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Thai Airways Blacken Logo Of Malfunctioned Plane

(9 September) Thai
Airway′s Airbus A330-300 slid off runway this morning as it landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport, injuring
14 people.

President of the airline said the situation is currently under investigation. But
it is reported that the plane′s malfunctioned wheels might have caused the plane to slide off the
runway as it touched the ground.

Some passengers were reportedly injured as they were being
evacuated out of the plane.

The airline staff were seen blackening out the logo of Thai
Airways and Star Alliance, the global airline group to which the airways belong, from the doomed
plane.

It is not clear who ordered the blurring, but a Thai Airways official has been quoted
in some media outlets as saying the action follows the guidelines provided by Star Alliance to
protect the company′s reputation in crisis incidents.

Ms. Rawewan Netrakavesna, Suvarnabhumi
Airport General Manager, said that the airport will close the runway and repair it.

The
maintenance of the runway will cause Suvarnabhumi airport to rely on its other runway parallel to
the damaged one, which may cause delay to several flights. The runway is due to reopen on 10
September.

A team from Department of Civil Aviation has been dispatched to investigate the
incident at the scene. The Department is also forming an inquiry committee which will not include
officials from Thai Airways in order to maintain its impartiality, officials said.

The
incident took place in less than two weeks after the Thai airways Airbus A380 hit turbulence at Hong
Kong airport and resulted in the injuries of 20 passengers.

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New Way To Tackle Rubber Price: Condoms

Then-Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva wearing hat made of condoms at an event promoting HIV prevention, 25 November 2010.

(6 August) The Thai
Minister of Public Health has suggested a plan to manufacture condoms made of Thai rubber in order
to increase the falling demands for the crops.

The price of rubber has taken a plunge in
recent months, resulting in angry rubber farmers organising prolonged protests in the southern
region of the country. 

The minister, Mr. Pradith Sinthawanarong, said he also aimed to
promote the use of 40 million of condoms per year in Thailand to curb sexually transmitted disease
and unwanted pregnancy.

Preventing unplanned pregnancy is a crucial issue said Mr.
Pradith, Apart from creating sex education lessons in the country, the authority must support the
use of contraception and condoms

Reportedly, each day, 370 young women under the age of 20
encounter unplanned pregnancies, including 10 people aged under 15.

The Minister also
commented about Single Individual Tax, after, Mr. Terdsak Chomtohsuwan, Economics professor at
Rangsit University suggested the government to increase tax on single people.

“The Ministry
would encourage pregnancy in mature couples, in order to sustain population balance.[but] I don’t
think we would increase tax on single individuals. We will balance population growth by other
stimulus programmes  such as First Child Policy instead” the Minister added.

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'Human Trafficker' Gunned Down In Narathiwat

(6
September) Mr. Thongpan Hongsa, 35, was found dead in front of his residence in Su-nga Kolok
district, Narathiwat province, after he had been shot 13 times by an unidentified assailant on
motorcycle.

Police officers said Mr. Thongpan was a
well-known human trafficking agent in the region, and had been brought in many illegal Burmese
migrants to the region.

In his neighbourhood, police had found numbers of Burmese migrants
living, and hiding, in nearby houses.

Police assumed that the victim might have face
business dispute with his counterparts in the trafficking trade.

Reportedly, the Thai
authorities had made several attempts to suppress the crimes, but Su-ngai Kolok district still
remains centre for drug dealing, illegal oil trading and human trafficking.

A source also
told our correspondent that many local officials are involved with these businesses, and have often
taken advantages of border control policies. 

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PM Yingluck Opens 'Smart Lady Thailand' Reality Show

(6 September) Prime
Minister Yingluck Shinawatra presided over the launch of Smart Lady Thailand, a reality show aimed
at promoting the ability of Thai women.

She also gave a speech at the event, which was
organised at Impact Arena exhibition centre in north of Bangkok.

For the 2 years that she has
served as the Prime Minister, Ms. Yingluck said, she has been supporting ?Women Development Fund? to
encourage creative-minded women to actively develop the country, particularly in political and
economic aspects.

