China’s Daring Depreciation

By

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18 August 2015, 22:31

Yuan banknotes and US dollars are seen on a table in Yichang, central China's Hubei province on August 14, 2015. CHINA OUT AFP PHOTO

By Yu Yongding

BEIJING – On August 11, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) lowered the central parity rate of the renminbi by 1.9%, sending shockwaves around the globe. Many foreign commentators condemned the devaluation as a blatant attempt to boost Chinese exports – a move that would, they warned, spark a new round of currency wars. But there are good reasons to believe that this was not China’s motivation at all.

In fact, China knows full well that currency wars are self-defeating. During the 1997 Asian financial crisis, China’s economic situation was much worse than it is today, but the government still resisted the temptation to devalue the renminbi – and the country managed to emerge from the crisis virtually unscathed.

Today, a devaluation would probably do little for China’s trade surplus. After all, the country already accounts for more than 12% of global exports, so expanding its share further would probably worsen its terms of trade. The dominance of processing trade in China – the import of raw materials and components and the export of finished goods – makes the effectiveness of devaluation even more dubious.

Moreover, China now holds a massive volume of overseas assets and liabilities; its non-financial corporations have borrowed as much as $1 trillion abroad. As devaluation causes businesses’ debt burdens to grow in renminbi terms, the risk of non-performing loans and bankruptcies rises.

Beyond an awareness of the short-term risks of competitive devaluation lies the Chinese government’s serious commitment to its longer-term goal of shifting the country’s growth model from one based on investment and exports to one driven by domestic consumption. Indeed, China plans to shrink its trade surplus – which, to be sure, remains large – and offset the negative impact of that process by increasing domestic demand.

Given these factors, it seems likely that the recent devaluation was driven by a different goal. And, in fact, an announcement made on the same day as the devaluation – one that has been largely overshadowed by the panic – offers an important indication of what that goal was.

From now on, China’s government declared, the renminbi’s central parity rate will align more closely with the previous day’s closing spot rates. This suggests that the devaluation was aimed primarily at giving the markets a greater role in determining the renminbi exchange rate, with the goal of enabling deeper currency reform.

As it stands, Chinese exchange rates are allowed to fluctuate by a maximum of 2% on either side of the central parity, which the PBOC fixes daily. When the moving market rate reaches the edges of the fluctuation band, the PBOC can intervene in the market by buying or selling its foreign-exchange reserves.

Market makers now have been instructed that the offer prices they report to the PBOC should be based on the market’s closing parity rate from the previous day, along with the demand and supply conditions in the foreign-exchange market and the movements of major currencies’ exchange rates. No one outside the PBOC knows how the market makers will meet these demands. If the PBOC is now simply moving closer to averaging the offer prices that are not subject to its interference, it is moving closer to an entirely market-based exchange-rate regime.

But this shift carries serious risks. If the renminbi were to depreciate by, say, 2% every day, it would take very little time for the currency to lose 20% of its value – enough to cause a panic and, regardless of the country’s economic fundamentals, send the exchange rate into a tailspin. That is why the PBOC has retained the right to influence the reporting of offer prices by market makers and intervene directly in the market.

And this is precisely what the PBOC did on August 12-13, when stronger-than-expected depreciation pressure and surging devaluation expectations raised the risk that the planned one-off exchange-rate adjustment could trigger a rout. So the PBOC informed the market that the depreciation would not exceed 3% – a credible statement, given abundant official reserves with which to stabilize the exchange rate. The renminbi rebounded, and calm was restored.

This episode showed that the renminbi is under significant depreciation pressure, which is likely to intensify as the PBOC, amid weak GDP growth, loosens monetary policy (particularly as the US Federal Reserve is gradually tightening its monetary policy). Add to that efforts to liberalize the capital account and internationalize the renminbi, and some exchange-rate volatility can be expected.

For China’s monetary policymakers, reforming the exchange-rate system, while preventing depreciation from getting out of hand, poses a serious challenge. For the rest of the world, encouraging China to loosen its grip over the exchange rate, even as the renminbi depreciates significantly, is an equally serious imperative. Neither side can afford to fail.

Yu Yongding, a former president of the China Society of World Economics and director of the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, served on the Monetary Policy Committee of the People’s Bank of China from 2004 to 2006.

Copyright: Project Syndicate, 2015.
www.project-syndicate.org

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"Abusive" Parrot Summoned, Detained by Indian Police

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 22:15

A file photo of a parrot in Germany. Another parrot in India accused of hurling abuse at an elderly woman was summoned by cops who carried out a test to check whether the bird was guilty of bad behaviour. Photo: Patrick Pleul

NEW DELHI (DPA) – A parrot accused of hurling abuse at an elderly woman was summoned by Indian cops who carried out a test to check whether the bird was guilty of bad behaviour, a policeman said Tuesday.

Police at a village in the western state of Maharashtra were at their wits' end after Janabai Sakharkar, 75, complained Monday that her neighbour had tutored his caged pet called Hariyal to utter obscenities whenever she passed by his house.

She accused her step-son, with whom she has a property dispute, of colluding with the neighbour, following which all three, including the parrot, were summoned to the police station, local police chief PS Dongre said.

