Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha was upbeat as the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) approved the easing of coronavirus control measures in large parts of the country.
"Restrictions will be eased, including the resumption of businesses and schools, but everyone must still follow heath safety protocols," the PM said after a meeting of the CCSA.
"Otherwise, some businesses may have to be closed down again."
A widespread easing of regulations will take effect on Monday, although substantial controls remain in place throughout red-zone provinces in the greater Bangkok cluster and cockfighting and bullfighting remain banned nationwide.
"Businesses will be allowed to restart so people's lives can return to normal," the prime minister said "But everyone must still observe precautions — and don't conceal information. Businesses that are permitted to resume must be extra careful. It is everyone's responsibility."
Gen Prayut said the second outbreak had dealt a blow to the economy and the government needed to devise measures to contain the disease.
The CCSA continued to monitor and assess the situation on a daily basis, Gen Prayut said, and disease control measures will continue to be eased unless people fail to comply.
Police and soldiers will step up patrols in at-risk areas and businesses that fail to comply will be dealt with severely, Gen Prayut said.
He also said that Samut Sakhon, the epicentre of the second wave, would remain a "strict and maximum" control zone and adjacent provinces must also be under close surveillance to prevent the spread of Covid-19 into the province.
CCSA spokesman Taweesilp Visanuyothin announced details of the easing of Covid-19 curbs and said strict restrictions would continue in greater Bangkok but will be further relaxed in those provinces where the disease was under control.
The resumption of business and recreational activities would help the national economy, but would be reviewed if the Covid-19 situation deteriorated, he said.
Everyone must continue to practise social distancing and wear face masks.
These practices were key to Covid-19 control, he said, adding that businesses in most areas could resume but gambling-related activities were still banned. – Bangkok Post
Most of the Thai people want to be vaccinated against Covid-19 but still worry about the side effects of the vaccines, according to the result of an opinion survey by the Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, or Suan Dusit Poll.
The poll was conducted online on 1,570 people throughout the country during Jan 22-29.
Regarding vaccine-producing companies familiar to them, with each of the respondents allowed to name more than one, most of them, 64.27%, mentioned Pfyzer-BioNTech; 52.55% Oxford-Astrazeneca; 51.66%Sinovec-Biotech; 35.10% Johnson & Johnson; and, 28.28% Moderna.
Asked what they worried about Covid-19 vaccination in Thailand, with each allowed to give more than one answer, 82.71% cited the side effects of the vaccines; 71.96% efficacy of the vaccines; 54.67% availability of the vaccines for all people; 44.17% the price per jab in case the people had to pay for the vaccination; and, 38.60% the brand names of the vaccines imported by Thailand.
Asked whether they wanted to be vaccinated, a majority, 65.99% said "yes' but would rather wait to see the side effects of the vaccines; 20.70% said they wanted to be vaccinated right away; and, 13.31% did not want it.
Concerning their confidence in the effectiveness against Covid-19 of the vaccines; a majority or 63.88% said they were moderately confident; 19.30% were not confident; and, 16.82% were confident.
Asked whether the people would change their way of taking care of their health after Covid vaccination had begun in Thailand, 60.83% believed they would do the same as before; 35.54% thought they would take a better care of their health; and, 3.63% believed they would become less care about their health.
A man was killed after being trampled to death by an elephant at a temple in Hua Hin on Saturday.
The body of 58 year old Prasit Ganchanasilanon was found around 7am at Wat Anan in Huay Satyai, near Pala U. He had multiple injuries including a fractured skull.
An abbot at the temple said he heard elephants visiting the temple around 4am, something which they often did to feed on the jackfruit that grows in the temple grounds.
The victim's family said he had lived at the temple for about 10 years and often went for an early morning stroll around the temple.
It is believed he may have accidentally distributed the elephants while out on his morning walk.
Meanwhile, Thai news site Manager reported that Chatree Chanveerachai, the deputy governor of Prachuap Khiri Khan, had recently been made aware of the issue of elephants intruding into the local community.
