Barkar Nash (Page 904)

Women duped by online ads to travel to Myanmar

Three Thai women have been repatriated after being duped into prostitution in Myanmar, according to the founder of the Pavena Foundation for Women and Children.

Paveena Hongsakul said the foundation brought the mother of a 23-year-old victim, known only as Ms Mai, a Chiang Rai native, to Mae Sai police in the province on Thursday to meet her daughter and two other young women.

Ms Paveena was told that an advertisement on TikTok deceived Ms Mai into travelling to Kengtung state in Myanmar on May 18, but she ended up being sold in Mong Nawng, a town in Shan state. Her passport was confiscated, and she was forced into prostitution and to take drugs. If she resisted, she was beaten.

The other two women were also duped into prostitution at Mong Pawk via the tourism advertisement to tour Kengtung.

Ms Mai’s relatives contacted the foundation for help, leading to Ms Paveena coordinating with Thai consular officials and Myanmar police to aid the women.

The three were brought to a police station, where they waited for a car to pick them up. However, they did not want to wait and took motorcycle taxis to a border town in Chiang Rai, but motorcycle taxi drivers instead held them for a ransom of 5 million baht in total.

The women escaped the gang members and came across a male school teacher who sent them to a police station to file a report.

But the police instead pressed charges against the three for illegal entry and fined them 4,000 baht each. They were then put in jail for three months. After they completed their term, the foundation sent financial aid and repatriated them to Thailand.

Paetongtarn says she was there to learn, not to burnish PM credentials

Pheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra says the dinner party for members of the coalition that she attended on Wednesday had nothing to do with her political career or ambitions.

Speculation has been rife that the daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is being groomed for the prime minister’s post and might even replace Srettha Thavisin at some point during the term of the current government.

On Friday Ms Paetongtarn dismissed the idea, saying she merely joined the get-together as the leader of the ruling party.

She said the dinner was intended to bring the coalition parties closer and to give her — as someone who does not work in parliament because she is not an MP — a chance to meet key coalition figures and learn from them.

She said she did not provide any advice to the government and the talk over the dinner was casual and did not touch on any political issues.

The dinner was the first such occasion since the formation of the 11-party coalition government two months ago. Participants decided that having such gatherings on a regular basis would be a good idea.

When asked about the government’s performance after two months in office, she said there was clear progress in several policies, including reducing people’s cost of living.

Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai also faced a barrage of questions from reporters after it emerged that he had remarked during the dinner that Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin was a straight shooter.

He said the comment was not a criticism or a warning to the premier, and that he simply wanted the coalition partners to know what Mr Srettha was like. If the coalition partners understood the premier’s character, his straightforwardness was thus a positive quality, not a weakness.

Mr Srettha said earlier that he received useful advice at the dinner, including that from Mr Phumtham, who commented on his style of working and said the premier was open and direct.

Sister cities agreement to be signed on Sunday

Chiang Mai is about to become a sister city with Austin, the capital city of Texas, at a ceremony this weekend.

Nirat Phongsittithaworn, the governor of Chiang Mai, will sign a memorandum of understanding at Austin City Hall on Sunday with Mayor Kirk Watson to launch the initiative.

A 30-member visiting delegation from Thailand will join the Thai Ambassador to the United States, Tanee Sangrat, and the US Consul General in Chiang Mai, Lisa Buzenas, at the ceremony.

A kickoff event will follow at Wat Buddhananachat, a Buddhist temple just southeast of Austin.

Austin currently has 13 sister cities, in countries including Mexico, Peru, Australia, France, the United Kingdom and India. There are also three “friendship cities” — in Cambodia, France and Mexico — that are in the process of becoming sister cities.

According to the City of Austin website, the sister cities pact aims to facilitate collaboration between the local governments of Austin and Chiang Mai, promote trade, investment and economic development for mutual benefit, and cultivate new educational and cultural connections

The Thai delegation is visiting Austin from Nov 11 to 16 for a series of meetings, exchanges and business matchmaking events. 

“We hope to meet new partners and friends, participate in an exchange of ideas and expertise, generate important new economic ties between our cities, and of course share the beauty of Thai culture and incredible Thai food with communities in Austin,” said Mr Nirat.

“Austin and Chiang Mai share many similarities,” said Mr Watson. “Both cities stand as global hubs for art, culture, music, food and film.

“We share a commitment to cutting-edge technology, creative industries, and a strong entrepreneurial spirit. We envision significant potential for both cities as we collaborate on shared goals.”

PHUKET: A member of a drug network was arrested with more than 200,000 methamphetamine pills in Thalang district of this resort island province.

Narcotics suppression police and local officers arrested Akbankharn Wongmanee, a 25-year-old Ubon Ratchathani native, at a rented room in tambon Sri Sunthorn and seized 246,000 speed pills from his room, the arresting team said on Friday.

He was taken to Phuket provincial police station for legal proceedings.

The raid followed the arrest of Anon Sukchuang, 43, another member of the drug network, on Oct 31. Police seized 46,400 speed pills from him. The officers extended the investigation that led to the arrest of Mr Akbankharn.

Packs of speed pills are found in the suspect’s room in Thalang district, Phuket. (Photo: Achadthaya Chuenniran)

NARATHIWAT: A ranger was killed and two others slightly injured in a landmine explosion in Rangae district on Thursday afternoon, police reported.

