BANGKOK — DUI remains a major cause behind fatalities on Thai roads during the New Year holiday, the so-called ‘Seven Dangerous Days,’ official said today.

The death toll – 380 in total – is 11.44 percent higher than last year’s Seven Dangerous Days, according to Kritsada Boonrat, deputy chairman of the Road Safety Direction Center. 

“Statistics of road accidents during the 2016 New Year holiday say that there were 3,379 accidents in total, leading to 380 deaths and 3,505 injuries,” Kritsada announced today. “The leading cause of accidents is drink-driving, which accounts for 24 percent.” 

Other causes include speeding and falling asleep behind wheels. The statistics were collected from Dec. 29 to Jan. 4, dubbed ‘Seven Dangerous Days’ by officials and media alike. 

Highways across Thailand are particularly dangerous during the New Year vacation due to an influx of motorists leaving Bangkok and other major cities for holiday destinations or to go to their home towns upcountry. 

In last year’s ‘Seven Dangerous Days,’ 2,997 accidents were recorded, with 341 dead and 3,117 injured. This year saw an increase of 12.73 percent in the number of accidents, totalling 3,379. The  3,505 injuries recorded this year is an increase of 12.5 percent over the corresponding period last year. 

The prevalence of drunk driving in the New Year vacation continued unabated despite the ruling junta’s campaign to solve the long-standing problem. In December the junta granted security officers the authority to confiscate vehicles from motorists caught driving under the influence of alcohol. 

A total of 4,672 vehicles were confiscated under that policy and 4,837 drivers sent to court, said Sirichan Nga-thong, a spokeswoman for the junta’s National Council for Peace and Order. The vehicles will be returned once the court procedure is over, Col. Sirichan added.

In spite of the spike in road deaths this New Year season, Sirichan said she believes motorists improved their behavior in road safety in general. 

“People and motorists responded to the measures and cooperated with officials, and their driving behavior shows they are clearly more aware of traffic regulations,” the colonel told reporters. 

Even without the Seven Dangerous Days, Thailand’s traffic-related fatalities are often ranked among the highest in the world. One statistic, compiled by the World Health Organization and the University of Michigan, put Thailand second in the world in term of annual traffic deaths. 

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By Pravit Rojanaphruk
Senior Staff Writer

BANGKOK — In a country with a penchant for political feuds, the latest object to ignite trouble is a paper calendar.

The failed bid to control the distribution of 300,000 calendars featuring former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra embracing the ousted and fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, proves that Yingluck and her older brother are still very popular, said key Redshirts.

The reactions came as former Pheu Thai MP and Redshirt co-leader Weng Tojirakarn confirmed that virtually all the 300,000 calendars printed have been distributed.

Junta-leader-cum-Prime-Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha said people should think about whether distributing the calendars is appropriate or not, but denied trying to block its distribution.

 Earlier, Roi Et provincial Governor Anusorn Kaewkangwal prohibited officers from all districts from being involved with the calendar distributions during office hours. This move came a after village headmen in Chiang Kwan district was found distributing the calendars during a meeting.

 Weng revealed today that during Yingluck’s visit to a temple in Khon Kaen province yesterday, some 20 calendars bearing her signature, that were distributed by Pheu Thai Party members were confiscated soon after by police and soldiers.

Two Redshirts in Khon Kaen province have been summoned by the military junta for distributing the calendars in public area. The two women, 72-year-old Piyachai Nachai and Orathai Phosri, were told not to distribute them in public areas.

 “The incident is a testimony that the military junta is aware that huge numbers of people still adore Prime Minister Yingluck,” said Weng. “That’s why they don’t want to see anything that reminds them of it. Calendars are just pieces of paper and it should not have any super power to undermine national security

 “The National Council for Peace and Order [NCPO] has guns and great power but it seems afraid of paper calendars,” said Weng, referring to the military junta by their formal name.

Weng added that if calendars have a potent power to boost popularity, then Prayuth should come up with his own junta calendars and distribute them nationwide. What’s more, said Weng, some former Democrat Party MPs have also been spotted distributing calendars with their own images, unhampered by the regime. “Such practice is terrible – a blatant double standard.”

An undated photo of former Democrat MP Warong Dechgitvigrom, seen distributing calendars featuring his photo and that of Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva. Photo: Weng Tojirakarn / Facebook

Sombat Boonngam-anong, anti-junta activist and leader of the Red Sunday Group, said the military regime has unwittingly boosted Yingluck’s popularity.

 “The NCPO has bitten the bait and it wasn’t worth it,” reckoned Sombat, who is being tried at military court for sedition for leading a failed bid to overthrow the military junta. “They don’t understand the complexity of politics and this enabled their opponents to look good.”

 “The calendar bears no mention of political conflicts. As for the claim that it affects national security, it depends on whether the popularity of Yingluck is a threat to the security of the military junta or not? And that may truly be the case.”  