The deputy governor said that he had heard a number of proposals from locals on how to solve the issue, including creating water and food sources for the elephants, which would hopeful keep them away from people's homes and local food plantations.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha minced no words last week in stating that as the US' first and oldest treaty partner in Asia, Thailand is very proud of its strategic ties with the United States, which have contributed to security, stability and prosperity in the region.
Prime Minister Prayut, in his 229-word congratulatory message to US President Joe Biden, also had a poignant message for the new leader, writing that at this crucial point in time, countries all over the globe are facing "divisiveness, conflicts and ruin amplified by the pandemic" which require them to "turn towards each other and collaborate".
He declared that "Thailand is prepared to walk side by side with the US on this journey".
However, today one oft-asked question is whether the US is ready to walk side by side with Thailand on this journey. For the past 203 years Thai-US ties have been quite unpredictable, especially in the post-Cold War era.
Since the fall of the Berlin Wall three decades ago, Thai-US ties have gone steadily downhill. These days, in discussing the virtues of their century-old relations, repeating past collaborations and successes are essential ingredients to keep the mutual dialogue going.
Without common enemies, the two countries have been trying to find fresh and valuable impetus to revitalise their alliance. Thailand's national security strategy for the next 20 years (2018-2037) makes it succinctly clear that the kingdom does not have any enemy in its midst. With such a mindset, it would be hard to walk alongside the US, which has a clear objective — to compete strategically and counter China's rapid rise in influence. Washington has been urging its allies and friends to help out. Under the Biden administration such calls are likely to intensify further.
At the moment, there are two narratives among the Thai policymakers and strategists, juxtaposed against one another. The first frames Thailand as an insignificant regional player, which continues to be embroiled in domestic conflicts. The past decade has offered clear testimony to how useless Thailand has become in staying relevant in the rapidly changing geopolitical environment, judging from the US responses. The Trump administration's treatment of Thailand was an aberration at best.
One caveat must be mentioned, though. With Mr Biden's security and foreign affairs teams, many culled from the Obama administration, they might continue the echo-chamber views of Thailand and pursue similar approaches and policies as before. Again, without value added to the US global strategy, Thailand would be pushed down.
From Washington's vantage point, other non-allied countries in the region such as Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia have already moved up the security ladder and now occupy the top ranks among US strategic partners. Singapore has always been a preferred strategic partner status — a virtual ally of sorts.
These strategists often cite Vietnam as a successful country which has won Washington's support due to its clear security posture. The lawmakers in the Beltway also give importance to Hanoi because it has stood up against China. That helps explain why during the Trump era, Vietnam's status in the US global strategy was given a significant lift, challenging traditional allies like the Philippines and Thailand due to their perceived closed ties with China.
These days whenever Thailand's name is mentioned, it is synonymous with unending political turmoil, violations of human rights and dictatorial traits, which have dominated regional news headlines more than any other Asean member. Given Mr Biden's support and advocacy of liberal norms and human rights, it serves as a lightning rod for him to sidestep this benign ally. Worse still, of late lese majeste cases have increased and have already become a big albatross tarnishing the kingdom's international standing. This undoubtedly is Thailand's Achilles' heel.
Furthermore, the on and off protests by the Thai youth movement against the government urging extensive reforms in all key institutions have attracted support and sympathy from Western countries. In early December, nine leading US senators from the Democrat Party criticised Thailand and branded the country as having a repressive monarchy and government.
As such, the argument goes, Thailand should strengthen ties with countries that do not impose their values or ways of thinking. Let Thai-US relations run their course. Within East Asia, relations with China, Japan and South Korea have grown closer than ever as they have no qualms about liberal values and norms. Interestingly, after the election in 2019, EU-Thai cooperation improved. So have relations with India and Russia. Both Australia and Thailand became strategic partners last November.
