Pattaya Mail — News

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Prime Minister chooses U-Tapao

As centre for exports by the 21st century

Prime Minister Chuan Leekphai is pushing for the U-Tapao Airport to become Thailand’s center for exports, he stated at a seminar at the Sirikit Centre in Bangkok entitled, ‘A Project to Prepare an Airport to be a Centre for Exports in the 21st Century’.

The seminar was a brainstorm session for the designation of an international airport to handle exports.

The Prime Minister said that everyone was aware that business strategies would be undergoing change and not be the same as in the past. The Prime Minister reminded the seminar that Thailand’s economic crisis was due to Her inability to compete in the world marketplace, which began several years ago.

The government is now implementing measures to solve this problem in the short term, with special attention being given to the revival of confidence in the stability of the baht.

Mr. Chuan continued, saying Thailand’s entry into the 21st century would be based on Thailand’s potential advantage over other countries. He said a new era must be founded using the Eastern Seaboard as its theatre.

Because of this, U-Tapao airport, formerly a military base with an area of 16,700 rai, has been chosen as the ‘centre’ for export activity.

Mr. Chuan said the airport was one of the largest in South-East Asia and fully equipped to handle large amounts of traffic.

The Prime Minister continued, saying that leading businessmen in the USA have expressed interest and given support to the airport’s use as a major hub of commerce.

The Prime Minister said three changes should be made:

1. Private citizens should be allowed to invest in the airport. 2. The customs duty processing should be expedited. 3. New air routes should be allotted to the airport.

Move is on to clear out child vendors

At the request of Tourist Police Commander, Major Jongsak Yaemlamool, over 20 members from the Department of Social Welfare of Chonburi and the Tourist Assistance Volunteers joined police officers in clearing out beggars and child vendors from the ‘walking street’ area in South Pattaya.

Police, volunteers and social workers hoped to net the more than 150 kids, but the youngsters turned out to be more organised than officials thought. They were found to have had a complex ‘gang’ structure, with ‘supervisors’ and an ‘administrative staff.’

When the ‘clean-up’ squad made their move to apprehend the children and load them on to buses, many of the kids, who had a ‘grapevine’ communications system, vanished.

The ‘clean-up’ squad did their best, madly running around trying to catch the youngsters, which provided tourists with much amusement.

After the dust cleared, the squad had managed to catch 25 children between 4-12 years of age, most of whom said they were orphans. They were immediately taken to Tourist Police Headquarters for interrogation.

Nineteen of the children admitted to being Cambodian nationals and pointed to Mr. ‘Daeng’, 20, another Cambodian national as their ‘CEO’. The rest of the children nabbed were Thai. The Thai children’s supervisor remains at large.

The Cambodian children admitted entering Thailand through Aranyaprathet, a border town in Prachinburi Province. They told officers they had been begging in Pattaya for more than a year now.

The Thai children will be sent to the Children’s Rehabilitation Centre in Huay Pong in Rayong.

The 19 Cambodian children and their supervisor are being processed by the Immigration Police for deportation to Cambodia.

Bjørndal gets 12 more days

At 8:30 on Friday, January, Alf Oddvar Bjørndal was taken from Chonburi Central Prison to the Chonburi court. Law enforcement official requested the judge detain him for another twelve days. Thai law allows police to detain a suspect without charging for 7 periods of twelve days each.

When the prison vehicle in which he was travelling reached the courthouse, it was immediately surrounded by Thai and Norwegian media, who had been waiting since dawn. As Bjørndal was taken to the ‘holding tank’ to await the court’s decision on the police request, a Norwegian reporter was allowed to telephone Bjørndal, who told the media to "Get out of my life!" He refused to answer any questions posed by the media.

At 3:00 p.m., he was taken to hear the court’s decision. The presiding judge allowed pictures of the suspect to be taken at this time. He was given the dubious honour of being the first suspect to appear before the judge. Through interpreters, the court asked Bjørndal if he was being treated fairly in prison, but the suspect refused to answer. He lowered his face and stared out the window.

The court then ordered Bjørndal incarcerated for another 12 days, as police continue investigations.

His next court appearance will be on February 4, 1998.

Bonus Battle blazes on

The battle between employees and the administration of the Thai Summit PKK Chemical Co. of Laem Chabang continues.

The employees held another meeting on the 22nd of January to plan ways to induce the company to pay workers their yearly bonus.

Mr. Patana Jeungrungreungkij, the Head of the Board of Directors, met with employees in front of the company’s office.

The employees demanded the following 4 concessions:

1. The company pay each employee money equivalent to 2 months salary.

2. All employees be given a 12% raise.

3. Special payments be given to employees with the company more than one year.

4. The company increase the minimum wage to that specified by the Department of Labour.

The administration found this unsatisfactory, claiming that the moribund economy precluded the approval of the above.

The administration told employees that workers in the parent company’s subsidiaries were being laid off and there was also a need to use liquid assets to bolster other companies in the group.

Mr. Seri Thaimee, representing the employees, took the results of the negotiations to the fuming and dissatisfied staff.

Out of the 200, only 50 employees remained disgruntled and continued demonstrating.