The incident occurred at about 1.05pm while a team of rangers from Ranger Company 4503 were patrolling in a forest near Hulu Pare, the Moo 1 village in tambon Tanyongmat. One of the team members stepped on a landmine, triggering an explosion.

The deceased was identified as Waehama Wani, from Sungai Padi district of Narathiwat.

Two other rangers, Sobri Mawa and Asri Salaemae, both from Rangae, were slightly injured.

Wimutti Amnakmanee, the Rangae district chief, rushed to the scene and ordered an investigation into the incident.

The government will announce details of its 10,000-baht digital money handout on Friday as critics continue to slam the scheme, saying it will do more harm than good to the economy.

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said he will hold a press conference to spell out the scheme’s details at 2pm on Friday.

He also said other coalition partners have not voiced concerns over the Pheu Thai Party’s digital wallet policy.

Asked if there would be any good news during today’s press conference, the prime minister only said: “I will explain everything all by myself.”

Meanwhile, critics on Thursday took aim at the scheme during a seminar — “The Digital Money Handout: A Disaster or Future for the Country?”.

Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, a former election commissioner, said the government has been pushing for the digital money policy, but many hurdles remain.

“It has ordered state agencies to review budget spending for the 2024 fiscal year to milk them [for money to finance the handout],” Mr Somchai said.

“The government did not study laws related to financial discipline carefully … Even the Government Savings Bank cannot lend money to the government to finance the scheme,” he said.

“During the upcoming press conference, I believe the government will announce its decision to delay the handout, probably until May.”

The launch of the scheme has been touted to be Feb 1.

“It may be the case that the 10,000-baht giveaway could be paid out in four instalments of 2,500 baht rather than a single payment. If so, this will no longer boost the economy,” Mr Somchai said.

Thirachai Phuvanatnaranubala, a former finance minister, told the seminar that any handout scheme designed to achieve political gain would set a dangerous precedent for other political parties in future elections, and it could bring the country to its knees.

Mr Thirachai said the State Fiscal and Financial Disciplines Act prohibits any projects designed to achieve political gain that could cause damage to the country.

Previously, a sub-committee overseeing the implementation of the digital wallet project made several recommendations, including limiting the handout to 15–16 million people who have state welfare cards, which will cost the state 150–160 billion baht.

Broken road sparks bribery crackdown

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has ordered that a concerted effort be made to tackle bribery after a collapsed section of road in Bangkok was blamed on an overloaded lorry suspected of being approved as roadworthy due to illegal payments made to officials.

The truck apparently exceeded the weight limit but was still able to operate on busy Sukhumvit Road, causing damage to the road surface and resulting in two traffic accidents this week.

Mr Srettha was responding to speculation that a green star-shaped sticker with the letter B printed on it, spotted on the windscreen of the 10-wheel truck, is a symbol used by truckers so that police who have accepted bribes let them pass by without inspection despite being overweight.

The heavily loaded 10-wheeler broke a concrete slab placed over the opening to an underground cable trench in Phra Khanong district Wednesday morning.

The incident, which took place in the middle lane near Soi Sukhumvit 64/1, was the second after a previous incident occurred on Ratchaprarop on Tuesday.

Wednesday’s misadventure left two other drivers injured while Tuesday’s incident resulted in an SUV and its driver being stranded in a hole on the road surface that opened up immediately after the truck passed over it.

The Ministry of Transport, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and the Department of Highways will work together to look into the problem of illegally loaded trucks and find ways to prevent any such incidents from recurring, Mr Srettha said.

The Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) has launched a probe into whether the 10-wheeler was to blame on Wednesday if bribes were involved, and the meaning of the suspicious sticker, Pol Col Witthawat Chinkham, acting commissioner of MPB Division 5, said on Thursday.

A fact-finding committee was formed on Wednesday to investigate the excess weight the truck is believed to have been carrying, and whether any corruption was involved, he said.

Pol Gen Torsak Sukvimol, the national police chief, said there should be sufficient evidence to support claims the police were bribed to turn a blind eye if there are grounds for them, as such accusations have damaged the police force’s reputation.

As of late Thursday, it remained unclear whether the green sticker can be said to serve as evidence that bribes were paid to the police, he said, adding that wrongdoers would face legal and disciplinary action.

Meanwhile, Apichart Pairoonrueng, president of the Land Transportation Association of Thailand (LTAT), confirmed the green sticker effectively gives heavy trucks a “free pass” when it comes to exceeding the weight limit and operating in the city outside of the allowed hours.

Without such a sticker, these trucks could never pass through several intersections where the police usually have checkpoints, he said.

Mr Apichart said the green sticker allows trucks to carry dirt to and from construction sites across Bangkok without having to worry about any police interference.

It is awarded in exchange for bribes to the police and BMA officials, he added.

As for the letter B being linked to an affluent individual with the nickname Big, as people online have speculated, Mr Apichart said he had never heard the moniker before.

As a member of the House sub-committee on bribery investigation, he will hand over all of the information at his disposal to the subcommittee’s chairman, he said.

The BMA lacks a weighbridge of its own for lorries and trucks, he said.