Seoul Halloween horror, pub boss party cash, airport congestion and liquor bill failure
Seoul Halloween crush
The body of a Thai woman killed in a Halloween crush in Seoul returns to Bangkok today.
Twenty-seven-year-old Natthicha Makaew was one of 156 people who died during the crowd crush in a narrow alley in Itaewon district of Seoul on Saturday night while celebrating Halloween.
Local reports said as many as 100,000 people went to celebrate in the area.
Eye-witnesses described scrambling to escape the suffocating crowd as people fell on top of one another.
South Korea observed a five-day period of national mourning.
PPRP drug pub boss cash
The ruling Palang Pracharath Party could face dissolution after a key figure admitted the party accepted a donation from the alleged owner of a Bangkok pub raided last week.
The party last year accepted three million baht from Chaiyanat Kornchayanant, a Chinese businessman allegedly linked to the pub in Yannawa district.
The raided premises had no pub licence and dozens of clients tested positive for illegal drug use.
An Election Commission investigation is underway, but one activist voiced scepticism that the public would get to the truth as the ruling party is at the centre of the scandal.
Suvarnabhumi congestion
Dreaded lengthy queues returned to Suvarnabhumi airport this week as inbound tourists faced delays of up to one hour at immigration.
Tourism operators raised concerns over airport congestion ahead of the high season and the upcoming Apec summit.
The Immigration Bureau blamed a Sunday afternoon peak of 3,000-4,000 passengers landing per hour.
However operators said the volume of arrivals is predictable based on flight schedules, so improper management was to blame, as immigration counters were not fully opened and the number of staff was insufficient.
Liquor bill shot down
Drinkers and brewers hoping for a liberalisation of the liquor industry were disappointed on Wednesday as a bill proposal to end the sector's oligopoly was narrowly defeated in the House.
The bill to amend the Excise Tax Act was downed by two votes, with 196 MPs opposing it, 194 in favour and 15 abstentions.
The Move Forward Party pledged to continue its fight to open the sector to competition.
