Thailand is famously known as the “Land of Smiles.” Visitors often describe Thais as kind and polite. But beneath that warm exterior lies a deeply rooted cultural value : kreng jai.

CONSTRUCTION tycoon Premchai Karnasuta and three other suspects, all of whom have been charged with poaching in Kanchanaburi’s Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, met with police to hear charges against them at noon yesterday, three days before they were required to appear on Monday.