A dried out stretch of the Yom River seen Wednesday in Phichit province.
PHICHIT — A top meteorologist said the amount of rainfall this summer will be the lowest in 30 years, and 17 provinces have been warned of drought.
As Thailand enters its hottest period to last through mid-May, a number of northern and northeastern provinces have already begun to wither. Though water levels at many dams have fallen low and less rain is forecast, officials insist water reserves are sufficient through late July.
The deputy director-general of the Meteorological Department visited the central province of Phichit yesterday, where parts of the Yom River have dried out entirely. He said average rainfall is predicted to be the lowest in 30 years this season and advised farmers to limit their water consumption in case of a shortage.
Gen. Chatchai Sarikulya, a deputy prime minister, said Wednesday that about 17 provinces in the north and northeast are at risk of severe drought. He added that urgent relief measures might include drawing water from other reservoirs to fill those running low.
Officials said Thursday that reserves at the Lam Pao Dam, a major northeastern reservoir in Kalasin province, have fallen sharply and remain at about 39 percent of capacity. Still, they said that should suffice until June in the event of no rain.
In Loei province, officials said water levels at one provincial reservoir were the lowest in 32 years, and that they were looking into drawing water from another reservoir.
In Khon Kaen, the provincial governor said water at all sources, natural and artificial, have been quickly drying up, with one district only able to supply households for about a month.
Late last month, officials there said the Ubol Ratana Dam’s reserves were down to about 28 percent of capacity, only 5 percent of which was usable.
Somkiat Prajamwong of the National Water Resources Office said there might be virtually no rain during the next two months. He said several areas in Chiang Mai, Nakhon Sawan, Chaiyaphum, Nakhon Ratchasima, Loei, Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi will soon face water shortages.
President Donald Trump listens as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un answers a question from reporters Thursday during a meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam. Photo: Evan Vucci / Associated Press
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea’s state TV has aired a documentary glorifying leader Kim Jong Un’s recent visit to Vietnam that omitted the failed nuclear negotiations with President Donald Trump.
The footage’s release Wednesday came amid reports that North Korea is restoring some facilities at its long-range rocket launch site that it dismantled last year as part of disarmament steps.
The documentary shows a smiling Kim talking with Trump while walking together inside a Hanoi hotel last week.
It shows Kim’s black limousine passing through a Hanoi street lined with residents waving flags. The footage also shows Kim visiting the North Korean Embassy where some skipped and wept with emotions before they took a group photo with the backdrop of a huge picture of Kim’s late father and grandfather.
The documentary cited Kim as saying North Korea and the U.S. must put an end to their decades-long animosity and confrontation. But it didn’t mention about the lack of an agreement following the Kim-Trump summit.
The Hanoi summit broke down due to disputes over U.S.-led sanctions on North Korea. Washington and Pyongyang blame each other for the talks’ breakdown, but both sides still leave the door open for future negotiations.
North Korean documentaries are typically propaganda venerating Kim, the subject of a strong personality cult among the North’s 25 million people. Some observers say omitting the status of the nuclear talks also shows the North hopes to continue negotiations, while also not letting North Korean people know of any diplomatic failures that could damage his leadership.
Earlier Tuesday, two U.S.-based websites specializing in North Korea studies cited commercial satellite imagery as indicating that North Korea is rebuilding some structures at its northwestern rocket launch facility. South Korea’s spy service gave a similar assessment to lawmakers in Seoul in a closed-door briefing on Tuesday.
“I would be very, very disappointed in Chairman Kim,” Trump said when reporters asked him about reports of new work at the North’s launch site. “I don’t think I will be” disappointed, Trump said, “but we’ll see what happens.”
BANGKOK — A tenth of Thai children are overweight, making some less likely to reach their full height potential, health officials said Thursday.
At an event on health and nutrition across ASEAN held Wednesday evening at the Miracle Grand Convention hotel, former deputy health minister Wallop Thainua said that roughly 10 percent of Thai children are overweight, a steady figure that has persisted among the population for at least five years.
He said that in children 5 and under, about 9 percent were overweight. That percentage jumps to 13.1 of children 6 to 14.
The same overweight group is likely to correlate with the 10 percent of children of short stature, Wallop said.
The child obesity rate has hovered around those numbers for years. A November report found 10.5 percent of children 5 and under were obese. In 2014, the most recent obesity rate data available, 13.9 percent of children 6 to 14 were obese. Most of them were said to live in cities.
Lack of nutrition is also a problem – about 5.6 percent of youth 5 and under were underweight, which fell slightly in the 6-to-14 group.
