Phuket COVID restrictions extended, foreigners breaking order face expulsion
PHUKET: The raft of restrictions in effect across Phuket to prevent the spread of CVOID-19 have been extended through to May 31 under a new provincial order issued today (May 12). The order included a warning that foreigners failing to observe the restrictions in place regarding gatherings may be expelled from the country.
The new five-page provincial order was published just before midday today (May 12).
The order, dated as issued and signed by Governor Narong today, is marked to come into effect tomorrow (May 13).
The order extended the previous restrictions already in place (see links below).
However, the new order now includes a provision expressly banning any people from visiting any other person's home for the purpose of gathering.
The new order does not stipulate how many people gathering at a private home was to be deemed illegal.
Section 5 of the previous order, regarding "Social activities", mandated, "For social activities, all people must refrain from gathering for celebration, such as birthday parties, welcome or farewell parties, or others, except traditional events, such as funerals, weddings, or ordination. If the event cannot be postponed, the organiser must strictly follow the disease control measure to reduce the risk of spreading the disease."
Section 5 of the new order is now separated into sections 5.1 and 5.2.
Section 5.1 features the exact same wording as the previous order.
However, Section 5.2 clearly states, "5.2 Eating, drinking or celebrating among family at a house or other kind of accommodation must not include outsiders. Gathering to do any activities that are at risk of spreading infections must be prohibited.
"If those who fail to comply with this measure are foreigners, their permission of being granted to remain in the Kingdom under the Immigration Act will be taken into consideration."
The revised order comes after two foreigners were fined for B6,000 each for holding an illegal gathering at a home in Cherng Talay last Sunday (May 9) that was deemed by local officials and police to be a party.
Meanwhile, Section 1 of the order, marked "Gathering for activities which risk being infected", notes the following:
1.2 Activities that have more than 30 people gathering are prohibited, except whereby the organisers have received approval from an officer or the activities are held by officers themselves. The disease control measures must be strictly applied.
1.3 Gathering to celebrate by drinking alcohol beverages in any public places is prohibited. The public places are beaches, public parks, playgrounds, canal sides, reservoir sides, pond sides, etc."
Thai Airways creditors delay vote on debt restructuring plan
A Thai Airways aircraft is seen taking off past the tails of two other Thai Airways planes at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi international aiport on Nov 24, 2014. (AFP file photo)
Thai Airways International Plc delayed a vote on its restructuring plan by a week after some creditors pushed for changes and sought time to study some last-minute tweaks unveiled by the administrator. Debtholders met Wednesday by video conference to discuss the restructuring plan and some proposed to push back the vote until next week, Kitipong Urapeepatanapong, chairman of Baker & McKenzie in Bangkok, said by phone. Lenders holding 10% of the debt can seek a delay, Mr Kitipong said. The national flag carrier needs more than 50% of creditors to accept its plan, which is part of measures to help it return to profitability as it navigates the devastation wreaked on the global travel industry by the pandemic. The airline, which has total liabilities of at least $11 billion, in March proposed a three-year freeze on loan repayments in one of the nation's most high-profile restructurings. Thai Airways is seeking a deferment of bond repayments for six years and a waiver of unpaid interest on loans as part of the plan, involving about 170 billion baht of debt. It's also looking to raise 50 billion baht in new capital, plans to slash its workforce in half and sell property to help return to profitability. Thailand is facing renewed woes more than a year into the pandemic as a new wave of infections brings more turmoil to its crucial travel sector. Thai Airways, which saw a record loss of 141 billion baht last year, joins other global peers in trying to get debt relief as mass flight suspensions cause carriers to seek financial help from governments and investors. A senior lawyer at Kudun & Partners Ltd, which is representing the creditors, said in March that their initial response to the proposed restructuring was favourable. The Finance Ministry, the airline's largest shareholder, indicated its backing for the debt plan that same month. Thai Airways creditors delay vote on debt restructuring plan A vote by creditors on whether to approve Thai Airways International Plc's debt restructuring plan has been delayed by about a week, according to the carrier's legal adviser. Debtholders met Wednesday by video conference to discuss the restructuring plan and some proposed to push back the vote until next week, Kitipong Urapeepatanapong, chairman of Baker & McKenzie in Bangkok, said by phone. Lenders holding 10% of the debt can seek a delay, Mr Kitipong said. The national flag carrier needs more than 50% of creditors to accept its plan, which is part of measures to help it return to profitability as it navigates the devastation wreaked on the global travel industry by the pandemic. The airline, which has total liabilities of at least $11 billion, in