But the parrot seemed become self-conscious with all the attention from the police and kept mum when confronted by the complainant.

"The woman repeated her name to the parrot as its cage was brought near her, but the bird would not say a word. We watched very carefully," Dongre said.

He said they handed the parrot over to the forest department for release into the wild.

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Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Those Who Died

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 21:29

Seven members of a Malaysian family on holiday visited the Erawan Shrine on Monday evening. Five died in the attack. Earlier this photo was taken of them eating in Bangkok with a local guide. Neoh Ee Ling, second from left, and her father Neoh Hock Guan, third from right, were the only two to survive. Ee Ling's young daughter and husband died, as did Hock Guan's wife. Photo: Sin Chew Daily

BANGKOK — Terror was unleashed on an unprecedented scale in Bangkok on a Monday night as an explosion, clearly intended to inflict maximum carnage, tore through a tourist site important for both secular and sacred reasons, turning Monday evening’s usual bustle into a horror of blood and human remains.

Twenty people died in the 6:55 pm blast on 17 Aug., the worst such incident in the modern Thai state’s history. More than 150 were injured.

While authorities vow to track down those responsible, and vectors of blame and suspicion are cast, attention must not stray from those who lost their lives.

Khaosod English is committed to gathering information about those whose lives ended last night or in the following hours, so that we may honor them respectfully and not let them be forgotten in the flurry of iterative news updates.

Though little is known of them at this time, some only names and nationalities, we will endeavor to learn more that we can share who they were in life.

This is a work in progress. If you are a family member, have reliable information or belong a news outlet with information to share, please contact us.

Here are the deceased, based on what we know about them so far.

Ms. Nam-oi Saengchan, 30, of Thailand

Nam-oi worked at a gift shop in the Lat Krabang area, her older sister Chantakansinee Sriwaranukul told Khaosod English. She was visiting Erawan Shrine to pray with two other friends. After the bomb went off, Chantakansinee said her family spent the rest of the night frantically searching for Nam-oi and only learned about her death on the following morning.

Mr. Suwan Sattayaman, 30 of Thailand

Suwan, called “Od,” was born with a disability affecting his arm. He couldn’t raise it much. But that didn’t stop him planting incense and candles for the worshipers who swarmed the Erawan Shrine daily. His main job was keeping it clean. He would travel about two-and-a-half hours back to Ratchaburi, sometimes with his father who also worked in Bangkok, to visit the home his family built entirely with money provided from his job at the shrine. They had just visited home Sunday, and his cousin Pichet Sakhonsith remembers Suwan – an avid cockfighting fan – asking the family to take care of one of his favorite roosters. He had a 6-year-old boy and a fiancee. The two planned marrying soon.

“It’s the wish of his mother that her son will be at his own home,” Pichet said.

The following five victims were relatives who traveled to Bangkok together by train from Malaysia two days before the bombing. Only two of the seven family members praying at the shrine on Monday night survived: Neoh Hock Guan, 55, and his five-month pregnant daughter, 33-year-old Neoh Ee Ling.

"Right now all I have left is my daughter and her child, and I don't know how much her pregnancy was affected," Hock Guan told reporters at the hospital on Tuesday.

Ms. Lim Saw Gek, 49 of Malaysia

Lim Saw Gek was the wife and mother of the two surviving family members who were paying respect to Erawan shrine when the bomb detonated. She died alongside her sister, son, granddaughter and son-in-law. She also survived by her 71-year-old mother, the matriarch of the family, who was at home in Malaysia when the bomb detonated. Saw Gek and her husband Hock Guan ran a successful pastry business from their home in Butterworth, Penang. When she wasn't baking cakes, Saw Gek was firing up "very delicious" dishes from at thick book of recipes she had been compiling for more than 30 years, said Lim Gim Seong, a friend of the family. For several years, she spent every Thursday preparing and delivering meals to a nursing home.

Ms. Lim So See, 52 of Malaysia

Lim So See was reported missing for several days after the blast, but her remains were identified on Wednesday. Her sister, who also died in the bombing, was the wife and mother of the only two family members who survived the blast. So See worked as a hairdresser in Singapore, where she lived with her 24-year-old son. He told Khaosod English she had many talents, like singing and belly dancing, and was "beautiful, smart, outgoing, approachable and fun."

Mr. Lee Tze Siang, 35 of Malaysia

Lee Tze Siang died alongside his 4-year-old daugher Lee Jin Yuan while he was visiting the shrine on Monday night. Of the seven family members who traveling together in Bangkok, only his 33-year-old pregnant wife, Neoh Ee Ling, and his father-in-law Neoh Hock, 55, survived. He ran a clothing business in Penang and was described by a friend as a gentle and polite family man.

“During festivals, he'd be the one buying all the food for us,” his sister, Lee Tze We, 27, told Malay Mail.

Ms. Lee Jing Xuan, 4 of Malaysia

4-year-old Lee Jing Xuan is the youngest known victim of the bombing. Of the six relatives who accompanied her at the shrine, only her mother, who was five months pregnant with a third child and her 55-year-old grandfather survived. Her father, aunt, uncle and grandmother also died in the blast. She is also survived by her 6-year-old brother, who did not accompany the family on the trip to Thailand.

