Thailand sold itself as a paradise Covid retreat. No one came
Thailand sold itself as a paradise Covid retreat. That’s well below the government’s target of about 1,200 and a tiny fraction of the more than 3 million who came before the pandemic. After two weeks, Thailand would be theirs to roam for as long as nine months. “It’s really challenging to balance the demands of the tourism industry and locals,” said Bhummikitti Ruktaengam, president of the Phuket Tourist Association. Thailand has seen Covid-19 infections more than double to more than 12,000 in less than a month.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 18, 2021 03:56 UTC
Happiness gap in the Land of Smiles
Happiness gap in the Land of SmilesIn this 2010 file photo, visitors view an exhibition, 'Siam, Land of Smiles' presenting various expressions of smiles at a Bangkok department store. The report also shows Thais' life satisfaction is increasingly lagging behind other countries in the region. The World Happiness Report stems from the premise that although material development and income are significant for physical well-being, they alone cannot make people feel happy. Germany started happiness and life satisfaction surveys in 1984; the United Kingdom started in 1991 and Australia in 2001. About 36% of the baby boomers rated their life satisfaction highly at between 9 and 10.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2021 23:37 UTC
Tuesday: 287 new Covid cases | Bangkok Post: learning
(AFP photo)Thailand on Tuesday reported 287 new coronavirus cases, 278 of them local transmissions, bringing the total to 10,834. Taweesilp Visanuyothin of the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration said 278 new cases were local transmissions, and nine were quarantined arrivals. They included 51 cases in Samut Sakhon province, 31 in Bangkok, six in Ang Thong and nine in Samut Prakan. Since Dec 18, 10 provinces have logged more than 50 Covid-19 cases each. They are Samut Sakhon, Chon Buri, Rayong, Bangkok, Samut Prakan, Chanthaburi, Nonthaburi, Nakhon Pathom, Ang Thong and Pathum Thani.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2021 05:16 UTC
'Powdered milk' drug cocktail kills six | Bangkok Post: learning
Photo by Arnun ChonmahatrakoolPolice will crack down on a "new" type of drug known as "powdered milk ketamine", following the deaths of six people in Bangkok on the same day. Police could not yet confirm whether the substance, which looks like powdered milk, was a combination of ketamine and sleeping pills as speculated, as the results of the autopsies had not yet been released. All of them were believed to have died after taking the drug as the white powdery drug was found at the scenes. According to a police spokesman, the drug is a combination of heroin, ketamine, methamphetamine and a type of sleeping pill. The father of one of the people who died on Sunday said his daughter left home around 8pm.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2021 02:48 UTC
City curbs may be relaxed | Bangkok Post: learning
Photo by WICHAN CHAROENKIATPAKULThe Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) on Monday hinted it would soon consider lifting Covid-19 restrictions. This is despite cases in the capital rising on Monday by 37 and bringing its tally to 1,989. The two clusters consisted of 135 cases in total, he said, adding that some people from Bangkok had brought the virus home with them from Si Racha during the New Year. Bangkok's governor said the capital's new patients had visited or worked in entertainment places, restaurants and massage parlours. Health authorities were now trying to find other people who had been to these places, he said, adding public health authorities have already tested 15,908 at-risk people who visited markets across Bangkok.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2021 02:37 UTC
Videos reveal violence of assault on US Congress
Videos reveal violence of assault on US CongressSupporters of President Donald Trump violently attacked police during the siege of the US Capitol. WASHINGTON: Five days after supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol, new videos are revealing the level of violence that left lawmakers cowering inside and police howling for backup. - Scarier than Iraq -Early videos showed a boisterous crowd press their way, without particular coordination, past police to barge into the Capitol. The buildings were ordered to lock down, and as the vice president was whisked to secret, secure premises inside the Congress complex, outside, a video shows, the crowd chanted, "Hang Mike Pence." Inside, video shows men decked out in combat gear carrying many plastic zip-tie handcuffs, suggesting they hoped to seize elected officials.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 12, 2021 01:46 UTC
Not ready for online classes
Not ready for online classesNot only has the resurgence of the novel coronavirus hit the country's public health sector -- and subsequently, its economy -- hard, but it has also exposed the disparities in the nation's education system. As a result, as more schools move their classes to Zoom, an increasing number of children and parents are becoming frustrated by the situation. Well-respected academic Sompong Jitradub said online learning and teaching are only effective if students have consistent access to the internet and computers, and if teachers have received targeted training and support for online instruction. The shift to online learning has shed even more light on the widening gap between children in rural and urban areas, with the expert saying that rural students in Thailand are about three years behind their urban counterparts. It must do what it can to narrow the education gap between rich children in urban areas and poor children in rural areas, with or without the threat of Covid-19.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2021 23:03 UTC
Application of logic needed in Covid battle
