Thai monks don protective gear as COVID cases surge

BANGKOK - As COVID cases surge in Thailand, some Buddhist monks are donning PPE over their distinctive robes, delivering oxygen cylinders, taking nasal samples to help with testing, and even helping carry the dead to the crematoriums.

Thailand is struggling to contain its latest outbreak fuelled by the highly contagious Delta variant, leaving healthcare services stretched and further damaging a battered economy.

"There are a lot of Thais who are still ignored by the public health system," Mahapromphong, 33, the deputy abbot of Suthi Wararam Temple in the Thai capital, told AFP. 

"We take care of everyone we come across."

Since July 21 he has been working in Bangkok's poorer neighborhoods, distributing oxygen tanks, food and medical supplies to the needy as well as taking samples for testing.

Monks are highly respected in the Buddhist kingdom, and they were inundated with donations once word got out, he adds.

He learned how to do nasal swabs from the doctors and nurses working in his temple, which doubles as an isolation center for those infected with the virus. 

One man winced as Mahapromphong removed the swab and deposited the sample in a plastic pot.

"It's better to be safe than sorry," the man said, his eyes watering. 

"Monks are able to live because we rely on people's donation," Mahapromphong told AFP.

"So it's time for us to give back to the people. At the very least, we could encourage them to keep fighting."

Supornchaithammo, a monk at Chin Wararam Worawiharn Temple, helps with the grimmer task of taking the bodies to the crematorium.

"I'm willing to take the risk here," he said. "If I contract the virus then I'm ready to accept it without any regret."

'EVERYBODY NEEDS A HELPING HAND'

Thailand has reported over 597,000 coronavirus cases and more than 4,800 deaths.

The bulk of the new infections were detected since April, when the latest wave was sparked by a cluster at an upscale Bangkok nightlife district frequented by the politically connected.

Premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha's administration has been roundly criticized for its handling of the pandemic, from accusations of vaccine mismanagement to the lack of government compensation for affected sectors.

Monk Supornchaithammo says he never expected this to be his routine, but is happy to help.

"I didn't have it in my head that I would be doing something like this when I was ordained," he told AFP.

"But with a situation like this, everybody needs a helping hand and I'm proud to be here."

Agence France-Presse

Families claim their dead as Thais mourn 29 killed in mass shooting

NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand — Grieving relatives of 29 people murdered by a rogue soldier in Thailand held Buddhist prayer ceremonies Monday (Feb 10), as questions multiply over how and why the unprecedented shooting spree happened.

Holding portraits of their relatives and dabbing away tears, families of the victims arrived at a city morgue in Nakhon Ratchasima, better known as Korat, to carry home coffins bearing their dead.



The killer started his rampage on Saturday afternoon with weapons stolen from a barracks' arsenal, where he gunned down Mehta Lertsiri, 22, who was guarding the depot.

"I don't know what to do next," Mehta's grief-stricken grandfather, Udom Prapotsang, said outside of the morgue waiting to claim his body.

"His four-year-old son keeps asking why he can't call his dad. I will remember to tell him fond stories about his dad."

Flowers and messages of condolences mounted outside the bullet-riddled mall where a terrifying siege unfolded Saturday night.

The killer, armed with automatic weapons, held out for 17 hours as hundreds of shoppers cowered in toilets, storerooms and under tables.

"RIP Korat, we will not forget," said one of the condolence messages left in a growing tribute outside the Terminal 21 mall in the northeastern city.

The gunman - Sergeant-Major Jakrapanth Thomma - was shot dead by a commando unit Sunday morning, ending a rampage that left 29 dead and scores more wounded.

A Buddhist monk in orange robes led a prayer ceremony on a grass verge outside the mall for Peeraphat Palasan, who was shot dead as the gunman sprayed bullets into traffic, killing the 25-year-old engineer and causing his car to crash.

His father, Witoon, was among a dozen mourners crying, kneeling, hands clasped - some holding incense sticks - in prayer.

"My son had just finished work and came here to go shopping," Witoon said. "I never thought I would lose him so soon."

Lucky survivors have recounted hiding across the mall, keeping up to speed with the gunman's movements through friends on the outside and snippets of CCTV footage shared over messaging groups.

As Korat - and the country - mourned, there were growing questions about why the gunman went on a killing spree over an apparent private debt to a senior officer and how he was able to steal weapons, including an M60 machine gun, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Divisive Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha was hammered on social media for a tone-deaf response to the crisis during a visit to the city on Sunday where he posed for selfies, high-fived a crowd and smiled before shutting down questions from the media at a press conference.

