Thomas Latt
Multi-entry visas to boost Thai tourism
Thailand has given the green light to multiple
entry six-month visas for all, which is expected is to be a huge boost
for tourism.
Tourism Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said Prime
Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha granted the move, and will be effective
within 60 days after receiving Cabinet approval.
The visa will be available for citizens of all countries and allows multiple entry during the six month validity.
It plans to charge THB5,000 for the visa, while the current one-month visa will still be offered at THB1,000.
Last month Thailand received 2.6 million arrivals, up by 37% compared to 2014.
The country has set a target of 28 million foreign visitors for this year, expected to generate THB2.2 trillion in spending.
The
new visa strategy is part of Thailand's three-year tourism development
master plan which is plans to relax some travel conditions to boost
inbound tourism and promote sustainable development.
Thailand recently signed a reciprocal agreement to waive entry visas with Myanmar.
~ AATO ~
hpoun kyaw
Hi, All,
Please read the following breaking news below!
Best Regards
BANGKOK — The head of Myanmar’s governing party has been removed from his post in what one aide described as a “coup,” the most visible sign yet of splintering within Myanmar’s military elite and the resurgence of conservative forces that dominated under decades of military rule.
The removal of Thura Shwe Mann as chairman of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party came as campaigning was underway for elections in November. The United States and other foreign governments have characterized the elections as a litmus test for whether Myanmar’s military elites, who still control the government and bureaucracy despite recent moves toward democracy, are genuinely willing to give up power.
Mr. Shwe Mann, who was seen as a leading candidate for president in the coming elections, was the third most powerful member of the junta that ruled Myanmar until 2011. But as speaker of the lower house of Parliament in the current civilian administration, he has formed an informal alliance with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace laureate and opposition leader. Conservative forces in the military were uncomfortable with that.
As of midday Thursday, Mr. Shwe Mann was still speaker of the lower house.
The party reshuffle, which developed overnight Wednesday, was more in the style of a purge: Security forces were deployed outside party headquarters in Naypyidaw, the capital. Some local news outlets reported that party officials were not allowed to leave the building.
U Myint Htwe, a senior officer in the Ministry of Information, confirmed that Mr. Shwe Mann had been removed from his party post. The deputy head of the party, U Htay Oo, has taken over as chairman, he said.
Mr. Myint Htwe confirmed the presence of security forces at party headquarters, saying they were “necessary for the situation.”
Mr. Shwe Mann did not comment publicly on his removal, but one of his aides said he was not at party headquarters when the reshuffle took place.
“It had to be done by force because it could not be done by voting,” said the aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear for his safety.
Purges of top officials were common during five decades of military rule in Myanmar, but the nascent moves toward democracy in recent years have raised hopes that the country would shed its political legacy of repression.
Candidates for the Nov. 8 election must submit applications by Friday, giving Mr. Shwe Mann little time to maneuver. It was unclear whether he remained a member of the Union Solidarity and Development Party, which the military formed under junta rule.
Thomas Fuller reported from Bangkok and Wai Moe from Yangon, Myanmar.
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hpoun kyaw
Hi All,
Please read the CNN's latest news of the bomb blast in the heart of Bangkok city. Such event leads a terrible blow to the tourism industry of Both Thailand & Burma. Who knows Burma will be the next? Our security system is to be tightened!
Best Regards,
Bangkok, Thailand (CNN)A huge bomb explosion that appeared to target a popular Hindu shrine in central Bangkok killed at least 22 people Monday and wounded about 120 more, authorities said.
Twelve victims died at the scene, and the others died later at area hospitals, officials said.
"It was like this huge gust of wind and debris flying through you," recalled Sanjeev Vyas, a DJ from Mumbai, India, who was in the middle of the fray. "... And then I see bodies everywhere, there are cars on fire, there are bikes everywhere. People are screaming."
Police spokesman Lt. Gen. Prawut Thavornsiri Tuesday morning told Channel 3 that at least 22 people had been killed, marking the latest incremental uptick in the death toll.
Foreigners are among the casualties, with the Erawan Emergency Center saying that a Filipino and Chinese citizen were among those killed.
