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HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]:

Tourism zone status could revive controversial South Pattaya project

Mayor Itthipol sets out his vision for the future

One-way system mooted for new railway road

Consumer Protection Club formed to fight for consumer rights

Diabetes on the rise in Pattaya

Isaan visitors inspect Pattaya’s facilities for the disabled

Saplings planted at Najomtien to mark Environment Day

Interior Ministry integrates admin sectors to assist development

Sattahip police and navy personnel raid drugs venues

German dies after fall from condo

German engineer found dead in lake

Drunken man bottles it

Police hunt for man who set fire to his wife

Redemptorist School will lay out gardens for the disabled

Used car dealers change gear as market decelerates

New wing at Banglamung Hospital will be completed next year

Thai music contest to be staged in August

Bangsaen residents enjoy shrimp bonanza

Concert helps mangosteen growers after dispute with wholesalers

Divers clean coral line at Samaesarn

German ambassador bids a fond farewell

New law comes into effect for women’s marriage title


Tourism zone status could revive controversial South Pattaya project

Needs cabinet approval

Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Pattaya City Council agreed on June 5 to submit a request to the Development of Special Areas Administrative Organization to designate the city as a special zone for the long-term development of tourism.
Such an agreement would result in a budget from the national government for tourism related projects.
On the previous day, June 4, Mayor Itthipol Khunplome had met with department heads and other people associated with various sectors of the tourism industry to discuss a strategy for submitting the request to the Development of Special Areas Administrative Organization.
Itthipol said that the national government had created the organization to develop special zones for sustainable tourism. Acquiring this status would be very beneficial for Pattaya and the city’s future development, said the new mayor.
There would be two specific projects that could immediately benefit if the proposal is agreed upon. One is the Koh Pai area development project, and the other is a controversial project in South Pattaya that involves a road, a multi-use field and a department store on the seafront, but which was shelved by cabinet resolution in 2003 because of a dispute over the legality of existing structures on the site.
Itthipol said that if Pattaya becomes a special zone for the development of sustainable tourism, then the cabinet could cancel the previous resolution. A support budget could then be requested to proceed with this project, working around the 101 businesses currently occupying the ocean side of Walking Street.
The mayor submitted the proposal to the council on June 5, and the council gave its approval to go ahead with the submission.


Mayor Itthipol sets out his vision for the future

Development plan has 14 urgent objectives

Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Mayor Itthipol Khunplome has laid out his vision for Pattaya City for the next four years, saying that there are 14 urgent objectives but that he is sure such an ambitious program can be accomplished.

Mayor Itthipol Khunplome lays out his 4 year plan for Pattaya.
The first council meeting for the first term, number 1/2008 was held on June 5 at Pattaya City Hall, the main business being to discuss the mayor’s new policies.
Itthipol said that for Pattaya to be a livable city in the future, there had to be a strategic plan and that he had identified 14 objectives that had to be resolved as a matter of urgency.
Firstly, he said, in order to obtain clear and fast feedback from the city’s 27 communities, there should be a community council.
Security on a 24-hour-a-day basis, both inside the city area and in the rural areas, was another absolute priority and a special unit is to be set up that would cooperate with the police and the military for suppression of crime.
There must be sufficient water and electricity supplies throughout Pattaya and on Koh Larn, and with water shortages being a perennial problem there must now be action to ensure that 100 percent of needs are satisfied. A tangible method also needs to be found to resolve the problem of flooding, said Itthipol.
Speaking on the city’s burgeoning traffic problems, the new mayor spoke of the launch of a trolley-car project. He also described ways of easing the traffic flow with improved road layouts, the provision of parking lots at the beach areas, and the construction of an underpass at Sukhumvit Road.
Support projects need to be initiated for school children, including school lunches and transportation, and better skills training is needed. Free home medical care needs to be provided for those unable to attend clinics.
More greenery needs to be planted in the city, and a ban placed on digging up five key roads should be implemented.
Itthipol proposed a housing security project at which monthly installments of 500 baht could be made over a period of 15 years. He said a firm policy is needed on sports development. There should be a World Tourism Festival in Pattaya, and as for tourism to the city, Pattaya should have clean beaches, public restrooms, and a clean environment.
Acknowledging the ambitious quality of this extensive program, the new mayor said that most of these problems impact tourism, which is the lifeblood of the city, and that to ignore or delay any of them would have a detrimental effect on Pattaya, its image, its economy and the quality of life of its inhabitants.