The second narrative has a broader view of Thailand's strategic imperatives, both as a key driving force of the Mekong sub-region, Asean and one of the five US allies in the Indo-Pacific region. Even with the Trump administration's departure, Thailand will continue to occupy the highest tier of the US security network in the region under the Biden administration. As the US-China rivalry intensified, Bangkok's geostrategic value also increased manifold. Indeed, the kingdom has ample opportunities to recalibrate the current international security landscape for its own interests.
In fact, the person who knew best about the strategic values of Thai-US ties was the former US ambassador Michael DeSombre. He highlighted them in details succinctly in a series of articles published in the Thai and English languages during his brief tenure from March 1, 2020 to January 20, 2021. In a nutshell, he reiterated unequivocally that the US is a better friend for Thailand.
From now on, with renewed focus on rivalry between great powers, especially the US and China, over development in the Mekong sub-region, Thailand's role is indispensable to manage and pull together regional resources and manoeuvrability. With increased awareness of a Mekong identity, the lower riparian countries are also working hand in hand more than ever before in forging their own code of conduct to deter any hegemonic trends from external powers.
Obviously, sensitive issues related to royal and military institutions will continue to disrupt the Thai-US bilateral ties but without harming the overall security cooperation. After the coup in 2014, the Pentagon continued the annual Cobra Gold military exercises despite calls for a boycott without any disruption. As long as the Pentagon deems the region's largest military exercises, now in their 38th year, with Thailand as beneficial to its overall interoperability, Thailand's strategic value will continue.
Despite its shortcomings as far as domestic stability is concerned, Thailand is still considered to be a moderately free and open society, in comparison with neighbouring countries. Bangkok-based foreign and local civil society organisations are very active in monitoring the government's performance, especially those related to all aspects of civil liberty.
In his congratulatory letter, Gen Prayut has invited Mr Biden to visit Thailand in the future. In 2022, after New Zealand, Thailand will host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders Meeting. If the pandemic has eased by then and safe travel is guaranteed, Mr Biden could join other Apec leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bangkok at the end of next year.
Their divergent viewpoints aside, both narratives agree that during the Covid-19 pandemic world, Thailand will have to be more assertive and forceful as allies and friends of the great powers. Bangkok should not shy away or sit on the fence on sensitive issues as it has in the past. Strategic ambiguities which have long been the norm should give ways to strategic clarities especially on rule-based issues. Otherwise, Thailand could easily be left on the sidelines or worse still it could become a pawn in the great powers' competition.
Kavi Chongkittavorn is a veteran journalist on regional affairs.
Tourism ban is great news for Thailand's Sea Gypsies
Coronavirus has wrought havoc across the world, but for Thailand's "sea gypsies" it has brought welcome respite from the threat of mass tourismT
Coronavirus has wrought havoc across the world, but for Thailand's 'sea gypsies' it has brought welcome respite from the threat of mass tourism.
Since the pandemic began, life has been easier for Sanan Changnam and his people — there's an abundance of fish to eat and real estate projects on their ancestral land in the tourist hotspot of Phuket have come to a standstill.
In the turquoise waters of the Andaman Sea, connected to the surface by a slender pipe stuck in his mask — a "thread of life" allowing him to breathe — Sanan stalks fish and shellfish, spear in hand.
A few kicks of his flippers and he skewers three groupers before rising to the surface.
With Thailand closed to foreign visitors for the past eight months, tourist boats have been stuck at the quay and fishing has been easier for the Chao Lay, or "people of the sea".
"We don't dive as deep as before, so it's less dangerous," Sanan, 42, tells AFP.
His ancestors, former nomads who came from Indonesia nearly 300 years ago, took a spit of land in Rawai, a beach in the south of Phuket, long before the island became one of the country's most popular destinations.
More than nine million visitors came to Phuket in 2019 and the boom has had a huge impact, bringing declining fish stocks, shrinking fishing grounds and a frenzy of construction.
The traditional way of life of the Chao Lay, also known as "sea gypsies", has been turned upside down — but the pandemic has brought a pause.
"It gives us a bit of a breather," says Alim, Sanan's uncle.
