He alleged Airlines had asked him and his companion to move seats.
I have never been so discriminated against while traveling before.
I was removed from a flight to give preferential treatment to a couple.
He was given a choice to either give up the premium seat and move to coach or get off the plane.
We could not bear the feeling of humiliation and left the plane.
I cannot believe that an airline <in this day and age> would give a
person preferential treatment over a couple and go so far as to ask us
to leave.
We will never be flying Alaska Airlines (or their recently purchased Virgin Airlines Group) ever again.
He did not immediately respond to our request for comment.
While he and his partner, who remains unnamed, were embarrassed by what
had occurred.
They both managed to find another flight home.
Thank you to Air Lines for getting us home safe.
The airline reached out to Cooley on Twitter in response to his tweet there about the events that allegedly occurred.
David, I’m so saddened to hear about this. Can you message me a good number to contact you at?”
A representative named D apologized on behalf of the company.
“We are truly sorry this event occurred.
We hold a zero-tolerance policy for discrimination of any kind in our workplace.
The company acknowledged the event did take place.
“We are deeply sorry for the situation, and are investigating the detail.
Pope accepts resignation of archbishop convicted of child abuse cover-up
An Australian archbishop convicted of concealing abuse by a notorious
paedophile priest in the 1970s said Monday that he hoped his stepping
down would be a "catalyst to heal pain and distress" after his
resignation was accepted by Pope Francis. The Vatican announced on Monday the departure of Philip Wilson,
sentenced to a year in detention earlier this month after, in May,
becoming one of the highest-ranking church officials to be convicted on
the charge. Wilson was found guilty in an Australian court of failing to report allegations against paedophile priest Jim Fletcher. He submitted his resignation, which he says was not requested by the
Vatican, on July 20, a day after Australian Prime Minister Malcolm
Turnbull called on Francis to sack the 67-year-old. In a statement released by the Catholic Archdiocese of Adelaide on Monday, Wilson said: "I made this decision because I have become increasingly worried at
the growing level of hurt that my recent conviction has caused within
the community. "I had hoped to defer this decision until after the appeal process
(against the conviction) had been completed. However, there is just too
much pain and distress being caused by my maintaining the office of
Archbishop of Adelaide, especially to the victims of Fletcher." Turnbull welcomed the resignation in a statement to Fairfax Media on
Monday, adding that "there is no more important responsibility for
community and church leaders than the protection of children". - 'No remorse' - Wilson had long denied the charges and initially resisted calls to resign pending an appeal against his conviction. His legal team made four attempts to have the case thrown out,
arguing that their client suffered from Alzheimer's and should therefore
avoid trial. But a magistrate in Australia found Wilson guilty of concealing a
serious indictable offence of another person, concluding that his
primary motive was to protect the church. He said when sentencing him that Wilson had showed "no remorse or contrition". The court has adjourned the matter until August 14 to assess whether Wilson can serve his sentence under home detention. Wilson's conviction comes amid a host of accusations that the
Catholic Church ignored and covered up child abuse in Australia, charges
that have also plagued other countries. Cardinal George Pell, the Vatican’s third highest ranking
official, faces prosecution in Australia for historical child sexual
offences. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. A national inquiry into the issue was ordered in 2012 to investigate
widespread allegations of institutional paedophilia in Australia. Over five years of investigations, the royal commission spoke to
thousands of victims and heard claims of abuse involving churches,
orphanages, sporting clubs, youth groups and schools. - Scandals - http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/08/25/irish-sex-abuse-victim-urges-pope-to-remove-every-rotten-apple.html
Pope Francis should rid the Catholic Church of "every rotten apple" and announce concrete measures against sexual abuse by the clergy during his visit to Ireland, a prominent Irish victim told AFP.
Marie Collins, who resigned from a Vatican commission on child protection last year over its failure to take action, said in an interview that the pontiff had to tackle the issue "head on".
"Every rotten apple should be got rid of and it should happen now," Collins said on the sidelines of the World Meeting of Families in Dublin, ahead of the pope's visit to Ireland which starts Saturday.
Collins was assaulted by a priest as a 13-year-old while she was in hospital -- one of thousands of victims in Ireland, where abuse scandals have badly dented the Catholic Church's standing.
"Coming to Ireland, where we have such a history of abuse and so many have had their lives destroyed, it is important that while he is here this issue is addressed, and addressed face on, and we get clear words as to what he's going to do," said Collins, now 71.
Many ordinary Irish Catholics were "waiting to see this whole issue dealt with properly" and if it is not, "more people are just going to give up in despair and walk away", she said.
Collins welcomed a letter from Pope Francis this week condemning the "atrocities" revealed by a far-reaching US report into child sex abuse by priests in the state of Pennsylvania.
But she said the words of the leader of the world's billion-plus Catholics did not go far enough.
"It didn't give any concrete statements about what he was actually going to do," she said, calling for some "real sanctions" against those who perpetrate and cover up abuse.
"The reluctance to look into things properly and to behave properly is the fear of how deep it goes, how far it goes and how wide it goes.
"There is this mistaken idea that if we don't look at it, it will go away," she said.
Collins had just celebrated her 13th birthday when she was assaulted by a priest, according to an account she gave at a Vatican symposium on abuse in 2012.
The priest -- "a skilled child molester" in her words -- began visiting her in the evenings while she lay in a hospital bed in Dublin.
"When he began to sexually interfere with me, pretending at first he was being playful, I was shocked and resisted, telling him to stop. He did not stop," she said.
"While assaulting me, he would respond to my resistance by telling me he was a priest, he could do no wrong," she recalled.
"He took photographs of the most private parts of my body and told me I was stupid if I thought it was wrong. He had power over me. I did not know how to tell anyone. I just prayed he would not do it again -- but he did.
"Those fingers that would abuse my body the night before were the next morning holding and offering me the sacred host.
"The hands that held the camera to photograph my exposed body, in the light of day were holding a prayer book when he came to hear my confession.
"When I left the hospital I was not the same child who had entered," she said.
After years of treatment for mental illness brought on by feelings of guilt, Collins finally told a doctor about the abuse when she was 47.
He persuaded her to tell the Church about it, but when Collins met with her parish priest, she says he refused to listen and blamed her.
"He said he saw no need to report the chaplain. He told me what happened was probably my fault. This response shattered me," she said.
A decade later while reading news about a serial paedophile priest Collins realised that other children might have been damaged by the same priest who hurt her and she again spoke up.
The priest was eventually prosecuted and jailed, and Collins has since become a leading voice in Ireland pushing for justice for victims.
Collins on Friday said only the pope could end Vatican "resistance", even if this meant removing people in high office.
"Every day children are being abused. So every day that goes by... more and more children are being harmed when they don't need to be harmed."
Topics :
Wilson's departure comes just two days after the pope accepted the
resignation of US cardinal Theodore McCarrick, 88, accused of sexually
abusing a teenager while working as a priest in New York in the early
1970s. McCarrick is just the second cardinal ever to lose his status. He remains a priest pending the Vatican investigative process. Last month Francis accepted the resignation of five Chilean bishops amid accusations of abuse and related cover-ups. Abuse within the Chilean Catholic Church has proved to be a thorny issue for the pope. He vowed to "restore justice" after admitting the Church failed "to
listen and react" to abuse allegations in the country spanning decades. Currently 158 members of the country's Catholic Church are being
investigated for carrying out or concealing incidents of sexual abuse of
both children and adults that go as far back as 1960. Last week the Archbishop of Santiago, Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati, was
summoned by Chilean prosecutors to respond on August 21 to accusations
of covering up systematic sexual abuse of minors by Chilean priests, 14
of whom were defrocked in May. Less than two week prior prominent priest Oscar Munoz was arrested
over allegations of sexual abuse and rape of at least seven children.
Chile prosecutors seek Vatican files of priests in sex scandal
Prosecutors in Chile on Wednesday said they have requested the
Vatican files of nine Chilean priests being investigated for sexual
abuses.
"The National Prosecutor, Jorge Abbott, today signed an official
letter addressed to the Vatican (..), requesting canonical records
involving accused persons investigated by the Public Prosecutor's
Office," the National Prosecutor's Office said in a statement.
The petition includes three requests for help in criminal cases of nine members of the church.
In July, prosecutors said Chile was investigating 158 members of the
country's embattled Catholic Church -- both clergymen and lay people --
for perpetrating or concealing the sexual abuse of children and adults.
The cases relate to incidents dating back as far as 1960 and involving 266 victims, including 178 children and adolescents.
Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of five Chilean bishops amid accusations of abuse and related cover-ups.
The developments have been welcomed by campaigners who have accused
the church of being involved in a cover-up stretching back decades.
Since 2000, about 80 Catholic priests have been reported to authorities in Chile for alleged sexual abuse.
Pope Francis has repeatedly apologized to parishioners over the
scandal, admitting the Church failed "to listen and react" to
allegations spanning decades, but vowed to "restore justice."
Pennsylvania report lists more than 300 'predator' priests
Jennie Matthew
Agence France-Presse
More than 300 "predator" priests in Pennsylvania are accused of
abusing over 1,000 children across seven decades, a grand jury said
Tuesday in a devastating report that decried a systematic cover-up by
the Catholic Church.
It is thought to be the single most comprehensive report to date into
abuse in the US church, since The Boston Globe first exposed pedophile
priests in Massachusetts in 2002.
But while Tuesday's report led to charges against two priests, one of
whom has pleaded guilty, the majority of those responsible are dead and
the vast majority of crimes happened too long ago to prosecute,
officials said.
The two-year investigation by a grand jury into all but two
Pennsylvania dioceses turned up dozens of witnesses and half a million
pages of church records containing "credible allegations against over
three hundred predator priests."
More than 1,000 child victims were identifiable, but the "real
number" was "in the thousands," the grand jury estimated, given those
children whose records were lost or who were afraid to ever come
forward.
Victims were often traumatized for life, driven to drugs, alcohol and
suicide, the grand jury said. The only recourse was to recommend
changes to the law and expose what had happened to make sure such
widespread abuse was never repeated.
One cleric raped a seven-year-old girl in hospital after she had her
tonsils out, the report said. Another child drank juice, only to wake up
the next morning bleeding from his rectum and unable to remember what
had happened. - 'Abuse, deny, cover up' -
A priest forced a nine-year-old boy to give him oral sex, then rinsed
out his mouth with holy water to "purify him." Another priest abused
five sisters from the same family, including one from the age of 18
months to 12 years.
When the youngest victim of the family told her parents in 1992, a
police search of the priest's home found panties, plastic containers of
pubic hairs, vials of urine and sexually suggestive photographs of young
girls.