One-way system mooted for new railway road

Efforts to alleviate the traffic problem

Pramote Channgam
Efforts are being made to alleviate the traffic problem on the newly constructed 16-km railway road, including the installation of traffic lights at its 13 intersections.

Sittiprap Muangkoom.

A meeting was held on June 3 at Pattaya City Hall, with permanent secretary Sittiprap Muangkoom in the chair, to discuss traffic management for the road, which is in the final stages of completion and is already being heavily used by local traffic.
One possibility is for the east and west roads, which run on either side of the railroad, would be made into one-way roads. Traffic from Krathinglai to Pattaya would use the west side road, and traffic from Huayyai and Pattaya in the direction of Krathinglai would use the east side road.
City hall will make a further announcement after traffic engineers have assessed the situation.


Consumer Protection Club formed to fight for consumer rights

Holds inaugural meeting at city hall

Sawittree Namwiwatsuk
Pattaya Consumer Protection Club held its inaugural meeting on June 5 at Pattaya City Hall, with club chairman Banchong Banthunprayuk presiding and Maj Chatchai Sripho-on, senior deputy chief of Banglamung District and Pol Thammapanathorn, general administration officer at the Consumer Protection Center in Chonburi amongst those in attendance.

Banchong Banthunprayuk presides over the inaugural meeting of the Pattaya Consumer Protection Club at city hall.

Banchong said that the club exists to provide expert knowledge on consumer rights when purchasing the necessities of life and services.
Pol was the main speaker at the meeting, saying that the Pattaya Consumer Protection Club had been founded on May 29 this year for the purpose of receiving and studying consumer complaints, and resolving problems caused by business entrepreneurs or producers.
Pol said that the club would closely monitor those who are infringing upon consumer rights, and would work with official departments or any government sector to ensure that consumers always had protection against unscrupulous practice.


Diabetes on the rise in Pattaya

10 percent of Pattaya residents at risk

Sawittree Namwiwatsuk
Doctors and public health officials say that 10 percent of Pattaya residents are at risk of developing diabetes and high blood pressure.

Dr. Wuttichai Tawatthongchai
A training session was held on June 4 at the Pattaya Public Health Center to raise awareness and describe treatments that can be undertaken for these two often-related medical conditions.
Deputy Mayor Verawat Khakhay opened the session, which was led by Dr Wuttichai Tawatthongchai, director of the medical section, and attended by more than 100 public health officials and members of the public.
Dr Wuttichai said the training was being held because over the six-month period October 2007 to March 2008 the Public Health Center had discovered that 10 percent of the patients at the center and using the mobile service had diabetes. The number of diabetics and people with high blood pressure has been increasing every year. On average each month, 160 people were being treated for high blood pressure and 80 for diabetes.
Guest speaker at the session was Dr Suthep Keeraticharoenwong of the Department of Medicine, Heart and Cardiovascular Disease at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital. He said that diabetes mellitus is the name given to a group of conditions linked by a patient’s inability to produce or utilize insulin, which leads to high blood glucose levels.
Symptoms usually begin to arise when the body is no longer able to compensate, and are usually found at middle age. The causes of diabetes include obesity, the inability of the pancreas to operate due to infection, high alcohol intake, cirrhosis of the liver, lack of proteins, and hereditary factors.
Dr Suthep said that everyone needed to beware of foods that are high in sugar or that have large amounts of carbohydrates, and to instead eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Exercise regularly at least three times per week, and for no less than 30 minutes each time. Control your weight so as not to be overweight or too thin, and undergo regular medical checkups.


Isaan visitors inspect Pattaya’s facilities for the disabled

Khon Kaen chosen for pilot scheme

Vimolrat Singnikorn
Representatives of the community of disabled people in Isaan made an educational visit to Pattaya on June 4 to see what progress is being made in the city for facilities for the disabled, and how they could be adapted for their home towns.

Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh (left) and Suporntham Mongkolsawat (right), director of the Redemptorist Foundation for the Development of Disabled People address the delegation from Khon Kaen.