More than nine million visitors came to Phuket in 2019 and the boom has had a huge impact, bringing declining fish stocks, shrinking fishing grounds and a frenzy of construction
Unequal struggle
The authorities are less strict when the Chao Lay sail in protected marine reserves or near islets usually reserved for tourists.
"Before, we risked being arrested by a patrol or having our boats confiscated," he says.
"We sometimes went up too quickly to the surface, not respecting decompression times. It was dangerous, there were injuries, even deaths."
The traditional way of life of the Chao Lay, also known as sea gypsies, has been turned upside down — but the pandemic has brought a pause
The threat of eviction also hangs over the 1,200 Chao Lay living in Rawai, where property developers have been eyeing their land — a strip a few hundred metres long facing the sea.
But with tourism halted because of the virus, Phuket's economy is paralysed, tens of thousands of workers have returned to their home provinces elsewhere in Thailand and construction projects are at a standstill.
"We hope that all of this will be abandoned," says Ngim Damrongkaset, 75, a representative of the Rawai community.
"They want to drive us out of our homes, but also to deny us access to the sea."
For the animist Chao Lay the beach is a vital space where they keep their colourful wooden boats and where they pray and give thanks to their ancestors.
The battle with the tourism promoters is an unequal one: many Chao Lay cannot read or write and did not know that they could register their land in their name
Many families today have no legal title to the land they live on, though the government is trying to help them prove that they were there long before the investors.
It has ordered analysis of old aerial photographs and of the bones of Chao Lay ancestors — traditionally buried on the beach so they can still hear the sound of the waves.
Rethink call
Narumon Arunotai, an anthropologist at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University, says the government "must seize the opportunity provided by the pandemic to rethink their vision on Chao Lay".
The Chao Lay are former nomads who came from Indonesia nearly 300 years ago, took a spit of land in Rawai, a beach in the south of Phuket, long before the island became one of the country's most popular destinations
"Covid is an opportunity to change mentalities. Mass tourism in Phuket has been a catastrophe for the sea gypsies," she adds.
One option is for authorities to buy the land and entrust it to them permanently.
The government has recently allocated an area of mangrove to neighbouring Chao Lay communities to temporarily live and fish — a first step but not a permanent solution.
It has also committed itself to preserving their oral traditions, without much effect so far. People in Rawai face many problems, including alcohol and disease.
"They need a special education system that preserves their culture. The government needs also to allow them to fish more freely," says Narumon.
The Chao Lay have unique gifts and traditions that have served them well.
Children of the Moken — one of the three branches of the Chao Lay — have 50 percent better visual acuity in the water than their European counterparts, according to a 2003 study.
And their deep understanding of their environment allowed many of them to spot the warning signs of the devastating 2004 tsunami and flee.
Most of them escaped and helped many tourists to safety too.
"We will always be the children of the sea," smiles Alim. – AFP
Bangkok removes Covid-19 checkpoints for travellers from other provinces
(File Photo)
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has removed from 4pm on Friday 14 checkpoints that had been set up for visitors from other provinces entering Bangkok, as the Covid-19 situation in the province is improving.
The checkpoints had been set up on January 2 on the routes that connected Bangkok to other provinces in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19. Travellers passing through the checkpoints were screened for Covid-19.
"Although the checkpoints have been removed, district officials must continue to monitor venues that have high risk of virus spreading in their responsible areas," BMA deputy governor Pol Lt-General Sophon Phisutthiwong said.
"If any businesses fail to comply with the authority's measures, the district office must work with police to pursue legal action immediately."
BMA also has urged all districts to enforce preventive measures during Chinese New Year festival that will start on February 12.
"All districts must actively advise people to maintain social distancing practices, wear face masks in public places, wash their hands regularly, and check-in and check-out using the Thai Chana platform when shopping for spirit offerings or paying respect at shrines during the festival," added Sophon.
