Hatyai Before & After Dark :- Info-sharing & FRs

[No-go]

jus when business in hdy is picking up after last year bombing..comes another whammy. it will take months before tourists dare to visit hdy again.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Hat Yai blast victim dies

The first victim of coordinated bomb attacks on the major southern city of Hat Yai on Sunday night has died in hospital.

Suchart Sae-tang, 60, who was injured in the blasts on Sunday night, died at the Hat Yai hospital from critical wounds to his skull and brain.

4 of the other 12 injured persons were released from hospital yesterday, medical authorities said.

National Security Council secretary-general Prakit Prachonpachanuk said he believed the blasts were aimed at stirring unrest rather than killing people - although 13 people were killed and wounded, several critically.

Police, meanwhile, said eyewitnesses have helped them sketch a bomb suspect. Investigative teams were scheduled to meet on Tuesday morning to discuss the case.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Hat Yai blasts seen as political - New bomb in packed wet market kills four

The Council for National Security (CNS) and the acting police chief were at odds with the Special Branch yesterday over who was behind Sunday night's bombings in Hat Yai.

Pol Gen Seripisuth Temiyavej and a CNS spokesman both refused to rule out a political motive, while the Special Branch was confident the seven explosions were linked to the southern insurgency.

Meanwhile, another bomb went off at a market in Saba Yoi district of the same province early yesterday, killing four people and wounding 26.

CNS spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said after a meeting of the council that the low power of Sunday night's blasts led to the suspicion that insurgents might not be the ones planting the bombs.

Unlike previous bombs planted by insurgents in the deep South, the explosions in Hat Yai seemed intended to stir up trouble, rather than targeting lives of people.

Col Sansern said while the explosions could have been set by insurgents, they could also be the work of people who were losing political power. But with only sketchy evidence, he refused to link the Hat Yai bombs to the New Year explosions in Bangkok.

Pol Gen Seripisuth said it was too soon to conclude insurgents were to blame. ''The explosive devices were different from those used in the far South,'' he said.

Seven explosions went off in Hat Yai about 9pm, injuring 13 people, two of them seriously. Four of the injured were released from hospitals yesterday.

Deputy police chief Pol Lt-Gen Adul Saengsingkaew was ordered to travel to the city, in Songkhla province, to try to shed light on the blasts. Pol Gen Seripisuth promised police would have the answers within days.

A security source in Hat Yai said evidence from the blast scenes showed the bombs could be the same type as went off in Bangkok on New Year's Eve.

Police Region 9 chief Lt-Gen Jettanakorn Napeepat sided with Pol Gen Seripisuth, saying the bombers' goal was only to cause irritation instead of targeting people.

Police artists were sketching pictures of suspects and they were waiting for images from security cameras, he said, but refused to give more detail.

Pol Lt-Gen Rapeepat Palawong, commander of the Special Branch, was firm in his belief southern insurgents had planted the bombs in Hat Yai.

He said a police intelligence report two days before the blasts had warned of two youngsters from the three southern provinces sneaking explosive devices into Songkhla.

''That's the only information we had and we couldn't dig deeper than that,'' he said.

The Sunday night blasts could be insurgent revenge for the arrest of a woman on Saturday, he said. The woman was suspected of involvement in the bombing in Hat Yai in September last year.

An explosion at crowded wet market in Saba Yoi district, Songkhla, about 3.30am yesterday killed four people and wounded 26. The dead included two children, one only four years old.

Chief of the district police Pol Col Thammasak Vasasiri suspected the homemade bomb was triggered by signals from a mobile phone on a parked motorcycle.

Songkhla Chamber of Commerce chairman Chavalit Kalumpaheti admitted the Hat Yai explosions would probably hurt the tourism industry, which was only slowly recovering from September's airport bombs. He called for urgent measures to ensure the safety of residents and tourists, before visitors left for good.

The city has 400 entertainment venues and almost 10,000 hotel rooms. It is a popular place for Malaysians and Singaporeans. Hotel occupancy has dropped by 54% over the past three years.

President of the Hat Yai and Songkhla Hotels Association Somchat Phimtahapoonporn said more hotels would close down if the situation in the city did not improve soon.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The STAR dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Explosions hit Haadyai spots favoured by Malaysians

ALOR STAR : Several locations usually frequented by security officials and Malaysian tourists were the targets in the recent explosions that rocked the suburbs of Haadyai in southern Thailand.

The JB Hotel and Garden Home Hotel that were targeted in the attack on Sunday were “designated” hotels for security officials from Malaysia and Thailand.

The Nai Nang Restaurant, where two bombs exploded in the toilets, was a popular restaurant frequented by Malaysian tourists.

Four other targets that were hit were the Siang Tueng Foundation, Tesco Lotus, Big C Superstore, and Phesat drug store.

