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From Bangkok Post Firms rip reopening delay to Nov 1 Confusion over reopening timelines has spoiled the chance for the tourism industry to rebound during the coming high season as inconsistent policies damage the country's credibility and international tour operators refrain from planning packages until policies are confirmed. The reopening plan for five areas -- Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Hua Hin and Phetchaburi -- faced another setback after the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) decided to put off the starting date from Oct 1 to Nov 1. For Pattaya, Hua Hin and Chiang Mai, this was the third postponement from an initial reopening schedule of mid-September, all attributed to a vaccine shortage. Tassapon Bijleveld, executive chairman of Asia Aviation, the largest shareholder of Thai AirAsia, said the move affects both the private sector and nation's tourism image because a reopening timeline of October was already set, with people and companies adjusting their plans. "Airlines had started to invest in service maintenance and recruit staff to prepare for new flow of tourists," said Mr Tassapon. "It costs a lot for any business to restart, particularly during a liquidity crisis when every baht counts." He said the government should have evaluated the infection curve in Thailand, assuring residents of reopening areas a sufficient vaccination rate and having a risk management plan in place before nailing down a timeline for each destination. "If the government announced earlier the country would be ready for inbound tourists in December or even January, we would have no objection. We would have shifted our focus to the domestic market in the final quarter with full force," said Mr Tassapon. "The flip-flop worsens a situation which is already somehow at its worst, particularly regarding our financial stability." Thanet Supornsahasrungsi, acting president of the Chon Buri Tourism Council, said companies in Pattaya have worked hard for the past 3-4 months to complete all the tasks the government asked them to prepare. The only action companies cannot take is procure vaccines, said Mr Thanet. In the past few months, authorities could not provide a realistic vaccination plan to provide local communities proper protection. "In addition to the vaccine shortage, some rules don't match our situation. For example, people who work here but don't have a household registration in Chon Buri as well as foreign workers cannot receive a jab here, which is impractical," he said. The postponement mars the country's reputation as local tourism operators have already settled agreement with agents overseas that have the potential to bring in tour groups from Russia and India, said Mr Thanet. "Nobody will listen to us again. They will wait for an official announcement, which may occur in November at the earliest, too late to capture high-season traffic as international flights often need 2-3 months notice for air traffic permission," he said. "It also takes that long to promote those packages." https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2186723/firms-rip-reopening-delay-to-nov-1 =========================== From The Thaiger Contrary to Anutin, US says delivery of vaccines awaits Thailand In a meeting with Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, founder of the new Thai Sang Thai Party, US Senator Tammy Duckworth stated that she is pushing for more vaccine donations from the US to Thailand, but that Thailand has yet to collect 1 million Pfizer vaccines waiting for them now. The conversation took place in Washington DC on Wednesday. Duckworth was born in Thailand and has frequently advocated for her home country, including being instrumental in the donation of 2.5 million Pfizer vaccines agreed upon earlier this year. At the end of July Thailand received 1.5 million Pfizer vaccines from the US with a second delivery of 1 million pending. Duckworth said she planned on advocating for more vaccines to be donated but her hands are tied as Thai officials have not responded to confirm the pending donation. “All I can tell you is that I’ve been advocating for Thailand to get more vaccines … and Thailand has a million doses waiting to go. But because Thailand has not finished the paperwork … I know I told the ambassador a month ago that it needs to be completed. They said OK, they’re going to work on it.” The US government has apparently been sitting on the 1 million vaccines awaiting Thailand’s response. Thailand needs to send official documents declaring their intention to accept the vaccine donation from the US, and until those papers are received the Pfizer vaccines from the United States cannot be delivered. Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul has disputed these claims, saying that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs handles the paperwork protocol and responds to notifications from the US Embassy in Bangkok. Anutin claims that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not received any documentation from the United States. They say that it is in fact Thailand that is waiting on the United States to submit paperwork and not, as Senator Duckworth claims, the United States waiting on Thailand to respond with confirmation documents. https://thethaiger.com/coronavirus/contrary-to-anutin-us-says-delivery-of-vaccines-awaits-thailand

From Channel News Asia SEOUL: South Korea has set a record for daily COVID-19 cases at 2,434, breaking the previous record set last month, as the country grapples with a wave of infections that began in early July, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said on Friday (Sep 24). The mortality rate and number of severe cases remain relatively low and steady at 0.82 per cent and 309, respectively, helped largely by vaccinations that prioritised older people at high risk of severe COVID-19, KDCA said when reporting figures for Thursday. Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum stressed the need for virus-prevention rules to be stricter as adherence could have been lax during this week's three-day holiday. "If prevention measures are not managed stably, the gradual recovery to normal life will inevitably be delayed," Kim told Friday's COVID-19 response meeting. Authorities have advised people returning from holidays to be tested even for the mildest COVID-19-type symptoms, especially before going to work. The daily caseloads may continue to surge and peak by next week as more people get tested after the break, Lee Ki-il, deputy minister of healthcare policy, told a briefing.

