Former leaders of the now-disbanded Future Forward Party Pannika Wanich, Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, and Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit at Phayathai Police Station on Nov. 5, 2020.
BANGKOK — Former leaders of the now-disbanded Future Forward Party reported to police Thursday to hear charges of insurrection filed against them by an ultraroyalist – including one case that involved an academic lecture made 10 years ago.
The complaints were brought against Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, and Pannika Wanich by hardline royalist Suwit Thongprasert who accused them of committing seditious acts by posting contents deemed to incite unrest on their social media platforms, as well as other actions.
Speaking to reporters after acknowledging the charges at the Phayathai Police Station, Piyabutr said some of the actions cited in the complaint by Suwit, better known as former activist monk Buddha Issara, dated back to a decade ago when Piyabutr was teaching law at Thammasat University.
“Suwit cited the articles and lectures I made when I was a professor,” Piyabutr said. “It’s been over 10 years already, but it was linked to the current situation. I found the speech as a gesture of goodwill to find a solution, but it turned out to be an offense in Suwit’s eyes.”
He added, “This would be no good for the monarchy since the matter would be discussed in the court.”
Bangkok police commander Phukphong Phongpetra reportedly oversaw today’s interrogation and questioned the trio himself. Piyabutr said Thanathorn and Pannika were charged for making a speech about royal spendings.
Pannika said the sedition charge under Article 116 of the Penal Code is a “failed tactic” employed by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government to silence its opposition.
The charge, which has been used against leaders of the pro-democracy protests in recent months, carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison.
“This is a weapon the government is using against the dissidents,” Pannika said. “It’s a dud bullet since it doesn’t make us stop. Instead, we received more support and empathy from the people.”
The three denied all the allegations.
In a related development, activist Patsaravalee “Mind” Tanakitvibulpon also went to Thung Maha Mek Police Station this morning to hear sedition charges associated with the rally in front of the German Embassy on Oct. 26.
Deputy metro police commander Piya Tawichai said 13 people connected to the recent protests have been charged with the same offense. 68 individuals have also been charged with violation of the Emergency Decree to date, Gen. Piya said.
Banners showing disappeared government and monarchy critic Wanchalearm Satsaksit are displayed at a pro-democracy protest on Sept. 4, 2020, in Ubon Ratchathani.
BANGKOK — The sister of the disappeared anti-junta activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit will fly to Cambodia next Tuesday and convince the Cambodian court to launch a proper investigation on what happened to Wanchalearm, who went missing five months ago.
Sitanun Satsaksit said she’s due to appear in front of the judges on Dec. 8. She will be traveling with a team of lawyers and human rights activist Pornpen Khongkachonkiet.
“We have to fly a month in advance because there’s no chartered flight from Bangkok to Phnom Penh before that,” Sitanun Satsaksit said on the phone Thursday.
She added that the Cambodian justice system does not allow the police to initiate an investigation on its own without the court order.
Sitanun also hopes that she and her lawyers will manage to prove to the Cambodian court that Wanchalearm was indeed abducted five months ago in Phnom Penh.
“I don’t know his fate but I must look for his whereabouts. I don’t want the same fate to befall others again. There have been eight to nine cases before that too,” said Sitanun who set up a new Facebook account called ‘Enforced Disappearance of Wanchalerm Fund Raising’ on Oct 30.
Looking for his missing younger brother has become a full-time job for Sitanun. Wanchalearm, who fled Thailand shortly after the coup in May 2014, often criticized PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s regime and sometimes referenced the monarchy in his online writings.
He was reportedly taken away from a van outside his residence in Phnom Penh by a group of unidentified men.
Harutai Muangboonsri and Jatupat Boonpattaraksa on the “Straight Talking With Jomquan” show on Nov. 5, 2020.
BANGKOK — The faceoff between an ultraroyalist and a pro-democracy activist was initially billed as a debate, but it soon devolved into a one-sided screaming match.