Excessive sugar and sodium from processed foods and street food as well as increasingly sedentary lifestyles were also blamed for the rise in obesity in children, adults and even the clergy.
In the United States, the rate of overweight children is double, with about one-in-five American children considered obese.
FILE - In this Jan. 20, 2019, file photo, Thailand's midfielder Chanathip Songkrasin controls the ball during the AFC Asian Cup round of 16 soccer match between Thailand and China in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. Photo: Hassan Ammar / Associated Press
TOKYO — With soccer booming in Southeast Asia, Chanathip Songkrasin’s move to Japan has been a win-win situation for both the Thai playmaker and the J-League.
The 25-year-old Chanathip signed with first-division club Consadole Sapporo in 2017 and has been a hit both on and off the field.
In his second season in Japan, the 5-foot-2 (1.58-meter) attacking midfielder scored eight goals, helping Consadole to a fourth-place finish in the top flight — a record high for the club.
He was selected to the J-League XI, becoming the first Southeast Asian player to earn the honor.
“Japanese football is very fast and physical,” Chanathip said in a recent interview. “Players here are very disciplined, so if more Thai players come to Japan, they will be able to learn a lot and become better football players.”
While playing in a more competitive league has helped Chanathip raise the level of his game, it has also helped promote the J-League overseas. Nearly 1.5 million people attend soccer matches every year in Thailand and Japanese soccer officials are eager to gain a foothold there.
With the recent signings of players such as Andres Iniesta, David Villa and Fernando Torres, the J-League is bidding to raise its international profile in the region after a period when the Chinese Super League grabbed most of the headlines for its record-breaking signings and transfer deals.
During the 2017 season, the Chinese authorities introduced a 100 percent tax on the signing of foreign players for a fee of more than $7 million in a move to increase opportunities for young local players. At the same time, the limited on the number of foreign players that could be selected for a game was reduced from four to three for each team.
While Chinese soccer appears to be inching back from a foreign influx, the J-League, long considered the most professional competition in the region, is stepping forward.
“We want to create interest in our league not only in Japan but in Asia and around the world,” J-League chairman Mitsuru Murai said. “With players like Chanathip we feel we are well on the way to achieving those goals.”
Since 2017, the J-League has permitted each team to sign one player from an Asian Football Confederation nation outside of the existing foreign player quota.
Last year, Chanathip’s Thailand teammates Teerasil Dangda and Theerathon Bunmathan played in the J-League with Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Vissel Kobe.
Thailand captain Teerasil returned to Muangthong following the completion of his loan deal, but Theerathon is continuing to play in the J-League with Yokohama F Marinos.
Newly promoted Oita Trinita, meanwhile, has acquired Thai midfielder Thitipan Puangchan on loan.
Chanathip has given the profile of the Japanese league a huge boost in his homeland, where he was a star at Thai powerhouse Muangthong United.
Thai TV viewership of J-League broadcasts hit an all-time high in 2017 when a match between Consadole and the J-League’s Kawasaki Frontale drew an estimated 400,000 Thai TV viewers, outperforming a broadcast of popular domestic side Buriram United.
The J-League hopes its success in Thailand can be duplicated in other Southeast Asian countries, where broadcasts of the top European leagues dominate ratings.
Murai has praised Chanathip for his success with Sapporo and promotion of the league in Thailand.
“I was surprised when a video of Chanathip’s first practice in Sapporo attracted 3 million viewers, more than the entire population of Sapporo,” Murai told local media. “He has made a huge impact on the J-League.”
While he’s completely focused on helping Sapporo achieve its goals, Chanathip said he’s keeping an open mind about his future prospects, including the possibility of one day playing on soccer’s biggest stage.
“If I get a chance to play in Europe, I’d be happy to take on a new challenge,” Chanathip said.
Bhumjaithai Party members campaign from a saleng Wednesday in Nakhon Sawan province.
BANGKOK — The Election Commission was given failing marks by an independent poll observer Tuesday for its performance in the past six months.
The People’s Network for Elections, a grassroots elections watchdog also known as PNET, said the commission has failed to demonstrate it is not under undue political influence since it was dissolved and reconstituted late last year.
“There were many petitions, but only one was forwarded to the Constitutional Court,” it said in a statement referring to a case against opposition party Thai Raksa Chart. It faulted the commission for taking no action on another petition seeking a ruling on whether junta leader Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha should be forbidden from seeking the office of prime minister.
