OPINION

Ukraine is free

In his April 30 commentary, "Clowning around is no joke anymore", Kong Rithdee claimed that: "From Ukraine to Egypt, from Myanmar to Malaysia, satirists have been threatened, charged and sometimes jailed."

In this regard, I would like to bring to your attention that freedom of speech and expression are guaranteed by the constitution of Ukraine and libel is not a criminal offence.

The media landscape in Ukraine features pluralism of opinions and ideas including open criticism of the government, which is well recognised by the international community and relevant international organisations.

Moreover, with a deep sense of humour being one of the national features of Ukraine people, all kinds of satire, and especially political, are very popular and flourishing in the media -- be it press, TV or electronic media -- without any restriction.

Therefore, I can only assume that the above-mentioned reference to Ukraine was made by mistake.

In regard to your article on pelvic examinations for woman prisoners in the Bangkok Post, Thai Pulse, ("Cavity searches for bail applicants anger net", May 5), I am quite familiar with the woman's prison at Klong Prem and a former inmate assured me that pelvic checks are compulsory for all committed, regardless of the offence.

Those on immediate bail have a certificate and are set aside while waiting for formal paperwork. I suspect Kornkanok Khumta may have experienced a mix-up delaying her bail application.

In any event, this initiation routine has been going on for decades and no press mention has ever been made. Thai inmates are obviously indifferent. It seems a bit far-fetched to be resurrecting the human rights angle at this stage.

Four sons of police officers are linked to a deadly brawl which resulted in the violent death of a disabled man (Online news, May 5).

It remains to be seen how they will be tried, and what penalties they receive.

Two men from Myanmar were accused and convicted of killing two British tourists, following the shoddiest police work yet seen in Thailand.

They received the death penalty.

Will the sons of police officers receive the same penalty, or, will they be let off with a fine or reprimand, because their victim was a disabled Thai man, not a "currency spending foreign tourist"?

Does the beating to death of a disabled Thai man by four sons of police officers merit the same penalty as killing foreign tourists?

Let's see Thai justice for what it is, a double standard practice, one for locals killing locals, another for locals killing off foreigners who enrich public coffers, and, "damaging Thailand's (already damaged) reputation".

Re: "Family fears injustice in brawl-murder", (BP, May 6).

This article showed a good example of the general feeling among the Thai public of injustice and a lack of trust in the justice system of Thailand.

Let's keep our eyes open for further developments.

Re: "Family fears injustice in brawl-murder", (BP, May 6).

The last few paragraphs sum up what is wrong with Thailand. Low-level police having the power to scare off people from giving evidence does nothing to improve their image.

Action must come from the top but they are apparently too busy locking up Facebook users rather than going after the people who are actually harming the security of the communities.

How does one define "happiness"?

Tricky question and one that has multiple answers which makes it all the more difficult to want to bring it to people from the top down.

Cases in point: bringing to justice young people assaulting elderly or handicapped individuals without mercy or killing people with their expensive cars and almost let go with a slap on the wrist by people whose job it is to protect and defend the citizenry, or putting an end to the damage done in various parts of a country by mining and industrial interests with the complicity of authorities to the detriment of the health and well-being of the local residents.

These are just two examples of action that could help make people happy and trusting towards their leaders.

Of course, there are many others, too many to fit into a short letter to PostBag.

It's of course difficult not to sympathise with that unfortunate family.

That kind of ordeal would never happen in the United Kingdom, a lovely country -- as everyone knows -- devoid of thugs, hooligans, drunkards and racists.

Every day is a dangerous day on Thailand's roads.

Every year I'm puzzled by the fuss made over the Songkran holiday period "seven dangerous days" charade. This is when accidents and fatalities are expected to reach a peak due to the antics of road users, usually drunk.

This year a record 442 deaths were recorded -- an increase of 20% over last year's holiday period, which averages out at 63 deaths per day. However, with a total of 24,237 deaths registered in 2013 (the latest figures I could find) this translates into 66 per day, or three more than the "seven most dangerous days".

In other words, 36 people out of every 100,000 of the population died on the roads in 2013. Thailand is outdone only by Libya which had 73 deaths per 100,000 but could only manage a paltry total of 4,554.

If Thailand really wants to become a league leader in total road deaths then it must compete with India (238,562 deaths) and China (261,367) but registering only 16 and 18 deaths per 100,000 respectively due to their massive populations.

What amazes me is that about 80% of deaths involved motorcycles -- that's almost 20,000 per year. Just how is this huge number of braincell-deficient yobs with a death wish replaced year after year? But this number also includes types who can pass the police entrance exam -- as illustrated in Andrew Biggs' column last Sunday.

Let's compare Thailand with the United Kingdom which had 1,827 road deaths in 2013, just 2.9 deaths per 100,000 of the population. Can we learn something from those Brits?

Re: "Four sons of police linked to deadly brawl", (BP, May 3).

The incident in Bangkok's Chokechai area in which a disabled man was brutally hacked, stabbed and punched to death by six young men -- four of whom are allegedly sons of police officers controlling the area -- points to the possibility the dead man will have died without any redemption. Why?

There is an old saying among Thais that, if one should encounter trouble with somebody, one should make sure those people are not sons or siblings of the police. Because, fair fight or no fair fight, you will lose either way.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha should provide answers to these questions:

First, during a period of military rule such as this, in which greater security is assured by the rulers, why should a hideous crime such as this still happen in our society -- where peaceful citizens are brutally murdered on the streets in broad daylight?

Second, where are the police reforms the government promised two years ago?

Lastly, where would you expect peace-loving citizens to turn if even the government cannot provide enough security?

Regarding the article by Boonsong Kosithchotethana "AirAsia mulls Thai hub", (Business, April 30), the article indicated AirAsia wants to relocate its regional nerve centre from Indonesia to Thailand.

Plus it wants to build its own airport here and is also interested in a partnership with the national carrier, Thai Airways International, by creating a business synergy without equity partnership.

This was reported by Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak after a meeting between Prime Minster Prayut Chan-o-cha and AirAsia chief executive Tony Fernandez yesterday.

Without knowing the details of the discussion, it would be inappropriate to comment upon the subjects discussed. But I would like to comment briefly on what was written in your newspaper.

Any airline can locate or relocate their operational control centre anywhere in the world without having to inform the premier. To have a partnership with THAI by establishing a synergy business without equity, this can be done by having an interline agreement or code sharing. To have such agreements AirAsia must use a compatible reservation system with THAI to assure seamless passenger and baggage transfer.

As to the deputy prime minister's eagerness to fix troubled THAI by establishing a win-win proposition with AirAsia by having THAI buy a 20% share in which he, Mr Somkid, would ensure a five-billion-baht loan to THAI as suggested by him in February, this would be a lose-win business solution.

The loser would be THAI while the winner would be AirAsia.

Captain Jothin Pamon-Montri

Re: "Postcolonial blues", (Opinion, May 6)

The writer misses the fundamental point. The United Kingdom is not intent on reviving its imperial past. It does not yearn for "long-lost colonial clout" but it does yearn for "a world of economic prosperity", denied by membership of the European Union.

The UK does want and need its freedom to deal with the rest of the world, unrestricted, and in its own right. It does not need to be dictated to and controlled on trade or in any way by an unelected faceless bureaucracy, the EU Commission, in Brussels. Britain is the world's fifth-largest economy and suffers a massive trade deficit with EU members. So they need the UK more than the UK needs them.