Buddhists mark Visakha Bucha Day nationwide

     As Buddhists nationwide made merit at temples to mark Visakha Bucha Day yesterday, Her Majesty the Queen presided over the triple circumambulation around the Buddha relics - which had been moved from the Grand Palace to Sanam Luang - at 5.35pm. This followed a ceremony at Buddhamonthon in Nakhon Pathom at 4pm, where Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn represented His Majesty the King.

This year, the Visakha Bucha Day celebration, which commemorates the Buddha's three major life events - his birth, enlightenment and death - also marked the 2,600th anniversary of the enlightenment of the Lord Buddha, or Buddha Jayanti.

Prior to the triple circumambulation, the Queen listened to a report of the Visakha Bucha and Buddha Jayanti events from Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, and then attended the holy rituals.

Earlier in the morning, Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra led thousands of Thais to mark the special day by giving alms to 260 monks at Sanam Luang.

From 10.30pm until midnight, the Department of Religious Affairs and related groups hosted the "2,600 prayer rounds for the 2600year Buddha Jayanti" event at Sanam Luang.

Many Buddhists attended the activities Sanam Luang, which included the worshipping of Buddha relics, exhibitions on the Buddha's life, Dharma lectures and Buddhist practices as part of Buddhism Promotion Week and the International Day of Visakha Bucha in honour of Buddha Jayanti. Many also made merit at nearby temples such as Wat Sa Ket, where an alms offering to 119 monks was held in the morning, followed by a triple circumambulation around the Golden Mount pagoda.

Elsewhere, Buddhists in various provinces including Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Phayao, Lamphun, Si Sa Ket, Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Phanom and Surat Thani gave alms to monks in the morning and attended triple circumambulation rites in the evening.

Nakhon Si Thammarat also saw many people celebrating Visakha Bucha Day and Buddha Jayanti by making merit and attending the waterblessing of the main pagoda at Wat Mahathat Woramaha Viharn. They also covered the pagoda with two Royally sponsored holy cloths, featuring 29 pictures of the events of Buddha's life.

In Nakhon Ratchasima's Muang district, Privy Council President General Prem Tinsulanonda, in a speech at The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima, praised Buddhists celebrating the auspicious occasions, urging them to uphold Buddhism and lead their lives according to Buddha's teachings.

Gen Prem also served as the chairman for laymen in a greatmerit robe offering ceremony for various temples in the province. He donated Bt547,600 in cash to the ceremony.

Govt to extend registration system for migrant workers

A state committee on illegal migrant workers yesterday extended the nationality verification procedure for another six months, from June 14 to December 14. A resolution on this will be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration in two weeks.

Employment Department directorgeneral Prawit Khiangpol said the 11th MyanmarThai Conference for Cooperation held recently in Myanmar saw Thai and Myanmar officials discuss workers' nationality identification. This was because Thailand had some two million workers from Myanmar, including 800,000 who were illegal (not registered) and needed to verify their nationality by June 14.

Myanmar officials said so far nationality verification (NV) centres in Bangkok, Samut Sakhon, Samut Prakan, Surat Thani, Chiang Mai, Ranong and Chiang Rai had proven the nationality of 400,000 migrant workers, leaving 400,000 others waiting to register, so an extension was necessary, he said.

The department would thus ask the government to extend the NV offices for another three months, plus another three months for work permit applications. It would also ask the Interior Ministry to allow these migrants waiting to register to be allowed to remain in Thailand until December, he added.

Prawit said that the committee, chaired by Labour Minister Phadermchai Sasomsap, also resolved to extend the nationality verification procedure until December 14 for some 900,000 other workers from Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.

Prawit said there would be governmenttogovernment imports of Myanmar workers into Thailand according to demands from business operators. Thai business operators had requested about 80,00090,000 workers.

He said these workers would travel via Suvarnabhumi Airport and each would have to pay Bt4,500 - Bt1,900 for a work permit, Bt600 for a physical examination, and Bt2,000 for visas.

He said the cost of nationality verification was Bt1,050 per head if employers brought in workers to apply directly, while applications through 60 existing companies would cost Bt2,000 to Bt2,400.

After the earlier meeting with Phadermchai, Myo Thit, the deputy head of mission at the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok, told reporters the NV procedure in Myanmar would cost each worker Bt550 and that the Myanmar government wanted their people to come to Thailand through Memorandum of Understandings, which would cost both sides no more than Bt10,000 per person. He said that if any of the 100 employment companies in Myanmar charged a worker more than that their licence would be revoked and the firm blacklisted.

The Thai Labour Ministry says there are over 1.3 million legal workers from neighbouring countries currently working in Thailand -82 per cent from Myanmar, 9.5 per cent from Cambodia and 8.4 per cent from Laos - while many others have entered illegally to work here.