A meeting was held on June 4 at the Garden Sea View Resort, attended by 60 people from 19 different locations in Khon Kaen Province.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh and Suporntham Mongkolsawat, director of the Redemptorist Foundation for the Development of Disabled People were the main speakers at the meeting.
During the 2008 financial year, the Department for the Support of Abilities and Rights has made provisions for the creation of a suitable environment for disabled people.
This has led to a pilot project with three main activities, namely the provision of information for the disabled, the installation of facilities, and the encouragement of leaders for the disabled communities.
Khon Kaen Province was chosen for this pilot scheme, as it already has a strong organizational network for disabled people. With Khon Kaen City selected as the main city for the disabled, Muang Kao Sub-district Municipality and the Angsila District Administrative Organization were chosen to be the model towns for the disabled.
The conference was held over a three-day period, from June 3 to 5, and educational visits were arranged to the facilities in Pattaya that have been installed for the disabled.
The attendees from Khon Kaen visited many locations that support facilities for disabled people such as the Hard Rock Hotel and the ramps that have been installed at Pattaya Beach.


Saplings planted at Najomtien to mark Environment Day

50 people plant 599 tree saplings

Vimolrat Singnikorn
More than 50 people in the Najomtien Sub-district Community gathered on June 5, World Environment Day, to plant 599 tree saplings that will improve the environment of the area.

Sornchai Thongyangyouen (left), chairman of the Najomtien Sub-district Administrative Organization and Somsak Tabklan (right), the SAO’s village headman, help plant trees on World Environment Day.
Sornchai Thongyangyouen, chairman of the Najomtien Sub-district Administrative Organization presided over the gathering along with Somsak Tabklan, the SAO’s village headman.
The project received good support from local organizations such as the Silver Lake vineyard, which supplied the planting tools, while the Seed Breeding Center in Chachoengsao supplied the 599 saplings, which included golden shower trees, pterocarpus macrocarpus, tabebuia roasea, nim, cassia glauca, and lagerstroemia floribunda jack.
Members of the Sub-district Organization Administration Council, the local Village Headsmen’s Club, the Volunteer Housewives’ Group, and members of the public planted the saplings in the area near the Najomtien Sub-district Administrative Organization offices.


Interior Ministry integrates admin sectors to assist development

Sufficient water supplies a priority

Pramote Channgam
The Ministry of Interior organized a conference at Ambassador City Jomtien on June 4 to discuss the new policy of administrative integration for 25 local administrative organizations.

Surapon Kanjanajitra, deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry of Interior

Chairman of the conference was Surapon Kanjanajitra, deputy permanent secretary of the Ministry of Interior, with a total of 2,103 people from 25 local provincial administrative organizations in attendance.
Chonburi Deputy Governor Montien Tongnit and chairman of the Chonburi Provincial Administrative Organization Wittaya Khunplome welcomed Surapon to the event.
Surapon said he had been assigned to take responsibility for three departments, namely the Community Development Department, the Department of Promotions for Local Administrations, and the Department of Public Works and Town and Country Planning. The Provincial Waterworks Authority also comes under his care.
The policy on integrative administration was designed to combine the tasks of these four organizations, and had been laid out during a conference on April 30 at the Rama Garden Hotel in Bangkok.
Surapon said that the overriding need was for cohesive development of infrastructure and public services, including the provision of sufficient water supplies.


Sattahip police and navy personnel raid drugs venues

Drug suspects rounded up in a Sattahip police raid are put on display.

Patcharapol Panrak
More than 200 police officers and naval personnel armed with search warrants from Pattaya Provincial Court raided 11 locations in the Sattahip area that narcotics dealers and users were believed to be using.
The raids took place during the early morning of May 30 and were coordinated by Pol Col Supathee Bunkrong, superintendent at Sattahip Police Station.
Personnel from the Guard Battalion and the Navy Marine Corps augmented the police team as they searched the 11 locations in Samaesarn Sub-district, Najomtien Sub-district, Bangsarae Sub-district, and Sattahip Sub-district, where investigations had indicated drugs were being trafficked and used.
The officers were able to arrest 21 suspects. One person had been named on an arrest warrant, one was arrested for harboring drug users, six were arrested for having narcotics in their possession, four were arrested for consuming drugs, and nine male and female illegal aliens were arrested. Amongst the items confiscated were 72 ya ba pills, one pistol, and one bullet.
Pol Col Supathee said the raids were undertaken as part of the crackdown being insisted upon by the national government.


