Showing 1 - 10 of 383
Living over troubled waters
Spectrum, Tunya Sukpanich, Published on 01/01/2012
» Obstructions along canals in Bangkok and nearby provinces are commonly cited as a major factor behind this year's flood disaster. However, clearing them has proved a thorny issue for authorities as it means not only removing debris and sediment, but also tearing down people's makeshift homes.
Myanmar's rising drug trade
Spectrum, Phil Thornton, Published on 12/02/2012
» Professor Des Ball pushes plates of what is left of a roast duck and barbeque prawn dinner to the side as he spreads a large map across the dinner table and stabs his finger at a point where northern Thailand meets Myanmar.
Is it 'Alien' or 'Avatar' in Kaeng Krachan?
Spectrum, Supara Janchitfah, Published on 19/02/2012
» Last July the mysterious crashes of three military helicopters in the space of a couple of weeks riveted the country's focus on Kaeng Krachan National Park, the nation's largest in Phetchaburi province. Much less attention was given to another dramatic series of events around the same time affecting ethnic Karen-Thai inside the park. These culminated in raids by park officials in which a total of 90 of their homes and rice barns were burned down. The ethnic Karen and their advocates say the National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation Department is conducting a campaign to drive them out of the park.
Are zoos cashing in on tiger trade?
Spectrum, Tunya Sukpanich, Published on 26/02/2012
» Trade and trafficking in tigers and tiger parts in Thailand drew international attention following the seizure of 400kg of tiger meat and carcasses in Bangkok's Khlong Sam Wa district earlier this month. It's remained a thorny issue in Thailand despite global efforts to save the animals from extinction.
Uphill fight means 'people's bills' remain a pipedream
Spectrum, Supara Janchitfah, Published on 04/03/2012
» In 2005, Prue Odochao and 90 other forest dwellers made the long march from Chiang Mai to Bangkok's parliament building to voice their opposition to a bill that they had first submitted in 1999. They said the amendments to their community forest draft bill by MPs and senators violated the spirit of the draft, which was intended to formalise community management of forests, a way of life in forested areas for centuries.
Grime and punishment: deluge victims still bailing out battered homes
Spectrum, Published on 04/03/2012
» There is a line scarring almost every building, post and fence along the northern and western outskirts of Bangkok. Brown, filthy and marinated in mould _ it jumps across highways and canals, staining walls, poles, pillars and fences, stretching across 30 of the capital's districts. It is the water mark of last year's floods, and often the only physical reminder of the fears continuing to reverberate throughout affected communities.
Voices of the silent
Spectrum, Ezra Kyrill Erker, Published on 11/03/2012
» Last Thursday was International Women's Day, an occasion that for a century has served for people to demand greater civil rights, representation and equality; to honour wives, mothers and girlfriends and the accomplishments of women; to call for an end to global hunger and poverty; and, increasingly, to highlight the plight of refugees and the displaced.
TAXES IN THAILAND Part XII: Who has to pay? _ part 1
Spectrum, Published on 11/03/2012
» We've received many questions from foreigners in Thailand, asking whether they need to pay taxes for work done in Thailand but for which the payment comes from abroad.
Army deserters in dire battle to hunt for homes abroad
Spectrum, Published on 08/04/2012
» Ko Aung is worried. He's read and heard about the reforms in Myanmar. The by-elections are over, and Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy (NLD) won 43 of 44 seats. The international community, including UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, welcomed the result.
Hopes few for slum dwellers drowning in 'ocean of meth'
Spectrum, Frank Lombard, Published on 29/04/2012
» The police tend to call communities with substandard housing "red zones", while others call them slums. There are over 400 in Bangkok. One thing nearly all have in common is that they are saturated with amphetamines. Ask residents and they will tell you that most everyone except the very young and very old is on ya ba. Yes, there are some who abstain and no one gives them any problems.