One year after PAD's bangkok
airport blockade
Thai Airways not likely to seek compensation
By Jon Fernquest 
Almost
one year ago the so-called People’s
Alliance for Democracy (PAD)blockaded Bangkok's international
airport.This action caused great harm to airlines and the Thai economy (Read article #1, #2, #3).
The deadline for Thai Airways to take legal action against PAD is fast approaching.
It now looks like nothing much is going to happen.
That is the subject of today's article which begins after the vocabulary:
People’s Alliance for Democracy
(PAD) -
an anti-Thaksin protest movement, leaders include media-mogul Sondhi
Limthongkul and Major General Chamlong Srimuang (See Wikipedia)
Thai Airways (TG) - Thailand's national airline (national air carrier) owned by the government (See Wikipedia)
compensation (noun) - money given to pay for damage
the so-called Y - Y is the name (but may not fit or may be inappropriate)
blockaded - stopping people from entering an area
deadline - the date you must do something before (after it passes cannot do it anymore)
Thai Airways (TG) - Thailand's national airline (national air carrier) owned by the government (See Wikipedia)
compensation (noun) - money given to pay for damage
the so-called Y - Y is the name (but may not fit or may be inappropriate)
blockaded - stopping people from entering an area
deadline - the date you must do something before (after it passes cannot do it anymore)
TG unsure about suing PAD
New president weighs pros and consBoonsong Kositchotethana
Thai Airways International faces a dilemma over whether to take legal action against the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) for 14 billion baht in estimated damages arising from its blockade of Bangkok’s airports late last year.
The flag carrier, which has put the thorny issue on the back burner until now, needs to decide on a course of action before the one-year statutory period ends on Nov 24.
‘‘We are still considering what we need to do and have not made any decision yet,’’ said president Piyasvasti Amranand.
issue - an
important subject that people are arguing about or discussing
pros and cons of an issue - the two sides of an issue (for = pro, con = against)
weighs pros and cons - considering the two sides of an issue before making a decision
a dilemma - a situation with a choice between two difficult alternatives
faces a dilemma - has a dilemma
take legal action - starting a legal case against someone
flag carrier - the national airline owned by the government of a country
thorny issue - issue difficult to solve, that people argue about
put on the back burner - delay dealing with or solving
put the thorny issue on the back burner - delay dealing with a difficult to solve issue
decide on a course of action - decide what you are going to do
the one-year statutory period ends - the one year period allowed by the law for starting legal action end
pros and cons of an issue - the two sides of an issue (for = pro, con = against)
weighs pros and cons - considering the two sides of an issue before making a decision
a dilemma - a situation with a choice between two difficult alternatives
faces a dilemma - has a dilemma
take legal action - starting a legal case against someone
flag carrier - the national airline owned by the government of a country
thorny issue - issue difficult to solve, that people argue about
put on the back burner - delay dealing with or solving
put the thorny issue on the back burner - delay dealing with a difficult to solve issue
decide on a course of action - decide what you are going to do
the one-year statutory period ends - the one year period allowed by the law for starting legal action end
He said there were numerous pros and cons the airline needed to take into account. ‘‘We have to consider whether it would be more costly to pursue a lawsuit than let it drop, our chances of winning, and implications arising from resorting to legal action.’’
The airline’s management is obliged by a THAI board decision made soon after the airport blockade to sue the PAD for seizing Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports between Nov 25 and Dec 4 last year. The yellow-shirted demonstrators did so to press the Somchai Wongsawat government, a proxy of fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, to resign.