The church ignored credible allegations against him for years, and
the priest died awaiting trial, Pennsylvania's Attorney General Josh
Shapiro said.
"The pattern was abuse, deny and cover up," Shapiro said. "As a
direct consequence of the systematic cover-up by senior church officials
almost every instance of child sexual abuse we found is too old to be
prosecuted."
So far only two new priests are being charged with crimes that fall
within the statute of limitations. One, accused of ejaculating in the
mouth of a seven-year-old, pleaded guilty earlier this month,
prosecutors said.
The other allegedly assaulted two boys, one of them for eight years
starting from the age of eight. His alleged crimes continued until 2010.
The grand jury called for changes in the law that would scrap the
statute of limitations for child sex abuse, give victims more time to
file civil lawsuits and tighten legislation compelling people to report
abuse they find out about.
"Despite some institutional reform, individual leaders of the church
have largely escaped public accountability," the report said. - 'Hid it all' -
"Priests were raping little boys and girls, and the men of God who
were responsible for them not only did nothing; they hid it all. For
decades."
Church elders were instead promoted and predator priests allowed to
remain in ministries for 10, 20 even 40 years after leaders learned of
their crimes as the list of victims got longer and longer, Shapiro said.
Between 5,700 and 10,000 Catholic priests have been accused of sexual
abuse in the United States, but only a few hundred have been tried,
convicted, and sentenced for their crimes, according to the watchdog
Bishop Accountability.
Since the abuse crisis became public in the 2000s, the US church has
spent more than $3 billion in settlements, according to Bishop
Accountability.
The group has documented settlements for 5,679 alleged victims of
Catholic clergy -- only a third of 15,235 allegations that bishops say
they have received through 2009. One estimate suggests up there were
100,000 US victims.
The Boston Globe won a Pulitzer Prize in 2003 for work by its
investigative team exposing sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. That
story was turned into Oscar-winning Hollywood movie, "Spotlight,"
starring Michael Keaton.
Faced with a growing number of cases worldwide and repeated criticism
over the Church's response, Pope Francis in 2013 brought in new
legislation covering child sex abuse and pornography and sentences of up
to 12 years for priests.
The church in Chile has most recently been rocked by accusations of a
wide-scale cover-up of child abuse during the 1980s and 1990s.
Depok Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) officers
demolish street vendors under an overpass on Jl. Arif Rahman Hakim in
Depok, West Java, on July 30. (Warta Kota/Budi Sam Law Malau)
More than a hundred street vendors were evicted on Monday from the
area where they usually run their business, under the Arif Rahman Hakim
(ARH) overpass in Depok, West Java.
Depok Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) head Yayan Arianto said the
street vendors had occupied sidewalks and caused traffic congestion.
“We demolished their shops to ease traffic flow from Depok bus
station to Jl. Baru, Jl. Arif Rahman Hakim and Jl. Margonda,” he said as
quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com.
Yayan said the Depok bus station would be renovated soon and that
there would be a temporary bus station in front of Depok Baru train
station, from which public vehicles will depart through the road under
the overpass.
“We’ve notified the street vendors prior to the eviction. Some have
voluntarily moved, while some others should be demolished by force,” he
added. (vla)
A motorcyclist fainted and fell off his motorbike after being pulled
over by a police officer on Jl. Margonda Raya in Depok, West Java, on
Monday.
“At first, we thought he was pretending to faint to avoid being
ticketed. It turns out he was truly unconscious,” head of the Depok
Police’s traffic jam task force, First Insp. Fitri, said as quoted by kompas.com on Tuesday.
The motorcyclist, identified as Yudhi Candra, 37, a Depok resident, was immediately rushed to the nearby Bunda Hospital.
According to doctors, Yudhi had fainted because of a chronic ulcer, Fitri said.
Yudhi has regained consciousness and is improving under doctors’ supervision.
Depok Police traffic unit head Comr. Sutomo said Yudhi had been
pulled over by police for using the fast lane designated for cars.
However, Yudhi stopped at the separator line between the slow lane
and fast lane. As the officer approached him, Yudhi fainted and fell off
his motorbike. (gis)
The Tanah Abang Police have arrested a suspect identified as Herman,
also known as Buyung, for allegedly kidnapping a 5-year-old girl, PA, in
Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, and forcing her to work as a beggar in
West Sumatra.
Herman was reported to the police by a resident of Gerbang Dermaga in
West Sumatra, who became suspicious of his and PA’s relationship,
according to Tanah Abang Police chief Sr. Adj. Comr. Lukman Cahyono.
“A local resident suspected that the girl had been kidnapped when she
called Herman ‘uncle’. The resident then reported it to the Pariaman
Police,” Lukman said as quoted by Warta Kotaon Monday.
Priaman Police investigators concluded they were indeed faced with a
kidnapping case after Herman and PA gave inconsistent answers to their
questions.
They learned of a missing child who matched PA’s description though
the National Police database and worked with their Tanah Abang
counterparts to return the girl and hand over custody of Herman.
“PA was reported missing on July 11,” Lukman said, adding that PA and Herman had returned to Jakarta on Sunday.
According to Herman’s statement, Lukman said, Herman had kidnapped PA
from her grandmother on July 11 by offering her an ice cream. PA’s
grandmother reportedly trusted Herman because they lived in the same
residential area.
“He then took PA to Merak Port [in Banten] and they travelled to Bakauheni Port [in Lampung],” he said.
Herman allegedly instructed PA to beg for money from passersby as they made their way from Lampung to West Sumatra.
Herman will be charged under Article 83 in the Child Protection Law,
which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and between Rp 60
million (US$4,000) and Rp 300 million in fines. (vla/dmr)
Head warden of Bandung Penitentiary, Husen, is met by reporters after being questioned by the
Corruption Eradication Commission on July 21.
Wahid has been named a
suspect and detained for alleged bribery in relation to providing
special facilities to inmates. (
At first glance, the room shown by the Corruption Eradication
Commission (KPK) in a video recording looked like a decent studio-type
apartment, with air-conditioning, a television, a small refrigerator and
a compact kitchen, as well as a bathroom equipped with a water-heater
for the shower.
It turned out, however, that the room was actually a prison cell in
Sukamiskin Penitentiary in Bandung, West Java, allegedly assigned to
Fahmi Darmawansyah, a businessman convicted in 2017 in a corruption case
pertaining to a Maritime Security Board (Bakamla) procurement project.
The luxurious prison cell was discovered by KPK investigators in
their raid on the prison, where they arrested head warden Wahid Husein
on suspicion of accepting bribes in exchange for the lavishly appointed
prison cell.
“From our initial investigation, graft convicts can get such cells
for between Rp 200 million [US$13,812] and Rp 500 million. They can get
more facilities, such as a cellphone, at extra cost,” KPK deputy
chairman Laode Muhammad Syarif said during a press briefing on Saturday.
The money was paid by the inmates before they got the facilities and it is not clear whether they had to make further payments.
Apart from Wahid, graft busters also arrested his subordinate, warden
Hendry Saputra, as well as two inmates, namely Fahmi and Andri Rahmat.
Andri was convicted in a separate criminal case connected to Fahmi's
corruption case. The KPK has named all of them bribery suspects.
Wahid, who was only appointed as warden in March, allegedly accepted
two luxury cars from Fahmi in exchange for the special facilities. Apart
from the cars, he is also suspected of having accepted money from other
inmates as investigators seized Rp 280 million and $1,410 in cash
during the operation.
Hendry and Andri allegedly served as intermediaries for Wahid and
Fahmi, respectively, in the handover of the cars. Investigators also
found at least seven smartphones in Andri’s cell.
“During the investigation, we also came across allegations of abuse
of medical-treatment permits. We’ve warned hospitals and doctors to act
professionally in their work,” KPK deputy chairman Saut Situmorang said
during the press briefing.
Inneke Koesherawati (left) and her husband,
Fahmi Darmawansyah, sit in a trial hearing at the Jakarta Corruption
Court last year. Fahmi was convicted in a case pertaining to a Maritime
Security Board (Bakamla) procurement project. (Antara/Hafidz Mubarak A.)
Among those arrested was Fahmi’s wife, actress Inneke Koesherawati.
She, however, was only questioned as a witness in the case and
eventually released.
The well-appointed prison cell was not the first to be revealed in
the Indonesian penal system, as in 2009 the Judicial Mafia Taskforce
discovered a luxurious prison cell in Pondok Bambu Penitentiary, East
Jakarta, equipped with special facilities, including a karaoke room and a
baby play pen, enjoyed by businesswoman Artalyta Suryani, who was also
convicted in a bribery case.
Misuse of medical permits has also been uncovered previously, as Tempo
reported last year that a number of graft inmates including Anggoro
Widjojo and Romi Herton had misused permits to attend medical
appointments to get out of prison to meet relatives and even go
shopping.
One of the most high-profile cases in recent years was that of Gayus
Tambunan, a former tax official imprisoned for embezzlement, who was
spotted watching a tennis tournament on Bali in 2010.
Leopold Sudaryono, a prison expert at the Asia Foundation, said graft
convicts tended to use their economic and political leverage as capital
in offering promotion to prison wardens in exchange for special
facilities.
He said the Law and Human Rights Ministry had issued
prison-management guidelines that emphasized security facilities like
CCTV and procedures for securing prisoners such as codes of conduct.
However, one aspect was often overlooked, he said, and that was prison
personnel’s integrity.
He said several measures needed to be implemented in handling graft
convicts, such as using ankle monitors to keep track of the convicts’
conditions and whereabouts as well as limiting the interaction between
convicts and prison personnel.
In response to the arrests, the Law and Human Rights Ministry issued
an apology and vowed to resolve the matter by instructing its
inspectorate general to carry out an investigation.
“In parallel, we are conducting a total revitalization of our
organization. It will be done comprehensively, we are working on the
instruments and personnel,” said Sri Puguh Budi Utami, the ministry’s
correctional affairs director general, during a press briefing on
Saturday night.
“Should the revitalization fail, I will resign from my position,” she added.
People line up in front of ticket counters at
Bekasi Station on Monday. Passengers had to line up to purchase paper
tickets, as multi-trip cards (KMT) and e-money cards issued by banks
could not be used during the upgrade and maintenance of the electronic
ticketing system, which has been taking place since Saturday.
(kompas.com/Rindi Nuris Velarosdela)
Commuter line passengers in Greater Jakarta were forced to wait in
long lines to purchase single-trip tickets on Monday morning amid an
upgrade to its electronic ticketing system that has been taking place
since Saturday.
Passengers had to line up to purchase Rp 3,000 (21 US cent) paper
tickets as multi-trip cards (KMT) and e-money cards issued by banks
could not be used during the upgrade.
