Police will seek an arrest warrant for the acting abbot of Dhammakaya Temple after he failed to show up at Pathum Thani’s Thanyaburi Provincial Court yesterday afternoon to apply for bail, a source said.

The acting abbot, identified as Phra Thammayanwites (Sutham Suthammo), had surrendered to Klong Luang Police on Tuesday to answer charges of harbouring the fugitive former abbot Phra Dhammachayo and neglecting to perform his duties as per the summonses.

The monk has to ask the court for bail or he could lose his saffron robes and face prosecution as a layperson, Department of Special Investigation (DSI)’s Pisitchai Sawangwattanakorn said.

Read Also: Thailand’s troubled Dhammakaya Temple urges police to withdraw complaint

Deputy national police chief Pol General Srivara Ransibrahamakul yesterday led a team of officials to inspect World Peace Muktawan monastic retreats in Phang Nga’s Koh Yao district.

Phases 1, 2 and 3 of the retreats, which are linked to the Dhammakaya Temple, were impounded pending investigation over their alleged encroachment into the Kuanjuk national forest.

Srirava said that 82 buildings at the three retreats had been built without permission and authorities would proceed with legal action accordingly.

He said Phang Nga land officials would also be probed as soon as possible.

He said the Dhammakaya Temple network had allegedly encroached on at least 20 sites nationwide in the same manner.

The three retreats were impounded along with its electricity poles and radio station pending further probes.

The deputy police chief, accompanied by police adviser Pol General Decha Chuaibunchum and related officials, said an investigation by the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division found that the Dhammakaya Foundation, chaired by Phra Dhammachayo, owned the 140-rai World Peace Muktawan 1 retreat.

However, about 40 rai of the retreat – comprising a 21-rai section located on the national forest and another 19-rai woodland – reportedly does not have proper land-ownership documents and has allegedly caused damages worth Bt2.7 million.

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The retreat claimed to have Nor Sor 3 Kor land-rights documents for its 33 plots covering 140 rais – of which 28 plots were held by the foundation, four by a native of Loei’s Phu Rua named Phetch Kaensap and one by a woman called Nuanit Hongwiwat.

Srivara said the land-ownership document for Phetch’s 14-rai plot had been revoked since 2004 and Phetch was also the foundation’s nominee who was linked to other forestland encroachment cases, such as the World Peace Valley Loei monastic retreat.

Police also found 18 buildings in the Muktawan 1 compound, where a helicopter pad was reportedly torn down recently.

Srivara said he instructed forestry officials to check if the Tambon Koh Yao Administrative Organisation’s permission for the retreat to clear the area and construct buildings was legal and also check on the retreat’s tax payments.

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He also revealed that officials found a 2-rai plot had changed many hands until it came into the foundation’s ownership and mysteriously enlarged to more than 15 rai.

As the foundation reportedly sold “Dhamma-practice” packages for between Bt1,900 and Bt5,900, it fell within the framework of using forestland for personal gain, Srivara said, adding that the Revenue Department would also look into the foundation’s tax payments.

He said the 162-rai Muktawan 2 retreat was under Phetch’s name and 82 rai of it allegedly encroached on the national forest, resulting in damages worth Bt5.6 million, while the 100-rai Muktawan 3 retreat allegedly encroached on 44 rai of the forest resulting in damages worth Bt3 million.

For Kim Su-yeon, a 36-year-old self-proclaimed germophobe, Seoul at this time of a year is a nightmare.

Before stepping outside, she always makes sure she has a sufficient supply of antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizers in her bag.

But such precautions still seem inadequate in keeping her germ-free, especially when strangers near her start to cough without covering their mouth.

“I saw a lady who clearly had a contagious cold, coughing, sneezing and wiping her nose with her hand in the subway. I immediately stood up and moved to a different part of the subway,” Kim said, expressing frustration at ignorance about etiquette in public places.

In the face of the worst seasonal flu sweeping the nation, Kim’s complaint seems to be shared by an increasing number of South Koreans.

Doctors, too, stress that simple etiquette can be most effective in preventing the spread of the contagious seasonal flu virus. The failure to properly educate students and follow preventive steps may have been behind the worst flu outbreak in decades, they said.

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According to the Korea Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, a record high number of young patients were diagnosed with flu last week — 152 flu cases per 1,000 students aged 7-18. The government began monitoring the flu in 1997.

Dr. Kim Yang-hyun of the Anam Hospital of Korea University Medical Center said flu etiquette is relatively less known or followed by Koreans, compared to people in other countries.

“Did you know that you should sneeze into your elbow, not your hand?” he asked.

“Also, not many in South Korea can decide for themselves whether or not they should go to work or school when they sneeze and cough,” he added.

Last year, South Korea had a major outbreak of the Middle East respiratory syndrome that caused 38 deaths.

The state-run KCDC, in response, came up with antiviral treatment guidelines that include educating children and adults to sneeze into their elbows.

But such information is still not well known among the public or taught at schools, experts highlighted.

Sneezing into one’s elbow can prevent some 3,000 infectious droplets from being sprayed onto hands, which could spread germs by holding or passing frequently touched surfaces such as door handles and tables.