From Coconuts Bangkok Bangkok’s got a new little green spot open to the public just a few blocks from Lumphini Park near Chamchuri Square. What had been an empty lot near Wat Hua Lamphong in the Bang Rak district is now a “pocket park” as of earlier this week. Perhaps feeling inadequate, the micro park’s got a name that’s a real mouthful: Wat Hua Lamphong Rukkaniwet Park. The park sits on 2 rai of land (3,200sqm) and features a playground, a few fitness bars, exercise machines, running track and some tables. A lot of hands collaborated on the park: City Hall’s environment department, the We!Park group, Shma Soen landscape architecture firm, Chulalongkorn University’s Architecture Faculty and the Thai Association of Landscape Architects. It is a pilot project developed under City Hall’s Green Bangkok 2030 project aiming to create more green spaces in the capital city. It’s just one small sliver of the extreme makeover redeveloping shabby but authentic areas lining Rama IV Road into a real estate portfolio dream. Less Dusit Thani; more mixed-use commercial zoning synergy. Wat Hua Lamphong Rukkhaniwet Park is located in Soi Na Wat Hua Lamphong and is open 5am to 8pm daily. The nearest transpo is MRT Sam Yan. Continues with photos and map https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/bangkok-unveils-pocket-park-off-rama-iv-road/

From Bangkok Post Shorter quarantine for some visitors NONTHABURI: The National Communicable Disease Committee will propose shorter quarantine periods for some groups of visitors, from 14 days to 7-10 days, to stimulate the economy. After chairing the meeting of the committee at the Public Health Ministry on Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the committee resolved to propose to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration that the 14-day quarantine for foreign tourists visiting Thailand should be shortened to stimulate the economy. The shorter quarantine would be implemented in some tourist areas and concerned officials were considering their readiness regarding vaccination coverage, local Covid-19 situations and hospital bed occupancy rates. Such areas would first welcome Thai tourists next month to evaluate their readiness before receiving foreign tourists in November, Mr Anutin said. Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, said the quarantine would be reduced to either seven or 10 days on a case-by-case basis. The quarantine would be seven days for the visitors who had been fully vaccinated and they would be tested with the RT-PCR method for Covid-19 upon arrival and again on day 7 after arrival, he said. The quarantine would last 10 days for the visitors who do not have a vaccination certificate. They will undergo two RT-PCR tests, first upon arrival and second before finishing the quarantine. Visitors in this category must arrive by air only. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2186579/shorter-quarantine-for-some-visitors ============================== 3,000 taxis to be fitted with partitions Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob sits in a taxi fitted with an acrylic partition as he opens a ceremony to launch the pilot project targeting 3,000 taxis by October this year. (Photo: Department of Land Transport) The Department of Land Transport has begun installing acrylic partitions inside taxis to prevent the spread of droplets during the Covid-19 pandemic under a pilot project to install this device in 3,000 taxis within October. Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob on Thursday chaired the opening ceremony to launch the first group of taxis installed with partitions under the ministry’s new-normal initiative to boost public safety and confidence in using hired passenger vehicles. he installation of partitions started on Sept 16 and all 3,000 participating taxis will be fitted with them by October, he said. Taxis with partitions will have a sign on windshields to let passengers know. Passengers can rate their experiences by scanning the QR Code on the partitions of all participating taxis, he said. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2186583/3-000-taxis-to-be-fitted-with-partitions

From Pattaya News By Goong Nang(GN) The Pattaya Business and Tourism Association (PBTA) plans to focus on Indian and Russian tourists first when the city is open to vaccinated foreign tourists. Mr. Boonanan Pattanasin, the president of the Pattaya Business and Tourism Association, (PBTA) told The Pattaya News yesterday afternoon, September 21st, “Many cities might have postponed the plan to open for foreign tourists. However, Pattaya is ready to open as early as October 1st, if given permission by the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).” “Our largest number of tourists used to be Chinese, however, the Chinese government still has not allowed their citizens to go out from the country in tour groups. Additionally, China has a major mandatory quarantine of three weeks for the majority of any citizens who can leave to return home at this time which is not conducive to tourism. As China continues to pursue a “Zero Covid” strategy, it is unlikely that this will change anytime in the near future, whereas Thailand and Pattaya are moving to a “living with Covid-19” strategy.” Boonanon explained to TPN media. “Therefore, we are now focusing on Indian and Russian tourists which are allowed to travel from their countries. They are still interested in Pattaya and our business and tourism industry partners report regular, intense interest from citizens from both countries on visiting Pattaya.” Boonanan added. “In addition, India and Russia have no to very limited/loose rules about quarantine when citizens go back to their countries while some of our other previous tourist hotspots like Korea and Taiwan still have mandatory quarantine upon return.” Boonanon continued. “This is another factor that is a major roadblock for tourists who wish to go traveling abroad. Western countries like the UK and Australia also have extensive quarantine measures upon return, which will limit those markets. The USA, however, has been a major provider of tourists for the Sandbox and has no quarantine rules upon return or ban on leaving and will likely also provide some level of visitors when restrictions are eased in Thailand, although due to distance and price will be nowhere near the level of Russian and Indian visitors.” Boonanon stated. “Many residents and business owners are still afraid of another wave of the pandemic when Pattaya truly opens to foreign tourists without quarantine but the business community wants to stress to the government that lockdown measures, such as closing businesses, restricting popular tourist activities like drinking alcohol, nightlife, curfews, etc. are not a longterm solution. Once Pattaya is open, we cannot keep having kneejerk reactions the moment there are a few Covid-19 cases, especially in vaccinated people and asymptomatic, and closing business sectors. Pattaya is sitting around 70% vaccinated and will reach the goals set by the CCSA for reopening this month, being fully ready to welcome tourists.” Boonanon said. https://thepattayanews.com/2021/09/22/when-pattaya-opens-to-foreign-tourists-city-plans-to-focus-on-indians-and-russian-visitors-first/