March proposed a three-year freeze on loan repayments in one of the nation's most high-profile restructurings. Thai Airways is seeking a deferment of bond repayments for six years and a waiver of unpaid interest on loans as part of the plan, involving about 170 billion baht of debt. It's also looking to raise 50 billion baht in new capital, plans to slash its workforce in half and sell property to help return to profitability. Thailand is facing renewed woes more than a year into the pandemic as a new wave of infections brings more turmoil to its crucial travel sector. Thai Airways, which saw a record loss of 141 billion baht last year, joins other global peers in trying to get debt relief as mass flight suspensions cause carriers to seek financial help from governments and investors. A senior lawyer at Kudun & Partners Ltd, which is representing the creditors, said in March that their initial response to the proposed restructuring was favourable. The Finance Ministry, the airline's largest shareholder, indicated its backing for the debt plan that same month. Thai Airways creditors delay vote on debt restructuring plan A vote by creditors on whether to approve Thai Airways International Plc's debt restructuring plan has been delayed by about a week, according to the carrier's legal adviser. Debtholders met Wednesday by video conference to discuss the restructuring plan and some proposed to push back the vote until next week, Kitipong Urapeepatanapong, chairman of Baker & McKenzie in Bangkok, said by phone. Lenders holding 10% of the debt can seek a delay, Mr Kitipong said. The national flag carrier needs more than 50% of creditors to accept its plan, which is part of measures to help it return to profitability as it navigates the devastation wreaked on the global travel industry by the pandemic. The airline, which has total liabilities of at least $11 billion, in March proposed a three-year freeze on loan repayments in one of the nation's most high-profile restructurings. Thai Airways is seeking a deferment of bond repayments for six years and a waiver of unpaid interest on loans as part of the plan, involving about 170 billion baht of debt. It's also looking to raise 50 billion baht in new capital, plans to slash its workforce in half and sell property to help return to profitability. Thailand is facing renewed woes more than a year into the pandemic as a new wave of infections brings more turmoil to its crucial travel sector. Thai Airways, which saw a record loss of 141 billion baht last year, joins other global peers in trying to get debt relief as mass flight suspensions cause carriers to seek financial help from governments and investors. A senior lawyer at Kudun & Partners Ltd, which is representing the creditors, said in March that their initial response to the proposed restructuring was favourable. The Finance Ministry, the airline's largest shareholder, indicated its backing for the debt plan that same month. A vote by creditors on whether to approve Thai Airways International Plc's debt restructuring plan has been delayed by about a week, according to the carrier's legal adviser. A vote by creditors on whether to approve Thai Airways International Plc's debt restructuring plan has been delayed by about a week, according to the carrier's legal adviser.
The creditors will now meet again on May 19 after 20 of them proposed postponing the vote, Thai Airways said in a statement. At Wednesday's meeting held by video conference, some debtholders sought more clarity about details of the restructuring plan which included some changes, the carrier said.
The carrier's stock swung between gains and losses before trading 3.7% higher at 4.30pm in Bangkok. The stock has tumbled 45% since the exchange lifted a trading suspension on April 16.
The national flag carrier needs more than 50% of creditors to accept its plan, which is part of measures to help it return to profitability as it navigates the devastation wreaked on the global travel industry by the pandemic. The airline, which has total liabilities of at least $11 billion, in March proposed a three-year freeze on loan repayments in one of the nation's most high-profile restructurings.
Thai Airways is seeking a deferment of bond repayments for six years and a waiver of unpaid interest on loans as part of the plan, involving about 170 billion baht of debt. It's also looking to raise 50 billion baht in new capital, plans to slash its workforce in half and sell property to help return to profitability.
Thailand is facing renewed woes more than a year into the pandemic as a new wave of infections brings more turmoil to its crucial travel sector. Thai Airways, which saw a record loss of 141 billion baht last year, joins other global peers in trying to get debt relief as mass flight suspensions cause carriers to seek financial help from governments and investors.
A senior lawyer at Kudun & Partners Ltd, which is representing bondholders, said in March that their initial response to the proposed restructuring was favourable.
Thailand is facing renewed woes more than a year into the pandemic as a new wave of infections brings more turmoil to its crucial travel sector. Thai Airways, which saw a record loss of 141 billion baht last year, joins other global peers in trying to get debt relief as mass flight suspensions cause carriers to seek financial help from governments and investors.
The governor said today, May 12th, that the provincial authorities had set a target for the number of daily infections to go down to one digit by May 15thin order to reopen the island to international tourists on July 1st.