National police Chief Somyot Pumpanmuang said on state TV that Chinese tourists who had traveled to Thailand from the Philippines had been killed. The Chinese Embassy in Bangkok later confirmed the report, telling China's state-run Xinhua that three nationals had died in the blast, while another 15 Chinese tourists were injured, some seriously.
Hong Kong's Immigration Department reported that three residents were among the injured.
Bangkok on edge after violent blast
It's too early to say who orchestrated the attack, Somyot said there had been warnings about possible attacks, if not exactly when or where they might occur.
Suspicious items turn out to be garbage bags
The device that exploded was a pipe bomb wrapped in white cloth, Somyot said, according to the state news agency. Police earlier described it as a 3-kilogram "improvised device."
The Thai police chief told reporters the bomb came from a motorcycle, though the Bangkok Post reported it was fastened to a utility pole.
Police have not officially stated whether they believe the bomb had a specific target.
Whatever its intentions, the damage was undeniable. Steve Herman, a correspondent and bureau chief for Voice of America, said he thought it was thunder when the explosion first went off.
He saw six bodies under sheets inside the shrine and one outside of it, Herman said.
Another reporter, The New York Times' Thomas Fuller, said body parts were scattered around the area. He estimated that several hundred military and police officials, some of them using dogs, were scouring the scene for more bombs.
Police initially sealed off the scene near the popular Erawan Shrine because, they said at the time, a second bomb in the area remained active and needed to be defused. Bomb squad members in blast suits responded, and an officer announced over a loudspeaker, "The situation is still not safe. Please all stay back. There might be another bomb in the area."
But Somyot said later the suspicious items were not bombs.
"They are just garbage bags," he said. "Our (explosives) team is still working at the site, and we will close down the traffic around the area until noon tomorrow."
Maj. Gen. Sirwara Rangsribhramnakul said security was subsequently tightened throughout the city. Asked how many security forces had been deployed, he replied, "As much as we have."
Busy area for tourists, commuters
The blast didn't cause immediate, rampant panic, as some bystanders were milling around peacefully and a family apparently unaware of the explosion was enjoying a meal at a nearby McDonald's, freelance journalist Adam Ramsey said.
Vyas, the Indian DJ, said he initially didn't know what to think of the explosion -- thinking, as his ears were ringing, that it seemed like a Hollywood movie or maybe a major car wreck.
"But then I was like, yeah, this has to be a bomb because of the utter scale of devastation," he said early Tuesday. "I could see it in front of my eyes."
With school out and many in the city commuting home at the time of the blast, locals were among those caught up in the mayhem. So, too, were tourists there to visit the shrine, shop in the mall or stay in the many area hotels.
"There was traffic, everybody was honking," Vyas recalled. "It (was) utter chaos and mayhem."
Along with hotels, there are numerous shopping centers in the area, Google Maps shows, including the Platinum Fashion Mall and Central World, reportedly one of the largest shopping malls in the world. The city's Skytrain rumbles nearly overhead.
The area was the target of another bombing in February when two explosive devices detonated near the entrance of a luxury shopping mall, Siam Paragon, 2013's most Instagrammed location in the world. The mall is just over a block away from the shrine. No one was injured in that blast.
Though Buddhism is the predominant religion in Thailand, there are many Hindu shrines in Bangkok, and the Erawan Shrine is the best known among them, according to an English-language website providing news and tourism information about the country.
Streams of people pay respects at the shrine from early morning until late at night. Thais and foreign visitors make ceremonial offerings, ranging from floral garlands and fruits to teakwood elephants in the hope their wishes will be fulfilled, according to another tourist site.
The shrine houses a golden statue of Phra Phrom, the Thai representation of Brahma, the Hindu god of creation. The shrine is so revered that Thanakorn Pakdeepol, a mentally ill man, was beaten to death in 2006 by two bystanders after they witnessed him vandalizing the statue.
Thousands of worshipers visit the site each day, praying for everything from good health to sports results. They light incense sticks and wai (bow slightly with palms pressed together) to each of the four faces of the statue. For extra luck, worshipers pay respect and money to the shrine's Thai dancers.
CNN's Mariano Castillo, Mark Phillips, Greg Botelho, Don Melvin and Ismail Wolff contributed to this report.
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