Thai Alcohol Control Committee opposes selling booze till 4 AM

The Thai Alcohol Control Committee opposed a proposal to extend the legal hours for selling alcoholic beverages to 4 AM, citing a potential rise in traffic accidents.
Dr. Opas Karnkawinongpop, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Public Health, revealed to Thai reporters today, November 25th, after completing a meeting with the Alcohol Control Committee that the committee initially opposed the idea of allowing the sale of alcohol from 5 PM to 4 AM.

The committee said it was too long because it meant alcohol could be sold for 11 hours per day, which could increase alcohol-related health problems, injuries, and casualties.

Dr. Opas stated the chance of drunk-driving-related accidents could also rise by more than 27% or 10-20 casualties per day if alcohol was allowed to be sold from 5 PM to 4 AM despite all-night police checkpoints.

The Thai Alcohol Control Committee had already considered the economic benefits of the proposal, but still had agreed that the extension should not be mandated, Dr. Opas added.

Nonetheless, the committee’s objection was only a suggestion, which would be forwarded to the National Alcohol Beverage Policy Committee for consideration on December 22nd.

Dr. Opas said the objection against extending alcohol sale hours had nothing to do with another proposal to extend the legal closing hours for entertainment venues.

Technically, the two rules are seperate notes TPN media, and even if the Thai Cabinet agrees to extend nightlife closing hours in theory alcohol sales hours would also need to be legally extended.

The Thai Cabinet is set to meet Tuesday, November 29th, to discuss extended nightlife hours in tourism zones.

Source - Pattaya News

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Is mass tourism a thing of the past in Thailand?

Is mass tourism a thing of the past in Thailand as the streets of the most popular tourist destinations are unnervingly quiet.
Along Chaweng’s Beach Road, a usually raucous party area, shuttered shops stretch into the distance.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, it was buzzing with traffic. Now, taxi drivers sit on the roadside, with little hope of finding customers.

Where bikini-clad sunseekers once browsed souvenir shops and drank at neon-lit bars, a lone street dog stretches on the pavement.

Elsewhere, swathes of Samui’s idyllic, sandy white beaches are almost entirely free of people.

About 40 million tourists flocked to Thailand last year, drawn by its spectacular coastlines, ornate temples and famous cuisine.

In 2022, the country will struggle to attract even a quarter of that number, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

Tourism ground to a halt in April, when Thailand imposed a ban on all incoming passenger flights. The country – which has so far managed to contain Covid-19, recording 3,255 cases and 58 deaths – is discussing travel bubbles with low-risk neighbouring countries, but no one knows when these might be established. Borders remain shut to almost all foreign tourists.

The travel sector has survived devastating crises before, including the 2004 tsunami, bird flu and Sars outbreaks.

But the impact of the coronavirus pandemic is beyond comparison, says Tanes Petsuwan, deputy governor for marketing communication at the TAT.

During previous crises, revenue dropped by around a fifth, he said. This year, the coronavirus pandemic is expected to cause a 80% fall in revenues. “It’s a huge impact,” he said.

To make matters worse, Thailand’s economy has become even more reliant on tourism, accounting for almost 20% of GDP, according to Tanes. About 4.4 million people are employed across the industry – in transport, travel agencies, restaurants and hotels.

In Samui, many have gone for months without work. Before coronavirus, Jarunee Kasorn, who works in a local massage parlour in Chaweng, says her colleagues would welcome up to 90 clients a day.

They’re one of the few businesses to reopen on Beach Road, but a whole day can go by without a single customer. “If there are no tourists, then there’s no business,” she said.

Most of the shop’s 20 staff have left the island altogether, and returned to their family homes elsewhere in Thailand.

Though modest social assistance payments were offered to workers during lockdown, this is no longer available.

