American Bear Walks Around Like He Owns the Place

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23 June 2016, 14:15

OAK RIDGE, New Jersey — A black bear that walks upright on its two hind legs and has become a social media darling has re-emerged and has been captured on video months after its last sighting.

The bipedal bear nicknamed Pedals was spotted in the town of Oak Ridge, NJ.com reported Wednesday. The bear appeared to be in relatively good health and was moving briskly in a video posted to Facebook featuring the bear. The man who posted the video wrote that he spotted the bear Monday.

Pedals apparently has an injured leg or paw that doesn’t allow him to walk comfortably on all fours, according to experts. Prior to the latest video, there had been no reported recent sightings and officials asked the public for help in locating the bear.

Lawrence Hajna, spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, said officials expect the bear to make it through next winter.

“The bear has an indomitable spirit,” Hajna said.

The bear first gained fame after he was spotted ambling around neighborhoods and was caught on videos that were posted on social media and shown on national television.

Last year, supporters pushed for Pedals to be moved to a sanctuary in New York state, but New Jersey officials have said they won’t allow the bear to be captured and transferred to the facility. Hajna said at the time that the bear would do better in his natural habitat and the agency would step in if his condition deteriorated.

A World of Trouble Writ Large at ‘Atmosfear’ Opening Today

By

Kaewta Ketbungkan, Staff Reporter

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23 June 2016, 12:11

Atmosfear exhibition. Photo: 100 Tonson Gallery / Facebook

BANGKOK — Four months in the painting, Yuree Kensaku’s colossal mural “Atmosfear” is ready to add apocalyptic color to Chitlom.

The cube space in 100 Tonson Gallery is no longer pale as Japanese-Thai artist Yuree Kensaku has created a colorful universe with her largest ever mural painting for Atmosfear, her sixth solo exhibition.

The vivid, playful painting reflects not only worldwide problems such as refugees and floods, but also the personal struggles of the 37-year-old artist.

Artist Yuree Kensaku paints her mural. Photo: 100 Tonson Gallery / Facebook

“The exhibition’s title implies my experiences from years past facing uncomfortable situations personally and globally. Like when I wake up and check my Facebook feed, there is bad news concerning close ones and others. Also, the food allergy I’ve suffered the past nine years. Many things are all gathered in this Atmosfear exhibition,” Yuree wrote in an email.

A graduate of Bangkok University’s Faculty of Fine Arts, Yuree has gained a reputation for her signature use of vivid colors. Several of her solo exhibitions have shown overseas.

The opening party starts at 7pm on Thursday and features a behind-the-scenes documentary and teaser for a forthcoming animation project. The exhibition runs through Nov. 27. Admission is free.

100 Tonson Gallery is on Soi Tonson, Ploenchit Road, a 10-minute walk from BTS Chit Lom via exit No. 4. The gallery is open 11am – 7pm, Thursday through Sunday.

High Hopes and Deep Doubts Await Suu Kyi in Thailand

By

Pravit Rojanaphruk, Senior Staff Writer

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23 June 2016, 11:50

Aung San Suu Kyi arrives in Bangkok for a previous visit on May 30, 2012

BANGKOK — When Aung San Suu Kyi begins her three-day tour of Thailand today, Sein Htay will be among the hundreds of thousands of her countrymen here to hold great expectations.

The chairman the of Migrant Worker Rights Network hopes the visit by Suu Kyi, known to many simply as The Lady, for the first time since she became Myanmar’s de facto head of state, will be a boon to the estimated two to three millions migrant workers in the kingdom.

“I am grateful that Her Excellency Aung San Suu Kyi will be coming to see us for the second time. The last time was four years ago,” a euphoric-sounding Sein Htay said in fluent Thai by phone from Mahachai, where many Myanmar migrants work in brutal conditions for the domestic seafood industry. “Her Excellency will be able, more or less, to solve labor issues.”

Read: Rohingya Voices Silenced on Occasion of Suu Kyi Visit

But while he is hopeful for progress on the issues close to his heart, other matters important to Myanmar observers, such as the status of the border refugees and the Rohingya, are more measured.

