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TAT considering ‘Friendly Local’ destination marketing plan
Patcharapol Panrak
Thailand needs to restore its image as a “friendly”
destination in order to win back tourists scared off by two years of
anti-government protests and violence, Thailand’s minister of tourism told
worldwide Tourism Authority of Thailand representatives gathered in Pattaya.
Tourism and Sports Minister Chumphol Silpa-archa
addresses hundreds of worldwide Tourism Authority of Thailand
representatives gathered in Pattaya.
The June 28 session at Jomtien Beach’s Ravindra Beach
Resort & Spa saw sales executives from TAT’s far-flung overseas offices
called into to brainstorm a new strategy to win back tourists. The goal was
to find a way to offset the country’s negative image and create a new brand
that can rival the success “Land of Smiles” and “Amazing Thailand” campaigns
of yesteryear.
Tourism and Sports Minister Chumphol Silpa-archa
suggested the country ought to market itself as the “Friendly Local”
destination, following on TAT’s recent emphasis on Asian, Indian, Middle
Eastern and Russian tourists over traditional western visitors.
Chumphol said TAT had already started down this road with
its 2009-2010 marketing plan, which stressed strong regional transportation
links and a clear brand identity. The agency should continue, he said, to
focus on “quality” tourist markets and visitors with high purchasing power
and special-interest tourist groups.
More resources should be put into the TAT’s “passport”
program, which markets tours as short as 72 hours to the kingdom and focuses
on trips centered around medical tourism, beauty and other niche interests.
The brainstorming session also zeroed in on the
importance of social media, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, which TAT
employed heavily during a recent “ambassador” campaign. Participants said
this new media form is the fastest way to reach people and is being used in
all the major markets.
Owners to exhume
electrocuted elephant in
800,000 baht battle with PEA
Workers test the Provincial Electric Authority’s
electrical system where an elephant was electrocuted outside the Hern
Najomtien Elephant Camp.
Patcharapol Panrak
The owners of an elephant electrocuted near Jomtien Beach
high-voltage lines in January plan to exhume the animal’s body to dispute
the Provincial Electric Authority’s refusal to take responsibility for the
accident.
Pan and Aouy Yuiram have been fighting for nearly six
months for compensation for the death of 50-year-old pachyderm Sangchan, on
which they still owned 700,000 baht. While the PEA now concedes the animal
was indeed electrocuted, the utility’s local office claims the deadly shock
came from the low-voltage system inside the Hern Najomtien Elephant Camp,
not its own high-voltage transmission lines.
Pan, the 38-year-old owner of the elephant, disputes the
PEA’s determination, saying her father and mahout Aouy, 60, was thrown from
the animal due to the jolt and that she will exhume the carcass to prove it
was high, not low, voltage that killed the animal.
Sangchan died after walking along wet earth Jan. 23 near
the utility’s high-voltage wires near elephant camp. Pan’s 800,000 baht
claim said equipment there was leaking 150 volts of electricity into the
earth, that ground resistance there exceeded PEA standards and that broken
insulation was found on PEA wires leading to a meter. The findings were
confirmed by a privately hired engineer.
PEA authorities Feb. 21 offered Pan and her family
100,000 baht as a token of “sympathy,” while still denying their equipment
was responsible for the pachyderm’s demise and making the offer conditional
on the family not taking legal action. Pan said the utility later increased
their offer to 200,000 baht.
In a June letter, however, PEA Chonburi regional
officials blamed the elephant camp’s electrical system for Sangchan’s death.
They wrote that Elephant Camp Co. Ltd.’s system was unsafe, construction and
installation didn’t meet standards and was poorly maintained, which caused
current to flow into the ground. Therefore the camp, not the utility, should
compensate the elephant’s owners, the PEA said.
Camp General Manager Ekachai Kanchanapatarakul vehemently
denied the accusation, saying that even if the deadly current flowed from
the elephant camp, it was still PEA equipment and the utility was
responsible for installation and maintenance.
The PEA, he said, is responsible for power distribution.
Its representatives still come each month to collect a bill and the PEA was,
in fact, called to fix some electrical problems but workers never showed,
Ekachai said. Furthermore, he said, the PEA never notified the camp about
the system being below standards. Finally, he said, only PEA engineers, not
elephant handlers, are capable of installing and maintaining power poles and
meters.
The fault lies with the PEA, Ekachai said, and it should
take responsibility for killing the elephant.
Mayor urges government
to launch non-stop tourist
campaign for Pattaya
Thanachot Anuwan
Pattaya Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome is urging the government
to maintain a continuous campaign of tourist-promotion events for Pattaya,
including sales and road shows.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh talks about ways to solve
the current tourism crisis in Pattaya.
