Barkar Nash (Page 49)

120m passengers arrived last year

The country’s six main airports welcomed almost 120 million passengers in the previous fiscal year ending Sept 30 with air traffic on course to grow even further this current year, according to the Airports of Thailand (AoT).

The six airports operated by the AoT — Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Fae Fah Luang in Chiang Rai and Krabi — recorded 119.2 million passengers in the last fiscal year, up 19% from the same period the previous year.

Of them, 72.6 million were international arrivals, up 34.8%, and 46.6 million domestic passengers, up 1%.

In terms of flights, the six airports handled a combined 732,690 flights or 14.5% more than they did the previous fiscal year.

Of these, 416,190 were international flights, up 29.3%, and 316,500 domestic flights, down 0.73%.

AoT president Kerati Kijmanawat said the authority expects to welcome 129.9 million visitors this current year, an 8.9% increase year on year, and receive more than 800,000 flights at the six airports.

For the 2024/2025 winter flights, Mr Kerati said that 370,239 are scheduled to arrive and depart from the six airports, an increase of 22.1% from the 2023/2024 season.

Of those, 222,780 will be international flights, a 33.1% increase on last year, with most of the inbound flights coming from China, Malaysia, India, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

The rise in traffic is expected to bring in 23% more visitors during the current cool season, said Mr Kerati.

“The AoT is working to improve services [at the airports] as we strive for the title of world’s best flight operator,” said Mr Kerati.

Meanwhile, planes heading to either Suvarnabhumi or Don Mueang may need to fly over the city centre as they approach the airports during the cool season months, according to the Aeronautical Radio of Thailand (Aerothai).

Aerothai president Nopasit Chakpitak said yesterday that in the event of a change in wind speed and direction which might render landing using the usual flight path unsafe, aircraft approaching the two main airports will have to change course and fly over the city centre before landing.

A change in weather patterns has been predicted after the country officially moved from the rainy season to the cool season on Tuesday.

The mercury will drop in most parts of the country over the next four months.

Mr Noppasit said Aerothai will work with the Meteorological Department on aviation traffic management this season to ensure the safety of passengers.

A new Bank of Thailand (BoT) board chairman is expected to be named on Monday after a three-month selection process, according to a Finance Ministry source.

The selection process was to find a replacement for Porametee Vimolsiri, whose term ended on Sept 16.

The selection committee, led by the former finance permanent secretary, Sathit Limpongpan, will meet at the BoT for a secret ballot on Nov 4.

It is expected that a decision on the new chairman will be made at the meeting.

On Oct 8, the committee set up to pick a new board chairman postponed making a selection amid concerns of possible political interference raised by several people, including former BoT governor Tarisa Watanagase.

The government has signalled that it plans to nominate its own candidate to succeed Mr Porametee.

Former commerce minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong has been tipped for the post.

Mr Kittiratt was a former deputy leader and former chief strategist on the economy under the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

He also served as an adviser to former prime minister Srettha Thavisin and criticised the BoT’s interest rate policy and the agency’s independence.

The seven-member selection committee met yesterday afternoon amid speculation Mr Kittiratt would be given the nod. However, it decided to postpone the decision pending more information gathering.

Ms Tarisa earlier urged the committee responsible for selecting the chairman to demonstrate moral courage.

In a social media post, she said the government was unhappy with the BoT’s interest rate policy and its views on the 10,000-baht digital wallet plan.

She warned that if the government-backed candidate was appointed board chairman, it would pave the way for political interference and could have serious economic implications.

Apart from Mr Kittiratt, other candidates for chairman are former permanent secretary for energy, Kulit Sombatsiri, and Surapon Nitikraipot, the Thammasat University Council president and an independent director of PTT Plc.

According to selection rules, the Ministry of Finance can propose one candidate per board vacancy, while the BoT can propose twice that number.

Widely condemned Lazada promo appeared to mock Royal Family member but not one covered by Section 112

An online influencer who appeared in a controversial advertisement that appeared to mock a member of the Royal Family has been acquitted of lese-majeste, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).