“Many people say we won’t die from Covid, but we will die because we are not able to eat,” says Ta Sasiwinom, who has just reopened her stall at an outdoor market in Fishermen’s Village, known as the walking street. The past few months have been a struggle for her and her two daughters. “We cook more cheaply – eating egg and rice, rice and egg,” she says.

Parts of the market, and the nearby beach, have begun to return to life. There are groups of visitors and locals peering at the discounted stalls, but it is still nowhere near as busy as it would usually be.

Among those shopping are tourists stuck abroad, foreign residents living in Thailand, and Thais – who the government has encouraged to travel domestically through a stimulus package that offers subsidised hotel bookings.

The scheme, and a looming long weekend, has provided a welcome boost, says Lloyd Maraville, general manager of Nora Buri resort and spa.

Of the hotel’s 144 rooms, about 100 are empty, though this will fall to 85 over the holiday.

Government measures, he adds, “might sustain hotels for a while but it will not be a long-term [solution].” Rooms have been booked at far below the usual rates. “Profit is out of the question at this moment, we just want to maintain the resort,” he says.

Tanes believes that when tourism is able to begin again, the industry will be altered completely.

He hopes for positive change. “I think this is a good time for Thailand to upskill the human resources of the industry to move Thailand [away] from [being an] overcrowded tourist destination,” he says. Mass tourism, and the dependence on large tour groups, he argues, will be a thing of the past.

In Samui, businesses are focused on survival for now. Just last month it was announced that nearly 100 local hotel owners had been forced to sell. Many more remain shut indefinitely.

“I’ve lived here for 20 years and I’m shocked, I never thought it could be like this,” says Rattanaporn Chadakarn, who runs a stall at the walking street.

No one knows if the Great Panic will continue. For now, she adds, everyone is just waiting for the skies to reopen.

Source - BangkokJack

VISA AGENT

Phuket - Phuket - Seaweed on Patong Beach - just a seasonal phenomenon

The seasonal mass of seaweed that was washed up onto Patong Beach over the last week is a natural phenomenon. A spokesperson for the Phuket Marine Biological Centre says that the seaweed isn’t harmful although it can smell bad as it starts to rot in the daytime sun. The seaweed first started coming ashore back on January 10.

The seaweed on Patong Beach has forced the Patong municipality into action and a big clean-up operation has been underway.

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Officials had a backhoe and industrial equipment on the beach yesterday and today removing the offending seaweed from the popular tourist beach. Municipal employees were also removing much of the material by hand. They were out in force last week as well when the first clumps landed on the shores of Patong Beach.

The Phuket Marine Biological Centre says the seaweed is a seasonal phenomenon and nothing to be worried about. They say that wave action has removed some of the seaweed from the seafloor off the Patong coastline and dumped it on the beach.

Swimmers and tourists didn’t seem to mind the seaweed and have been swimming and enjoying the beach anyway.

Source - TheTaiger 

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#Thailand - The Phoenix salvage operation ready

Last week it was reported that the sunken Phoenix would be raised to the surface last weekend but the crane from Singapore did not arrive until on Tuesday.

The barge and crane are off Koh Hei and the authorities are confident the operation will go ahead. Acting Immigration Bureau chief Maj-Gen Surachate Hakparn said Phoenix will be raised within five days.

Deputy commander of the Royal Thai Police, Gen Rungroj Sangkram, and Surachate travelled from Bangkok, joining more than 60 Thai and Chinese journalists, and inspected the operation.

Rungroj said: “We are trying to push for the salvage operation as the boat is important evidence as we take legal action.”

Phuket’s Governor Pakkapong Tawipat said that the barge, which came from Singapore with a 1,200-tonne crane this week, was yesterday to recovery the Phoenix.

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Surachate said: “This crane can definitely bring the boat to the surface. We can confirm that the boat will be raised in the next five days. ”

The Phuket authorities said Seaquest Marine Ltd from Singapore has been preparing for the salvage operation since November 7 with more than 100 staff.