take into account -
consider and deal with when making a decision
pursue a lawsuit - start a legal case against someone
let it drop - stop doing it, stop dealing with
implications arising from X - the things that will happen because X happened
resort to Y - do unwanted action Y to solve problem (after everything else fails)
implications arising from resorting to legal action -
obliged by Y - must do because of reason Y
board of directors of a company - the group of people that make high level policy decisions for a company (See Wikipedia)
Thai board - the board of directors of Thai airways
obliged by a THAI board decision - must do because of a decision by the Thai board
a proxy for Y - someone working for Y, doing things for Y
fugitive - found guilty of breaking law but not found and arrested yet (avoiding rest)
resign - formally announce that you are leaving a job
pursue a lawsuit - start a legal case against someone
let it drop - stop doing it, stop dealing with
implications arising from X - the things that will happen because X happened
resort to Y - do unwanted action Y to solve problem (after everything else fails)
implications arising from resorting to legal action -
obliged by Y - must do because of reason Y
board of directors of a company - the group of people that make high level policy decisions for a company (See Wikipedia)
Thai board - the board of directors of Thai airways
obliged by a THAI board decision - must do because of a decision by the Thai board
a proxy for Y - someone working for Y, doing things for Y
fugitive - found guilty of breaking law but not found and arrested yet (avoiding rest)
resign - formally announce that you are leaving a job
The state-controlled carrier has to do something about the issue, otherwise it could be subject to charges of negligence of duty under Article 157 of state enterprise regulations, said Dr Piyasvasti. However, that did not necessarily mean taking the PAD to court, he noted.
Dr Piyasvasti, a former energy minister who took the THAI helm last month, questioned the financial damage claimed by THAI, which included ‘‘loss of business opportunity’’, saying the figure that could be debated endlessly.
The Abhisit Vejjajiva administration declined to compensate aviation-related industries including THAI earlier this year, telling international airlines to seek compensation from those that caused the damage — the PAD.
The Somchai administration pledged a 19-billion-baht compensation package, but the Abhisit government used a Budget Bureau interpretation that such compensation could breach the law.
carrier - an airline company
negligence, negligence of duty - failing to do something (that they should have done = duty)
charges - bring a criminal case against a person
subject to charges of negligence of duty under Article 157 of state enterprise regulations - bringing a criminal legal case against high level managers (officers) at a company owned by the government
took the THAI helm - became leader and head of Thai (took control of Thai)
the figure - the amount
compensate for Y - give money to pay for damage Y
declined to compensate - said they would not pay for damage
compensation (noun) - money given to pay for damage
pledged - promised
breach the law - break the law
negligence, negligence of duty - failing to do something (that they should have done = duty)
charges - bring a criminal case against a person
subject to charges of negligence of duty under Article 157 of state enterprise regulations - bringing a criminal legal case against high level managers (officers) at a company owned by the government
took the THAI helm - became leader and head of Thai (took control of Thai)
the figure - the amount
compensate for Y - give money to pay for damage Y
declined to compensate - said they would not pay for damage
compensation (noun) - money given to pay for damage
pledged - promised
breach the law - break the law
Many aviation companies have decided not to pursue the PAD for seizing the airports, an act that was estimated to have caused 200 billion baht in economic damage plus much greater harm to Thailand’s international image.
There was a consensus among them that any endeavour to pursue legal action against the PAD would not be worth the energy, time and costs involved.
They are resigned to calling the event ‘‘civil unrest’’, which legal experts indicated would make it difficult to win a case in civil court. It was considered a risk of doing business.
THAI shares closed on Friday on the SET at 19.80 baht, down 50 satang, in trade worth 101.14 million baht.
aviation
- flying
airplanes
image - the way that people and the public view and think about you
harm to Thailand’s international image - made foreigners view Thailand more negatively
consensus - a general agreement among all the people in a group about an issue
endeauvor to Y - try to do Y
endeavour to pursue legal action - try to bring a legal case against someone
resigned to Y - will accept or do Y which they do not want to do
civil unrest, civil disorder - a protest by a group of people (See Wikipedia)
X indicated Y - X mention Y in an indriect way
civil court - non-criminal court deciding on legal cases like personal injury claims, family law disputes, and contract disputes
with legal cases to win
image - the way that people and the public view and think about you
harm to Thailand’s international image - made foreigners view Thailand more negatively
consensus - a general agreement among all the people in a group about an issue
endeauvor to Y - try to do Y
endeavour to pursue legal action - try to bring a legal case against someone
resigned to Y - will accept or do Y which they do not want to do
civil unrest, civil disorder - a protest by a group of people (See Wikipedia)
X indicated Y - X mention Y in an indriect way
civil court - non-criminal court deciding on legal cases like personal injury claims, family law disputes, and contract disputes
with legal cases to win
(Source: TG unsure about suing PAD, New president weighs pros and cons, Boonsong Kositchotethana, link)
