THAILAND TRAVEL NEWS: When people think of their country’s navy they generally conjure up visions of ships, perhaps aircraft and in almost all instances, the defense role these people perform.

In Sattahip Province, the main operational base for the Royal Thai Navy, naval personnel form a large percentage of the community due to the home base operations located there.

As in most countries, naval personnel in Sattahip province are active members of their community and their presence is seen by authorities and residents as having a positive affect on the community.

To celebrate the birthday of Admiral Prince Abhakara Kiartiwongse, “the father of Royal Thai Navy, personnel joined local officials and students in cleaning up beaches along Dong Tan Bay.

Led by Rear Admiral Suppakorn Booranadilok, commander of the Royal Thai Fleet, the navy personnel cleared the beaches of trash and debris, as well as pruned the tress along the foreshore.

The beach clean up followed the donation of 83 cows and buffalos to poor families purchased from slaughterhouses in Ayutthaya with funds raised by navy personnel.

The cattle will be raised by the recipients with assistance from the Naval Welfare Department’s agricultural division under HM the Kings sufficiency-economy project as well as a sustainable cattle-raising project initiated by HM Queen Sirikit.

Rear Admiral Chumpon Wongwekin, director general of the Naval Civil Affairs Department, said the “sparing cattle’s lives” project was an opportunity to make merit for HM the King.

He said the Naval Education Department gives livestock to residents in different provinces on the condition they can’t kill, sell or exchange the cattle and can only use them in agriculture.

In August more than 1,700 personnel from the base descended on neighboring Chonburi Province for their annual clean-up project in honor of the Queen, removing trash from the beaches and city drains, swept streets, and performing general community beautification work .

The community support for the positive manner in which the naval personnel are viewed in the province was shown recently when the local Sattahip municipal government donated Bt20,000 (about $US600) to help a 60-year-old Royal Thai Navy official rebuild after his house burned down and destroyed most of his possessions.

While city officials acknowledged that the amount donated represented only a fraction of the Bt200,000 ($6,000) loss, they hoped the amount would help and said it was a sign of thanks to the Navy which plays such a large role in the Sattahip community.

With a fleet size of about 160 vessels and almost 22,000 personnel, the Royal Thai Navy is a side of Thai society that travelers in the provinces of Chonburi and Sattahip in particular are likely to come across fairly frequently, with some of their public activities providing an interesting insight into Thai society.

By John Le Fevre

Thailand Travel News for Dec 29, 2009