Police Investigate Former ‘Golden Mount’ Abbot’s Death as Suspicious

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28 January 2016, 11:40

BANGKOK — Days after a former abbot of the famed Golden Mount Temple was found hanged in his room, police now say the monk could have been murdered.

The investigation into the death of Phra Phromsuthi, who was once probed for misusing 64 million baht in state funds, was announced Thursday by the commander of Royal Thai Police, who described the monk’s death as “suspicious.”

“We found some suspicious clues that need further investigation, but I cannot yet disclose details to you,” commander Chakthip Chaijinda told reporters yesterday. “Please give some time for the Metropolitan Police to work on this. I believe there would be progress by Jan. 29.”

Disgraced Former 'Golden Mount' Abbot Found Hanged at Wat Saket

He said he has ordered police to “thoroughly investigate both evidence found at the scene and CCTV footage in the area. They have to investigate every dimension of this case in detail before they can conclude the true cause.”

Temple staff notified police on Monday that Phra Phromsuthi, 58, was found hanged in his monk residence at Wat Saket, aka Golden Mount Temple, in Bangkok’s historic quarters. Police initially said the former abbot committed suicide.

Police officers in front of Phra Phromsuthi's residence on Monday. Photo: Matichon

Prior to his death, Phra Phromsuthi was embroiled in a national scandal for allegedly misspending 42 million of 67 million baht provided by the state for a prominent prelate’s 2013 funeral. The Office of Auditor General also accused Phra Phromsuthi of keeping the rest of the money – 25 million baht – for himself.

After the Auditor General launched its investigation into Phra Phromsuthi in 2014, he was dismissed as the abbot of the Golden Mount Temple, formally known as Wat Saket, though he still resided there as a monk. The temple later returned 25 million baht to the authorities.

Police spokesman Dechnarong Suticharnbancha said temple staff and relatives of Phra Phromsuthi told police he “looked depressed about personal issues” before he was found hanged.

“The family said they don’t suspect anything, but we have to investigate this,” Gen. Dechnarong said.

No one has been arrested or treated as a suspect so far, Dechnarong said, adding that police have conducted a forensic examination of Phra Phromsuthi’s body to find any evidence of foul play. He said he’s not sure when the results will be available.

“The preliminary examination of the body is already done. We concluded that he died of suffocation, possibly caused by a rope, but how he died needs more investigation,” Dechnarong said.

If a crime was committed, Dechnarong was optimistic about the police’s ability to bring justice.

“But let me say, if, if it’s really murder, we are confident that police’s capability will have no trouble finding the perpetrator.”

To reach us about this article or another matter, please contact us by e-mail at: [email protected].

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Facebook to Go Angry, Wow, Sad and More 'Pretty Soon'

By

Associated Press

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28 January 2016, 11:07

SAN FRANCISCO — It won't be long before Facebook's 1.6 billion users have more ways to quickly express their feelings on the world's largest social network.

After four months of testing outside the United States, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says that "pretty soon" six new emotions will be added to the social network throughout the world.

Zuckerberg didn't give a more concrete timetable while discussing the new feature with analysts in a conference call Wednesday following Facebook's latest quarterly earnings report.

The additional options will expand Facebook beyond the renowned thumbs-up symbol that people click on to show they like a comment, photo or video posted on the social network.

The new reactions will include symbols for "angry," ''sad," ''wow," ''haha," ''yay" and "love."

"We want people to be able to share all of the things that are meaningful to them, not just the things that are happy and that people are going to like when they see it," Zuckerberg said Wednesday.

Facebook is hoping the additional choices will encourage people to share their thoughts more frequently and hang out on the social network for even longer periods than they already do.

Facebook has been testing the different reactions in Chile, the Philippines, Portugal, Ireland, Spain, Japan and Colombia.

Zuckerberg said Facebook's engineers still need to make a few more "tweaks" before the new options are offered in other parts of the world.

Story: Associated Press

Taiwan President Visits Disputed Island

By

Associated Press

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28 January 2016, 10:57

Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou greets supporters of the ruling KMT Party presidential candidate Eric Chu, Jan. 14, 2016 at a campaign rally in Taipei, Taiwan. Photo: Wally Santana / AP

TAIPEI, Taiwan — President Ma Ying-jeou is visiting Taiwan's largest island holding in the South China Sea, defying criticism from his country's biggest ally, the United States.