"There should be no smiles, joking around and touching hands like people are your fan club," popular blogger Sorakon Adulyanon, aka Noom Muang Chan, said on Facebook.

Others drew unfavourable comparisons with the dignified response of New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to the Christchurch mass shooting last year.

As criticism snowballed, the gruff former army chief Prayut was prodded into a rare act of contrition late Sunday.

"We are all saddened by what happened," he said on his official Facebook page.

"I intended to offer my moral support ... my expression may have been misunderstood or made many people uncomfortable."

Agence France-Presse

Thai princess disqualified from list of candidates for PM

BANGKOK, Thailand — Thai Princess Ubolratana was on Monday formally disqualified for running for prime minister, ending her brief and ill-fated political union with a party allied to the powerful Shinawatra clan, just days after a stern royal command rebuking her candidacy was issued by her brother, the king.

Uncertainty and conjecture have coursed through Thailand since Friday when the Thai Raksa Chart party made the explosive announcement of Princess Ubolratana, King Maha Vajiralongkorn's elder sister, as their candidate for premier after the March 24 election.

Her tilt appeared to some to be a masterstroke of back-room dealings by Thaksin Shinawatra, the billionaire self-exiled ex-premier, just weeks before the poll.


But just hours later it fell apart.

A royal command from the king put a pin in her unprecedented political aspirations, insisting the monarchy was above politics and describing his sister's candidacy as "highly inappropriate."

Thailand's incredibly wealthy and powerful monarchy is revered by Thais and protected by a draconian lese majeste law. The king's word is seen as final.

On Monday the Election Commission formally scratched her candidacy.

"The EC today has announced the name of candidates excluding Princess Ubolratana proposed by the Thai Raksa Chart party," it said in a statement, explaining "all royal family members are above politics." 

Despite its brevity, the princess's foray into politics has electrified the political landscape of the country, as speculation over who wins and loses from her tilt ricochets across the kingdom.

Coups and plots 

Chatter of an impending coup against the ruling junta leader Prayut Chan-O-Cha and a major change in army top brass has billowed out, with the hashtag #coup trending in the top 10 on Thai Twitter.

On Monday junta chief Prayut on Monday was forced to dismiss rumours of an impending coup as "fake news."

"Rumors...? We're investigating. Fake news," he told reporters at Government House.

The gruff former general, masterminded a putsch against the government of Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin's sister, in 2014.

Meanwhile, a chastened Thai Raksa Chart, a key pillar in Thaksin's election strategy, agreed to comply with the royal command.

It may face censure by election authorities that could ultimately see it dissolved, although it was not clear if any ban could be in place before the election takes place.

Thailand's generals have a penchant for coups, backroom plotting and factional struggles.

They have grabbed power 12 times since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932, including against existing juntas seen to have over-stepped their mark.

Prayut has agreed to stand for premier after the election and is aided by an army-scripted constitution.

But critics say he has personalised power and outstayed his welcome with a public wearied by his finger-jabbing style.

The king appointed a new army chief, Apirat Kongsompong, last year from a rival faction of the army to Prayut and his junta allies.

Recent days have seeded unease, with the first election in eight years now seemingly dependent on behind-the-scenes power plays by the elite.

Meanwhile, the fate of Thai Raksa Chart hangs in the balance.

The party, a second to the Thaksin political powerhouse Pheu Thai, was expected to help the Shinawatra machine secure a majority in the 350-seat lower house.

But it is under intense pressure following its bid to bring in the princess.

"I think the party leader and board should take a responsibility by resigning," said Srisuwan Janya of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, a royalist activist group, who submitted a petition to election authorities Monday calling for the party's censure.

source: philstar.com

Thai protesters occupy finance ministry

Hundreds of Thai opposition protesters on Monday forced their way into the foreign ministry compound in Bangkok, occupying a second major government building, a ministry spokesman said.

The move came hours after demonstrators stormed the finance ministry in a dramatic escalation of their efforts to topple embattled Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.

"Several hundred protesters broke down the gate and entered the compound of the foreign ministry," said the spokesman, Sek Wannamethee.

"There were many civil servants working there at the time and they (the protesters) asked them to leave and not to return to work tomorrow."

The demonstrators were occupying the foreign ministry compound but did not enter the buildings, he said.

The mass protests against Yingluck and her brother, ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, are the biggest since 2010 when the kingdom was rocked by its worst political bloodshed in decades with more than 90 civilians killed.

The turmoil has raised fears of a fresh bout of street violence in a country that has been convulsed by several episodes of political unrest since royalist generals overthrew Thaksin in a coup in 2006.