The same day, the company announced it would pay a bonus equivalent to one month’s ‘average’ salary, using the following criteria;

1. Employees eligible must have worked at the company full-time for 1 year.

2. On the day of bonus disbursements, those receiving them must be active, working employees.

3. One month’s salary would be paid to all employees, except those with the following on their employment records:

3.1 Taken more than 13 sick days or not reported to work more than 20 days. (Those hospitalised due to accidents are exempt from this clause.)

3.2 Absent from work without reporting for more than 3 days per year.

3.3 Have received more than 2 ‘pink-slips’ in the period of one year.

3.4 Have been suspended from work during the year.

Those having the above histories would receive one-half of one month’s salary.

Finn victim to brash night time robbery

Mr. Matti Huuskonen, 47, a Finnish national, trooped into the Pattaya Police Station with his wife, Ms. Somwang Phermphoon and told police they had been robbed.

The Finn and his spouse had checked in to the Siam Sawasdee Hotel on Soi Bua Khao the night before. They closed the sturdy lock on the door behind them, then retired for the night.

They awoke with a fright a 6:00 a.m. when they felt a draft. Their room had been entered with great stealth during the night. 1,230 dollars in US currency was missing from Mr. Huuskonen’s wallet, which was in his trouser pocket in the wardrobe. The trousers were unceremoniously thrown on the floor.

Mr. Huuskonen revealed that robbery had been afoot in another room at the same hotel. An Italian tourist, more volatile in nature, awoke upon hearing someone tampering with his door.

The front desk knew of no skulduggery happening in the hotel, which led both tourists to believe the culprit had rented a room and was operating from the ‘inside.’

Mr. Huuskonen felt it was irresponsible of the hotel not to have ‘dead-bolt’ locks on the door and warned tourists coming to Pattaya to beware and seek lodgings with secure rooms.

Locals getting fed-up with child beggars

Situation becoming violent

Police rescued a child being beaten by a 30 year old man in Pattayaland, Soi 2, after the man apparently could no longer take being bothered by the child beggars in the area.

Police found the victim, Monthon Niemjinda, a 12 year old boy, crying with pain. Tourists and locals were standing and watching, but apparently no one had intervened or offered help after the beating.

Monthon pointed to Vichai Chaichana, 36, who was standing intoxicated nearby.

Vichai denied all, even though dozens of eye witnesses attested to the fact that he had beaten Monthon.

One witness, Mr. Sayan Phermphon, told officers that the boy approached him and begged for 10 baht. Mr. Sayan gave the money to the boy. He continued, saying that Mr. Vichai then got up from his seat at the bar and began screaming, ‘You beggar kids! Why aren’t you at home! You should be going to school!’

Vichai then began to beat the child unmercifully.

Police took the wounded child to the hospital and Vichai to the police station, where they charged him with assault and battery.

Police Briefs

Volunteer impersonator

The Crime Suppression Division received a complaint from the Head of the Community Crime Prevention Volunteers of Banglamung that a person was posing as a member of the ‘crimewatch’ squad.

Doughty officers went searching for the miscreant and found him ‘patrolling’ in one of the organisation’s official uniforms. The man, Somboon Petchsai, 23, was also wearing handcuffs on his waist.

At the station, Somboon admitted that he was really a sanitation engineer with Pattaya City. He told officers that he did not think wearing the volunteer organisation’s uniform was a very serious offence. He had paid for the uniform himself and enjoyed ‘patrolling’ the Mekain Market. He added that his presence might have made felons wary of committing crimes.

Officers charged Somboon with impersonating a member of a volunteer organisation. He was sent to trial for this heinous crime.

Police avert explosive situation

The officer on duty at the Pattaya Police Station received from a patrol car the alarming news that they had arrested a Thai man carrying an M-73 explosive devise.

Police very carefully went to the scene, a pharmacy in South Pattaya.

Boonsri Arieua, 34, of Roi-Et province, was carrying the explosive in a shoulder bag. A large number of Buddhist amulets were also found in the bag.

Officers took Boonsri to Pattaya Police Station where he told police that he sold the amulets at Chaimongkol Temple in South Pattaya. He told officers that he had bought the grenade from a friend for 30 baht. He planned to use it to protect himself. He knew it was illegal but had not planned on being caught.

Boonsri was charged with illegal possession of high-explosives and the amulets were confiscated as officers were suspicious that he had stolen them.

Pattaya police request that members of the public who may be missing valuable amulets contact the Pattaya Police Station.

More speed confiscated

Police lured yet another minor amphetamine dealer into selling them a relatively small amount of methamphetamine.

The ‘sting’ squad, which consisted of 5 officers, approached the dealer, Thongchai Sae-Heng, 47, who was operating in Soi Kor Phai. A police sergeant posing as a buyer requested 450 baht worth of methamphetamine tablets.

Receiving 5 tablets for the money, other officers hidden in various stands of trees and alleyways jumped in and subdued the peddler of death.

The squad found 195 tablets of ‘speed’ on Thongchai’s person.

He was taken to the Pattaya Police Station for questioning, but like all good retailers, refused to reveal his wholesaler’s name.

He now awaits trial.

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