Accompanied by about 30 staff members, Ma Ying-jeou left the capital Taipei early in the morning aboard an air force C-130 cargo plane bound for Taiping Island, also known as Itu Aba.

Taiping lies in the Spratly island group, an area where Taiwan shares overlapping claims with China, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The city state of Brunei also claims a part of the South China Sea.

Taiping is the largest naturally occurring island in the area, but has recently been eclipsed in size by man-made islands created by China out of reefs and shoals. China has built housing, ports, airstrips and other infrastructure on the newly created islands, drawing accusations from the United States and others that it is exacerbating tensions in the strategically vital region.

Taiwan stations about 200 coast guard personnel, scientists and medical workers on Taiping. It occupies a number of other islets in the South China Sea, including the Pratas island group to the north.

Coming near the end of his eight years in office, Ma's visit aims to emphasize Taiwan's sovereignty claim over the South China Sea.

Hemmed in diplomatically by China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, Ma's government also wishes to be seen as a legitimate actor in the struggle for influence in the area, where tensions have been sharpened by China's increasingly robust assertions of ownership.

Ma, who has been criticized at home as weak on foreign policy, must step down in May due to term limits and analysts said he considers the island visit a capstone to his time in office. Opposition party president-elect Tsai Ing-wen declined an invitation to go on the trip.

"President Ma…views advancing (Taiwan's) maritime interests as part of his legacy," said Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank in Washington. "His visit to Taiping will further incite nationalistic fervor in the claimant countries and increase tensions."

U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Wednesday that the United States was disappointed by Ma's trip, saying it could exacerbate tensions.

During a visit to Beijing on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry encouraged all parties in the South China Sea to clarify their territorial claims, exercise restraint and engage in negotiations on the basis of international law.

"I stressed the importance of finding common ground among the claimants and avoiding the destabilizing cycle of mistrust or escalation," Kerry said following a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

The U.S. takes no position on who owns the islands, but says developments in the South China Sea are a matter of national security. The sea is home to key shipping lanes as well as important fisheries and a possible wealth of oil and natural gas reserves.

Tensions have been especially high since Beijing transformed seven disputed reefs into islands. The U.S. says the new islands don't enjoy the status of sovereign territory and sent a guided-missile destroyer close to one of them, called Subi Reef, in October in a challenge to Beijing's territorial claims, sparking warnings from China.

Story: Associated Press

Puppy Thrown to Death Over Messy Room

By

Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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27 January 2016, 18:01

Meyanee Sitthisuk cries over the body of Dehlee, her 4-year-old Chihuahua after she was thrown the roof of a house Wednesday in Soi Lat Phrao 122.

BANGKOK — Meyanee Sitthisuk said she almost passed out Tuesday night when looked out her window and realized the object lying on a neighbor’s roof was her beloved pet Chihuahua.

Meyanee’s roommate, Yollada Champasri, reportedly confessed to throwing the 4-year-old dog and Meyanee’s belongings out of their fifth floor window because she was enraged by the untidy state of their room.

“She was charged with loss of others’ belongings and animal abuse,” said Capt. Phaisan Jaisue of the Wang Thonglang police station.

Police said both 23-year-old women only knew each other for less than a month before Yollada let Meyanee move in to her apartment in Soi Lat Phrao 122.

Yollada said she told Meyanee she didn’t like animals before letting her move in for free 10 days ago.

Yollada told police animals are not allowed in the apartment, but Meyanee begged her to let her keep the little dog named Dehlee.

The case will be submitted to the court tomorrow. If found guilty, Yollada could be punished by three years in prison or a 6,000-baht fine for property destruction, and two years or a 40,000-baht fine for animal abuse.

Thai Banks Urged to Beef Up Security in Wake of Cyberactivism

By

Teeranai Charuvastra, News Chief

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27 January 2016, 17:49

By Teeranai Charuvastra
Staff Reporter

BANGKOK — Anxious about the possibility of looming cyberattacks, Thailand's banking association today called on its members to improve security measures and end the culture of data secrecy.

The call from the Thai Bankers’ Association came after it saw government websites taken down by a crude but effective assault late last year by technically unsophisticated activists protesting the junta’s plan to gain control over internet traffic. That was followed by more advanced and successful attacks by members of the a borderless hacking collective known as Anonymous.