Read also: Singapore’s first painless flu vaccine

“Koreans tend to campaign or follow health care steps only when a serious disease outbreaks,” a medical resident at Seoul National University Hospital told the Korea Herald on condition of anonymity.

“Simple but fundamental preventive steps can keep colds away. All we need to do is to follow simple manners on a daily basis, which takes on a whole new meaning when their intent is to protect your health and the health of those around you,” he added.

In other developed countries like the US, health authorities have been campaigning since 2009 to teach elementary school students to properly cover their mouths when they cough through the distribution of flyers and posters about health care, under the slogan “Cough = Elbow.”

South Korean health authorities said Tuesday that they had suggested schools start their winter vacation earlier than scheduled and immediately stop students from attending school.

Doctors said the disease, the influenza A virus subtype H3N2, is unlikely to develop serious complications, such as pneumonia, if patients receive timely treatment.

“Although the flu virus this time is accompanied by symptoms such as headaches and muscle pain — rare for other types of seasonal flu — the disease can be cured when the patients visit the doctor immediately and take antiviral drugs like Tamiflu,” said Dr. Kim Gyu-yeon of The Severance Hospital of the Yonsei University Health System.

Getting a vaccination, either a flu shot or a nasal-spray type vaccination, is another simple method to reduce chances of catching cold.

“Those who study or work in confined spaces are particularly susceptible to the highly contagious illness, since people with the flu can spread it to others up to about 2 meters away, mainly by droplets made when they cough, sneeze or talk,” said Kim.

While vaccines show efficacy after two weeks, it is still not too late to get a vaccination now, as the cold weather is to continue until February next year, he added.

A transportation mega-project north of Phuket under development by Bangkok Airways has been tentatively named the Phang Nga-Andaman International Airport.

In what is being envisaged as either a public-private-sector partnership or a solely private investment, sources in the tourism industry have confirmed that Bangkok Airways is in talks with Phang Nga Province for a large-scale land lease for the facility, with the environmental impact assessment already in the works.

The proposal has been submitted to the Forest Department.

The location of the proposed airport is Moo 4, Baan Tha Dindaeng, Lam Kaeng Sub-district in Phang Nga’s Thai Muang District. It sits on a site of about 2,000 rai (320 hectares).

Tentative plans for the runway are for 3,000 metres, which would be longer than that of Samui’s airport.

Read Also: 10 best things to do in Phuket

Details on the cost and facilities of the airport have not been unveiled.

Last year, passenger arrivals at the Phuket International Airport exceeded 6.4 million, while the nearby Krabi Airport passed the 1.8-million level.

Bill Barnett, managing director of C9 Hotelworks Co, an internationally recognised consulting company, said the post-tsunami decade had set a mainstream stage for a destination success story.

“What a difference a decade makes. The Thai resort market of Phang Nga is expected to receive 1 million hotel guests in 2016,” Bill noted.

“Roll back the clock to 2005 in the aftermath of the Asian tsunami the year before, and (fewer) than 300,000 hotel guest arrivals materialised,” he said.

According to C9 Hotelworks’ market research, the four-year growth period from 2010 to 2014 laid the foundation to break the cycle of the destination’s notorious seasonality into one with year-around appeal.

This is expected to become even more pronounced in the years to come as the rising Chinese, Australian and regional Asian source markets add to the traditional legacy winter snowbird arrivals and grow the destination.

Barnett said that hotels in the pipeline were increasing.

Overseas investors and international brands are fuelling the momentum of a defined move north of Khao Lak into Bangsak and beyond, seeing a series of large upscale properties coming online.

Read Also: To Phuket on the route less travelled

It is expected that the new airport will relieve pressure on Phuket’s aviation gateway and serve as a tourism hub for Phang Nga and as a long-term catalyst for sustainable growth.

Nearby Khao Lak has 104 registered tourism establishments, with 7,822 rooms, and is seeing a considerable influx of international hotels in the pipeline.

Bangkok Airways boasts a strong track record, successfully managing and marketing a similar facility on the resort island of Samui.

The Palace Museum is planning to release a 19,999-RMB (S$4,162) mobile phone in collaboration with a Chinese phone maker. The phone is expected to be available at the end of January 2017, and only 999 units will be sold.

The phone maker posted a message on Weibo on Dec 20, saying it will release a mobile phone with the Palace Museum in celebration of the coming Chinese New Year. The design of the phone is inspired by the Palace Museum’s collection, incorporating elements from the Forbidden City such as dragons and auspicious clouds. In addition, the back of the phone is decorated with a traditional Chinese motif made of 18K gold. The phone is equipped with several of the museum’s apps, along with a screensaver and wallpaper featuring the 24 solar terms.

The price of the phone has sparked debate among netizens. Some argue that Chinese culture should not be used for profit. Others believe the product will bring vulgarity to the Forbidden City.

Despite the controversy, the executive deputy director of the Palace Museum, Wang Yamin, told the media that he hopes to establish a bridge between traditional Chinese culture and intelligent manufacturing through collaboration with the phone maker.