Police said around 30,000 protesters opposed to Yingluck's elected government marched on more than a dozen state agencies across the capital on Monday including military and police bases, as well as several television stations.

Hundreds of demonstrators, spurred on by protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban, occupied buildings in the compound of the finance ministry, waving flags and dancing, according to AFP correspondents at the scene.

"Tomorrow we will seize all ministries to show to the Thaksin system that they have no legitimacy to run the country," Suthep said, addressing the crowd through a loud speaker.

Chanting "Thaksin get out, army come in," some of the demonstrators had earlier called for the intervention of the military in a country that has seen 18 actual or attempted coups since it became a constitutional monarchy in 1932.

The move comes after a boisterous rally on Sunday brought up to 180,000 anti-government demonstrators on to the streets of Bangkok, according to a revised estimate Monday from National Security Council chief Paradorn Pattanatabut.

Around 50,000 pro-government "Red Shirts" met overnight in a suburban football stadium in Bangkok in support of Yingluck and Thaksin, who remains a hugely divisive figure in Thailand.

The rallies are the biggest challenge yet for Yingluck, who swept to power in elections in 2011 on a wave of support from the "Red Shirts," whose protests in 2010 were crushed by the previous government.

Yingluck on Monday told reporters she would neither resign nor dissolve parliament despite the mounting pressure.

But experts said she is running out of room to maneuver.

"Yingluck's options are very limited. Something has to give this week. It will be very difficult for Yingluck to stay in office, let alone get anything done," said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, director of the Institute of Security and International Studies at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University.

The Thai capital has faced weeks of opposition-backed rallies sparked by an amnesty bill that could have allowed the return of Thaksin from self-imposed exile.

The amnesty bill -- which was rejected by the upper house of parliament -- also angered Thaksin's supporters because it would have pardoned those responsible for the 2010 military crackdown on their rallies.

Former premier Abhisit Vejjajiva -- now the opposition leader -- and his deputy Suthep face murder charges for overseeing the military operation, which involved soldiers firing live rounds and backed by armored vehicles.

In another blow to the government, the Constitutional Court last week blocked the ruling party's plans for a fully elected Senate.

The opposition Democrat Party is seeking to raise the pressure on Yingluck with a no-confidence debate on Tuesday -- although her party dominates the lower house and should comfortably defeat a move against her.

Thaksin, a billionaire telecoms tycoon-turned-politician, draws strong support from many of the country's rural and urban working class, but is loathed by the elite and the middle classes, who accuse him of being corrupt and a threat to the monarchy.

"Yingluck, Thaksin, their party and their corrupt system must go this week," demonstrator Thanabhum Prompraphan, 50, told AFP.

"This is real people power. We will stay peaceful ... whistles are our weapons," he said.

A series of protests by the royalist "Yellow Shirts" helped to trigger the coup that toppled Thaksin, who now lives in self-imposed exile in Dubai to avoid a prison term for corruption that he contends was politically motivated.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 85, is widely revered in Thailand but has been in ill health for several years and the palace has been silent over the organization of his eventual succession.

source: interaksyon.com

Thai king treated for minor brain bleeding

BANGKOK -- Thailand's deeply revered king, the world's longest reigning monarch, was treated for a minor brain bleed in the hospital where he has lived since 2009, the palace said Friday.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej's heartbeat and blood pressure had returned to normal following the incident, but doctors advised him to suspend public activities for the time being, the royal Household Bureau said in statement.

A team of royal physicians treated the 84-year-old on Thursday evening after he was observed with a "spasming of his right hand" and a "slightly faster heartbeatz

"Doctors used x-rays to examine his brain and found a small amount of blood had percolated through the left side of the meninges (the membrane around the brain)," the statement said. The king was treated with "medicine intravenously and after that the spasm stopped.”

The king's illness comes at a particularly sensitive time in politically turbulent Thailand, after a Constitutional Court ruling on Friday that threatened to reignite inflammatory divides in the nation.

The court, which had been surrounded by security forces ahead of the ruling, dismissed an opposition complaint against the governing party, which had faced a possible dissolution in the crunch verdict.

Any discussion of the royal family is extremely sensitive in Thailand, where the palace has been silent over the organization of the eventual succession.

The king was admitted to hospital in September 2009 for treatment of a respiratory condition.

His latest public appearance was Saturday July 7, when he toured the Chao Phraya river on a navy boat. His plans to travel to the central province of Ratchaburi on Sunday have been postponed.

source: interaksyon.com