Harutai “Ou” Muangboonsri sparred with Jatupat “Pai Dao Din” Boonpattarasaksa in the talk show “Straight Talking with Jomquan” aired Wednesday on Thairath TV.
Harutai spent much of the hour-long “debate” shouting various conspiracy theories and questionable claims at Jatupat, including the allegations that the United States and “Jews” were behind the recent protests in Thailand.
“Thailand has been peaceful for years. You’re the one sowing hatred among children and riling them up,” Harutai yelled at maximum volume to Jatupat. “Prepare to be slaves to imperialism and great powers’ interference!”
“All you do is attack the monarchy on the streets,” she said in another moment. “All my feelings are filled with this nonsense. I’ve been so angry for so long.”
“We can just talk normally without yelling like normal people,” Jatupat, clearly exasperated, said in reply. “I don’t have to agree with you; you don’t have to agree with me. All you do is yell at me. ”
“That’s because you’re not skilled enough to argue with me,” she said, with crossed arms and a smirk.
The two met on the show moderated by host Jomquan Laopetch, the latest in a series of the debatesbetween pro-establishment figures and activists seeking, among other demands, reforms of the monarchy.
Harutai is a celebrity and member of the Thai Phakdee royalist group. Jatupat is an activist who was jailedfor two and a half years for lese-majeste, the first such case under King Rama X. He is also active in leading the pro-democracy protests.
‘How can we take money from Jews?’
In one of her more controversial statements bordering on anti-Semitism, Harutai said that iLaw, a legal reform advocate group, was funded by “Jews.”
“Who is iLaw? And why are they taking money from American Jewish World Service? How can iLaw take money from Jews? I am a Thai person, I cannot accept that. How can the constitution be amended by American Jew [sic] World Service? Are you even Thai?” Harutai yelled at the top of her lungs.
iLaw was founded in 2009 and has often worked as a legal watchdog for human rights cases across Thailand. The organization is also spearheading the effort to amend the current charter and make it more democratic.
After the “Straight Talking” show aired, iLaw posted on their Facebook that from 2009 to 2014 they were funded by Open Society and Heinrich Boll foundations.
They have also received funding from the U.S.-based National Endowment for Democracy, Fund for Global Human Rights, American Jewish World Service, and Google, the website said.
When Jatupat said that Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha should resign because he came to power in a coup and won the 2019 election with the power of 250 unelected senators, Harutai said that they were necessary to counterbalance “corrupt politicians.”
“My life is definitely better [since Gen. Prayut came to power],” Harutai said.
She also said that racism against black people in the U.S. was proof that democracy was not needed to ensure freedoms.
“Thai katoeys have the most freedom here anywhere, more than in Europe. How is there no freedom in Thailand?” she said, referring to transgender people.
“Black people have no human dignity in the United States. That’s what happens in a country with liberal democracy, can you accept that?”
Jatupat advocated reform of the monarchy, one of the activists’ three demands – the others being PM Prayut’s resignation and charter amendment. He maintained that the older generations’s reverence for Nation, Religions, and Monarchy was not shared by the newer generations.
“For the younger generation, the nation is not the nation-state, but the people. The new generation sees diverse religions and respects all beliefs,” he said.
Jatupat continued, “We want to be able to speak about and change the laws. But there has been no change. While the economy is bad, the money to support the monarchy keeps increasing.”
But Harutai said that attempts to reform the monarchy were caused by U.S. foreign interference.
“All countries know our strong side is the monarchy. With the monarchy there is no hate or division,” she said. “If they want to make our country weak, they will attack. Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy, has the U.S. ever had an issue with that?”
She also said the “entire world” has laws to protect libel against the head of state.
“The entire world has this law to protect the head of state. How can you say that Thailand has no freedom? Are you insane?”
Harutai went on to suggest that the terror attacks in France over depictions of Prophet Muhammad were a result of “infringing on others’ rights by mocking their faiths.”