Abilio Kenzo, 25, a resident of Depok, West Java, said he was
surprised to see hundreds of people lining up upon his arrival at Depok
Station at around 5:30 a.m.
Passengers reportedly jostled with each other to purchase tickets, causing damage to ticket counters.
Abilio, who works in Kuningan, South Jakarta, said he had read an
announcement that the system was undergoing maintenance posted by
commuter line management on Twitter at around 10 p.m. on Sunday.
However, he did not expect such crowds.
“I had to wait around 30 minutes just get a ticket. I was late for work because of that,” Abilio told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
He deplored that the system maintenance was being conducted during
rush hour on Monday. The management should have carried out the upgrade
over the weekend or in the evening, he said.
Similar chaos was seen in Bekasi. Angga Septiana, 32, said she only
learned of the system upgrade upon her arrival at the station on Monday.
Angga, who works in Mangga Dua, West Jakarta, said she had to jostle
with other passengers and waited in line for 20 minutes to obtain a
ticket.
“My body hurts because I had to jostle with other passengers to get a
ticket. There were only two officers serving passengers when I
arrived,” Angga said.
The management should have disseminated information about the upgrade in advance, so passengers could prepare, she said.
PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KCI) spokeswoman Eva Chairunisa said on
Sunday that the upgrade and maintenance of the electronic ticketing
system, which had been installed five years ago, should be conducted to
make sure the system worked well in the future.
Therefore, she suggested passengers at 79 stations in Greater Jakarta
reschedule their trips and prepare Rp 3,000 to avoid long lines.
From inside her closed house, Wagirah, 40, was reciting prayers in a
last-ditch effort to defend her house and land against the development
of a new airport in Yogyakarta.
But dozens of police, military and provincial public order personnel
did not hear her prayers. Some of them came forward, forced open her
door and dragged Wagirah and her son, Yuli, out.
Wearing pink praying attire, she fought off police officers who tried
to carry her away from her house. They dropped her to the ground but
she fought to stand up, trying to bite the hands that were trying to
restrain her.
“I don’t want you demolish my house. You are an oppressor of small people,” she screamed repeatedly on Thursday.
That day, Wagirah’s house in Temon, Kulon Progo regency, was
demolished to pave the way for a new, bigger airport for the province,
called New Yogyakarta International Airport (NYIA), to replace the
overcrowded Adisutjipto International Airport in Sleman regency. The
demolition continued until Saturday, when all 10 houses were flattened
to the ground.
Wagirah and her neighbors, all of them women, continued to defy the
personnel. They threw dust and challenged the officers to a one-on-one
fight.
The fight, however, came to a bitter end for the residents. Two excavators quickly destroyed her house.
At the same time, two women, Wagirah’s neighbors, tried to protect
their belongings, which were going to be taken away by state-owned
airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I.
Also wearing praying attire, they sat on their furniture while
reciting prayers. They sometimes interrupted their prayers to express
their anger to the people who wanted to take their land.
“Don’t you think about our children? They will come home from school to find they no longer have a house,” a woman yelled.
Ika Rochyanti, a resident, said she was punched in the nose by a
policewoman while she was trying to defend her house. She showed a spot
of blood on her white praying dress. “They took my Quran and I was
dragged out of the house,” she said.
PT Angkasa Pura I, with the support of 700
civilian and military personnel, destroy residents' houses on Thursday
in Temon, Kulonprogo regency, to make way for a new airport. Some
residents do not want to move because they say the area is good for
farming, which for them has been a steady source of income. (JP /Bambang
Muryanto) The defiant 86 families
Wagirah, Ika and the other women are part of 86 families who still
refused to sell their land for the airport’s development. From Thursday
to Saturday, AP I officials and 700 joint personnel finally demolished
the rest of houses except for the village mosque.
Their fight to defend the land that was not just their home but also a
source of income from agriculture had continued for years since 2012.
The fight escalated last year when the company finished the legal
process to buy the land. Some residents accepted the purchase, while
others, like Wagirah, refused and claimed the legal process validating
the land purchase did not have their consent as land owners.
The 86 families were united under the Association of Residents
Rejecting Kulon Progo Forced Eviction. In 2012, there were thousands of
members defying the acquisition. But many of them left the fight after
they got a price they agreed with.
In April, the 86 families were the only ones left fighting AP I when
the company cut the electricity supply and damaged their farmland.
They remained in the village and replanted their fields. “Because planting is fighting,” farmer Tuginah said in April.
The residents refused to agree to the prices offered by AP I because
they had earned considerable income planting vegetables and fruits
there. They believed they would not be able to find a suitable
replacement for their fertile coastal soil.
“For the residents here, after harvesting their chilies, vegetables
and fruits, they can easily buy a motorcycle [if they want],” resident
Widi Sumarto said, describing the wealth the land had brought them. Legal battle
The residents have taken several legal avenues to refuse the
acquisition. They tried to find help from the Indonesian Ombudsman, the
National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) and the National
Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan).
But until now, they could not stop the land acquisition.
The land acquisition followed a procedure stipulated in Law No.
12/2012 on land procurement for public facilities. The law allows the
government to procure land and pay compensation via the local court,
called a konsiyasi mechanism.
The residents’ lawyer, Teguh Purnomo, argued that the mechanism applied to the Temon residents was not valid.
“There has never been any agreement between the government and the residents under the association to comply with the konsiyasi mechanism. The residents still rightfully own the houses and the land,” he claimed.
Local Islamic figure Ustadz Sofyan, one of the
leaders of an association of local residents rejecting eviction in Kulon
Progo, delivers a speech to call for state utility firm PLN Yogyakarta
to reinstall electricity networks to their houses. (JP/Bambang Muryanto)
However, the leader of the NYIA project, Sujiastono, begged to
differ. He said the demolition and the land acquisition were done in
compliance with the law.
“It has been decided firmly [by the court] that this land is not for housing anymore but for NYIA development,” he said.
He said the procedure was also done in line with human rights
principles. AP I provided free transportation and helped pay the rent of
20 houses for the families under the association. Mosque as last bastion
Losing her house and her field did not stop Wagirah from fighting.
She and dozens of others remained in their village and refused relocation.
“We’re going to stay here and help each other,” said Sofyan.
He said Al-Hidayah Mosque, a permanent building that is still
standing in the demolished village, would be the residents’ “last
bastion”.
Sofyan said they would keep fighting because they felt they had the
rights to the land. “Our house and land are not for sale,” he said.
(evi)
A 25-year-old man allegedly burned and damaged his parents’ house in
Karang Tengah, Ciledug, Tangerang, around 11 p.m. last Friday after his
parents reportedly refused to pay for his wedding.
The man reportedly took fuel from his motorcycle and threw it
on clothes drying in the garage. "He then lit a match and threw it
on the clothes, quickly setting fire to the house." Ciledug Police chief
Comr. Supiyanto said as quoted by kompas.com on Thursday.
Supiyanto, the alleged perpetrator, escaped the scene after lighting
the fire. He was arrested on Tuesday at his friend’s house in Kebayoran
Lama, South Jakarta.
The police also said the man did not suffer from any mental disorders.
The man, who works as an unskilled laborer, allegedly committed the crime because he did not have money.
He was charged under articles 187 and 406 of the Criminal Code on arson and destruction of property respectively. (cal)
The full story of Thailand’s extraordinary cave rescue
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-44791998
On 23 June, 12 boys went exploring in Thailand's Chiang Rai
province with their football coach - and ended up trapped deep inside a
cave underneath a mountain. The BBC's Helier Cheung and Tessa Wong were
at the scene as a dramatic rescue bid gripped the world.
What
happened over those two weeks is a remarkable story of friendship,
human endurance - and the lengths some people will go to save someone
else's child.
Here our reporters tell the full story of the Wild Boars.
The birthday party that went wrong
It all began with a birthday.
On
Saturday 23 June, Peerapat "Night" Sompiangjai turned 17 - a milestone
most young people around the world would want to celebrate in style.
His
family had prepared a bright yellow SpongeBob SquarePants birthday cake
and several colourfully wrapped presents at their home in a rural
village in Mae Sai district.
But Night wasn't rushing home that day. He was out with his friends,
the other members of local youth football team the Wild Boars, and their
assistant coach, Ekkapol "Ake" Chantawong.
When their football
practice ended, they raced through the rice paddies on their bicycles
and up into the forested hills that lately had been blanketed in rain.
Their
destination: the Tham Luang cave, a favourite haunt for the boys, who
loved exploring the nooks and crannies of the mountain range towering
over Mae Sai.
Once at the mouth of Tham Luang, they stashed their bikes and bags by the cave entrance.
The
team and their young coach were ready to celebrate Night's birthday.
They had often ventured deep into Tham Luang, sometimes as far as 8km,
for initiation rites where they would write the names of new team
members on a cave wall.
In high spirits, they clambered into the
cave with just their torches. They didn't need much else - after all,
they were only planning to be there for an hour.
They would not emerge until two weeks later.
Back at Night's home, his family began to worry. His birthday cake sat untouched.
Where were the Wild Boars?
Snaking for 10km beneath the cloud-swathed mountain range that
separates Thailand and Myanmar is Tham Luang, the fourth biggest Thai
cave system.
Named after a mountain shaped like a reclining woman,
its full name is Tham Luang Khun Nam Nang Non - "the great cave and
water source of the sleeping lady mountain". Rich in folklore, it is a
popular destination for day-trippers - and adventurous children.
It
has its dangers - people have gone missing in Tham Luang before. And
once monsoon season starts in July, the cave goes from innocuous to
extremely dangerous.
The cave can flood up to 5m (16ft) during the rainy season, and should only be entered between November and April.
"The water is moving, it's muddy and there is almost no visibility," local guide Joshua Morris told the BBC.
And once the cave floods - it's risky even for experienced divers.
Almost
everyone in Mae Sai knows this. So when the parents of the Wild Boars
began to worry about their missing boys, they headed straight to the
cave. The boys' plans to visit Tham Luang had been discussed in a group
chat on a messaging app with other friends.
They found the bikes, the bags, and some football shoes outside. They raised the alarm.
Deep in the cave, the Wild Boars found themselves in trouble. It had
been raining for the last few days, and all that water falling on the
mountain had to go somewhere.
That somewhere was the Tham Luang cave system, which was fast filling up.
One
initial account from the boys suggests they were caught off-guard by a
flash flood. They needed to get out, but instead had no choice but to
scramble even deeper into the cave.
The Wild Boars eventually found themselves marooned on a small rocky
shelf about 4km from the cave entrance, past a normally dry point known
as Pattaya Beach which by now was flooded.
Swallowed
up by an unforgiving mountain and surrounded by darkness, the boys and
the coach lost all sense of time. Fear, perhaps even terror, would no
doubt have crept in.