Mexican-Style Spaghetti and Meatballs

Ingredients


1 pound ground turkey

1 1/2 teaspoons Mexican-style chili Powder

1 teaspoon guajillo chile powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

1/2 Anaheim (New Mexico) chile pepper, seeded and minced

2 tostada shells, crushed into fine crumbs

1/4 cup bread crumbs



1 (16 ounce) package spaghetti



1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1/2 onion, diced

1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, finely chopped

1 (24 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce

1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix


Directions


Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place a sheet of aluminum foil onto a baking sheet, and lightly grease with cooking spray.

Place the ground turkey into a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with the Mexican chili powder, guajillo chile powder, salt, black pepper, and Parmesan cheese. Add the egg, olive oil, chopped onion, jalapeno pepper, and Anaheim pepper. Mix well with your hands until evenly blended, then sprinkle with the tostada crumbs and bread crumbs. Mix again until the bread crumbs are incorporated. Form the meatball mixture into 1-inch balls and place onto the prepared baking sheet.

Bake in the preheated oven until the meatballs have lightly browned and are no longer pink in the center, about 40 minutes. Turn the meatballs over after 20 minutes to ensure even cooking.

Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the spaghetti and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 12 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.

After you have flipped the meatballs, stir together the diced tomatoes, diced onion, chipotle chile, spaghetti sauce, and taco seasoning in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer 10 to 15 minutes until the onion is tender.

Once the meatballs are ready, stir them into the sauce, and cook 5 minutes longer. Spoon the meatballs and sauce over the spaghetti to serve.

Tipco launches charity to open educational centre in Chiang Rai village

  Located in Chiang Rai's Mae Fah Luang district, Ahai Village is home to about 350 Akha-ethnic people who are struggling to make do with limited resources and minimal access to educational opportunities.


A number of children at Ahai Village still lack learning materials and more.


Aware of their plight, Tipco Foods - the manufacturer of Aura mineral water - has decided to extend help to them and in a sustainable way, too.


Recently it launched the Aura Charity for Hilltribe Children project in the hope of bringing the goodwill and support of people in other parts of the country to the less privileged children.


Under the project, some portion of the money from the sales of Aura products' Charity Edition will go towards the construction of a learning centre at Ahai Village. This centre will feature a library, a playground, a multipurpose yard, a sports field, and a multipurpose pavilion. Inside the library will be books, DVD players, learning materials, and edutainment tools.


"We hope we are bringing to them something to change their lives for the better," Tipco Foods chairwoman Anurat Tiamtan said.


Because the project is designed to achieve sustainable benefits, it is not about just the handover of financial donations.


"The project is done in line with our corporate-social-responsibility policy," she said. Other CSR activities come in the form of scholarships, reforestation and more.


Anurat said the learning centre, overall, could benefit older residents of Ahai Village, too. This centre has provide books and space for them to carry out activities together.


Six celebrities have contributed to this project by offering "words of inspiration" that are now included on Aura's Charity Edition labels.


"The amount of happiness will be small and last just a while if you only use resources. If you learn to share, your happiness will be more and last long," is what Jayasaro Bhikkhu, a famous British Buddhist monk, has written for the Aura Charity for Hilltribe Children project.


Another contributor, a former Miss Thailand beauty queen Aeeya Sirisopa, has also supported the theme of "care to share".


Her words on the label read, "Compassion comes from a beautiful heart".


Other contributing celebs are MR Tanudsri Sawasdiwat, Thanpuying Pensri Vajarodaya, MR Janladda Yugala, and Nop-abha Dhevakula na Ayutthaya.


"Goodness may not be visible to the eyes but is always felt by the heart," Nop-abha, a singer, said on the label.


Janladda, a fashion designer, said she had joined this project because she believed the learning centre would enhance the hilltribe children's access to educational opportunities.


"Giving the source of knowledge is a great giving," she said at the event held to launch the Aura Charity for Hilltribe Children project.


Pensri said the learning centre would give sustainable benefits to children at Ahai Village. "We are responding to their needs," she said.


Anurat said she expected the learning centre from the project to promote children's development at the remote village and a care-to-share culture in the society.






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Red shirts told to fight 'attempts to unseat govt'

     Thousands of red-shirt supporters, who helped install Yingluck Shinwatra as prime minister in the July 2011 election, were told during yesterday's gathering at Muang Thong Thani to oppose attempts to unseat the government.


Ousted and convicted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra also addressed the red shirts through video link alleging that the process to undemocratically oust the Yingluck administration has begun.


"Today, people know what is what. The process of robbing people has begun again," said Thaksin, wearing a red shirt. Thaksin stressed that power must belong to the people.


