Tsunami ghosts gone, PM says
AFP
KHAO LAK - Ghosts of tsunami victims no longer haunt Thailand's
beaches, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said Tuesday.
Many visitors, especially Asian tourists, have shunned beaches
hit by the December 26 tsunami for fear of ghosts, which many Thais have
reported hearing or seeing after the deadly waves struck.
But Thaksin, who was in the hardest-hit province of Phang Nga
for a special cabinet meeting, said the spirits of the dead had already
been reborn in line with Buddhist belief.
"I slept well last night," Thaksin told reporters.
"My daughter called and asked me to pray before going to bed
and I told her that all of the spirits were already reborn. I have no
amulets" to ward off ghosts, he said.
Nearly 5,400 people were killed by the tsunami in Thailand,
roughly half of them believed to be foreign holidaymakers.
Thailand will pay for relatives of tsunami victims around the
world to attend commemorations on the anniversary of last December's
disaster, Thaksin Shinawatra said.
"We will invite the immediate families of those who died or
were injured, and will pay for their airfare and accommodation so that
they can see we are ready to welcome tourists again," Thaksin said before
a special cabinet meeting in Phang Nga province, which suffered the brunt
of the deadly waves.
Thailand covered the airfares and medical bills of all foreign
survivors, as well as most of the costs of repatriating the bodies.
Three ceremonies are being considered for December 26 to mark
the anniversary of the tsunami, which killed nearly 5,400 people in
Thailand, roughly half of them believed to be foreign tourists.
The nationalities of more than 900 bodies remain unknown, and
police said last month that identifying all the dead could take up to
three years.
Thaksin also said the government would step up efforts to
complete its tsunami warning system along the Andaman coast before the
anniversary.
Some warning towers have already been built to broadcast
alerts to beaches when a tsunami could hit. The system will eventually
also include buoys to detect shifts in the sea level.
Thailand is Southeast Asia's most popular tourism destination,
with more than 10 million visitors in 2004, but far fewer numbers this
year.
A government think tank said on Monday tourism had "recovered"
from the tsunami in the second quarter of 2005, but other surveys indicate
tourists still avoid tsunami-hit provinces, visiting other destinations in
Thailand.
Thaksin said the commemoration ceremony would be solemn, but
the following day would be more upbeat with music and parties planned on
the beaches of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi.
Thailand also plans to break ground for a tsunami monument
December 26 in Khao Lak in Phang Nga province, Thaksin added.
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