Showing 1 - 10 of 59
How women pay the costs of development
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 11/03/2018
» Heading down a dirt road, Khampan Suprom zigzags her motorcycle through the grove, passing a small reservoir and plantation on the way. She comes to park under some trees. Dressed in her gardening apron and rain boots, she dismounts and drifts towards her vegetable garden.
Health care on life support
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 26/11/2017
» Thailand's universal healthcare coverage (UHC) scheme is confronting its most critical time since its introduction in 2002. For over a decade, the scheme has been praised all over the world for its achievement in providing healthcare access to over 48 million out of 66 million people, filling the gap left by the social security scheme and civil service welfare.
Weathering water's extremes
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 12/11/2017
» Since downpours from the North swept down into the central Chao Phraya River basin early last month, people are fearfully bracing for the next big flood to hit Bangkok. The Thai government tells the public it is making a concentrated effort to ensure the capital will be protected from future flooding. Despite the heavy rainfall this year, leaders have dismissed the possibility of another flood like 2011's.
Priced out of prosperity
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 29/10/2017
» Shortly after the bell sounds, the open-air canteen of the garment factory on the outskirts of Maha Sarakham town starts to fill up. The workers get in line as they chat and eye cheap eats, welcoming a moment of midday rest after working for four long hours in the morning.
Shinawatras leave a tainted legacy
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 03/09/2017
» When former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra failed to show up at the Supreme Court just before the verdict of her trial for alleged malfeasance on Aug 25, it portended an uncertain fate for her Pheu Thai Party.
Where the rubber meets the road
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 27/08/2017
» When one considers the life of a farmer, perhaps they picture peaceful, slow-paced living on a pretty rural property. But for many farmers, this serene image rests at odds with the daily struggles that they face.
Stars get struck for speaking out
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 13/08/2017
» The social media world has been swept in patriotic sentiment since singer Suthita "Image" Chanachaisuwan, 19, posted a complaint about Thailand's poor public transport last week. After waiting two hours to catch a bus home in Bangkok, she was driven to tweet her frustration: "What's a lousy country. It's not going to improve in 50 or even 1,000 years from now … Now shoot me."
A kerbside view of Thai politics
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 16/07/2017
» On the day the doors of Phitsanulok Mansion were opened for Chalerm Changthongmadan, he felt his existence was recognised for the first time in his life.
Victims or criminals?
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 11/06/2017
» We live in two overlapping worlds -- one is safe, the other is not. This is the motto of drug users arriving at the house in the "white zone", as they put it.
Through a screen darkly
Spectrum, Paritta Wangkiat, Published on 13/11/2016
» In recent years, if you are Thai, you may have encountered an argument about which social class you belong to or how you define others -- probably as a nationalist, liberal, conservative, pro-military, royalist, red or yellow.