In a letter to national tourism officials, the mayor
suggested a three-month Pattaya Grand Sale from July through September
offering reduced hotel rates, discounts on tickets to tourist attractions
and other promotions. He also suggested a travel-promotion road show with
the help of the Eastern Thai Hotels Association and Pattaya Business &
Tourism Association.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh said June 23 the city is
not taking the current tourism crisis lightly and is doing what it can to
alleviate the worries of tourism-related businesses.
Parade, candle contest
to mark Buddhist Lent
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Pattaya will mark the start of Buddhist Lent with a
candle parade and decorating contest July 20-21.
Deputy Mayor Wattana Chantanawaranon chairs an
organizational meeting to prepare for Pattaya’s Buddhist Lent candle parade.
At a June 25 organizing meeting, Deputy Mayor Wattana
Chantanawaranon said the parade will start at 4 p.m. on June 20 and the
contest in the morning the next day at Nong Yai Temple in North Pattaya.
Traffic will be closed on Beach Road from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. June 20 for the
procession.
This contest is divided into 2 categories; Buddhist Lent
decoration and a category commemorating the parade. Schools in Pattaya City
have been asked to promote the activity. Decorations must be wax or tallow
and can use recycled materials. Judging will emphasize the meaning of
Buddhism and its principles.
Seminar provides background on human trafficking
Thanachot Anuwan
Government officials, private agencies and students
learned about the factor’s behind Thailand’s human trafficking problem
and some steps on how to curb its growth at a Stop Human Trafficking Day
seminar in Jomtien Beach.
Yanee Lertkrai, deputy director-general of the Social
Welfare Development Department, chairs the opening of a training program
in the campaign against human trafficking.
Yanee Lertkrai, deputy director-general of the Social
Welfare Development Department led the June 25 session at the Royal
Cliff Hotel aimed at expanding the knowledge and understanding of human
trafficking and stimulating the cooperation of various social welfare
groups to curb the problem.
Yanee said the main factors making people vulnerable
to traffickers is poverty, family problems, incorrect social values and
na๏vet้. The Social Welfare Development is the main unit tasked with
helping people understand the risks, she said.
History, culture showcased in 3-day Beach Road fair
Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome (center) plays the role of King
Taksin the Great during a show on Pattaya history.
Thanachot Anuwan
Thai culture and locally made products took center stage
in the three day fair held along Pattaya Beach June 26-28.
Assistant Culture Minister Sriya Suksakit opened the Art
& Culture Fair, held in conjunction with Chonburi Province at the northern
end of Beach Road. He said the fair was intended to honor HM the King with
provincial arts, culture and tradition. The “one tambon, one product” fair
also showcased the Pattaya-area’s hallmark local products.
In addition to shopping stalls, the fair featured a
housing-construction demonstration, children’s theater performances, Thai
traditional dance, a tom-tom drum show, Lam Tad, two groups of singers
singing impromptu songs, a tourism art and culture demonstration, baking of
glutinous rice in bamboo cylinders, ordaining traditions, a local rocket
merit-making show, and a show on Pattaya history with Mayor Itthiphol
Kunplome playing the role of Great King Taksin.
City council questions
mayor’s Sukhumvit spruce-up
At least one member of Pattaya’s City Council is worried
that planting trees
and erecting signboards on Sukhumvit Road is money
wasted.
Phasakorn Channgam
The Pattaya City Council is worried money is being wasted
on trees and signboards planted along Sukhumvit Road’s center island when
the entire median might be ripped up as part of the planned “four
intersection” traffic-relief project.
At the council’s June 22 meeting, council member Amnaj
Thiengtham questioned Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome about his road beautification
project, saying it might all be wasted if a tunnel or toll gate is put in at
major intersections between North Pattaya and Jomtien Beach.
Itthiphol said the beautification is necessary to
maintain Pattaya’s image as a tourist destination. Bismark pines, which
require little care and provide strong support to the soil during flooding,
are complemented by 12-meter-tall signboard promoting the area’s
attractions.
He said if the traffic-abatement project comes to
fruition - and it’s still in primordial development - then the trees and
signs will simply be relocated, so no money is being wasted.
Indian father killed, daughter
injured in jet ski collision
Boonlua Chatree
An Indian man was killed and his daughter seriously
injured when their jet skis collided off South Pattaya Beach.
Father and daughter Kesarwani moments before setting out
on a jet ski joy ride that would end with father dead and daughter wounded.