So far, more than 500,000 women have benefit from over 40,000
government-led campaigns, Ms. Yingluck told the audience, including the ?OSCC 1300? (One Stop Crisis
Centre), a hotline created to support women who suffer from domestic violence and to uphold their
universal human rights.

The Prime Minister said that Smart Lady Thailand would encourage
Thai women to develop their specialities and their own minds.

Women should learn to
understand that their ideas could enhance their ability, so they can use their ability to develop
the country Ms. Yingluck said.

Ms. Yingluck also expressed her impression from meeting with
Ms. Ladda Tammy Duckworth, the first Thai-American Congresswoman. The Prime Minister said the life
of Ms. Duckworth – an injured Iraq War veteran – inspired her to see that physical disability does
not always obstruct people from living a fulfilled life.

The reality show will soon be
broadcast on Channel 9 and will be hosted by Ms. Mayura Savetsila and Ms. Sasithorn Wattanakul, the
famous TV representatives. 

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Senator Caught Peeking At Sexy Photos In Parliament

(6 September) A Senator
has been caught looking at photos of a woman posing naked on his iPhone during a parliamentary
session.

The photo touched a storm of criticism when it was posted on the Thai social
network.

The Senator was later identified as Mr. Pinyo Sai-Nui, a representative of Krabi
Province. He initially said he was not entirely sure he was the man in the photo, but later admitted
looking at his iPhone during the meeting.

But I was looking at my nephew′s pictures Mr.
Pinyo explained (However, ASTV Manager quoted him as saying it was his niece).

He then
announced that he would clarify about the matter in a press conference. The event was later
postponed indefinitely.

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No Taxi Fare Hike: Transport Minister

(6 September) Transport
Minister Chatchart Sitthipan has denied any imminent increase of fares for metered taxi in
Thailand.

Previously, a report has been circulated on the social network that a group of taxi
business representatives have asked the Ministry of Transport for a fare hike, from 35 baht at the
start to 50 baht, and aim to charge the passengers 100 baht instead of the current rate of 50 baht
if they hail the cab from the airports.

Mr. Chatchart said the Ministry is not considering
such increase, and would try to fix the current rate as long as possible.

The minister
also revealed his plan to establish taxi stops throughout Bangkok so that the drivers can park their
cars and wait for the passengers, instead of having to drive around, burning fuel, in order to seek
the passengers on the roads.

Around 40% of the taxis on the roads at any moment are running
without passengers, Mr. Chatchart said. He told our correspondent he hopes that the new policy would
help taxi drivers to cut fuel cost. 

Meanwhile, the minister has ordered Department of
Land Transport (DLT) to survey numbers of minivans running on inter-regional routes, which links
between Bangkok and other regions.

Mr. Chatchart said that the research should allow the
ministry to speculate real demands for each route.

We must study if we have enough supply in
response to the demand said Mr. Chatchart, if necessary, the ministry will arrange registration
system to bring illegal vans into the system.

Mr. Chatchart has previously expressed his
wish to curb on the unregistered public vans that often run in the route of licensed minivans.

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Khaosod Acquitted For Exposing College Sexual Harassment

Students protesting Mr. Krisada Suksumniang at Bansomdejchaopraya Ratchapat University (BSRU)

(6 September) The court
has acquitted Khaosod and other defendants of defamation charges filed by a university lecturer after
the newspapers
published
allegations of sexual harassment cases involving him and his students.

In October 2012, 4
female students at Bansomdejchaopraya Ratchapat University (BSRU) filed a complaint to the police in
Bangkok Noi District, alleging that their lecturer, Mr. Krisada Suksumniang, had sexually harassed
them in different occasions.

The students then put up posters complaining of Mr. Krisada′s behaviour and
misconduct around the university campus. A number of media outlets – Khaosod, Thai Rath, and Channel 7
– gave the incident extensive coverage.

Mr. Krisada, who taught classes on traditional
Thai music at the time of the incident, later sued the 3 news agencies along with the 4 students in
defamation lawsuits.

Yesterday (5 September) the Thonburi Criminal Court delivered its
verdict on the charges. The judges noted that Mr. Krisada was eventually investigated and found
guilty of his alleged actions by the university′s disciplinary committee. The committee also
discharged Mr. Krisada from his position.