But they were nothing but determined to
survive. The group used rocks to dig 5m deeper into the shelf, to create
a cavern where they could huddle together and keep warm.
Coach
Ake, a former monk, taught the boys meditation techniques - to help them
stay calm and use as little air as possible - and told them to lie
still to conserve their strength.
But an extraordinary set of circumstances also worked in their favour.
They
apparently had no food - but they did have a supply of drinkable water
in the form of moisture dripping from the cave walls.
It was dark,
but they had their torches. There was also enough air for a while -
because the porous limestone and cracks in the rocks meant air could
come through.
They had the right conditions to survive - at least for a little while. And most importantly, the Wild Boars had one another.
Now came the hardest bit - hoping for rescue.
Outside the cave, a full-blown rescue operation was quickly unfolding.
Authorities called in the elite Thai Navy Seals, the national police, and other rescue teams. Local volunteers also pitched in.
Initial investigations found footprints at one of the chambers in the cave - but no other sign the boys were still alive.
The Wild Boars were somewhere in the twisted depths of Tham Luang -
but where exactly? And more importantly - how could rescuers get to
them?
Exploring the cave was a challenge - most of the Navy
divers had little cave diving experience. And the weather was merciless -
heavy rainfall meant the water level was still rising, flooding
chambers and cutting off rescuers from parts of the cave.
Engineers desperately tried to pump water out of the cave - but struggled, at least at first.
At
the start, "no one really had any idea what to do", one volunteer said.
Officials brought whatever equipment they could think of - small water
pumps, long pipes, knives and shovels - but much of it was apparently
unsuitable.
They even tried drilling into the mountainside,
desperate to find cracks into the cave system which they could squeeze
into, and used drones with thermal sensors to try to locate the boys.
Rescuers also turned to the villagers for local knowledge. The Thai
Navy Seals found a boy, a Wild Boar member who happened to have skipped
the cave expedition. He recalled a place in the complex they'd visited
before - called Pattaya Beach.
Could the missing 13 be there?
Amid the flurry of rescue operations, a small group kept vigil at the mouth of the cave.
These were the boys' families, worriedly offering prayers for their
lives. Among them was Tum Kantawong, the godmother of Coach Ake.
Every
day she went up the mountain, carrying fruits, incense and candles. "It
was to show respect to the spirit that protects the cave. I asked her
to protect the 13 kids," she said.
The group gradually expanded to include concerned teachers from the schools the Wild Boars attended.
"We
wanted to be the first to welcome the boys when they came out," said
school administrator Ampin Saenta, who is so close to one boy, Adul,
that she calls herself his "mama-teacher".
Classmates of the Wild
Boars held group prayers, sang songs of encouragement into the cave,
folded paper cranes, and posted messages of hope on school noticeboards.
Villagers rallied together, donating money and hundreds of packages of food to the relatives of the boys and their coach.
That
sense of community soon began to spread, as the story gained the
nation's attention. Volunteers from other parts of Thailand flew in,
while Thai social media lit up with expressions of love and support.
But it was about to get even bigger.
The first international rescuers arrived on Thursday 28 June.
These
were US air force rescue specialists, and cave divers from the UK,
Belgium, Australia, Scandinavia, and many other countries. Some had
volunteered, and some were called in by Thai authorities.
Others were roped in when it became clear just how monumental the search effort would be.
Over
the next few days, they and the Thai divers would fight a constant
battle with the elements. They had to swim against a strong current, and
were often forced back by rising floodwaters.
Miserable conditions at the entrance to #Thamluangcave.
Thai navy divers have stopped searching - water levels have risen to
fill most caves. Pumping has stopped - too much rain. Authorities say
they will rethink strategy for finding missing boys. pic.twitter.com/gWFeFgj7xD
On Sunday 1 July - just over a week after the boys went missing - the
rescuers made some progress. They reached a large cavern that would be
later dubbed "chamber three" and serve as a key base for the divers.
It
also happened to be the birthday of Note - one of the "Thai cave boys",
as they were now dubbed by the media. All, however, were still lost to
the world.
But not for long. The very next day, two British divers made an incredible discovery.
'Thirteen? Brilliant!'
John Volanthen and Rick Stanton had been braving Tham Luang's narrow,
murky passageways for several days, laying out guide ropes and
searching for signs of life.
On Monday, the two men finally reached Pattaya Beach. But there was nothing.
They continued onwards into the darkness. Then, a few hundred metres further, they found an air pocket.
"Wherever
there is air space we surface, we shout, we smell," John told the BBC.
It's a standard procedure for such rescue operations.
"We smelt the children before we saw or heard them."
Soon,
the light from John's torch illuminated an electrifying sight - the
boys emerged from the darkness, coming down the ledge towards him.
Rick started counting the boys, while John asked: "How many of you?"
"Thirteen!" came the reply in English.
"Thirteen? Brilliant!"
Next to John, Rick couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. "They're all alive!"
The lost Wild Boars had been found.
The two divers spent some time with the boys - trying to boost their
morale. Then, they left lights with the boys, and promised to return
later with food.
The extraordinary encounter was recorded on the
divers' cameras - and swiftly posted online. The jubilation was instant,
and worldwide.
Wracked with worry for much of the past week, the
Wild Boars' parents were ecstatic to see their children had
miraculously survived. They looked thin, but were otherwise in
relatively good shape.
The boys and their coach were quickly joined by a military medic and
Navy SEAL divers who would stay with them for the rest of the ordeal.
After
nine days in the darkness, the Wild Boars once again saw light. They
longed for proper food, and begged for pad krapao, a rice dish with meat
stir fried with basil.
But doctor's orders were that they be put on a special diet of medicated liquid food, and mineral water with added vitamins.
A third boy, Dom, spent his birthday in the cave.
Rescuers
set to work in figuring out how to extract 13 people - some of whom
couldn't swim - from a winding, flooded 4km-long stretch of caves that
even experienced divers would struggle with.
"Time is not on our side because they're expecting heavy rains within
three days," diver Ben Reymenants told the BBC at the time.
"Now the real hard work comes."
A volunteer army
The astonishing discovery of the children deep in a mountain cave catapulted tiny Mae Sai into the international spotlight.
Overnight,
journalists from all around the world descended on the district, as
even more rescue volunteers from around the world poured in.
There are at least 200-300 Thai and foreign journalists working outside the #Thamluang cave’s mouth area. Apart from the press conference, every slight movement has led to a major media scrum. pic.twitter.com/ifR38D0ZIS
A small makeshift town mushroomed at the rural country park by the cave entrance.
Food
stalls were set up - some staffed by members of the Thai royal kitchen -
serving free drinks, hot noodles, chicken rice, and even ice lollies.
No job was too small to do.
The country park toilets were
dirty and stretched beyond capacity - so people began cleaning them.
Workers needed to get up and down the mountain - so drivers offered free
lifts. Rescuers were covered in mud - so a local laundromat cleaned
their clothes every night.
Spirits were high, but then a fatal accident devastated the community.
A hero dies
Former Navy Seal diver Saman Gunan was one of many volunteers who had rushed to help in the rescue.
On
6 July, while on a routine run to deliver air tanks to the boys, he
lost consciousness after running out of air for himself. His dive buddy
pulled him out and tried to revive him.
But Saman could not be saved. He was only 38 years old.
His funeral took place later that day. Buddhist monks murmured prayers for Saman as incense burned.
His wife, Waleeporn Gunan, said: "Saman once said we never know when we're going to die… so we need to cherish every day."
The
death hit home the danger of the rescue mission, and the risks facing
the boys. Saman was a fit and healthy diver who had also represented
Thailand in triathlons.
Ratdao Chantapoon, the mother of cave boy
Note, was said to have told a friend: "The Navy Seal had practised for
so long, and was so strong, but also died. How about a boy who has never
dived before?"
There was another thing to worry about too -
despite efforts to replenish the air, oxygen levels in the chamber had
fallen to 15%, lower than the usual 21%.
Time was running out.
Rescuers had identified three possible options:
Training the boys to dive through
flooded areas of the cave - a process so ripe with potential for
disaster it was widely considered a last resort
Pumping water from the cave and waiting for water levels to recede naturally - but this could take up to four months
Finding or drilling alternative passages into the cave
The divers started practising with some local boys at a swimming pool - figuring out how to transport a child safely underwater.
Other
solutions, such as an offer of a kid-sized submarine designed by tech
entrepreneur Elon Musk's engineers, would be rejected as unsuitable.
The
rescue team faced conditions so difficult that even simple tasks -
setting up air and phone lines in the cave - seemed impossible at first
because of the labyrinthine layout of the cave.
Finally, late on 6
July, rescuers set up an oxygen supply. And in the end the boys
communicated with their parents the old-fashioned way - by writing
letters.
The letters, made public by the Thai Navy Seals, were deeply moving.
Scrawling
hearts and smiley faces on note paper, the boys told their parents
again and again that they loved them and not to worry.
They
listed the food they wanted to eat - fried chicken and pork crackling.
One even cracked a joke: "Teacher, please don't give us too much
homework!"
"I'm really sorry to the parents," said Coach Ake in his letter. But instead of a tongue-lashing, he received only love.
"Coach Ake, I really thank you for taking care of all the kids, and keeping them safe," one boy's relative wrote.
D-Day
Sunday 7 July. Two weeks had passed since the boys went missing.
Out of the blue, the Thai authorities announced they were pulling out the boys - now.
"There is no other day that we are more ready than today," Narongsak Osotthanakorn, the head of the rescue operations, said.
Journalists and volunteers were asked to leave the cave rescue site - and a brisk, steely mood overtook the camp.
Why the snap decision? The rain that had pelted Mae Sai incessantly
had petered out in recent days, giving rescuers a rare break.
Locals
had also told the Thai Navy Seals that by around 10 July every year,
the Tham Luang cave system would be completely flooded.
It was
time to launch what would later be described as a "superhuman" rescue
effort, one that involved nearly 100 Thai and foreign divers.
The journey was split into two sections.
The
first - from the boys' rocky ledge to chamber three - was more
difficult. Rescuers made their way for hours through pitch dark waters
that were bone-chilling cold, feeling their way with guide ropes. At
times they had to navigate sections so ridiculously narrow that they
could only just about fit a body through.
Each boy was given a full-face air mask to ensure they could breathe, and clipped to a diver. Another diver accompanied them.
A
cylinder was strapped to the front of each child, while a handle was
attached to their backs - and they were held face down to ensure water
would run away from their faces.
John, the British rescue diver,
likened the equipment to "a shopping bag" that allowed them to manoeuvre
the boys around obstacles.