“Think of that as a warning,” she said. “We shouldn’t have this here, because attacking the beloved monarchy is hate. Where there is hate and violent emotions, the nation is weak.”
A screenshot from Teerachai Kongthong’s ordination video shows him being carried on a palankeen. Photo: Jeejee Peepo / Facebook
YALA — Wearing a golden embroidered robe and a pectoral necklace glittered with diamonds and other precious stones, a man with a shaved head sits on top of the palankeen as he is being carried by a strong troop of men into a temple.
This is not a royal ceremony or a scene from a period lakorn, but a monk ordination ceremony of a goldsmith owner and a fraud scheme suspect Teerachai Kongthong, also known as “Jeejee Peepo,” which now drew ire from the Buddhist authorities for its lavish spending.
“Reports say he was granted permission to hold the ceremony,” Wiwat Wankumpha of Yala Provincial Buddhist Office said. “We will inspect whether he was rightfully bestowed an ordination robe from the Supreme Patriarch, and we will talk to him since it attracted widespread criticism on social media.”
Traditionally, Buddhist Thai men are expected to ordain for several weeks at least once in their lifetime as it is believed to bring a great merit to their family and help improve their karma.
The ceremony usually begins with a shaving of the head and eyebrows, followed by a boisterous procession to the temple where friends and family would celebrate before the monk-to-be would give up his worldly desires and possessions.
But a video of Teerachai’s ordination rehearsal posted on the internet – it was styled as a ‘trailer’ for the actual ceremony set to take place Thursday – didn’t exactly suggest abandonment of those desires and possessions.
In one part of the video, Teerachai is seen sitting on a gilded throne-like chair, with his helpers setting up various golden items which resemble royal regalias in the background.
“Suspend the sensuality to transcend into the nirvana,” read one of the slogans in the video as Teerachai inspects various elements for his ceremony. “To the light of dharma and happiness in the next incarnation.”
Teerachai during his ordination ceremony at Charoentham Temple in Yala province.
While many netizens rejoiced in his merits and appreciated the elegance of Teerachai’s ordination after photos and videos of it went viral on Wednesday, some found it ironic to see such extravaganza in a religion that preaches for the restraint of the senses.
“Is this an ordination ceremony or a coronation ceremony?” Twitter user @TarotYouuuu commented.
“You said in the video that you would eliminate desires? Oh please,” another user @jeanlisajiso commented. “You shouldn’t put that word in your grandiose video.”
Some also dug up Teerachai’s darker past, when he was implicated back in July for fraud by selling substandard golds and impersonating deputy cyber police commander Pol. Col. Siriwat Deepor to pressure the victims to drop their complaint.
His case is still under police investigation.
“What about the money you embezzled from others?” user @TeePower211 wrote. “Wicked boon.”
Teerachai said on a Facebook post that he spent nearly 16 million baht for the ceremony to showcase his commitment to spread Buddhism and present Lord Buddha’s teachings through Thai art and craft.
“The Naga headband is made of 96.5 pure gold weighing at 560.92 grams and decorated with two 2.79 karat Siamese rubies,” Teerachai wrote.
“Our craftsmanship is overwhelmed with the commitment to spread Buddhism and emphasize the importance of ordination.”
“This would allow me to transcend into the essence of Buddhism through stories of Thai precious art and craft, in which our young generations can study and inherit the mastery forever.”
BANGKOK — His Majesty the King’s elder sister posted a photo on her Instagram in which she can be seen celebrating both Halloween and Loy Krathong at the same time.
The photo appeared to be taken on Oct. 31 at Ratchaworadit Pier near the Grand Palace.
She can be seen wearing a Rama V-style Thai costume and holding up both her arms with a snarling mouth.
Although her Instagram account @Nichax is private, it is widely followed by the public.
Uboratana relinquished her royal status when she married an American in 1972, though King Vajiralongkorn said in a statement in 2019 that she is still considered part of the Royal Family.
