The government will provide the antiviral drug oselamivir to patients with influenza-like symptoms free of charge at private clinics around the country.
Meanwhile, foreign firms, embassies and international organisations will be allowed to stockpile oseltamivir for their emergency use against the pandemic of type-A (H1N1) flu.
The handout of free medicine is aimed at preventing more fatalities of people infected by the virus, which has already killed 71 people as of yesterday. Seven people are in intensive care units.
Over 800,000 tablets of oselamivir will be handed out to medical clinics by mid-August, Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai said yesterday.
"These clinics should not charge patients for oseltamivir as the government will foot the bill," he said.
Having concluded that some healthy persons died from the flu because they were not treated with the drug or were given it too late, the government is now encouraging doctors and clinics to dispense the medicine as soon as patients show serious flu symptoms.
Clinics that get the state-sponsored drug are also required to collect detailed information about their patients and use a referral system so that patients can be transferred to appropriate hospitals.
Initially, each clinic will get 50 tablets of oselamivir.
Medical Registration Division's director Dr Tara Chinakarn said only 8,700 of 17,000 clinics nationwide and 2,000 clinics in Bangkok are competent to dispense the antiviral drug to patients with flu-like symptoms.
Regarding the move to allow foreign organisations to bring in anti-flu drugs, the Public Health Ministry said local units of the World Health Organisation and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent, for example, are not required to register with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to import medicines at this time.
The FDA said each foreign organisation may import antiviral drugs for 20-30 per cent of their local employees. The drugs can be stored at a hospital and will be prescribed only by doctors.
In a related development, a 16-year-old girl who is two-months pregnant suffered a miscarriage after being infected with the type-A (H1N1) virus.
The Health Ministry is now drafting guidelines for physicians to provide special care for pregnant women who are admitted to hospital.
Dr Tawee Chotepitayasunon, head of the Public Health Ministry's influenza team, said the guidelines would be released next week.
However, he advised pregnant women to seek medical help immediately after developing flu-like symptoms, which include fever above 38.5 Celsius.
The Department of Mental Health said public panic over swine flu had lessened.
"We found that people in Bangkok had a better understanding than those living upcountry. That's a good sign in terms of communication [about the disease]," department director Dr Chatree Banchuen said.
The NAtion
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Govt to distribute free flu medicine through clinics
About 1,800 policemen to keep peace at red-shirt rally this evening
Metropolitan Police Bureau will deploy about 1,800 anti-riot forces to keep peace for the red-shirt rally scheduled for this evening at Sanam Luang, MPB commissioner Lt General Worapong Chewpreecha said on Friday.About 600 policemen will be on the grounds while the remaining forces will act as reinforcement if needed, he said.
The Nation
Cambodia, Vietnam to step up inspectorate cooperation
Increased cooperation between the government inspectorates of Vietnam and Cambodia would help the latter upgrade its system from central to local levels, said a Cambodian official.
This would in turn contribute to the successful implementation of the second phase of Cambodia’s 2006- 2010 economic development strategy, Minister of National Assembly-Senate Relations and Inspection Sam Kim Suor said while receiving a delegation led by Vietnamese Inspectorate General headed by Vice Inspector General Nguyen Van San in Phnom Penh Wednesday.
The Cambodian minister spoke highly of the practical assistance that the Vietnamese Inspectorate General has given to its Cambodian counterpart, especially in human resources training.
Both parties briefed each other on the political and economic situation in their respective nations, exchanged information on the role inspectors play in helping the government deal with complaints from citizens, and discussed measures to enhance bilateral cooperation between both countries’ inspectorates.
Source: VOV
Malaria: Artemisinin resistance continues developing in western Cambodia
Artemisinin, the "basis of the most effective" malaria treatment recommended by the WHO, took nearly twice as long to clear malaria parasites in patients in western Cambodia than it did in patients in northwestern Thailand, according to a New England Journal of Medicine study, which shows the "drugs are losing their power against the disease in Cambodia," Bloomberg reports (Bennett, 7/30).For the study, researchers at the Wellcome Trust-Mahidol University Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Program "compared the effects of artemisinin drugs in 40 malaria patients in western Cambodia and 40 patients in northwestern Thailand. On average, the patients in Thailand were clear of malaria parasites within 48 hours, compared to 84 hours for the Cambodian patients," according to HealthDay News/U.S. News & World Report (7/29).
"We do not see 100 percent resistance, but the parasite is much less susceptible to artemisinin than we are used to. If used in combination with other drugs we can still cure malaria but it takes a few days longer," Arjen Dondorp, the leader of the study, said, the Telegraph reports (Leach, 7/30).
For decades, scientists have known that the area near Cambodia’s border with Thailand, "is a breeding ground for drug-resistant malaria," according to Nature News (Sanderson, 7/29). Chloroquine "started to fail there in the 1950s and 1960s, before becoming ineffective elsewhere, according to the study. The WHO ... is coordinating efforts to prevent artemisinin-resistant malaria from spreading to Africa, which has 90 percent of the world’s cases of the disease," Bloomberg writes (7/30). In an accompanying NEJM editorial, PATH's Carlos Campbell, who was not involved the study, writes "that the results leave no question that there is artemisinin resistance in western Cambodia," according to ScienceNow (Vogel, 7/29).