 Opponents on social media say it’s inappropriate for Thaksin to be featured in the calendars since he has been convicted of corruption. One even linked it to producing calendars featuring Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

Supporters meanwhile laughed at the growing paranoia of the military regime which staged a coup in May 2014 ousting the Pheu Thai government which was formerly led by Yingluck. “What age are we in? Why are we still dumb?” asked a Facebook user by the name of Prakit Iamsakul.

 “They more they do this, the more I want to have one,” wrote a Facebook user named Rat Lardphrao today.

 Sombat said the fact that only Yingluck is being targeted while Democrat MPs are allowed to distribute their own calendars unimpeded is a blatant demonstration of the existing double standards practised by the military junta.

 What’s more, said Sombat, it has made the two versions of the Yingluck-Thaksin calendars, which feature the same contents but different front covers, even more sought after. Weng meanwhile said many people have called him and asked if he still has any calendars, only to be made disappointed by his answer.

 “Would you like to have one? If you really want one maybe I can really look into it and arrange it for you,” Weng asked Khaosod English, sounding as if it’s an illicit pornographic calendar.

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

By Cole Pennington
Correspondent

BANGKOK — Last July Jess Barnes spent his nights beside Blair Mathieson (formerly of Quince) in the small kitchen at Maggie Choo’s churning out baos, dumplings, and noodles.

Their Chinese comfort food was the kind that’s preemptively consumed before a long night at the neighboring club swaying back and forth to soulful jazz tunes and watching the lounging Shanghai-styled pretties become prettier with every cocktail.  It’s not the cheap and greasy stuff, but the feel-good kind of Asian street food that’s inventive and approachable, albeit trendy.

With a sterling reputation built on markets and pop-ups, you may have enjoyed one of Barnes’  universally lauded baos before. Even the New York Times has given them praise.

A bao at Maggie Choo's, prepared by Jess Barnes

Photo: @jessbarnesbkk / Instagram

The Maggie Choo’s pop-up was an enormous success. The young chef was still running his mainstay joint, Opposite Mess Hall for another two months before closing it to open what would become Daisy Matthews.

But as the Bangkok dining scene goes, Daisy Matthews never opened.

Jesse Barnes was back where he started, less a restaurant.

But as things fell apart with the Silom venture, they came together in another form: A semi-permanent establishment at Maggie Choo’s, a grown-up version of Big Trouble in Little China.

“We’re not purposely trying to fit into the 1930s Shanghai concept, but in a way, we do anyway.” Jess says. When he first occupied the space and started designing the menu he leaned towards tried and true Opposite Mess Hall favorites. Then he came to realize that diners weren’t looking for the same thing as at Opposite.

“We’re a place to eat that’s attached to a club. We’re not a restaurant.’ says Jess. The plates are shareable, and the portions are sized for diners to order a few to snack on.

Jess has moved away from the Big Trouble model that emulated the immigrant-driven Chinese food made famous by places like Mission Street Chinese and Momofuku.

Exotic meat

The menu isn’t without a dish doused in sweet and sour sauce, but this time around the meat in question isn’t chicken, it’s rabbit.

“Several years ago I put rabbit on the menu and immediately took it off. The Thai demographic didn’t get it.” But now it seems like rabbit is an easy sell – especially when it’s slathered in zesty orange glaze. Jess says “the middle class is traveling more, becoming more exposed to different culinary traditions. People are more open to try new things.” In other words, in 2016 putting rabbit on the menu is less risky.

“It’s quite popular now” the chef says.

Buttermilk fried rabbit. Photo: @jessbarnesbkk / Instagram

What’s absent is a menu heavy on what Jess calls “Dude Food” that was prevalent in 2013. Instead diners are treated to interpretations of Thai-chinese dishes that borrow heavily from multiple disciplines. The mushroom fried rice gets a heady dose of truffle oil while also incorporating rat ear fungus: a cloudy, spongy fungus that lends well to adding interesting and unexpected texture to an otherwise predictable dish.

truffle and mushroom fried rice. Photo: @jessbarnesbkk / Instagram

PHUKET — Two foreign women were fined 500 baht each on charges of obscenity charge and taught a lesson about Thai culture by police as their topless drive clip rocked the internet on Sunday.

The video, posted by Facebook user,Thawatchai Reemnok, on Saturday showed two foreign women leaning out of the windows of an SUV. The pair threw water from a plastic water over their heads, while dancing topless and leaning dangerously out of a car, in Phuket’s Patong district.

“I saw it with my eyes last night at Patong around 9pm during a traffic jam” wrote Thawatchai Reemnok.

After tracking the registration of the license plate seen in the clip, police were able to arrest a 20-year-old American,  Adrianna Martin, and a 25-year-old Austrian, Camille Prymann.

Both confessed to being in the viral video and the car belonged to the villa where they were staying. They were fined 500 baht each for indecent public exposure and were given a lesson about how to behave in Thailand by the police