Chonburi Public Relations release new order around easing Covid-19 measures and closures, effective Monday, February 1st
Thailand-Around 11:00 P.M. tonight, January 29th, 2021, the Chonburi Public Relations department released awaited orders detailing what they would allow an opening for this upcoming Monday, February 1st, 2021.
.(Editor's note: As of Press Time the Royal Gazette order for the announced changes the CCSA made today has NOT yet been released. This is expected to be effective Monday, February 1st also and is expected to include the official change of Chonburi from a red zone to an orange zone and removal of travel restrictions requiring paperwork from district offices and essential reasons to travel to and from Chonburi.)
1. Koh Si Chang will re-open for visitors after being previously closed.
2. Entertainment venues (bars, clubs, pubs, gentlemen clubs, karaoke, etc.) may open until 11:00 P.M. Proper social distancing measures, Thai Chana check-in, temperature checks, hand sanitizing, and mask-wearing should take place. Live music is ok, no dancing.
3. Restaurants may serve for dine-in customers from 6:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. Alcohol can be sold during legal hours until 11:00 P.M. Social distancing measures and other cautions must take place, same as entertainment venues. Live music is ok, no dancing. This includes all places to eat like markets, food courts, etc.
4. 24-hour stores, like 7-11's and Family Marts, may open from 5:00 A.M. to 11:00 P.M. They must still be closed from 11:00 P.M. to 5:00 A.M. This is designed to encourage people to go home after other venues close.
5. No activities can be organized with over 300 people without prior permission from Chonburi officials. Banquet halls, seminars, conference rooms, etc. can re-open for under this amount.
6. Essentially basically everything still closed (with the exception of chicken fighting stadiums and other animal fighting places) can open including- Swimming pools, amusement parks, water parks, floating markets, amulet markets, snooker and pool, fitness centers and gyms, arcades, internet cafes, bowling and other entertainment places, soapies, spas, cinemas, nurseries, and theaters.
7. Everything previously allowed to open, like malls, parks, beaches, etc. are still open.
8. This order is only for Chonburi. Other provinces may have different rules. Chonburi has NO quarantine requirements for domestic visitors. (IE. You can enter the province from any other part of Thailand without needing to quarantine.).
9. There will still be checkpoints, however, these are standard Covid-19 checkpoints looking for the illegal transportation of migrant workers and performing temperature and ID checks.
10. This was all correct as of this evening and the time of publishing, however, is subject to change due to an often fluid situation.
The government is concerned about the possibility of the EU limiting exports of COVID-19 vaccines and has begun negotiating with European vaccine suppliers over the prospect, said Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Friday (Jan 29).
"We have already done everything we can on our part. So if any problems arise after this, they will be beyond our control," he said, reports the Bangkok Post.
The first batch of 50,000 doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, expected to arrive in Thailand in February, will be given to frontline healthcare workers and people with underlying health conditions in provinces with a high number of infections, said Dr Sophon Mekthon, chairman of the government's sub-committee on COVID-19 vaccine management.
The provinces are Samut Sakhon, Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan, Pathum Thani and Tak, he said.
Then, in June, the government will begin administering the vaccine to more groups, he said.
The number who will receive the vaccine first is actually more than 50,000; hence supplies will be administered as the first of the two shots needed to give immunity, he said.
The first round is planned to begin around the third week of next month and the second one will follow 12 weeks later, or some time between May and June, he said.
And in the event that the second batch of the AstraZeneca vaccine fails to arrive on time, Thailand will likely use a locally produced variant of the same drug instead, said the doctor.
And as the government intends to administer a COVID-19 vaccine to all "people living in Thailand" on a voluntary basis, vaccinations for migrant workers will have to involve co-payment plans, in which their employers will be required to contribute, said Dr Sopon.
Asked about the European Commission's move to limit the exports of COVID-19 vaccines from the EU, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha admitted that although the government had tried its best, supply remains in the hands of the countries and companies producing the vaccine.
He said he could only hope that everything will go according to plan.
"Talks have been conducted about the orders of the vaccine we made and we have been assured that we will get the supply that was agreed on. However, we will still have to wait and see what the country owning the vaccine will do next," he said.