In a separate study published in the same issue of NEJM, scientists used "chloroquine to protect people while gradually exposing them to malaria parasites and letting immunity develop," according to the AP/Washington Post. "The results were astounding: Everyone in the vaccine group acquired immunity to malaria; everyone in a non-vaccinated comparison group did not, and developed malaria when exposed to the parasites later," the AP/Washington Post writes.
"The study was done in a lab at Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, and was funded by two foundations and a French government grant," according to the news service. While, a "vaccine that uses modified live parasites just entered human testing," this particular study "was only a small proof-of-principle test, and its approach is not practical on a large scale similar," according to AP/Washington Post (Marchione, 7/30).
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
TYPE A(H1N1) - All flu patients must seek attention within two days
The Public Health Ministry yesterday advised people, even people with no underlying conditions, to seek medical help within two days of developing flu-like symptoms.
Meanwhile, a 57-year-old physician at Chiang Mai University's Faculty of Medicine succumbed to the flu, becoming the first victim in the healthcare industry, provincial health chief Dr Wattana Kanjanakamonsaid.
Wattana suspected that the unnamed doctor might have caught the infection from a patient.
Meanwhile, the ministry reported that a total of 24 people with no underlying diseases had died of the type-A (H1N1) influenza so far. The other 41 fatalities involved patients with chronic health problems. As of yesterday, the number of confirmed flu cases were 8,877.
Most of the deaths were caused by patients waiting six or more days before seeking medical attention, which meant that they did not respond well to the antiviral oselatmivir, said Dr Paijit Warachit, the health ministry's deputy permanent secretary.
People with no chronic diseases should wait no more than two days before seeking medical treatment, while those with chronic disease should head to the nearest hospital as soon as they develop flu-like symptoms, he warned.
Patients with severe flu symptoms need to consume oseltamivir within 48 to 72 hours after being infected in order to cut down the chances of developing severe pneumonia, which can be fatal, he said.
Ramathibodhi Hospital's Dr Sayomporn Sirinavin said the antiviral showed best results if taken within 48 hours. However, he said, it was not necessary to dispense the antiviral to patients with mild symptoms because they could develop a resistance to the drug.
Next month, the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation (GPO) will start producing 20 million tablets of the antiviral to help fight the outbreak, and decided last week to increase its stock of oseltamivir from 15 million to 55 million doses.
GPO director Dr Vithit Attavijjakul said it would take no more than 24 hours to deliver the drug in urban areas and 48 hours for rural areas. GPO is also reserving 50,000 oseltamivir tablets for its regional offices in Chiang Mai, Udon Thani and Hat Yai to distribute to 18 provinces.
GPO has also reserved 50,000 courses of the zanamivir, imported from Australia, for patients resistant to oseltamivir. The World Health Organisation reported that type-A (H1N1) cases resistant to oseltamivir have been found in Canada, Denmark, Japan and Hong Kong. So far, nobody has shown resistance to the antiviral in Thailand.
Source: The Nation
Resistance to Malaria Drug Reported in Cambodia
Malaria parasites in western Cambodia have become resistant to artemisinin-based drugs, a development that could put millions of lives at risk, researchers say.
Artemisinin-based drugs are the first-line treatment for malaria, which kills more than a million people a year, mainly children and pregnant women. Artemisinin causes fewer side effects than other anti-malaria drugs and, until recently, malaria parasites had no resistance against it, according to information in a news release from The Wellcome Trust.
In a new study, researchers at the Wellcome Trust-Mahidol University Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Program, based in Bangkok, compared the effects of artemisinin drugs in 40 malaria patients in western Cambodia and 40 patients in northwestern Thailand. On average, the patients in Thailand were clear of malaria parasites within 48 hours, compared to 84 hours for the Cambodian patients.
"Our study suggests that malaria parasites in Cambodia are less susceptible to artemisinin than those in Thailand," lead author Dr. Arjen Dondorp said in the news release. "This means that it takes longer to kill the parasites. Artemisinin should clear the parasites at an early stage, preventing them further maturing and reproducing. When the drug's action is impaired, it becomes more difficult to eliminate the parasites from the body."
The study appears in the July 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
"Artemisinins are essential weapons in our war against malaria," study co-author Nick White said in the news release. "If they become ineffective, we have no immediate replacement. The consequences could be devastating. Elimination of malaria will not be possible and millions of lives could be lost."
Source: Yahoo News
Germany injects over $1 mln to Cambodia, Laos for fighting against hunger
Fearing with the continued impact by global economic crisis, the government of Germany has provided another 1.3 million euros (approximately 1.8 million U.S. dollars) to Cambodia and Laos to fight against hunger. In a statement released Wednesday, German embassy in Phnom Penh said of the above total amount, one million euro was destined for Cambodia which is expected to help assist about one million Cambodians in 2009. It said the fund was donated through the United Nations agency, World Food Program for its operation in this country. The fund will help improve immediate food security and nutritional status of the Cambodian people while enhancing social stability through interventions in three priority areas: education, health and nutrition, and disaster risk reduction. In April, the U.N. Office in Cambodia issued a statement saying the country's positive trends of its economy will be slowdown after it has enjoyed over decade of increase. And less demand from foreign markets and reducing of foreign direct investment have forced a mass of people losing their jobs, such as in garment and construction sectors. The U.N. data also indicated some 80 percent of Cambodians are living in rural areas, and where many poor families depend upon migrant remittances as their major source of income. It is, then, citing fear that Cambodia's rural poor might adopt "unhealthy" coping measures such as reducing their number of meals per day or eating less-nutritious foods, and cutting back on health services. Safety nets in health, education, food, and work can help break the poverty cycle, it added in the statement. According to the World Food Program, Cambodia might need 76.3 million U.S. dollars for three years project in curbing with people in crisis. It said the project that began in January 2008 and which is due to last until the end of 2010 has, so far, received 33 million U.S. dollars or bout 43 percent of its appeal, and that Germany has donated 2.3 million U.S. dollars or 3.1 percent of the total donated fund.