From Pattaya Mail Sigh of relief for Thailand Covid visa extenders By Barry Kenyon The immigration authorities have confirmed that the final date of applications for the 60 days special Covid visa extension is now November 26. This replaces the former last date of September 27 and effectively prolongs the right to remain until well into the new year. The Covid extensions were introduced 18 months ago and have allowed short-stay tourists to remain here, even though their initial permission had expired, on application to the immigration bureau. The reason has always been dislocation of air travel schedules and the closure of land borders because of the pandemic. The numbers in the Pattaya areas have shrunk as most Covid extenders have already departed. But there are groups of long-holiday Europeans and even tourists from neighboring countries still holding out. Immigration authorities declined to give the local numbers but said they were “hundreds rather than thousands”. Most Pattaya expats are holders of non-immigrant visas, such as retirement or marriage, or have work permits or permanent residence status. There are separately labourers from Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia with authorized permits. None of these groups are covered by the Covid extension discretion which was devised strictly with trapped tourists in mind. https://www.pattayamail.com/latestnews/news/sigh-of-relief-for-thailand-covid-visa-extenders-372825

Once considered the queen of the east Asian skies, Cathay Pacific has been battered by civil unrest in Hong Kong and more recently by the Covid crisis. But according to the current edition of Aviation Week, the carrier plans to get into the low cost carrier (LCC) business with the launch of Greater Bay Airlines. LLC's reportedly haven't made serious penetration into the HK market and CP sees an opportunity. Details, however, are sketchy at the moment. In addition, CP plans to continue to operate HK Express with 28 A320 aircraft.

From Bangkok Post / Reuters Govt delays plan to re-open cities to tourists until Nov The government has pushed back plans to re-open Bangkok and some other major cities to foreign arrivals until November, due to vaccination rates falling short of targets, a senior official said on Wednesday. Officials earlier this month said they planned to welcome vaccinated tourists without quarantine to major cities including Bangkok, Hua Hin, Pattaya and Chiang Mai in October to revive the country’s crucial tourism sector. "Cities we've targeted have not reached 70% vaccination rates and so we have to push out the date to November," Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters. So far, 44% of residents in Bangkok have received two doses, government data shows. Overall, the country has vaccinated 22% of the estimated 72 million people living in the country. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2186023/govt-delays-plan-to-re-open-cities-to-tourists-until-nov

The 747-400 was the best-selling model of the 747 series with 694 deliveries over its 20-year production span. Because of its high cargo-carrying capacity, I'd imagine some are being repurposed to answer that need. The more recent 747-800 series was launched in 2005 and has logged 145 deliveries and 10 pending (48 in the freighter configuration). UPS (23) and Lufthansa (19) are the biggest buyers.

From CNBC Climate change will bring flooding to the world’s coasts, and it’s becoming clearer which cities are most threatened. Cities with the worst exposure to coastal flooding in the coming decades are overwhelmingly located in Asia, according to a comprehensive analysis by leading climate scientists, with port cities in India and China particularly vulnerable. Researchers at the OECD, climate risk modeling firm RMS and Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, among others, cited four major factors creating the threat: the deepening climate emergency, the gradual cave-ins of land, rising populations, and the migration of people from the countryside to urban areas. The threat comes as the United Nations’ climate panel warns of increasingly extreme weather events, with some of the changes that are already in motion — such as continued sea level rise — thought to be “irreversible” for millennia to come. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres described the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s landmark report as “a code red for humanity.” He added: “There is a clear moral and economic imperative to protect the lives and livelihoods of those on the front lines of the climate crisis.” Here, CNBC takes a look at the 10 Asian cities most exposed to coastal flooding through to 2070: Continues with interactive mapping https://www.cnbc.com/the-10-asian-cities-most-threatened-by-climate-change-flooding/