He apologised to those red shirts who were upset with his previous speech, viewed as self-obsessed by some, and vowed to work for the benefit of all red shirts, including those still in jail.


"I must apologise. I had no intention to trample on the hearts of red shirts," he said. "We must not be disunited [amongst] ourselves."


Thaksin also attacked the Democrat Party by saying: "In Parliament, there is no uglier party [than the Democrat]," he said, referring to the two days of disturbances in the House earlier this week. Thaksin again denied he was corrupt while in power.


The red-shirt leadership urged supporters to fight what they claimed is the attempt to unseat the Yingluck administration through a coup d'etat or a Constitution Court ruling.


"All of you, come to Bangkok. Fight the decisive battle," said red-shirt co-leader Jatuporn Promphan, who was recently disqualified as a Pheu Thai MP.


"We don't need reconciliation with bad people. If we don't fight, PM Yingluck will face the same fate as Thaksin."


The special jam-packed "Truth Today" talk, at Muang Thong Thani's Thunder Dome, to celebrate its fifth anniversary saw some 5,000 red shirts in attendance.


Red-shirt co-leader and Deputy Agriculture Minister Natthawut Saikua warned that there are signs that the "power outside [democratic] system" may soon act.


Veerakarn Musigapong, former chairman of the red-shirt Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship (DAAD), said the Democrat Party has "completely revealed itself" over the past few days through the actions against the House Speaker inside Parliament and support for street protests outside Parliament.


He recalled that the red shirts had fought for liberty in the past.


He urged the red shirts not to divide Thailand into regions and work towards the unity of the country.


One red shirt, who participated in the event, said he believes there exists an attempt to unseat the government through public disturbances by the yellow-shirt People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and an eventual coup d'etat.


Next to the venue, a makeshift stand was set up by the Bang-Na red-shirt group where people could throw used shoes at the painting of opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva and his deputy Suthep Thaugsuban.






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Suu Kyi urges world to keep pressure on Nay Pyi Taw

Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is cautious about her country's future and is pinning her hopes on the international community ensuring that the military government's political and economic reforms remain "irreversible".


During an interview at the Word Economic Forum on East Asia 2012 yesterday, she said that the international community could influence reforms, which she believes should be used to improve the condition of all Myanmar people, including ethnic groups.


"I can't read their hearts or minds. We all have to make sure that they keep their word," she said at a press conference, adding that everybody should keep their promises. Since Myanmar President Thein Sein will probably step aside when his term ends in 2015, she said the future of the reforms really lies in the hands of his successor.


As for her country attracting investments, she said investors should monitor what is going on in the country, especially since much of the reform depends on national commitment.


"It's good to have optimism, but it should be cautious optimism. Now, it's reckless optimism. It's not good for you or for us," the 1991 Nobel Peace Laureate said.


Last week, the United States suspended some of its sanctions against Myanmar and Suu Kyi welcomed this as a "reward for good behaviour".


Since Myanmar will become the Asean chair in 2014, she said other members of the grouping should set standards for it to follow and explain what they want from the Asean chair.


"You don't get anything for nothing. There's no use in helping unless you engage in endeavour," Suu Kyi, who is also leader of the National League for Democracy, said.


Just as investors eye Myanmar's rich resources, the pro-democracy icon said both political and economic reforms need to go hand in hand. When asked if infrastructure or investment should come first, she said they must both come at the same time, adding that investors should demand that the government provide infrastructure in order to accommodate their investment, like road links.


However, she said, it was essential that companies ensure that the government establish the rule of law first.


"There are many good laws existing in Burma, but we do not have a clean and independent judicial system," she said, adding that without the rule of law, even good investment regulations would be of no benefit. "[But] I have to confess that not many in the government agreed with this reform. They don't see the urgent need for reforms," she said.


In terms of the investment law, which is at a draft stage, she said she would not know the details until the draft is ready. Under the current rule, it is difficult to amend the Constitution because it requires votes from every civilian as well as military backing.


Apart from the rule of law, she also stressed the need for better education and job creation. She asked for the international community to help find ways to improve the education system, which is in a "very poor" state. Just as the country needs more PhD holders, she said the secondary education level also needs to be improved and should include vocational and informal training. She said she understood that every investor's goal is to make profits, but she believes that if Myanmar's people were better educated, they could help investors benefit further.


Suu Kyi added that job creation was a top priority, especially for the youth who are spending their time drinking, abusing drugs and gambling. If jobs are created, then people can earn a decent living, which will empower them to fight for a true democracy. She believes that even the most basic of skills will allow the Myanmar public to reap benefits from the ongoing political and economic reforms.