At the narrow sections, rescuers had
to unstrap their air tanks in order to squeeze through, while also
pulling along their precious cargo.
It would have been terrifying
for experienced divers, let alone for children who were not strong
swimmers. The Thai government says the boys and the coach were given
anti-anxiety medication to relax - but several sources have told the BBC
that they were in fact heavily sedated, and only semi-conscious during
the journey - to ensure they would not panic.
Once they reached chamber three, it was time for the second phase. This took another few hours.
Each
boy was secured in a stretcher, and carried by a team of at least five
men. At one point they had to place the stretcher on a raft and pull it
across a chin-high pool of water.
Rescuers had to winch the boys up a steep slope using a pulley
system. In some rocky areas they formed a human chain, passing the boys
hand to hand, while at others they slid them on top of pipes pumping out
water.
For diver Ivan Karadzic, the experience was extremely
stressful. Stationed at a halfway point in the cave, he was responsible
for replacing air tanks and guiding rescue divers through.
He
clearly remembers the nerves he felt when the first boy emerged from the
darkness and was brought towards him. "I didn't know if it was a
casualty or a kid," he told the BBC.
"But when I saw that he was alive and breathing - it felt very good."
One by one, the Wild Boars were brought out of the darkness of Tham
Luang. They were given oxygen before they were swiftly spirited away in
ambulances to a hospital in Chiang Rai city.
Rescuers took them out in three batches over as many days, as they needed time in between to replenish air tanks.
But
they were cutting it close. By the time the last batch of boys and the
coach were out, water levels were starting to rise again, as rapidly as
30cm in one hour, according to senior Navy SEAL Supachai Tanasansakorn.
It was Tuesday 10 July - the day that locals said the cave would become completely flooded.
But
while the boys were out, there were still people left on the rocky
ledge deep inside Tham Luang - the Navy SEAL divers and medic who had
looked after the Wild Boars, as well as Richard Harris, a famed
Australian cave diving expert and doctor.
They emerged shortly
after the last boy was taken out. It was not a moment too soon, as a
pump suddenly stopped working - some said it failed while others said it
was switched off.
Floodwaters rushed in, sending workers clearing up the site fleeing.
Hooyah!
It
was an astonishing feat - after two agonising weeks the Thai cave boys
and their coach were finally out at last, safe and sound.
They’re all out! #ThailandCaveSearch@pakhead
extraordinary movement The Navy Seal team in charge of the rescue says
that everyone trapped in the cave has been brought out, completing an
extraordinary and arduous rescue operation that captivated the world ...
On Facebook, the Thai Navy Seals posted: "We are not sure if this is a miracle, science, or what."
In
Chiang Rai, jubilant crowds lined the streets leading to the hospital,
cheering on the ambulances. Car horns blared incessantly in celebration.
Thai social media was inundated with posts hashtagged #ThankYou, #Heroes and #Hooyah, the signature Thai Navy Seal chant.
All around the world, millions of people who had anxiously followed the story celebrated the return of the Wild Boars.
But
it was a bittersweet night for one person - Richard Harris. The
selfless doctor who cut short his holiday in Thailand to save the boys'
lives received the terrible news that his father had just died.
Dressed in gowns and wearing face masks, the Thai cave boys sat up in their hospital beds and waved to the world.
On
Wednesday 11 July, the media got its first post-rescue glimpse of the
Wild Boars in a Thai Navy Seals video. Some made victory signs at the
camera.
Their parents, who had waited so very long to hold their
sons again, were not by their side. They were behind a viewing window,
some sobbing with joy at the sight of their boys.
The government
said it was necessary to quarantine the boys to protect them and others
from infection - though this did not stop Prime Minister Prayuth
Chan-ocha from visiting in person. The parents did not publicly object
to the strict rules.
At the hospital, the boys and coach were put
through a series of health checks. Eye shades were a must at first -
their eyes, accustomed to two weeks of darkness, could not bear the
light.
Hospital authorities said that some had minor lung and eye infections
and needed antibiotics. Apart from that, they appeared to be on the
mend.
Eventually, parents were finally allowed to briefly see the
boys, although they had to maintain a 2m distance, and don hospital
gowns and masks.
Some of the boys have even been able to start
eating normal food again, after days of craving chocolate and their
favourite snacks.
As for the rescuers, they are still digesting the unprecedented feat they pulled off.
"We didn't think the mission would be this successful," said Thai Navy Seals leader Rear Adm Arpakorn Yuukongkaew.
When rescue operations began, his team only had "a little bit of hope that they might still be alive".
"In the end that tiny bit of hope became reality."
Many had expected the story of the lost Wild Boars to end in tragedy.
Instead, it became a story of hope and survival, and of parents and
sons reunited.
It's a story of ordinary people from all over the
world coming together in a remote town in northern Thailand with one
mission: to save 12 young boys and their coach.
"If you could do the same for someone else's child, you would," John told reporters upon his return to the UK.
What's next for Mae Sai? The district, and Tham Luang cave, have been put on the global map, probably permanently.
Already, local officials are planning to convert the cave complex
into a museum and tourist attraction - and, inevitably, at least two
production companies are eyeing the Hollywood potential of the story and
angling to turn the rescue mission into a film.
As for the Wild
Boars and Coach Ake, plans are afoot for them to shave their heads and
spend a few days in a monastery. Their families believe this Thai
Buddhist tradition will bless their lives, and cleanse them of an
unfortunate experience.
"It's for their protection," said Night's
grandfather, Seewad Sompiangjai. "It's like they have died [after going
into the cave] - and now have been reborn."
For the boys, and
Coach Ake - their first priority once they leave hospital must surely be
to spend time with their families again.
After all, Night still has to celebrate that 17th birthday - and his parents have promised him a party. Additional
reporting by BBC News and BBC Thai staff in Chiang Rai, and BBC
Bristol. Animation by Davies Surya. With thanks to the local people of
Chiang Rai and elsewhere in Thailand who made our reporting possible. Read more of the BBC's reports on the Thai cave rescue here.
Thai cave rescue: what did the boys do while they were trapped?
Jul 19, 2018
Boys and their coach have spoken to reporters for the first timeThe 12 Thai boys who were trapped in a cave with their football coach
have spoken publicly for the first time since their rescue last week.
The
boys, who were discharged from the hospital yesterday, told a crowd of
reporters in Chiang Rai, northern Thailand, that they took turns trying
to dig themselves out.
They also spoke about the death of Saman
Kunan, the Thai navy diver who died while placing oxygen tanks along a
potential escape route.
“The boys, ages 11 to 16, wrote messages of thanks and promised to be ‘good guys’ on a portrait of Kunan,” CNN reports.
What did the boys do while they were trapped?
Ekkapol
Chantawong, 25, the team’s coach, said they started trying to free
themselves straight away, as they did not want to wait around for the
authorities to find them.
“We took turns digging at the cave walls,” he said.
Other
members of the team described how they had “clawed at the walls of the
cave with rocks in a desperate attempt to escape”, reports The Daily Telegraph.
After realising that they were trapped, the boys retreated into the cave, hoping to find another exit.
“I
was really afraid at that moment,” one of the boys said. “Unfortunately
we couldn’t go forward, but we could dig at the cave wall. At least
we'll do something.
“We took turns. That was our routine for ten days.”
One of the boys said that they dug “three or four metres” into the wall of the cave.
How were the boys rescued?
A
massive operation was launched to save the Wild Boars football team
after heavy rains caused flooding that left them trapped deep inside the
cave complex while they were exploring it.
The boys became trapped during an excursion with their coach on 23 June, says the BBC.
“After
they were found by divers... huddled in darkness on a ledge and cut off
from the outside world for nine days, the race began to get them out
before the weather deteriorated even further,” the broadcaster adds.
The first eight boys were rescued on Sunday 9 July. The entire team were said to be in good physical and mental health, but were taken to hospital as a precaution.
Officials
have “lavished praise on the Thai and international divers” who
executed the dangerous rescue missions, guiding the boys - who could
barely swim and had no diving experience - through a treacherous
2.5-mile escape route through the cave, says The Daily Telegraph.
Theresa
May and Donald Trump were among the world leaders to send their
congratulations, with May saying the world would be “saluting the
bravery of all those involved”.
Delighted
to see the successful rescue of those trapped in the caves in Thailand.
The world was watching and will be saluting the bravery of all those
involved.
On
behalf of the United States, congratulations to the Thai Navy SEALs and
all on the successful rescue of the 12 boys and their coach from the
treacherous cave in Thailand. Such a beautiful moment - all freed, great
job!
It appears they were taking part in a kind of initiation ritual, according to one of the rescue team members.
The
boys left their backpacks and shoes “before wading in and trying to go
to the end of the tunnel, sort of like an initiation for local young
boys to… write your name on the wall and make it back”, said Ben
Reymenants. “A flash flood because of sudden heavy rain locked them in.” Reymenants said that the boys were stable and mentally fit, but weak owing to lack of food.
Who found them?
The British divers believed to be the first to find the group have been identified as Rick Stanton and John Volanthen. Rescue
workers, including Thai Navy Seals and experts from the US, UK and
Australia, had initially been trying to reach a part of the cave known
informally as Pattaya Beach, where it was thought the team had taken
shelter. However,
that part of the cave system was also flooded, forcing the boys to find
a dry area to huddle together around 400 metres deeper into the cave. Journeying
into the cave “was very taxing, especially with the emotional load of
the lives of 12 young boys”, Reymenants said, according to Sky News. The
dive was “one of the more extreme cave dives I’ve done”, he said,
pointing to the strong current and poor visibility, and to the
complexity and long distances involved in the expedition.
What will happen to the boys next?
The
operation to get the group out of the cave drew global attention and
now that they have been rescued, they’ll have to overcome a new
challenge: fame.
“I don’t know how he will cope [with the
attention],” said the grandmother of one of the rescued boys,
16-year-old Pheeraphat Sompiengjai. “I’m just happy he got out of the
cave.”
The head of the Thai Navy Seal diving team involved in
their rescue urged all of the boys to make the most of their lives and
to “be a force for good”, reports Reuters.
“A
lot of parasites will want them to sign the rights to books, to films,”
said Jorge Galleguillos, one of the 33 Chilean miners who became a
similar global phenomenon after spending 69 days trapped underground in
2010.
“It’s dangerous, after everything that’s happened, that you become a global celebrity and everyone wants something from you.”
Regardless
of the feverish media interest, the group will need peace and privacy
in order to recover from their ordeal, warns Dr Andrea Danese, of the
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at King’s College
London.
“The boys need to go back to their normal life, to their
daily routines, in order to fully appreciate that the threat is over,”
said Danese.
The rescue has also drawn attention to the plight of Thailand's stateless residents.