From Bangkok Post The Advance Passenger Processing System (APPS) is being upgraded to check incoming air passengers for their health documentation ahead of their arrival as the country is set to reopen to international tourism starting next month, according to the Airports of Thailand (AoT). AoT president Nitinai Sirismatthakarn told a talk programme on Tuesday a similar system has been in place to single out people with criminal records as a means of heightening border security. The APPS allows customs officials, airport and airline staff and immigration police to obtain the profiles of passengers from their countries of origin. They are able to check if passengers are blacklisted or banned from leaving a country. Authorities share passenger information and passengers whose profiles are clean will be able to pass immigration checks faster, according to the AoT. Now, the system is being used to run checks on incoming passengers for their health certification and whether they meet vaccination requirements. The APPS meets global standards in its capability to verify the authenticity of vaccination certificates. The AoT expects passenger traffic across six airports it supervises nationwide to pick up from next month when key tourist destinations open their doors again. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2185459/passenger-processing-system-to-check-arrivals-health-info

From Bangkok Post Cash-strapped Thai Airways International (THAI) is putting three aircraft along with a flight simulator up for sale, as a part of its financial rehabilitation plan and the ongoing push to modernise its ageing fleet, a source in the company said. According to the source, the ailing carrier has listed three of its Airbus A330-300s -- aged 12.2, 12.5 and 12.6 years, respectively, for sale -- along with a flight simulator for the aircraft model. THAI has 15 A330-300s in its fleet, but they wide-bodied jets are currently grounded because of the minimal demand for air travel amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. In total, the flag-carrier has put up 34 of its aircraft for sale since November last year, including 10 Boeing 747-400s, six Boeing 777-200s, and six Boeing 777-300s. It has also let go of its six Airbus A340-600ds, three A340-500s, two Boeing 737-400s and an Airbus A300-600. THAI had been haemorrhaging money for years, and last year it sought the help of the Central Bankruptcy Court, after the Covid-19 pandemic forced the grounding of its entire fleet. The airline's independent director, Piyasvasti Amranand, who is one of the airline's rehabilitation plan administrators, went on Facebook saying that THAI can sell 10 Boeing 747s if the Transport Ministry approves their sale. However, Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob said the ministry has not received any request of that nature. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2184979/thai-sells-more-planes

From Thai Enquirer / Bangkok Post Popular adult content creator and OnlyFans model known as Kainaoa (“rotten egg”) and her boyfriend were arrested in Samut Prakan Monday for allegedly violating decency laws by sharing sexual content on the subscription-based service. According to police, Kainaoa, 19, and her boyfriend, 20, have violated two criminal laws by sharing what they consider to be “obscene” images on the website, and for allegedly enticing others to engage in sexual activity for financial gain. Police said they would not take legal action against the owner of the website, which only allowed creators to share content. The arrests were the result of the website being abused by content creators. Thai netizens have called out the state for double standards and abuse of power, and indicated their support for the young woman and her boyfriend. Additionally, netizens are using the hashtag #น้องไข่เน่า on social media to highlight how sexual work still carries a severe stigma in Thailand and is prosecuted over real crimes like corruption and murder. “Her body, her choice,” one Twitter user wrote. “So I live in a country that criminalizes and arrests people for filming their sexual content online to make money, but not those who commit real corruption and actual murders,” another user fired. “Other countries [in the world] even make porn as their main income. Are you [the government] still claiming for the validity of your morals here?” The content creator and her boyfriend are alleged to have earned “millions” of baht through sharing their content on OnlyFans, which has drawn many subscribers and viewers. On her YouTube channel, Kainaoa, or Tawan, spoke to her fans about her journey towards her newfound fame and popularity, emphasizing that she wanted the Thai law to recognize sex work as a legitimate industry and a means of making money for those who freely desire it. The 19-year-old admitted that she has constantly been harassed by both state officials and private individuals for being so open about sharing such content online in a conservative country like Thailand, and said that she wanted to normalize sexual activity and sex work. Kainaoa and her boyfriend were subsequently called into the police station over the weekend for questioning about their allegedly “illegal” activities online, in which she reportedly admitted to her actions. According to the police, the couple would be persecuted. The Thai Royal Police warned Monday that those involved in releasing “obscene” content online in Thailand will undergo scrutiny and face up to 60,000 baht in fines or up to three years in prison if found guilty. The same day, Kainaoa, announced that she was going to quit the platform due to “police pressure.” On Monday night, Kainaoa and her boyfriend were arrested. https://www.thaienquirer.com/32975/onlyfans-star-arrested-over-explicit-web-videos/ https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2185363/young-couple-arrested-for-online-sex-show