"But if the number of infections continues at 10-15 cases a day, the plan might not be implemented anytime soon. Therefore, we all must work together to reduce the number of daily infections to the lowest possible rate," Narong stated.
Dr. Kusak Kukiatikul of the provincial health office said the Covid-19 situation in Phuket was still concerning as the number of daily infections continued to rise, especially among high-risk people in local quarantines and proactive screening.
New clusters were still detected during active finding because there were still social gatherings, socializing, and partying in violation of Phuket's Covid-19 restrictions. The provincial health office would have to conduct more aggressive measures since the number of infections was still at a high rate, Dr. Kusak continued.
Some residents in Phuket reportedly violated the emergency health controls by conducting what officials called a large gathering earlier this week. The Pattaya News notes the actual number of people gathered at this "large gathering" was six. As of Sunday, a group of Thai and British nationals was captured at a house in the Thalang district of Phuket after reportedly gathering and drinking in a violation of disease decrees and provincial Covid-19 control measures. The incident drew significant discussion on social media, with many surprised that it would be considered a gathering.
The Pattaya News notes that under the Emergency Decree, as few as two people not from the same household could be considered a gathering if it was for socializing or mingling purposes and could face legal repercussions.
PM wants Covid-19 vaccinations to become top priority
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said he proposed to a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that Covid-19 vaccinations should become a national agenda in which the government would prioritise procurement and distribution of vaccines, and he would therefore like to urge people to register to get the all-important jab.
So far, about 1.6 million people aged 60 and above and those with seven types of underlying health conditions have signed up for vaccinations. Of this number, more than 500,000 are in Bangkok and over 200,000 in the northern province of Lampang.
The government has opened registration channels via the Mor Phrom (Doctors Ready) Line application and at provincial health offices and public hospitals since May 1.
"The vaccines procured by the government have passed the Public Health Ministry's safety standard and are effective against the virus. They are the same kinds of vaccines that have been given to tens of millions people in several countries with low occurrences of severe side effects," Prayut pointed out.
"These vaccines can almost 100 per cent prevent patients from developing severe symptoms or dying if they contracted the coronavirus," he said.
"Me and other members of the Cabinet have already been vaccinated without any undesirable side effects," he added.
Prayut also said he wants Thailand to become a hub for manufacturing the AstraZeneca vaccine in Asean. He vowed to procure enough vaccines for every Thai citizen and subsequently purchase more doses to keep in reserve.
On Sunday AstraZeneca (Thailand) announced that samples from test batches of its Covid-19 vaccine made in Thailand by Siam Bioscience had passed quality testing at AstraZeneca's designated laboratories in Europe and the US.
"This significant progress means we are getting closer to delivering the first batch of the vaccine to the government of Thailand," the company said.
The Chonburi Department of Public Health announced 57 new and confirmed cases of Covid-19 this morning (May 12th), the lowest number of cases since April 9th.
This makes a total of 3,491 cases of Covid-19 in the current round of infections, with 1,430 still in medical care, with ten recorded deaths in Chonburi since the start of this recent round of infections in early April.
Additionally, 2,051 people in total have now been released from medical care and fully recovered since this current wave began. 112 people were released yesterday.
The district-level new cases were as follows today:
Mueang Chonburi with 18, Si Racha 9, Banglamung (including Pattaya) 21, Sattahip 1, Ban Bueang 2, and Phan Thong 6.
The details on today's cases given were:
12 close contacts in family members from previous patients and 6 co-workers at places of employment
2. Under investigation for 39 cases
In the last day, a total of 320 close contacts were tested from contact tracing, and 485 people were tested in proactive testing when medical staff goes out into the community.
All are pending results along with what the health department stated is a number of other results also pending. Wider scale testing at factories and high-risk occupations is still set to begin this week in Chonburi.
Chonburi Public Health Department officials stated that almost all of the new cases are being driven by private gatherings, primarily small ones with 2-3 people outside of the household having drinks or food together. They continue to urge people to not participate in any activities with anyone outside of their own household at this time and continue to work from home if possible and avoid public places.
Tourism operators in Thailand have hailed the country's plan to waive quarantine for vaccinated travellers from October as a positive step towards positioning the country for a robust post-pandemic recovery.
However, that plan hinges on the success of the Phuket Sandbox programme, which is expected to start in July. Under that plan, vaccinated tourists will be allowed to visit Phuket, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui, Krabi and Pattaya without mandatory quarantine.