Sein Htay, 38, will be among 500 people scheduled to meet Suu Kyi, who was given the title Myanmar State Counsellor after her National League for Democracy, or NLD, swept elections in November.

Topping his wish-list is for her to work with Thailand to improve the costly and time consuming passport and visa-making process. Next is basic workers rights protections, such as the right to organize and receive a minimum wage.

“Some also don’t get paid for overtime or can’t take annual leave,” he said.

Andy Hall, a high-profile British advisor to the same organization, said there are great strides to be made.

“We’re expecting a lot from the NLD government,” said Hall.

For one, there’s no clear policy on dealing with the trafficking of workers from Myanmar, an issue that grabbed global headlines when some were found forced to work as slaves aboard Thai fishing boats.

Those who pay their way into the country for legitimate work find it so exorbitant they become chained to serious debt.

About one million of workers from Myanmar are thought to be undocumented, according to different sources, and therefore have no rights.

“A national verification process, it’s an important part,” Hall said, adding that Myanmar and Thailand should develop a joint policy.

Other issues raised by Hall included allowing free movement of workers, such as the 300,000 to 400,00 in Samut Sakhon province who are not allowed to leave the province without permits from Thai authorities.

“It’s not natural,” Hall said.

Another issue given little thought are the workers’ children, said Adisorn Kerdsomongkol, the 42-year-old coordinator of Migrant Working Group.

An issue he’s dedicated his life to for nearly 20 years, Adisorn said there are an estimated 50,000 Myanmar children in Thailand, and they face great difficulty securing Myanmar nationality while also risking arrest in Thailand.

Little Expectation of Relief for Rohingya

For years, Suu Kyi has stood as a paragon for human rights not just in Myanmar but the region. Now that she’s been thrust into the reality of ruling, that luster has faded for some of her believers.

In contrast to the expectations of what she can do for migrant workers, those hoping for action on the Rohingya, a group described by the United Nations as one of the world’s most persecuted minorities, are far from euphoric.

“Let me just say it’s going to be very difficult due to the general attitude of Burmese people and not just Suu Kyi’s,” said Subhatra Bhumipraphas, who has translated several books on Myanmar. “Suu Kyi is a politician and she cares about her [electoral] base.”

Siwawong Suktawee, coordinator of the Coalition for Life of Refugees and Stateless Persons, isn’t optimistic.

“We are not expecting any definitive change [on the Rohingya issue] from Aung Saan Suu Kyi,” Siwawong said.

Siwawong’s coalition, which includes international NGOs such as Fortify Rights and Development Foundation, planned a press conference Thursday to call on Suu Kyi and her new government to recognize equal rights for Rohingya in Myanmar and their plight both at home and abroad.

That press conference, to be held at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand was ordered canceled by police Thursday, who usually make such requests at the behest of the junta. Authorities relented and said it could go forward so long as there is no public Q&A.

Organizations like Fortify Rights estimate that there are around 3,000 Rohingya people who have fled to Thailand. Their situation is much more precarious than ordinary migrant workers from Myanmar, and hundreds end up being detained indefinitely for entering the kingdom illegally.

Asked why Suu Kyi seems cold toward the Rohingya, Siwawong said she’s prisoner to political winds.

“I personally think it reflects the fact that Aung Saan Suu Kyi is still under the influence of Burmese nationalist ideology which discriminates against people who have a different identity, and who are not Buddhists.”

Adisorn was less forgiving.

“I don’t expect anything from Suu Kyi on the Rohingya because I don’t see any clarity from her on the issue. Her tendency is to not talk about it at all.”

They are a little more hopeful Suu Kyi will do something for the more than 100,000 refugees living in camps near the border with Myanmar.

A visit to one such camp in Ratchaburi province planned for the final day of her three-day visit was canceled Wednesday.

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Abbot Remains Free as Tiger Temple Threatens to Sue Gov’t

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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23 June 2016, 11:44

The Tiger Temple abbot Phra Visuthisaradhera, aka Luangta Chan, rolls past reporters in a golf cart June 9 at the temple complex in Kanchanaburi province.