The commission’s secretary-general, police Col. Jarungvith Phumma, said through his secretary Thursday that it was “inconvenient” to comment on the matter.
What’s more, the group said there was a period of 10 days during which the commission failed to meet despite a backlog of urgent matters needing adjudication before the March 24 election.
The group also criticized election commissioners for spending 12 million baht on foreign trips paid by taxpayers in the lead-up to the election, which it said was wasteful.
It added that the commission has failed to support non-governmental organizations to educate the public about monitoring elections, which is part of the commission’s mission statement.
PNET concluded that the commission didn’t meet performance standards in its first six months. It called on the body to “improve its performance quickly as well as make timely announcements about its works, so the administration of the election … will be transparent and accepted both locally and abroad.”
DALLAS — Britain’s Virgin Atlantic has dropped a requirement that female flight attendants wear makeup, joining other major carriers that have eased their dress and grooming requirements after complaints about turning female employees into sex objects.
Virgin Atlantic announced this week that female cabin crew members can skip the makeup. If they want to keep using lipstick and foundation, they must stick to an approved palette of shades.
An airline executive said the changes – which also include making it easier for women to pick pants over Virgin’s familiar red skirts – came after listening to employees.
“Not only do the new guidelines offer an increased level of comfort, they also provide our team with more choice on how they want to express themselves at work,” Virgin Atlantic Executive Vice President Mark Anderson said in a statement.
Uniforms are standard for cabin crew on most airlines, but U.S. carriers have come a long way since Southwest famously dressed its flight attendants in hot pants during the 1970s.
Southwest’s current policy is typical: Long pants are a uniform option, and makeup isn’t required. If crew members wear makeup on the job, it “should be professional, conservative and complement the uniform and the employee’s complexion,” according to guidelines for flight attendants. Glitter and “eccentric” or “excessively bright” makeup colors and styles are expressly prohibited.
American Airlines tells its flight attendants that if they wear makeup, “it should be tasteful and complimentary to your professional image.”
United Airlines, JetBlue and Delta Air Lines said they don’t require makeup either.
There have been employee complaints against U.S. carriers over hair styles, with some employees believing they were victims of racial discrimination. Makeup, however, ceased being a major concern years ago.
“When I started, we had to go to makeup class – and men got the day off,” said Sara Nelson, a flight attendant since the mid-1990s and now president of the Association of Flight Attendants union. She said appearance standards at most U.S. carriers now treat men and women more equally.
Objectification of women is still an issue at U.S. carriers. Last year, Nelson’s union said its survey indicated that nearly two-thirds of U.S. flight attendants suffered harassment during their careers, ranging from suggestive comments to groping.
Last month, a separate union that represents American Airlines cabin crews objected to a video showing people dressed as flight attendants performing a musical number that suggested American uses sex appeal to attract high-paying passengers. The airline said it had no involvement in the skit.
Appearance standards are stricter for other carriers, particularly in the Middle East and Asia.
Some carriers including Malaysia-based AirAsia and Vietnam’s VietJet Air have been criticized for putting young female flight attendants in tight-fitting clothes or revealing outfits either on the job or in promotional videos.
Army chief Gen. Apirat Kongsompong and his officers swear oaths of loyalty on March 7, 2019, in front of a statue of King Rama V at army headquarters in Bangkok.
BANGKOK — At an unprecedented oath-swearing ceremony held Thursday, army commander-in-chief Apirat Kongsompong vowed to only support a government loyal to the monarchy.
Kneeling before the statue of King Rama V – revered by the military as its founding father – Gen. Apirat and hundreds of his officers pledged to uphold the late king’s legacy and defend a government committed to protecting the royal family.
Designated a “special appointment” in the military’s daily bulletin, the first-of-its-kind ritual struck observers as an all-out offensive against junta opponents. It comes as pro-junta politicians have attacked a party running on a progressive platform of plotting to overthrow the monarchy.
“I shall uphold your legacy as if it were my own life!” the army commander said thrice before leading over 700 officers present to swear an oath at army headquarters.
“I shall uphold the royal majesty of the monarch, and the pride and dignity of the armed forces. I, as officials of the state, shall support a government committed to a democratic regime under His Majesty the King as head of state,” part of the pledge read.
Army chief Gen. Apirat Kongsompong and his officers on Thursday swear oaths of loyalty in front of a statue of King Rama V at army headquarters in Bangkok.
After the peculiar ceremony – the first such event held by an army chief – Gen. Apirat handed a certificate of appreciation to a soldier scolded by an anti-military politician in a viral video earlier this week.