Mr. Neoh Jai Jun, 20 of Malaysia

Neoh Jai Jun, a 20-year-old student at a university in Taiwan, was visiting Bangkok with six of his relatives during a school break when the bomb claimed five of their lives. He died alongside his mother, aunt, brother-in-law, and niece. Only his father and sister survived. A friend of the family in Penang said Jai Jun was a hard-working student, who formed a tight-knit group of friends from secondary school and university.

Five of seven members of a Malaysian visiting the Erawan Shrine Monday were killed. Earlier this photo was taken of them eating in Bangkok with a local guide, seated at center. Neoh Ee Ling, second from left, and her father Neoh Hock Guan, third from right, were the only two to survive. Ee Ling's young daughter and husband died, as did Hock Guan's wife. Photo: Sin Chew Daily

Ms. Arcadia Pang Wan-chee, 24 of Hong Kong

Pang Wan-chee, 24, went by the name Arcadia. She was traveling with 19-year-old Chang Wing Yan and a Thai girlfriend who also died in the blast. They were reportedly visiting the shrine in a group of five at the time. Two others survived their injuries. Arcadia was studying human resource management at the Institute of Vocational Education in Hong Kong, BBC reported.

Ms. Vivian Chan Wing Yan, 19 of Hong Kong

Chan Wing Yan, a 19-year-old British national went by the name Vivian. She was traveling with another friend from Hong Kong, 24-year-old Pang Wan Chee, and a Thai girlfriend who also died in the blast. They were reportedly visiting the shrine with two others, who survived their injuries. Vivian graduated from the prestigious Harrow International School in Hong Kong in 2014 and went on to study law at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies. She had recently transferred to BPP University in London. Numerous tributes written on a Facebook page created to honor Vivian’s memory describe her as a warm and generous spirit with a sunny smile.

“You're cheerful and kind, always there to make us laugh,” read a post signed by Jeff Lok. “You were one of the first faces I came to know at university and had one of the brightest smiles I'd ever seen,” Serene Reza wrote.

Friends say Vivian was a passionate foodie who maintained a blog and popular Instagram account. On the day of the bombing, Vivian published a final Instagram photo of a crab dish, accompanied by an enthusiastic review of what she described as “one of the best seafood restaurants in Bangkok.”

Ms. Melisa Liu Rui Chun, 34 of Singapore

Melisa died on the spot after the bomb exploded on Monday night. She was with her 35-year-old husband, Ng Su Teck, who was injured by glass shards from the explosion, according to Straits Times. She worked for the Singapore branch of the French insurance company AXA. Her brother was one of seven Singaporeans injured in the blast.

Lioe Lie Tjing, 61, from Indonesia

Lioe was killed while she was visiting the shrine with her husband, Hermawan Indrajaja, 61, who was taken to a hospital intensive care unit for treatment.

Ms. Gao Yu Zhu of China

Mr. Diwo Chengi of China

Ms. Suchada Niseeda, 32 of Thailand

Suchada hailed from the Chiang Kan district of Loei province. Her husband Santi Thetchan said Suchada would walk past Ratcharasong intersection after leaving her job at Standard Chartered Bank Thailand to catch a bus home. Before getting on the bus Monday, she and another bank colleague, Pranee Seesuwa, stopped by to pray at the shrine before continuing home. Both died in the blast. Suchada leaves behind her husband and 9-year-old daughter. She was to be cremated Saturday.

“I am really sad. I want to ask them, why did they not care about other people?” Santi said.

Ms. Pranee Seesuwa, 39 of Thailand

When Pranee felt troubled and needed someone to talk to, she would ask her friend and bank colleague Suchada Niseeda to join her for a prayer at Erawan, maybe get a bite to eat afterward before heading home to the Din Daeng area, her mother, Chantee Lao-udee said. At least once a year during New Year, Pranee would head home to Bueng Kan province, which is about as northeast as one can get in Thailand without being in Laos. She just arrived back in Bangkok on 3 Aug. from a rare second visit home this year, a return delayed because she was delighted to be together with her four siblings.

“My daughter joked that soon she might get to stay home forever and not have to go to work, because last night she dreamed she was fired by the bank director. I never thought that her words would be last time I saw her,” Chantee said.

Ms. Waraporn Changtham, 45 of Thailand

Not much is know about Waraporn Changtham yet, but that she worked for herself.

Mr. Yutthanarong Singharor, 38 of Thailand

Yutthanarong was often traveling around his native Bangkok. That was his job – delivering documents for his company located on the eastern fringe of Bangkok’s cosmopolitan core, just past Udom Suk. About an hour before the bomb went off, he phoned his brother to tell him he was making a run to deliver a document at CentralWorld, located catty-corner from the shrine. That was their last conversation.

“I don’t know how to live my life from now on,” Kritsuda Narongplian, his wife, said.

Huang-Yu Lan of China

Sao Qimg of China

Wang Da of China

Khaosod English correspondent Sally Mairs contributed to this report.