From Channel News Asia HANOI: Vietnam's capital Hanoi will further ease its coronavirus restrictions from this week, the government said, with new cases on the decline and the majority of its adult population partially vaccinated. Most construction projects can resume from Wednesday (Sep 22), authorities said late on Sunday, adding further easing would follow, with average new daily cases down to just 20. So far, 94 per cent of Hanoi's adult population of 5.75 million has received one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, with the aim of completing second doses by the end of November, said deputy chairman of Hanoi's ruling People's Committee, Duong Duc Tuan. "We can't maintain the social distancing measures indefinitely," Tuan said in a statement. Hanoi has escaped the brunt of a fierce wave of coronavirus infections in Vietnam since late April, recording less than 50 of the more than 17,000 COVID-19 deaths nationwide, and just 4,414 of the country's total 687,000 cases. Epicentre and business hub Ho Chi Minh City, more than 1,500km away by road, has been the hardest hit, with 49 per cent of the country's cases and 78 per cent of its fatalities. Hanoi became busier last week after authorities removed dozens of checkpoints and allowed restaurants to offer takeaway services. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/vietnam-covid-19-hanoi-ease-restrictions-vaccination-2189551

From The Thaiger An Australian and Thai married couple, and an American man, who were on death row in Bangkok on charges for trafficking crystal methamphetamine have all been released from prison. A report from the Sydney Morning Herald says they had been accused of smuggling half a tonne of crystal methamphetamine for the Hells Angels motorcycle gang in Thailand. After being cleared by the Supreme Court last week, 37 year old Luke Cook from Western Australia arrived in Sydney and Tyler Gerard, who is from California, flew back to the United States. The Sydney Morning Herald says Luke Cook, who used to run a bar and guest house in Pattaya, has been pleading his innocence since he was jailed in 2017 and his father has campaigned for his release. According to the report, they had been arrested following accusations that Luke Cook had been paid $US10 million by the Hells Angels to smuggle 500 kilograms of methamphetamine aboard his yacht where Tyler Gerard was said to be a crew hand. Police had alleged that Cook dumped the drugs overboard when a Thai navy vessel approached and a package with just over 50 kilograms of meth was found on a beach in Chon Buri. The Melbourne-based Capital Punishment Justice Project have supported the defence lawyers and argued it was a set up and the men are innocent. In a press release published on the Pattaya News, Thailand Bail Legal Services announced that the case has been completely dismissed by the Supreme Court and both Luke Cook and Tyler Gerard are out of prison, out of Thailand, and back home. https://thethaiger.com/news/national/australian-and-american-on-thai-death-row-released-from-thai-death-row-supreme-court-clears-drug-trafficking-case

Photo by Malay Mail From Thai Enquirer Malaysian transgender icon Muhammad Sajjad Kamaruz Zaman, better known as Nur Sajat, was reportedly arrested in Bangkok and out on bail, local reports said on Monday. Nur Sajat has been on the run from Malaysian authorities since February this year after she was charged by religious high courts for violating the country’s Shariah Laws by dressing up as a woman. Nur Sajat said that she also faced death threats in her native Malaysia after announcing that she would be leaving Islam. She was reportedly arrested in Bangkok on September 8 and is out on bail, according to Malaysia’s The Star Newspaper. The Star is also reporting that she is waiting to be resettled in a third country having applied for and being granted refugee status with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). She is reportedly waiting to be processed and resettled in Australia. Nur Sajat is known in Malaysia as a cosmetics entrepreneur. Thai police told Thai Enquirer on Monday that they could not respond to queries about the case as it was a sensitive international matter. It is believed that the Malaysian government are currently requesting her repatriation so that she could stand trial in a religious court where she could be jailed up to three years. https://www.thaienquirer.com/32906/malaysian-transgender-icon-on-the-run-from-shariah-law-reportedly-arrested-in-bangkok/

Planners of this scheme seem to believe that if you are a wealthy foreigner then you must automatically be a cigar-smoking alcoholic who'll move to Thailand so you can buy a bottle of Scotch at almost the same price you can at home. From Bangkok Post The Customs Department is preparing to lower duty on the import of alcoholic beverages and cigars by 50% for five years in line with the government's economic stimulus and investment promotion package. Patchara Anuntasilpa, director-general of the department, said the cuts are in accordance with the Sept 14 cabinet resolution involving plans to revive the post-Covid-19 economy by encouraging wealthy foreigners and highly skilled professionals to stay and work in the country. The scheme is hoped to draw more than a million qualified people to Thailand over the next five years and generate about a trillion baht over the period. Cuts in import duties will be part of the mix. The group is expected to spend on average 1 million baht per person per year while staying and working here. Benefits in the package also include a 10-year Thai visa for approved special visitors along with their spouses and children, the same rates of income tax as Thai citizens, a tax exemption for income earned abroad, and the right to ownership of property and land. Mr Patchara said that about 30% of products are likely to be covered by the planned cuts and ministerial regulations will be announced after the changes are made. He said the department is also preparing to revise custom procedures for personal items for arriving and departing passengers. Meanwhile, Roengrudee Patanavanicha, a researcher on tobacco control, said the Customs Department's move caught her off guard because the new excise tax structure for cigarettes is expected to take effect next month. Under the new system, a flat tax rate of 40% will be applied to cigarettes, regardless of the retail price. She said the new tax could help reduce smoking among teenagers and generate revenue for the state. She dismissed claims that maintaining high cigarette prices will result in an increase in the smuggling of contraband cigarettes. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2184367/alcohol-cigar-duty-cuts-dangled-to-lure-foreigners

