Pattaya Carnival kicks off this weekend

Pattaya Beach will once again resemble one of the world’s largest beach parties this week as Pattaya Carnival 1999 swings into action beginning Saturday, February 13th.

Food, fun and plenty of activities are planned for the entire beach, with most of the scheduled evening events taking place on the main stage near the Pattaya Pier in South Pattaya.

Opening ceremonies are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Saturday Feb. 13 on the main stage and will be followed by marching bands, cultural shows, concerts and many other fun activities all week long.

Although the list of events is much too large to print, main stage events will be held every day through Sunday, February 21, starting at 6:30 p.m. and wrapping up around midnight.

For more information, you can try to contact TAT, Pattaya Office, tel. 428750, 429113, or 427667.

Protests intensify against Thai-Singaporean Estate project

Ten representatives of local residents in Rayong’s Pluag Daeng District met with the House Environment Committee this week, lodging protests against the Thai-Singaporean industrial estate saying that protests to a number of government agencies, and one to the Prime Minister, have been ignored.

Led by Mrs. Tassanee Suwannawat, a geography lecturer at the Burapa (Eastern) University, the group said the estate would produce immense affects on local communities. They singled out dangers from the estate’s huge water treatment reservoir, which would let tainted waste water run down the stream, passing the agriculture land of residents.

The project, under a joint venture between Thailand Eastern Sugar Co. and Singapore’s Jurong Land group, has been under protest since last year when the construction work was delayed due to the economic crisis. The construction resumed in December after a ceremony chaired by the Chart Pattana party leader, deputy prime minister and Public Health Minister Korn Dhabarangsri.

The construction went on despite warnings in a study by Science & Technology Ministry that Rayong is already industry-congested and could not host any more factories; the industrial estate covers 7,000 rai of land on an important watershed area; experts said factories in the new estate, mainly in auto parts and electronics, would emit bad smells, chemicals and dust; an immediate halt to the construction demanded.

New school buses in Laem Chabang

Laem Chabang municipality has purchased 5 new school buses. This is in response to a growing need from the community, whose children must spend money on public transportation every day.

Aside from economising, the school buses will ease parent and guardian’s minds. They will know that their children are being looked after from the time they leave their front door in the morning until they return home in the afternoon.

Gang of 9 arrested

Members involved in theft and drugs

On February 4, police succeeded in apprehending a gang of 9 motorcycle thieves and drug dealers.

Four of the nine suspects caught with illegal contraband.

The gang was engaged in stealing parts from parked motorcycles and selling orange amphetamine.

When officers apprehended the gang at their house in Banglamung, they discovered a large amount of motorcycle parts, 286 tablets of orange amphetamine and illegal weapons.

Akaraphan ‘X’ Suwananon, 19, told officers that he was the son of a ranking police officer in Pattaya. He said he was not afraid, as his father would help him.

He also told police that many robberies needed to be committed as he had so many gang members to support.

Two teenagers arrested with stolen motorcycles

Lucky day for owner of one

Police stopped two teenage boys for riding modified motorcycles last week, and when questioning them, learned that they had stolen the motorcycles from the front of a dormitory.

The boys told officers that they worked in collusion with older friends, but would only give the nicknames of the men, due to fear of reprisal.

Later in the day, Mr. Sombat Kandee, 24, filed a complaint with police that his motorcycle was stolen. When Sombat showed his licence and registration to police, they discovered that one of the motorcycles confiscated from the boys belonged to Sombat.

Police are looking for the two instigators of the robberies.

Three foreigners die in separate incidents

All found on same day

Pattaya Police dealt with the deaths of three foreigners in one day on February 6.

The first was called in by a citizen who reported a death had occurred at a private residence in Na Jomtien. At the scene, officers found the body of Anton Joseph Benner, 40, a German national. The body, with a syringe still in the arm, was lying on a bed. Officers also found half a vial of heroin and four thousand Deutsche Marks on the bed. There were no signs of a struggle, but the room had been ransacked.

Officers sent the body for autopsy and began investigations when they received another call on their police radio summoning them to the Tropicana Hotel, where they found Helmut Busch, 85, deceased. At the scene there were no signs of any struggle, and nothing in the room was disturbed. Officers sent the body for autopsy.

The officers prepared to return to the station when the radio found its voice once again, summoning them to the Paradise Inn in South Pattaya, Soi 17. Officers found the third body of the day in the bathroom of a room in the hotel. The victim’s passport identified him as Olav Anderson, a Norwegian national. No signs of struggle or cause of death were evident. Officers sent the body of the Norwegian for autopsy.

Police must report any deaths of foreigners to their embassies within 24 hours. The average number of deaths in the Pattaya police precinct is more than 40 per year, considered a high number. Most of these deaths are attributed to heart attacks and heroin overdose.

Head of TAT not informed of Pattaya Carnival

TAT main organizer of the event

The Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand has not received any clear information about the Pattaya Carnival, scheduled for this coming week.

Seri Wangphaijit, Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, which is the organizer of the Pattaya Carnival, said from what he had read in the papers, the Carnival was having problems and there was not enough publicity.