Related stories:

1M Baht Bounty for Bangkok Bomb Suspect

Police Widen Hunt for Bombing ‘Network’

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Those Who Died

Day in Photos: Expressions of Grief, Unity After Terror Attacks

Briton Dies in Bangkok Shrine Bombing

Despite Lack of Evidence, Thai Media Points Blame at Uighurs

Tourists Narrowly Escape Second Bangkok Bombing in 24 Hours

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Police Hunt Backpack Man

Tourists Among 19 Killed by Bomb at Bangkok's Erawan Shrine

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

Follow Khaosod English on Facebook and Twitter for news, politics and more from Thailand.

Follow @KhaosodEnglish

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Those Who Died

By

Todd Ruiz, Editor

-

18 August 2015, 20:55

BANGKOK — Terror was unleashed on an unprecedented scale in Bangkok on a Monday night as an explosion, clearly intended to inflict maximum carnage, tore through a tourist site important for both secular and sacred reasons, turning Monday evening’s usual bustle into a horror of blood and human remains.

Twenty people died in the 6:55 pm blast on 17 Aug., the worst such incident in the modern Thai state’s history. More than 150 were injured.

While authorities vow to track down those responsible, and vectors of blame and suspicion are cast, attention must not stray from those who lost their lives.

Khaosod English is committed to gathering information about those whose lives ended last night or in the following hours, so that we may honor them respectfully and not let them be forgotten in the flurry of iterative news updates.

Though little is known of them at this time, some only names and nationalities, we will endeavor to learn more that we can share who they were in life.

This is a work in progress. If you are a family member, have reliable information or belong a news outlet with information to share, please contact us.

Here are the deceased, based on what we know about them so far.

Ms. Nam-oi Saengchan, 30, of Thailand

Nam-oi worked at a gift shop in the Lat Krabang area, her older sister Chantakansinee Sriwaranukul told Khaosod English. She was visiting Erawan Shrine to pray with two other friends. After the bomb went off, Chantakansinee said her family spent the rest of the night frantically searching for Nam-oi and only learned about her death on the following morning.

Mr. Suwan Sattayaman, 30 of Thailand

Suwan, called “Od,” was born with a disability affecting his arm. He couldn’t raise it much. But that didn’t stop him planting incense and candles for the worshipers who swarmed the Erawan Shrine daily. His main job was keeping it clean. He would travel about two-and-a-half hours back to Ratchaburi, sometimes with his father who also worked in Bangkok, to visit the home his family built entirely with money provided from his job at the shrine. They had just visited home Sunday, and his cousin Pichet Sakhonsith remembers Suwan – an avid cockfighting fan – asking the family to take care of one of his favorite roosters. He had a 6-year-old boy and a fiancee. The two planned marrying soon.

“It’s the wish of his mother that her son will be at his own home,” Pichet said.

The following five victims were relatives who traveled to Bangkok together by train from Malaysia two days before the bombing. Only two of the seven family members praying at the shrine on Monday night survived: Neoh Hock Guan, 55, and his five-month pregnant daughter, 33-year-old Neoh Ee Ling.

“Right now all I have left is my daughter and her child, and I don’t know how much her pregnancy was affected,” Hock Guan told reporters at the hospital on Tuesday.

Ms. Lim Saw Gek, 49 of Malaysia

Lim Saw Gek was the wife and mother of the two surviving family members who were paying respect to Erawan shrine when the bomb detonated. She died alongside her sister, son, granddaughter and son-in-law. She also survived by her 71-year-old mother, the matriarch of the family, who was at home in Malaysia when the bomb detonated. Saw Gek and her husband Hock Guan ran a successful pastry business from their home in Butterworth, Penang. When she wasn’t baking cakes, Saw Gek was firing up “very delicious” dishes from at thick book of recipes she had been compiling for more than 30 years, said Lim Gim Seong, a friend of the family. For several years, she spent every Thursday preparing and delivering meals to a nursing home.

Ms. Lim So See, 52 of Malaysia

Lim So See was reported missing for several days after the blast, but her remains were identified on Wednesday. Her sister, who also died in the bombing, was the wife and mother of the only two family members who survived the blast. So See worked as a hairdresser in Singapore, where she lived with her 24-year-old son. He told Khaosod English she had many talents, like singing and belly dancing, and was “beautiful, smart, outgoing, approachable and fun.”

Mr. Lee Tze Siang, 35 of Malaysia

Lee Tze Siang died alongside his 4-year-old daugher Lee Jin Yuan while he was visiting the shrine on Monday night. Of the seven family members who traveling together in Bangkok, only his 33-year-old pregnant wife, Neoh Ee Ling, and his father-in-law Neoh Hock, 55, survived. He ran a clothing business in Penang and was described by a friend as a gentle and polite family man.

“During festivals, he’d be the one buying all the food for us,” his sister, Lee Tze We, 27, told Malay Mail.

Ms. Lee Jing Xuan, 4 of Malaysia

4-year-old Lee Jing Xuan is the youngest known victim of the bombing. Of the six relatives who accompanied her at the shrine, only her mother, who was five months pregnant with a third child and her 55-year-old grandfather survived. Her father, aunt, uncle and grandmother also died in the blast. She is also survived by her 6-year-old brother, who did not accompany the family on the trip to Thailand.

Mr. Neoh Jai Jun, 20 of Malaysia

Neoh Jai Jun, a 20-year-old student at a university in Taiwan, was visiting Bangkok with six of his relatives during a school break when the bomb claimed five of their lives. He died alongside his mother, aunt, brother-in-law, and niece. Only his father and sister survived. A friend of the family in Penang said Jai Jun was a hard-working student, who formed a tight-knit group of friends from secondary school and university.