Therefore, the court concluded, the allegation put
forth by the 4 students concurred with Mr. Krisada′s actions, and did not amount to a conspired
attempt to defame the former lecturer.

The court also praised the 4 students for their
sacrifice in speaking out about the matter in order to warn other students of Mr. Krisada′s
inappropriate behaviour and to prevent others from being sexually harassed by Mr.
Krisada.

As for the media′s coverage of the event, the court ruled that the 3 news agencies
named as defendants by Mr. Krisada were lawfully reporting the news and expressing their criticism.

The court then acquitted all defendants named in the lawsuit.

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DSI Targets 'Fake' Investment Fund

(5 September) The
Division of Special Investigation has announced an inquiry into a Bangkok-based fraudulent
investment fund.

The investigation followed a complaint by the Security and Exchange
Commission (SEC) that over 300 investors had lost around 500 million baht to the bogus
company.

The company in question is named Standard Morgan.  It claimed to have headquarters
in Switzerland and boasted an operational history of 35 years. The fund alsocelebrated the grand
opening of their intangible business on at Centara Grand Hotel, Bangkok, on 23 October
2012.

According to the company′s advertisement, investors would gain 9% profit each
month from planned investment in Oil, Gold and Stock in the company’s global portfolios. Some of the
customers may earn more – up to 12% a month, the company claimed – if they lured in more
investors.

Former customers of Standard Morgan told the SEC that they are provided with
username and password to log in to the system, where they can then withdraw the interest gained from
their capital.

However, since August 2013, they could not withdraw the money. The company′s
office (believed to be in Bangkok) and phone number then became unreachable.

According to the
DSI, 8 Singaporeans and 1 American were registered as the board of the company. 
The DSI said it is moving to freeze 15 million baht in dozens of
bank accounts owned by the company.

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TrueVisions Told To Drop 'Channel-Switching Ads'

(5 September) The cable
TV giant TrueVisions has been ordered to stop airing brief commercials displayed during
channel-switching because they potentially annoy the viewers.

The National Broadcasting and
Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) noted that the approximately 10 seconds advertisements which
appear at the lower bar of the TV screen whenever the users change the channel cannot be disabled by
the users, therefore forcing them to watch the intrusive contents.

According to
NBTC, the practice violated the customers? rights, as commercials also obstruct parts of the screen
and limit the viewers? access to the service.

The NBTC allows TrueVisions 90 days to dispute
the measure to the court. In the meantime, the cable company must immediately drop the commercials
per NBTC′s order, or risk facing a fine of 5 million baht plus additional 100,00 baht per day for
violation.

Audiences are encouraged by the NBTC to alert the agency about any violation by
calling 1200.

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New Rating Guideline For TV Announced

(5 September) The
National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has announced a new rating system for
state-owned TV channels.

Under the new guideline, the so-called ?Free TV? channels have to
label their programmes and reschedule their shows to comply in the following
categories:

?Primary? – content suitable for pre-primary school aged
children

?Children? – content suitable for children between 6-12 years
old

?General? – content suitable for general audiences

?PG 13? 
–  content suitable for people aged 13 and above, but can be watched by those who are under the
recommended age if parental guidance is provided. Under this category, the content can be shown on
TV between 20.30 and 05.00.

?PG 18? – content suitable for people aged above 18 years
old; those who are under 18 must be provided with parental guidance. The programmes can be shown on
TV during 22.00-05.00.

?Exclusive? – content unsuitable for children and youngsters,
and can be viewed on TV only after midnight.

It should be noted that TV programmes in
Thailand are already labelled by certain system of categories, a practice criticised by rights group
as nanny-state censorship and ridiculed by some Netizens for its confusing standards.

For
instance, many on the social network have been left scratching their heads after an obviously
harmless cartoon series was rated ?PG18? by the NBTC, whereas a soap opera featuring a rape scene
wore the label ?PG13?.

The NBTC has not publicly commented on the incident, which is being
circulated widely on the Thai social network.

Correction: The original version of this
article has incorrectly identified the Primary rating as applied to primary school-aged children.
It should have read pre-primary school-aged children.

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