Negotiations to ensure everything goes to plan and enough doses are procured will continue for the time being, he said.
The government will continue to negotiate with other suppliers of Covid-19 vaccines as well, while speeding up the transfer of knowledge necessary for domestic production to begin, he said.
The capacity for local production is necessary both in terms of the short term need for COVID-19 jabs, but also to make Thailand more agile and unable to respond to similar outbreaks in the future, he said.
Mr Anutin confirmed the government is in talks with other suppliers of the COVID-19 vaccine that may be able to ship the vaccine to Thailand before June.
Meanwhile, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) spokesman Taweesilp Visanuyothin said Gen Prayut has stressed the need to implement a policy to ensure universal access to the COVID-19 vaccine among all groups of people.
He had already ordered the sub-committee on vaccine management to come up with a vaccine distribution plan by next week to ensure equal access to the resource, said Dr Taweesilp.
Gen Prayut has said he will personally take charge of overseeing preparations for the initial round of vaccinations himself, said Dr Taweesilp.
The prime minister was told at Friday's meeting of the CCSA that it will be about a year before Thailand can produce enough vaccine domestically to meet demand, said Dr Taweesilp.
The government on Friday reported 802 new Covid-19 cases, 781 local infections and 21 imported, raising the total to 17,023.
Dr Taweesilp said active case finding in communities had identified 692 cases and hospitals confirmed 89 cases over the past 24 hours.
Of the 89 new cases confirmed at hospitals, 79 were in Samut Sakhon, seven in Bangkok, two in Ayutthaya and one in Ang Thong.
(En förutsättning för detta var att all verksamhet koncentreras till norden som är hemmamarknden och hela verksamheten med widebodylonghaul med 787 slaktades helt.)
Regjeringen har i dag foreslått for Stortinget å bevilge 1,5 milliarder kroner til mulig deltakelse i et hybridlån utstedt av Norwegian.
– Vi har tro på at et rekonstruert Norwegian kan være en viktig aktør i norsk luftfart i fremtiden, sier samferdselsminister Knut Arild Hareide.
Regjeringen har satt flere forutsetninger for å delta i rekonstruksjonen, som blant annet inkluderer krav om at selskapet må tilføres nødvendig ny kapital på minimum 4,5 milliarder kroner, hovedsakelig fra institusjonelle og strategiske investorer, og at hybridlånet skjer på markedsmessige vilkår. En eventuell deltakelse avhenger av den pågående rekonstruksjonprosessen i Norwegian.
– Lykkes Norwegian med dette arbeidet, har regjeringen sagt at vi kan bidra med et hybridlån. Men det er en krevende prosess selskapet er i gang med, og Norwegian er blant annet avhengige av å få inn langsiktige og strategiske eiere. Staten har ikke ambisjoner om å bli eier i Norwegian, sier næringsminister Iselin Nybø.
Wild elephants fight to the death on Chanthaburi golf course
By THE NATION
The genteel surroundings of a Chantaburi golf course were shattered by the thunder of mortal combat between two giants early on Friday.
Local police and officials from Khao Soi Dao Wildlife Sanctuary were alerted of wild elephants fighting at the Chatrium Golf Resort in Pong Nam Ron district of the eastern province in the early hours of the morning.
Rushing to the scene, they found the body of male juvenile tusker, aged around 6-7 years and weighing over 1 tonne, lying in a dry ditch on the golf course. The animal had suffered deeps cuts and stabbing wounds and was bleeding profusely.
A security guard for the golf course told officials that he heard the sound of two elephants fighting at around 2am on Friday. He went to investigate and found the juvenile fighting fiercely with a much larger male elephant.
"I have seen the dead elephant before. He was living in a herd of wild elephants in the forest behind the golf course," said the guard. He added the two male elephants may have been fighting over a female, as this is now the breeding season.
Police have asked the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation to inspect the dead elephant before burying its corpse.