Source: Xinhua
Cambodia's Crackdown Stirs Concerns About Legal System
A heightened crackdown on journalists and opposition activists in recent weeks by Cambodia's leaders has provoked new concern that the government is engaging in widespread abuse of the nation's legal system to muzzle its detractors.
Newspaper editor Hang Chakra is serving a one-year sentence in Phnom Penh's notorious Prey Sar prison for articles that alleged corruption among government officials. Opposition activist Moeung Sonn, who heads the Khmer Civilization Foundation, fled the country last month after being given a two-year sentence because government officials feared unrest when he questioned whether a new lighting system would damage the revered Angkor Wat temple. Last week, a court heard charges against Ho Vann, a member of parliament from the opposition Sam Rainsy Party who is accused of slandering 22 generals by questioning their academic qualifications.
And on Friday, a court is to hand down its verdict in a case against Mu Sochua, another opposition member of parliament, who is accused of defaming Cambodia's authoritarian prime minister, Hun Sen.
"I'm sure I will be found guilty, unless there is some magic in the air, and I don't feel that it is," Mu Sochua said in a telephone interview.
The cases have caused growing concern among human rights activists about Cambodia's legal system, which has long been accused of political bias.
"The Cambodian government is imposing its most serious crackdown on freedom of expression in recent years," Brad Adams, the Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement last week.
The case against Mu Sochua, a mother of three and former minister for women and veterans affairs, has brought the concern to a head because she is the first person to challenge Hun Sen so openly.
In a lawsuit, she accused Hun Sen of calling her "strong leg" -- a term considered derogatory in Khmer culture -- in a speech in early April. When he declined to apologize, she called a news conference and declared that his comment was an insult to all Cambodian women. That provoked a countersuit from Hun Sen. The courts have thrown out her lawsuit, but Hun Sen's is ongoing.
"If he allowed Mu Sochua to challenge him, other people might go down the same path. It is to make sure a second person won't try the same thing in the future," said Son Chhay, another outspoken opposition member of parliament.
Mu Sochua is fighting her legal battle alone. Her attorney withdrew last month after he came under government pressure, provoking a protest from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
"The government kept on slamming him with more and more penalties, and he was facing the end of his career," Mu Sochua said. "I am not going to put another lawyer through that torture."
If convicted, she is likely to face a fine of about $2,500. But, more important, she could lose the right to sit in parliament, and that could be Hun Sen's intent, analysts said.
His ruling Cambodian People's Party won 90 of 123 seats in parliament in elections last year, but analysts said Hun Sen could be using the courts to get rid of the opposition.
"He wants to put them out of business," said David Chandler, a history professor at Monash University in Australia. "The whole concept of pluralism hasn't got any roots in Cambodia. The opposition is almost, by definition, disloyal."
Son Chhay said the recent crackdown is a symptom of a government that is failing to address some of the pressing issues facing the country, including corruption, land seizures and economic stagnation.
"Although they control the institutions, they can't allow activists or the opposition to spread the issues -- that could bring disaster. Like many dictatorial regimes in the region, because they are unable to solve the problems, they resort to all measures to control the people and shut them up," Son Chhay said.
The government also is looking to pass a law that would limit demonstrations to 200 people and require permission from authorities.
In the early 1990s, the international community invested about $1.5 billion in a U.N. effort to restore civil government to a country that Hun Sen, a former member of the Khmer Rouge, had run since 1985.
The opposition fears that he is destroying fragile institutions that have taken years to build.
"What is really detrimental to Cambodia as a whole is that because he wants to make a point as a man, he is destroying so much we have invested in nation-building," Mu Sochua said. "It is not me on trial, but the judiciary of Cambodia."
Source: The Washinton Post
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
TYPE-A (H1N1) -Bt450 billion more to help fight virus
Ministry to spend Bt180m on buying respirators for hospitals nationwide
The Cabinet yesterday approved Bt450 million to help with the Public Health Ministry's fight against the type-A (H1N1) influenza outbreak now that the number of cases and deaths have surged rapidly over the past few weeks.