At Wednesday’s news conference, Yos Kimsawate, an association security expert cited the October denial of service attack as the worst to hit the kingdom in recent years.

“The most serious case has to be the DDoS launched by the activists to protest the Single Gateway,” said Yos, who heads the association’s security unit.

Although the Distributed Denial of Service is among the most basic hacking tools available, it revealed vulnerability in the state’s online infrastructure and encouraged foreign hackers to target the Thai banking system, Yos said.

“Foreign hackers saw the gap and tried to do the same against banking system,” he said. “But luckily we cooperate with each other and share information, so we thwarted the attacks.”

Thailand has become a hub for transnational cyber crimes; most notably the 2014 hacking of U.S.-based Sony Pictures, which is thought to have been carried out from a luxury hotel in Bangkok.

Yos insisted Thai banks have not fallen victim to any major hacking so far, but he said his association is still concerned that an attack could happen one day.

“The issue is getting closer to us,” Yos said. “We don't want to wait until it caught us by surprise. we have to be proactive.”

He urged members of the association to step up their security systems by educating staff, improving online infrastructure to meet international standards and moving information to trusted cloud systems, among other measures.

But the most serious obstacle to that progress, he said, is the deep suspicion and reluctance among bank CEOs to share security information with each other. The secrecy makes the entire industry vulnerable because “without cooperation, if one bank is attacked, others will be attacked, too, and they wouldn’t have knowledge about it.”

“Trust is vital for cooperation,” he said. “But how do we build trust among CEOs? It’s not easy selling this kind of idea to CEOs.”

‘Above Average’

Thailand is currently ranked above the world’s average in the number of infected computers, according to a Microsoft security specialist present at Wednesday’s news conference.

Chris Peiris said Microsoft scanned and collected data about the infection rate of millions of computers around the world, and statistics showed it’s four times more likely to find infected computers in Thailand than the rest of the world.

For every 1,000 computers scanned, an average of three computers were found with something malicious, he said.

“When it comes to Thailand, the number is four times more,” he said. “It could be as high as 30 computers per 1,000 in some quarters … which can lead to further attacks.”

However, Michael Mudd, a sec-gen from a cyber security firm called the Open Computing Alliance, said the data does not mean Thailand’s banking system is particularly vulnerable to hackers.

Asked to rate how well-protected the online banking system is on a scale of one to 10, Mudd chose “eight.”

“It’s pretty good compared to many other countries,” he said. “If we take Hong Kong and Singapore as the most advanced, Thailand is pretty close behind.”

Yos said he agreed with Mudd’s score but believes the domestic banking industry could improve much more. “Actually, you don’t have to write down the number,” he told reporters. “I fear it would look like a challenge for criminals to break into our system.”

Anonymous Shuts Down Hundreds of Court Sites

‘Anonymous’ Declares War on Thai Junta

Cyber Activists Bring Down Govt Sites to Protest ‘Single Gateway’

At Least 6 Dead in Landslide at Myanmar Jade Mine

By

Associated Press

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27 January 2016, 16:17

Coffins of landslide victims are kept Wednesday in Hpakant hospital morgue in northern Kachin State, Myanmar. Photo: Pan Aung / AP

YANGON — A church deacon says a landslide of mining waste has killed at least six people in northern Myanmar, the sixth deadly accident in the jade mining region since a November disaster killed more than 100 people.

Baptist deacon Dut La, who is organizing funerals for the victims, said Wednesday that six bodies were in the morgue but more than a dozen may be unrecovered from the accident in Kachin state's Hpakant mining region.

Hpakant, in Kachin State, 950 kilometers northeast of Myanmar's biggest city, Yangon, is the epicenter of the lucrative jade mining industry. Jade is mined with heavy equipment that leaves small pieces in the waste soil that is piled into huge mounds. The accidents usually involve people who settle near the mounds to scavenge through the precariously high pile.

Story: Associated Press

Vietnam Ruling Party Boss Re-Elected

By

Associated Press

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27 January 2016, 15:53

Vietnam's Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong greets delegates at the opening ceremony of the 12th National Congress of Vietnam's Communist Party, Jan. 21, 2015 in Hanoi. Photo: Associated Press

HANOI — Vietnam's Communist Party Wednesday re-elected its chief Nguyen Phu Trong for a second term, officials said, an expected outcome that sees the conservative ideologue cementing his hold on power.

