Published on January 12, 2006
Pineapple industry may continue to go sour if govt doesn’t improve its policies
Re: “Pineapple growers looking for govt price intervention”, News, January 11.
The sharp drop in pineapple prices in Thailand during the last two months has occurred because of a labour shortage at all processing factories and not because of shutdowns in flood-damaged factories. The shortage of labour in this industry has mainly been caused by continuous approval for opening new factories these last four years. This problem didn’t become as serious last year because the pineapple crop decreased around 25 per cent, due to the effects of drought damage in the first half of the year. When a new factory with mid-range processing capacity opens, it creates a demand for 600 to 700 workers. The Thaksin government has approved a small number of factories in the last few years in major pineapple-processing area like Pran Buri, Hua Hin, Ratchaburi, Kanchanaburi, Chon Buri and Rayong. A labour shortage in the pineapple industry was already creating a difficult situation at the beginning of the 21st century, because of the high demand for labour in other industries, such as electronics and tourism, which were rapidly developing near these areas where pineapples were being processed. Careless government approval led to the construction of unnecessary new processing plants, which far worsened the problem. The new factories that opened during the last few years are now struggling to develop sales markets abroad. As is always the case, competitive pricing is the only possible course of action that these newcomers can take if they are to gain access to foreign markets. Their actions are misguided, continuously create confusion in foreign markets and lead to unnecessary price fights among exporters in Thailand. Because of the problems, some of these newcomers were forced to stop business operations last year. The pineapple industry in Thailand – which was developed by promoting stable markets and the proper cultivation of raw materials and processing technology – was greatly successful in finding foreign export markets. Thai pineapple growers harvest around 2 million tonnes of fruit per year, about 90 per cent of which is processed for foreign markets. The Thai pineapple industry is managed in quite a unique way compared with that of Indonesia, the Philippines or Hawaii. Those are controlled mainly under an integrated system, marked by big factories that have their own plantations. Thailand’s industry has been developed in a way that facilitates cooperation between growers, middlemen, processing factories and exporters under a free-trade business relationship. However, it is not certain whether the Thai pineapple industry can maintain its position as is under the current negative atmosphere explained above. All of the exporters are now experiencing shocking damage by the recent sharp strengthening of the baht against the US dollar, due to heavy demands by the Stock Exchange of Thailand caused mainly by the speculation of Shin Corp shares to foreign investors. Pineapple-processing factories may face more serious difficulties by the middle of this year, due to a possible shortage of sugar, which is important in the processing of canned pineapple. I feel it is really necessary to send the message conveyed in this letter. I am involved in this industry and greatly fear that it may face quite serious difficulties very soon if no preventive action is taken by the government. Additionally, I must point out that importing a foreign labour force may not easily solve the labour-shortage problem. The industry needs a workforce marked by good teamwork, which can only be created by organising the local workers, who have a long history of working in these factories. We should not ignore the fact that these Thai workers are asking for an improved working environment. KT Bangkok --------------------------------------------------------- PM may nominate Surin for UN post? Are you joking? Re: “Consider Thaksin innocent until proven otherwise”, Letters, January 10. Songdej Praditsmanont thinks that it is not beyond PM Thaksin to do something strange like nominate Surin Pitsuwan for UN secretary-general. Songdej may have a good future in comedy writing. He could team up with PM Thaksin, who nominated Surakiart Sathirathai in the first place. Veharachan Bangkok --------------------------------------------------------- Indonesia not in any position to lecture on human rights Re: “Lessons for Rangoon”, News, January 7. Indonesia points out the failings of Burma in democracy and human rights. As my mum would have said, this is case of “the pot calling the kettle black”. Most of the members of Asean must be delighted to have such a pariah in their midst. Reminds me of when I reported late for a lifeboat drill in the Merchant Navy and was sent to join a group of defaulters. Worried about being keelhauled, I expressed my misgivings to a companion. “Divn’t worrie, hinnie, there’s a gadgie here with nae lifejacket,” he correctly assured me. John Angus Bangkok --------------------------------------------------------- Encouraged by progress made in Samui murder case Re: “Two held for Samui murder”, News, January 10. I am writing to express my great respect and admiration for the professional skills of the police investigation team in regard to the progress made in solving this gruesome murder case. John A Blaauw Chief commissioner of police (retired) Rotterdam, The Netherlands --------------------------------------------------------- Murder investigation raises questions of transparency Re: “Fishermen confess to rape, murder”, News, January 10. The police have arrested two suspects in the murder case of Katherine Horton and said they had concrete evidence against them. And after lengthy interrogation, they said the suspects snapped and confessed to the crime. Reading the news, I have a few questions. Does a crime suspect in Thailand have the right to obtain a public lawyer if he can’t afford a private one? Surely, there is no way the two fishermen could afford lawyers. That raises the second question: did they have some sort of legal adviser with them during the grilling? Generally, when a financially or socially well-to-do person is charged with a crime, he often says, “I’ll testify only in court.” Can the two suspects claim the same right? Only the police claimed that DNA from the semen found inside the body matched that of the suspects’ blood. Can the suspects request that the Forensic Science Institution, which is under the Ministry of Justice, verify the DNA test? They should. Finally, is a crime re-enactment necessary? It looks ridiculous, especially when the crowd roughs up the suspects, and police are reluctant to stop it. SP Samut Prakan --------------------------------------------------------- Will spiffier uniforms be matched with better service? Re: “The boys in red”, Streetwise, January 10. How very interesting to read that our postmen will now be wearing a new uniform with red helmets. As you say, red could make dogs “see red”, but what about some customers who already “see red” when their post is undelivered! May we ask Panthep Ratanakorn please to charm postmen on how to make sure that all their letters are actually delivered! Frustrated Chon Buri --------------------------------------------------------- Debate on US-Thai FTA pact calls for rational dialogue Re: “Protesters storm trade negotiations”, News, January 11. It seems that both our government and anti-FTA protesters are doing more talking to the cameras than protecting our national interests. PM Thaksin’s pledge not to sign a deal that would put the country at a disadvantage is so general as to be meaningless. Likewise, the protesters’ demands that all of the talks be scrapped are equally unrealistic, for we would not want to ignore our major trading partner out of hand – if the terms are right. When you shop in a market, both you and the merchant win from the trade. That type of solution should be our FTA goal, also. PM Thaksin should pledge that all FTAs be subject to ratification by both houses of Parliament, so that the truth will be known. We all should keep the long-term interests of Thai consumers paramount, while setting a minimal time frame for our inefficient industries to adapt. Protesters should seek to win their case by force of reason – not of arms – and must respect the rights of others to disagree; for example, when I was in the US, protesting against racial discrimination (including against Thais), we were very careful to let those who disagreed with us cross our picket line at will and without harassment. Similarly, FTA protesters must allow negotiators to carry out their business in peace – all the while proposing their version of win-win, long-term solutions. Burin Kantabutra Bangkok --------------------------------------------------------- Welfare of the helpless needs to come first Re: “Abandoned baby has winning smile”, News, January 4. I think it is time for Thailand to change the law and parents’ attitudes in regard to abandoning babies. The law should allow parents who want to abandon their babies to do so without fearing arrest. Making it easy to abandon babies may increase their numbers but would make the ordeal much safer for them. Then parents would not have to leave them in trash bags by the side of the road or in trash cans, etc (hopefully). Vinai R Bangkok
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