German dies after fall from condo

Boonlua Chatree
A German man died when he fell from the Jomtien Complex Condotel on Jomtien Beach Road during the early hours of June 2.
Pol Col Nopadol Wongnom, superintendent at Pattaya Police Station led officers to the scene, along with Sawang Boriboon rescue workers.
The dead man, identified as 44-year-old German citizen Frederic Stuart Lofler was lying face down on the concrete in front of the parking lot. He was wearing a black T-shirt, olive green shorts, and black shoes. In his pocket was a Nokia cellphone, a number of keys, cigarettes, a broken watch, and a passport.
Police found signs of someone climbing out over a balcony, but there were no signs of a struggle or any weapons. Piroon Roongsawan, a 23-year-old security guard at the condo said that he had been walking around the outside of the building when he heard something hitting the ground outside the wall in the parking lot. He said the deceased was possibly a new tenant, as Piroon did not know him.
As there was no evidence of a struggle, police believe the man may have deliberately jumped to his death. The body has been sent for autopsy.


German engineer found dead in lake

Patcharapol Panrak
An elderly German engineer who was found dead in a lake in Bamphenbun Valley in Bangsarae is believed to have committed suicide.

Wilhelm Frömbgen was found dead in a lake in Bamphenbun Valley in Bangsarae.

Sattahip Police Station received a call from a villager at 2:30 p.m. on June 4 to say that he had found the dead body of a foreign man when he had gone fishing.
A team of officers led by Pol Col Supathee Bunkrong, superintendent at Sattahip Police Station went immediately to the scene along with rescue workers from Sawang Rotchana Thammasathan Sattahip Foundation officials.
The dead man was found floating face down in the water. He was identified as Wilhelm Frömbgen, a 67-year-old construction engineer from Germany. The body was clad in a black T-shirt, black trousers, and black canvas shoes. Around his neck was a waterproof plastic box containing a photograph and his Pattaya Expat Club ID card. His left and right temples were scratched, but there were no signs of a struggle. On the bank of the pond was an empty Black Label whisky bottle.
Mrs Walee Frömbgen, 41, the deceased man’s wife stated that her husband had disappeared from the house at 6 p.m. on June 3. He was carrying a bottle of Black Label imported whisky, and told her that he wanted to go to a restaurant in Bangsarae.
Pol Col Supathee said that the death did not appear to be murder, because there were no signs of a struggle on the bank and no apparent injuries to the body. One possibility was that the deceased had become drunk and then fallen into the water. The more likely reason for his death, however, was suicide, because of the waterproof box that he had hung around his neck with his name and address inside. The corpse was sent to the Forensic Institute to find the cause of death.


Drunken man bottles it

Boonlua Chatree
An intoxicated foreign man, who said he was broken hearted because of a Thai woman, suffered severe bleeding after hitting himself on the head with a beer bottle.
Police received a call at 4 a.m. on June 3 to go to the Sanguanchai Bar located in the beer bar complex on Soi 10 and Pattaya Second Road where a customer was drunk and mad.
The man, said the caller, had used a beer bottle to hit himself over the head, causing him to bleed, and he was not allowing anyone to help him.
At the scene was a foreigner of unknown name and nationality, approximately 30 years old, covered with tattoos, wearing a black T-shirt with a skull and the word Misfits printed on it, and kaki slacks. He was in a state of drunkenness and shouting at everyone who tried to approach him. He had a cut on his head and a bloody face. The employees at the bar had run away.
Speaking to witnesses, police discovered that the man had been a regular visitor to the bar. On this occasion, he had become very drunk. He kept repeating that a Thai woman had broken his heart. He didn’t want to leave when the bar closed, and so had hit himself on the head with a beer bottle.
Officers managed to restrain the man, and Sawang Boriboon Foundation rescuers administered first aid and took him to Pattaya Memorial Hospital. The man eventually calmed down and was allowed to go back home.


Police hunt for man who set fire to his wife

Boonlua Chatree
A police hunt is underway for a man who doused his wife in benzene and set fire to her, causing burns to 80 percent of her body.
Pattaya Police Station received a call at 1 a.m. on June 7 from Ms Aumporn Posopha, 34, saying that her friend Ms Wanpen Pliansamut, a 25-year-old housemaid at James Gallery in North Pattaya had been injured.
Aumporn said that her friend’s husband, Nattapat Ketla, had first struck her with a bottle and then thrown benzene over her. He had then set fire to the benzene. Wanpen had been rushed to Banglamung Hospital, but physicians had transferred her to Chonburi Hospital for specialist burns treatment. Doctors have said her condition remains critical.
At the scene, officers found traces of something being burnt in the middle of the soi behind the James Gallery, opposite the entrance of the Bunsong Apartment.
Aumporn said that she also worked at the James Gallery. She said that Wanpen and Nattapat had been having problems with their relationship. Nattapat had asked for a reconciliation, but Wanpen had refused. Nattapat allegedly had become angry, and had attacked her.
Police have obtained an arrest warrant for 35-year-old Nattapat, who is a resident of Khon Kaen.


