Restaurants accept dine-in rules
Representatives of Thai Shopping Centre Association (TSCA) and Thai Restaurant Association met with Mr Anutin (centre) on Tuesday to talk about relaxation of lockdown restrictions on restaurant business and new Covid-19 protocols to re-open restaurants. Restaurant operators say they are receptive to Public Health Ministry plans for reopening, which involve tough Covid-19 protocols including a requirement for diners to show vaccination proof. "It is a very good idea to apply the sandbox concept to the restaurant business. Nath Vongphanich, president of Central Restaurants Group, said that the company also approves of the restaurant sandbox idea, since tighter measures will boost consumer confidence when visiting restaurants. "If the sandbox concept is used, we are ready to gradually reopen our restaurants," he said.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 21:22 UTC
OnlyFans reverses sexually explicit content ban
OnlyFans reverses sexually explicit content banValery Lopez is seen in a cellphone screen as she poses for pictures with a photographer during a photoshoot to make content for her OnlyFans profile, in Caracas, in December 2020. PARIS: OnlyFans, the platform where creators can share erotic photos and videos for a fee, on Wednesday reversed its decision to prohibit sexually explicit content. "OnlyFans' initial decision to ban adult content was surprising, considering the amount of revenue generated for the platform by adult content creators," said Scarlett Woodford, an analyst at Juniper Research who tracks the adult entertainment industry. Banks would "cite reputational risk and refuse our business", he said, adding that OnlyFans pays more than one million creators $300 million every month via the banking sector. It was not the first time an internet platform has blamed pressure from banks for a ban on explicit content.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 15:11 UTC
Covid causes plunge into poverty
Covid causes plunge into povertyFormer employees of Wingspan Services, a subsidiary of Thai Airways International, converge on Government House to air their grievances on Sept 17, 2020. The unemployment rate rose to 1.97% in the second quarter of last year, from 1.03% in the first quarter, meaning about 700,000 people were jobless. Although the unemployment figure was up in the second quarter, the increase was not substantial. Mr Somchai said the quasi-unemployed numbered around 5.4 million in the second quarter of last year, as estimated by the central bank. On average, working hours dropped from 41 hours a week in the first quarter of last year to 39 hours per week in the second quarter.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 14:37 UTC
Britain's Storey shines, records tumble on day one of Tokyo Paralympics
Britain's Storey shines, records tumble on day one of Tokyo ParalympicsBritain's Sarah Storey celebrates her 15th Paralympic gold medalTOKYO - British cyclist Sarah Storey added to her glorious golden history as wheelchair rugby powerhouses Australia suffered a shock defeat on day one of the delayed Tokyo 2020 Paralympics on Wednesday. She smashed her own world record by nearly eight seconds in the heats and lowered it by another second and a half to 3min 50.815sec in the final. Storey moved a step closer to becoming Britain's greatest Paralympian, shattering her own world record in the heats before powering to victory in the C5 3,000 metres individual pursuit final for her 15th Paralympic gold. Storey is just one medal behind the British record held by Mike Kenny, who won 16 swimming golds from 1976 to 1988. "I'm pretty devastated, to be honest -- I had never lost a game at the Paralympics ever," said Australia's Chris Bond.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 12:22 UTC
Bank of Ayudhya to acquire SHB Finance in Vietnam
Bank of Ayudhya to acquire SHB Finance in VietnamBank of Ayudhya Plc said on Wednesday that it will acquire SHB Finance in Vietnam from Saigon-Hanoi Commercial Joint Stock Bank for 5.1 billion baht. "We are very pleased to announce that we have signed agreements with SHB to acquire a 100% stake in SHB Finance, SHB's consumer finance subsidiary," Bank of Ayudhya President Seiichiro Akita said in a statement.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 11:57 UTC
Unemployment rate dips in Q2 but virus curbs to hit jobs
Unemployment rate dips in Q2 but virus curbs to hit jobsFILE PHOTO: People cook near rows of "tuk-tuks" in a parking lot, as drivers remain out of work due to the economic hardship of Covid-19 and more than a year of no incoming foreign tourism, in Bangkok on July 20, 2021. (Reuters)Thailand's unemployment rate in the second quarter dipped from a 12-year high in the previous three months, but restrictions to contain the country's biggest coronavirus outbreak are likely to impact more jobs, the state planning agency said on Wednesday. The unemployment rate was at 1.86% in April-June, representing 730,000 workers without jobs, down from 1.96% in January-March, as employment increased in the farm and export sectors, the agency said. Employment rose 2% in the second quarter year-on-year. Last week, the central bank said jobless numbers were expected at 3.4 million at the end of 2021, up from 3 million in the second quarter.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 11:48 UTC
Police: Demonstrators arrested with bombs for Sunday
Police: Demonstrators arrested with bombs for SundayAnti-government protesters on motorcycles gather in Din Daeng area, Bangkok, last Sunday. The suspects had taken part in 4-5 rallies in Din Daeng area and at nearby Victory Monument, Pol Maj Gen Piya said. On Tuesday protesters threw pipe and ping-pong bombs and fireworks at police and at government property, he said. Since last month, police have arrested 284 demonstrators and summoned 127 others, including 16 rally leaders, for violations of the laws. Another 597 people would later also be prosecuted for similar offences, Pol Maj Gen Piya said.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 10:41 UTC
Phuket logging about 100 new Covid cases a day