Three
of the team members and their coach are members of ethnic minorities
and not recognised as Thai nationals. As such, they are denied some of
rights and opportunities afforded to citizens. For instance, because of
their status, the two boys could never become professional football
players.
Authorities in Bangkok “have now promised to provide
them legal assistance and say that, if there are no complications, all
will have Thai nationality within six months”, reports The Independent.
The 12 boys rescued from a flooded
cave in northern Thailand last week have spoken publicly of their ordeal
for the first time, describing the "moment of miracle" when divers
found them.
Adul Sam-on, 14, the only member of the group who
speaks English, told reporters he could only say "hello" when the
British divers surfaced.
The boys were trapped in the Tham Luang caves for more than two weeks.
They left hospital earlier on Wednesday and are on their way home.
The 12, who are members of a junior football team ( the Wild
Boars) appeared in their club's kit at a news conference in Chiang Rai.
They were greeted by a banner that read "Bringing the Wild Boars Home" on a stage designed to look like a football pitch.
The boys sat alongside members of the Thai Navy Seals who helped rescue them.
One boy described how they had lived on water from the stones of the cave. "Water is clean," he said. "Only water, no food."
Chanin "Titan" Wibrunrungrueang, 11, said: "I tried not to think about food because it would make me hungry."
Unbeatable team spirit
By Howard Johnson, BBC News, Chiang Rai
This
was a joyous news conference.
The first joke was cracked by a Thai Navy
Seal diver as he introduced himself: "My name is Baitoey and I'm the
most beautiful in the cave."
The room erupted with laughter.
First
to speak was Adul, the boy who communicated with the British divers. He
said the coach asked him to translate. His reply: "Chill, I can't
understand that quickly!" Cue more fits of giggles.
The boys'
friends, family and nurses from Chiang Rai Hospital were smiling and
willing them on from the sidelines.
As attention turned to how they
became trapped, the mood in the room became more sober.
The boys
listened attentively as their coach described finding the shelf that
kept them safe.
When Titan, the youngest of the 12, said he tried
not to think of food because it only made him hungry, the others
laughed out loud - proof again that even in the worst conditions, these
boys have an unbeatable team spirit.
The boys went missing on 23 June and were found by divers on 2 July. Navy Seals then brought them food and other supplies.
The group described how they bonded with their rescuers over more than a week, until their final rescue.
"We played draughts (checkers)," Titan said. "(Navy Seal) Baitoey always won and he was the king of cave."
The team's miraculous story has been widely reported - but it still
remained for them to fill in the details. Here's what we learned from
Wednesday's press conference.
1. How they got lost
On
23 June, following a football training session, the team's coach
Ekkapol "Ake" Chantawong said the group had agreed to go "sightseeing"
and visit the Tham Luang caves for the first time.
"We planned to go for an hour," he said.
Ake
said it was not, as earlier reported, to celebrate a birthday -
although one of the boys, Peerapat Sompiangjai, known as Night, said he
was keen to be home before 17:00 because his parents had prepared a
party for his 17th.
"We walked normally... [but] after we went
into the cave, we knew we were stuck on the way back out," Ake said. The
group had started to notice pools of water as they made their back way
through the tunnels.
"Some asked if we were lost. I said we weren't going in the wrong direction."
Ake said that after realising they were indeed lost, the group walked until they found a dry, sandy spot.
"We
stayed near a water source. We slept at this sand spot. Before we
slept, we prayed to Buddha.
We thought in the morning, water would come
down and officials would look for us. We weren't scared at that time."
2. How they spent their time in the cave
Between
pauses, the group walked around the complex in an attempt to find an
exit, while using the flashlight "sparingly", Ake said.
But as time went on, the boys started to lose their strength.
One of the boys described how they drank water as it trickled down the rocks, but said that there was no food to eat.
"I
fainted. I had no energy and was very hungry. I tried not to think
about food because it would make me hungry," said Chanin Vibulrungruang.
Ake said they reached a point where they wanted to do more than just wait to be found.
"We
tried to dig [ourselves] out. We took turns digging at the cave walls.
We didn't want to wait around until the authorities found us."
One of the boys said they used stones to dig at the walls.
Ake added that contrary to some reports, all of the boys can swim, although some "aren't strong swimmers".
To help pass the time, the group said they played checkers together.
3. How it felt to see rescuers
"It
happened in the evening," said Adul Sam-on, 14, who described the
moment that two British divers discovered them squatting in the flooded
chamber as a "miracle".
"We were sitting on a stone. We heard some people talking. Coach told us to be quiet and listen," he said.
Adul,
the only member of the group who speaks English, said he took the
flashlight and rushed down towards the divers, then when they surfaced
to talk, "I said hi".
"I was stunned because they were English,
so I said 'hello'. They asked how are you? So I said I am okay. I asked
if they wanted any help. And they said no and told me to go back up.
Then he said, how many of you?"
Adul said that having already spent nine days in the cave, "maths and language didn't work in my brain any more".
4. Their feelings about the Navy diver's sacrifice
When
asked about the volunteer and former Navy Seal diver, Saman Gunan, who
lost his life on 6 July while installing oxygen tanks in the flooded
cave complex, Ake said that the whole group was shocked and saddened by
the news.
"They felt like they were the reason he had to die and
his family had to suffer," he said, adding that "Saman sacrificed his
life to save us, so that we could go and live our lives."
Ake said the boys would spend time as novice Buddhist monks to honour the diver's memory.
The boys were only told of Saman Gunan's sacrifice on Saturday,
when it was determined that they were strong enough to take the news.
"All
cried and expressed their condolences by writing messages on a drawing
of Lieutenant Commander Saman and observed one minute of silence for
him," said Jedsada Chokdamrongsuk, permanent secretary at the health
ministry.
5. How they chose who was brought out first
Coach Ake said the plan was discussed in detail with the rescuers and Thai Navy Seals.
The
group ultimately decided on a risky operation that involved diving
through waterlogged passages while the boys were sedated to keep them
calm, and then carried out on "military-grade stretchers".
When asked if the plan had involved bringing the boys out in a certain order, Ake said it hadn't.
"They chose to go out voluntary. No weaker or stronger first."
Dr Pak Loharnshoon, who was also at Wednesday's press conference,
said that as all of the boys were healthy enough to be moved, "any of
them could go out first".
Ake said it came down to "whoever raised
their hands first would go out first... some of them didn't want to go
because they wanted to stay with the Seals".
Dr Pak said that when
the boys were first delivered food in the cave, they found it so
delicious that some of them "snuck food out in wetsuits".
With their press duties now concluded, the boys and their young coach will finally return to their homes on Wednesday night.
Psychiatrists have advised their families that the youngsters should not have contact with the media for at least a month.
__
The strength of the boys has returned, a health official says. They
are looking forward to eating home cooking. They can go back and lead a
normal life now, the official says.
Another official says the boys’ mental state is “quite good”. They
have had good moral and mental support since being rescued a third
official says.
The boys listened to the instruction given. “They were quite obedient” an official, identified as a psychologist, says.
In the video clip the boys are shown thanking the medical staff at the Chian Rai Prachanukroh hospital.
All 12 boys, and the coach appear, to be present.
More than 100 questions have been submitted by journalists, a host says. The questions have been vetted by doctors.
The boys are on stage now while a video clip of them recovering in hospital is played.
Here’s the kickabout as they arrived:
The new conference will be broadcast on national TV in a programme called Thailand Moves Forward, after a rendition of the national anthem.
The venue for the press conference is Chiang Rai’s provincial hall.
Thai PBS News has more images of the boys as they left hospital. They are all dressed in Wild Boar team t-shirts.
It is unclear how many of the boys will show up at the press
conference. The BBC reported that only the boys who feel comfortable
talking to the media will be present.
It may also be a challenge to work out which boys are talking at the
press conference, as there appear to be no plans to issue labels
identifying the players.
For brevity we will use nicknames to identify the players if it clear who is talking.
Following their release from hospital, the boys are now planning to
enter the Thai monkhood, as a way to pay tribute to the Thai Navy Sea,
Saman Kunan, who died during the rescue operation.
While ordaining as a full monk is only available to men over 20, the
boys will train as novices. It is not an uncommon choice for young men
in Thailand, where almost 90% of the country is Buddhist and is also not a lifelong commitment.
While some choose to remain monks for their entire lives, most Buddhists ordain for just a few years.
When they are ordained as novices it is reported the boys will donate
their merit to the memory of Saman, which is the highest honour in
Buddhism. It is thought they will ordain as novices at Wat Phra That Doi
Suthep, one of the most sacred temples in northern Thailand.
It has also been seen as a fitting choice because the boy’s football
coach Ekkapol Chantawong had trained as a novice monk for over a decade,
before leaving three years ago.
During the nine days they were all trapped in the cave, without
contact from the outside world, Ekkapol taught the boys meditation and
used Buddhist prayer as a vital way to keep their energy and spirits up.
Here’s what we know about the boys and their coach:
Ekaphol Chantawong, 25, the coach, nicknamed Ake
The assistant coach of the Wild Boars took his squad into the cave on
23 June. He was once ordained as a Buddhist monk, and since leaving the
order has spent much of his time caring for his grandmother. Thai news
outlets have reported that the authorities have not ruled out charging
him with a crime, but Thai government spokesman Lt Gen Werachon
Sukondhapatipak told the Guardian that “no one is talking about that”.
Werachon said the coach’s presence had been a comfort to the boys:
“The coach is advising them that they need to lie down, of course [try]
meditation, try not to move their bodies too much, try not to waste
their energy. And of course, by meditation, they stay conscious all the
time, so their mind will not be wandering around.”
In a letter written inside the cave and delivered to the parents of
the Wild Boars last week, Chantawong, who has coached the team for more
than three years, apologised and promised to take care of their
children. The parents wrote back: “Don’t blame yourself … No parents are angry with you at all, so don’t you worry about that.”
Adul Sam-on, 14, nicknamed Dul
He was the boy who called out in English to ask the British divers
what day it was when they first reached the team. He added that he and
his friends were hungry. His teammates, unable to follow the
conversation, chattered “eat, eat, eat” with the little English they
had. Adul assured his friends: “I already told them.”
His English skills have won him the admiration of millions in Thailand,
where fewer than 30% of the population speak the language. According to
local news outlets, his knowledge of English comes from his involvement
in church activities. He also speaks Thai, Mandarin, and Burmese, which
he learned living just over the border in Shan state, Myanmar. Like
many students in Thailand’s Mae Sai district, he commutes over the
border every day.
Mongkhol Boonpiam,13, nicknamed Mark.
Along with the coach and Adul Sam-on, Boonpiam is technically stateless.
