61 US marines on Okinawa have virus
(US Marine Corps photo by Cpl Kameron Herndon via Reuters)TOKYO: Two US Marine bases on Okinawa have been put on lockdown by the military after 61 coronavirus cases were confirmed this week, the prefectural government said late Saturday. The US forces told the Okinawa government that the cases were confirmed between Tuesday and Saturday. The outbreaks occurred at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, which is at the centre of a relocation dispute, and Camp Hansen. Tamaki said some American military personnel had held parties in downtown areas and beaches around July 4 to celebrate US Independence Day. Personnel at Camp Hansen and Marine Corps Air Station Futenma have been put on “soft shelter-in-place” orders.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 14:01 UTC
Key dissenters absent from Chana hearing
Police and opponents of the Chana industrial estate project face off on a road to the Chana Wittaya School in Chana district of Songkhla on Saturday. The constitutionally required public hearing on the 18.7-billion-baht project was held on Saturday by the Southern Border Provinces Administration Centre (SBPAC), at the Chana Wittaya School in Chana district of Songkhla province. “The public hearing today is just a formality to legitimise the project — one of the many they have held before. A group of dissenters read their statement after being asked to disperse in Chana district of Songkhla province, on Saturday. Overall, the Chana project covers 16,753 rai in three tambons — Nathab, Taling Chan and Sakhom.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 12:55 UTC
Monkey trainer defends practices
'Very few' animals used to harvest coconuts, contrary to Peta claimNirun Wongwanich, 52, trains a monkey to pick coconuts in Surat Thani. (Reuters Photo)A monkey trainer in Surat Thani says very few monkeys are involved in harvesting coconuts for export and there was no abuse at his centre, disputing claims by animal rights activists. Peta in a previous statement said that it believes “virtually all” coconuts from Thailand were picked by monkeys. Only a few farms in the South use monkeys for older, taller types of coconut trees, he said, adding that he sometimes trains monkeys for these farmers. The government has fiercely denied the Peta report, saying the use of monkey labour was “almost non-existent”.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 09:45 UTC
Foreigners take aim at dual pricing
A companion Twitter account, Two Price Thailand, is also online with 2,100 followers. The reference is to venues that post the prices for Thai visitors in Thai numerals, which most foreigners cannot read. “Many Thais and foreigners agree that the dual pricing system is hurting the image of both the tourism industry and Thailand itself. At Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park, which straddles Loei, Phitsanulok and Phetchabun, admission for Thai adults is 40 baht but foreigners pay 500 baht. Tanes Petsuwan, deputy governor for marketing communications for the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said he was not happy about foreigners being subject to dual pricing.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 08:48 UTC
Saturday: 14 new returnee virus cases | Bangkok Post: learning
The government on Saturday reported 14 new Covid-19 cases, all returnees from Bahrain, the United States and Sudan. (Photo: Arnun Chonmahatrakool)The government on Saturday reported 14 new coronavirus cases, all in quarantine, bringing the total to 3,216 cases since January. Among the 14 new cases was a nine-year-old who travelled with her family. A returnee, 42, arrived home from Bahrain on June 28 and was in quarantine in Chon Buri. The new cases brought the total to 3,216, of whom 3,088 recovered, including one discharged on Saturday.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 06:33 UTC
WHO urges more aggressive virus measures
WHO urges more aggressive virus measuresThe WHO says aggressive control measures can rein in the spread of the coronavirusGENEVA: The World Health Organization has urged countries grappling with coronavirus to step up control measures, saying it is still possible to rein it in, as some nations clamp fresh restrictions on citizens. Trump has pushed to hold large gatherings against health advice as epidemiologists warn of the dangers posed by the virus moving through the air in crowded and confined spaces. The virus has killed at least 556,140 people worldwide since it emerged in China last December. Despite being right next to mainland China where the virus first emerged, the city had managed to quash local transmission in recent months. "Only aggressive action combined with national unity and global solidarity can turn this pandemic around," he said.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 05:22 UTC
In India-China crisis, an India-US bonanza in view
But Smith said that India has asked the United States to be publicly circumspect -- in part to show the domestic audience that New Delhi does not need help. - 'Transactional' ties -The United States has been seeking warmer ties since the 1990s with India, which insisted during the Cold War on being "non-aligned" on the global stage. Trump, who has frequently sparred with Western allies, may not even want a more committed relationship with India, she said. Trump has stayed mum on rights and has offered, with little detail, to mediate between India and China. But John Bolton, Trump's former national security advisor who recently published an explosive memoir, doubted Trump understood the border situation.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 01:52 UTC
Wimbledon cancellation gives food for thought