Thailand may soon lift quarantine requirements for vaccinated visitors to Bangkok; an empty Erawan Shrine amid Bangkok's third Covid-19 wave pictured
If successful, four other cities – Bangkok, Phetchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan and Buriram – will join Phuket in exempting vaccinated tourists from quarantine from October.
To reopen borders to foreign tourists, authorities are aiming to vaccinate more than 70 per cent of the nation's population by the end of this year.
Luzi Matzig, chairman of Asian Trails Group, said that if the plan goes ahead, he is confident of a swift rebound for Thai tourism, as it is expected that the country will see an influx of tourists, especially from Europe.
"Many Europeans have started travelling within the continent, and some are going abroad to places such as the Maldives. Soon, they will travel to Thailand," he said.
That optimistic sentiment is echoed by Udom Srimahachota, executive director at Baan Talay Dao in Hua Hin and vice president of Thai Hotels Association Western Chapter.
He projected that if Thailand reopens borders without quarantine requirements for vaccinated arrivals, four to six million foreigners or even more will return to Thailand during the last quarter this year.
However, the country must also look at the availability of commercial flights flying in and out of the country.
To ensure a safe reopening for the country, digital solutions must be harnessed, such as a digital contact tracing app, said Udom.
He also urged the government to rebuild confidence among international travellers as tourists began to view Thailand as unsafe following the third wave of Covid-19. Also, accommodations, travel agencies, transport providers, shops and restaurants must be prepared for the return of international tourists by putting in place Covid-safe regulations.
According to Thanapon Cheewaratanaporn, managing director of Quality Express, one of the biggest operators in the country servicing the China market, tourists from mainland China yearned to return to Thailand, as do those from Asian countries like Vietnam and Singapore.
However, he projected that travel patterns will change from pre-pandemic days, with tourists opting to travel in smaller groups but on a more frequent basis.
Travel expenses will also increase as tourists are likely to go for only good quality products and services, he said, adding that the number of budget tourists are likely to decrease compared to before the crisis.
Thai Airways aircraft remain grounded at Suvarnabhumi airport as the airline's creditors vote on Wednesday whether to accept its debt rehabilitation plan. (Photo by Apichit Jinakul)
If Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) were to go under on decision day, which is Wednesday, creditors would only be paid 12.9% of what is owed to them, a source at the airline warned.
On Wednesday, 13,000 creditors are voting on whether to accept or reject the debt rehabilitation plan prepared by the company. If they vote it down, the airline will be declared bankrupt and the creditors will walk away with 12.9% of what the airline owes them, the source said.
In the event THAI goes into bankruptcy, the next step involves appraising the airline's assets to determine how much the company is able to repay of its debts. The 12.9% estimation, which is a gauge of the airline's repayment capability, is based on the value of the assets the company currently holds.
In early March, the company submitted its rehabilitation plan to the Legal Execution Department, covering debts amounting to around 410 billion baht, after the proposed debt-restructuring plan had been accepted by the Central Bankruptcy Court. Major shareholders between themselves own about 180 billion baht of the total 410 billion baht's worth of THAI's debt.
But if the rehab plan gets adopted at today's meeting, the airline will probably be given a significant period of time to sort out its affairs and turn its financial woes around.
THAI's rehab plan calls for an extension of the repayment of debt stemming from debentures worth 70 billion baht to a 10-year period, with a debt moratorium allowed in the early stages of repayment, according to the source.
THAI is implementing rigorous cost-cutting measures which so far include shedding several thousand of its employees from its 20,000-strong workforce via early retirement schemes.
The source added the rehab plan does not stipulate that the Finance Ministry must secure a loan to ease the airline's liquidity crunch totaling 50 billion baht.
The plan loosely states that anyone can procure the loan, with the ministry helping during negotiations to obtain cash infusions.
The source said the plan also does not require a haircut to be made as several of the cooperatives form a large group of the creditors who own a combined 40 billion baht's worth of THAI's debentures.
The cooperatives objected to a haircut out of concern the move would mar the cooperatives' financial standing which could spark a panic withdrawal of savings by their members.
The source also said that more than 10 creditors were seeking to revise several areas of the rehab plan. Some have indicated they might opt to defer their vote in today's meeting.
Although the Finance Ministry has the largest chunk of THAI's shares, at 49.9%, it is not the biggest creditor. In fact, its portion of the debt is dwarfed even by the combined value of the airline's bonds held by the cooperatives.
Airlines with routes to Thailand are told to check passengers' Certificate of Entry, a required document to travel to Thailand, prior to departure. Airlines will face penalties if they allow passengers who don't have the required documentation to land in Thailand, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand warns.
