Anything & Everything About Thailand

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

By Bamrung Amnatcharoenrit

Tawandang German Brewery Co is looking for a location to construct its third micro-brewery and restaurant, with a budget of more than 100 million baht.

No time frame has been set for construction because the company feels such a huge investment needs careful consideration at a time of economic uncertainty.

Rama V Road is one potential location for the new venue.

Supote Teerawatanachai, the company's managing director, said the site required at least two rai to construct a unique Tawandang hall, and at least three rai for parking.

Despite slowing economic growth, Mr Supote said, the concept of Tawandang remained popular because customers got more for their money, enjoying beer, food and entertainment in one package.

Most importantly, he said, Thai consumers liked to try something new, creating further business opportunity.

The new establishment will be different from the existing two sites, with a unique stage show as its selling point.

Ms Supote said he didn't need to worry about the food and drink side of the business as it had been consistently successful since the company was first launched.

The first brewery house was opened in 1999 on Rama III and broke even after two-and-a-half years. The six-rai site has an 1,800-seat capacity, with 1,200 litres of beer sold each day.

The show focuses on musical theatre, and 20 million baht was invested in stage construction, decoration and production.

The second branch was opened in September last year on a 10-rai plot on Ram Intra Road. It has more than 2,000 seats and the show focuses on performance art.

In just three months it became popular, not only with beer drinkers, but also families. Occupancy rate of seats is 60-70% during weekdays, while at weekends it is full. 1,000 litres of beer are sold per day.

The company is also considering maximising business potential at the second branch by turning it into a venue for functions during the day. Mr Supote said he thought it would be a popular choice as there was great demand in the market and it would be cheaper than a five-star hotel.

Asked about anti-alcohol campaigns and the proposed new law that would ban media advertising of alcohol products, he said the impact on the company was marginal as it had not generally promoted its brand through traditional media.

But he said people had tightened their belts amid inflation caused by rising oil prices.He also said the company was seeing a lower margin because the cost of ingredients had started to rise, while its menu prices remained unchanged.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Disqualified Chuwit returns MP's salary

Chuwit Kamolvisit, who has been disqualified as Chat Thai MP, Monday returned his December's salary worth Bt90,930 to the Secretariat of the House of Representatives.

Chuwit told officials of the secretariat that he wanted to set a precedence for other MPs t follow by returning his salary.

However, Chuwit returned only his December salary and did not mention the salary from February to November last year.

Last week, the Constitution Court ruled that Chuwit was disqualified as a Chat Thai party-list MP as he did not join the Chat Thai for at least 90 days before the election in February.

Chuwit also returned a notebook computer and his MP identification card to the officials.

But hours after he returned the money, Pithoon Poomhiran, the secretary-general of the House of Representatives, said he would ask return the December salary to Chuwit as he deserved it. Pithoon explained that only MPs, who were disqualified on corruption charges, would be required to return their salaries.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Britons avoid Surat Thani after killing

The brutal rape and murder of 21-year-old Welsh student Katherine Horton on Koh Samui has caused a 30 per cent drop in the number of British tourists visiting Surat Thani province this year, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

The TAT’s southern office director Pramote Sapyen said even though the crime was solved quickly and two fishermen convicted and sentenced to death, it was obvious the incident had affected tourism.

The case was heavily reported in the United Kingdom, and that had frightened tourists, with more than 30 per cent cancelling their trips to Koh Samui and Koh Pha-ngan during the high season.

“This will affect overall tourism for the year as normally 150,000 British tourists visit Thailand a year. A tourist stays on average one week and spends Bt4,000-Bt5,000 a day,” Pramote said.

On that basis, the two islands had lost between Bt100 million and Bt150 million in income.

Initially, the tragic incident had also affected tourists from other countries such as the Netherlands, but the situation had since improved. Asian tourists were still travelling to the region as usual.

Ruangnam Jaikwang, president of Surat Thani’s Tourism Association, said it would take some time for the situation to return to normal. It was important for tourism companies to cooperate with police officers for the safety of tourists, he said.

Surat Thani provincial police chief Maj-General Voravate Vinitnatyanon said police have been planning stricter safety measure to prevent crime and are assigning officers who speak English to warn tourists about going to risky places.

Anan Chusak, president of the province’s fisherman’s association, said the brutal crime had given fishing boat crews a bad image and the association had urged boat owners to be more careful about who they hire.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Pornprapas have designs on new hotel in Bangkok

The Pornprapa family, leading lights in the local automobile industry, are developing a new hotel in the heart of Bangkok at a cost of Bt650 million.