The party's congress elected Trong to a 19-member Politburo, the all-powerful body that handles the day to day affairs of the government and the party, and subsequently as the general-secretary, the de facto No. 1 leader of the country.

Also elected to the Politburo are deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, who is expected to become the prime minister, and Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang, who will be the country's new president, said the officials.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The renewal of the leadership means little change for Vietnam.

Trong is expected to continue to push economic reforms, which his vanquished rival had led for the last 10 years. Despite having a reputation for being pro-China he is not likely to be totally subservient to Beijing as that would risk massive anger from ordinary Vietnamese who harbor a deep dislike and historical suspicion of China.

"Many people were afraid that a conservative trend would prevail if Mr. Trong is re-elected. But … whoever they may be, and however conservative they may be, when they are at the helm they are under pressure to carry out reforms," Le Hong Hiep, a visiting Vietnamese fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asia Studies in Singapore, told The Associated Press.

"However, we have to wait to see whether the reforms they carry out will be successful or not, or how far they can go," he said.

The Communist Party is entitled by the constitution to govern and Vietnam's 93 million people have no direct role in electing the leaders of the 4.5 million-member party.

Last week, Trong faced a brief challenge from Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, his No. 2. But in behind-the scenes maneuvering, Dung was persuaded to withdraw from the contest.

It is believed that as a compromise, Trong will not serve his full five-year term but may hand over power to another leader mid-way through it.

Story: Vijay Joshi / Associated Press

‘Luk Thep’ Craze Draws Haunted Doll Backlash (Photos)

By

Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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27 January 2016, 15:10

BANGKOK — On Wednesday, professor Pitak Sirawong made a deal with his students. He told them they could bring their trendy haunted spirit dolls into his research project classroom on one condition: The Luk Thep, believed to contain the spirit of a child, must do the same work as the students.

“If students are lonely and want something to lean on, they can bring it,” said Pitak, who teaches at Silpakorn University Phetchaburi IT Campus. “So I need to set the rule.”

As quickly as business and media embraced the opportunity to profit from the sudden trend, the inevitable backlash to the superstitious dolls has already begun from those who feel the whole thing has already gone too far.

Police Seize Contraband Child Spirit Dolls

Luk Thep were a fading, 2015 cultural blip when they suddenly became the talk of the town this past weekend because Thai Smile Airways announced the dolls could fly as passengers.

On Wednesday, buzzkill aviation officials announced Thai Smile’s decision to qualify Luk Thep dolls as passengers – and require they wear lap belts – was against international standards, which dictate a passenger can only be a human being.

“Passengers can buy an extra seat to place a Luk Thep, but it needs to be kept properly,” said the Civil Aviation Authority’s Chula Sukmanop. “But if passengers don’t buy an extra seat ticket, it must be kept inside the overhead baggage container or under the seat during takeoff and landing.”

Chula warned passengers they risk a year in prison or a 40,000 baht fine under 2015’s new air safety laws for failing to stow their haunted child doll.

The backlash started with those who think affording rights and privileges to the doll is too absurd and those worried it could affect their business.

In a widely shared announcement, The Country Farm Resort and Homestay in Sakon Nakhon province warned guests to leave their haunted dolls at home. The resort said it would not allow them for the sake of other guests.

After a doll-cum-drug mule was discovered at Chiang Mai Airport, crackdown-happy police have already launched a crackdown on Luk Thep, going after tax-dodgers who smuggled them in illegally. At least 150 dolls have already been seized in coordinated raids.

Religious authorities are fed up too. The National Office of Buddhism on Wednesday warned monks that performing the ritual to invite a child’s soul to possess the dolls for money ran counter to religious teachings.

The No. 2 monk at Bangkok’s Wat Saket, Phra Wijitthammaporn, said he’s concerned about what will happen when the fad is over. Given the dolls’ sacred association, he worries people will dump them all at temples, just like all the unwanted cats and dogs they accumulate.

‘Luk Thep’ Drug Mule Busted at Chiang Mai Airport

To reach us about this article or another matter, please contact us by e-mail at: [email protected].

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‘Luk Thep’ Craze Draws Haunted Doll Backlash (Photos)

By

Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

-

27 January 2016, 15:10

Dozens of dolls await consecration and eventual sale for anything from 800 baht to 100,000 baht Tuesday at an occult shop west of Bangkok in Nakhon Phathom province.