Five of seven members of a Malaysian visiting the Erawan Shrine Monday were killed. Earlier this photo was taken of them eating in Bangkok with a local guide, seated at center. Neoh Ee Ling, second from left, and her father Neoh Hock Guan, third from right, were the only two to survive. Ee Ling’s young daughter and husband died, as did Hock Guan’s wife. Photo: Sin Chew Daily

Ms. Arcadia Pang Wan-chee, 24 of Hong Kong

Pang Wan-chee, 24, went by the name Arcadia. She was traveling with 19-year-old Chang Wing Yan and a Thai girlfriend who also died in the blast. They were reportedly visiting the shrine in a group of five at the time. Two others survived their injuries. Arcadia was studying human resource management at the Institute of Vocational Education in Hong Kong, BBC reported.

Ms. Vivian Chan Wing Yan, 19 of Hong Kong

Chan Wing Yan, a 19-year-old British national went by the name Vivian. She was traveling with another friend from Hong Kong, 24-year-old Pang Wan Chee, and a Thai girlfriend who also died in the blast. They were reportedly visiting the shrine with two others, who survived their injuries. Vivian graduated from the prestigious Harrow International School in Hong Kong in 2014 and went on to study law at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies. She had recently transferred to BPP University in London. Numerous tributes written on a Facebook page created to honor Vivian’s memory describe her as a warm and generous spirit with a sunny smile.

“You’re cheerful and kind, always there to make us laugh,” read a post signed by Jeff Lok. “You were one of the first faces I came to know at university and had one of the brightest smiles I’d ever seen,” Serene Reza wrote.

Friends say Vivian was a passionate foodie who maintained a blog and popular Instagram account. On the day of the bombing, Vivian published a final Instagram photo of a crab dish, accompanied by an enthusiastic review of what she described as “one of the best seafood restaurants in Bangkok.”

Ms. Melisa Liu Rui Chun, 34 of Singapore

Melisa died on the spot after the bomb exploded on Monday night. She was with her 35-year-old husband, Ng Su Teck, who was injured by glass shards from the explosion, according to Straits Times. She worked for the Singapore branch of the French insurance company AXA. Her brother was one of seven Singaporeans injured in the blast.

Lioe Lie Tjing, 61, from Indonesia

Lioe was killed while she was visiting the shrine with her husband, Hermawan Indrajaja, 61, who was taken to a hospital intensive care unit for treatment.

Ms. Gao Yu Zhu of China

Mr. Diwo Chengi of China

Ms. Suchada Niseeda, 32 of Thailand

Suchada hailed from the Chiang Kan district of Loei province. Her husband Santi Thetchan said Suchada would walk past Ratcharasong intersection after leaving her job at Standard Chartered Bank Thailand to catch a bus home. Before getting on the bus Monday, she and another bank colleague, Pranee Seesuwa, stopped by to pray at the shrine before continuing home. Both died in the blast. Suchada leaves behind her husband and 9-year-old daughter. She was to be cremated Saturday.

“I am really sad. I want to ask them, why did they not care about other people?” Santi said.

Ms. Pranee Seesuwa, 39 of Thailand

When Pranee felt troubled and needed someone to talk to, she would ask her friend and bank colleague Suchada Niseeda to join her for a prayer at Erawan, maybe get a bite to eat afterward before heading home to the Din Daeng area, her mother, Chantee Lao-udee said. At least once a year during New Year, Pranee would head home to Bueng Kan province, which is about as northeast as one can get in Thailand without being in Laos. She just arrived back in Bangkok on 3 Aug. from a rare second visit home this year, a return delayed because she was delighted to be together with her four siblings.

“My daughter joked that soon she might get to stay home forever and not have to go to work, because last night she dreamed she was fired by the bank director. I never thought that her words would be last time I saw her,” Chantee said.

Ms. Waraporn Changtham, 45 of Thailand

Not much is know about Waraporn Changtham yet, but that she worked for herself.

Mr. Yutthanarong Singharor, 38 of Thailand

Yutthanarong was often traveling around his native Bangkok. That was his job – delivering documents for his company located on the eastern fringe of Bangkok’s cosmopolitan core, just past Udom Suk. About an hour before the bomb went off, he phoned his brother to tell him he was making a run to deliver a document at CentralWorld, located catty-corner from the shrine. That was their last conversation.

“I don’t know how to live my life from now on,” Kritsuda Narongplian, his wife, said.

Huang-Yu Lan of China

Sao Qimg of China

Wang Da of China

Additional reporting correspondent Sally Mairs

Related stories:

1M Baht Bounty for Bangkok Bomb Suspect

Police Widen Hunt for Bombing ‘Network’

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Those Who Died
Day in Photos: Expressions of Grief, Unity After Terror Attacks
Briton Dies in Bangkok Shrine Bombing
Despite Lack of Evidence, Thai Media Points Blame at Uighurs
Tourists Narrowly Escape Second Bangkok Bombing in 24 Hours
Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Police Hunt Backpack Man
Tourists Among 19 Killed by Bomb at Bangkok’s Erawan Shrine

Briton Dies in Bangkok Shrine Bombing

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 19:38

Coffins for the dead arrive today at Chulalongkorn Hospital in Bangkok.

