Thailand Roundup: Mpox cases, banking rate, MP slaps reporter
First mpox case detected in Thailand
Thailand has detected an mpox case in a 66-year-old European man who arrived from Africa last week, a disease control official said on Wednesday. Authorities are treating the case as if it were the Clade 1 variant of mpox. According to StratNews Global, the man, who resides in Thailand, arrived on August 14 from an undisclosed African country experiencing an outbreak, according to Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, in an interview with Reuters. Test results to determine the strain are pending.
Bank of Thailand maintains the key rate at 2.50%
The Bank of Thailand (BoT) kept its key interest rate at 2.50% for the fifth consecutive meeting on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, despite economic sluggishness and fiscal policy uncertainty after the Constitutional Court dismissed Srettha Thavisin as prime minister last week, as reported by the Bangkok Post. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted 6-1 to maintain the rate, with one member voting for a 0.25 percentage point cut to address lower potential growth and ease the debt burden for borrowers.
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Thai MP under investigation for slapping reporter
A formal investigation has been requested into veteran politician Prawit Wongsuwon after he struck a ThaiPBS journalist last week. According to the BBC, the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) leader hit the reporter after she asked about the new prime minister. A PPRP spokesman said Prawit knew the journalist well and apologized, claiming he was "teasing her." Thai PBS has demanded accountability, and journalist associations have asked the lower house speaker to investigate whether Prawit's actions violated MP ethics.
Thailand to host 2025 MotoGP season opener
Thailand has officially been confirmed to take over from Qatar as the opening round of the MotoGP World Championship for the 2025 and 2026 seasons. Since the first Thai GP in 2018, over 800,000 fans have attended the events in Buriram, with Sunday often sold out. MotoGP's popularity in Thailand is expected to grow even more next year, with local star Somkiat Chantra likely to join LCR Honda, as reported by Crash.
Thai man bitten on the testicles by python
A man in Thailand was bitten on the testicles by a huge python, leaving his bathroom covered in blood as he desperately beat the snake to death with a toilet brush. Horrifying pictures show the aftermath of Thanat Thangtewanon's encounter with the 12-foot reptile hiding in the U-bend of his home toilet on Tuesday. Mail Online reports that Thanat said he felt a sharp pain moments after sitting down. He said: "I felt something biting my balls. It was very painful, so I put my hands in the toilet to see what was wrong. I was shocked that I grabbed a snake," he said. I quickly stood up and plucked it out. I felt pain, really bad pain, and there was blood everywhere, but I was more shocked to have found a python in the toilet."