BANGKOK — On Wednesday, professor Pitak Sirawong made a deal with his students. He told them they could bring their trendy haunted spirit dolls into his research project classroom on one condition: The Luk Thep, believed to contain the spirit of a child, must do the same work as the students.

“If students are lonely and want something to lean on, they can bring it,” said Pitak, who teaches at Silpakorn University Phetchaburi IT Campus. “So I need to set the rule.”

As quickly as business and media embraced the opportunity to profit from the sudden trend, the inevitable backlash to the superstitious dolls has already begun from those who feel the whole thing has already gone too far.

Read: Police Seize Contraband Child Spirit Dolls

Luk Thep were a fading, 2015 cultural blip when they suddenly became the talk of the town this past weekend because Thai Smile Airways announced the dolls could fly as passengers.

On Wednesday, buzzkill aviation officials announced Thai Smile’s decision to qualify Luk Thep dolls as passengers – and require they wear lap belts – was against international standards, which dictate a passenger can only be a human being.

“Passengers can buy an extra seat to place a Luk Thep, but it needs to be kept properly,” said the Civil Aviation Authority’s Chula Sukmanop. “But if passengers don’t buy an extra seat ticket, it must be kept inside the overhead baggage container or under the seat during takeoff and landing.”

Chula warned passengers they risk a year in prison or a 40,000 baht fine under 2015’s new air safety laws for failing to stow their haunted child doll.

The backlash started with those who think affording rights and privileges to the doll is too absurd and those worried it could affect their business.

In a widely shared announcement, The Country Farm Resort and Homestay in Sakon Nakhon province warned guests to leave their haunted dolls at home. The resort said it would not allow them for the sake of other guests.

After a doll-cum-drug mule was discovered at Chiang Mai Airport, crackdown-happy police have already launched a crackdown on Luk Thep, going after tax-dodgers who smuggled them in illegally. At least 150 dolls have already been seized in coordinated raids.

Religious authorities are fed up too. The National Office of Buddhism on Wednesday warned monks that performing the ritual to invite a child’s soul to possess the dolls for money ran counter to religious teachings.

The No. 2 monk at Bangkok’s Wat Saket, Phra Wijitthammaporn, said he’s concerned about what will happen when the fad is over. Given the dolls’ sacred association, he worries people will dump them all at temples, just like all the unwanted cats and dogs they accumulate.

‘Luk Thep’ Drug Mule Busted at Chiang Mai Airport

Watch ‘Wings of Desire’ by Moonlight in Lumpini Park

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

-

27 January 2016, 12:25

BANGKOK — An American television detective is really an angel watching over the toils and troubles of a grim 1987 Berlin, where a trapeze artist seeks love and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds growl through sets.

It’s “Wings of Desire,” and it screens outdoors in Lumpini Park next month as one of nine movies by acclaimed German filmmaker Wim Wenders for a retrospective series hosted by the Film Archive and Goethe-Institut Thailand. (In German with English subtitles.)

The dark romantic fantasy of “Wings” aka “Der Himmel uber Berlin,” will show at 6pm on Feb. 25 in the Lumpini Park.

One of Wender’s recent works, a 2011 documentary about choreographer Pina Bausch shot in 3D will screen about an hour west of downtown at the Film Archive in March. “Pina” will be the archive’s first screening in 3D on March 5 at the archive located in Nakhon Pathom province.

The rest at The Film Archive: Thai and Eng subtitles (but most are English)

The eight Wenders films, with subtitles in Thai and English as needed, will be shown in order of release at the archive as follows:

Feb. 27

1pm : The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick (Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter, 1972)

3pm : Alice in the Cities (Alice in den Stadten, 1974)

5pm : Kings of Road (Im Lauf der Zeit, 1976)

Feb. 28

1pm : The American Friend (Der Amerikanicshe Freund, 1977)

3pm : Paris, Texas (1984)

5pm : Faraway, So Close! (In Weiter Ferne, so Nah!, 1993)

March 5

1pm : Pina (2011)

3pm : Every Thing will be Fine (2015)

Wim Wenders was named as best director for “Wings of Desire” at the Cannes Film Festival in 1987.

The Film Archive is located on Putthamonthon Sai 5 in western metro Bangkok. Drive, take a taxi or air-con bus No. 515, which stops in front of the theatre.

Pina (2011)

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