Police asked to ensure order during rubber farmers' protest on Sept 14

BANGKOK, September 10 (TNA) - Tourism and Sports Minister Somsak Purisrisak says that he has asked the Royal Thai Police to ensure order during a renewed mass protest of rubber farmers in the Thai South, set on September 14. Somsak also called for the protesting southern rubber farmers to bear other people's hardships and conveniences in mind, after they have threatened to besiege southern airports. The minister cautioned that tourism in the Thai South has already faced a loss of hundreds of million baht so far due to the local rubber growers' protest. But updated reports said, quoting Deputy Prime Minister Pracha Promnok as announcing on Tuesday afternoon, that rubber farmers are satisfied with the government-appointed national rubber policy committee's revised decision on raising the official subsidy for them to 2,520 baht per rai (2.5 rai = 1 acre), with the maximum of 25 rai per farmer, and they have agreed not to hold their planned mass rally on September 14. (TNA)