Seri Wangphaijit, Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, tells reporters that he has not received any clear information about the Pattaya Carnival.

The Carnival was the brainchild of the late Alois X. Fassbind, much beloved Vice-President and Executive General Manager of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort. Mr. Fassbind wished for the Carnival to be much like that held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

However, the Carnival has experienced problems with organisation since the passing of Mr. Fassbind, and has not been run for the past two years.

Seri said that as of February 9, he had received no information from those responsible for the events and Carnival schedules. "I will try to clear up these problems with the Director of Tourism Authority of Thailand for Region 3 (Sethapan Buddhani.)," Seri said.

Seri continued, saying, "Having to take care of all these matters at the last minute should make the Carnival very interesting."

Pattaya Festival date set

“Songkran” fun in April

The Pattaya Songkran Festival is now scheduled for April 12-19, and will be held on Pattaya Third Road, from Central to South Pattaya. The budget for the event was set at 2,290,000 baht.

There will be several major attractions: the Grand Opening, a parade beginning at Beach Road and ending in South Pattaya, various competitions such as Thai boxing, motor racing, mountain biking, beach volleyball, beach football, windsurfing, fishing, bowling and a transvestite beauty contest.

The second group will be trade shows at which commercial items, such as canned fruit and Scotch Brite may be purchased. There will be traditional performances, a Songkran Parade, light and sound shows, and many sponsored shows.

The Pattaya Mail will be providing more colourful and interesting news on the ‘Songkran Festival’ as it takes a more concrete form.

Car thieves target rental companies

One arrested, others still operating

On February 1st, a vehicle for rent operator filed a complaint with police that one of his flatbed trucks was stolen. Pattaya police managed to apprehend the thief, Mr. Klai Misa, 29.

Vehicle renters beware, there is a gang of car thieves who rent vehicles, then sell them, as Klai Misa (seated) confessed to being part of.

Klai confessed to not returning the car but excused himself by telling officers that a friend had borrowed the truck. Police became suspicious when he refused to give the name of the ‘borrower’. Investigating further, the man confessed that he was a member of a gang of professional car thieves. After renting the cars, they would resell them and disappear. He did not reveal the name of the ‘borrower’, who was the head of the gang, for fear of reprisal.

The owner of the agency, located in front of the Palm Villa Hotel, warned other rental agencies to beware of these gangs.

Police Briefs

Three thieves arrested

On February 7th, Pattaya police apprehended a gang of three young men who made their living burgling houses. Mr. Phaiorj Watanakijthamrong, one of those burgled, tipped off police.

The three had prised open his house and callously stolen a case of foreign beer worth 600 baht, a gold covered amulet and a five-ounce gold necklace. Mr. Phairoj also lost 80,000 baht in cash to the burglars.

The three, Mr. Wallop Khumkham, 28, Mr. Vichit Maitree, 23 and Mr. Prasit Prongsit, 20, were apprehended by a special squadron of officers while asleep at their apartment in Soi Country Club.

The three men immediately confessed to the burglary and admitted to also robbing several shops in the area.

Police managed to recover some of the stolen items but the robbers had already polished off the beer.

Couple caught stealing from tourists

Also on February 7, Pattaya Police apprehended another gang who specialised in snatching tourists’ valuables. Officers learned of the gang from a suspicious pawnshop owner who had been receiving too much gold from the bedraggled thieves.

A special squadron of police was set up and sent out on patrol. They saw the thieves, Mr. Tewin Sophaphan, 20, and Ms. Sunaree Chookhamman, 18, riding a motorcycle without license tags in the Naklua area.

Both immediately confessed to snatching valuables from both Thai and foreign tourists. Thai tourists were their victims of choice, the pair said, as they tended to wear more 24-karat gold than foreigners do.

Searching the couple, officers found 2 pawn tickets and various pieces of identification belonging to victims.

The young robbers said they would go out at approximately 3 a.m. to ply their nefarious trade. At this time, many visitors were making their way home in various states of inebriation and vulnerability.

Residents complain of stagnating water

City officials asked to solve the problem

Stagnant and malodorous water is making life impossible for the residents of Soi Arunothai in Pattaya. The entrance to the Soi has been blocked by a pool of festering and slowly rotting water for more than a year. There are also smaller pools sitting in front of houses.

A large puddle of stagnant water blocking Soi Arunothai.

Residents are forced to use back doors as the putrid water blocks their entrance. Night is especially tormenting, as residents must try and sleep with the water’s foetid miasma assaulting their nostrils. Some residents are suffering headaches and respiratory problems.

The water has collected in puddles due to blocked drains that the city has not cleared.

The problem is augmented when water flows out of houses, cannot flow down the drains and collects in the puddles, making them larger.

Residents ask that those in the city government responsible for these matters please do something as soon as possible.

Meyer Company yet to solve pollution problem

Residents continue to suffer respiratory ailments

The Meyer Company, residents claim, has not yet solved the pollution problem in the Laem Chabang Industrial Estates. The Tuloene and Styrene fumes continue to cause residents respiratory discomfort and headaches.