Uma Dhar Kesarwani, 46, was found unconscious and
floating face down in the waters near Royal Garden Plaza the evening of June
24. Nearby, 14-year-old Sakahi Kesarwani was crying in pain. Both were taken
to Pattaya Memorial Hospital where the father was pronounced dead.
He had suffered a broken neck, leg and arm. His daughter
broke her leg and was kept for observation.
Uma’s wife, Savita said their family of five had come for
a holiday in Pattaya and said that her husband and daughter had rented jet
skis on a whim. The watercraft were unregistered and the Middle Eastern
operator fled the area, fearing arrest. Police have put out a bulletin
searching for him.
Tourist dies of heart attack
on Pattaya Beach
Tourists gather around to witness attempts
to save a dying man who had
collapsed on the beach.
Boonlua Chatree
An elderly foreign tourist died of an apparent heart
attack after relatives allegedly determined to provide their own rescue
measures delayed the man’s transport to the hospital.
Sawang Boriboon Thammasathan Rescuers were called to
Pattaya Beach June 25 after reports a tourist had collapsed. Helge Loebrshi,
in his 60s, was unconscious on the beach and receiving CPR from relatives.
Rescuers tried to take over and transport the man to the hospital, but
relatives refused their help, continuing to provide their own assistance. At
that point, it was too late and the man was pronounced dead at Bangkok
Hospital Pattaya.
Trat man cooks up trouble
with unique croissants
Boonlua Chatree
A Trat man who served up croissants with a unique filling
will be eating jail rations after being nabbed with six crystal
methamphetamine-stuffed rolls outside a Pattaya McDonald’s restaurant.
One of six crystal methamphetamine-stuffed rolls police
confiscated off a sweets minded drug dealer.
Anurak Nelma, 24, was arrested around 4 a.m. outside the
eatery on Sukhumvit 44 by Pattaya narcotics investigators who’d sniffed out
his bakery-fresh delivery method. Officers found six croissants in the seat
of Anurak’s Honda Click motorbike, filled with ya ice.
Undercover investigators had gone to the scene to make a
buy from the alleged dealer for 23,000 baht. Anurak said he’d purchased the
drugs from another dealer in Huay Yai and that he needed the money to cover
expenses related to the recent birth of his child. Anurak was charged with
sales of a Class 1 narcotic.
Pattaya, Chonburi police escalate war on loan sharks behind police beating
Police have arrested 11 more suspects
in the June 18 beating of a senior
police officer.
Boonlua Chatree
Local and provincial police turned up the heat on a
Chantaburi-based loan shark network, raiding its Pattaya headquarters and
arresting 11 gang members connected to last month’s brutal beating of a
senior Pattaya Police officer.
Chonburi Provincial Police Deputy Commander Col.
Theerapol Jindaluang and Pattaya Police Superintendent Col. Nantawut
Suwanla-Ong led the midnight-hour raid June 23 at Paradise Village 2 off Soi
Khao Noi. The target was Sompan “Pakor Pan” Kammanee, 44, the man believed
responsible for initiating the June 18 attack on the head of Pattaya’s crime
suppression unit.
Sompan, who eluded police after a June 18 raid on another
of his houses, again managed to escape. Eleven underlings, ranging from ages
17 to 37, weren’t as lucky. They were all slapped with various illegal
money-lending charges.
In the raid, police also found sets of business cards for
11 loan-shark lending businesses in Pattaya and seized eight motorbikes, one
car and several bookcases full of ledgers and loan contracts. Among those
seized was a list of 1,666 customers of 46-year-old Niran Chamruang, one of
three men arrested for the beating of Senior Sgt. Maj. Prachaub
Prasertsophon.
Prachaub was set upon by 11 men who had apparently gone
to the Prachanban rice congee outlet in Central Pattaya to shake down
Prachaub’s wife, Em-On Siripong, the guarantor for a 30,000 baht loan by a
friend who fled Pattaya after being unable to make loan payments.
Trouble broke out when the officer returned from the
restroom to find the eatery filled with a dozen angry men shouting at his
wife. He said he urged the men to speak civilly, but instead they beat him
unconscious and stole 6,000 baht and his mobile phone.
Sompan is considered as a major local member of the Pok
Chantaburi loan syndicate, the largest in the Eastern Seaboard. Two of the
11 arrested in the latest crackdown are said to be his chief lieutenants,
running as many as 20 local agents. An arrest warrant remains outstanding
for Sompan and police said they have another 20 people under surveillance.