KANCHANABURI — Three weeks after the Tiger Temple was raided and shut down, its lawyer said Thursday they are preparing to sue the national parks department for defamation and malfeasance.

Temple lawyer Saiyood Pengboonchoo said the suit against the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation would seek to punish wildlife officials, including deputy chief Adisorn Noochdamrong for how it conducted its operation.

The lawsuit, which also names Adisorn’s wife Tuenchai Noochdamrong of the Wildlife Conservation Office, targets the department’s ‘inappropriate’ process for seeking a search warrant to remove 137 tigers from the temple in an operation which started since May 30, Saiyood said.

The temple will also sue the officials for defamation because the raid led to accusations it engaged in the illegal trade of protected species.

A prominent Bangkok lawyer would represent the temple, Saiyood said, declining to name the attorney.

“We’re definitely suing them. Right now we’re collecting the documents,” Saiyood said, adding that temple abbot Phra Visuthisaradhera, aka Luangta Chan, remains within the temple where he is conducting his monastic duties.

Attorney Saiyood Pengboonchoo at a June 9 news conference at the Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi’s Sai Yok district.

Read: Abbot of 22 Years Denies Knowing Tiger Temple’s Terrible Secrets

The chief of Kanchanaburi police said his officers are still collecting evidence and questioning witnesses. Despite interest in the case, he said that he couldn’t say much.

“Many news agencies have called and asked me whether the abbot is arrested yet,” Suranit said Wednesday.

Asked how long the investigation will take, Suranit said he had no idea.

“I can only say one thing: That we need to do this carefully,” Suranit said. “Collecting the DNA results of more than 100 tigers will take some time. Plus, we have many people to question.”

Calls placed since Tuesday to Adisorn Noochdamrong, deputy chief of the national park department, have not been returned.

Abbot of 22 Years Denies Knowing Tiger Temple’s Terrible Secrets

Officials Hunt for Abbot of Tiger Temple

Bottles of Real Tiger Labeled ‘Energy Booster’ Discovered in Tiger Temple

Conservation Rhetoric Falls Apart as 1,000 Magic Tiger Amulets Seized From Monk (Photos)

Lion, Tiger Pelt, More Wildlife Discovered Inside ‘Tiger Temple’

Horrible Discovery in Tiger Temple: Dozens of Dead Tiger Kittens (Photos)

Officers Enter Tiger Temple to Begin Removing Tigers

Another Showdown as Tiger Temple Blocks 1,000 Wildlife Officers

Singer’s Hit-and-Runner Was Worried About Being Late for Work

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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23 June 2016, 11:41

Chumpol Choopradit talk to officers at Thonglor Police Station on Wednesday afternoon, hours after he crashed his motorcycle into singer Suveera “Q” Boonrod.

BANGKOK — A motorcyclist who slammed into the lead singer of rock band Flure and then fled the scene yesterday morning said he was afraid he would be late for work.

Chumpol Choopradit, 41, surrendered to police Wednesday evening, hours after he hit Suveera “Q” Boonrod and his friend with his motorcycle in Thonglor. The impact left both men seriously injured, with the 35-year-old musician requiring an immediate operation for a brain injury. Doctors said he’s now in stable condition.

“He stopped and helped the victim a bit, and when other people came to help, he went on his way to work,” Jirakrit Jarunphat, deputy chief of Thonglor police station, said by telephone Thursday. “He said he was in a hurry to go to work. He was afraid he would be late.”

Chumpol, who was said to work as a driver for a Japanese company in Chonburi province, has been charged with reckless driving causing severe injury to others and not reporting an accident to law enforcement officers.

Col. Jirakrit added that he did not believe Chumpol was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

Q was hit by Chumpol as he was crossing a street with a friend in Soi Thonglor 13, a moment captured by CCTV:

His friend, Tharathep Khansongkij, suffered injuries to his skull and legs.

Brain surgeon Krissanee Karnchanapandh said Q underwent surgery just in time to prevent him from entering a coma, or worse.

“It was fortunate that we operated on the patient in a timely manner,” Krissanee said. “If it had taken [slightly] longer than that, his life would have been threatened.”