Phuket logging about 100 new Covid cases a dayPeople wait for Covid-19 tests at Kohsirae School in Muang district, Phuket, last week. (Photo: Achadthaya Chuenniran)PHUKET: This southern tourist island has recorded about 100 new Covid-19 cases a day for about a week, nearly all of them members of vulnerable groups. Dr Koosak Kookiatkul, Phuket health chief, said on Wednesday there were 158 new cases the day before -- 156 Thai people and migrants who lived in Phuket, and two foreign participants in the Phuket Sandbox reopening project. Dr Withita Jang-iam, epidemiologic expert at Vachira Phuket Hospital, said all the Covid-19 patients were elderly, had chronic diseases or were pregnant. Phuket governor Narong Wunciew said the Phuket Sandbox project would continue as Covid-19 was still under control there.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 10:30 UTC
Draft bill to prevent torture of suspects submitted to House
Draft bill to prevent torture of suspects submitted to HouseJustice Minister Somsak Thepsutin (Bangkok Post file photo)A draft bill aiming to protect suspects from torture and forced disappearances has been submitted to the House of Representatives for deliberation, Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin said on Wednesday. Mr Somsak said the bill, drafted by the Department of Rights and Liberties Protection, was among bills waiting to be added to the House agenda for deliberation in the first reading. He said the gist of the legislation was to protect suspects in criminal cases from torture and forced disappearance while in custody of state authorities. The law, once in effect, would help uplift the Thai justice system and human rights protection to international standards, said Mr Somsak. For the Nakhon Sawan case, relatives of the murdered suspect were eligible to compensation under a 2001 law on compensation for suspects in criminal cases who are victims of excessive abuse of power.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 10:18 UTC
Govt urges pregnant women to get vaccinated
Govt urges pregnant women to get vaccinatedA pregnant woman attends a walk-in vaccination programme at Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital in Sai Mai district of Bangkok on Tuesday. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)The government’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on Wednesday called on pregnant women in the country to get vaccinated against Covid-19, citing a higher risk of deaths among those who become infected with the coronavirus. "Pregnant women are 2.5 times more likely to die after an infection than others due to changes to body shape that makes breathing more difficult," said Dr Apisamai. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is being offered to pregnant women and as a booster to medical workers who had previously received two shots of Sinovac. Health ministry data showed since April 2,327 pregnant women had been infected, of which 22 had received one vaccine dose.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 09:56 UTC
Your horoscope for Aug 27
Your spot-on horoscope for work, money, couples & singles from the Bangkok Post's famously accurate fortune teller. You'll be able to get over them soon because you two have been drifting apart for some time now. Even if you're right, you know that your partner won't openly support or defend you, being Switzerland about it. ♌ LeoJul 23 – Aug 22(⛹) You may have to do something that's beyond your job description. By the end of next week, you'll feel like you grow up quite a lot.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 09:56 UTC
Nigerian, Thai wife arrested, charged with smuggling crystal meth
Nigerian, Thai wife arrested, charged with smuggling crystal methWanwisa Pilatan, 24, watches as police search her room in Bangkok's Ratchathewi district on Tuesday. She and her Nigerian husband were charged with attempting to smuggle 9kg of crystal methamphetamine to Hong Kong hidden in a shipment of shoulder bags. Officers found a total of 9 kilogrammes of crystal meth hidden in 18 of the 30 shoulder bags. Pol Maj Gen Jirabhop said the extended investigation found that the sender was a woman, identified later as Ms Wannisa. In a separate operation, police arrested two Nigerian men in Samut Prakan for other offences.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 09:45 UTC
Cambodia to examine 'Angkor Wat replica' in Buri Ram
Cambodia to examine 'Angkor Wat replica' in Buri RamAn aerial shot of the Sihanakhon temple complex under construction at Wat Phu Man Fah in Nang Rong district of Buri Ram, in July. (Photo: Surachai Piraksa)The Cambodian government will send officials to view a new temple complex in Buri Ram province said to be a copy of structures at the famed Angkor Wat ruins, a Cambodian Culture Ministry official said. Cambodians reacted angrily on scocial media on seeing photos of the new temple complex in July. However, temple abbot Somsak Sungwarajitto denied when the issue came to light that it was a replica of structures at Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat in Siem Reap was declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1992.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 09:11 UTC
Malaysia Leads SE Asia GDP downgrades but Thailand still slowest
(AFP)Malaysia leads growth downgrades by economists across Southeast Asia as the Delta variant forces countries to reimpose pandemic restrictions. The rapid spread of the highly infectious Delta variant and low vaccinate rates have caught much of Southeast Asia off guard. For the current quarter, forecasts for Malaysia’s GDP growth were slashed by the most in the region, by 2.8 percentage points from May’s survey. Thailand was second-worst, cut by more than 2 percentage points in both the third and fourth quarters. The Asian Development Bank last month downgraded its Southeast Asian growth forecast in its outlook supplement to 4% from 4.4%.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 09:00 UTC
Indonesia seizes tanker wanted over Cambodian oil heist
Indonesia seizes tanker wanted over Cambodian oil heistThe Bahamian-flagged MT. Strovolos is seen near the Riau islands after Indonesia's navy said it had seized the tanker and its crew who were wanted on charges of stealing nearly 300,000 barrels of crude oil from Cambodia's reserves. (AFP PHOTO / INDONESIAN NAVY)Indonesia's navy said Wednesday it has seized a tanker and its crew who were wanted on charges of stealing nearly 300,000 barrels of crude oil from Cambodia's reserves. Indonesia's navy said it was questioning the crew of 13 Indians, three Bangladeshis and a trio from Myanmar at its base near Singapore. But the company was unable to pay its debts and filed for liquidation in June, still allegedly owing money to the tanker crew, they added.
Source:Bangkok Post
August 25, 2021 08:37 UTC