20 hurt in Sriracha factory
explosion, chemical fire
Theerarak Suthathiwong
More than 20 employees were seriously injured in an
explosion and fire at a Sriracha circuit board factory.
An explosion and fire at a Sriracha factory sent 20 workers to hospital.
The June 23 blast at in the PCB Electronics plant in the
Sahapat Group industrial park occurred in a sulfuric acid storage room in
the rear of the Soi Sukhapiban 8 facility. More than 30 fire engines from
Laem Chabang, Chao Praya Surasak, Sriracha and Banglamung responded to the
blaze, with firefighters and medics also affected by the toxic smoke.
The factory and surrounding businesses were evacuated and
the injured sent to Queen Sawang Warrana Memorial and Phyathai Sriracha
hospitals. Four were listed in critical condition.
Witnesses said the accident happened due to a pressure
oven used in manufacturing the board malfunctioning and exploding. Injuries
were caused by both the fire and the burning chemicals. Damage was estimated
at 10 million baht.
Former Asian University English teacher jumps to death
from 11th storey
Patcharapol Panrak
A former Chonburi university lecturer apparently jumped
to his death from his 11th storey Jomtien Beach condominium after suffering
a prolonged illness.
American George Woodington, 66, a lecturer at Asian
University of Science & Technology, died of extensive injuries June 29.
Police said there were no indications his death was anything other than a
suicide.
Woodington came to Thailand as a Peace Corps volunteer in
1971 and has worked at various institutions as well as with the UNHCR
Refugee Training Program in Panat Nikom. He most recently taught English at
AUST, where he is still listed on the university’s website.
School officials said he retired earlier this year due to
poor health but still did some part-time classes, most recently in April.
S.T.S. Beach Resort representative Punika Thuamsema said
Woodington had lived at the condo complex for seven years and had been a
quiet tenant who lived alone. For a while he had been suffering various
aliments which made it difficult for him to walk. Lately, she said, he’d
seemed distressed by his illnesses and repeated treatments at Bangkok
Hospital Pattaya.
Pol. Lt. Col. Jareon Withitkorakun presumed Woodington,
who earned degrees in English from Montclair University in New Jersey and
the School of International Training in Vermont, committed suicide. His body
has been sent to the Forensic Institute for autopsy and the American Embassy
has been notified.
Chantaburi teens win Fanta Young Ambassador contest
The winning team, Boty B-Boy Klung, performs their
anti-drug dance.
Phasakorn Channgam
Teens from Chantaburi carrying an anti-drug message won a
trip to the World Expo in Shanghai, scholarships and a royal trophy by
taking first place in the eastern region finals of the 14th Young Fanta
Ambassador contest at Central Festival Pattaya Beach.
The “Boty B-Boy Klung” team of youngsters from Klung
Municipality School impressed judges with its “B-Boy Campaign Against Drugs
Project” and beat out nine other teams to win the HRH Princess Sirindhorn
trophy June 27.
The Fanta Ambassador program, sponsored by the Coca-Cola
Business Group in Thailand and Office of Welfare Promotions, looks for youth
with lively personalities and keen educational interests. Winners are chosen
from six regions in Thailand and each competing team must pass interviews
and put together educational projects.
This year’s theme was “Do Good Things for Us and the
World.” Ten teams from seven schools made it to the final round at Central
Festival, including students from Pattaya School No. 8 who presented a “Thai
Youth Classical Dance Project.” Two teams from Chonburi and one from
Chachoengsao also made the finals.
Eighteen young ambassadors from the six winning teams
will visit the World Expo in China Aug. 9-14. The road to the prize was
long, starting with 20 teams attending a three-day, 2-night training camp,
facing interviews, and having to make speeches on friendship, teamwork and
project achievements.
Among the subjects covered by the finalist projects were
natural water purification, family tree research, water conservation,
recycling and child development.
Drowned deer to get stuffed, go on display
Theerarak Suthathiwong
A young deer who galloped into the ocean during an
apparent panic drowned before Pattaya rescuers could save it.
An emergency technician secures a 3-year-old buck to the
stern of Pattaya’s rescue boat to bring it ashore.
Sawang Boriboon Foundation officials were called to Ban
Amphur Beach in Sattahip June 23 after reports a buck was struggling about
500 m. off the coast. They searched for about an hour before spotting the
deer floating dead.
The animal - about 3 years old and 100 kg. - was seen
running into the sea as if it were fleeing something, witnesses said. Strong
winds and waves carried it offshore.
The body was sent to a taxidermist and will go on display
at the Sawang Boriboon Foundation offices for the benefit of children and
members of the public.
