Thailand

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha survived a no-confidence vote Saturday in parliament amid allegations that his government mismanaged the economy, bungled the provision of COVID-19 vaccines, abused human rights and fostered corruption.

Nine other ministers also survived the vote.

BANGKOK, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Thailand is expecting to receive the first shipment of COVID-19 vaccines from China's Sinovac Biotech next week and kick-start its national inoculation program.

The first batch is scheduled to arrive at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport on Feb. 24, flied by a Thai Airways International (THAI) cargo flight, Chaiyapruk Didyasarin, THAI chairman of the board of directors, said earlier this week.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who himself first seized power in a coup, said on Wednesday he had received a letter from Myanmar’s new junta leader asking for help to support democracy.

Prayuth, who overthrew an elected prime minister in 2014 and stayed in office after a 2019 election his rivals said was badly flawed, told reporters in Bangkok that he had always supported democracy in the neighbouring country.

BANGKOK (AP) — The man installed by army leaders as Myanmar’s president after Monday’s military coup is best known abroad for his role in the crackdown on 2007 pro-democracy protests and for his ties to still-powerful military leaders.

Myint Swe was the army-appointed vice president when he was named on Monday to take over after the military arrested civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of her party.

Immediately after he was named president, Myint Swe handed power to the country’s top military commander, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand’s government on Wednesday filed a criminal complaint of defaming the monarchy against banned opposition politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, after he criticised its COVID-19 vaccine strategy.

The move could mark the highest-profile lese majeste case since a wave of anti-government protests emerged last year and extended to criticism of King Maha Vajiralongkorn over accusations of meddling in politics and taking too much power.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - An ultra royalist group in Thailand launched a new political party on Wednesday to defend King Maha Vajiralongkorn, amid unprecedented calls for reform of the monarchy by a youth-led protest movement.

The “Thai Pakdee” (Loyal Thai) party is an offshoot of a royalist group of the same name formed last August to counter street demonstrations with rallies in support of the king.

Veteran politician Warong Dechgitvigrom will lead the new party, which he said will fight political groups whose true intention was to topple the monarchy.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Communist Party of Laos on Friday elected Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith as new secretary general, replacing retiring party chief Bounnhang Vorachit, state media reported.

Thongloun was elected to a five-year term as head of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee – the top post in the party, the state-run Vientiane Times reported.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - A group of activists answered a police summons on Thursday over complaints that could see them jailed for up to 15 years for insulting Thailand’s king, as authorities increasingly use “lese majeste” laws against pro-democracy protest leaders.

At least 39 protesters have since November been hit with criminal lese majeste cases, according to a tally by the Thailand Lawyers for Human Rights, marking the resumption of the use of a law that had not been invoked since late 2018.

BANGKOK (Reuters) -Thailand’s prime minister on Monday urged the public to stay at home to help contain its biggest coronavirus outbreak and avoid a strict lockdown, as authorities confirmed a daily record of 745 new infections.

The government has declared 28 provinces, including Bangkok, as high-risk zones and asked people to work from home and avoid gathering or travelling beyond provincial borders, as infection numbers climb after an outbreak was detected last month at a seafood market near the capital.

BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Thai capital of Bangkok will close all schools for two weeks after the New Year holiday as it tightens measures to control a new wave of the coronavirus pandemic, the city said on Friday.

Thailand confirmed 279 new coronavirus cases on Friday, with the majority of them linked to a cluster among migrant workers in Samut Sakhon province south of Bangkok, and another cluster linked to illegal gambling dens that started in the eastern province of Rayong.