The surgeon said it’s too early to say when Q will leave the ICU.

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Rebellious Democrats Disrupt House, Stage Protest Over Guns

By

Associated Press

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23 June 2016, 10:42

This photo provided by Rep. John Yarmuth, D-Ky., shows Democrat members of Congress, including Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., center, and Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., left, participate in sit-down protest seeking a a vote on gun control measures, Wednesday, June 22, 2016, on the floor of the House on Capitol Hill in Washington. Photo: Rep. John Yarmuth / Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Rebellious Democrats staged an extraordinary all-day sit-in on the House floor Wednesday to demand votes on gun-control bills, shouting down Speaker Paul Ryan when he attempted to restore order as their protest stretched into the night.

The stunning and unruly scene was broadcast live to the world from Democrats’ cell phones, feeds picked up by C-SPAN after Republicans shut down the network’s cameras.

The sit-in was well into its 10th hour, with Democrats camped out on the floor stopping legislative business in the House, when Ryan stepped to the podium to gavel the House into session and hold votes on routine business. Angry Democrats chanted “No bill, no break!” and waved pieces of paper with the names of gun victims, continuing their protest in the well of the House even as lawmakers voted on a previously scheduled and unrelated measure to overturn a veto by President Barack Obama.

Ryan attempted to ignore the outbursts and announce the business of the day, pounding down his gavel over shouting. “Shame! Shame! Shame!” Democrats yelled, but Ryan left the lectern and the voting continued. Then Democrats began singing “We Shall Overcome,” still holding up the names of gun victims.

In this image from video provided by House Television, House Speaker Paul Ryan gavels the House into session Wednesday night, June 22, 2016, in Washington. Photo: House Television / Associated Press

The scene presented a radical, almost shocking departure from the normal orderly conduct of the House. It was uncertain what would happen as the night stretched on. Republicans planned to attempt to adjourn the House, and hoped to present themselves as soberly attending to business and Democrats as disruptive. Democrats said they would stay until Republicans yielded to their demands to hold votes on bills to strengthen background checks and prevent people on the no fly list from getting guns in the wake of last week’s massacre in Orlando, Florida.

“Are they more afraid than the children at Sandy Hook?” asked Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., referring to the 2012 shooting that killed 26 people, including 20 elementary school children, in Newtown, Connecticut. “What is so scary about having a vote?”

Rep. John Lewis, a veteran civil rights leader, asked what Congress has done, then answered his own question: “Nothing. We have turned a deaf ear to the blood of innocents. We are blind to a crisis. Where is our courage?”

Ryan dismissed the protest as “nothing more than a publicity stunt,” and in an interview with CNN, made clear there would be no vote.

“We’re not going to take away a citizen’s constitutional rights without due process,” he said.

The protest began around 11:30 a.m., interrupted briefly when Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, tried to start the House’s work at noon. The customary prayer and Pledge of Allegiance went ahead, but Poe was forced to recess the House when dozens of Democrats refused to leave the well.

By evening, 168 House Democrats — out of 188 — and 34 Senate Democrats joined the protest, according to the House minority leader’s office. One after another, they spoke of the need for gun control and talked of constituents who had been killed.

Scattered around the House floor were signs reading “Disarm Hate.” Visitors watched from the galleries. A crowd of several hundred gun control advocates gathered outside the Capitol and cheered as Democrats addressed them.

Congress remains gridlocked over gun control, a divide even more pronounced in a presidential election year. The sit-in had the feel of a 1960s-style protest, as some lawmakers sat on the floor, others in their seats.

Republicans had staged a similar protest in 2008. Democrats controlling the House at the time turned off the cameras amid a GOP push for a vote to expand oil and gas drilling. Republicans occupied the floor, delivering speeches after then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent the House on its August recess. Pelosi ordered the cameras turned off.

Republicans ultimately forced the drilling provision to be attached to a stopgap spending bill.

C-SPAN, a cable and satellite network that provides continual coverage of House and Senate floor proceedings, does not control the cameras. They’re run on authorization by legislative leaders.