Scheduled to open in October, the Siam@siam Design Hotel and Spa will be located in the Siam Centre area, one of the most popular parts of the city for international tourists as well as containing the newly opened Siam Paragon shopping mall.

Siam Motor and Nissan Sales chairman Pornpinit Pornprapa said the hotel would have 25 floors and 203 rooms. It will differ from other leading hotels in the Siam Square and Rajaprasong area as there will be no meeting or conference facilities, with the hotel’s stated focus being on tourists who want privacy.

Room rates will be between Bt4,000 and Bt6,000.

Despite being in one of the most competitive Bangkok locations for hotel businesses, Pornpinit believes it will compete successfully by positioning itself as a “design hotel”.

“We are building this hotel to service repeat tourists, particularly those who come to Thailand wanting somewhere special to stay,” he said. The hotel is targeting both the Asian and Western markets.

Pornpinit said that both design and boutique hotels were now really taking off overseas, particularly in the West.

But with only a number of boutique hotels in Thailand, the Pornprapas are convinced there is room for design hotels – larger establishments than boutique hotels, although both cater to the fashionable traveller looking for something different from the norm.

The property will be the second hotel venture for the family following the Tropicana Pattaya, which it has operated for more than 30 years.

The Pornprapa family owns one of the country’s biggest conglomerates, with particular emphasis on the automobile industry. Its Siam Motor and Nissan Sales operates nationwide dealerships for Nissan cars and trucks and Suzuki and Yamaha motorcycles and imports and manufactures Suzuki cars, as well as producing auto parts.

Pornpinit also expressed optimism about the prospects for the local tourism industry. More tourists are expected to visit the Kingdom this year, a trend helped in his view by the upcoming opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Campaigns run by the Tourism Authority of Thailand will also bring more visitors to Bangkok, especially shoppers and young travellers, he said.

Suchat Sritama
The Nation

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Chiang Mai longan-growers turn to harvesting tilapia

More than 600 net cages containing tilapia fish along the Ping River in Chiang Mai are owned by longan-growers who have been suffering from the problem of falling prices.

Oversupply and fluctuating prices of longans since 1997 prompted growers to look for a new source of income to offset their losses.

Agro-conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group introduced them to tilapia fish and the net-cage system.

Nongnuch Kanthiya, a longan-grower in Chiang Mai’s Baan Hua Kuong, started feeding tilapias in 1999 when her fruit dropped in price.

She said her income from longan production on five rai was unstable, so she had had to find a supplementary business to support her family.

Having started with only two cages, Nongnuch and her daughter Aporn now manage 80, raising 6,000 fish to maturity in four months, bringing in an average of Bt120,000-Bt150,000, of which Bt20,000 is profit.

“I enjoy the stable income, and I can raise two or three lots of fish a year. That, not the longans, is now my main career,” she said.

She sells her tilapias directly to the CP Group at a guaranteed price of Bt42-Bt45 per kilogram.

In the village, 30-40 longan-growers raise tilapias on the same system and are making an attractive profit.

However, the rising cost of feed meal is a major problem at Bt440 per 20kg bag, up from Bt350 in 1999.

The current and water quality of the Ping are also not as good as in the past, lowering yield.

CP has 100 such fish-farmers with a total of 500-600 cages in Chiang Mai producing altogether 70-90 tonnes per month.

The company plans to promote provincial consumption from eight to 10 tonnes a day.

Betagro Group, a leading agro-conglomerate, and Thai Lux, a local feed- distributor, are also promoting the fish, and the competition has kept prices low, said CP staff.

Tilapia farms flourish in Uttaradit, Phitsanulok, Phrae, Nan, Sukhothai, Angthong, Sing Buri, Ayutthaya, Khon Kaen, Ubon Ratchathani and Nong Khai.

Achara Pongvutitham

The Nation
Chiang Mai

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Guffawing their way to a healthier life

Realising that she had not laughed for over a year, a woman executive decided to attend the weekly meetings of the country’s first and so far only laughter club at Srinakharinwirot University’s Prasanmitr campus. At first she had to force herself, she told the 20 or so other members during a “sharing moment” at last week’s meeting.

