Mission chief slams ‘unethical media practices’
UNETHICAL REPORTING has been cited for hampering the rescue operation to save 13 trapped footballers from a flooded cave in Chiang Rai, as some reporters broke the law and the rights of their news sources to get the latest stories.
— The Nation
TAT outlines lure for secondary provinces
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has outlined action plans to encourage travellers to continue to visit secondary provinces next year despite the lack of tax incentives.
— Bangkok Post
World offers support for Thai cave boys as evacuation continues
The mission to rescue the 12 boys and their football coach trapped in a cave in Thailand continued on Monday (Jul 9) as people around the world, ranging from Chilean miners to school children, continued to show their support.
— Channel NewsAsia
Eight boys rescued from flooded Thai caves, now up to ‘rain god’
Eight of the 12 boys trapped with their soccer coach in a labyrinthine flooded cave complex in northern Thailand have been freed, authorities said on Monday, adding that the time for rescuing the others will depend on the weather.
— Reuters
Football pitch turns into ghost town
For the past 16 days, the pitch at Mae Sai Football Club in Chiang Rai has been eerily quiet as students have been fixated on the gruelling rescue operation to extract 12 team members and their coach fromfrom the flooded Tham Luang cave.
— Bangkok Post
Narongsak promises last 5 survivors to be extracted faster tomorrow
Rescue operations commander Narongsak Osotthanakorn announced the successful extraction of four more “Wild Boars” soccer team members out of the Tham Luang cave and expressed confidence that rescuers would be able to bring to safety the last batch of five survivors tomorrow faster than they did in the past two days.
— Thai PBS
Household debts cast long shadow
INCOMES drawn by the nation’s households are likely to begin recovering but their debts remain a drag on consumer spending, Yunyong Thaicharoen, chief economist of Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), said yesterday.
— The Nation
Thai minister blames Chinese tour operators for boat disaster
A Thai government minister on Monday blamed Chinese tour operators for the deaths of more than 40 people, most of them Chinese tourists, in a boat accident off a resort island last weekend, as divers searched for 11 people still missing.
— Reuters
Search for missing boat passengers continues in Phuket
Relevant authorities have confirmed that 41 fatalities resulted from a boat capsizing off the resort island of Phuket last week, while suspecting that only six remain missing.
— NNT
Phuket tragedy sparks foreign owners sweep
The Anti-Money Laundering (Office) has stepped in to freeze the bank accounts of two tour operators whose boats capsized off Phuket last Thursday as a fresh crackdown on the use of Thai proxy owners begins.
— Bangkok Post
Tour boat firms’ assets to be seized
POLICE are set to seize the assets of two tour companies involved in two recent boat tragedies in Phuket – which left 42 tourists dead and six others missing – on suspicion of dubious operations including tax evasion and “zero-dollar tours”.
— The Nation
Govt to expand investigation into legitimacy of boat operators
Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce will launch an investigation into the two operators of the capsized tour boat to determine whether they are illegally owned by foreign entities.
— NNT
Bangkok’s elderly to receive electronic allowance
The Comptroller-General’s Department will start paying monthly living allowances to the elderly that have registered homes in Bangkok’s 50 districts through an electronic system this month, says its chief.
— Bangkok Post
Hilton to open Southeast Asia’s first Waldorf Astoria in Bangkok
HILTON’S LUXURY brand, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, will welcome its first guests in Southeast Asia in the third quarter of 2018 with the opening of Waldorf Astoria Bangkok.
— The Nation
Europeans eye equal treatment
European businesses are keen to invest more in pharmaceuticals, mass transit systems, double-track rail and a high-speed rail network.
— Bangkok Post
Ministry of Commerce promotes organic products
Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce has organized the first-ever Thailand Organic Innovation Award to search for outstanding organic products. The first event where the products will be sold is the largest organic and natural products exhibition in Southeast Asia.
— NNT
Circular economy measures chewed over
The government is pledging to offer tax incentives to attract companies to make better use of natural resources and promote the so-called circular economy.
— Bangkok Post
Govt urged to make rules to regulate blockchain technology
The government and private sector are urging society to be enthusiastic about developments in the financial business such as blockchain technology.
— NNT
BOT head cautions property speculators
Big data analysis of electricity consumption led to insight about condo purchases
— NNT
Prawit sees, hears no evil over ex-MP poaching claims
Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon has denied any knowledge of a senior military officer based in the Northeast helping to poach former MPs for the Phalang Pracharat Party.
— Bangkok Post
Russian tycoon wins suit against model who claims Trump secrets
A Russian billionaire former associate of Donald Trump’s ex-campaign manager won US$16,000 damages in a lawsuit Monday (Jul 9) against a model and a self-styled “sex coach” over a politically compromising video.