Redemptorist School will lay out gardens for the disabled

Designs to be voted on

Vimolrat Singnikorn
Redemptorist School is planning to build a public garden specially equipped for the disabled at the Elephant Village in Central Pattaya.
Duangdao Yothasri, finance manager at the Redemptorist School said that the garden would be designed for both the general public and the disabled community, but that its facilities would be such that the disabled could use it as an area of exercise.
The garden will be built on an empty area of 3 ngan beside Redemptorist Vocational School.
Pattaya City has already supplied a support budget of 1 million baht, and the construction plan is in the primary voting stage. There are three possible layouts, and the Vocational Redemptorist students will be allowed to vote for them. Each plan has an exercise area for wheelchairs, as well as for physical exercise for disabled people. Able-bodied people will also be able to use the garden, which will welcome everyone.
Once the final plan is agreed, the school will provide the budget and the completion date is expected to be at the end of this year.
Any organizations that wish to support the construction budget can make a donation at the Bangkok Bank Banglamung Branch under the account name of the Pattaya Vocational Redemptorist School, account number 342-4-25584-6.

One of the many designs for the public park
for disabled people that will be voted on.


Used car dealers change gear as market decelerates

Instigated by soaring cost of gasoline

Currently there are many used cars in stock that run on diesel.

Pramote Channgam
Used car dealers have been changing their sales techniques in response to the current unstable economy and the soaring cost of gasoline.
Bunpichat Urada, a 30-year-old salesman at Banglamung Auto Car said that on his lot there are currently more than 80 used cars. This high figure is due to the cost of gasoline and the rising cost of living, he said. The only bright spot is customers who are coming in to sell their vehicles or to exchange them for cars that run on benzene.
Teerasut Panich, 41, the owner of Pattaya Talad Rot said that he has about 30 vehicles on the lot. Because of the high price of gasoline, business is not good. Previously, potential customers were looking for cars that run on diesel, but now they want benzene-powered vehicles.
Teerasut said that he is now using a marketing promotion in which a down payment of only 5,000 baht is accepted and there is the option of free life insurance. This, he said, has had good response.
As to the future, Teerasut said that he doesn’t know what would happen if the cost of gasoline kept on rising, but that the world would have to find an alternative source of energy. In which case, he added, used car dealers would have to find another job.


New wing at Banglamung Hospital will be completed next year

Hospital receiving increasing number of patients

Governor Pracha Taerat (center) presides over the ceremony for the installation
of the pillar at the new Chalermprakiet Building at Banglamung Hospital.

Sawittree Namwiwatsuk
Chonburi Governor Pracha Taerat presided over the ceremony for the installation of the pillar at the new Chalermprakiet Building at Banglamung Hospital on June 2.
Amongst those attending the ceremony were Wittaya Khunplome, chairman of the Chonburi Provincial Administrative Organization, Banglamung District chief Mongkol Thamakittikhun, and Itthipol Khunplome, mayor of Pattaya.
Governor Pracha said that the new wing of the hospital had been started in commemoration of His Majesty the King’s 80th birthday, and that the building is scheduled for completion next year.
The reason for the new wing is the increasing number of patients attending Banglamung Hospital. Statistics for 2007 show that there were 395,873 outpatients, an average of approximately 1,000 people per day. This is causing a problem in the provision of service, and as the current building is not large enough to cope with the increasing number of patients, a new building has to be constructed.
The Chonburi Provincial Administrative Organization along with private donations are funding construction, the total amount required being 95,122,523 baht. However, the budget currently has a shortfall of 2,877,477 baht.
The ceremony for laying the foundation stone was held on November 18 last year. The Chalermprakiet Building will be seven stories in height, and is designed under a standard pattern from the design and construction division at the Ministry of Public Health. The new wing will have 150 beds.
P Construction and Material Co Ltd was awarded the contract to construct the new wing within a schedule of 400 days.


Thai music contest to be staged in August

Entrants vying for Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Trophy

Vimolrat Singnikorn
Banglamung Cultural Council will stage a music contest in August, with participants vying for the Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Trophy.