The ministry's deputy permanent secretary Dr Siriporn Kanjana said Bt180 million would be spent on purchasing 180 respirators, which will be distributed to hospitals nationwide. The ministry will also spend Bt9 million on 20,000 courses of the drug zanamivir for patients resistant to oseltamivir.Two weeks ago, the Cabinet approved a Bt850-million budget to buy vaccines and oseltamivir tablets. Of this, Bt600 million was earmarked for two million doses of the vaccine and the rest for the tablets.Siriporn, who pushed for the funds at the Cabinet meeting yesterday, said Bt50 million of the budget would be used to disseminate information to the public and to pay medical workers.To date, the type-A (H1N1) virus has infected about 8,600 people, killing 66 of them. At last report, 22 patients have died over the past seven days. The Public Health Ministry will be issuing an official update at its weekly press conference today.Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday asked the Public Health Ministry to provide him with a report about the outbreak and why fatalities were rising. A health expert from the ministry explained to the Cabinet that about 80 to 90 per cent of the fatalities were as a result of delayed treatment.Siriporn also raised concern about the fact that the number of seasonal flu cases had also risen drastically over the month when compared to the same period last year. The number of patients admitted to hospitals with flu-like symptom has doubled from 2,000 cases in last July to 4,000 this July.She added that the number of patients with flu-like symptoms has risen in regional areas while the number in Bangkok was stable and expected to drop.In a move to reduce the death toll, the ministry will today have clinics nationwide prescribe the oseltamivir antiviral to patients with serious flu symptoms, Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai said.Witthaya said he would meet provincial public health chiefs across the country to give them updates about the outbreak, and will give them guidelines on handling infections apart from sending the antiviral drug to clinics that wish to join the programme. Deputy Public Health Minister Manit Noppamornbhodi said 800,000 tablets of oseltamivir would be sent to 16,000 clinics nationwide, which averages out to 50 tablets per clinic, which should be adequate.Under the programme, which can be joined on a voluntary basis, clinics will be given oseltamivir provided they follow a set of criteria: prescribing the antiviral; continuously collecting information about the patient; and developing a referral system so patients can be transferred to hospital. Clinics also have to follow up on patients' symptoms after they consume the antiviral drug. In addition, each medical facility needs to be disinfected to prevent spread of the disease.Each physician will be required to attend training and must pass the assessment. Moreover, they must follow the ministry's guidelines when approaching patients.Manit said the pilot project has been up and running in Ratchaburi for a week now because it reported the second-highest number of fatalities after Bangkok. He said about 150 clinics in Ratchaburi had been given 50 oseltamivir tablets but every prescription of the drug will have to be reported to the ministry.Meanwhile, the National Health Security Office (NHSO) will invite healthcare providers, hospitals and clinics to inform them about the ministry's criteria in prescribing the antiviral. A 24-year-old woman, who contracted type-A (H1N1) influenza during her pregnancy, is still under close medical supervision at Chulalongkorn University. She was about seven months pregnant when the baby had to be delivered via Caesarean section. Her five-day-old baby is now getting healthier but is still kept in an incubator. The mother, meanwhile, is in a serious condition. "She has serious lung infections," the hospital director Dr Adisorn Patradul said. "She has become more dependant on the respirator".
Source: The Nation
Rights groups protest Cambodia 'AIDS colony'
Over 100 international and domestic pressure groups told Prime Minister Hun Sen and Health Minister Mam Bunheng in a letter they were "deeply disturbed" by the government's treatment of 40 HIV-affected families.
Over the past two months the government has evicted the families from Phnom Penh to live in metal sheds without running water or adequate sanitation at Tuol Sambo, an area 25 kilometres (15 miles) from the capital, it said.
"By bundling people living with HIV together into second-rate housing, far from medical facilities, support services and jobs, the government has created a de facto AIDS colony," said Shiba Phurailatpam, of the Asia-Pacific Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, in a statement issued by the groups.
Rebecca Schleifer of New York-based Human Rights Watch said: "The housing conditions in Tuol Sambo pose serious health risks for families living there.
"People living with HIV have compromised immune systems and are especially vulnerable. For them, these substandard conditions can mean a death sentence or a ticket to a hospital," she added.
The Cambodian government has faced mounting criticism of forced evictions throughout the country at the hands of the army and police, which a recent human rights report said has affected more than 250,000 people.
Evictions for development purposes have increased in Cambodia as land prices have risen over the past few years. Critics say the practice is fuelling poverty.
Thai Cabinet OKs THB1.4 Billion Financial Aid For Cambodia Road Project
The Thai Cabinet Tuesday approved a THB1.4 billion ($ 41.2 million) budget to provide financial assistance to Cambodia for its road development project.
The 30-year soft loan will charge interest at 1.5%, with the principal being repaid from 2019 onward, a government spokesman told reporters after a weekly cabinet meeting.
The project is expected to boost traffic volume between the two countries in both tourism and logistics.
Source: Dowjone
Monday, July 27, 2009
Death toll up 50% to 66 in a week
The death toll from type-A (H1N1) influenza rose to 66 yesterday, after the virus claimed 22 more lives during the seven days since the last report.
The Public Health Ministry will issue the official update at its weekly press conference tomorrow.The ministry announced last Wednesday that fatalities had hit 44 since the disease broke out in the country in May. Infections now number 6,776.Deputy Public Health Minister Manit Nopa-mornbodi said about 30 per cent of the fatalities could be blamed on delayed treatment. Some victims had wanted to stay home or sought medication at a nearby clinic rather than going to a hospital to undergo treatment, he said. This was why the virus had spread to their lungs so rapidly.Manit said he had ordered the ministry to investigate drug distribution to hospitals operating under its responsibility across the country.All hospitals must stock an adequate supply of medicine and distribute antiviral drugs thoroughly.He also asked the National Health Security Office to invite private hospital and clinics to discuss medical services that follow the ministry's standards.To date, more than 2.8 million tablets of oseltamivir out of the 6.23 million available have been delivered to hospitals around the country.The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation will produce 40 million more antiviral tablets to build up inventories.Alarmed at the surge in infections and fatalities, the Public Health Ministry has decided to allow private clinics nationwide - and not just hospitals - to prescribe the oseltamivir directly to patients with flu-like symptoms on a trial basis.The pilot project has been under way in Ratchaburi for a week, since the province reported the second-highest number of fatalities in the country with seven. Bangkok has the highest number. The results from this project will be used as a guideline for clinics nationwide.The ministry's advisory committee on a strategy for public health and medicine, chaired by leading virologist Prasert Thongcharoen, also met with health experts to discuss the distribution of antiviral drugs to clinics, which would help patients with flu-like symptoms access the medicine faster.
