The news followed the
revelation that 300 visa labels have been missing from the Thai Embassy in Malaysia. Other
individuals have been arrested as they attempted to cross the border with such documents.

Mr.
Alexander confessed that he had bought the label from a shopping mall in the Malaysian capital
before he used it to try to enter Thailand.

The immigration office announced that other 11
people arrested are from Cameroon, Guinea, Pakistan, Iran and India.

Mr. Jakkrit Srivali, an
official at the Ministry of Affairs, said that the Foreign Minister, Mr. Surapong Towijakchaikul had
acknowledged the issue and insisted to bringing charges against those who used false documents, and
those who stole the labels from the Thai Embassy.

He said the theft is the first case of its
kind in over a decade.

The Ministry is also looking for a way to prevent such a problem, such
as providing each embassy a security safe, and developing the system of electronic visa in the near
future.

Mr. Boonyord Suktinthai, a Democrat MP, had previously alleged that Mr. Samart Kaewmeechai,
Mr. Visut Chainarun, and Ms. Arunee Chamnarnya were on board a TG flight on 12 August bound for
Suvarnabhumi Airport east of Bangkok, but they later coerced the captain to land at Don Mueang
Airport in northern Bangkok.

The Democrat says such action is an example of how Pheu Thai
Party MPs abuses their power.

The accusation first surfaced as an online news item in the
Yellowshirts-allied Manager-ASTV website. The website cited unidentified sources for its
story. Many commentators derided Mr. Samart, Mr. Visut, and Ms. Arunee, while others shared the
story widely on the social network.

After days of silence, the 3 Pheu Thai MPs staged a press
conference denying the story.

The lawmakers said they were indeed on flight 141 on that day,
and the plane did land at Don Mueang Airport. But, they said, it was because the airplane was facing
a stormy weather conditions, the runway at Suvarnnabhumi was not cleared, and the captain decided to
land at Don Mueang for refuelling.

Mr. Samart told reporters a passenger had requested to
disembark at Don Mueang, which the officials allowed, but he and other lawmakers remained seated on
the flight. The plane eventually left Don Mueang at 23.30 and the 3 MPs arrived at Suvarnnabhumi
shortly after midnight, according to Mr. Samart.

He encouraged Mr. Boonyord to file the
report to the Parliamentary committee for a full investigation, so that he can provide evidence to
prove his innocence, such as the flight log, witnesses on the plane, and CCTV footage at
Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Mr. Visut said he would not take the matter to the court, but
challenged Mr. Boonyord to bring out evidences about the alleged scandal.

If he can do so,
we 3 MPs will resign from our position … and we will never set foot in Bangkok. But if what Mr.
Boonyord spoke is not true, we request that he should resign, Mr. Visut said.

Later at the
Parliament, Mr. Boonyord clarified the allegation against the 3 MPs by telling the reporters that he
was merely repeating a story from a certain media, and he was simply doing his job to bring the
matter to the public′s attention.

He blamed the said media for providing insufficient details
which led to the perception that the 3 Pheu Thai lawmakers left the plane at Don Mueang
Airport.

Mr. Boonyord also refused to accept Mr. Visut′s challenge, reasoning that it was not
necessary that he bet his career on the matter.

According to the
current 2007 Constitution,  74 of the 150 Senators are appointed by a panel of so-called
experts. The Parliament is debating whether to increase the Senate to 200 fully elected members, a
proposal tabled by the Pheu Thai Party and bitterly opposed by the Democrat Party.

The survey
interviewed 429 individuals across the country. 59.2% of the respondents say they agree with the
Constitutional amendment on the Senate, while another 21% say they disagree and 19.8% say they are
not sure.

46.2% also voice support for an amendment that would abolish the ban on parents,
spouses, and children of MPs from being eligible as Senate election candidates.

However, the
respondents appear to be divided on the intention of the Pheu Thai Party′s efforts to amend the
Constitution. 35.5% say they are not sure whether the amendment would lead to an autocratic
parliamentary system, while 34.7% say they are convinced that would be the case.