The Criminal Court on Wednesday dismissed charges of royal defamation and computer crime against Thidaporn Chaokuwiang, 30, that were laid in connection with a campaign for the e-commerce company Lazada in May 2022.

Ms Thidaporn was arrested the following month after petitioner Srisuwan Janya filed a police complaint. Also arrested were Aniwat Prathumthin, also known as Nara Crepe Katoey, and Kittikhun Thamkittirat, aka Momdew Diary. They were later released on bail.

The three had appeared in a TikTok video for a Lazada shopping promotion, with Ms Thidaporn dressed in a traditional Thai silk outfit and sitting in a wheelchair.

Many who viewed the advertisement were outraged, saying there was a clear intent to mock a member of the Royal Family.

Lazada and the agency that created the ad apologised as the backlash mounted. At one point, the Royal Thai Army and some other organisations ordered their people not to buy anything on the platform.

In its ruling on Wednesday, the Criminal Court noted that the original complaint was that Ms Thidaporn appeared to be mocking Princess Chulabhorn.

Section 112 of the Criminal Code, the lese-majeste law, states, “Whoever defames, insults or threatens the King, the Queen, the Heir-apparent or the Regent, shall be punished with imprisonment of three to fifteen years.”

Princess Chulabhorn is not the heir to the throne and the law should not be interpreted by expanding it beyond what the law stipulates, TLHR cited the judges as saying.

“The defendant’s actions were not a crime,” the court said, and dismissed the case.

Aniwat was also acquitted in 2023, TLHR said. The court has issued an arrest warrant for Kittikhun, who is currently seeking asylum abroad.

People’s Party hopes to gather support for comprehensive reforms

The People’s Party (PP) plans to gather public opinions on its proposed national education bill during the current parliamentary recess.

Parit Wacharasindhu, a list-MP of the main opposition party, said education is fundamental to improving citizens’ quality of life and establishing a foundation for sustainable national development.

The bill seeks to enhance national competitiveness, create equal opportunities and promote citizen participation in decision-making.

True educational reform requires more than just changes to the law, said Mr Parit.

However, he noted that the bill would mark a starting point, putting a “charter for education” in motion to ensure that policies meet national needs and set the future course of education.

The PP has drafted the bill over the past year, conducting internal reviews and working with other parties to include issues raised by the dissolved Move Forward Party, its predecessor, into a “central” bill created by a House committee and an education subcommittee.

Mr Parit said the draft is now complete, addressing issues such as lifelong learning, flexible study formats, and a skills-focused student development model. These elements support a decentralised approach to education, essential for protecting student rights and welfare.

Mr Parit said many parties are eager to adopt the bill for debate in parliament.

During the parliamentary recess from Oct 31 to Dec 11, the party plans to gather feedback on the party’s bill through discussions with education experts, students, parents, teachers and the private and civil society sectors.

It also will campaign on the bill over the next two months.

Among its priorities: guaranteeing students’ access to quality education and educational welfare, support for education providers, curriculum development and review, raising the quality of teaching and education staff, optimal use of technology, incentives for lifelong learning, greater student involvement in education management, and reforms to the budget.

Police were called to a house in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district where an angry man was detaining his two children and allegedly threatening to injure them after a heated argument with his wife – who had stormed out of the house.

He allegedly poured petrol around inside the row house and threatened to set it on fire, according to Thai media reports. 

The boy,11 and the girl, 8, were later released unhurt.

The drama began when the couple had a heated quarrel at their home in Trok Khun Nava alley in Bang Rak district about 3pm on Wednesday. The woman left the house, Thai media reported. 

Neighbours said the man appeared very agitated, detained the two children with him in the house and allegedly threatened to injure them. He also poured petrol around inside the house, according to the reports. 

Fire crews were deployed to the scene.

Bang Rak police and rescue workers tried to calm him down, asking him to free the children. After lengthy talks, he agreed to release them about 4.55pm according to the reports, which lacked additional detail.

He was then taken to Bang Rak police station.

No names were given in the reports. 

The Khon Kaen Zoo is inviting visitors to join its Halloween event on Thursday with themed decorations all ready for photo shoots at its popular hippo zone.