Wimbledon cancellation gives food for thoughtStrawberries from Wimbledon supplier Hugh Lowe Farms are delivered to the All England ClubLONDON - Strawberries and cream are just as much part of the Wimbledon experience as tennis in pristine whites on the lush green lawns of the All England Club. Hugh Lowe Farms in nearby Kent has been the sole supplier for the championships for the past 27 years. "The days of the English strawberry season that you blink and miss it have gone many years ago," Marion Regan, owner of Hugh Lowe Farms, told AFP. "The strawberry season runs from April until November and we have a glasshouse for each end of the season. - Cooking up a storm -Instead of overseeing hundreds of staff, Wimbledon's executive chef Adam Fargin is providing adapted "signature Wimbledon dishes" for 200 members of the local community five days a week.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 11, 2020 01:30 UTC
Malaysia's changing policy on Rohingya refugees
Rohingya refugees look out from their homes amid the coronavirus outbreak in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in May. Not only is it refusing to accept the boat people, but Malaysia's tone has changed with heightened hate speech and xenophobic treatment in recent months. The surge in hate speech is believed to have been triggered partly by claims that the Rohingya were demanding citizenship and other legal rights in Malaysia. The Malaysian government's decision in early April to turn back boats carrying Rohingya refugees also contributed to the increase in hate speech. On May 11, an open letter signed by 83 organisations, urged the government to combat online hate speech and xenophobia.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:48 UTC
Setthaput latest to vie for BoT post
Setthaput: Worked at World Bank in D.C.Of the applicants for central bank governor, four are external candidates and two are insiders, Rangsan Sriworasart, the selection committee chairman, said after the extended application period closed yesterday. The application period will not be extended again, he said, as the six applicants have been deemed sufficient. An informed source who requested anonymity described Mr Setthaput as the favourite to fill outgoing governor Veerathai Santiprabhob's shoes. Apart from the two latest applicants, four other candidates applied during the regular application period. Mrs Tongjai is a former investment officer at the central bank, and Mr Suchart is a former senior investment dealer there.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:37 UTC
Compensating farmers with a high-tech touch
Total damage reached 33 billion baht for the rice crop, with a loss ratio of 550%. "From the farmers' viewpoint, the value of money is not really about the amount itself, but rather the timing to use the money," Mrs Chutatong says. It helps the BAAC and insured crop farmers take photos to report crop damage. These technologies can allow rice farmers who are outside the perimeter of disaster-affected areas to report primary data to the TGIA for assistance. Before talking with or giving guidance to her staff, Mrs Chutatong always considers her instructions carefully to hone a clear message.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:37 UTC
An Outlet King Thinks Online Shopping Is Overrated. Now He's Betting on It
It's a bet Mr. Tanger has been making for years, even as online retail threatens to flatten every shopping center in America. Mr. Tanger's strongest rebuttal is that human beings will always prefer to buy some merchandise in person. During the lockdowns, Mr. Tanger suspected that his homebound customers were craving more than just shoe deals. By cutting executive pay, Mr. Tanger hoped to send a message to employees that "we are all in this together." Mr. Tanger's pandemic response isn't complete, of course.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:37 UTC
Pupils held hostage in Trump's games
Pupils held hostage in Trump's gamesMy daughter Sai completed her 14-day quarantine yesterday. I had to assist her remotely because by then her training centre had been closed to in-person training. If all their classes were online, they had to either leave the country or transfer to another institution which offered in-person classes ... or be deported. The Trump administration is intent on forcing schools and universities to open in-person classes as a measure to reopen the American economy. Whether it was intended or not, the brunt of the measure fell squarely on the more than one million foreign students attending American universities.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:26 UTC
Preserve our heritage, don't leave it to rot
Preserve our heritage, don't leave it to rotRecent news reports that a bust of Chao Phraya Kosathibodi (Kosa Pan), one of the first Siamese ambassadors, was "stolen" from its plinth on the Rue de Siam in the French city of Brest shocked cultural enthusiasts. Fortunately, the Kosathibodi bust was returned to the place it was taken from less than 24 hours after disappearing. The French king returned the goodwill the same year when he sent a delegation led by Chevalier de Chaumont to Ayutthaya where he was received by the 17th century Siamese king. While Thais take a great interest in the "Rue de Siam" in Brest, not many know there is another road bearing that name. Over the years, Thailand's "Rue de France" has literally become "lost", littered with garbage and lined by stalls.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:26 UTC
Hail Vardy! Silver Fox joins the 100 club
Silver Fox joins the 100 clubLast week, Leicester City's Jamie Vardy joined the elite group of players who have scored 100 goals or more in the Premier League and his achievement provides one of the more inspirational tales of recent years. There are now 29 members of the 100 club and Vardy joins a veritable Who's Who of goal scorers. Of the other 100 achievers, only Arsenal's Ian Wright joined the Premier League at an older age (28). Vardy scored his 100 goals in Leicester colours. Although Le Tissier just squeaks in at 29th with 100 Premier League goals, he had scored many more before the league was launched.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 10, 2020 23:26 UTC