Mr. Petch Tungkaserawong, leader of the protestors (left) and Mr. Prapeuth Sukalaratanamethi, Director of the Meyer Corporation international visit the factory.

The administrator of the factory has apologized to the residents and promised to solve the problem using the IOS 14001 system.

On January 26, the Environmental Impact Group, the Manager of the Meyer Company, the Environmental Standards Committee and the Laem Chabang Industrial Estates held a meeting to discuss the ongoing problem.

The two companies hired to test filtered and unfiltered air came up with different results. The Genco company’s tests of the air found that the emissions had lowered and were within acceptable levels, whereas SGS Company Thailand Ltd. found emissions to be much above acceptable levels.

Chonburi Hospital checked resident’s lungs, urine and did blood cell counts. Tuloene and Styrene were found in many checked, who were also showing visible physical symptoms of the inhalants.

All present at the meeting went to visit the factories and see the filtering operation. Officials concluded that the machines were not working efficiently and are in need of repair.

Meyer will install the ISO 14001 filtering system as quickly as possible.

Mr. Petch Tungkaserawong, leader of the protestors, was surprised that a company who is making much profit would be so slow to respond to the resident’s plight.

Mr. Petch told reporters that residents are not sure of the company’s sincerity and real intent to solve the problem.

Mr. Prapeuth Sukalaratanamethi, Director of Meyer International, apologized and emphasized that it is not possible to solve some problems immediately..

Mayor Pairat cracking down on street vendors

Trying to keep sidewalks clear for pedestrian traffic

Pattaya Mayor Pairat Suthithamrongsawat is coming down hard on street vendors blocking the city’s sidewalks and walkways.

Mayor Pairat is attempting to keep illegal vendors from crowding Pattaya’s sidewalks.

He and the city engineers were out checking for any illegal structures that block the flow of foot traffic. These cause accidents when pedestrians must step onto the street to walk around them.

The mayor called a meeting of all businesspeople and street vendors, telling them they must remove all obstructions immediately. Most are made of materials such as fibreboard, zinc plating and wooden slats, which are often discards from other buildings.

The problem is especially visible on Pattaya 3rd Road between Central and South Pattaya.

The mayor said the city is not ‘punishing’ people or discouraging ethical commerce but the structure of the shops must abide by existing building laws.

Politics to decide Ulrich’s fate

“Guilty or not” no longer seems to be the issue

by Kittisak Khamthong

The ongoing case of Wolfgang Ulrich has now reached the highest levels of government. His guilt or innocence has taken a back seat to political infighting in the national parliament.

Wolfgang Ulrich.

On of the most noticeable figures in Parliament’s recent no-confidence hearings was Police General Sanan Khajornprasat. The general is alleged to have taken a 22 million baht bribe from Wolfgang Ulrich to induce the general to quash his deportation order.

Mr. Tawil Phairason, Member of the Parliamentary Advisory Committee, sent an order to Pol. General Sanan in December of 1997, telling him that Ulrich’s lawyer’s request to stay should be considered, as he had a letter of guarantee from the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany. The letter allegedly stated that Ulrich was not considered ‘undesirable’, as he was an honest businessman with hundreds of millions of baht invested in Thailand. His many businesses included pollution clean-up plants, condominiums, and the Bavaria House Restaurant in Pattaya.

The Pattaya Police informed the regional police headquarters that, as far as they could see, Ulrich was not engaged in any suspicious behavior.

Apparently, the man the police were seeking was one Wolfgang Jägel, a different person who had the same first name as the suspected Ulrich. Jägel had been deported.

Pol. General Sanan wrote a letter to the Commander of the National Police Command asking that the matter be settled as soon as possible. This letter was sent in December 1998.

This happened after Pattaya Immigration Police and local police arrested Wolfgang Ulrich on September 14, 1998. Since then, Ulrich has been held at Immigration Headquarters on Soi Suan Phlu in Bangkok. He has not been deported as he also faces tax evasion charges, which must be tried in court. The prosecutor has not yet assembled complete evidence and the case has not gone to trial.

It is thought that Ulrich has sought help from high officials, such as Police General Sanan, the Minister of the Interior. He is the only one who has the power to quash the deportation order. Supposedly, Ulrich paid much money to garner help from various officials. Ulrich’s wife, Rosarin, says she has spent many millions of baht already.

After this became front-page news in national newspapers, Police General Pracha Promnork, Commander of the National Police, said if evidence were found, all involved must be brought to trial.

Police Captain Chalerm Yoobamrung, who brought the matter up in Parliament, told reporters that General Sanan’s accusing him of being a member of the same ‘gang’ as Wolfgang was slander and that he was filing both criminal and civil suits against General Sanan and a national Thai language newspaper. He was demanding damages of 50 million baht.

The only reason the matter is being discussed in Parliament is for personal political gain by the opposition. The only person who loses in this whole imbroglio is Ulrich himself, who has been tricked out of a lot of money so various people may buy new cars and cellular phones. At this point, it seems almost impossible that the charges against Ulrich will be dropped.

Copyright 1998 Pattaya Mail Publishing Co.Ltd.
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Created by Andy Gombaz, assisted by Chinnaporn Sangwanlek.