According to Thai police sources 13 people were injured in the incident. None of the victims were Malaysians.

Police have detained two suspects, believed to be from southern Thailand, to facilitate investigations.

However, separatists from southern Thailand denied any involvement in the bombing.

“We have asked around. It was not done by any of us. Even the RKK (Ronda Kumpulan Kecil) denied any involvement,” said a separatist leader. RKK are insurgents who operate in small groups.

Separatists claimed that those with a political agenda probably masterminded the coordinated attacks.

“We believe the bombings are linked to the Constitution Tribunal ruling on May 30. The fate of the Thai Rak Thai and Democrat parties, which face election fraud charges, will be known on that day.

“Those with a political interest want to create chaos days before the ruling,” said the separatist source.

Thai police also suspect that the attacks were politically motivated, but they had not ruled out separatist involvement.

Thai army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratkalin was quoted as saying that the bombers intended to create a disturbance rather than cause deaths and major damage.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Sunday's blasts in Hat Yai deal further blow to Thai tourism

The series of explosions in Hat Yai on Sunday has had an immediate effect on tourism. Travellers from Singapore and Malaysia have cancelled trips, while those from Australia and the Middle East are considering postponing.

There are calls for government assistance to boost local and foreign investor confidence and that of consumers.

State agencies and other organisations yesterday agreed the attacks would hit tourism but expect a limited overall economic affect.

Bank of Thailand Governor Tarisa Watanagase admitted confidence in the South has been low for some time, but the bombs aggravate the psychological effects.

Her deputy Atchana Waiquamdee said the bombs worsened fragile confidence and would dampen tourism in the region, which had started to recover at the beginning of the year.

She expected a similar impact on the industry to that felt after the 2005 Hat Yai International Airport bombing. Trade will remain sluggish, as usual, she said.

Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA) president Apichart Sankay said hotels, restaurants and entertainment businesses in Hat Yai would see a slow down. Many of the centre's visitors are from Singapore and Malaysia and have already cancelled bookings weeks ahead. Moreover, many arrivals cut short visits and are returning home, he said.

Singapore and Malaysia are the region's biggest markets and often make weekend visits to enjoy entertainment.

According to Apichart, the number of local meetings and conferences in Hat Yai had gradually declined as a result of political uncertainty in the South.

"Hat Yai has been in its low season for months. Average hotel occupancy is below 40 per cent. These explosions will reduce that," Apichart said.

He added seasonal tourists - particularly from Australia and the Middle East - worry about the blasts. Many are taking a wait-and-see approach and others will cancel trips.

"So far, ATTA has not received any cancellations from overseas,'' Apichart said.

ATTA reported it was business as usual at tourist destinations such as Phuket, Samui and Krabi. Arrivals are increasing.

Hat Yai and Songkhla Hotels Association president Somchart Pimthanapoonporn said the explosions would damage tourism in the long term.

"It's just the next morning and the tourists are gone. I believe the business will be hit hard in the long term, too," Somchart asserted. Hotel occupancy is less than 20 per cent and the blasts could chop that by 5 per cent, he said.

Hat Yai hotels have increased security measures.

Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade chairman Pramon Sutivong noted the blasts could hamper economic growth in the South.

The chamber's chairman in charge of deep-South economic development Somkiat Anuras said Songkhla wanted its 12 districts not in the government's special economic zone to be included.

The chamber will ask the government to provide more soft loans to hotels and manufacturers.

The chamber wants to meet with Deputy Prime Minister Kosit Panpiemras to discuss South worries. The chamber and 107 associations will demand measures to boost consumer confidence "because the economy relies on sentiment".

Federation of Thai Industries chairman Santi Vilassakdanont said the bombs would definitely affect tourism and other economic sectors.

"People in the area want government confidence boosters for life safety and asset security rather than tax incentives for investment," he said.

He suggested the government speeded installation of closed-circuit television cameras at Hat Yai and enforced regulations such as banning motorcycle pillion passengers.

Deputy Industry Minister Piyabutr Cholvijarn believed the blasts would not affect the overall investment picture.

Foreign investors usually adopt a long-term plan, he said. More worrying for them is labour skills, government policy and investment support.

In the first four months of this year, the Board of Investment received applications for tax breaks for Bt200 billion in projects. Machinery imports totalled Bt120 billion.

Piyabutr said throughout the year the combined value of all applications would reach Bt500 billion.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Bombs 'like those in Bangkok' - Blasts created a lot of noise but not much physical damage, police say

The latest spate of bombs in Hat Yai will certainly shove this southern commercial centre further towards a crisis and prolong its attempt to regain its status as a popular destination for Malaysian and other tourists.