— Channel NewsAsia
SCG works to promote sustainability
SET-listed Siam Cement Plc (SCG), Thailand’s largest cement maker, has set aside an annual budget of 6 billion baht for R&D and innovation projects to further the company’s sustainable growth.
— Bangkok Post
Trapped footballer’s multilingual skills warm teachers’ hearts
THE BRIEF video-clip conversation between the 13 footballers trapped in a Chiang Rai cave and the British cave divers who were the first to reach them, was a memorable heart-filled moment for everybody who had been praying for their successful rescue.
— The Nation
SET moves to curb algorithmic trade
The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) will place a limit on algorithmic trading, the most preferred trading method for foreign investors, to reduce market volatility.
— Bangkok Post
Cave rescue and Phuket tour boat disaster ‘equally important’, says PM
Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha today rated the ongoing Tham Luang cave rescue operation and the sinking of the Phoenix Phuket tour boat disaster as “equally important”. But added, “The cave rescue is the main issue here today.”
— The Phuket News
Mining big data gives edge to Thai firms in era of digital disruption
Given the digital disruption of business now underway, most Thai firms are revising their business model by use big data to manage their business to serve their customers’ demands, according to experts.
— The Nation
Stateless people to get citizenship through DNA tests
The Southern Border Provinces Administrative Centre is collecting DNA samples to help ‘stateless’ people in southern border provinces get Thai citizenship.
— News Today (video)
Govt collects more revenues than expected
State enterprises funnel led Bt130.6 billion in income for the first nine months of fiscal 2017-2018 to the Finance Ministry – 23.87 per cent more than predicted – the State Enterprises Policy Office reported on Monday.
— The Nation
AIS rolls out B2.8bn digital customer service concept
The largest mobile operator Advanced Info Service (AIS) plans to spend 2.8 billion baht this year to upgrade customer service management under the concept “digitisation plus human touch”.
— Bangkok Post
Tham Luang cave ordeal puts spotlight on Thai media
Thai media have come under heavy criticisms for what is seen as their overzealous competition in covering the Tham Luang rescue operation, with some being accused of breaching ethics and even potentially endangering the safety of a helicopter used to transport the rescued survivors.
— Thai PBS
Dead body bingo as Thai Police rejig numbers to mitigate Phuket tour boat disaster
On the day that Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha met with Chinese Ambassador Lyu Jian in person in Phuket over the deaths of 41 Chinese tourists killed in the ‘Phoenix’ tour boat disaster, Royal Thai Police Deputy Commander Gen Srivara Ransibrahmanakul today (July 9) presented a new tally of the dead, injured and missing – telling the public that only five persons remain unaccounted for.
— The Phuket News
DPM Somkid calls on state agencies to follow through on policies
Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Somkid Jatusripitak has urged state agencies to follow through with their policies as assigned within the budget for fiscal year 2018, which ends in September this year.
— NNT
Phuket Boat Incidents: Thai PM orders tighter tourist safety and security measures
This morning, Thai Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha visited Phuket in the wake of the tragic boat incidents that took place on 5 July, 2018.
— TAT News
Teams from around the globe converge on Tham Luang cave to support rescue operation
International coverage of the rescue operation for Moo Pa Academy youth football team has prompted groups and organizations from around the globe to travel to Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai province to offer their range of skills and expertise.
— NNT
Number of smokers in Thailand down to 10.7 million
A recent tobacco consumption study by the Ministry of Public Health, shows that the number of smokers in Thailand has decreased to 10.7 million, while around 100,000 deaths per year are attributed to coronary heart disease and stroke.
— NNT
Fruit dealer to see legal action for shady pricing
The Trade Competition Board has voted to take legal action against a Chanthaburi-based dealer after an investigation found it had undercut the prices of fruit bought from farmers.
— Bangkok Post
41 bodies from boat catastrophe identified
Officials have relocated 41 bodies of the victims of the ill-fated tour boat Phoenix from Vachira Phuket Hospital to Wat Kosit Wihan, after all of them have been identified.
— NNT
Feature photo Nantapon Thipsri
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.
John Le Fevre
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.
Latest posts by John Le Fevre (see all)
- COVID-19 in Asean: update for July 26 — 16 mln case barrier breached, Vietnam records community transmission – July 26, 2020
- COVID-19 in Asean: update for July 25 — new high for daily infections, 16 mln infection barrier to break today – July 25, 2020
- COVID-19 in Asean: update for July 24 — Asean tops 230,000 cases, nudges 90,000 active – July 24, 2020
- Thailand morning news for July 24 – July 24, 2020