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HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]: 

TAT awaits Thaksin’s go-ahead

Five to 10 percent growth; Asia faster than long haul

THAI to promote tourism in Andaman seaside

Hundreds of birds found dead at Boraphet reservoir

Government admits failure of anti-smoking drive

Thai research points to role of personality in road accidents

School evacuated after cracks appear in structure

TAT awaits Thaksin’s go-ahead

Thailand’s tourism recovery plan is expected to get a boost following a workshop held on January 27 when the Tourism Authority of Thailand will present its plans to prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The PM is expected to give his blessing to the TAT plans which were first outlined through the Ministry of Sports and Tourism some weeks ago.

The plans include advertising and PR activities through domestic and international channels as well as co-operation with financial institutions to provide emergency funds to hotels and other southern businesses hit by the December 26 tsunami.

TAT governor, Juthamas Siriwan, said the thrust of the campaign would be to re-assure holidaymakers that the six provinces hit by the tsunami are “free of the disease which had been feared earlier”, and safe to visit. Juthamas said that in addition to domestic campaigns which had already started, about 1,500 members of foreign media will be visiting the Andaman area during the next two months. (TTG Asia)


Five to 10 percent growth; Asia faster than long haul

The ever-resilient ASEAN region is going to be hot in the next winter season with most long-haul buyers expecting volume increases of at least five to 10 percent and Asian buyers expecting increases of 10 to 20 percent, barring any unforeseen circumstances. And Samui Island is the new preferred destination.

A poll of the buyers at Travex indicated renewed optimism despite the tsunami. Osaka-based Nippon Travel Agency deputy general manager, Teruaki Hamada, whose annual business to ASEAN averages 200,000 travelers, said he was expecting a 15 to 20 percent increase in business now that the adverse impact caused by SARS and the Bali bombing has worn off.

“ASEAN continues to fascinate the Japanese market. They like Phuket and Bali. Kota Kinabalu has also become very popular since a direct flight was launched last year,” he said.

Sweden’s Choice Tours director, Paul Selvaraj, said he was expecting a 10 percent increase in volume to ASEAN. “It has become more affordable and new air routes have been introduced. Most of the tourists will go to Thailand as there is good air accessibility,” said Selvaraj

Austria-based Optimundus, product manager Asia, Verena Horner, said a five percent increase is a reasonable projection for her. “What was important in the aftermath of the tsunami was that our news stations carried many positive reports about the kindness shown by the locals and their helpfulness to Austrian survivors in Phuket. Those reports generated a lot of goodwill towards the region and I think people are keen to come and see how they can help,” Verena said.

But the region’s resort destinations also face increasing competition from its counterparts in other parts of the world, which are stepping up efforts to attract sun lovers. Hamada said Hawaii, Guam, Saipan and Micronesia are gaining ground by offering attractive prices. Selvaraj said the Caribbean and South America were up-and-coming for the Swedes. (TTG Asia)


THAI to promote tourism in Andaman seaside

Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) has joined a campaign to help stimulate tourism in the country’s seaside of Andaman Sea by offering economic class tickets at special prices.

Vasingh Kittikul, senior executive vice-president in charge of THAI’s Commercial Affair Division, disclosed the national carrier will offer the tickets at special discount prices for flights to the South, particularly the three tsunami-hit provinces of Phuket, Krabi and Trang.

The promotion ticket offer, which has already started and will extend to March 31, includes a discount price for the round trip between Bangkok and Krabi from 5,120 baht to 4,200 baht, Bangkok and Phuket from 5,250 baht to 3,800 baht, and Bangkok and Trang from 5,500 baht to 4,400 baht.

Passengers in the North and Northeast, who are bound for the three southern provinces, will be offered a 30% special discount. State agencies and independent organizations, which planned meetings, seminars or workshops in the three provinces, will be also offered special discount prices on the condition that the number of participants in a trip be 10 or up.

As well, he said, the THAI-run Uauluang tour operator would also join the campaign by offering a package tour from Bangkok to the three provinces at a special price of 5,000 baht. The package includes a round-trip ticket, limousine service, and accommodation for 3 days and 2 nights plus breakfast.

Vasingh said the promotion program excludes an airport tax and insurance fee. Participants must take an outbound flight from Bangkok or Khon Kaen, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phitsanulok, Udorn Thani, and Ubon Ratchathani to the three southern provinces. They can make a transit in Bangkok for one night, but must set a definite schedule trip. (TNA)


Hundreds of birds found dead at Boraphet reservoir

Hundreds of wild birds have died of avian influenza in the central province of Nakhon Sawan in a little over two weeks, according to the Wildlife Conservation Division. On February 4 director Chawal Thalhikorn said his organization had been monitoring the bird flu situation among wild birds closely.

