ETurboNews Thailand is planning to hold a “mega-event” to commemorate the Indian Ocean tsunami’s first-year anniversary.
Citing the Andaman recovery Plan, Thailand’s three-phased tsunami action plan, Tanes Petsuwan, director of International Public Relations Division of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), confirmed that TAT is planning to hold the “Tsunami Memorial Day” from December 25-28, 2005 “as one of our mega events.”
Petsuwan, however, refused to disclose any event details for now except to say, “TAT has been inviting leading event organizers in Thailand to submit their proposal in organizing this memorial event.”
Support for such an event is strong both in Thailand and outside.
”I do believe an annual benefit concert would be appropriate until all those who were negatively affected have been put on their feet,” one reader wrote. “It was indeed a tragic global event.”
In an open letter, published in an eTurboNews, Bert van Walbeek asked to TAT to "consider a Total Leadership to unite the Tourism Industry (public, private and academic) on December 26, 2005 in commemorative efforts in the magnitude of recovery responses to similar dramatic occasions like the Aida performance after the Luxor massacre, the impressively arranged funeral of Lady Diana or the solemn September 11 memorials each year in New York."
Petsuwan said proposed events are similar to what Walbeek proposed in his letter.
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