Surat Mekawarakul
A meeting of the organizing committee was held on May 27 at the Mike Beach Resort, with head of the Cultural Council Surat Mekawarakul in the chair.
A specific date has yet to be set for the Thai Musical Contest 2008, and a decision has still to be made on the most suitable location.
Surat said the contest would be open to students and the public, and would be a celebration of Thai musical heritage.
Three competitor levels will be held to allow fair competition for children of primary school class and secondary school class ages, and for the general public.


Bangsaen residents enjoy shrimp bonanza

Making up for lost tourism revenue

Patcharapol Panrak
Bangsaen residents who had previously seen revenue from tourism drop when large numbers of dead jelly fish and sea worms started being washed up on the beach have been overjoyed to find a new source of income has quickly followed the disaster with large quantities of sergistid shrimp now being found on the beach.

The large numbers of sergestid shrimp now being shoveled up from Bangsaen Beach can be made into shrimp paste, or fried and sold at Nongmon Market.

The residents, many of whom made their living as shallow fishermen or beachside merchants, said that tourists had stopped coming as they were concerned the water might be polluted and be a danger to their skin.
However, the large numbers of sergestid shrimp that can now be shoveled up from Bangsaen Beach can be made into shrimp paste, or fried and sold at Nongmon Market. Previously, the shrimp had made only rare appearances on this beach.
Nares Hompleum, a 57-year-old resident of Soi Nuchkasem in Saensuk Sub-district said that the death of a large quantity of marine life appeared to have been a natural event, but that tourists had stopped using the beach. The local people had seen their incomes fall, and many were facing financial problems. But the change in the marine ecology had resulted in huge numbers of the sergistid shrimp in the ocean, and the ebb tide, which lasts for about two hours, was depositing huge numbers of them on the sand.
Residents are collecting the shrimp at every tide, and many are making an income of about 400 baht a day from selling shrimp paste, fried shrimp, and other derivatives.
Local politician Sontaya Khunplome said that the natural disaster that had befallen the jelly fish, catfish and marine worms had spelled danger for local fishermen as well as a fall in the tourism business, but that the shrimp harvest was compensating for that and that local families were once again facing a profitable season.


Concert helps mangosteen growers after dispute with wholesalers

Score one for the little guys

Mangosteen growers were successful in cutting out the middle man,
 selling 3,000kg of their fruit during a concert at Prince Chumporn
Public Park in Sattahip.

Patcharapol Panrak
Actors and singers helped the Chantaburi mangosteen growers sell 3,000kg of their fruit at a concert at Prince Chumporn Public Park in Sattahip on May 30.
Well-known actress Naowarat Yuktanan emceed the performers for the event, in which the growers sold their produce direct to the buyers, following a dispute with the fruit wholesalers.
Chokchai Pratheep-Usanon, a representative of Boonrawd Trading Co Ltd said that the Chantaburi mangosteen growers had contacted him, saying that they were in trouble. They had kept their mangosteens back for the wholesalers, as agreed, but the wholesalers were refusing to pay the agreed price of 9 baht per kg and said they would pay only 7 baht per kg, due to the high gasoline prices. If the fruit growers disagreed with this price, then they wouldn’t take their fruit.
Chokchai told the growers to bring their harvest to the Blue Sky, Nice Sea, White Road Food Festival, at Prince Chumporn Public Park, an event that was being organized to raise funds for female prisoners in Chonburi. He said that the growers should ask for 10 baht per kilo, a price that by cutting out the middleman would be a bargain for the public and a better price for the growers.
The growers were kept busy throughout the event, selling more than 3,000 kg of their fruit.
Amongst the performers at the food festival were Ou-Panu Suwanno, the Fasai Band, the Rain Bow, Sathian, Thammue, Earn, The Star, Taktan Chonlada, and Rasi Thanu.


Divers clean coral line at Samaesarn

Giant clams released

Patcharapol Panrak
Personnel from the Naval Special Warfare Group, the Royal Thai Navy SEALs, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources along with volunteer divers and members of the public worked with the Samaesarn Sub-district Administrative Organization on June 2 to clean up the beach and the marine environment of Chong Samaesarn.

Divers ready to submerge into the depths to clean the area of refuse.

