CHONBURI — Two Cambodian immigrants were killed in a car accident near the Thai-Cambodian border after a Thai police volunteer shot out one of their vehicle's tires.

The truck was found overturned on Prokfa-Pluakdang Road in Chonburi province on Sunday. Rescue workers found a dozen Cambodian immigrants lying injured on the road when they arrived at the scene, police say. Two immigrants died of their injuries. 

The pick-up truck, carrying a dozen Cambodian nationals, drove through a checkpoint in Chonburi on its way to the border in  Sa Kaeo province. An armed police volunteer nearby the checkpoint reportedly shouted at the vehicle to stop and chased after the truck when the driver refused.

The police volunteer, Sombat Daan, followed the truck for about five kilometres and fired several shots at the vehicle. One bullet struck an 11-year-old Thai girl in front of a grocery store, wounding her in the left arm. The girl was later sent to hospital where she recovered from her injuries, said her father, Manit Soipetch. 

Another bullet struck one of the truck's tires, causing the vehicle to spin out of control and flip over, killing two passengers. 

Mr. Sombat was arrested yesterday and confessed to firing three rounds at the truck in effort to stop the vehicle. He has been charged with committing reckless actions leading to injuries and deaths, carrying a firearm without permit, carrying a firearm into residential area without permit, and discharging the firearm without due cause.

Pol.Maj.Gen. Sanit Mahathaworn said the police promptly arrested Mr. Sombat to express their sincerity towards the Cambodian immigrants.

"We want to stress that the rumour among immigrants that police and troops are using violence against the immigrants is completely untrue," Pol.Maj.Gen. Sanit said. "This case was caused by a police volunteer who tried to arrest suspects and resorted to a disproportionate action. The police do not condone this action."

The incident took place amid a mass exodus of Cambodian immigrants who have been fleeing the country in droves out of the fear that Thailand’s military junta is prepared to launch a harsh crackdown on alien workers. 

Officials say more than 160,000 Cambodian workers have left Thailand in the past week alone. Human rights groups have accused Thai authorities of intimidating the immigrants and coercing them to leave the country.

However, the military junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has steadfastly denied that there has been any effort to drive the immigrants away. An NCPO spokesperson, Col. Winthai Suvaree, blamed the situation on "misunderstanding." 

The NCPO only intends to reform and regulate the system of migrant workers in Thailand to solve the problem of illegal immigrants, Col. Winthai said.

The NCPO issued an announcement today, demanding that “every bureaucratic agency must strictly enforce the laws to crack down on human traffickers and smugglers that ferry illegal immigrants into the country.”

Thailand has a total of 2.23 million migrant workers sustaining its economy, 1.82 million of whom entered the country illegally, said Thanit Noomnoi, deputy director of the Ministry of Labour’s Department of Employment.

Mr.  Thanit also offered another explanation for the mass exodus of Cambodians. He suggested that hundreds of thousands of immigrants are simply heading home in time for rainy season.

"It's rainy season right now, so they have to go back and help their families in the rice field," Mr. Thanit said. 

He also dismissed concerns that Thailand will suffer labour shortage in the near future. 

BANGKOK — Thailand’s military junta has lifted the entrance fees for all registered historical sites and museums as part of its ongoing effort to “return happiness to the Thai people.”

The junta’s order to give Thais a free pass to historical sites and museums is in place “until further notice” and applies only to Thai citizens, not foreigners.

Since seizing power in a coup d’état on 22 May, the military junta’s National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has embarked on an aggressive public relations crusade to win the support of Thai people. The campaign, dubbed “Returning Happiness to the Thai People,” has largely consisted of free events and services, including concerts, food, haircuts, movies, and now  historical sites.

After NCPO suspended all entrance fees last week, Phimai Historical Park in Nakhon Ratchasima Province saw an influx of tourists, said park director Dusit Tummakorn.

“The officials at the park see this increase as a positive because each historical site has a story to tell, not unlike watching a historical movie,” Mr. Dusit said, referring to another feature of the army’s happiness campaign — free viewings of the historical film The Legend of King Naresuan 5.

“This opportunity also provides relaxation time in families as well as further promotes Thai tourism,” Mr. Duist said. Foreign tourists still have to pay the normal 100 baht entrance fee, he added. 

The army’s PR campaign has been launched in tandem with a harsh crackdown on critics of the regime and a serious infringement on a number of human rights. Over the past three weeks, the army has censored the media, detained scores of politicians and activists without cause, and outlawed public demonstrations and other forms of peaceful political expression. 

PHANG NGA — Local fishing and hotel businesses in Phang Nga province are struggling to cope with damages caused by five metre waves that have been slamming the shores all weekend.

Bang Nian beach in Takuapa district, home to many luxury resort hotels and shops catered to foreign tourists, has been hit particularly hard by the storms. A number of beachside properties have been damaged by the waves and many homes have lost their rooftops to the strong winds. 

"These are the biggest waves we have seen in 10 years," said Se Komkla, manager of the Shambhala Khaolak Resort.

The waves have damaged more than 100 buildings and 20 rai of agricultural land throughout the province, said the director of Phang Nga's Disaster Relief and Prevention Office.

Officials have also found cracks in the 3.5 million baht concrete seawall that was built to protect Bang Nian beach after a similar bout of waves hit the shore last year. Resort manager Mr. Se said the seawall has been largely ineffective as the ocean floor has sunk several metres since construction of the barrier began. 

"When I stood near the seawall, I felt like there was an earthquake whenever a wave struck against it," Mr. Se told our correspondent. "Sometimes the splashes of water reached as high as a palm tree, which is around 10 metres tall."

A number of seaside hotels have resorted to putting up crude barricades made of sandbags to protect their properties against the waves. Chamras Lichia, a local administrator of Kuek Kak subdistrict, said officials estimate the waves have cost at least 5 million baht in damages so far. He warned that the situation may worsen in coming days while there is a  full moon. 

The National Meteorological Department has issued warnings of fierce weather along the southern coast of Thailand, especially on the Andaman Sea, and tourists have been advised to refrain from swimming or making speed boat trips to nearby islands.

Fishermen have also suffered from the storms. Krish Sitthibutr, a 44-year-old fisherman in Takuatung, said the waves have damaged his fish cages, allowing many fish to escape. 

"I was supposed to meet with a merchant to sell my fish tomorrow," Mr. Krish said. He estimated that he lost more than 100,000 baht in fish.

The strong waves have reminded many residents of the 2004 tsunami that devastated much of southern Thailand. A rumour about a new tsunami has been spreading among communities in Phang Nga after strange cloud formations were sighted off the coast over the weekend.

However, director of Phang Nga's Disaster Relief and Prevention Office Somkiat Intarakam stressed that the waves are caused by a combination of heavy rain and a particularly high sea level, not by any seismic activity like the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

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