Thailand Morning News For June 14

Thailand vows to force through China railway
Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha on Tuesday (Jun 13) said he would invoke his ‘absolute powers’ to clear hurdles holding up a multi-billion-dollar deal with China to build a high-speed railway.
– Channel NewsAsia

Chonburi urgently develops itself for EEC
Chonburi province is pushing for the development of the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) by expediting transportation infrastructure projects and future city development.
– Pattaya Mail

965 URLs shut down in one and a half months
The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission has closed down 965 URLs with illegal contents during May 1-June 12.
– Thai PBS

Prayut targets cops who buy positions
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha vowed Tuesday to take tough action against any police officers found guilty of involvement in position buying within the police force.
– Bangkok Post

Dept launches five apps, four websites to help SMEs
THE INDUSTRY Ministry’s Industrial Promotion Department has spent Bt44 million to develop five new applications and four websites to support small and medium-sized enterprises, expecting 100,000 downloads of the apps by the end of this year.
– The Nation

Military bars press from forum on national park bill
Military and police officers have prevented journalists from attending a forum on the controversial national park and wildlife protection bills, claiming that their presence could affect the image of the junta.
– Prachatai English

Study on TPP benefits ‘picking up pace’
THAILAND is speeding up its evaluation of the case for joining the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) after the trade pact was thrown into doubt by the withdrawal of the United States, a source at the Commerce Ministry said.
– The Nation

EXIM Bank opens first office in Myanmar
The Export-Import Bank of Thailand (EXIM Bank) has opened its first overseas branch in Yangon, the capital of Myanmar.
– NNT

Thai tourism industry generates over 1 trillion baht so far this year
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports has disclosed that the tourism industry since the beginning of the year has generated more than one trillion baht in revenue, while assuring that the recent severance of diplomatic ties by six Middle Eastern countries to Qatar will not directly affect the country’s tourism industry.
– NBT World (video)

GSB and SET create special fund for SMEs
The Government Savings Bank (GSB) and the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) have established a special fund for SMEs in addition to the bank’s current credit offerings.
– NNT

Grey market pleads for duty cut
Independent car importers and distributors, known as grey-market operators, are calling on the Finance Ministry to cut the vehicle import tariff from 80% to 30%, a move they say will level the playing field amid fierce competition with authorised dealers.
– Bangkok Post

Phuket selects 6 SMEs eligible for loans from SME Development Fund
The Phuket Provincial Office of Industry has held a meeting to select eligible SMEs to receive loans from SME Development Fund, worth over 45 million baht in total.
– NNT

15 years hike of defence budget
Despite a growing deficit, Thailand’s junta-appointed parliament has voted unanimously in favour of a draft government budget that allocates an extra 8.8 billion baht to the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in 2018.
– Prachatai English

UN urges changes in lese majeste law
The UN human rights office says Thailand should bring its laws criminalizing insults against the monarchy in line with international law.
– Bangkok Post

Government has not yet decided to allow mining to resume operation
The National Minerals Management Policy Committee has announced that it has not yet reached a conclusion whether Akara Resources Public Company Limited will be allowed to resume operations due to uncertainty about the results of health and environmental assessment.
– NBT World (video)

Cabinet passes 4 assistance measures for rubber growers
The Cabinet has given approval to four measures aimed to provide support for rubber farmers after they were affected by the rubber price drop.
– NNT

Export cuts sought to halt rubber price slide
CUTS IN rubber exports by Thailand and other producers in the region are on the table to combat plunging prices for the commodity.
– The Nation

EGA launches ‘smart kiosks’ in Phuket
Deputy Prime Minister Prajin Juntong last week chaired a seminar titled ‘GovChannel Roadshow 2017: Digital Local Government’ at Novotel Phuket Phookeethra in Phuket Town.
– Phuket Gazette

Section 44 will be used to speed up rail project
The Deputy Prime Minister for economic affairs will ask the Cabinet to enforce Section 44 to expedite the delayed Thai-Chinese railway project.
– NBT World (video)

Prayut orders probe into ‘ploy to manipulate Facebook likes’
PRIME MINISTER Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered police to extend their investigation after three Chinese men working illegally in Thailand were arrested for a scheme to boost “likes” and page views on Chinese social media pages to determine if there was a hidden political or business agenda behind such crimes.
– The Nation

Deputy NRSA head says 2018 budget in line with Thailand 4.0 goals
The deputy chairman of the National Reform Steering Assembly (NRSA) has affirmed the recently passed fiscal 2018 central budget is responsive to the needs of the Thailand 4.0 agenda.
– NNT

Robot Therapist
With an ever growing number of patients suffering from the effects of a stroke, doctors and engineers are working together to build a robot to help therapists rehabilitate patients. Panod Srisinsuphya takes us to see the invention.
– NBT World (video)

Min of Public Health pushes for transitional care at local facilities
The Ministry of Public Health is supporting local primary care facilities to provide transitional care to patients with stabilizing conditions, in a bid to reduce overcrowding at major hospitals.
– NNT

400,000 SIM card Chinese ‘click farm’ busted in Thailand
Three Chinese men were detained in Thailand on Tuesday after police discovered they were running a “click farm” from a house near the Cambodian border to generate likes for Chinese products on social media.
– ABS-CBN

Amlo seizes land belonging to Bannapot Damapong
The Anti-Money Laundering Office’s business transactions committee decided on Tuesday to impound 11 rai of land belonging to Bannapot Damapong plus the Boonraksa building at Wat Dhammakaya after it was discovered that the land was bought with money embezzled from Klongchan Credit Union Cooperatives allegedly by its former manager Supachai Srisupa-aksorn.
– Thai PBS

Industrial Promotion Dept joins hands with upper northern provinces to launch Idea House
The Department of Industrial Promotion has cooperated with a group of four upper northern provinces to launch the Idea House project, hoping to nurture the potential of entrepreneurs and strengthen creative industries.
– NNT

Thailand police find 306kg of marijuana hidden in durians
Hat Yai police arrested an Amnart Charoen man on Monday morning for allegedly trying to smuggle 306 kilograms of marijuana under a pile of durians and corn to Songkhla province.
– Fresh Plaza

National Office of Buddhism to form commission on corruption within temples
The National Office of Buddhism is to set up a commission for the inspection of corruption and financial misconduct within temples, stating disciplinary as well as criminal measures will be taken against wrongdoers.
– NNT

Feature photo John Le Fevre
Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Thailand morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Thailand news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Thailand Morning News For June 14 added by John Le Fevre on June 14, 2017
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John Le Fevre

Thailand editor at AEC News Today

John is an Australian national with more than 40 years experience as a journalist, photographer, videographer, and copy editor.

He has spent extensive periods of time working in Africa and throughout Southeast Asia, with stints in the Middle East, the USA, and England.

He has covered major world events including Operation Desert Shield/ Storm, the 1991 pillage in Zaire, the 1994 Rwanda genocide, the 1999 East Timor independence unrest, the 2004 Asian tsunami, and the 2009, 2010, and 2014 Bangkok political protests.

In 1995 he was a Walkley Award finalist, the highest awards in Australian journalism, for his coverage of the 1995 Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) Ebola outbreak.

Prior to AEC News Today he was the deputy editor and Thailand and Greater Mekong Sub-region editor for The Establishment Post, predecessor of Asean Today.

In the mid-80s and early 90s he owned JLF Promotions, the largest above and below the line marketing and PR firm servicing the high-technology industry in Australia. It was sold in 1995.