its government coalition partner, the Bhumjaithai Party at the last election.

Mr Jurin said with the “3 don’ts”, the party remains steadfast in its resistance to repealing Section 112 of the Criminal Code, or the lese majeste law, illicit drugs and corruption.