This culturally rich town where Malay, Chinese and English languages are spoken, has never been the same since it was rocked by bombings in April 2005 and September last year.

But unlike previously, Thailand's top security officials have refrained from speculating that insurgents from the deep South were behind the attacks on Sunday night.

This differs greatly from before, when police were quick to point the finger at a group of zealous militants for a string of high profile attacks, including the April 2005 Hat Yai Airport bombing, and the blitz in Yala three months after.

Police named Faisal Haji Isma-ae and Abdul Kamae Saleh as the heads of this militant cell.

Because of the choice of targets and the scale of the damage, authorities said the 2006 Hat Yai attacks had crossed a new threshold. The six simultaneous bomb blasts killed four and injured about 70 people in crowded areas popular among local and foreign visitors. The implications went far beyond the Muslim-majority South, where the ongoing violence has claimed more than 2,200 lives since January 2004.

Some speculated that the 2006 "hit" was a sign of things to come: militants would target high-profile places to create the greatest possible psychological impact, now that they had struck in Hat Yai.

History has shown that successful attacks usually lead to bigger, more lethal dramas.

But the seven bombs last Sunday didn't seem to fall in that pattern.

However, this could well be a simple exercise in tactics.

Hat Yai streets were more or less emptied of Malaysian tourists, who were well on their way back home when the bombs went off. Moreover, none of the bombs had shrapnel and all appeared to have been small and quickly assembled.

Authorities said Sunday night's bombs were similar to those in Bangkok recently: lots of noise and political headaches, but not much physical damage.

With or without the insurgency in the far South, history has shown that Hat Yai, like many other border towns, has long been a battleground for influential figures fighting over control of illicit activities.

Given the fact that Hat Yai is not far from the boundaries of the troubled region - about 100km north of Pattani and about 50km east of Saba Yoi district, where another fatal bomb was detonated at a fresh market yesterday - it is understandably tempting to link any disturbances to the ongoing insurgency.

Coming up with a convincing answer as to how the mess in Hat Yai can be understood will be just as difficult in finding the culprits behind these attacks, who not only inflict death and injuries, but also cripple the local economy.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Tuesday 29 May 2007 :-

Bomb hurled into Hat Yai hotel

Violence in Songkhla continued Tuesday with a bomb being hurled into the High Season Hotel. Fortunately, the bomb dropped into a small canal in front of the hotel causing only minor damage. There were no reports of casualties.

However, a victim of Sunday's bomb attacks in Hat Yai today succumbed to his injuries.

Doctors said the bomb attacks on Monday killed four people and injured more than 30 other victims. Of them, three were in critical condition.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Wednesday 30 May 2007 :-

Another bomb explodes in Hat Yai

Hat Yai Two days after bombs exploded at seven locations in this provincial capital, another bomb went off near a hotel in the city yesterday. There were no casualties.

The explosion occurred about 1.45pm in front of the High Season Hotel on Ratyindee Road.

The explosion caused the temporary closure of the road. Nearby shops and banks suspended services for more than two hours.

Police said the remains of the homemade device found at the blast scene bore similarities to those used in Sunday's bombings, which injured 12 people.

One of Sunday's victims died yesterday. Songkhla's Narenthorn emergency medical unit said Suchart sae Tang, 60, succumbed to his wounds.

At least 30 youths armed with weapons, riding on motorcycles and in cars, stormed into Ban Kuanran village in Saba Yoi district of Songkhla shortly after midnight yesterday. They shot bullets into the air and at villagers' houses before fleeing. Nobody was hurt.

Apart from intimidating locals, police believed the youths aimed to challenge authorities and mark a success following an explosion at the market in the district township.

On Monday, an early morning bomb at a crowded wet market in Saba Yoi killed four people and wounded 26.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[ProfessorOokami]

With all these incidents, Southern Thailand is now more or less another "Wild wild west" where near lawlessness prevails....

BTW, today is JUDGEMENT DAY in BKK...a high possibility of TRT getting deregistered and banned which can spell a big trouble for Thailand. Its tourism industry will be damaged beyond repairs if riots get underway....What a pity.

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Friday 1 June 2007 :-

6 held for Hat Yai bombings

Hat Yai : Police have arrested 6 Muslim teenagers believed to have been involved in the multiple bombings in Hat Yai on Sunday night.

The teenagers were apprehended in Hat Yai during a raid on a house in tambon Kuan Lang on Wednesday night.

Deputy police chief Pol Lt-Gen Adul Saengsingkaew led a team of investigators back to the house yesterday. They found electrical wires and digital clocks that appeared to link the gang with the bombings.

Traces of explosive powder were found on the hands and fingernails of two of the youths, identified as Afandi Samae and Saidi Mamu, police said.

The team found electrical wire, traces of explosive powder, chemical substances and a clock timer. Police were gathering more evidence from the house as they believed that the youths were probably involved in the bombing.