On 14 February 2012, an explosion occurred at a house in Soi Pridi
Banomyong 31. A group of Iranians was seen fleeing the scene shortly afterwards, and one of the
suspects reportedly threw several hand grenades at the pursuing police officers to elude the
chase.

However, the grenade bounced and severely wounded the man, Mr. Said Moradi, severing
his left leg and blinding his right eye. The other suspect, Mr. Muhammad Hasai, was arrested later
that evening at Suvarnnabhumi Airport. He was said to be headed for a flight leaving Thailand.
Others had fled the Kingdom.

The prosecutors have previously told the court that the 2
Iranians had rented the house from 19 December 2011, where they were attempting to build a number
of explosive devices. On 14 February, the prosecutors said, the bomb prematurely exploded, possibly
due to a faulty assembly.

The explosion and subsequent grenade attacks injured many people
and caused damages to various properties and vehicles, the court was told.

The 2 suspects previously argued that they did not know the bombs were stored in the residence, and one of the
devices only exploded when they found and tried to dispose of them.

As for the grenade
attack, Mr. Moradi said (via an interpreter) he was frightened by the police and accidentally
dropped the explosives.

Today the court ruled against the suspects, declaring them guilty of several charges, such as causing explosions, threatening lives, and violating the laws on explosive
ordnance.

Mr. Moradi was given a life sentence, while Mr. Hasai was sentenced to 25 years in
jail. The pair was also ordered to pay compensation to owners of properties damaged by the
explosions.

Mr. Tharit Pengdit, chief of the DSI, said he had received many complaints
about one such ogus check-up at Saraburi Wittayakhom School in Saraburi Province, where the firm
reportedly employed uncertified personnel and used unclean medical tools throughout the
check-up.

In the blood tests at that school, he said, many students and their parents had
witnessed the medical team reusing the same syringe several times, prompting concerns that the
practice would lead to infection of blood-borne diseases, particularly HIV, Hepatitis B, and
Hepatitis C.

Many also complained to him that they received inaccurate eye-test results,
while some said they had been identified as having Type A blood even though they belong to different
blood types, Mr. Tharit added.

According to the DSI Chief, the firm has been contracted to
perform annual health checks for over 80 educational institutions and business organisations across
the country. Mr. Tharit estimated that nearly 80,000 people had undergone annual health checks with
the company.

The name of the company was not identified by the DSI.

Mr. Tharit said the
DSI is gathering all the information about the firm. The company might be charged with fraud for
performing health checks without qualified medical staff or hygienic equipment, he said, and it
might also be charged with bribery; Mr. Tharit suspects that the firm has illegally won many
contracts.

“If it is clear that the team had cause harm to many people’s health and bribed
the schools for their contracts, the DSI will advance the case into the special investigation.” Mr.
Tharit told our correspondent.

In June 2012, police in Tak Province arrested a number of
staff working for a private company which had been conducting health checks in a university in that
province. The arrests followed complaints from students that the staff reused the syringes many
times.

The Chinese ghost
festival, known in Chinese as Yu Lan and Wan Sart Cheen in Thai, is marked by burning of
papers and offerings of food to the dead relatives.

The focal points of the festival are
Peung Thao Kong Ma Shrine and the Khonkaen City Pillar Shrine, where the festival-goers pay respect
to the spirits of their ancestors and other kinless ghosts. They brought along items such as pork,
chicken, fruits, desserts, incense sticks, and candles to make offerings to the dead.

Many
believe that celebrating the ghost spirit at the Shrines would bring good fortunes to their
families.

The 3 major markets in the Province are full of Thai-Chinese shopping for goods
throughout the day, including the famous Bang Lampoo Market (not to be confused with the market with
the same name in Bangkok).

Prices of signature desserts associated with the festival, Khanom
Tien and Khanom Kheng, also decrease from last year. The pyramid-shaped Khanom Tien sells for 100
baht per kilogram this year, while the glutinous Khanom Kheng sells for 90 baht per
kilogram.