US regulators complete test flights on Boeing 737 MAX
US regulators complete test flights on Boeing 737 MAXA Boeing 737 MAX aircraft landing earlier this week following a FAA recertification flight. NEW YORK: Air safety regulators successfully completed three days of flight tests on the Boeing 737 MAX, a key step in recertifying the plane, US officials said Wednesday. While the flight tests in Seattle are "an important milestone ... a number of key tasks remain, including evaluating the data gathered during these flights," the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday. Besides evaluating data from the test flights, regulators still must develop pilot training protocols for the MAX that will be subject to public comment and a final review by a technical advisory board. All MAX aircraft manufactured since the crashes also will need to be personally inspected by FAA staff, the agency said.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
A roti like no other
A-yoh aka John, the owner of a food stall was cooking omelette mixed with minced chicken on an iron roti pan. He called his food roti, which is totally different from typical roti I've seen and eaten. When I asked him why his roti was unique, he smiled and said: "You can't find anything like this anywhere else. When the A-yoh's roti was ready to serve, his daughter folded the bread in half and wrapped it in paper -- roti style. I tried one roti which cost only 25 baht.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
Covid crisis compounds new school-term woes
In Chumphon, a mother of four went to a local shopping mall with her eight-year-old daughter on Tuesday. She grabbed school uniform skirts and shorts from the racks and shoes from the shelves -- although she had no intention of paying for them. She and her daughter were caught by the store's security guards and taken to a backroom office where she was detained. The police officers chipped in some of their own money to buy new school uniforms for Ms Darin's two daughters. Her daughters were happy to go back to school with the new clothes and stationery the officers also bought for them.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
Wissanu plays down decree fears
"The emergency decree is still needed to ensure integration of the authority held by various state officials, which the Communicable Disease Control Act lacks the power to enforce," said Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam. He was responding to growing calls by political and rights activists and the opposition for the emergency decree to be revoked. "Neither the public health minister nor the Disease Control Department director-general has the authority [under the Communicable Disease Control Act] to tell the immigration officials or the police what to do," he said. Of the six bans imposed under the emergency decree, only two remained in place and they had not been strictly implemented, he said. Mrc Wissanu also said the Communicable Disease Control Act was being amended so it would be better positioned to deal with future health crises like the coronavirus, so the emergency decree wouldn't be needed again.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
Blaze hits historic Sukhawadee House
Blaze hits historic Sukhawadee HouseSmoke and flames billow from Sukhawadee House in Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri yesterday. The building was due to reopen yesterday after being closed for four months by the covid lockdown. (Photo by Chaiyot Pupattanapong)PATTAYA: Sukhawadee House, a major tourist attraction, went up in flames yesterday morning, just as it was about to reopen its doors after being closed for four months due to the coronavirus lockdown. The blaze started in the ornate Buddhabaramee building and quickly spread to the main building. About two hours later she heard a loud noise and saw flames coming from the stage area which quickly spread.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
Court rejects petition on Thamanat
Court rejects petition on ThamanatThe Constitutional Court has rejected a petition asking it to rule on the eligibility of Thamanat Prompow holding a seat in parliament due to his wife's business dealings with The Port Authority of Thailand (PAT). Mr Thamanat is the Palang Pracharath MP for Phayao province. Therefore, there is no reason for Mr Thamanat to lose his status as an MP. Before the court can decide whether to accept the petition for consideration, it must take into account the legality of the petition submission process and the reasons given in the petition, it said. The court dismissed the MPs' petition.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
GSB raises bad loan provisions by B50bn
GSB raises bad loan provisions by B50bnGovernment Savings Bank (GSB) aims to set aside an additional 50 billion baht in provisions against a potential increase in bad loans after the debt relief measures end, says new president and chief executive Vitai Ratanakorn. Before the debt holiday scheme started, the state-owned bank had 300,000 accounts with total loans outstanding of 70 billion baht overdue, and another 400,000 accounts with 65 billion that turned sour, he said. The bank did not specify a time frame for putting aside the 50 billion baht in loan-loss provisions. For the first five months, the bank's net profit amounted to 5 billion baht, with total lending increasing 5.6 billion to 2.16 trillion baht. GSB also plans to cut unnecessary budget for ads and marketing events, said Mr Vitai.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 22:18 UTC
US seizes Chinese products made from human hair in forced labour crackdown
US seizes Chinese products made from human hair in forced labour crackdownA US Customs and Border Protection officer at the Port of New York/Newark inspects a shipment of hair pieces and accessories from China suspected to have been made with forced or prison labour. WASHINGTON: US customs officials said Wednesday they had seized a shipment of products made from human hair believed to be made by Muslims in labour camps in China's western Xinjiang province. US Customs and Border Protection ordered on June 17 that the company's goods be held on grounds it uses prison and forced labour, including from children. "The production of these goods constitutes a very serious human rights violation," said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for trade at CBP. Lop County Meixin was the third Xinjiang exporter of human hair -- typically used in weaves and extensions -- to be blacklisted in recent months for using forced labour.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 21:22 UTC
Ancient Australian Aboriginal sites discovered underwater
Ancient Australian Aboriginal sites discovered underwaterThis handout aerial picture released by the DHSC Project and Flinders University shows a research area in the Dampier archipelago off the remote Western Australia coast where Aboriginal artefacts have been found on the seabed for the first time. Archaeologists say the finds mark an exciting first step in uncovering more Aboriginal sites thought to have been flooded since the last ice age between 18,000 and 8,000 years ago. "Now we finally have the first proof that at least some of this archaeological evidence survived the process of sea level rise." "With this comes a new requirement for the careful management of Aboriginal sea country." Archeologists have found Aboriginal sites in inland Australia dating back at least 65,000 years.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 18:56 UTC
France pulls out of NATO Med operation over Turkey tensions
France pulls out of NATO Med operation over Turkey tensionsEarlier this month, France denounced an 'extremely aggressive' intervention by Turkish ships against a French navy vessel participating in the NATO mission there, a claimed dismissed by Ankara. PARIS - France said Wednesday it was suspending its participation in a NATO Mediterranean maritime security operation owing to the behaviour of Turkey, in a new escalation of a growing dispute between the two alliance allies. The defence ministry said France would no longer take part in the NATO operation until it gets a response to its concerns over the behaviour of Turkey. Ankara supports the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in the Libya conflict against rebel strongman Khalifa Haftar. - 'No NATO without Turkey' -Macron said last week that he believed the naval incident between France and Turkey was worrying proof of his belief that NATO is in the throes of "brain death".