BANGKOK — The United Kingdom this evening confirmed one of its citizens was killed in the bomb attack that left at least 20 dead in Bangkok last night.

In a statement released by the UK Foreign Office, its top diplomat condemned the attack and said the United Kingdom has offered to help investigate the attack which killed one of its citizens

“I can confirm that one British national, a resident of Hong Kong, lost her life in the attack," Philip Hammond, the UK Foreign Secretary, said in a statement. "British Embassy staff in Thailand are assisting her family at this very difficult time."

He added, “The loss of life and injury in Bangkok is horrific and I condemn this callous act of violence against completely innocent and unsuspecting members of the public.”

The statement from the Foreign Office did not name the deceased.

The official fatality report lists two residents from Hong Kong killed in the blast; Pang Wan Chee, known as Arcadia, and Chan Wing Yan, called Vivian. A report in Taiwanese media indicates they were 24 and 19, respectively, and traveling together.

British Prime Minister David Cameron also expressed his condolences.

"Deeply saddened to hear a British national was killed in horrific Bangkok bombing. My thoughts are with her family & all those affected," he tweeted.

The bomb went off at Erawan Shrine, a place of worship popular with Thais and foreign tourists alike, in downtown Bangkok yesterday evening.

According to data compiled by the Thai authorities, 20 people have been killed in the attack.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and no arrest has been made so far, though police have released a CCTV footage of a person they suspect of being the bomber.

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

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Day in Photos: Expressions of Grief, Unity After Terror Attacks

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 19:26

BANGKOK — People came together across Thailand in a show of unity after Monday night’s deadly bombings in Bangkok left 20 people dead and more than 100 injured.

People attach roses and messages to a lattice near the scene of the blast at Erawan Shrinein Bangkok.

Adul Saengsingkaew, Minister of Social Development and Human Security, visits one of the injured tourists at Police Hospital.

A woman inspects the damage at Amarin Plaza, a shopping mall next to the blast site.

A rally, possibly organized by officials, in Nakhon Panom province condemning the attack.

Coffins for the dead arrive at Chulalongkorn Hospital.

Despite Lack of Evidence, Thai Media Points Blame at Uighurs

Transcript of PM Prayuth's Address to Nation [Translation]

Tourists Narrowly Escape Second Bangkok Bombing in 24 Hours

Bangkok Bombing: Junta Chairman Misquoted by AFP

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Police Hunt Backpack Man

Tourists Among 19 Killed by Bomb at Bangkok's Erawan Shrine

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

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Despite Lack of Evidence, Thai Media Points Blame at Uighurs

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 18:10

A group of more than 90 Uighur refugees were forcibly repatriated from Thailand to China in July. Chinese security forces placed hoods over their heads for the flight to China, where they are branded terrorists. Photo: CCTV

BANGKOK — In the horrific wake of last night’s devastating bomb attack, the need and rush to assign blame in the absence of reliable information has proven a toxic mix for a Thai media too willing to set aside due diligence and cast its own net of suspicion.

One vector of emergent blame has painted the attack as retribution for Thailand’s decision in July to deport more than 90 Uighur refugees back to China, a widely condemned move which prompted the sacking of Thailand’s diplomatic mission in Istanbul.

A report on Daily News, one of the largest-circulated newspapers in Thailand, quoted unnamed police officers saying that “Uighur groups” were behind yesterday’s blast at the popular Erawan Shrine in downtown Bangkok. The bomb killed at least 20 people and injured more than 180.

The Uighurs are a Muslim ethnic group in the far west of China that have at times violently resisted what they describe as oppression by ethnic Han Chinese. China brands them terrorists, and Thailand’s decision to deport them was panned as caving to pressure from Beijing.

However they have never exported their attacks, which usually involve lone agents in low-tech assaults of civilians, often with no more than a knife.

While top officials of the Thai government say it is too early to blame Monday night’s deadly bombing on any transnational terror network, Thai media have been less shy about making unsubstantiated leaps to cast suspicion on usual-suspect ethnic and minority groups.

According to Daily News, the Bangkok bombing was a Uighur plot, a claim it reported without circumspection.

“In previous intelligence reports, [police] discovered that a terrorist group, who are believed to be Uighurs, was preparing to cause unrest in Bangkok in response to the Thai government sending Uighurs to be prosecuted in China,” the report said. “The target was where mainland Chinese travel or stay.”

Daily News claims they chose to targeted Erawan Shrine, a place of worship surrounded by luxury malls and five-star hotels, which draws thousands of Chinese tourists daily.

Another newspaper, Khaosod, similarly quoted an unnamed police officer as saying that police are looking for a “white Arab,” who is possibly Uighur, in connection to the bombing. Khaosod and Khaosod English are owned by the same company, Matichon Group.

These reports linking Uighurs to the blast have also been widely shared on social media.

However, the Uighurs have never launched an attack outside of China, according to British journalist and author David Eimer, who spent seven years in China and wrote extensively on the subject.