Although the cameras were turned off Wednesday, lawmakers relied on social media to transmit video, using Facebook, Twitter and Periscope. C-SPAN broadcast live video streamed on Periscope and Facebook from lawmakers’ accounts. Democrats posted the Capitol’s main telephone number, which was overwhelmed, and urged constituents to call and request a vote. They also encouraged tweeting under the hashtag #NoBillNoBreak.

Democratic senators joining the protest included Minority Leader Harry Reid, Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who had waged a nearly 15-hour filibuster last week to force votes in the Senate on gun legislation. Those votes failed Monday night.

Story: Matthew Daly

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World-Famous Thai Director’s Retrospective to Open New Chiang Mai Museum

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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23 June 2016, 09:45

‘Ghost Teen’ from Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Primitive Project. Photo: Gridthiya Gaweewong / Courtesy

CHIANG MAI — Lovers of film and art may want to check for cheap flights to Chiang Mai, as the northern city will open a new contemporary art museum with a solo exhibition by a titan of both worlds next month.

For the first time, Cannes-winning director Apichatpong “Joe” Weerasethakul will show a retrospective of work spanning his entire career from old, rarely seen shorts and video installations to photos and paintings. In true Apichatpong style, the whole thing’s called “The Serenity of Madness.”

The multimedia exhibition promises to reflect the 45-year-old provocateur’s views on Buddhism, spirituality and rebirth.

“This is the first retrospective of Apichatpong,” said curator Gridthiya Gaweewong, who first met the director 22 years ago at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and co-produced Apichatpong’s first experimental film, 2000’s “Mysterious Object at Noon.”

“Most people know him from his feature films, but at this exhibition, they’ll see another side through his work from scripts and sketches to short films since he was a student at Chicago,” Gridthiya said.

With cooperation from New York-based Independent Curators International, Serenity of Madness runs July 4 through Sept. 10 at Chiang Mai’s newest addition, the Maiiam Contemporary Art Museum.

The 3,000-square-meter warehouse is located in the San Kamphaeng district. It opens to the public July 4.

Admission is 150 baht. In Thailand the exhibition will be held exclusively in Chiang Mai before it goes on tour through Hong Kong, the United States and elsewhere.

Set in Isaan, Apichatpong’s 2010 film “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives” was preoccupied with belief in reincarnation. It was also the first – and so far only – Thai film to win the Palme d’Or at Cannes.

Originally from Chiang Mai, Apichatpong will come to Bangkok later this year to take over the fourth floor of The Reading Room, the library-gallery-shophouse on Soi Silom 19, for the month of October.

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Hopes Snuffed For Single Transit Card Before 2017

By

Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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22 June 2016, 17:08

The Mangmoom (Spider) design won the design competition for the integrated card in October. Photo: ThaiCommonTicket / Facebook

BANGKOK — Every commuter’s dream of carrying only one card to ride all the rails will remain just that for now, as it won’t be ready by August as promised.

In fact, the one card promised to rule them all – BTS, MRT, Blue and Purple lines and Airport Rail Link alike – won’t make it to passengers this year at all, the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning announced Wednesday.

“What isn’t finished yet are discussions of how to adjust the systems of those four train lines to be connected into a shared system.,” said acting director Padet Praditphet. “Because it’s very complicated.”

Padet said he had no idea when the those issues will be resolved. Once they are settled, the public will have to wait another six or seven months for their Mangmoom cards while card readers and infrastructure is put in place on all rail systems.

Getting the system in place requires cooperation from all transportation agencies, whose territorialism has delays in building out the capital’s ambitious rail network.

Since a winning design for the long-promised card was announced in October, authorities have repeatedly assured that everyone’s wallets would see more free space when the cards landed in August.

The Ministry of Transport has also said they will be usable on the expressway and bus systems.

A new public-private partnership is also needed to manage the card. Padet said it remains unclear which government agency will be responsible for the public share of up to 50 percent.