Pattaya selects next young ambassadors July 9
Young ambassador hopefuls tour the facilities at Bangkok Hospital Pattaya.
The contest finale will be held on July 9.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Nearly 100 area students this week are vying to become
the city’s next young tourist “ambassadors” who will help promote Pattaya
while simultaneously earning scholarships to advance their educations.
More than 300 students from Pattaya and Banglamung
entered the 5th annual Young Ambassador contest which will select a team of
three winning youths aged 9-17 at a July 9 finale at Central Festival
Pattaya Beach.
After passing an exhaustive knowledge test, the field was
cut to 30 teams of three who visited the Hard Rock Hotel, Alangkarn Theatre
and Bangkok Hospital Pattaya.
BHP Director Dr. Pichit Kangwolkij greeted the
contestants June 28 and gave them a tour of the facility’s beauty,
neurological and dental centers and entertained questions.
Contest director Rungratee Thongprakai said this year’s
competition was emphasizing the importance of different types tourism in
Pattaya’s economy, such as medical tourism and gem shopping.
“Many youngsters have changed their views after
experiencing these activities and gained more courage to do the right thing
and have self confidence,” Rungratee said. “This year more than 100 schools
throughout Chonburi participated with children from as far away as the
Borthong District taking part.”
Students faced judging on educational projects July 5
where they had to present papers and make presentations. There the final 10
teams that will compete in the July 9 finals were selected.
The first-place ambassador will receive an honorary
certificate, a trophy and a 25,000 baht scholarship. The first and second
runners-up will receive certificates, trophies and 15,000 baht and 10,000
baht scholarships, respectively. There will also be Young Star, Best Talent
and Best Orator awards, with winners earning certificates and 2,000 baht
scholarships. All other finalists will also receive 2,000 baht each.
“Dharma In Time” debuts on local cable channels
Abbot Kuekrit Sotathitlo from Napapong Temple in
Pathumthani, tours the Diana Garden Resort before presenting his Dharma
lecture about “Buddha’s Words”.
Vimolrat Singnikorn
The Diana Group and two local cable television
broadcasters teamed up for their first “Dharma in Time” broadcast, bringing
Buddhist teachings into Pattaya homes from the Diana Garden Resort.
Diana Group General Manager Sopin Thappajug, Prapatpong
Suthidaechanai, general manager of Banglamung Cable TV, and Rattakij
Hengtrakul, deputy manager of Sophon Cable TV presided over the broadcast of
the June 28 lecture at the hotel’s conference center.
This was the first broadcast since the Diana Group signed
the distribution agreement with the two companies in February. The show saw
Abbot Kuekrit Sotathitlo from Napapong Temple in Pathumthani speak about
“Buddha’s Words,” which are the pure Buddha Dharma principals without being
dressed up.
Kuekrit also presented awards for the composition contest
under the theme “Listening to and Using the Sermon.” The winner was
Natthapol Sao-Ek. The runners up in order were; Anchala Chaipandaecha and
Kritsada Saetang of Pattaya Vocational Redemptorist School. The winners in
order from Banglamung Vocational College were Watsana Buathong, Oranee
Karunborirak, and Theeranut Hormchan. The awards for all of the winners were
scholarships, certificates and souvenirs.
Dharma In Time is aimed at helping people remember
Buddhist teaching and having them follow the principles in their daily
lives. More than 200 people attended the lecture.
Kuekrit emphasized in this sermon that studies should be from Buddha’s
words, not those based on the tales of disciples.
Irishman’s healthy
holidays prove a hit
Cornelius Murphy (center) and his birthday guests pose
for a commemorative photo in front of the restaurant.
Elfi Seitz
With competition among tour agents fierce, Irishman
Cornelius Murphy hit upon a unique way to attract customers to his United
Travel business: Target travelers over age 50 and combine their vacations
with medical check-ups.
Murphy, who celebrated his 61st birthday June 20 at
Jomtien Beach’s Pagoda Restaurant, said the idea proved a success, with both
Pattaya International Hospital and Bangkok Hospital Pattaya signing on to
the project. Irish insurance companies also applauded, since health care in
Thailand is so much less expensive than back home.
“I myself have had two big operations here and I only
paid a small amount of that what I would have had to pay in Ireland,” Murphy
said. “I am so glad to be on the way to full recovery and I really want to
help as many people as possible to get healthy in Thailand as well.”
Now in his 35th year of business in the kingdom, Murphy
had many friends and business contacts to celebrate with. Pagoda owner Jens
Klein and his partner Jo presented Murphy with flowers and a birthday cake.
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