The soldier, Lt. Col. Pakit Pholfak of the Prachinburi garrison, filed a defamation complaint against Seri Ruam Thai Party leader Seripisut Temiyavet on Tuesday for posting a video of the confrontation online.
The army chief then commended Col. Pakit for remaining “calm” and controlling his emotions in the face of verbal attacks from Seripisut, who accused Pakit of stalking his campaign rallies. Gen. Apirat himself filed a criminal charge against the politician for “insulting” the military.
“Even before political parties started their campaign, I have said many times where the military stands,” Gen. Apirat said. “We all follow orders from our commanders to keep peace and order.”
He added, “We were all trained to be united and shaped in the same mold. From now on, we must be vigilant and, what’s also important, defend our dignity as professional soldiers.”
Reactions on social media were somewhat negative, even among supporters of the regime. A news thread about the event by Manager, a reliably pro-junta news organization, were skeptical of Apirat’s conduct.
“I watched the clip, but I don’t see any strong language used. Just because of that, they’re mobilizing the force to show off? It’s unfitting for the No. 1 of the army.” Yutthasan Sukkasem wrote.
“So it’s become a drama? Frankly, I don’t think people hate police and soldiers. I think they only hate bad people who hide behind the noble uniforms,” Tat Kewngaam wrote.
“The country is more restive every because of these soldiers. They have lost their way. Instead of serving as a country’s fence, they only care about power and money to buy weapons,” Tanayoch Thungthong wrote.
The army also handed out pamphlets to reporters at the scene this morning effectively campaigning against pledges by Seri Ruam Thai and other anti-junta parties to slash the size of the armed forces and abolish conscription.
Army chief Gen. Apirat Kongsompong and his officers on Thursday swear oaths of loyalty in front of a statue of King Rama V at army headquarters in Bangkok.
The Thai military, the pamphlets say, is funded by only 1.29 percent of the GDP. The document also argues that the draft supplies the army with manpower it requires for various missions, from border security to disaster relief.
Since taking the top army job in October, Gen. Apirat has used his position to lash out at critics of the ruling junta on a near daily basis, outdoing all of his predecessors in recent years in open expressions of hostility and virulence.
Last month, he suggested that those calling for a decrease in military spending listen to “Scum of the Earth,” a song closely associated with anti-Communist vigilantes in the 1970s.
An army spokesman on Tuesday also confirmed Gen. Apirat had filed criminal complaint against Seripisut for showing disrespect to Col. Pakit, who was in uniform.
“Police Gen. Seripisut deliberately insults and disrespects the uniform, which is greatly important to all soldiers and the armed forces,” Col. Winthai Suvaree told the media. “The uniform also features decorations handed down by His Majesty the King.”
French national Arthur Desclaux is seen at the immigration office Wednesday, March 6, 2019, in Naypyitaw, Myanmar. Photo: Aung Shine Oo / Associated Press
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar — A French man sentenced to one month in prison with hard labor for flying a drone in Myanmar completed his term Wednesday, but remained in detention because his deportation order was delayed.
Arthur Desclaux, 27, was arrested on Feb. 7 for flying the drone near the parliament building in the capital, Naypyitaw. He was convicted of violating the Illegal Export-Import Act by bringing the device into Myanmar without a license. He also was fined about USD$100 for violating two other laws covering aviation and immigration.
Myint Zaw, the chief immigration officer of Ottarathiri township, said Desclaux would be kept in a police jail Wednesday night because the deportation order from the Immigration Department had not arrived by late afternoon and no one was available to take responsibility for guaranteeing his whereabouts.
He said Desclaux could expect to be free on Thursday.
“We will do this process quickly,” he said. “Unless we do so, it will not be good for both countries, the law will come under criticism. So, we will do it quickly.”
Frederic Inza, a counselor at the French Embassy in Myanmar who has attended the legal proceedings, said: “Now that all the procedures at the court have finished, we’re satisfied. We only have immigration procedures left.”
He added his appreciation for the Immigration Department’s work, but said it was unfortunate that no one in Myanmar could post a guarantee for Desclaux.
Desclaux’s family had been trying to contact someone to take care of the guarantee but with no result so far, so he would have to remain in police custody, Inza said.
In 2017, a film crew working for Turkish state television was jailed for two months for trying to fly a drone over the parliament in Naypyitaw. A Singaporean and a Malaysian working for broadcaster TRT, along with two Myanmar assistants, were convicted under a 1934 law covering aircraft. The two foreigners were deported immediately after their release from prison.