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Source - TheNation

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#Phuket - Bangla lady boy caught stealing tourists’ wallets

A lady boy was taken to Patong police station after being caught by tuk-tuk and taxi drivers for allegedly stealing tourists’ wallets on Bangla Road early on Monday.

At about 5am in the morning, the drivers helped catch the lady boy, whom they said had been been robbing Czech tourists of their wallets while they were walking. 

Patong police and tourist police were called to the scene.

Witnesses said that the individual had preyed on drunk, early-morning stragglers along the tourist strip many times before. 

 

They said they had warned her many times, but she had kept doing it.  

One witness claimed that there were “teams” of lady boys who finished their work at entertainment venues and then tried to prey on drunk tourists.

“Sometimes they have taken male tourists who are drunk back to their room and stolen tourists’ property. This behavior has damaged Patong tourism a lot,” the witness said.

Source - TheNation 

It happened in Phuket

#Thailand - Talkfest about ensuring better marine safety in Phuket

A meeting was held on Tuesday morning at Chalong Pier, led by Navy chief of staff Admiral Pichet Tannaset, who said he was determined to follow through with measures that would ensure marine safety – better controlling tour boats in Phuket in order to prevent marine accidents.

He said: “We don’t have direct power to enforce the law, but we have seen many problems emerge from this boat tragedy [when dozens of Chinese tourists died earlier this month].

“We want to see vastly improved passenger management at all ports as soon as possible. Also, the checking of boats and boat safety equipment. A draft tour boat management enforcement procedure is currently being prepared.”

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 The director-general of the Marine Department, Jiru Wisanjit, said: “We are highly focused on ports and boat safety. We are checking on boats that carry more than 100 passengers for their safety and correct registration. Some boat licences were found to be expired. Those boats are currently banned from leaving port.

“After we set the new, stricter safety parameters, tour boats will only be permitted to depart from ports that have been registered for tour boat operations. Tourists might be affected by this due to having to travel further for a departure point, but we have to do this to ensure better marine safety.”

Source - TheNation 

 

Thai official: 5 reported missing from sunken boat are alive

PHUKET, Thailand — Five people reported to have been missing from a tour boat that sank in a storm off the southern resort island of Phuket are alive, Thai authorities said Monday, though it's unclear if the five survived the sinking or never got on the boat.

Phuket Gov. Norrapat Plodthong said authorities are trying to verify their details and some of them may have left Thailand.

Norrapat said the development came after new information emerged from Thai immigration and the Chinese Embassy.

The new information also showed there were 89 tourists, 87 of them Chinese, on the boat, instead of the previous figure of 93, he said.

The number of people who are missing has been lowered from 14 to 10, including the five who are alive but whose whereabouts are unclear, he said. The death toll remains at 42, including a body still trapped under the wreckage.

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The double-decker Phoenix capsized and sank late Thursday afternoon after it was hit by 5-meter (16-foot) waves in one of Thailand's worse tourism-related disasters since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed thousands.

Officials said all of the dead were Chinese comprising 13 children, 18 women and 10 men. The age and sex of the body still under the wreckage wasn't known.

Navy officials on Monday were attempting to flip the boat to retrieve the body and check for other possible victims. Special equipment has been brought in to lift up the boat, which is sitting some 45 meters (148 feet) beneath the surface, officials said.

Tourism is a vital part of the Thai economy, with the World Bank estimating the Southeast Asian nation generates about 12 percent of its gross domestic product from tourism receipts. Chinese tourists are a key driver of the industry, accounting for 9.8 million of the record 35.38 million tourists to visit the country last year.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the country's military ruler, expressed his "profound sadness" in a letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping. In the letter released by the foreign ministry Monday, Prayuth said a full investigation is underway to find the cause of the tragedy and assured Xi his government is determined to ensure such incidents would not recur.

Prayuth arrived in Phuket on Monday to observe the operations and will visit Chinese relatives and survivors at a hospital.