Samran Rakchat, deputy director general of the Marine and Coastal Resources Department opened the event.
Capt Apakorn Yookongkang, commander of the Naval Special Warfare Group at Sattahip, Prasert Pitakkorn, chairman of the Samesarn Sub-district Administrative Organization, and Bamrungsak Chat-Anantawet, director of conservation of coastal resources at the Marine and Coastal Resources Department in Rayong also took part in the cleanup.
Bamrungsak said that volunteers were diving to collect refuse from the ocean bed and to clean the coral line at the Samaesarn Islands. Giant clams were also released amongst the coral.
Samran said that the eastern coast is an important fishing area, has sea tourism, and is a well-known international diving location. Preservation of the sea resources is therefore vital on several fronts, and a high-profile cleanup such as this helps to educate the public and youngsters in particular how important it is to respect the ocean.


German ambassador bids a fond farewell

Auf wiedersehen, Dr Brümmer

 

Wolfram Reda
German Ambassador to Thailand Dr Christoph Brümmer and his wife Antje welcomed ambassadors of other countries, leading figures in business and society as well as the staff of the German Embassy to their residence on May 27 to mark the end of his period of service in Thailand, and indeed in the diplomatic corps, for Dr Brümmer will now go into retirement.

Well-known pianist and composer Bruce Gaston provides classical entertainment.

In his address, His Excellency Ung Sean, Cambodian Ambassador to Thailand and dean of the diplomatic corps in Bangkok, outlined the career of his distinguished colleague.
Christoph Brümmer had been born in 1943, during World War II. After he had graduated from school and finished military service, he entered university and read Slavonic Studies, American Studies and Eastern European History, and received a PhD.
During his diplomatic career he served in Osaka, Kobe, Washington, Cairo, Tokyo and Moscow, and after his term as German Ambassador to Pakistan came to an end, he became the representative of the Federal Republic of Germany in Bangkok. That was on August 26, 2005.
Dr Brümmer thanked Ung Sean for the cordial words and said how much he had appreciated the spirit of camaraderie among the diplomatic corps in Bangkok. He also thanked the numerous guests for celebrating the farewell with him. Last but not least, Dr Brümmer expressed his gratitude to the staff of the German Embassy for their loyal services.

Ung Sean, Dr Christoph Brümmer, Antje Brümmer and Karl-Heinz Heckhausen pose for a souvenir shot.
Due to the political developments in Thailand, said Dr Brümmer, he had found himself in some unusual situations during his term here. He had traveled through the whole country, where he saw everything from the troop camps at the Burmese border to the mountainous North. The nation’s beauty, strength and its economic boom provide enough reasons for him to return as a tourist. The ambassador regrets not being able to speak Thai.
Dr Brümmer will spend his golden years in Berlin, where many of his friends live. Germany’s capital has more museums and restaurants than any other city in the world, and its three operas are constantly packed. Still, he admitted he would miss Bangkok and the people that he has met.
His successor will be installed in October. Dr Brümmer wouldn’t reveal his name, but he guaranteed that it would be a person with a pleasing personality. In the meantime, Dr Michael Banzhaf, head of the consular department, will direct the embassy.
Pianist Bruce Gaston played Chopin and Beethoven, while the kitchen prepared stout German and Thai cuisine and served fine wine from Southern Germany.
This was not quite the ambassador’s last day in Thailand. On June 10 at the Montien Hotel, Dr Brümmer and his wife were due to be guests of honor at a meeting organized by DSU-Treff, the German-speaking business meeting and the Rotary Club of Phönix Pattaya.


New law comes into effect for women’s marriage title

Mrs or Ms - up to you

Sawittree Namwiwatsuk
A woman now has the right to choose her marriage title, selecting Mrs or Ms as she prefers.
A new marriage law went into effect June 4 concerning a woman’s marriage title and her rights to choose whether she wants it to remain as Ms after her marriage or change it to Mrs.
Married women have full rights to use Ms again by bringing their marriage document, house registration and identity card to city hall or their nearest household registration department. Divorced women can take their divorce papers, house registration and identity card to these locations too for an alteration back to Ms.
Married women can also choose to use their own family name or her husband’s name. The official arranging the marriage will ask women who are getting married whether they want their family name to be printed on the official marriage certificate or their husband’s name.
The law also states that women wanting to change their titles must be aware that they would also have to change their names on their bankbooks, land deeds, passport, and other official documentation.
Banglamung District chief Mongkol Thamakittikhun said that Banglamung is fully ready with the new legislation.