Month: September 2003

  • Cannabis NewsBritons arrested for dealing drugs | Thaiger

    Britons arrested for dealing drugs

    KATHU: Two British men and four Thais have been arrested and charged with dealing ya bah (methamphetamines) after a series of “kiss-and-tell” raids on Monday. The charges carry the death penalty – an unlikely but theoretically possible punishment. Information obtained in the first raid led to a second raid, then a third raid. The Britons – named by police as…

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  • Phuket

    New Gov arrives in Phuket

    PHUKET TOWN: Just one day before officially taking up his new post as Phuket Governor CEO, Udomsak Usawarangkura told reporters today that tourism development would remain a top priority under his leadership. “I will continue to emphasize tourism development for Phuket, as this is the island’s most important industry,” K. Udomsak said following a dinner with local officials at the…

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  • PhuketRoad death toll still falling | Thaiger

    Road death toll still falling

    PHUKET: A dramatic transformation in Phuket’s road toll statistics appears to be taking place with just three deaths reported on the island in the period between September 1 and September 25. Since Phuket recorded an alarming total of 26 motorcycle-crash deaths between April 20 and May 20, the monthly tally has fallen to 15 deaths, then nine deaths and now…

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  • PhuketNuclear reactor gets govt go-ahead | Thaiger

    Nuclear reactor gets govt go-ahead

    BANGKOK (The Nation): The controversial nuclear research reactor project in Nakhon Nayok has been given the construction go-ahead. This is despite the environmental impact assessment (EIA) not yet having been completed, and the safety analysis report having been rejected by a key committee. The National Commission on Atomic Energy for Peace yesterday approved the research project, to be built in…

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  • PhuketDrugs top priority for new Governor | Thaiger

    Drugs top priority for new Governor

    PHUKET TOWN: A more intense campaign against illegal drugs will be the top priority when the new Governor CEO, Udomsak Usawarangkura, arrives in Phuket tomorrow, ready to step behind his desk on Wednesday. Coincidentally, October 1 also marks the beginning of a two-month nationwide campaign to eradicate illegal drugs from Thailand. It is hoped that by December 2, all 76…

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  • PhuketMeeting called to stem beachfront friction | Thaiger

    Meeting called to stem beachfront friction

    PATONG: In a move to defuse growing tension between Phuket-native vendors in Patong and vendors who have migrated south to the resort town in hopes of making their fortunes, Patong Municipality on Friday held an all-day conference advocating more ethical business practices and a united front in serving tourists. “It’s not easy getting people from everywhere in Thailand to work…

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  • PhuketAndaman NGOs slam plans for Phuket links | Thaiger

    Andaman NGOs slam plans for Phuket links

    PORT BLAIR, ANDAMAN ISLANDS: Two environmental lobby groups on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands have slammed plans for trade and tourism links between the islands and Phuket. Such links, they allege, would turn the islands from an idyllic tropical backwater into a sex tourism hotspot. “The Andamans do not have any professional sex workers, [but] we may soon need thousands…

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  • PhuketThaksin rewards Gov’s wife | Thaiger

    Thaksin rewards Gov’s wife

    PHUKET TOWN: Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has dipped into his own pocket and handed 100,000 baht to Mantana Vasaputi, wife of Phuket’s Governor CEO. She was one of nine provincial governors’ wives to receive awards for providing “a warm home” for their hard-working spouses. K. Mantana, 49, told the Gazette modestly that the award was a result of her husband’s…

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  • PhuketFour held for motorbike thefts | Thaiger

    Four held for motorbike thefts

    PHUKET TOWN: A police crackdown on gangs of teenage motorcycle thieves led to the arrest of four boys in two separate swoops early yesterday morning. In the first arrest, at about 12:25 am, Phuket Town Police nabbed 18-year-old Katha Kijnakom on Phang Nga Rd Soi 2 and charged him with stealing three motorcycles and trading in stolen motorcycle parts. Police…

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  • Phuket

    Vegetarian Festival gets under way

    PHUKET TOWN: Phuket’s shrines were completing Lantern Pole Raising (Sao Go Teng) ceremonies this evening, the traditional start to what is anticipated to be a lively but probably damp nine-day Vegetarian Festival. Uthai Pimjaichon, the speaker of the Thai Parliament, formally opened the festival at the Jui Tui Shrine this afternoon. Theerawuth Sritulalak, Chairman of the Jui Tui Shrine, the…

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  • PhuketBurmese found drowned | Thaiger

    Burmese found drowned

    PHUKET TOWN: The body of a man thought to be a Burmese fisherman was found on the shore near Sangaroon Pier, off Si Sena Rd, yesterday afternoon. Police theorize he drowned after falling from the pier, possibly while drunk. Pol Capt Sarit Buthnongsan, of Phuket Town Police Station, said that officers estimate that the man had been dead about 10…