TOKYO (Kyodo) — Japan’s transport ministry on Wednesday allowed taxi drivers in Tokyo to refuse passengers who are not wearing face masks without a valid reason, amid persistent concern about the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The approval of the provision, requested by 10 taxi companies in the capital, could also affect the norms of etiquette in other areas of the country.
President Donald Trump arrives with first lady Melania Trump to speak in the East Room of the White House, early Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
While much of America was sleeping Wednesday morning, President Donald Trump’s leads in crucial battleground states began slipping — and that’s when online falsehoods about the election started surging.
More than 100,000 votes that Democratic nominee Joe Biden picked up in Wisconsin were evidence of “outright corruption,” one Twitter user surmised. The ballots were “MAGICALLY” found, claimed another.
In fact, Biden’s early morning comeback in the closely watched Midwestern state was simply the result of absentee and early votes being counted.
With the outcome of the U.S. presidential race still in limbo, Trump and his supporters seized on — and spread — online misinformation about legally cast absentee and mail-in votes in battleground states. They used it as fodder to support the president’s baseless declaration on live television early Wednesday that Democrats were trying to “steal the election” from him.
“They are finding Biden votes all over the place — in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan. So bad for our Country!” Trump wrote in a tweet hours later. Trump’s campaign filed lawsuits Wednesday in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Georgia, paving the way for him to contest the election’s outcome.
It’s standard practice in the United States to continue counting votes after Election Day.
Social media companies kept busy trying to counter the deluge of online misinformation, but experts say it is hard to completely blunt the impact.
Researchers at the Election Integrity Partnership, a group of some of the world’s top misinformation researchers, found that mentions of voter fraud rose dramatically immediately following Trump’s early morning remarks.
The unfounded allegations exploited public confusion over how elections are managed at a time when many voters were looking for help interpreting the unfolding results, said Kate Starbird, a University of Washington professor and online misinformation expert who is part of the group.
Many voters may have gone to sleep Tuesday assuming Trump’s leads in states like Wisconsin would hold, only to see Biden take the lead overnight.
“You’ve got this post-election uncertainty,” Starbird said. “We’ve seen a lot of things that were looking good for Trump in the night shift to blue, and we’re seeing attempts to delegitimize these shifts.”
On social media, the misinformation was rooted in allegations that the election had been stolen from Trump.
More than 221,000 retweets on Twitter mentioned stealing the election in a 24-hour period starting on Election Day, compared to just 10,000 tweets about the topic on Monday, according to an analysis from VineSight, a tech company that tracks online misinformation.
Terms like #StopTheSteal were mentioned nearly 120,000 times on websites and social media platforms throughout the day Tuesday. Philadelphia and Pennsylvania were referenced more than any other city or state, according to a similar analysis from media intelligence firm Zignal Labs.
Pennsylvania was a hot spot for election misinformation Tuesday. There were misleading claims about discarded Trump ballots and voting machines being shut down at polling locations circulating across Facebook and Twitter.
Misinformation continued to swirl about the state into Wednesday as the state remained undecided, including vague claims on social media that ballots had just been “found” in the state and shouldn’t be counted.
Others jumped on a data error in a map of Michigan that showed Biden getting a huge spike in votes in an update of results, with tweets shared thousands of times that said it showed “fraud.” Decision Desk HQ, which tacks election results and published the map, confirmed it was an error that was corrected.
And fake images garnering tens of thousands of Facebook interactions included memes featuring cardboard boxes labeled “Emergency Democrat Votes” and a stock photograph of a woman with the caption, “Hang on, we found more votes!” People falsely claimed on social networks that counting mail-in ballots amounted to corruption.
When Milwaukee election officials finished counting the city’s roughly 169,000 absentee ballots and uploaded the results around 3 a.m. Wednesday, pro-Trump social media accounts suggested it was a fraudulent “ballot dump.” Trump won Wisconsin in 2016 but Biden picked it up on Wednesday.