If passengers do not have their COE prior to boarding the aircraft, then the airlines must handle the situation. If the passengers have stopped for a layover, then the airlines must send them back to their country of origin, according to the CAAT.
"The authority will punish airlines that allow passengers who do not have a COE to enter the country under measures for permission to fly into the country."
The statement from the CAAT comes after Thailand's Foreign Ministry banned foreign arrivals from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal to prevent the emergence of the mutated Covid-19 variant that was first detected in India. Thai Embassies in those countries have temporarily suspended the issuing of COE. Thais and those with diplomatic passports travelling from countries from the country where the Indian variant has been reported can still enter Thailand.
WITH just 10,000 policemen out of the total force of 240,000 having opted to be vaccinated against coronavirus, National Police Chief Pol. Gen. Suwat Jangyodsuk today (May 11) instructed commanders at all levels nationwide to convince their men to get the jab, Thai Rath newspaper said.
Pol. Maj. Gen. Yingyot Thepchamnong, a spokesman for the police, said policemen are to get an explanation why vaccination is essential for civil servants. However those who refuse to get the jab will not be punished nor will their decision affect their work in any way.
"To get the shot or not, we confirm we are not forcing this because it is considered a personal right, subject to voluntary action. Policemen have the right to be suspicious about vaccines similar to the general public," he said.
"We accept that in the past there may have been poor communication on the necessity of getting vaccinated. The public has to be confident about coming in for service."
He added that the 10,000 policemen out of the total 240,000 who have got vaccinated are mostly those who work closely with the public and foreigners.
It was reported that 819 police have been infected with coronavirus with 311 still undergoing treatment.
The BOT said that the survey revealed occupancy rates of 18 percent in April and only 9 percent in May. At that rate, 47 percent of Thailand hotels would go out of business within 3 months.
Eighty percent of operators consider the current third wave more damaging than the second, which ran from Christmas until the end of January.
Because more than 51 percent of reservations were canceled in April, the usually-popular Thailand event of Songkran proved much less successful than anticipated, the joint BOT-Thai Hotels Association survey concluded.
Only 46 percent of the country's hotels currently are open normally, with 13 percent shut temporarily and the others with curtailed hours or capacity.
The joint BOT-Thai Hotels Association survey concluded 51 percent of reservations were canceled in April, making Songkran much less successful than anticipated.
Meanwhile, about 39 percent of hotels still open reported less than 10 percent of normal income and more than 25 percent half normal income.
The THA repeatedly has called for government assistance, including employee wage subsidies, debt moratoriums and tourism stimulus plans to fight the effects of COVID-19.
The Chonburi Department of Public Health announced 73 new and confirmed cases of Covid-19 this morning (May 11th), a slight rise from yesterday's 63 cases with one new death.
This makes a total of 3,434 cases of Covid-19 in the current round of infections, with 1,485 still in medical care, with ten recorded deaths in Chonburi since the start of this recent round of infections in early April.
Additionally, 1,939 people in total have now been released from medical care and fully recovered since this current wave began. 94 people were released yesterday.
The district-level new cases were as follows today:
Mueang Chonburi with 3, Si Racha 5, Banglamung (including Pattaya) 49, Phanat Nikhom 1, Sattahip 8, Phan Thong 4, Ko Chan 1, and 2 patients from other provinces transferred to Chonburi for medical care.
The details on today's cases given were:
Two confirmed patients from Samut Prakan Province.
28 family members who were close contacts to previous confirmed cases 2.2 10 workplace close contacts
One person who works in a high risk occupation with lots of customer facing
Under investigation 32 cases
In the last day, a total of 133 close contacts were tested from contact tracing, and 279 people were tested in proactive testing when medical staff goes out into the community.
All are pending results along with what the health department stated is a number of other results also pending. Wider scale testing at factories and high-risk occupations is set to begin this week in Chonburi.
Details on the new fatality were not given. Chonburi Public Health Department officials stated that almost all of the new cases are being driven by private gatherings, primarily small ones with 2-3 people outside of the household having drinks or food together. They continue to urge people to not participate in any activities with anyone outside of their own household at this time and continue to work from home if possible and avoid public places.
Airlines with routes to Thailand are told to check passengers' Certificate of Entry, a required document to travel to Thailand, prior to departure. Airlines will face penalties if they allow passengers who don't have the required documentation to land in Thailand, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand warns.
Airlines with routes to Thailand are told to check passengers' Certificate of Entry, a required document to travel to Thailand, prior to departure. Airlines will face penalties if they allow passengers who don't have the required documentation to land in Thailand, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand warns.
