LOCAL NEWS

Stamp of approval

Kittiya Hemunk, 30, public relations officer of the Communications Authority of Thailand, with 3-baht stamps issued to mark HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn�s 48th birthday on April 2. World Stamp Fair medals featuring an elephant drawing by the princess can be reserved from now until August 31 at all post offices for 999 baht each. � Jetjaras Na Ranong

Candy crime

Sweets and candy can kill say health authorities

Ubon Ratchathani � School students and other children have been warned against eating free candy or sweets because they could be poisonous.

Local health authorities issued the warning following the distribution of colourful sweets and jelly to students at Somdej primary school in Ubon Ratchathani by three people.

Some 300 items, which were later seized by teachers, did not carry the names of the candy producers or the manufacturing date. The three people who distributed the free items fled in a van after teachers became suspicious about the purpose of their activity.

Anthem call

Army man wants new words

Army chief Gen Somdhat Attanand says the national anthem should have new lyrics that mention the nation, monarchy and religion. The current anthem emphasised only the �nation,� he said.

Gen Somdhat said that with the widespread influence of Western culture, Thai children and teens placed little importance on native Thai culture. Many children could not even sing the anthem, he said.

jobs for ex-cons

Former prisoners to get job education

The Justice Ministry signed an agreement with the Labour Ministry on July 9 to launch a training programme aimed at developing the vocational skills of former inmates prison on probation.

Justice Minister Pongthep Thepkanchana said about 20,000 former prisoners would take part in the scheme, which would arm them with skills essential to finding jobs.

school pledge

Government support promised for Islamic schools

Yala � Interior Minister Wan Muhamad Nor Matha has promised government support for private Islamic schools. At the opening ceremony of a private Islamic school in Kabang district on Sunday July 6, he said the Education Ministry had asked the deputy prime minister to support such schools.

A goody-goody game

�Fairy Land� comes to town with much fanfare

Students and presenters posing as cartoon actors in the �Fairy Land� online game, popular among Thai children, parade at Siam Centre recently in a campaign by the JustSunday Cyber Nation Company, asking kids to play computer games less. � Apichart Jinakul

Don�t mistake it for an amusement park if you hear your children talk about �Fairy Land.� It�s the latest online game formally launched for young cyber fans on July 5. Forget about Ragnarok, another cyber game that excites children with its fighting and violence.

Fairy Land claims to make a difference by teaching kids to do good deeds and encouraging them to limit their playing to two hours a day.

JustSunday Cyber Nation Company, which brought the  the game to Thailand from Taiwan, said it hopes Fairy Land will help solve the problem of computer games corrupting young minds. The game uses fairytale-like settings to send players on challenging missions where they have to do things for others.

focus on morality

Pannavit Tanasuwankasem, the company president, said Fairy Land is a game that will not make players stressed. The content of the game focuses on morality and good deeds, instead of blood and violence. It also helps children to improve Thai-language skills when reading commands.

�Each player will have missions to complete at every step of the game. So they have to read carefully to know what they have to do, otherwise they could not go on,�� said Mr Pannavit.

Dolpraphob Thienkham, 13, said he got his ID account just a month ago and has enjoyed playing the game. �There�s no violence here and it is quite suitable for kids. It�s like we�re in the fairy tales with adventures to challenge us,�� he said. A �Smart Kids package�� for players aged under 18 controls children�s playing time by limiting their access to only two hours a day.

Vocabulary

poisonous (adj): causing death or illness if swallowed
distribution (n):the way that something is shared over a particular area
anthem (n): a song that has a special importance for a country, sung on special occasions
widespread (adj):existing or happening over a large area
vocational (adj):connected with the skills, knowledge, etc. that you need for a particular job
probation (n):a system that allows a person who has committed a crime not to go to prison if they behave well
amusement park (n):place you go to for entertainment
encourage (v):to give somebody support, courage or hope
corrupt (v):willing to use their power to do dishonest or illegal things in return for money