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 17:03 UTC
Obey the law or face closure, police tell nightlife venues
Obey the law or face closure, police tell nightlife venuesStaff run a final check inside the Sherbet pub in the Ekamai area before it reopens on Wednesday under the latest phase of the lockdown easing. (Photo by Arnun Chonmahatrakool)Police on Wednesday warned night-entertainment operators and soapy massage parlours to comply with measures to curb the Covid-19 pandemic or their businesses would be closed again. Entertainment venues which fail to adopt the health safety regulations will be given a warning by police and if they refuse to comply, they will be ordered to suspend operation, according to Pol Lt Gen Piya. Dararat Matkham, a restaurant and karaoke operator in Buddha Monthon Sai 1 area of Bangkok, said she was relieved that nightlife venues were being allowed to reopen. Pol Lt Gen Piya stressed that no sex services would be allowed at massage parlours and the law would be strictly enforced.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 12:33 UTC
Malaysia to file WTO legal action against EU over palm oil
Malaysia to file WTO legal action against EU over palm oilA worker collects palm oil fruits at a plantation in Klang, Malaysia, June 15, 2020. (Reuters file photo)KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia, the world's second largest palm oil producer, on Wednesday said it will take legal action with the World Trade Organisation against the European Union's "anti-palm oil campaign" via a dispute settlement mechanism. EU policies under its Delegation Regulation restricts free trade practices, Malaysian Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Mohd Khairuddin Aman Razali said in a statement. Malaysia will also act as a third party in Indonesia' WTO case against the EU, he said. Neighbours Indonesia and Malaysia together produce 85% of the world's palm oil.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 12:23 UTC
Singapore airport adopts contactless toilets and robot cleaners
Singapore airport adopts contactless toilets and robot cleanersSingapore’s Changi Airport is trialling and implementing a range of new anti-virus measures as it prepares for a gradual resumption of flights in the post Covid-19 outbreak world. Singapore’s Changi Airport is trialling and implementing a range of new anti-virus measures as it prepares for a gradual resumption of flights in the post Covid-19 outbreak world. One of the world’s busiest airports for international passenger traffic, Changi like most of its global peers has been brought to an almost compete standstill by the virus outbreak, which has decimated the tourism industry. In the first tentative steps toward reopening, Singapore last month signed an agreement with six Chinese cities and provinces exclusively for business travellers. The city-state is also in talks to establish “travel bubbles” with several countries including Malaysia, New Zealand and South Korea.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 12:22 UTC
Palestinians rally as global opposition to Israeli annexation grows
Palestinians rally as global opposition to Israeli annexation growsA Palestinian demonstrator in Gaza City flashes the victory sign in a "Day of Rage" to protest Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank. JERUSALEM: Thousands of Palestinians protested Wednesday in Gaza against Israel's West Bank annexation plans, as premier Benjamin Netanyahu held off an announcement on the controversial project and international opposition stiffened. With no announcement currently scheduled on Israel's self-imposed kick-off date, opponents of the plan -- notably Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza -- were mobilising. The Trump plan, unveiled in January, offered a path for Israel to annex territory and Jewish West Bank settlements, communities considered illegal under international law. Hamas, which has fought three wars with Israel since 2008, says that Israeli annexations in the West Bank, which borders Jordan, would be a "declaration of war".
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 11:48 UTC
Laos to plough on with third Mekong dam project
Laos to plough on with third Mekong dam projectFILE PHOTO: A local villager drive a boat where the future site of the Luang Prabang dam will be on the Mekong River, outskirt of Luang Prabang province, Laos, Feb 5, 2020. (Reuters)Laos is pushing ahead with a hydropower project on the Mekong River, despite reservations aired by neighbouring countries over its potential to harm fisheries and farming downstream, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) said on Wednesday. The 1,400-megawatt (MW) Luang Prabang project will be Laos's third and largest dam on the river, with construction originally set to begin this year. However the 1995 Mekong treaty gives the three neighbours no power to veto any project inside Laos. Last year, it completed two Mekong dams, the 1,285-megawatt Xayaburi Dam and the 260-megawatt Don Sahong Dam, despite objections by environmental groups.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 01, 2020 11:15 UTC