Police said the captain of the Phoenix has been charged with "careless conduct leading to death" and could face more than three years in jail.

The captain of another boat that capsized on the same day and the manager of a travel agency that chartered the boat have also been charged for being careless leading to injuries. All the passengers from the second ship were rescued.

Tourism Minister Weerasak Kowsurat, who is in Phuket, has said the government will "spare no one" and will bring all those responsible to justice. Families of each victim could receive up to 1.4 million Thai baht ($42,000) in compensation, officials said.

Source - ChinaDaily

 

#Thailand - Cutting plastic waste pollution at sea on agenda at Asean-China meeting in #Phuket

THAILAND’S GOAL to gradually eradicate plastic waste at sea by 80 million to 160 million kilograms a year by 2021, is expected to be affirmed by Jatuporn Burutpat, chief of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, at the upcoming Asean and China Sea Waste Reduction Meeting, to be held in Phuket from November 22-23.

Jatuporn cited a 2010 study of 192 countries, published in 2015 in a US-based science journal. The study ranked Thailand as the world’s sixth largest contributor of plastic waste enters the world’s seas at 1.03 million tonnes per year. 

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China, topped the list at 8.82 million tonnes of plastic waste yearly, followed by Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Egypt, Malaysia, Nigeria and Bangladesh. Since many Asean nations have a problem with sea waste and had connecting sea-based borders, it was important for the department to help propel forward a regional waste-management plan, said Jatuporn. 

The countries need to exchange ideas and their experiences dealing with sea-waste issues, he added, citing Singapore and Malaysia for the quality of their technology and progress in implementing measures that could be shared throughout the bloc.

Thailand’s plastic-waste reduction goal is part of the department’s master plan for garbage management (2016-2021). 

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 The five-parts of the master plan are to study garbage types, amount and origins to build a database; to reduce the impact of sea waste on key ecosystems; to reduce the volume of garbage by applying academic principles and encouraging manufacturers and product distributors to use environmentally friendly materials; to boost public awareness and participation in sea waste reduction, especially in coastal provinces; and to create plastic-free zones to serve as models for use of alternative materials, Jatuporn said. 

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Jatuporn acknowledged headlines about garbage washing ashore in Thailand’s coastal provinces and commentary about the country’s lack of effective sea waste management. About 80 percent of sea waste was actually produced on land, he said, continuing that the upcoming Asian meeting is expected to table possible measures to reduce garbage at its origins, in mid-stream, and in downstream areas. 

He also hopes to hear about measures to boost public awareness so people would separate trash at home for proper disposal.

Source - TheNation

 

Ex-monk charged with murder for slaying Myanmar boy, 17, at Phuket temple

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A defrocked monk was already being held on drug charges and has now also been charged for the murder of a 17-year-old monk’s assistant at a Phuket temple last Saturday.

The body of Myanmar teen Wei Pew Ar was found outside a monk’s residence at Baan Don Temple in central Phuket at 6am last Saturday.

He had been stabbed to death in a vicious attack. His right arm, believed to have been used to fend off the attack was nearly severed at the wrist.

Wei had been a monk’s assistant at the temple for a year.

Fingerprints on the knife found at the scene matched those of 38-year-old Khitthisak Songkram, Thalang Police Chief Col. Sompong Thiparpakul confirmed Wednesday.

 Khitthisak was a monk at the temple under the name “Phra Khitthisak” at the time of his arrest last weekend.

Blood found on the monk’s robes also matched that of the victim, Col. Sompong added.

“We received the results from tests conducted by Police Forensic Science Center 10 in Songkhla. With this evidence, we charged Khitthisak with murder,” he said.

Khitthisak has already denied the charge and police have yet to reveal any possible motive for the brutal slaying.

Meanwhile, Khitthisak remains in detention at Phuket Provincial Court awaiting trial.

Source - PhuketNews / Coconuts