The count of the absentee ballots was live streamed on YouTube for anyone to watch and when it was finished, Milwaukee police escorted the city’s elections director from a central counting location to the county courthouse to deliver thumb drives with the data. Wisconsin law requires the results of those absentee ballots be reported all at once, Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe explained Wednesday.
“There are no dark corners or locked doors in elections,” Wolfe said.
___
Seitz reported from Chicago. Klepper reported from Providence, R.I. Swenson reported from Seattle.
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden takes off his face mask as he arrives to speak, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden won the battleground prizes of Michigan and Wisconsin on Wednesday, reclaiming a key part of the “blue wall” that slipped away from Democrats four years ago and dramatically narrowing President Donald Trump’s pathway to reelection.
A full day after Election Day, neither candidate had cleared the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the White House. But Biden’s victories in the Great Lakes states left him at 264, meaning he was one battleground state away from crossing the threshold and becoming president-elect.
Biden, who has received more than 71 million votes, the most in history, was joined by his running mate Kamala Harris at an afternoon news conference and said he now expected to win the presidency, though he stopped short of outright declaring victory.
“I will govern as an American president,” Biden said. ”There will be no red states and blue states when we win. Just the United States of America.”
Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
It was a stark contrast to Trump, who on Wednesday falsely proclaimed that he had won the election, even though millions of votes remained uncounted and the race was far from over.
The Associated Press called Wisconsin for Biden after election officials in the state said all outstanding ballots had been counted, save for a few hundred in one township and an expected small number of provisional votes.
Trump’s campaign requested a recount, thought statewide recounts in Wisconsin have historically changed the vote tally by only a few hundred votes. Biden led by 0.624 percentage point out of nearly 3.3 million ballots counted.
Since 2016, Democrats had been haunted by the crumbling of the blue wall, the trio of Great Lakes states — Pennsylvania is the third — that their candidates had been able to count on every four years. But Trump’s populist appeal struck a chord with white working-class voters and he captured all three in 2016 by a total margin of just 77,000 votes.
Both candidates this year fiercely fought for the states, with Biden’s everyman political persona resonating in blue-collar towns while his campaign also pushed to increase turnout among Black voters in cities like Detroit and Milwaukee.
Pennsylvania remained too early to call Wednesday night.
It was unclear when or how quickly a national winner could be determined after a long, bitter campaign dominated by the coronavirus and its effects on Americans and the national economy. But Biden’s possible pathways to the White House were expanding rapidly.
President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House, early Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
After the victories in Wisconsin and Michigan, he was just six Electoral College votes away from the presidency. A win in any undecided state except for Alaska — but including Nevada, with its six votes — would be enough to end Trump’s tenure in the White House.
Trump spent much of Wednesday in the White House residence, huddling with advisers and fuming at media coverage showing his Democratic rival picking up key battlegrounds. Trump falsely claimed victory in several key states and amplified unsubstantiated conspiracy theories about Democratic gains as absentee and early votes were tabulated.
Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said the president would formally request a Wisconsin recount, citing “irregularities” in several counties. And the campaign said it was filing suit in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia to demand better access for campaign observers to locations where ballots are being processed and counted, and to raise absentee ballot concerns.
At the same time, hundreds of thousands of votes were still to be counted in Pennsylvania, and Trump’s campaign said it was moving to intervene in the existing Supreme Court litigation over counting mail-in ballots there. Yet, the campaign also argued that it was the outstanding votes in Arizona that could reverse the outcome there, showcasing an inherent inconsistency with their arguments.
In other closely watched races, Trump picked up Florida, the largest of the swing states, and held onto Texas and Ohio while Biden kept New Hampshire and Minnesota and flipped Arizona, a state that had reliably voted Republican in recent elections.
The unsettled nature of the presidential race was reflective of a somewhat disappointing night for Democrats, who had hoped to deliver a thorough repudiation of Trump’s four years in office while also reclaiming the Senate to have a firm grasp on all of Washington. But the GOP held onto several Senate seats that had been considered vulnerable, including in Iowa, Texas, Maine and Kansas. Democrats lost House seats but were expected to retain control there.