His family come from northern Thailand’s porous and largely lawless
border regions abutting Myanmar’s Shan state. As such the three are not
considered citizens under Thai law, leaving them without many of the
rights their teammates enjoy.
Thailand’s sports daily Siamsport reported that Mark has been playing
football since he was in nursery school and loves the sport so much
that he almost always wears a football shirt. His favourite team is
Muangthong United, the leading team in the Thai Premier League.
He was has been named by Thai media as one of first four boys to be rescued from the cave.
“I just heard his name, Mongkhol, and I was happy enough,” his mother said.
Prajak Sutham, 14, nicknamed Note
He occasionally plays in goal when he is not in midfield. He has been
playing football for two years and is known to be keen mountain biker.
In a note to his family written while trapped in the cave he wrote:
“Mum, are you doing well at home? I am doing well. Please tell my
teacher I love her. Love you, mum.”
He was also named as one of first four boys to be rescued from the cave.
Nattawut Takamsai, 14 nicknamed Tle
He was one of three strikers trapped in the cave.
His mother wrote to all the team while they were trapped saying: “Please don’t blame yourself.”
She added: “We are not mad at you at all. Do take good care of
yourself. Don’t forget to cover yourself with blanket as the weather is
cold. We’re worried. You will come out soon.”
She also told the coach: “We want you to know that no parents are angry with you at all, so don’t you worry about that.”
Pipat Bodhi, 15, nicknamed Nick
He is not a member of the Wild Boars team but joined the team’s
practice match on 23 June to spend time with his friend Ekkarat
Wongsookchan.
As one of the strongest he was one of the first boys rescued from the cave.
In a video released by the hospital over the weekend he said: “Thank
you. I’m okay. I like to have rice with roast red pork and crispy pork.”
Panumas Saeangdee, 13, nicknamed Mick
Mick has been described as an ideal defender because of his fitness
and fluid movement. However, his coaches have recently considered
playing him as a striker because he is strong in the air and skilful
with his head. He is said to play as well as a 15-year-old.
His family sat in vigil outside the cave after the boys went missing.
“We all are sad and hope to see him soon,” his aunt told reporters.
She was been sitting vigil with Mick’s mother and grief-stricken grandfather who at the time had barely spoken in days.
“I’m taking care of his Grandpa... he hasn’t eaten much. He was the
one who raised Mick, so I’m trying to comfort him,” she told AFP.
Speaking in the hospital video he said: “I’m fine. I’m safe now. I’m healthy. I like to have pork fried with basil. Thank you.”
Duangpetch Promthep, 13, nicknamed Dom
The captain of the Wild Boar team and one of three forwards trapped in the cave.
His teammates on the U16 squad say he has the qualities of a leader
and a good sense of humour. Dom has been invited to trials by a number
of leading provincial teams, including Sukhothai FC and Chiangrai United
FC.
His beaming mother Thanaporn Promthep, was photographed with a an
image of her son on an iPad after hearing the news that the group was
found on July.
Recovering in hospital he said: “I’m healthy. Thank you for [your] help. I like to have rice with stewed pork leg.”
Chanin Wiboonrungrueng, 11 nicknamed Titan
Titan is the youngest Wild Boars player. He has been playing football
for five years. When he joined his school’s sports club three years
ago, he was invited to play for the Wild Boars.
He was one of the 11th boy to be rescued.
After the rescue his father, named Tanawut, said his son described
the first three days in the cave as the hardest. The group was hungry
and cold. The boys had trouble sleeping, and Titan cried, because he was
missing his parent.
Tanawut says he’s touched by the actions of the team’s coach. Without
him, the father says, he doesn’t know how the kids could have survived.
“Coach Ake hugged and encouraged him to be strong,” Tanawut told CBS.
Ekkarat Wongsookchan, 14 nicknamed Bew
The squad’s goalkeeper has reportedly improved his game over the past
few years as a result of his disciplined personality. At the end of
each training session, he steps up to collect the team’s equipment.
While trapped in the cave he wrote to his parents saying: ‘Don’t
worry about me, dad and mum. I’ll be away for just two weeks. I’ll later
help you, mum, sell goods when I have time. I’ll rush out of here.”
In a video released by the Thai ministry of health Bew is shown in his hospital bed raising his arms in a boxer’s victory pose.
He said: “say thanks to everyone that worried”. Peerapat Sompiangjai, 16 nicknamed Nite
It was Peerapat’s birthday the group were celebrating when they entered the cave.
His sister told AFP the family had prepared a birthday cake for the
right-winger along with grilled pork to celebrate with him that night.
A member of his cycling club, Sittthisak Sawanrak, told the BBC he
was quiet but “a great lad who just loves to cycle and play football”.
He said he was looking forward to eating barbecued pork when he gets home.
Pornchai Kamluang, 16 nicknamed Tee
One of the defenders on the Wild Boar team.
“Don’t worry, I’m very happy”, he said in a letter to his parents while trapped in the cave.
In his hospital video message he said: “I want to eat fried rice with crispy pork. Thank you for sending us your support.”
Sompong Jaiwong, 13 nicknamed Pong
One of the team’s midfielders he was pictured in a red England shirt while huddled in the cave.
In a note to parents, written while trapped in the cave, he wrote: “I
love you dad and mum. Don’t worry. We are all safe now. Love you all.”
In his hospital video message he said: “Thank you everyone from around the globe for helping us.
“I’m healthy. I like to eat basil pork with a fried egg.”
Welcome to live our coverage of an eagerly-awaited press conference due to be given by the Wild Boar football team after their dramatic rescue from the Tham Luang cave complex last week.
The 45-minute press conference, which will be broadcast live on
national TV and around the world, is due to begin at 6pm local time
(12pm BST).
The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach have been
recovering from their ordeal in Chiang Rai Prachanukroh hospital. They
are due to be discharged, a day earlier than expected, after talking to
the media.
The Thai authorities hope the press conference will satisfy huge
media interest in the boys’ story. They have been concerned about the
impact of sudden fame and media attention on the boys’ mental health, so
the news conference will be carefully controlled.
Journalists have submitted questions which have been vetted by psychologists. Approved questions will be asked by an official.
This controlled approach means the boys are unlikely to be asked
about the controversy over Elon Musk’s rejected offers of help during
the rescue and his subsequent attack on officials and one of the British divers involved in the rescue. (Musk has since apologised).
Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd, said: “We want to reduce
public curiosity. We arrange it so that, after that, the boys can go
back to their regular lives,” Sansern said.
At a video played at a press conference over the weekend, the boys
appeared in good spirits, thanking those involved in their rescue.
Chiang Rai, Thailand (CNN)Members
of a Thai youth soccer team and their coach have described their rescue
from a flooded cave as a miracle, thanked the experts who saved them
and discussed how the experience will affect the rest of their lives.
In
their first public remarks since emerging from their two-week ordeal
last week, the boys recounted their side of an extraordinary story that
captured the imagination of the world.
Dressed
in matching team shirts, the boys and their coach appeared happy and
relaxed as they faced the world's media after being discharged from the
hospital in Chiang Rai on Wednesday.
The
boys, all members of the Wild Boars junior soccer team, introduced
themselves to the media, shared their nicknames and told the audience
what position they played on the team
Members of the Wild Boars soccer team at the press conference.
Sitting
beside the boys were the Thai Navy SEALs who stayed inside the cave
with them after they were found, as well as members of the medical team
who looked after them after the rescue. In a carefully arranged press
conference, for which questions were pre-screened, the boys told of the
moment they realized they were trapped, how they adapted to their
surroundings and their eventual joy at being found, ten days later.
Authorities
said that more than 100 questions were sent in from members of the
media, though only a handful were selected. All 12 players and their
coach had been under close supervision at Chiang Rai Prachanukroh
hospital, near the border with Myanmar, since they were rescued from the
cave on July 10.
Why go in?
Until
Wednesday, the question of why the boys and their coach had decided to
go into the Tham Luang cave on June 23 has been a point of speculation.
It had been suggested the boys had been engaged in an initiation rite,
or had been celebrating a team-member's birthday.
In
fact, 25-year-old coach Ekapol Chantawong explained, the boys were
merely curious to look inside as some of them had never visited it
before. The coach, whose nickname is Ake, said it was not unusual for
the group to participate in group activities after soccer practice on
Saturday afternoons.
They explored the underground tunnels
for about an hour, before deciding to turn back. But by this time the
cave had become partially flooded and their exit was blocked. "Someone
said are we lost?" said Ake, who reassured the group that help would
come.
At his point, the
realization dawned that they were trapped. With the entrance flooded and
no obvious way out, the group retreated further into the cave to find
somewhere to to rest for the night. "We moved further in for about 200
meters," Ake said. "There we found a bit of slope and there was a small
water source inside the cave." Ake knew that the water dripping from the
roof of the cave would be purer than the dirty floodwater on the floor.
"I told them it's better to be near a water source," Ake said.
"Before we slept, I told them, 'Let's say a prayer.' So we said a prayer that night."
The
team were not scared, Ake told the enraptured audience, explaining that
he hoped the water level would drop the next day, and that help would
arrive.
Waters rising
The
waters did not subside, however. Instead, Ake described the moment that
he heard the sound of flowing water -- and saw the levels rising fast.
In response, he ordered the group to find higher ground. Concerned that
they might soon be submerged, he instructed the boys to start digging
and look for a potential exit.
Having
eaten after soccer practice, the boys had no food during their ordeal.
Instead, they filled themselves with water from the cave. "I tried not
to think about food because it would make me hungry," said the youngest
of the boys, 11-year-old Chanin "Titan" Wibrunrungrueang
The moment they were found
Adun
Sam-On, the 14-year-old boy who became famous after responding in
English to the first diver to reach the group, spoke of his shock on
realizing they had been discovered.
Adun,
like other members of the group, was busy digging -- looking for a
possible way out -- when some of the boys thought they heard the sound
of people talking.
Coach Ake told
the group to stay quiet. He asked one of the boys to move closer to the
ledge and shine a flashlight on the water, but the boy was too scared,
said Adun, who volunteered instead.
When the British divers breached the surface, Adun said he was so shocked, all he could think to say was "hello!"
"I thought this was really a miracle. I didn't know how to respond," Adun said.
The Wild Boars were smiling and relaxed when they arrived at the press conference.
The
boys described how they formed a bond with the Thai Navy SEALs who
remained with them in the cave while rescuers worked out a plan to free
them. Titan described how they played checkers -- and that one of the
Navy SEALs sitting alongside them at the press conference always won.
"He was king of the cave," Titan said.
When
the decision was made to extract the boys through the floodwaters,
coach Ake joked he and the boys made the decision on who should go first
based on who lived the furthest away. Ake thought the rescued kids
would go straight home and those who got out first could spread the
word, not realizing the global media had descended on the cave.