"They dont have the capacity to mount this sort of operation," Eimer said. "If they have, it's a massive, quantum leap in their capability. There is no history of them mounting any attacks outside of China."

Outgoing Thai police chief Somyot Pumpanmuang told reporters today the investigation is not particularly focused on the Uighur angle, as set forth by the media.

Asked whether he believes the attack was committed by foreigners, such as Uighurs, Police Gen. Somyot said, “I have never said this is an act perpetrated by foreigners. All I am saying is that police give importance equally to all points, until there is sufficient evidence to point otherwise, or until the perpetrators have been arrested.”

He said the police are not convinced their only suspect so far, a man seen in security footage wearing a backpack near the crime scene, is in fact a foreigner.

“The suspect may have disguised his face to look like a foreigner, so police are not entirely convinced [that he is],” he said. “Therefore, I will not answer any media questions that may cause conflict in the country, because right now we have no evidence that leads us to the perpetrators.”

Calling on Thai media to be more responsible, Gen. Thanasak Patimaprakorn, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said authorities have yet to find any evidence of foreigners being involved in the attack.

Asked specifically whether there is any basis to the alleged Uighur connection, Thanasak said the Thai media should wait for evidence before furthering claims that might be irresponsible.

“You must wait for the authorities to investigate, wait for evidence, and wait for explanation first,” he said. “You cannot talk without evidence like this. … Thai media has to think about what an accurate fact is.”

No arrest warrant has been issued so far, though police have released a CCTV footage of an unidentified suspect who was seen leaving a backpack at the shrine prior to the explosion.

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Transcript of PM Prayuth's Address to Nation [Translation]

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 15:08

Junta chairman and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha addresses the nation in a national television broadcast on 18 August, 2015.

BANGKOK — Junta chairman and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha addressed the nation at 3pm today, two hours after a second bomb attack targeting tourists hit the Thai capital.

Below is a transcript of his statement:

Greetings Dear People,

The violent incident that took place on 17 August 2015, at around 7 pm, has caused injuries and losses to many innocent people, both Thai and foreign. I and my government would like to express our sincere condolences to the families of the victims. The wounded and the deceased, both Thai and foreign, will be fully provided with assistance and compensation in accordance with the laws.

Based on the aforementioned incident, it appears that there is still group of individuals in our country who harbor and carry out their ill wishes against the nation. They may aim to score political gain, or to destroy our economy, or tourism or are driven by any other motive. The government is urgently investigating the incident and finding the perpetrators and their related movement so that they will be prosecuted.

I and the government would like to insist to all people: We will always stand by the people, in suffering and in happiness. When people suffer, we suffer more. With the conscience in our duty and responsibility to the nation and the people, I’d like to ask all Thai people of all sectors, including all authorities, to join hands together in order to move forward [from this incident], eradicate all evils and dangerous threats that we are going through, both visible and invisible.

If we unite, we shall be able to overcome all obstacles quickly, in order to return normalcy to the country soon.

I'd to ask the media and social media to only report news constructively. Don’t escalate conflicts with photos, audios, videos, or criticism or expressions of opinion. Especially in the time that the investigation is still ongoing, as it may influence the case and mislead the public.

As for foreigners living in Thailand, including embassies, consulates, international organizations, the government would like to assure you that we will take care of your safety in lives, properties and interests with the utmost effort, and we will keep you informed on the news.

In this time, I’d like to ask people of all sectors to unite in our strength and heart. Cooperate and help one another. Be vigilant for any abnormal things. Publicize beautiful things and create understanding with foreigners, so that our beloved country and institutions will be stable.

I and the government would like to thank and give moral support to all officials who have been performing their duties in the utmost capability, throughout all this terrible time. I’d like to ask everyone to help create stability and safety in our country, and to bring the perpetrators to be punished in accordance with the laws. Thank you.

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Tourists Narrowly Escape Second Bangkok Bombing in 24 Hours

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 14:40

CCTV footage captures a bomb blast this afternoon in Bangkok at a location frequented by tourists. It was the second bomb attack in under 24 hours.

BANGKOK — A second bomb attack apparently targeting tourists hit the Thai capital this afternoon, the second such attack in less than 24 hours.

No one was reported injured in the attack which happened at 12:59pm beneath a bridge over Bangkok's Chao Phraya River near a pier frequented by tourists.

An unidentified assailant threw a bomb down from the Saphan Taksin bridge onto a footbridge crowded with pedestrians, apparently missing the target with the bomb landing and exploding in the water, according to video of the attack.

Authorities believe the attacks are linked, National police chief Somyot Pumphanmuang confirmed at a late afternoon news conference.

“We believe that the perpetrators belong to same group," he said. "Right now police are collecting additional evidence and witnesses. Investigators have made "some progress" he said without offering details.

A file photo of a Chao Phraya River Express Boat on Bangkok's Chao Phraya River. The service is popular among visitors to the Thai capital. Photo: Fabio Achili

Police officers, a bomb team and divers are combing the crime scene. An officer said many pieces of the bomb were found “scattered” on the ground close to the blast site.

Lamai Pararach, 51, a som tam vendor, said she was selling from her stall in the afternoon when she heard a loud explosion from the river, and she saw water shooting into the air, so she immediately laid down on the ground.

