Latest news with #SakchaiLalit
The Star
01-06-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Ousted PM Hasina charged with crimes against humanity in Bangladesh tribunal
FILE - Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina reviews an honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the government house in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, April 26, 2024. -- AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit NEW DELH (Bernama): Bangladesh's ousted prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has been charged with crimes against humanity in a Bangladesh tribunal over the killing of protesters during last year's mass uprising against her rule. Hasina, who fled to India in August 2024 after her regime crumbled following weeks of protests, is being tried by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) of Bangladesh. The tribunal filed formal charges against Hasina and some of her associates on Sunday. "The probe body has brought five charges against the mastermind of the crimes and superior commander Sheikh Hasina, former home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and former inspector general of police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun," ICT chief prosecutor Muhammad Tajul Islam was quoted as saying by state news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS). About 1,500 people died in the student-led protests that ended the Awami League party's 15-year uninterrupted rule. "The investigation agency seized records of telephonic conversations of Sheikh Hasina, in which she repeatedly confirmed that she ordered all the state agencies to eliminate innocent civilians peacefully protesting for a fair demand, using helicopters, drones and APCs (armoured personnel carriers)," the chief prosecutor said. Armed members of the Awami League and its associate bodies like the Jubo League and student wing Chhatra League are also accused of participating in the brutal crackdown. "They slaughtered the agitating students, injured them and committed crimes against humanity," Tajul Islam said. Bangladesh has asked India to extradite the 77-year-old former leader. The interim government headed by Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has promised to hold general elections before June 2026. - Bernama
Japan Today
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
Thailand vows to tighten control on cannabis after smuggling cases involving tourists soar
FILE - Police stand guard as cannabis activists and entrepreneurs, holding cannabis plant gather in front of Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, Monday, July 8, 2024. Two years after marijuana was decriminalized in Thailand, nearly a hundred of its advocates marched to the prime minister's office Monday to protest a possible ban on general use. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File) Thai officials on Wednesday said they planned to tighten regulations on cannabis sales after cases of tourists attempting to smuggle the drug out of the country soared in recent months. Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis in 2022, which has boosted Thailand's tourism and farming and spawned thousands of shops. But it's facing public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. The ruling Pheu Thai Party has promised to criminalize the drugs again, but faced strong resistance from its partner in the coalition government which supported the decriminalization. Thailand's Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin said at a press conference that officials are aiming to roll out new regulations in coming weeks that will tighten control on the sale of cannabis, including requiring shops to sell cannabis only to customers who have a prescription. He emphasized that it is against Thai law to bring cannabis out of the country without permission from the authorities. Airport officials said they have tightened inspections to detect smuggling attempts, adding that most people found with cannabis in their luggage are foreigners, especially Indian and British nationals. Last week two young British women were arrested in Georgia and Sri Lanka for alleged attempts to smuggle cannabis after they flew there from Thailand, according to the British media. Britain's government said a joint operation with Thailand in February resulted in over 2 tons of cannabis seized from air passengers. It said that since July last year, over 50 British nationals had been arrested in Thailand for attempting to smuggle cannabis. It also said there was a dramatic increase in the amount of cannabis sent to the UK from Thailand by post since the decriminalization in 2022. In March immigration authorities and police said 22 suitcases filled with a total of 375 kilograms of cannabis were seized, and 13 foreigners, most of them British, were arrested at the international airport on the Samui Island. Thai officials said the suspects were hired to travel to Thailand as tourists then traveled to Samui, a popular tourist destination, where they would wait at the arranged accommodation to receive the suitcases with cannabis. They would then be instructed to travel from Samui to Singapore, and then from Singapore back to the UK, where they would be paid 2,000 pounds ($2,682) upon completing the job. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Toronto Sun
16-05-2025
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Thai construction magnate facing charge over Bangkok tower collapse surrenders to police
Published May 16, 2025 • Last updated 0 minutes ago • 2 minute read Premchai Karnasuta, the president of Italian-Thai Development Co arrives on a wheelchair at Bang Sue Police Station in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, May 16, 2025 to surrender to police on criminal negligence charges for the collapse of a Bangkok high-rise during a March 28 earthquake. Photo by Sakchai Lalit / AP BANGKOK (AP) — A construction magnate, builders, designers and engineers surrendered to police Friday on criminal negligence charges over the collapse during the March 28 earthquake of a Bangkok high-rise in which 92 people died. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Premchai Karnasuta, president of Italian-Thai Development Co, the main Thai contractor for the building project, as well as designers and engineers, was among 17 charged with the felony of professional negligence causing death, Bangkok deputy police chief Noppasin Poonsawat said. Noppasin said those who met police on Friday formally denied the charges. Several have previously issued public denials in response to allegations in the media. Ninety-two people were confirmed dead in the rubble of the building that had been under construction. A small number of other people remain unaccounted for. The building, which was to become a new State Audit Office, was the only one in Thailand to collapse in the earthquake that was centred in neighbouring Myanmar. The search for victims at the site has been halted, though efforts to identify remains through DNA will continue. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Noppasin said at a news conference that evidence and testimony from experts suggested the building plan did not meet standards and codes. The Bangkok Post newspaper said police had also determined the project showed 'structural flaws in the core lift shaft and substandard concrete and steel.' Thai media have reported allegations of wrongdoing in the project almost every day since the building's collapse, many of them involving irregular documentation for the project. Their reports have highlighted the role of Italian-Thai's Chinese joint venture partner, the China Railway No. 10 company, which is involved in projects around the world. One of the 17 charged Friday was Chinese executive Zhang Chuanling, a director at China Railway No. 10's joint venture with Italian-Thai Development. He was previously arrested last month on a charge of violating Thai business law by wrongly using Thai nominees to serve as the Chinese firm's proxies to allegedly control the joint venture. Three Thai executives were also arrested on the charge. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. A Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for the 17 on the negligence charge on Thursday. Noppasin said 15 turned themselves in at a police station in the morning and the remaining two were expected to do so later. All 15 were driven in police vehicles to the Bangkok Criminal Court, which approved a police detention request and denied the suspects' bail applications, local media reported. The epicentre of the quake was in central Myanmar, where it killed more than 3,700 people and caused major damage in Mandalay, the country's second biggest city, and the capital, Naypyitaw. Premchai's case is his second major tangle with the law. In 2019, he was convicted of wildlife poaching and served about three years in prison. He was found guilty of killing protected animals and illegal possession of weapons after park rangers found a hunting party at a wildlife sanctuary in 2018 with carcasses of a rare black panther, a kalij pheasant and a barking deer. The panther had been butchered and its meat cooked for soup. Celebrity Ontario Toronto Maple Leafs Celebrity Toronto Maple Leafs
Japan Today
14-05-2025
- Japan Today
Thai officials seize over 200 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from U.S.