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  • Phuket

    Park officials demolish illegal homes

    THALANG: Some 200 heavily-armed police and officers of Sirinath National Park today tore down 14 buildings constructed illegally in the Pason Layan area of the park, including one abandoned holiday home. Satien Chuaynu, Chief of National Parks, Region 19, who is based in Nakhon Sri Thammarat and has responsibility for Nakhon Sri Thammarat, Krabi, Phang Nga and Phuket, told the…

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  • PhuketWork permit rules to change again | Thaiger

    Work permit rules to change again

    PHUKET: A heads-up for foreigners married to Thais: you may soon be in demand by companies, when new draft Labor Ministry regulations covering work permits for aliens come into force in October. Although the new regulations have not yet been published, Wirada Yuvaves, Chief of the Criteria System for Alien Work Permit Approval Consideration at the Ministry of Labor and…

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  • PhuketMega property auction set for December | Thaiger

    Mega property auction set for December

    PHUKET TOWN: During a weekend visit to the island, Justice Minister Pongthep Thepkanjana announced that the Legal Execution Department’s (LED’s) first-ever nationwide property auction using teleconferencing will be held on December 14. The auction will feature properties from Phuket, Bangkok and Chiang Mai each valued at more than 20 million baht. The teleconference auction is one of several new measures…

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  • PhuketBest Western enters Phuket resort market | Thaiger

    Best Western enters Phuket resort market

    PHUKET: Two Phuket resorts will soon join the Best Western international hotel network of some 4,100 properties worldwide, in a rebranding and marketing scheme being finalized this month. The first property, the 180-room Phuket Ocean Resort at Karon Beach, will be rebranded as the Best Western Phuket Ocean Resort. The second property is a new 199-room property on Bang Tao…

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  • Phuket

    Governor begins farewell rounds

    PHUKET TOWN: Outgoing Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi began the traditional round of farewell functions last night at a farewell party with the media, at which he promoted competitions for singing children and “Good Phuket People.” While the governor was coy about the positive results of three years in the post that he relinquishes on October 1, he was keen to…

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  • PhuketDead pets thought to be work of poisoner | Thaiger

    Dead pets thought to be work of poisoner

    KAMALA: Residents of a village in Kamala suspect a poisoner has killed six pet dogs belonging to expatriates in the village over the past eight weeks. A Weimaraner German hunting dog valued at 100,000 baht almost became the poisoner’s seventh known victim earlier this month. According to the dog’s owner, Englishman Andrew Scatter, he was fortunate to save the life…

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  • PhuketB14m tourist rescue center opens | Thaiger

    B14m tourist rescue center opens

    CHALONG PIER: After more than six months of setting-up, the Phuket Tourist Rescue Center (PTRC) at Chalong Pier was officially opened by Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi this morning. The PTRC, funded by 14 million baht from the Tourism Authority of Thailand, coordinates emergency response teams for people in distress in the waters off Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga. Dr…

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  • PhuketBomb emergency practice at airport | Thaiger

    Bomb emergency practice at airport

    PHUKET AIRPORT: Phuket International Airport staff underwent a training session today to prepare its staff to deal with a terrorist bombing aboard an aircraft. More than 40 people from both Thai Airways and Bangkok Airways took part in the operation, while more than 100 personnel from local hospitals and other local organizations looked on. The drill, which began at about…

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  • PhuketHeads up: helmets-for-all crackdown | Thaiger

    Heads up: helmets-for-all crackdown

    PHUKET TOWN: From October 1, Phuket police will enforce a law requiring both riders and passengers on motorcycles to wear helmets. The long-standing law has been applied in recent years only to riders, not passengers, but concern has continued to grow over the number of deaths and injuries on the island’s roads. The latest crackdown comes at the instigation of…

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  • PhuketPanel probes cheating in OrBorTor polls | Thaiger

    Panel probes cheating in OrBorTor polls

    PHUKET: Allegations of cheating and vote-buying have delayed the official appointment of Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) executive committees in nine of the 12 tambon in Phuket where polling took place last month. An investigation is underway by the Phuket Election Committee, which will reveal details of the allegations only when it has completed the probe. It was, however, announced that…

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  • PhuketGame over: Two held on software violations | Thaiger

    Game over: Two held on software violations

    PHUKET TOWN: Police officers accompanied by a lawyer from a software firm seized 25 computers and made two arrests in raids on Internet gaming shops in Phuket Town this afternoon. The attorney, representing Asiasoft International Co Ltd, first went to Net Pic, on Damrong Rd, where 11 computers were confiscated, and then to Log-in Internet, on Ong Sim Phai Rd,…

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