She also emphasised the need for transparent investment policies, since corruption and income inequality are the country's two major issues. While Thailand is upbeat on the prospect of the Dawei development project, she said it was important that all bilateral projects remain transparent. Myanmar is as open to investment as it is to humanitarian aid, but the problem now is that the people are "completely kept in the dark" and have no chance to discuss the impacts, which can be dangerous for national reconciliation.


"Our country needs to benefit as much as the investors ... We do not want investment to mean greater inequality. And we do not want investment to mean greater privileges for those already privileged," she said.


She explained that she was not discouraged by the slow pace of reforms, and sees a high possibility for national reconciliation. She said that despite the diversity of Myanmar's ethnic groups, the gap is not "unbridgeable".


Suu Kyi, who has been allowed to leave her country for the first time in 24 years, warned the world that Myanmar's reform process is not irreversible yet. "It depends on how committed the military is to the process," she explained. "It depends on national commitment. All the people must be committed to improving the state of our country."


According to her, only national commitment will bring about reconciliation and improve her country's condition.






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Reconciliation bill debate put off as protesters block MPs entry into Parliament

A scheduled meeting of the House of Representatives yesterday to debate the reconciliation bill had to be postponed to Wednesday and Thursday after MPs were blocked by protesters from entering Parliament.


National Police chief Priewpan Damapong yesterday ordered the transfer of Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Lt-General Winai Thongsong to the Royal Thai Police headquarters, for failing to disperse the protesters, a source who did not want to be named, said. Caretaker commissioner of Provincial Police Region 1, Major-General Kamronwit Thoopkrajang, has been put in charge of the Metropolitan Police.


Meanwhile, a mass gathering of the red shirts is scheduled for 1 pm as a special episode of "Truth Today" when three of its leaders with varying political status come together. Veerakarn Musigapong's five-year political ban as a former Thai Rak Thai executive has ended, while Jatuporn Promphan is an MP, and Natthawut Saikua is a deputy agriculture minister in the Yingluck Cabinet.


The Democrats will today hold an anti-reconciliation bill mass rally at the square in front of Bangkok Metropolitan Administration headquarters at 5pm. Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva and chief adviser Chuan Leekpai will speak on how the draft law will whitewash wrongdoers and cause more conflicts in society, spokesman Chavanond Intarakomalyasut said.


The yellow shirts announced that they would rally again at 3pm on Tuesday at the Makkawan Rangsan Bridge.


Pitoon Poomhiran, secretary-general of Parliament, announced at 3pm yesterday that the House meeting will start at 1.30pm on Wednesday and continue until Thursday morning. Earlier, Pitoon said House Speaker Somsak Kiartsuranond had announced the postponement of the House meeting from 9.30am to 1.30pm. However, at 1.30pm, the meeting was postponed indefinitely as most of the MPs could not get into Parliament.


After leaving Pheu Thai headquarters for about 10 minutes, more than 20 vans supposedly taking the MPs, including Somsak, to Parliament had to turn back as they could not get past the rallying protesters.


The attempt of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) and the Multicoloured group yesterday was successful as their strategy of blocking roads prevented the MPs from entering Parliament.


The blocking started at 6am at the Karn Ruean intersection, where the Multicoloured group protesters settled down for their rally. There was some pushing and shoving between the protesters and the police as the police tried to surround them and block the way to Parliament.


There were no injuries as the PAD arrived on the scene and helped the Multicoloured group drive the police out and entrenched themselves in the middle of the junction. Only a few MPs got into Parliament - those who came early, or Democrat MPs who were allowed in by the protesters. About 700 police blocked the way to Parliament.


The House meeting in the morning was postponed as most of the MPs couldn't get into the House and the rally went on smoothly as they waited for PAD's leaders and Parliament president to assess the situation. Rumours were rife that the government was planning to move the parliamentary session to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the PTT headquarters on Viphavadi Road, Don Mueang Airport or even in Chiang Mai.


Around noon, there was a clear report that the Parliament president had decided to go back to the House and open the meeting at 1.30pm. This raised the temperature of the protesters and they prepared themselves to block the session. The PAD speakers' truck moved to the Kudtiya intersection to block the police vans carrying the Pheu Thai MPs from the party headquarters to Parliament, while the protesters at the Karn Ruean intersection prepared for a confrontation.


Finally, the police vans decided to return to the Pheu Thai headquarters as about 500 PAD protesters were blocking the Kudtiya intersection and about 200 of the Multicoloured Group were blocking the Karn Ruean intersection, completely sealing the approach roads to Parliament.


The protesters continued to rally at both intersections despite an announcement by the Parliament secretary-general in the afternoon, scheduling the next meeting on June 6-7.


Only about 20 Democrat MPs were in Parliament yesterday.






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