But as weeks passed, she eventually rediscovered her ability to laugh and became happier in her daily life despite stress at work and other problems. The laughing sessions are conducted by veteran physiologist and lecturer Wanlop Piyamanotham and held every Thursday from 2.30pm to 5.30pm at the University’s Centre for Counselling and Human Enrichment.

The room resounded with laughter last week as the members, aged from 19 to 74, literally guffawed their way to good health and a positive outlook on life.

The meeting started with a “body session” - warming up with some exercise movements to reduce inhibition and then getting into designated postures while going into gales of laughter in four rhythms.

Wanlop developed the techniques from those used in voice therapy and various psychological healing techniques. The different postures and laughing sounds are supposed to get every part of the body to laugh.

For example, laughing with an “O, O, O, O” sound while moving the hands up and down sideways is for stomach laughter, and using an “Ou, Ou, Ou, Ou” sound while rolling the hips is for hip laughter.

The members paused from time to time with eyes closed to observe their body’s response and focus the energy they feel to heal particular problem areas.

Next came the “mind session”, in which members pause for a minute, eyes shut, to think of something sad. Wanlop then tells them to cleanse their minds of such negative thoughts and get rid of them through the tops of their heads with a laugh similar to the Indian mantra “Om”, before the group goes back to laughing postures while hollering even louder.

Last was the “social session”, which applies the “reframing” technique of shifting negativity to positivity. The members got into groups of four and took turns telling sad stories to the others, who responded with roars of laughter. Telling a sad story and getting a good reaction - laughter - creates immunity in the members and lets them see other sides of the story, according to Wanlop.

The members then went into another round of laughter together before closing their eyes and instructing themselves to have a stronger body and a more positive view of life. The three-hour meeting ended with some warming-down exercises.

It may seem that the club is meant specifically for people who having difficulty laughing or smiling or have simply forgotten how to, like the woman executive, but many members said they had no such problem. They said they just wanted to give this new thing they had heard about on television a try to see what it could do to help them deal better with stressful, fast-paced, traffic-jam-plagued city life.

“It’s like using your body to stimulate your mind. You can’t feel bad while you are in a relaxed posture and having a hearty laugh,” said Adul Fongweera, 36, an entrepreneur and self-improvement enthusiast who was attending his fourth meeting.

Adul said he used Wanlop’s laughter techniques when he felt bad and found that he recovered from negative emotions quicker.

The project’s head, Jitra Dudsdeemaytha, said the club practised an active, self-initiated laugh that would give a person immunity to criticism and stressful situations, which was different from the usual passive laughter in response to a stimulus, such as a joke.

Laughing is like internal jogging that leads to a sound mind and stronger body, she said: a five-minute continuous laugh is equal to 30 minutes of exercise.

Jitra said scientific studies had proved that laughing enabled the body’s systems to function better while reducing depression, diabetes and even cancer growth.

The laughter club’s oldest and most regular member - she has missed just one session since it started last year - is 74-year-old Rungtiwa Nitanonthawat.

Afflicted by heart disease, high blood pressure and bladder inflammation, she said her breathing and heart rate had improved and that laughing often helped her better bear pain and maintain a cheerful view of life.

First-timer Nattapin Tangapiradee, 45, said her dry-eye condition, which requires her to use artificial teardrops from time to time, had improved after just one meeting and so she intended to come again.

The setting up of the laughter club, part of the university’s Bt2-million community-service project, follows a growing global trend already established in countries such as India, Korea, Malaysia and the United States.

The laughter club is free of charge and welcomes newcomers, Jitra said.

A laughing event at the university’s football field is planned for June to celebrate His Majesty the King’s 60th year on the throne. At least 1,000 people, including university students and the general public, are expected to take part, Wanlop said.

Premyuda Boonroj
The Nation

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Bangkok subway gets pooch patrol

Bangkok's subway security will be boosted next month by a 12-member squad of bomb experts of the canine variety, officials said Monday.

The Mass Transit Rapid Authority, the state enterprise that oversees the Bangkok subway system, has teamed up with the Royal Thai Army to launch an 17-hour dog patrol for the underground to secure passengers' safety, the Thai News Agency said.

The authority's deputy governor, Ronnachit Yaemsaard, said the 12-member dog squad will begin its underground operations at an unspecified date in February.

The trained pooches will be divided into four groups each day to inspect suspicious objects and detect any explosives in Bangkok's subway stations and inside its underground trains, Ronnachit told the news agency.

"The canine bomb expert squad would be on service everyday from 06.00 a.m. to 11.00 p.m., the daily service hours of the underground train," he said.