The global fame of the pygmy hippo Moo Deng in Chon Buri has led to a surge in Thai and foreign visitor numbers at the zoo in Khao Suan Kwang district of Khon Kaen, where they can see the 5-month-old pygmy hippo Moo Duang.

The zoo posted photos on its Facebook page of keepers dressed as spooky characters, inviting people to visit during Halloween week.

Many activities are available for tourists, such as feeding a variety of wildlife including Moo Duang and others such as capybara, black bear, sun conure parrots and white rhinoceros, and enjoying the African seal show. A water park on the mountain is an added attraction.

The zoo is open seven days a week from 8.30am to 4.30pm.

Five-month-old Moo Duang at the Khon Kaen Zoo. (Photo: Chakkrapan Natanri)

Palang Pratcharat says Thailand could end up losing sovereign territory

The opposition Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) wants Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to revoke a 2001 memorandum of understanding between Thailand and Cambodia on joint development of oil and gas resources in a disputed area of the Gulf of Thailand.

The MoU was signed during the government of her father, former prime  minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The PPRP claims it could mean Thailand losing some of its territory.

MP Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala, head of the PPRP’s academic committee, said during a press conference at the parliament on Wednesday that the 2001 MoU indicated that Thailand and Cambodia acknowledged an area in the Gulf of Thailand for joint development. The document also accepted Cambodia’s territorial claim made in 1972 to half of Koh Kut island, which is in Trat province, he said.

“I have no problem with the government’s intention to discuss joint investment with Cambodia. But I will object if the government uses the 2001 MoU as a framework for the discussions, because not only is it illegal but also results in a territorial loss for Thailand,” said Mr Thirachai, a a former finance minister.

PPRP executive member ML Kornkasiwat Kasemsri said Thailand and Cambodia had discussed maritime demarcation in 1970. At the time, Thailand based its boundary on the 1958 Geneva Convention on the Law of the Sea, but Cambodia declared its territorial waters in 1972 without reference to any international law.

He said the Thaksin Shinawatra government started the negotiations that led to the 2001 MoU only two months after it took office. The negotiations began on April 21, 2001, and the MoU was signed on June 4, 2001, after 44 days of negotiations, he said.

The 2001 MoU resulted in an overlapping claims area of about 26,000 square kilometres, although the area had not been acknowledged by any legal document, ML Kornkasiwat said.

“The Palang Pracharath Party urges the prime minister to revoke the 2001 MoU as soon as possible, because a Cambodian map attached to the 2001 MoU included the sea off Trat, Koh Kut and some Thai territory. Thailand is at a disadvantage and risks territorial loss,” ML Kornkasiwat said.

PPRP MP Chaimongkol Chairop (Sakhon Nakhon) said the party, led by Gen Prawit Wongsuwon, would fight both inside and outside parliament to protect Thai territory.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said the government had done nothing with any bearing on Koh Kut and he did not know why the issue was raised at this time.

The government would do its best to protect Thai territory, he said. Mr Phumtham is a member of the Pheu Thai Party led by Ms Paetongtarn.

CHON BURI – A 27-year-old Australian collapsed and died in a Pattaya hotel room in the presence of his highly intoxicated male friend, police said.

Police and rescue workers called to the scene found the young man lying dead on his back in a fourth floor room of the hotel on Pattaya Sai 3 Road in Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri, on Wednesday.

He was wearing only a pair of black shorts, showing tattoos on his torso. Some ketamine, an illegal drug, and cannabis were on a room table,  police said.

A friend of the victim was also in the room. He was heavily intoxicated and was given first aid before being taken to a hospital.

Hotel lobby staff told police they heard loud noises coming from the floors above and went upstairs to see what was going on. On arriving at the fourth floor they found the dead man’s friend in a state of panic, loudly demanding to know what happened, and the victim unconscious on the floor.

Police initially believed the young man had overdosed, collapsed and died.  There were no signs of violence.

His friend would be questioned later, after he recovered, police said. 

The dead man’s name was being withheld until his family in Australia was informed.