This image released by Netflix shows Yalitza Aparicio, center, in a scene from the film "Roma," by filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron. Photo: Carlos Somonte / Netflix via AP
BANGKOK — After taking three Oscars home late last month, including best foreign language film, “Roma” will screen for free at a Bangkok auditorium this weekend.
Directed by Alfonso Cuaron, “Roma” returns to give Bangkok cinephiles another chance to watch the black-and-white drama on the big screen rather than Netflix.
The film is based on Cuaron’s upbringing in the 1970s in Mexico and the woman who raised him. It became the first Mexican entry to win an Oscar for best foreign language film and also picked up awards for its cinematography and director.
The screenings, hosted by the Embassy of Mexico and Thai Film Archive, will take place twice – 2pm and 5pm – on Saturday at BACC Auditorium, on the fifth floor of Bangkok Art and Culture Centre.
The film will be shown in Spanish with English subtitles. Admission is free but attendees must reserve tickets online.
Donations at the venue will be welcome as part of the center’s self-funding campaign.
FILE - Former Thailand's Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra arrives at the Supreme Court for last day of the hearing in Bangkok, Thailand, July 21, 2017. (MATICHON Photo)
BANGKOK — Thailand’s political glass ceiling is reinforced by notions of what’s appropriate, what’s feasible and what are traditional roles in society, according to three women politicians.
While the male-dominant culture is still to blame for the low representation of Thai women in politics, novice politicians from three major parties took turns describing the underlying factors that bar or discourage women from entering politics at a Wednesday evening discussion hosted by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand.
“It’s not easy to get women into politics … [and] to get people to vote for female candidates because [they] think politics is not a place for women,” said Democrat MP candidate and party spokeswoman Siripa Intavichein.
Only 5 percent of the Thai parliament – 13 seats – belong to women, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, placing the kingdom 184th out of 194 nations – the lowest in ASEAN – for female representation.
It’s a vast disparity compared to the business world when it comes to female leadership.
Over 40 percent of CEO or CFO positions in Thailand are held by women, according to a 2018 Grant Thornton’s business report. The global average of women in management positions last year was 24 percent.
From left, Siripa Intavichein of the Democrat Party, Pheu Thai’s Tidarat Yingcharoen and Pannika Wanich of the Future Forward Party on Wednesday at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand in Bangkok.
Tidarat Yingcharoen of the Pheu Thai Party, which gave Thailand its first female prime minister in 2011, thinks financial stability has a major effect on the proportion of women and younger people in Thai politics.
“People don’t want to be in politics because they don’t have money,” she said. “In order to join politics you must be financially stable.”
Tidarat said that, in the current environment, only people who come from rich families or have worked a long time and earned significant savings can afford to join politics.
Siripa, the Democrat, shared a similar opinion. She also thinks women in general are more encouraged by their families to enter business, as it’s seen as a more secure and successful career, while politics is unstable and thought of as “a waste of money and a waste of time.”
Tidarat pointed out that, while there are a high number of women in business management, the majority of ownership still belongs to men, which emphasizes the importance of making women more stable financially and therefore more confident about taking leadership roles to enter politics.
The job is also perceived as “dirty,” which discourages women even more, Tidarat said.
The media treatment of female politicians also doesn’t help, Siripa said. While she sees plenty of stories about female politicians in news, most articles “mainly talk about their beauty rather than their abilities and values.”
On how to encourage more women to enter politics, Pannika Wanich of the Future Forward Party said people need to change perceptions about the role of women not being seen as just a subordinate or the “pretty faces.” She however doesn’t think quotas should be enforced to increase that proportion as they are discriminatory.
“Quotas suggest that women are [an] inferior species,” she said.
Siripa, whose party has adopted quotas for women, said that although she thinks representatives should be elected “based on their abilities, not gender” her former disagreement with a quota-based system has changed since entering politics.
“I realized that the majority of people there are men, and when they vote, they vote for their male friends. I think quotas are important to a certain extent to increase a number of women in politics,” she said.
Tidarat thinks quotas are like the “chicken and egg debate.” While they are acceptable to her, what she thinks is equally important is educational empowerment and training aimed at increasing the confidence and leadership skills of women, including a change in how women are portrayed and perceived by society, to create an environment that truly enables them to be in politics.
“We need to change the culture both inside and outside the parliament,” she said. “Tell them it’s okay to join politics. If you don’t change perceptions about politics and [women’s place] … it’s going to be very difficult.”