The high-stakes election was held against the backdrop of a historic pandemic that has killed more than 232,000 Americans and wiped away millions of jobs. The U.S. on Wednesday set another record for daily confirmed coronavirus cases as several states posted all-time highs.
The candidates spent months pressing dramatically different visions for the nation’s future, including on racial justice, and voters responded in huge numbers, with more than 100 million people casting votes ahead of Election Day.
Trump, in an extraordinary move from the White House, issued premature claims of victory — which he continued on Twitter Wednesday — and said he would take the election to the Supreme Court to stop the counting. It was unclear exactly what legal action he could try to pursue.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell discounted the president’s quick claim of victory, saying it would take a while for states to conduct their vote counts. The Kentucky Republican said Wednesday that “claiming you’ve won the election is different from finishing the counting.”
Vote tabulations routinely continue beyond Election Day, and states largely set the rules for when the count has to end. In presidential elections, a key point is the date in December when presidential electors met. That’s set by federal law.
Jennifer Riggle, of Washington, waves flags in support of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden at Black Lives Matter Plaza, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Dozens of demonstrators gathered in Detroit Wednesday afternoon, in a square across from the city’s election commission office. Many wore yellow sweatshirts and carried signs reading “Count Every Vote.” Rai Lanier, one of the organizers, said they had planned the gathering so anxious people could come together and channel that energy into hope.
“This is how democracy is supposed to work,” she said
Several states allow mailed-in votes to be accepted as long as they were postmarked by Tuesday. That includes Pennsylvania, where ballots postmarked by Nov. 3 can be accepted if they arrive up to three days later.
Trump appeared to suggest those ballots should not be counted, and that he would fight for that outcome at the high court. But legal experts were dubious of Trump’s declaration. Trump has appointed three of the high court’s nine justices — including, most recently, Amy Coney Barrett.
The Trump campaign on Wednesday pushed Republican donors to dig deeper into their pockets to help finance legal challenges. Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, during a donor call, spoke plainly: “The fight’s not over. We’re in it.”
The momentum from early voting carried into Election Day, as an energized electorate produced long lines at polling sites throughout the country. Turnout was higher than in 2016 in numerous counties, including all of Florida, nearly every county in North Carolina and more than 100 counties in both Georgia and Texas. That tally seemed sure to increase as more counties reported their turnout figures.
Voters braved worries of the coronavirus, threats of polling place intimidation and expectations of long lines caused by changes to voting systems, but appeared undeterred as turnout appeared it would easily surpass the 139 million ballots cast four years ago.
——-
Jaffe reported from Wilmington, Delaware. Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani and Andrew Taylor in Washington, Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, Calif., and Sophia Tulp in Atlanta contributed reporting.
Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods) received Thaipat Institute’s ESG100 Company 2020’s certification for the fourth consecutive years, reflecting the company’s vision to be responsible food producers with strong performances in environment, social and governance (ESG) dimensions.
At the same forum, CP Foods awarded its business units that initiated projects to help create well-being and sustainability in society with “CPF CSR Awards 2019”.
Dr. Pipat Yodprudtikan, Director of the Thaipat Institute, said that being listed among leading listed firms reflects CP Foods’ commitment to growing business, as well as creating returns and shared values for stakeholders.
“CP Foods is a leading company in food industry, a sector that Thailand is really good at. The company has been standing proud on a global stage, making its name as a responsible and sustainable producer that integrate ESG into the business.” he said.
He explained that ESG100 lists is made to recognize the top 100 ESG performers, covering areas such as energy consumption, natural resource management, greenhouse gas emission, food safety, nutrition, responsible product labelling and marketing, supply chain and etc., on the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
This sustainability index is initiated to support growing demand for investment on companies that placed importance on social and environmental impact. It provides choices for sustainable investments and returns that are no less than the others in Thai bourse.