Seven bombs went off on Sunday night, killing one person and injuring 12 others.

The area is still struggling to revive its tourism industry after six bombs went off in the tourist district in September last year, killing four people and injuring 82.

In Pattani, about 2,000 Muslims demonstrated in the compound of the main provincial mosque, calling on the government to remove all military ranger units from Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat and to lift the curfew in Yala's Yaha and Bannang Sata districts.

About 200 Muslim women and children again blocked the Yala-Betong road to push for the arrest of security officers accused of shooting dead five people and wounding eight others at Ban Pak Di in Bannang Sata district on April 9.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from The Nation dated Friday 1 June 2007 :-

Bloody night in Southern Thailand

10 soldiers were killed last night when a powerful roadside bomb exploded in Yala's Bannang Sata district shortly before 10pm.

In a separate incident in Songkhla just a few hours earlier, 5 people were killed when a unknown number of gunmen fired at people at an evening market in Saba Yoi district.

The remote-controlled bomb was set off as 10 Army rangers were travelling past in a pickup truck along a back road linking Yala and Betong.

They were returning to their camp from crowd-control duty at a protest by local residents, Army spokesman Colonel Acra Thiproch said.

2 soldiers who survived the explosion later died at Yala Hospital. A hunt is under way for the culprits as authorities have received a lead from former insurgents who have surrendered, according to the spokesman.

The frequency of roadside bombing targeting soldiers in the restive deep South has increased over the past month.

A roadside bomb in Narathiwat 3 weeks ago took the lives of 7 soldiers on their way back from duty.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Monday 4 June 2007 :-

Singaporean faces drug charge

Songkhla - Customs officers have seized 9,900 ecstasy tablets, worth about eight million baht, from a Singaporean man entering Thailand through the Sadao checkpoint.

The man, identified as Tan Lee Huad, 61, was stopped as he travelled in a bus through the checkpoint, Regional Customs Bureau 4 director Rakop Srisupaart said yesterday.

Mr Tan allegedly smuggled the drugs, known as yah ee, from Singapore to Malaysia and had planned to sell them to an agent in Songkhla's Hat Yai district.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Tuesday 5 June 2007 :-

Saboteurs stop all trains to Yala

Train services between Hat Yai and Yala were suspended indefinitely after saboteurs damaged several sections of the track and caused a derailment which injured 14 passengers yesterday morning.

The engine and three leading carriages of the Yala-Nakhon Si Thammarat train tumbled down an embankment between Pattani and Na Pradu stations in Pattani's Khok Pho district.

Six lengths of track were tampered with. Dozens of nuts and bolts were removed and the sleepers were burned.

Thanongsak Pongprasert, the state railway's director for train services in the South, said it was not known when services would resume.

A full track inspection was under way and repairs had begun.

In the meantime, trains bound for Yala, Pattani and Sungai Kolok in Narathiwat province will end their trip at Hat Yai junction in Songkhla. Passengers who had booked to travel farther on the Yala line could seek refunds.

He said the injuries to passengers were minor. Damage to the locomotive and carriages was put at more than 10 million baht.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Wednesday 6 June 2007 :-

Saboteurs remove bolts on rail tracks

Insurgents removed more than 80 bolts on railway tracks in Yala and Narathiwat provinces, a day before trains in the restive South were scheduled to resume operations.

Sixty-four bolts were removed from Raman-Balor Station while 17 others were taken out from Balor-Rueso Station.

Railway staff said insurgents intended to derail a train when it crossed the Sai Buri River in Raman district.

Police were alerted of the insurgents' act by villagers who saw them removing the bolts.

Authorities will carefully check all the tracks before train service is allowed to resume.

Train services between Yala and Hat Yai districts had been suspended since Monday after saboteurs damaged several sections of the track which caused a derailment that injured 14 passengers.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork

[KatoeyLover69]

Report from Bangkok Post dated Friday 8 June 2007 :-

High security as South trains resume

Trains in the deep South resumed operating on Friday amidst tight security, three days after saboteurs damaged sections of tracks and caused a derailment that injured 14 passengers.

The first train that resumed service was the Hat Yai-Sungai Kolok service between Songkhla and Narathiwat provinces. It left Hat Yai at 6.30 a.m. as scheduled.

Soldiers, rangers and police have joined forces to patrol stations and junctions along the tracks.

In Narathiwat, insurgents detonated a remote-controlled bomb when a group of soldiers, part of a teacher escort group, was patrolling. Two soldiers, aged 22 and 25, were wounded by the blast.

Police said the five-kilogramme bomb was buried under an electrical pole and was detonated when six soldiers on three motorcycles were passing the spot.
--- KatoeyNewsNetwork