6% OF CLINICS TO GET DRUGA health expert, who wanted to be unnamed, said the committee would draw up the ministry's specific criteria for clinics to prescribe the antiviral drug for flu treatment.The source said those clinics volunteering for the project would be asked to register with the ministry. Physicians at the clinics must be trained by the ministry in antiviral prescription. They will be required to send reports about the amount of antivirals in stock and the amount prescribed.There is no need for every clinic in the province to store the antiviral drug. Only 6 per cent of all clinics in a province will be required to carry the medicine for type-A (H1N1) flu treatment.However, there is no regulation to ban clinics from keeping a supply of oseltamivir, the source added.
Source: The Nation
Thaksin to launch 'Voice TV' network
Fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra has decided to spend more than Bt1 billion in setting up a global television network called "Voice TV", which will start airing from next month, a Pheu Thai Samut Prakan MP said yesterday.
During his phone-in on Sunday night, the birthday boy said he would launch television channels devoted to education, the poor and selling Otop products.
Pracha Prasopdee said the network will be linked to People's Station and MTV and can be viewed on the already existing http://www.voicetv.co.th/ website.
Though the MP refused to reveal which satellite will be used to broadcast Voice TV, he did say that the government would not be able to block its signal.
After having travelled to several countries to gather information, do feasible studies and to talk to businessmen, diplomats and academics over the past three months, Thaksin will be putting his plans in action next month, he said.
In fact, Pracha said, Thaksin might even host his own television programmes.
The Voice TV website, run under the motto "Voice of New Generation", broadcasts Thai and foreign news shows including latest updates on Thaksin and links to his speeches like his phone-in on Sunday to mark his 60th birthday.
Pracha said the website would focus on inspiring the new generation to express themselves and share their opinions, which would offer society new opportunities.
Pheu Thai Party's deputy leader Panpree Pahittanukorn said the party would be happy if the government helped materialise Thaksin's idea of launching three TV channels for Thai citizens because it would not require huge sums.
"We have proposed the idea, and if this government does not want it, it doesn't matter because when we take over we will make it part of the national agenda," he said.
The "big surprise" that Thaksin had promised was revealed on Sunday when he said he was planning to launch 100 TV stations that could be watched across the globe.
He said these TV stations would prove that his support for Thai citizens was still strong, and that three types of shows ready for kick off were related to selling Otop products, tutoring students and soliciting funds for the poor.
Source: The Nation
Mentors for Cambodians
KUALA LUMPUR: The Asean Law Association of Malaysia will play host to eight officers from the Justice Ministry of Cambodia from Sunday under the Asean Students’ Exchange Programme. Asean Law Association of Malaysia Standing Committee chairman for the programme, S. Radhakrishnan, said the officers will be attached to four senior lawyers for a week. “They will be staying in the home of the lawyers who will help them understand the legal system in Malaysia.” He said the association would consider extending the programme to other Asean countries based on the success of the pilot project.
The project will be launched by Chief Justice Tun Zaki Azmi at the Royal Selangor Club on Monday.
Source: Newstraitstimes
Thai protesters urge gov't to withdraw from Thai-Cambodian statement on Preah Vihear
A group of Thai people following up the Preah Vihear dispute rallied in front of the Government House Monday morning, calling on the government to withdraw from a joint Thai-Cambodian statement issued on June 18, 2008. The joint statement, which supports Cambodia's unilateral listing of the ancient temple as a world heritage site, was signed by then Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama without prior consent of the parliament, according to the Bangkok Post's website. The government should formally inform the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the world community about the Thai withdrawal from the joint-Thai-Cambodian statement, said the group led by Walwipa Jaroonroj, an academic at the Institute of Thai Studies at Bangkok's Thammasat University. Thailand should step up its opposition to Cambodia's unilateral registration of Preah Vihear as the world heritage site, otherwise Thailand could lose its sovereignty over the 4.6-square-kilometer border area, said the group. The disputed area of 4.6 square kilometers along the Thai-Cambodian border has never been demarcated as the two neighboring countries have historically laid claim to the dispute-border site. The area is located on a mountaintop on the Thai-Cambodia border, and it is easier to be accessed from Thailand. The International Court of Justice ruled in 1962 that Preah Vihear temple belonged to Cambodia.
Source: Xinhua
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Baby may be the first to be born with type-A (H1N1)
An infant girl delivered prematurely at Ratchaburi hospital was born infected with type-A (H1N1) influenza - possibly the country's first mother to child transmission of the infection, medical authorities revealed yesterday.