Mr. Prasit Boondoungprasert, CP Foods’ CEO, said at the company, as a good corporate citizen in Thailand, is proud to conduct its business with ESG principle. This is based on the company’s core philosophy “3-Benefits” for sustainable growth of the country, people, and lastly the company itself. Ultimately, the company hopes that its actions will help the country achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“CP Foods believes ESG is the cornerstone of our business. This aspiration will help CP Foods to maintain competitiveness, building stakeholder’s trust and deliver good returns in order to secure continuous business growth,” he said.
Also, Mr. Prasit presided over “CPF CSR Award 2019, giving recognitions to the company’s volunteers who drives CP Foods’ business towards sustainability under the three pillars: “Food Security, Self-Sufficient Society and “Balance of Nature” as well as sharing their best practices throughout the organization in an effort to improve quality of life in Thailand.
In this year, 39 projects, covering areas such as food safety, environmental conservation, creating extra income for community, and etc., from 9 business units received the prestigious awards. This included 7 excellent category, 12 in outstanding category and 20 recognition awards.
As a world-class food conglomerate with internationally recognized standards, the company drives the corporate social responsibility towards sustainability under the three pillars: “Food Security, Self-Sufficient Society and “Balance of Nature”.
Additionally, it has been cooperated with the government, private sectors, and society across the globe, in order to pave the way towards achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The company’s efforts to drive sustainable business is recognized as it is listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Emerging Markets Index (DJSI – Emerging Markets) and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index.
The Gulf of Thailand’s mixed trawl fishery becomes the first Fishery Improvement Program (FIP) in the world accepted onto the MarinTrust Improver Program as a part of multispecies pilot project.
The FIP in Gulf of Thailand is a pilot project to develop assessment guidelines for mixed trawl fisheries management that is suitable for Southeast Asia region.
Mr. Pornsil Patchrintanakul, representative of Thai Sustainable Fisheries Round Table (TSFR) and President of Thai Feed Mill Association, explained that the current MarinTrust fishery methodology assessment is designed for ensuring responsible fisheries where a small number of species make up a majority of the catch. However, the Southeast Asia region has a variety of aquatic animals and mixed trawl fisheries which are not only more complex and difficult to manage than single-species fisheries but also there is no sustainable fishery standard that is fitting for.
To overcome this limitation, the pilot project is, therefore, initiated to find out best practices and criteria for fisheries in such marine environment. Once the criteria are fully tested and established, this pilot project will work towards full MarinTrust Approval.
“This is a significant step for Thai seafood industry. The FIP will ensure us that sea animals will remain abundant in our precious Gulf of Thailand where many different species of fish coexist. The criteria will emphasize that all materials from the seas come from responsible sourcing” Mr. Pornsil said.
He added that the pilot project will help Thai fishmeal industry to be internationally-recognized in all dimensions, including responsible ingredient sourcing, quality and safety of the product, and fishmeal traceability. This is also in line with the purpose of TSFR, which is a joint committee between the government agencies, namely the Department of Fisheries and private sectors in creating sustainable standards in Thai fisheries.
Mr. Pornsil Patchrintanakul
Dr. Sujint Thammasart, DVM, Chief Operating Officer – Aquaculture Business of Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods), said as one of a leading shrimp exporter CP Foods fully supports the MarinTrust’s newly developed criteria to strengthen Thailand’s seafood supply chain from upstream to downstream.
The launching of the standard will encourage CP Foods and other feed production companies to strictly source fishmeal responsibility and sustainability. Moreover, the standard is potentially used as references for setting Thai fishing policy in the future.
“It is important to note that CP Foods is a buyer of fishmeal and producer of farmed shrimp as well as shrimp feed; we have never been an operator nor owner of any fishing vessel, and we do not produce fishmeal. However, CP Foods has a clear policy to make all of its operations worldwide to source its ingredients in line with internationally-recognized standards and our Sustainable Sourcing Policy and Supplier Guiding Principle in an effort to prevent IUU and promote sustainable supply chain.” he said.