He said between January 18 and February 3, almost 500 open-billed storks had been found dead at the Boraphet reservoir, Thailand’s largest freshwater swamp.

Officials burned the carcasses and sprayed disinfectant to prevent the spread of disease. In other control efforts, the director said more than 6,800 birds from 80 species in seven provinces had been tested for the deadly H5N1 strain of the virus. The result of the tests will be disclosed soon.

However, Chawal said testing by other agencies had found the bird flu virus in 11 samples collected from four central provinces, including Sukhothai, Uthai Thani, Lopburi, and Chachoengsao. (TNA


Government admits failure of anti-smoking drive

Deputy Prime Minister Chaturon Chaisang has conceded that the government’s campaign against smoking and drinking has not produced satisfactory results, while pledging that further campaigns would be systemically worked out as part of government policy.

Speaking on January 26 after a meeting of the committee on the control of alcohol, tobacco and intoxicants, Chaturon told reporters that the committee was not satisfied with the results of measures including a ban on cigarette sales near educational institutions and limitations on the hours during which alcohol could be sold.

Speaking of the need for ‘tightening the knot’, he also conceded that legislation was being inadequately enforced. Chaturon noted that such campaigns should form a clear part of government policy, and that mechanisms should be put in place for the examination and assessment of the anti-drinking and smoking drive.

The meeting also called for the merger of the Alcohol Control Committee and the Tobacco Control Committee, with the new committee chaired by the deputy prime minister.

In February the government will hold a national level meeting on cigarette and alcohol control, during which it will gather views on future campaigns and lay down policy directives. The Thailand Health Fund will meanwhile launch a series of campaigns aimed at reducing cigarette and alcohol consumption in the private sector.

Chaturon said that funding for the campaigns, expected at around 100 million baht a year, and would come from cigarette and alcohol taxes, which total over 1 billion baht per annum.

According to government figures, around 10 million Thais are smokers. The government is particularly keen to see a reduction in the take-up rate of cigarette smoking among young people. The Ministry of Public Health has said that cigarette taxes are likely to be raised from 75 to 80 percent in order to help deter smoking. (TNA)


Thai research points to role of personality in road accidents

Personality plays an important role in a driver’s tendency to instigate road accidents, with ‘A breed’ drivers who are naturally competitive and prone to anger most at risk, according to award-winning Thai research.

The research, conducted by Asst. Prof. Dr. Tawatchai Laosirihongthong, head of the Department of Civil Engineering of King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, shows clearly that the vast majority of traffic accidents can be attributed to driver behavior.

Disclosing the findings at the award ceremony held on February 4 for a road traffic engineering competition jointly organized by the Ministry of Transport and the police, Chadab Phatamasut, head of the Council of Engineers, noted that road accidents cost Thailand over 59 billion baht each year.

The research, conducted in 10 provinces in 2002, found during interviews with drivers that 60 percent of accidents on days other than holidays were caused by driver behavior, while 17 percent were caused by vehicles and 13 percent were attributable to a combination of driver behavior, vehicles and the environment. During holiday periods, the percentage of accidents caused by driver behavior decreased marginally to 52 percent.

Hardly surprisingly, the research said that most injuries and fatalities were a result of drivers violating road rules, including failure to wear safety belts and crash helmets, speeding, and failure to put indicator lights on while overtaking. Around 11 percent of offences were also attributable to the use of mobile telephones while driving.

The research also pointed to the direct impact of drink driving on the severity of accidents, while noting that it also had an indirect impact on driver behavior.

For the purposes of their study, the researchers divided drivers in a number of ‘breeds’. Those most likely to be involved in accidents were ‘breed A’ people who were naturally aggressive, competitive, highly self-confident and easily irritated.

The researchers said that the best way to reduce Thailand’s huge road accident rate was to focus on changing driver behavior, as well as strictly enforcing traffic regulations and introducing harsher penalties for violators. (TNA)


School evacuated after cracks appear in structure

An eighth school in the southern province of Satun was evacuated on Wednesday, January 2 amid concern that cracks in the walls, apparently caused by the December 26 earthquake which triggered the Asian tsunami, could put the safety of pupils and teachers at risk.

The decision was made to evacuate Baan Khuan School in Muang district after 10 cracks of up to half a meter in length were discovered in the pillars and walls of the two-storey school building. An inspection by the Department of Mineral Resources confirmed that the school was standing on a massive crater.

Khanueng Yoiseritsut, director of the provincial education office, said that the provincial public works office had now been contacted, with a view to demolishing the old building and constructing a new one elsewhere.

To date, cracks have been discovered in eight schools in the province, although in five of the cases there does not appear to be any danger. (TNA)