Ronnachit, however, was quick to add that to date there have been no bomb threats against the subway service although security officers have on occasion discovered "unattended briefcases" that later turned out to have been forgotten by passengers.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Monday 30 January 2006 :-

Scholarships to be granted for linguistics study abroad

The Education Council is going to offer 22 scholarships for students interested to pursue degrees in linguistics overseas.

The grantees will be trained in the foreign languages before they continue their education in native lands: Russia, Portugal, Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma and Malaysia.

"Our country is in great need of linguists," the council's deputy secretary general Somkiat Chobphon said Monday.

According to him, the Education Council has developed the scholarship project in bachelor's degree level after it has received more than Bt100million financial support from the Government Savings Bank. The grants will be given on a condition that the recipients return to work in Thailand.

"They can work in either private or government sector. But if they come back to work as lecturers, that will be great," Somkiat said.

He said the project would select successful candidates from students who already completed secondary education or first-year or second-year students.

Somkiat said the project would be soon submitted before Education Minister Chaturon Chaisang and then the Cabinet for approval. He expected that the project would be able to select the grantees before the first semester of 2006 academic year begins.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The STAR dated Sunday 22 January 2006 :-

Exclusively Thai! :
Thai Takes

By A. Asohan

IT’S the usual story for any of us living overseas – sooner, rather than later, you start missing Malaysian food.

Not just the food per se, but also the fact that you can walk down any small-town street back home and waver between a choice of Chinese, Indian, Malay and Western food – or the rich diversity of combinations therein.

Thai food is great, but having it every day? Sure, you do get a lot of “foreign” restaurants at which you can indulge in some variety, but they tend to be located downtown or at the bigger shopping malls.

So when a Thai colleague overheard a fellow Malaysian and me complaining about how the char siew pau here just doesn’t taste right, in true hospitable Thai fashion, he invited us to lunch at an authentic Chinese restaurant.

So we got our roasted duck and such, but they all had a distinct Thai flavour. Great food, but not quite what we were expecting.

And because we were all journalists at that table, diplomacy gave way to honesty and we just had to tell our host that the dishes didn’t quite taste authentic Chinese. (Yes, even as we said that we recognised the irony of Malaysians judging the authenticity of Chinese food.)

We went off on a tangent trying to explain why it was great to come from a country in which the source and flavours of “local” food can be so diverse – Chinese, Indian, Malay and what-have-you.

And because we were all journalists, the topic soon turned to socio-politics. “Malay? Chinese? Indian? You come from Malaysia – aren’t you all Malays?” he wondered.

“Nope, we’re all Malaysians, but she’s Chinese,” I said, pointing to my Malaysian colleague, “while I’m Indian – or Sri Lankan Tamil, if you want to be pedantic.”

“The Malays are yet another entirely different race. There is a difference between race and nationality, you know,” I added.

“Yes, I know, but it must be terrible to come from a country where everything’s so defined by race,” he said, correctly enough. “When are you all going to be truly integrated?”

Good question. Being Thai, he of course took great pride in Thailand’s reputation as one of those rare, multipolar Asian countries – as opposed to unipolar countries such as Korea and Japan – which hasn’t had any real racial strife.

To an outsider, the Thais all seem to come from one race, with just some variation in features and skin tone. That perception belies the rich diversity of ethnicities that actually make up today’s modern Thai, and the country’s long history in which many migrant communities – including Persians and Indians – have been absorbed.

Sure, the population looks fairly homogenous, especially when compared with a country like Malaysia, but the actual ethnic make-up has varied over the centuries.

The typical Thai today looks different from his ancestor of four centuries ago, when there was more movement and assimilation between South-East Asian peoples.

Up to 12% of Thai are of significant Chinese heritage, 2.3% are Malay, and other groups include the Khmer, the Mon and the Vietnamese. Smaller mountain-dwelling tribes, such as the Hmong and Mein, as well as the Karen, number less than a million of the 61 million population.

Just as with Malaysia, Thailand has an “Other” category as well, made up of the smaller South-East Asian tribes, plus the many migrant races which have been fully assimilated into Thai society.

They’re all Thai now. While some “Indians” may look as Thai as me, and even have Indian names, they only speak Thai ? and perhaps English as a second language. No sari-dressed aunts to hand down secret family curry recipes – not unless it’s green chicken curry, that is.