"This is the country's first case study," said Dr Adisorn Phattaradul, director of Chulalongkorn hospital which admitted the 24-year-old mother from Ratchaburi province on Saturday.After the baby was born prematurely last Tuesday her mother developed a severe form of type-A (H1N1) influenza before being transferred to Chulalongkorn - the country's leading medical school - to receive special care.She is now in a critical condition with severe pneumonia. Doctors say the virus has spread to her lungs and she is on a respirator in the intensive care unit. They have given her the antiviral drug oseltamivir and sleeping pills to help her recovery.Meanwhile, her newborn daughter is in a baby incubator and has also been given antiviral drugs. Doctors say her lungs are now normal but they are worried the virus might affect her brain. Dr Lelanee Paitoonpong, an infectious disease specialist of Chulalongkorn University said: "Mother to child transmission of type-A (H1N1)flu in this case was only an assumption."She said to reduce the risk of getting a severe form of flu-like illness, pregnant women should avoid close contact with people with symptoms and keep clear of public spaces.They should also wear face masks to prevent infection, she added.To date, Thailand has 6,776 reported cases of type-A (H1N1) influenza which has killed 44 victims nationwide.Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has assured the public adequate stockpiles of antiviral drugs and vaccine are on hand.He said the Public Health Ministry is now improving its methods to help patients with flu-like symptoms to access treatment faster.Deputy Public Health Minister, Manit Nopamornbodi said the ministry will today send 980,000 health care volunteers to screen patients for severe forms of type-A (H1N1) symptoms in villages and communities to reduce cases of infection and death.
The NAtion
Thailand-After the birthday bash, what's next?
It was a day when superstition, high technology and artistic creation blended almost perfectly together. And arguably only Thaksin Shinawatra can make that happen.
Rituals - from basic to extraordinary - were conducted at various temples all over Thailand, barring the Democrat-dominated southern region, to mark his 60th birthday. Red-shirted members gave alms to monks in the morning and then had their faith in Buddhism strongly tested by taking part in ceremonies that could have made Lord Buddha shake his head.
The came the "twitter" exchanges between Thaksin and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and the much-anticipated "big surprise". There was no hologram nor concrete reconciliation announcement, and analysts could only watch wide-eyed when a video of Thaksin singing a specially-composed song, "I'll be back", was played and described as the "big surprise" everyone had been talking about.
In all, Thaksin's "sae yid" events were meant for superstitious results as much as political ones. Holy knives were used to "cut" his karma (sins). Clods of earth were gathered from eight directions and blessed in order to reinforce his stars. His photo was attached to a coffin in a "sadoh kroh" ceremony to dispel his misfortunes. Overturned monks' bowls were put right side up to signify that the boycott he had endured would come to an end. One of his portraits was bound with thorny wintergreen branches, which were later cut off. Wintergreen's name in Thai is rakam, which also means suffering.
Politically, Thaksin has shown his opponents that his support in Thailand remains strong. This can also go a long way to repairing the international damage to his reputation from the Songkran events. Thaksin over the past few days has tried to repaint himself as a peaceful man and erase the image of the belligerent one whose rabblerousing helped shove the country to the brink of bloodshed in April.
Whether or not those political aims of his "sae yid" events will be met, the latest Abac poll gave him a narrow edge in popularity against Abhisit for the first time in months. Abhisit, who remains more liked in Bangkok and the South, sent Thaksin an ambiguous tweet saying the former leader would be happier on his birthday if his eyes could see dharma. Thaksin gave a polite twitter thank-you reply that ended with "If you need any help on national affairs, I'm pleased to help".
As with various Thaksin big shows, yesterday's events carried various objectives so he must have met some targets. But since a person can have only one birthday a year, the question after the sae yid parties has to be "Now, what's next?"
Thaksin - Thaksin celebrates his 60th with a ballad
Ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra phoned in yesterday to croon "I shall return" as a highlight of his birthday party steeped in religious symbolism at Kaew Fah Temple in Nonthaburi.
About 1,500 well-wishers showed up at the event, hyped up as replete with hi-tech wonders such as the beaming of Thaksin's hologram from Dubai, but it turned out to be low-keyed.While a slideshow featuring his formal presentation of robes to monks was projected on the screen, Thaksin started his phone-in by belting out the ballad about his fugitive life in exile."I thank you for attending my 60th birthday. May the boon from the merit-making ceremony bring you prosperity and happiness and I wish the merit made today will allow me to return home to serve you once again," he said.Thaksin's sister Yaowapha and her husband Somchai Wongsawat chaired the ceremony, with several political figures in attendance such as Deputy House Speaker Apiwan Wiriyachai, Pheu Thai MPs Udomdet Ratanasathien and Pracha Prasopdee, and Pheu Thai spokesman Prompong Nopparit.The rite commenced with 10 monks chanting about overcoming bad karma. Full-sized images of Thaksin were posted in eight directions, with his supporters standing as guards. After the chanting ended, the pictures were pulled off and placed facing north, a symbol of victory.Later four monks presided over the ceremony designed to exorcise Thaksin from his bad karma.A senior monk and Somchai joined in wielding a sacred knife to cut loose thorny sala vines, called rakam or suffering in Thai, in a move supposed to signify liberating Thaksin from bad luck. Throughout the acts of religious symbolism, monks chanted under a black-tiered umbrella blessing the pictures depicting Thaksin shielded by blessed ropes.The monks also performed the ceremony of receipt of robes for the living as well as the dead. The entire ceremony involved 109 monks.After