Application of logic needed in Covid battleIt's not easy being a national Covid-19 taskforce in a country ruled by an ultra-conservative government driven by cumbersome bureaucracy and a daily dose of hypocrisy. For a start, which contact-tracing application should we use: the Thai Chana app recommended for checking in and out of public places earlier or the Mor Chana app that has been suggested recently as a better track-and-trace tool? The name Mor Chana -- or Doctors Win -- is once that would not click easily with users looking for a track-and-trace application. The government's assumption might be that if more people download it, that will help doctors win the battle against the virus. Mor Chana is Doctors Win.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2021 23:03 UTC
Govt logs 249 new Covid cases Monday, warns officials
Govt logs 249 new Covid cases Monday, warns officialsPeople dine separated by dividing screens at a street food corner in Bangkok's Chinatown on Sunday after authorities imposed restrictions on restaurants due to the recent Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak. (AFP photo)Thailand on Monday recorded 249 new coronavirus cases, 224 of them local transmissions, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to date to 10,547. Of the 224 local cases, 78 were found through active testing, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) said. Eleven of the 249 new cases were people who recently flew into the country and were in state quarantine -- six Thais and five foreigners. Warning for Interior Ministry officialsPermanent secretary for interior Chatchai Promlert on Monday issued a stern warning to any Interior Ministry officials still turning a blind eye to gambling and illegal entry from neighbouring countries in their jurisdictions.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2021 04:51 UTC
Making palm oil more sustainable
Most palm oil products in Thailand and Asean nations come from small and medium-sized oil palm growers. To pave the way for greener practices and greater economic benefit from the palm oil sector, policymakers, businesses and consumers have key roles to play in supporting sustainable palm oil by demanding it, experts say. GIZ recently co-hosted a business forum, "Road to Transforming the Sustainable Palm Oil Market in Thailand", in Bangkok together with the RSPO under their Sustainable and Climate-friendly Palm Oil Production Project (SCPOPP). However, it is still vital that palm oil businesses work with oil palm smallholders in the supply chain to enhance their productivity and improve livelihoods. It is aimed at improving the accountability of local palm oil products as well as promoting domestic consumption of sustainable palm oil.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2021 03:52 UTC
Vaccines must be safe
Vaccines must be safeIn a race to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, every country is trying to secure as many vaccines as it can, as soon as possible. The government has pre-ordered some 26 million doses from the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca, and it recently bought another 35 million doses. The announcement came after reports emerged that some countries in Asean have received their Covid-19 vaccines and begun vaccinating their people. The countries include Indonesia, which received 1.8 million doses -- its second batch of coronavirus vaccines -- from Sinovac in December last year, adding to the 1.2 million it received earlier. Some believe the Chinese-made vaccine is safe, as its production method is relatively simple, and its mechanism of action is widely shared by other vaccines -- it uses virus particles to trigger the body's immune response.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 11, 2021 01:28 UTC
Covid confusion is the new normal
Covid confusion is the new normalWith this new surge of Covid-19 cases hitting the country, Thais know that the disease is not new. However, adding to the pandemic's new normal are myths, confusion, and fake news circulating online. We understand that in such circumstances, the prime minister has the final say. There is also speculation over the reliability of Away Covid-19 application developed by Phitsanulok-based tech start-up Mapedia. In the end, the developer of Away Covid-19 came out and said all of this was wrong.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 10, 2021 23:48 UTC
Resurgence threatens shoots of recovery
"In the past year, many companies turned the Covid-19 crisis into an opportunity to shake up their structure. [That said,] despite the voluntary retirements and resignations, some were still forced to lay off employees," Mr Chalee said. According to the Social Security Office, 327,693 employees were let go in 2020 with the highest number losing their jobs in August. "I did not even get my unemployment insurance because my employer said it was the employees' fault," she said. It had risen year-on-year from December 2019 to December 2020, meaning overall, there were more people in gainful employment, he said.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 10, 2021 23:37 UTC
Tradition wins out
Karnjana KarnjanatawePrayadpon and her sister Maliwan co-founded the Khao Hom Thong Community Enterprise in Ban Champa. A package of 1kg of khao hang or khao hom thong. After the husk is removed, the golden brown rice known as khao hom thong or khao hang is revealed. They can sell a kilogramme of hang rice for 80 baht, much higher than the average of 35 baht a kilogramme. Khao hang or khao hom thong is registered as a geographical indication (GI) rice of Sakon Nakhon.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 10, 2021 23:37 UTC
FDA vows 'safety first'
In Bangkok, the vaccinations will be carried out at public health centres, he added. To ensure its safety, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has pledged to prioritise patients' well-being when it evaluates the vaccine, which is expected to arrive next month. "The decision to approve that vaccine will depend on its safety and efficiency," said Surachoke Tangwiwat, the FDA's deputy secretary-general. Dr Surachoke said the FDA is waiting for Sinovac to send documents for the FDA to review and insisted officials will not fast-track the approval process. He admitted that the plan to administer the vaccine next month may still change, as the FDA will have to adhere to the strictest health and safety principles.
Source:Bangkok Post
January 10, 2021 23:27 UTC