Indeed, the only ethnic race who have held on to their cultural identity are the Malays down south, and while it’s a complex situation involving hegemony, religion and history, one wonders whether the southern violence stems partly from marginalisation and the Malays holding on too strongly to their cultural roots.

But that’s the price Thailand has paid – integration at the cost of multiculturalism.


A. Asohan is editor of the Asia News Network (www.asianewsnet.net) in Bangkok

[U-Need]

251 words
31 January 2006
English

BANGKOK POST:

- Securities regulators yesterday ordered Panthongthae and Pinthongtha Shinawatra to clarify their share deals made with Ample Rich Investments, a suspected Shinawatra family offshore firm at the centre of a public storm over last week's sale of Shin Corp to Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

- Academics have set up a network to push for changes to Article 313 of the constitution to allow the general public greater say in drafting charter amendments.

- Thai Airways International will revamp its fuel surcharge structure for international flights to compete with those of rival carriers and reflect rising fuel costs.

- The Bank of Thailand yesterday raised its economic growth forecast for 2006 to between 4.75% and 5.75%, up from the previous estimate of 4.5-6%, with exports to be the main engine for growth.

THE NATION:

- Among questions being asked by market watchers regarding the recent Shin Corp share sale to Temasek Holdings is why the buyer was allowed a waiver from the chain principle rule, which requires them to make a tender offer for all of Shins units, like Shin Satellite and iTV.

- The Pornprapa family, leading lights in the local automobile industry, are developing a new hotel in the heart of Bangkok at a cost of Bt650 million.

- Asia Pacific Resources Ltd has appointed Praphant Asava-Aree as president and chief executive officer of its Thailand subsidiary, Asia Pacific Potash Corporation Limited (APPC).

[U-Need]

160 words
Thai News Service
31 January 2006
English

Section: General News - Defence Minister Thammarak Israngura Na Ayuttaya said the intelligence community was concerned that Singapore's takeover of Shin Corp could allow the city state to eavesdrop on Thailand with the company's satellites, The Nation reports.

"Nothing has happened yet, but in terms of intelligence, we already have security safeguards in place. Intelligence agents are closely monitoring" for any possible espionage, he told reporters.

"We have to watch anything that could affect national security," he said.

Singapore's state-owned investment company Temasek led a takeover of Shin Corp on Monday, in a Bt73.3 billion deal to buy the nearly 50 per cent stake in the company held by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's family.

The deal included Shin Satellite Public Co, which operates three telecom satellites that cover Asia and Australia, providing telephone, Internet, television and other services.

[U-Need]

369 words
31 January 2006
The Nation (Thailand)
English

Democrats claim Thailand's economic information in the hands of Singapore

Democrat Party spokesman Ongart Klampaiboon says Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has lost the right to run the country as he has "sold Thai sovereignty".

Through the sale of Shin Corp to Singapore-based Temasek Holdings, Thaksin allowed Singapore access to financial and economic information in Thailand, he said.

"Although the PM insisted he followed the law in selling Shin Corp, he should have political etiquette and a conscience,'' Ongart said.

By selling Shin, Thaksin also sold its subsidiary Shin Satellite - which has the right of relocating Thailand's satellite footprint - to foreigners. The sale also resulted in the transfer of the ownership of frequencies and equipment of AIS to foreigners. The government has also extended the company's concession period for 10 years, which benefits Temasek.

AIS subsidiary Advance Data Network Communication Co Ltd has a concession from the Telephone Organisation of Thailand Plc to provide online services connecting automatic teller machines of banks, oil depots, airlines, transport services and the business sector across the country. "Now this crucial information is under the management of Singapore,'' he said.

The fate of AIS's 18 million clients is now in the hands of Singapore companies.

Ongart said Thaksin had lost his mandate to run the country because of allegations of tax avoidance and asset concealment that are haunting him again.

He demanded that Thaksin and the Thai Rak Thai Party clarify the allegations against the PM.

Democrat Party chief adviser Chuan Leekpai yesterday called on the Securities and Exchange Commission to give information about the Shin Corp deal for the sake of transparency.

Thai Rak Thai Party spokesman Sita Divari defended Thaksin by saying the premier sold his shares and did not pay tax in the same manner as 300,000 other investors in the stock market.

He said if the Democrat Party believed the PM had committed a wrong, they should file a complaint with police instead of making verbal accusations.