“I was afraid there would be more bombs,” she said.

The footbridge is located near a busy point of embarkation for the Chao Phraya River Express Boat, a river taxi service popular with visitors.

Video of the incident shows a sizeable blast sending people scattering as they cross the bridge.

Speaking in a live address to the nation at 3pm, Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha said the perpetrators would be found and brought to justice.

"It appears that there is still group of individuals in our country who harbor ill wishes against the nation," he said. "They may aim to sabotage our political, economic, tourism or other institutions."

He expressed his condolences to the victims and said they would be "fully compensated in accordance with the laws."

Junta spokesman Winthai Suwaree, speaking after Prayuth, asked for the public's cooperation, specifically saying that people should comply if they are stopped and searched.

The bombing came less than 24 hours after a powerful explosion killed at least 20 people at a popular tourist destination in the commercial heart of the capital. The blast injured 125 others.

Police today announced they were seeking a man seen carrying a backpack near the site of last night’s attack, but their suspicion seems mostly circumstantial so far.

Later in the evening, Gen. Prayuth said he has been informed of the second bombing.

“I am monitoring reports about the second bomb,” he said from Government House. “It was thrown down from a bridge. This means [the bomber] could not plant it, so [the bomber] threw it down from the bridge.”

He also urged pedestrians to be vigilant of any suspicious objects, such as a backpack that has been left behind in public places.

Asked whether the two bombings are linked, Prayuth said he hasn't had time to examine the details.

“Since I received the report, I haven’t done anything about it," he said. "I have a lot of things to do. Please give me some time.”

When a reporter asked why the bombs hit less than 24 hours apart, the general said, “For that question, you must ask the perpetrators. In the part of the government we are protecting and fixing. You have to ask the perpetrators why they did it and for what reason. Don’t they pity Thai people and Thailand at all? Go ask them.”

Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Police Hunt Backpack Man

Tourists Among 19 Killed by Bomb at Bangkok's Erawan Shrine

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Bangkok Bombing: Junta Chairman Misquoted by AFP

By

Khaosod English

-

18 August 2015, 13:05

Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha speaks to reporters this morning at Government House.

BANGKOK — A report in international media claiming Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha identified a suspect in last night’s horrific bomb attack was based on a mistranslation of his comments.

Speaking at 9am this morning, Prayuth discussed images purportedly taken from Facebook posts by amateur prophets warning people in Bangkok to “be careful” of an unspecified incident between the period of “14 Aug. and 18 Aug.”

Twenty people were killed and more than 100 injured when a large bomb went off at 6:55 pm Monday night at a shrine popular with tourists and Thais alike.

READ: Bangkok Shrine Bombing: Police Hunt Backpack Man

Prayuth, who also chairs Thailand’s ruling military junta, told reporters that security forces were seeking two people thought to have posted the images, one of which he identified as someone who lives “in the northeast” and “used to be in anti-government groups.”

Images purporting to be of Facebook posts predicting Monday's attack. The original posts can not be found and the images could be easily doctored.

Only images of the posts, which could be doctored, have been circulated. The account names indicated in the images cannot currently be found on the social network.

“I have not received [news] about any visible movement. There’s only some movement on social media, something like that. Everyone is aware of this. Right now, we are checking whether this has some facts. Why did they write it? Is it true? The one who posted with the name “Mr.” something. I have instructed authorities to find them for interrogation,” Gen. Prayuth said at Government House.

When a reporter asked Prayuth if the authorities already had identity of the Facebook users, Gen. Prayuth replied, “I have already instructed them to summon the posters. Right now we are looking for them. One of them is in the northeastern region. The poster used to be in the anti-government group.”

One of the images was attributed to a user named “Pornpromraksa,” which means “may the blessing of Brahma protect you.”

Monday’s blast, which has killed 20 and injured at least 125, happened at the Erawan Shrine, which is dedicated to the Hindu god Brahma.

The second was “People’s Media for Democracy,” a name evoking associations with activists of the anti-junta Redshirt movement.

Neither account can be found on Facebook at the time of publication.

However, an AFP report mistranslated Prayuth’s comments to mean these so-called “Facebook Prophets” were suspected of Monday’s bombing attack.

"Today there is a suspect… we are looking for this guy," Prayut told reporters, adding the man was seen on closed circuit television at the blast site.

Prayut said the suspect was believed to be from an "anti-government group based in Thailand's northeast" — the heartland of the kingdom's Red Shirt movement that opposes the military junta.

AFP story published earlier today.

In fact, Prayuth did not speculate as to who was responsible for the blast. Today police announced they are hunting for a man seen carrying a backpack near the scene of the blast.

“The incident that happened, we have not concluded whose action it was. What we have concluded is that it is an action of evil people who have no regard for the lives of innocent people, no matter what motive drove that action,” Prayuth said.

He added, “As for the reports that the motive may be driven by politics or international issues, I don’t want to comment on any particular report, because it may lead the investigation into a wrong way. And if it turns out to be false, it would only cause panic.”

Asked how many days investigation will take before some clarity surfaces, Prayuth said “As soon as possible. Today we are already checking CCTV footage. We have some suspects, but it’s not clear. We have to find them them first.”

He made no other comments about the CCTV footage at this morning’s news conference.

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