That's the closing sentence in a highly personal profile of writer Colm Toibin that appears in the current issue of The New Yorker. The author of many gay themed novels, Toibin didn't learn to read until he was nine. But once he found his groove, he began to make up for lost time. If your tempted by this piece, you can read Toibin describing an orgy in Barcelona at this link: https://www.scribd.com/document/93681837/Barcelona-1975-a-story-from-Colm-Toibin-s-THE-EMPTY-FAMILY "Secrets and Lies" by D.T. Max he Irish writer Colm Tóibín is a busy man. Since he published his first novel, “The South,” at thirty-five, in 1990, he has written eleven more books of fiction. He has also published three reported books, three collections of essays, dozens of introductions to other writers’ work, prefaces to art catalogues, an opera libretto, plays, poems, and so many reviews that it’s surprising when a week goes by and he hasn’t been in at least one of the New York, London, or Dublin papers. When I asked Tóibín—the name is pronounced “cuh-lem toe-bean”—how many articles he had written, he could only guess. “I suppose thousands might be accurate,” he said, adding that his level of output used to be more common among writers: “Anthony Burgess, whom I knew slightly, used to write a thousand words a day. He produced a great amount of literary journalism, as well as the novels.” But, unlike Burgess, Tóibín gravitates to assignments demanding considerable diligence. Reviewing a recent biography of Fernando Pessoa, by Richard Zenith, Tóibín read the eleven-hundred-page text and three translations of Pessoa’s “The Book of Disquiet.” Tóibín sometimes assimilates his subject to the point that the writer in question begins to sound like one of his own characters. His Pessoa essay, published in August in the London Review of Books, begins, “As he grew older, Fernando Pessoa became less visible, as though he were inexorably being subsumed by dreams and shadows.” “I have absolute curiosity and total commitment,” Tóibín, who is sixty-six, told me. He described his appetite for pickup work to me as a form of intellectual fomo. “You learn a huge amount by opening yourself to things that are going on,” he explained, offering as a case in point his new novel, “The Magician,” a fictionalization of Thomas Mann’s life. “I could not have done the book had I not foolishly taken on three biographies of Mann in 1995 that were all this size,” he said, spreading his hands far apart. There are many other demands on Tóibín’s time: he is a literature professor at Columbia University and the chancellor of the University of Liverpool (“You have no idea how beautiful the robes are”). He occasionally helps curate exhibits for the Morgan Library & Museum, in Manhattan, and, with his agent, Peter Straus, he runs a small publishing imprint in Dublin, Tuskar Rock Press. “I really enjoy anything that’s going on,” he told me, adding, “If there was a circus, I’d join it.” When many novelists are done writing for the day, they want to be alone. Tóibín wants company. At literary festivals, he is a charming presence—modest, attentive, and eager to entertain the audience. “A novel is a thousand details,” he likes to say. “A long novel is two thousand details.” He has distanced himself from the trend for autofiction by declaring, “The page you face is not a mirror. It is blank.” Richard Ford told me, “Colm’s the best on his feet of any writer I know.” Once the panels end, Tóibín is up for an escapade. Ford went on, “He’s great fun and naughty, not constantly watching his back.” Last year, Tóibín and Damon Galgut, the South African writer, attended a festival in Cape Town. When Tóibín asked him what would be fun to see, Galgut suggested that they visit the Owl House, a work of outsider art ten hours away, in the Eastern Cape. Off they went on an almost nine-hundred-mile round trip, completed in four or five days. Tóibín was not much impressed by the art, but along the way he did a mischievous imitation of a novelist they both know, played with the idea of a foreign-language film with subtitles that told a completely unrelated story, and discussed why baboons have red buttocks. “It was an absolute lark,” Tóibín told me. Michael Ondaatje recalls running into Tóibín in 2005, after a five-day literary festival in Toronto. Tóibín told him that, during the event, he’d written a short story in his hotel room. Ondaatje exclaimed, “But . . . you were everywhere! ” Tóibín’s appetite for social life is reminiscent of one of his idols, Henry James, who accepted a hundred and seven invitations to dinner in London during the winter season of 1878-79. Tóibín thinks that his own record occurred in 1981, during his years as a journalist in Dublin: almost every night, he said, he was “out drinking with friends and hanging out in every pub, going to every art thing.” In part, Tóibín is searching, like James, for an anecdote that will grow into a story. The germ can lie fallow in his mind for a long time. His best-known novel, “Brooklyn”—which was published in 2009, and later was adapted into a film starring Saoirse Ronan—took its inspiration from a chance comment made by a visitor paying a condolence call after the death of his father, more than forty years earlier, when Tóibín was twelve and growing up near the Irish coast, south of Dublin. “One evening, a woman came and said her daughter had gone to Brooklyn and showed us all these letters,” he recalled. “When she was gone, I heard people saying that the daughter had come back from America and not told anyone she’d married there.” I asked Tóibín several times why he enjoyed being so busy—was it a way to escape “the dark side of his soul,” as his Mann character muses in the new novel? Tóibín resists analysis in general. Once, when I inquired if he was happy, he answered, “I don’t know what you mean by ‘happy.’ ” This time, he initially quoted the musical “Oklahoma!”: “ ‘I’m just a girl who can’t say no.’ ” But I pressed him, and eventually he said, “I think I’m sort of sad, and I’m not sad when I’m out with people—the sadness just sort of goes, departs, leaves me.” I wasn’t sure if I’d achieved a breakthrough or been rewarded for my persistence. Tóibín tries to please, if he can. Continues at https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/09/20/how-colm-toibin-burrowed-inside-thomas-manns-head

