Thailand News Today, Friday, March 13, 2020 – Daily TV News

Thai health minister has a slash at ‘dirty farang’

Thailand’s Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is at it again making public disparaging and xenophobic comments about ‘white’ foreigners (farang).

This time he’s warned his fellow Thais about the foreigners fleeing their own countries for the ‘safe haven’ of Thailand.

“Today I visited Chiang Mai and noticed that there are almost no Chinese tourists. All you see are ‘farang’. Not only that, but 90% of Thais are wearing masks. However, none of the farang are wearing masks This is the reason our country is being infected all around. We should be more careful of the farang than Asians.”

“At the moment it is winter in Europe and farang come to Thailand to hide from the disease. Many farang dress dirty and don’t shower. As hosts we have to be very careful.”

Last month the Minister was pilloried for his other racist comments about white foreigners when he said “They need to be kicked out of Thailand!”… when they weren’t wearing face masks at a PR event at the Siam BTS station.

“Little ghosts” going home

Some of the Thai nationals dubbed “phee noi” (little ghosts), who recently returned from South Korea and were quarantined at a naval base in Chon Buri’s Sattahip district are today being sent back to their hometowns.

Public Health Ministry and Royal Thai Navy officials agreed this week that many of the migrant workers can be released. Reuben Tuck reports…

(Reuben audio)

Thailand confirms five new coronavirus cases

The Public Health Ministry confirmed five new Covid-19 coronavirus cases this morning in its daily press briefing.

The new cases take the total number of infections in the country to 75 since January. 34 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospital. Yesterday there were 11 new cases announced and the day before, 5.

Thousands laid off, millions of baht lost as Chiang Mai elephant camps close

Elephant businesses in Chiang Mai and elsewhere in Northern Thailand are being wiped out in their dozens by the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak.

Most have closed their doors and laid off thousands of staff. Those that remain open are haemorrhaging money, according to local operators. The chairman of Mae Taeng Elephant Camp and a spokesperson for the industry, says 85 of Chiang Mai’s 94 camps and parks have shut down.

“We used to have 1,000 tourists a day. Now there are 50 Thais or Europeans. Break even would be 400.”

Thai Airways president and Suvarnabhumi chief resign

Two of Thailand’s most prominent aviation bosses have thrown in the towel, citing the Thai government’s bungling of the Covid-19 coronavirus situation.

Both resignations happened yesterday. The president of Thai Airways resigned yesterday afternoon. That corporate bombshell was closely followed by the resignation of the director of Suvarnabhumi International Airport. At this stage the Thai government has not responded to the high profile resignations.

Both Thai Airways and Suvarnabhumi have been on the frontline of managing the government’s botched implementation of travel restrictions, punctuated with changes of mind and reversals of policy announcements relating to travel restrictions and quarantine requirements. The situation has caused a messy blancmange of ministerial announcements, contradictions, non-clarifying clarifications and confusion for domestic and international travellers.

The Director of Suvarnabhumi airport says his decision was to take personal responsibility over the escape of 80 workers from South Korea from a health checkpoint at the airport last week.

Soldiers sent to fight forest fires in the North

With Chiang Mai again declared the world’s most polluted city today, and with air quality worsening across northern Thailand, soldiers from Royal Thai Army 3rd Army Region have been deployed to detect and fight forest fires.

Forest fires and agricultural burning, both in Thailand and neighbouring Cambodia, have created extremely poor air quality levels.

The newly deployed fire-fighting rangers are being sent to fire-prone areas around Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Lampang. They will be patrolling for fires and arrest anyone they find starting them.

Local media report that 456 hot spots were found across Chiang Mai Province this morning alone.