banishing Thaksin's bad karma, the monks proceeded to chant over face-up alms bowls, believed to lift the curse from face-down bowls reportedly laid by revered monk Luangta Mahabua.Following the religious rite, Somchai set cattle free as part of the merit-making. He also placed eight coins in each monk's alms bowl. Eight is believed to be a lucky number for Thaksin, who was born on a Tuesday.Some 5,000 motorcycle taxis provided free rides for well-wishers, participants and workers to the ceremony.Many people paid Bt100 for a set of offerings to be placed on a mock coffin, in a show of help for Thaksin to overcome his plight.As the ceremony drew to a close, the monks made holy water. People rushed to read the candle drippings floating on the water for winning lottery numbers.After Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva in his weekly TV address reminded the birthday boy to come to terms with his fate so he could be happy, Thaksin posted a thank-you note on Twitter for the premier's birthday message.In several provinces around the country, birthday parties were organised by red-shirted supporters for Thaksin.In Sing Buri, Pheu Thai MP Payap Panket held a merit-making ceremony with nine monks.Payap set up a table for his constituents to endorse the petition to ask for a royal pardon for Thaksin.In Udon Thani, red-shirt co-leader Kwanchai Praipana gave alms to 102 monks to make merit for Thaksin.He asked about 1,000 well-wishers to sign a birthday card which he said he would personally deliver to Thaksin in Dubai.In Chiang Mai, red-shirt organisers held a religious ceremony to wish Thaksin a long life at Rong Tham Samakki Temple in San Kamphaeng district, his birthplace.In Chanthaburi, about 200 red shirts presented robes to monks as part of merit-making.Somchai said he wanted everyone to focus on the merit-making rather than superstition."The countering of bad karma is up to individual belief and should not be anticipated as a fix," he said.Thaksin's overcoming his problems was not dependent on the symbolic ceremony, he said.People could decide on their own what they wanted to do on Thaksin's behalf, he said, referring to the petition.The signature campaign was an expression of the people's feelings toward Thaksin, he said, adding that he had no opinion regarding the legality or appropriateness of seeking royal clemency.
Source: The Nation
Thailand-Now, the real "big surprise"
Preamble: Michael, I know you are resting in peace, but if by any chance talks about your memorial service being overhyped have annoyed you, point your critics toward Thailand. Rub it in their faces by asking "Have I ever held a birthday party like that you sorry nitpickers?"
If this whole intro makes me sound like a big nitpicker myself, sorry. It's true that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva launched his hi-5 account a few years ago and I didn't say a word. And there are the likes of President Obama when twitter is concerned. But trying to organise a birthday party of the century and promoting it this way three months after our close shave with a bloodbath? I guess we have the right to be a bit sceptical and anxious.
It is believed that Thaksin will use the occassion to repaint himself as a peaceful man now ready to forgive and forget. That's the only strategy left apparently, after the Songkran turmoil damaged his pretty fine image overseas. He became a tainted good, and a shrewd businessman like him always knows what to do with a tainted good. You don't throw it away. Just add a few new features and relaunch it.
Merit-making events will take place nationwide barring the South. What message he will convey to his supporters and how he will convey it have been a subject of speculation, thanks to his close aides' claims that there will be a "big surprise".
Rumours that he would appear in the form of a hologram have been dismissed but still persisted. We expect some kind of video footages of him making merits in Dubai to be shown one way or another to his supporters to make them feel he is "there" with them.
Events will take place in about a dozen provinces, starting in the morning. Focus will be on the Kaewfah Temple in Nonthaburi, the Uthai-tharam Temple on the Rama IX Road and a public venue in Roi-et. And just because the whole thing is about relaunching a political product doesn't mean it won't be superstitious. Religious ceremonies, according to news reports, include using a holy knife to "cut" or remove karma from Thaksin. I must have been a bad Buddhist because this is the first time I know we can do that.
So, a rumoured hologram and a holy knife will make Sunday quite interesting, if not "exciting" as promised on Thaksin's twitter. My update will start around 10 pm so please stay tuned.
In the meantime, I have compiled some speculations on what the "big surprise" will be. The link is here. http://http://www.nationmultimedia.com/search/read.php?newsid=30108234&keyword=tulsat
Sunday, 10.10 am: Good morning everyone. Red-shirted members have been reported to rise up early in some provinces to give alms to monks. In Nakhon Panom, some 300 people took part in a solemn merit making insisting that they came together because of their love for Thaksin. Some 50,000 Nakhon Panom residents were said to have signed the pardon-Thaksin petition.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, in his weekly TV programme, said it was alright for Thaksin to hold such a large-scale "sae yid". "I guess he just wants to be happy," he said. Nice beginning, but then a little swipe. "If his eyes can see dhamma (Buddhist principles) now", Thaksin should know what to do, Abhisit said.
The prime minister woke up to some unpleasant news. His popularity rating, according to an Abac poll, is now one percentage point below Thaksin's (32.9 per cent against 34. It is quite a drop from March when the prime minister enjoyed more than 50 per cent rating whereas Thaksin's was barely above 20 per cent.
Still no more big news about the "big surprise", except that some of his aides claimed the thing would be so touching it would make you cry. Also, Thaksin is expected to heavily touch upon the government's "failure" in handling the swine flu.
On the superstition front, earth garthered from "all the eight directions" will be used in a ceremony to re-inforce Thaksin's stars. Is this against Buddhist teachings? No problem, a Buddhist monk in the province said, because this was a Brahmin ritual that had nothing to do with what Lord Buddha taught.