I took three Viagra and it wasn't enough

From The Nation Aswin Kwanmuang spoke after inspecting the Bueng Nong Bon drainage tunnel project, which stretches from Nong Bon in southeastern Bangkok to the Chao Phraya River. The 5-metre-wide tunnel runs west for 9.4 kilometres at a depth of 30 metres. Starting from Rama IX Park in Nong Bon, the tunnel links with Bang Ao Canal and features seven drainage stations along the route to Bangkok’s main river. The project launched in January 2016 and is scheduled for completion on February 15 before opening a month later. “Bueng Nong Bon drainage tunnel will help prevent flooding on On Nut Road, Udom Suk Road and Sukhumvit Road,” said Aswin. The tunnel would increase drainage efficiency over an area of about 85 square kilometres, covering the districts of Prawet, Suan Luang, Phra Khanong, Bang Na, he added. https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40006292

From Pattaya Mail / NNT The Thai government aims to promote employment for Thais in industries facing labor shortages and is preparing to recruit Thais to fill more than 400,000 jobs left vacant by migrant workers due to the COVID-19 restrictions. Labor Minister Suchart Chomklin said on Saturday that several industries are in need of laborers, as migrant workers have been prohibited from returning to Thailand during the COVID-19 pandemic. Imports of migrant workers were suspended in March last year when the pandemic worsened, resulting in labor shortages, and employing Thai workers was one way of dealing with the problem. He said that Thais aged up to 35 with high school level or lower education should be considered. Thai laborers will get salaries based on their educational level, as well as overtime and other welfare schemes. Mr. Suchart said there is strong demand for both Thai and migrant workers in several industries, including apparel, canned food and electronics. The Department of Employment (DoE) will survey employment demands among business operators who want to hire Thais as substitutes for migrant workers. So far, 112,759 Thais have registered for jobs with the department. (NNT) https://www.pattayamail.com/thailandnews/thais-to-fill-jobs-left-vacant-by-migrant-workers-372546

Car mob rallies against tanks, troops and Prayut From Bangkok Post Cars and motorcyles kick off an anti-coup and anti-government rally at Asoke intersetion on Sunday. (Photo: Apichit Jinakul) More than 1,000 cars, motorcycles and other vehicles set off from Asoke intersection in heavy rain, the beginning of a "car mob" rally set to wind through the streets of the capital in another bid to oust Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. The demonstration was held in conjunction with the 15th anniversary of the Sept 19, 2006 coup that ousted then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. That was followed by the May 22, 2014 coup that marked the beginning of Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha's long premiership. The two coups were closely connected, red-shirt leader Nattawut Saikuar said before the rally kick-off. "The 2014 coup was staged to show that the one in 2006 was not a waste of effort (by the army)," he said. Red-shirt activist Sombat Boonngam-anong said the armed forces justified military coups as a way to resolve political conflicts, but in reality military intervention was used to open the doors for generals to enter politics. A long procession of about 500 cars and more than 1,000 motorcycles began the political convoy set to head over the Krungthep Bridge to Thon Buri and then recross the Chao Phraya river to end at Democracy Monument. The rally kicked off with a piece of dramatic symbolism. Mr Nattawut, who donned a taxi uniform, rammed a taxi into a cardboard mockup of a tank while demonstrators chanted for Gen Prayut's ouster. The stunt was a reminder of taxi driver Nuamthong Praiwan, who spray painted his vehicle with an anti-coup message and smashed into an army tank on Sept 30, 2006 to show his opposition to the coup. The rally kicked off with a piece of dramatic symbolism. Mr Nattawut, who donned a taxi uniform, rammed a taxi into a cardboard mockup of a tank while demonstrators chanted for Gen Prayut's ouster. The stunt was a reminder of taxi driver Nuamthong Praiwan, who spray painted his vehicle with an anti-coup message and smashed into an army tank on Sept 30, 2006 to show his opposition to the coup. https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/2184319/car-mob-rallies-against-tanks-troops-and-prayut