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All Aboard! Celebrate a Century of Hua Lamphong Saturday

By

Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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22 June 2016, 16:41

BANGKOK — Some say it’s name today came from a bastardization of “field of carefree cows” in Thai or the lamphong plants which once grew there. Others point to its signature windowed arch and resemblance to Frankfurt’s rail station, insisting it’s a sound-alike for Hauptbahnhof, or central train station in German.

Though why the Bangkok Railway Station became known as Hua Lamphong has been forgotten 100 years after the first train left its platform, Thailand’s oldest railway station is still going strong, and the city will throw it a birthday party this Saturday.

Since the capital’s biggest transit icon opened June 25, 1916, it has grown into a national symbol. More than a just the gateway to all of Thailand, it also the first thing welcoming Thais to the capital, many of whom come in search of success or a better life. For those who fail to find their luck after jumping their train to Bangkok, the station can even end up as home.

To celebrate its platinum jubilee, state railway Gov. Wutthichart Kalayanamitr said the terminal’s received a yearlong facelift, and its distinctive glass arch will be colorfully lit.

At Saturday’s birthday party, four historical steam trains will be rolled out along with a vintage market and performances of traditional Thai music and theatre.

The celebration comes near the end of Hua Lamphong’s railway reign, as owner State Railway of Thailand, or SRT, plans to shift most transit services to the new Bang Sue Railway Station when it is completed, possibly by 2019.

That however doesn’t spell the end for the 100-year-old Italian Neo-Renaissance structure.

Today the station is an endpoint of the MRT subway system, which will soon extend further across Bangkok, cementing its ongoing role in the lives of commuters and travelers.

It took six years to build the terminal, designed by Italian architect Mario Tamagno; a celebrity architect in turn-of-the-century Siam who also designed the Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall, Oriental Hotel and Neilson Hays Library.

Ground was broken in 1910 during the reign of King Rama V, and the work finished under King Rama VI.

Before the party begins Saturday, take a look back on how Bangkok’s oldest and busiest transit spot has looked through its 100 years.

Construction began during the reign of King Rama V in 1910 on land that had been the central rail yards. Construction finished six years later in 1916. Photo: Matichon

The location of a public water fountain was turned into a bomb shelter during World War II. Photo: Thailand in the Past / Facebook

The terminal became an island when Bangkok was hit by its worst flooding in 1942.

Though transportation options have multiplied, about 60,000 passengers still pass through Hua Lamphong every day, a number that explodes during the holidays as many head home from the capital to other provinces. Photo: State Railway of Thailand / Facebook

As the gateway to the capital city, the station has become home to a population of homeless people, many from the outlying provinces. In 2008, artists placed a recreation of hallway from a luxury hotel in the middle of the platform. Photo: Dudesweet / Facebook

A social experiment recently called attention to the less-than-comfortable terminal and sparked discussion about how public space can be designed to function for everyone who gathers there, from tourists to the homeless.

AIS Serenade ‘Ultimate Pride’ Celebrates 12 years as No. 1

By

Khaosod English

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22 June 2016, 15:37

BANGKOK — AIS Serenade has launched its “The Ultimate Pride” campaign to celebrate its 12th anniversary. Under the theme “More than Ultimate: Endless Impressiveness,” the campaign aims to create a new level of exceptional offers and personal privileges that meet customers’ lifestyle needs in the digital era, specifically designed to endlessly impress … all year round.

Mrs. Bussaya Satirapipatkul, Executive Vice-President for Customer and Services Management with Advanced Info Service Plc. (AIS), said: “Throughout the past 12 years, AIS has always been the NUMBER ONE operator in the market and the first to deliver the best services and the ultimate in privileges to customers with the AIS Serenade program, reflecting our belief in “Always Exclusive, Always on Top.”

“Today we have three groups of Serenade customers: Platinum, Gold and Emerald. Our ability to fulfill the needs of each of these special groups is derived from our complete understanding of our customers’ behaviors and lifestyles. Because we really understand our customers, we can design the ultimate in perfectly tailored privileges and services for every AIS Serenade customer, resulting in even more personalized customer care. Our attention to detail and care makes our customers feel extra special and strengthens the bond between the AIS Serenade brand and them.