11 am: Meanwhile, Guinness World Records officials may have been invited to Chiang Mai because birthday organisers said they planned to break a world record on the number of cakes being brought to a birthday party. They plan to have 2,492 people bring one cake each, but it seems the auspicious number is in danger of being overwhelmed by other enthusiastic supporters who also want to bring their cakes. They want a piece of cake in the cake campaign, so to speak.
Reports are starting to come in from various provinces where Thaksin birthday celebrations are taking place. But morning activities have been mostly the same, with people giving alms to monks and performing basic Buddhist rituals. The Kaewfah Temple, hailed as the centre of celebration venue, has been crowded with red-shirted people.
Meanwhile, speculation that Thaksin would display humbleness as the big surprise has all but evaporated after his phone-in on Saturday. He vowed to come back to restore his reputation and "Thailand's dignity" which he said was destroyed by what happened to him over the past few years.
Thaksin is said to have been very touched by a song written for him, prompting new speculation that he would sing "I'll be back" for his supporters today as the big surprise. This matches the claims that the big surprise would be something so touching that tears will flow.
At a temple in Lampang, a "Ngai Baad" (To put an overturned monk's bowl back up) ceremony has been held. Since to overturn a monk's bowl (Kwam Baad) means to disown or boycott, the purpose of this ceremony is obvious.
12.10 pm: Former Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, who is Thaksin's former brother-in-law, has joined the ceremonies at the Kaewfah Temple, where a "Ngai Baad" ritual has also taken place.
A lot of "Thaksins" are seen at the temple _ people wearing his masks, a human-sized cut-out of his photo, and a coffin bearing his picture. (Coffins are often used in "sadoh kroh" rituals to repel bad fortunes or turn them into good ones.)
Since private cars are not allowed to park inside the temple, red-shirted members have to park outside, causing quite a traffic nighmare around the venue.
More details on the Abac poll, Abhisit remains much more popular than Thaksin in the South and is still more popular in Bangkok. Thaksin, of course, scores big in the north and northeastern region. In his weekly TV programme, Abhisit said he was not worried by "democratic" competition to increase popularity, but he deplored attempts to block government politicians from many pro-Thaksin constituencies.
In Chiang Mai, rituals have taken place in several locations. One highlighted ritual was to "cut" or remove his karma.
3 pm: It's official now, or so it seems. The "big surprise" is Thaksin singing "I'll be back" in a video footage played out to his supporters at the Kaewfah Temple, who sang along.
Not much else happened when I got stuck in the rain and traffic. We have got hold of Thaksin's written birthday wishes. It was a short message written in his own handwriting. "If you ask me what I wish for on my birthday, I'll say I want to see national reconciliation and strong health and longevity for His Majesty the King," it said.
Thaksin is also known have twittered Abhisit, apparently in response to the latter's "If his eyes can see dhamma" statement. "I'd like to say big thanks and give you my full support for solving national problems. If there's anything I can do, I will be really pleased to help."
Well, I have to admit that both messages sound very nice indeed, which leaves us wondering why it still feels so miserable politically.
4 pm: I know many of you are dying to know the song's lyric and translation, so, here they are. (I did a quick translation, so please forgive any mistake). As to who composed it, we only know it was a "very well-known artist".
Hamill set to testify at Khmer Rouge trial
New Zealander Rob Hamill will testify as a victim on 12 August at the Cambodian war crimes trial of the Khmer Rouge commander of the camp where his brother was killed.
Rob’s appearance at the Extraordinary Court of Cambodia trial of Khaing Khek Iav, AKA ‘Comrade Duch’, comes almost 31 years to the day after Kerry Hamill and Englishman John Dewhirst were snatched from their storm-blown yacht, and fellow sailor Canadian Stuart Glass was killed, on 13 August 1978. Kerry and John were tortured for two months at ‘Camp S21’ and forced to falsely confess they were CIA spies, before being executed on the orders of Pol Pot.
“I expect to experience the widest possible range of emotions when I see Duch,” says Rob, one of two Western victims to testify, “a lot of nervous energy will be expended.”
“Duch says he is sorry and wants forgiveness, but I want to find out whether he truly understands the impact of what he did and the damage he caused.”
“I’m not sure that he does comprehend what he and the Khmer Rouge did to the people of Cambodia, let alone to the families of Kerry, John and Stuart.”
The story of Rob’s search for justice for his brother and his friends is the subject of ‘Brother Number One’, being produced by Annie Goldson, James Bellamy and Rob for Pan Pacific Films, funded by NZ on Air and TV3, with conditional financing from the NZ Film Commission. Annie, an internationally renowned film-maker, is also directing, with Emmy-nominated Peter Gilbert and Kiwi cinematographer Jake Bryant as Co-Directors of Photography. See http://bno-documentary.blogspot.com/ for more info.
The Extraordinary Court of Cambodia is a court under Cambodian jurisdiction but with United Nations’ assistance. Former New Zealand Governor-General Dame Silvia Cartwright is one the judges. See http://www.eccc.gov.kh/english/ for more info.
Rob Hamill is widely known for winning the first-ever Trans-Atlantic Rowing Race in 1997 with the late Phil Stubbs. He currently works as a motivational speaker, as an organiser of ‘The Great Race’ international rowing event on the Waikato River, and is elected to the WEL Energy Trust. He also campaigns for environmental causes and was the Green Party candidate for Taranaki-King Country in the 2008 General Election.
Rob Hamill will not be directly available for further comment, please make all inquiries to the contact below.
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