From Bangkok Post Bangkok hurries for more jabs Bangkok residents queue at food stalls on Yaowarat Road after the CCSA relaxed dine-in restrictions on Sept 1. A political tug of war may be the key factor determining when Bangkok is allowed to reopen to fully vaccinated tourists. Bangkok is scheduled to reopen on Oct 15, while Chon Buri (Pattaya), Phetchaburi (Cha-am), Prachuap Khiri Khan (Hua Hin) and Chiang Mai (Mueang, Mae Rim, Mae Taeng and Doi Tao) are slated for Oct 1. The proposal is expected to be submitted at the next Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) meeting on Sept 24, followed by the Center for Economic Situation Administration on Sept 29. On Wednesday, the Tourism and Sports Ministry and the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) held a meeting with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and Bangkok governor Pol Gen Aswin Kwanmuang. Directly after this meeting Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn insisted the Bangkok reopening date be set for Oct 15. However, on Friday the Bangkok governor asserted the city should not be reopened until residents have a 70% vaccination rate in order to ensure sufficient immunity. According to a source who requested anonymity, during the meeting on Wednesday Pol Gen Aswin said both he and Bangkok residents agree with the reopening plan, but the city might have to wait until Oct 22-24 for 70% of residents receive their second jabs. Pol Gen Aswin raised the possibility of accelerating the interval for the second shot to open the city earlier than Oct 22, which the BMA's health authority representative said was possible if the BMA can procure more vaccines through the support of the Tourism and Sports Ministry. The reopening proposal requires approval from the CCSA to obtain more vaccines to reach the 70% threshold for the metropolitan area, said TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn. Mr Yuthasak said the TAT will have a discussion with tourism-related operators on Sept 22 to prepare for Bangkok's reopening. Thanet Supornsahasrungsi, acting president of the Chon Buri Tourism Council, said Bangkok's reopening could support tourism in Pattaya through more direct flights. Most tourists enter the country via Suvarnabhumi airport. Asian tourists normally combine visits to Bangkok and nearby areas such as Pattaya, so reopening the capital could be a complement for other destinations, he said. "Reopening more areas definitely benefits the tourism industry as it shows the readiness of the country to welcome back tourists," Mr Thanet said. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2183739/bangkok-hurries-for-more-jabs

From Channel News Asia HANOI: Vietnam has approved Cuba's Abdala vaccine for use against the coronavirus, the government said on Saturday (Sep 18), as the Southeast Asian country is battling its worst outbreak. Abdala becomes the eighth COVID-19 vaccine approved for use in Vietnam, which has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the region, with only 6.3 per cent of its 98 million people having received at least two shots. The announcement came hours after President Nguyen Xuan Phuc left Hanoi for an official visit to Havana. Vietnam has recorded 667,650 coronavirus infections and 16,637 deaths, the vast majority in the Delta-driven outbreak from late April. "The ministry of health has approved Abdala vaccine, based on the country's urgent need for its COVID-19 fight," the government said in a statement. The ministry last month said Cuba would supply large quantities of Abdala to Vietnam and transfer the production technology by the end of the year. In June, Cuba said its three-shot Abdala vaccine had proved 92.28 per cent effective in last-stage clinical trials. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/vietnam-approves-cubas-abdala-covid-19-vaccine-2186871

From Thompson Reuters By Matt Blomberg PHNOM PENH, Sept 16 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Foreign workers and tourists stranded in Cambodia during the COVID-19 pandemic have been trafficked and forced to work in sophisticated Chinese-run online scams, a Thomson Reuters Foundation investigation has found. In interviews, nine trafficking victims said they were lured by social media adverts promising well-paid jobs in call centres. Instead, they ended up in shuttered hotel casinos and guarded compounds where they had their passports confiscated before being put to work online. The victims, mainly from Africa and Asia, said they were ordered to create fake profiles on Tinder, WhatsApp and Facebook to entice people into fraudulent investment schemes involving cryptocurrencies, foreign exchange and shares. Those who objected or performed poorly were subjected to violence and threats, victims said. Mary, a teacher from the Philippines, said she miscarried while locked in a room without food and water for three days. "We were desperate," said Mary, who was three months pregnant and four months out of work when she responded in July to a Facebook post offering call centre jobs to English-speaking foreigners. "We thought it was real work but it became a living nightmare," said the 26-year-old, whose name has been changed to protect her identity. Approached for comment on the nine trafficking cases that the Thomson Reuters Foundation uncovered, a spokesperson for the Cambodian interior ministry said, "We also have heard about this before but until now we still do not have any evidence." Continues at https://news.trust.org/item/20210916120210-olp4a