Thai officials show samples of illegally imported electronic waste from the United States which they said they seized at Bangkok Port during a press conference in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit) Thai officials on Wednesday said they seized 238 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from the United States at the port of Bangkok, one of the biggest lots they've found this year. The waste, which came in 10 large containers, was declared as mixed metal scrap but turned out to be circuit boards mixed in a huge pile of metal scrap, said Theeraj Athanavanich, director-general of the Customs Department. The waste was found on Tuesday after the containers became the subject of a routine random inspection, officials said. A U.N. report last year said electronic waste is piling up worldwide. Some 62 million tons of electronic waste was generated in 2022 and that figure is on track to reach 82 million tons by 2030, the report said. It said only 22% of the waste was properly collected and recycled in 2022 and that quantity is expected to fall to 20% by the end of the decade due to higher consumption, limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, and inadequate management infrastructure. Theeraj said Thai authorities are looking to press charges including falsely declaring imported goods, illegally importing electronic waste and planning to re-export the waste back to its country of origin. 'It's important that we take action on this kind of goods,' he said. 'There are environmental impacts that are dangerous to the people, especially communities around factories that might import these things for processing, then recycling.' Electronic waste creates huge health hazards. Many components are laden with lead and mercury, cadmium and other toxins. Recyclers are after gold, silver, palladium and copper, mainly from printed circuit boards, but lax controls mean that facilities often burn plastics to release encased copper and use unsafe methods to extract precious metals. Thailand passed a ban on the import of a range of electronic waste products in 2020. The Cabinet in February approved an expanded list of the banned waste. Sunthron Kewsawang, deputy director-general of the Department of Industrial Works, said officials suspected at least two factories in Samut Sakhon province, which borders Bangkok, are involved in importing the waste. In January, the Customs Department said it seized 256 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from Japan and Hong Kong at a port in eastern Thailand. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
CBS News
14-05-2025
- CBS News
Over 200 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from U.S. found in Thailand, officials say
Thai officials on Wednesday said they seized 238 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from the United States at the port of Bangkok, one of the biggest lots they've found this year. The waste, which came in 10 large containers, was declared as mixed metal scrap containing aluminium, copper and iron, but turned out to be circuit boards mixed in a huge pile of metal scrap, said Theeraj Athanavanich, director-general of the Customs Department. The electronic waste — which is classified as hazardous waste under the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal — was found on Tuesday after the 40-foot containers became the subject of a routine random inspection, officials said. The Basel Convention is an international treaty signed in 1989 meant to deal with hazardous waste flowing into developing countries as costs for disposal grew along with the amount of waste. A U.N. report last year said electronic waste is piling up worldwide. Some 62 million tons of electronic waste was generated in 2022 and that figure is on track to reach 82 million tons by 2030, the report said. It said only 22% of the waste was properly collected and recycled in 2022 and that quantity is expected to fall to 20% by the end of the decade due to higher consumption, limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, and inadequate management infrastructure. Thai officials show samples of illegally imported electronic waste from the United States which they said they seized at Bangkok Port during a press conference in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. Sakchai Lalit / AP Theeraj said Thai authorities are looking to press charges including falsely declaring imported goods, illegally importing electronic waste and planning to re-export the waste back to its country of origin. "It's important that we take action on this kind of goods," he said. "There are environmental impacts that are dangerous to the people, especially communities around factories that might import these things for processing, then recycling." Electronic waste creates huge health hazards. Many components are laden with lead and mercury, cadmium and other toxins. Recyclers are after gold, silver, palladium and copper, mainly from printed circuit boards, but lax controls mean that facilities often burn plastics to release encased copper and use unsafe methods to extract precious metals. A Thai official shows samples of illegally imported electronic waste from the United States which they said they seized at Bangkok Port during a press conference in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. Sakchai Lalit / AP Thailand passed a ban on the import of a range of electronic waste products in 2020. The Cabinet in February approved an expanded list of the banned waste. Sunthron Kewsawang, deputy director-general of the Department of Industrial Works, said officials suspected at least two factories in Samut Sakhon province, which borders Bangkok, are involved in importing the waste. Last year, Thai officials found thousands of tons of smuggled cadmium waste at a factory in the province, Thai PBS reported. Residents near the area were later found to have usually high levels of the poisonous metal in their urine, according to the report. Exposure to cadmium can cause flu-like symptoms, including chills, fever and muscle pain, according to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Long-term exposure can lead to cancer, kidney, bone and lung disease. In January, the Customs Department said it seized 256 tons of illegally imported electronic waste from Japan and Hong Kong at a port in eastern Thailand. contributed to this report.