Lessons learned
When asked about the lessons they've learned from the incident, Ake said he was going to live life more carefully.
Ardun said though people can't predict the future, the experience had taught him about the consequences of acting carelessly.
Other boys said though they still dreamed of becoming soccer players, some said they now wanted to become Navy SEALs.
Many of the boys apologized to their parents for not telling them they went to the cave.
Now
that the boys' ordeal is over, there are concerns over their long-term
psychological health. "We don't know what wounds the kids are carrying
in their hearts," said Tawatchai Thaikaew, an official at the Thai
justice ministry. He urged the media to respect the boys' privacy in the
future, out of concern for their health, Reuters said.
Some of the boys are stateless, and the process of granting them Thai citizenship is under way, officials confirmed.
The
largely joyous mood of the press conference was tempered, however, when
the boys and their coach discussed the loss of Saman Kunan, the former
Thai Navy SEAL who had died during the rescue effort. Coach Ake said the
team were shocked to learn of Saman Kunan's death, called him a hero
and said he had sacrificed his life for theirs.
In
memory of the navy diver, Ake said the boys would spend time as novice
Buddhist monks -- a practice considered a high honor in Thailand.
It was meant to be a fun excursion after football practice, but it
turned into a life-threatening, two-week ordeal for a group of
youngsters trapped in a cave with rising waters and no apparent escape
route.
When coach Ekkapol Chantawong led twelve members of his “Wild Boar”
youth football team into the mouth of northern Thailand’s Tham Luang
cave complex on 23 June, he thought they’d be no more than an hour.
“We didn’t have anything with us, no food,” he recalled at a press
conference on Wednesday where the now world famous team recounted their
harrowing ordeal and miraculous escape in their own words for the first
time.
One of his pupils had a tutor class to get to later that evening. And
besides, Ekkapol thought, the team often explored the complex after
practice and knew its meandering tunnels well.
Thailand’s wet season was just around the corner — a period of
monsoonal downpours that often floods the cave — and there were already
pools of water inside the mouth. READ ALSO: Buhari govt confused, incompetent to stem killings, says Obasanjo
A sign outside the cave warned against entry during the monsoon. But the kids were keen to have an adventure. “We were discussing whether we wanted
to explore the cave and, if so, how we would have to swim,” the
25-year-old coach, a much-loved mentor to the boys, recalled. “It would
be wet, it would be cold. Everybody said yes.” The team, aged 11 to 16, left their
bikes and football boots near the opening of the cave before one of the
boys waded into the water. The rest followed.
– Trapped in the dark –
Had the heavens not opened, the Wild Boars would have been home by mid-afternoon.
Instead a sudden deluge forced them deep inside the cave as floodwaters rushed through the entrance and steadily rose up the walls.
That fateful decision sparked one of the most remarkable, touch-and-go cave rescue operations in history. It brought Thai Navy SEALs and
international cave diving experts together to pull off the fiendishly
difficult task of first locating the missing boys and then extracting
them through miles of flooded passageways, as a breathless world looked
on. One former Thai Navy SEAL, Saman Kunan, died when his air ran out during a resupply mission. Trapped in the dank, pitch-black
darkness, the boys had no idea whether anyone was even coming for them —
let alone that they had generated non-stop global headlines. “I was really afraid that I wouldn’t be able to return home,” 13-year-old Mongkol Boonpiem, recalled.
Fortunately they had a fresh water supply. “We drank water that fell from the rocks,” Pornchai Khamluang, the 16-year-old boy who first waded into the water, told reporters. “It was clean and tasted like any drinking water.” As the hours turned into days, the boys
did what they could to keep their spirits up — coach Ekkapol, who spent
some years in a local monastery as a Buddhist monk, taught them how to
meditate to keep calm and preserve air. They had little concept of time but the first time they went to sleep they prayed, Ekkapol said.
– ‘Miracle’ –
Calm camaraderie saw them through but there were moments of terror. The rising floodwaters kept pushing the
group deeper into the cave. At one point they started trying to dig
their way out, a futile illustration of their desperation in a cave
system buried under hundreds of metres of limestone. “We used rocks to dig out the cave wall,” said Phanumas Saengdee, 13. “We dug three to four metres”.
Eventually the team settled on a small
muddy ledge some four kilometres inside the cave, figuring all they
could do was hope someone would find them. Salvation came on day nine in what to the boys seemed like the most unlikely of forms. The team heard voices but the language they were speaking was not Thai. Two British cave diving experts, who had spent days battling the flooded passages, had finally located the stranded group. Adul Sam-on, 14, was the only member of the Wild Boars who could speak English. “When he (the diver) emerged from the
water I was shocked that he was British,” he recalled. “It was a
miracle, I was frightened and I asked him ‘Can I help you?'” In video of the scene that was captured by one of the diver’s bodycameras
and later broadcast around the world, the bedraggled boys, dressed in
mud-caked football kits, could be seen thanking their rescuers. “Many people are coming. Many, many people,” the diver reassured the boys. They were no longer lost or alone. The rescue mission was on.
--
The Thai boys and their coach began their first day back home with their families since they were rescued from a flooded cave with a trip to a Buddhist temple on Thursday to pray for protection from misfortunes.
The 11 boys and the coach knelt and pressed their hands in
prayer to the tune of chanting monks. They were joined by relatives and
friends at the Wat Phra That Doi Wao temple, overlooking Myanmar on Thailand’s northern border.
The remaining member of the Wild Boars soccer team – Adul
Sargon – is not a Buddhist and did not attend the ceremony, meant to
extend one’s life and protect it from dangers.
The team has already said they would ordain as Buddhist novices to honour a former Thai navy Seal diver who died in the cave while making preparations for their rescue.
On Wednesday evening, the boys and coach faced the media for
the first time since their ordeal, describing their surprise at seeing
two British divers rising from muddy waters in the recesses of the cave.
It would be another week before they were pulled out of the Tham Luang cave.
“We weren’t sure if it was for real,” 14-year-old Adul said.
“So we stopped and listened. And it turned out to be true. I was
shocked.”
In one poignant and emotional moment at the news conference, a
portrait was displayed of Saman Gunan, the Thai diver who died. One of
the boys, 11-year-old Chanin “Titan” Vibulrungruang, the youngest of the
group, covered his eyes as if wiping away a tear.
“I feel sad. And another thing is I’m really impressed with
sergeant Sam for sacrificing his life for all 13 Wild Boars to be able
to live our lives outside happily and normally,” he said. “When we found
out, everyone was sad. Extremely sad, like we were the cause of this
that made the sergeant’s family sad and having to face problems.”
The Wild Boars had entered the cave on 23 June for what was to be a
relaxing excursion after soccer practice. But rain began, and water soon
filled the cavern, cutting off their escape, and they huddled on a
patch of dry ground deep inside the cave.
Coach Ekapol “Ake” Chanthawong said the trip was meant to
last one hour, simply because “each of us wanted to see what was
inside”.
When the hour was up, they were pretty deep inside and
already had swum through some flooded areas in the spirit of adventure.
But in turning back, he discovered the way was not at all clear, and he
swam ahead to scout the route, attaching a rope to himself so the boys
could pull him back if necessary.
He said he had to be pulled out.
Ekapol said he told the boys: “We cannot go out this way. We have to find another way.”
The boys told reporters of their reactions at that point.
“I felt scared. I was afraid I wouldn’t get to go home and my
mom would scold me, said Mongkol Boonpiam, 13, prompting laughter.
Ekarat Wongsukchan, 14, said they decided “to calm ourselves
first, to try to fix the problem and find a way out. Be calm and not
shocked.”
The group had taken no food with them and survived by
drinking water that dripped from the cave walls, Ekapol said, adding
that all the boys knew how to swim, which had been a concern for
rescuers.
Titan said he tried hard not to think about food. “When I’m
starving, I don’t think of food otherwise it’d make me more hungry.”
Adul said they were digging around the spot when they heard the voices and Ekapol called for silence.
He recounted how Ekapol told them to “‘quickly get down
there, that’s the sound of a person, or else they’re going to pass on
by,’ something like that”.
But he said his teammate holding the flashlight was scared, so Adul told him “If you’re not going to go, then I’ll go.”
“So I quickly took the flashlight, and quickly went down, and I greeted them ‘hello’,” Adul added.
Psychologists had vetted the journalists’ questions in
advance to avoid bringing up any aspects of the rescue that might
disturb them. The dangers of the complicated operation, in which the
boys were extracted in three separate missions with diving equipment and
pulleys through the tight passageways, were not discussed.
Doctors said the 13 were physically and mentally healthy.
Although they lost an average of 4 kilograms (9 pounds) during the more
than two weeks they were trapped in the cave, they have since gained
about 3 kilograms (6 1/2 pounds) on average since their rescue. They
were treated for minor infections.
Asked what he had learned from their experience, 13-year-old
Mongkol Boonpiam said he felt stronger. “I have more patience,
endurance, tolerance,” he said.
Adul said it had taught him “not to live life carelessly”.
While many of the boys wanted to be pro soccer players when
they grow up, at least four of them said they hope to become navy Seals,
so they could help others.
All expressed their apologies to their families.
“I wanted to apologise to my parents. I know that I will get yelled at by mom when I get home,” said Pornchai Kamluang, 16.
Ekarat said sheepishly he wanted to apologise to his parents
because while he told them he was going to a cave, he told them the
wrong one.
“I told them I was going to Tham Khun Nam,” he said. “I
didn’t tell them I went to Tham Luang. So I was wondering how they found
us at the right cave.”
CHIANG RAI,
Thailand — Thailand's rescued cave boys woke up in their own homes for
the first time in more than three weeks on Thursday, with many rising at
dawn to take part in a religious ceremony.
The
12 boys, aged 11 to 16, and their 25-year-old coach were discharged
from a hospital in the northern province of Chiang Rai on Wednesday and
later made their first public appearance.
During
a national TV broadcast they smiled, joked and showed solidarity with
one another, as they shared details of their traumatic experience inside
the flooded Tham Luang cave complex.
Many
of the boys hail from the sleepy district of Mae Sai, near the border
with Myanmar. Some were greeted with hugs, tears and smiles from waiting
relatives and friends when they returned home on Wednesday. Others were
blessed with water as they entered their homes.
Rescued boys, coach say they never gave up hope of being found in Thailand cave
The boys' coach, Ekapol Chanthawong, said he was finally relax now the boys were at home with their families.
"I am very happy to be home. I can finally sleep well last night," he said.
The
boys have already said they would become Buddhist novices to honour
former Thai Navy SEAL diver who died in the cave while making
preparations for their rescue.