Chat Thai Party deputy leader Weerasak Kowsurat called on the Finance Ministry to change the regulations to require stock investors to pay tax on profits from the stock market.

[U-Need]

292 words
30 January 2006
Xinhua News Agency
English

BANGKOK, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Ministry plans to use criminal law as a tool to fight against improper websites, particularly pornographic webpages, ICT Minister Sora-at Klinpratoom said Monday.

Sora-at said that his Ministry would cooperate with Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office Newin Chidchob to crack down on electronic media containing pornography and other unlawful activities. Newin was assigned by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinwatra to oversee the vice websites particularly indecent webpages.

The ministry earlier asked internet service providers (ISPs) to cooperate with the campaign and help block unsuitable websites but the problem continues, Sora-at was quoted by the Thai News Agency as saying.

Without voluntary cooperation, the minister said, the authorities will resort to applying criminal law to contain 'anti- social' activities on the internet, he said. At the same time he appeared to offer ways for ISPs to adjust their practices, as he said that the law would be gently implemented.

Sora-at said he would ask for more cooperation from the involved agencies, and that there would be no seizure of equipment for fear that it might interrupt service to the public, he said.

The state-run telecommunications firm, CAT Telecom Plc, and Kasetsart University have jointly installed software capable of screening 80-90 percent of improper websites, he said.

But it is an uphill battle, he noted and said that many internet users wanted to visit sex-oriented sites and other sites that offer activities, which are not considered to be in the public interest.

The Ministry will soon distribute screening software to schools and households in order to block improper websites in such places, he said.

[U-Need]

292 words
31 January 2006
Bangkok Post
English

CHEEWIN SATTHA

Chiang Mai -- Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will throw a free feast for 30,000 people in his hometown on Sunday when he pays homage to his late mother and ancestors, said a district official.

Surachai Chongrak, chief of San Kamphaeng, said the feast is a special treat for people expected to take part in a Sunday merit-making ceremony at Wat Rongthamsamakkhi. About 160 monks have been invited to perform the religious ceremony. Mr Thaksin will also make offerings to the local temple.

Mr Surachai said he has enlisted help from women in San Kamphaeng and neighbouring districts to cook the food.

He said the menu will include a variety of local favourites including namprik noom, khaeb moo, kaeng hungle and khanom jeen nam ngiew.

"The prime minister wants to meet the people. He also wants to eat with them," he said. Mr Thaksin, whose family just netted 73 billion baht from the sale of a stake in Shin Corp, will foot the bill.

The feast will be organised along a 500-metre stretch of Chiang Mai-San Kamphaeng road, from the district office to Wat Rongthamsamakkhi. Forty tents will be set up for the feast, with thousands of chairs reserved for guests. The prime minister himself will order catering services from well-known local eateries, he said

Local officials said about 2,000 people each from 22 districts and two sub-districts would be invited as representatives.

The feast is seen as the prime minister's continuing campaign to boost his popularity among rural people. Urban voters have increasingly expressed scepticism about efforts to woo them with populist policies and events.

[U-Need]

293 words
31 January 2006
Bangkok Post
English

Tharn Settakij Editorial -- With the recent sale of Shin Corp shares to Singapore's Temasek Holdings, foreign telecom giants are now controlling more than 50% of the market share in Thailand.

The Shinawatra and Damapong family members last week sold their shares to Temasek, which now controls 49% of Shin Corp, a company founded by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Earlier, the Norwegian telecom giant Telanor acquired a controlling stake in DTAC, a telecom company founded by the Banjarongkul family.

These corporate takeovers were unexpected. And even more so for Shin Corp, which has long been the No.1 holding company in Thailand, earning big profits annually. Its flagship Advanced Info Service has provided a solid foundation for Mr Thaksin before he entered politics over a decade ago.

The sale of Shin Corp shares by the Shinawatra and Damapong families was reportedly done to end accusations of conflicts of interest. But the future liberalisation of the telecom business was also a major factor, as Shin will face a fierce competition from stronger foreign companies. There is a lesson from the liberalisation of the retail business, which is now dominated by foreign companies. Thai business operators are no match for these foreign competitors who have bigger capital, management skills and technology. These are weak points that we must try to correct.

In this era of globalisation, big companies from the US, Japan, China and Europe are extending their business power worldwide. Smaller countries are forced to accept the market system by these business giants. Free trade agreements are also used to gain easy access into new markets. Thai business operators must increase their competitiveness and seek new partners if they want to survive in this fast changing business environment.