“The evidence of our success is clear from the 88% customer satisfaction figure in the first quarter of 2016, plus a continuously high positive Net Promoter Score (NPS). This data reinforces our proven accomplishments in customer care achieved with the AIS Serenade program. It can be said that AIS operates the NUMBER ONE customer care service in Thailand and offers the best privileges to all its customers.

“Since this year is the 12th anniversary of AIS Serenade, we are further stepping up our commitment to deliver NUMBER ONE loyalty program to make every aspect of our customers’ lives even more fulfilling. As part of our celebration, ‘The Ultimate Pride’ campaign has been developed based on the theme ‘More than the Ultimate, Endless Impressiveness’. The privileges that AIS Serenade customers will enjoy include:

Ultimate Digital Life offers various ways to enhance our customers’ digital lifestyles:

Customers can get a 50% discount on an iPhone 6s 16GB, Samsung S7 Edge or a 9.7” iPadPro 32GB or receive a Samsung J2 or LAVA 4G VoLTE 5.0 smartphone free or when registering a new phone number or transferring a number from another network;
Maximum discount of 600 baht when applying for AIS Mobile Care service for a period of 12 months;
Obtain an AIS Fibre residential high-speed internet 50/10 package at a special price of 699 baht/month. The normal price is 888 baht/month.

Ultimate Pretty and Lucky Number: Limited to 12 packages of special numbers in “The Ultimate Pride Package”, accompanied by Serenade Platinum membership and the services of a personal assistant. Furthermore, Serenade Platinum members can receive a free smartphone with AIS Mobile Care service and free calling and internet fees for two years. Ultimately, they can join an AIS Exclusive Trip to Hokkaido.

Additionally, customers registering a new number can choose their own lucky number series. They can also transfer from another network or switch from an old number by simply contacting one of our AIS Shops, calling the AIS Call Center or by using AIS’ e-service.

Ultimate Wealth & Investment: Receive special wealth and investment privileges, in cooperation with our following partners:

– Thanachart Securities Plc offers 25% discount on normal fee rates, a 0.2% addition to normal interest rate with a maximum of 4,200 bonus points to Serenade Platinum customers opening a new securities trading account;

– CIMB Thai Bank offers a maximum 1.5% per year interest rate and many other privileges when opening a new Beat Savings account with the bank;

– Southeast Insurance offers a maximum discount of 18% for any car insurance, while a high return savings product with tax deductions is coming soon.

Ultimate Surprizes: Customers can win prizes specially selected for a unique experience every month, all year round. The prizes are worth more than 4 million baht in total. Starting in July, the special gift of the month is a “Dream Destination Maldives” trip. Start in style with a limousine ride from your home to the airport. Then fly with Bangkok Airways, stay at a spa villa on the ocean and drink in the magnificent view at Centara Ras Fushi Resort & Spa Maldives. Relax with a spa aroma massage.
Ultimate Lifestyle Privileges: The varieties of privileges available through AIS Serenade are always satisfying and popular among customers. These include discounts from more than 15,000 leading stores, more than 700 carpark spots nationwide, and free drinks at 40 shops in 15 airports across the country. Serenade Platinum customers can enjoy additional special snack treats, e.g. sandwiches at Black Canyon restaurant.
“Ultimate Eating Out”: Ultimate enjoyment comes with cool discounts from a variety of famous restaurants, such as ice-cream at Banana Boat or Sweet and Gold at Svensen’s. Other ultimate gifts include special discounts at Sizzler, KFC and the Pizza Hut restaurants.

“On our 12th Anniversary, everyone at AIS Serenade is very grateful to our special customers for expressing their satisfaction and positive impressions of what we do. We have devoted a lot of attention to selecting the best offerings that will create a superior experience, and our perseverance has resulted in a sustainable, long-lasting bond between AIS and our customers. AIS Serenade will continue to develop outstanding privileges, which match the special needs of our customers, to maintain its leadership in service quality and privilege innovation. Ultimately, our goal is to create an endlessly impressive experience, today and also into the future,” Mrs. Bussaya concluded.

This is a paid news release and Khaosod English is not responsible for its content.

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