Year: 2011
- Phuket News
Phuket to ‘paint the world RED’ today
PHUKET: To mark World Blood Donor Day today the Phuket Regional Blood Center and Phuket Red Cross are arranging special activities in Phuket. Phuket Governor Tri Augkadachara kicked off the activities by honoring 100 Phuket Public Health Volunteers with certificates in a ceremony at Phuket Community Hall. Pins are also awarded to people who reached donation milestones in multiples of…
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Pro Am golfers ready to drive off in style
PHUKET: Players in the 2011 Phuket Property Dot Com Pro Am Invitational golf tourney, to be played at the Laguna Phuket Golf Club on Friday, have a chance to win a Mini Cooper S or a 19-foot day boat for sinking a hole-in-one. The course has two par 3 holes. “The inaugural event in 2010 was a resounding success and…
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British woman fends off alleged rapist
PHUKET: A hotel handyman has been arrested for the alleged rape of a British woman at a Phuket hotel last weekend. The victim, a 32-year-old British woman, reported the case to Patong Police at about 1:30pm on Saturday. She traded punches with her assailant and managed to fend him off, but not before he ejaculated onto her bedsheets, she told…
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FC Phuket crush Chainat, 4-1
PHUKET: FC Phuket routed the Chainat “Hornbills” 4-1 on a rainy Saturday night at Surakul Stadium. FC Phuket opened the scoring on 26 minutes with a goal by Niran Panthong, but Chainat equalized just before the break to a goal that drew the vociferous ire of the FC Phuket supporters, (aka “The Hulk”), who booed the officials off the field…
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One dead, two injured in Phuket shootout with police
PHUKET: Two men reportedly known to police as thugs who impersonated police officers to extort money from Burmese workers were gunned down in a street shootout in Phuket’s tourist area of Kata Beach today. One police officer was shot in each leg before returning fire. Duty Officer Lt Col Boonlert Onklang said Chalong Police first received a report of the…
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Khudyakov smashes Laguna Phuket Marathon record
PHUKET: Vsevolod Khudyakov blazed along the 42-kilometer 2011 Laguna Phuket International Marathon (LPIM) course today to set a course record of just over 2 hours and 33 minutes. “I really enjoyed my marathon and I’m very pleased that I finished so well,” he said. The ultra-fit Ukrainian probably did not get an opportunity to enjoy the scenic aspect of “Run…
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Khudyakov smashes Laguna Phuket Marathon course record
PHUKET: Vsevolod Khudyakov blazed through the 2011 Laguna Phuket International Marathon (LPIM) 42km course on Sunday setting a course record of just over two hours and 33 minutes.“I really enjoyed my marathon and I’m very pleased that I finished so well,” said Khudyakov. The ultra-fit Ukrainian* probably did not get an opportunity to enjoy the scenic aspect of “Run Paradise”,…
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Announcing PCs4Kids: Phuket’s new initiative to unlock the potential of the gifted poor
PHUKET: The organizers of a new technology-based initiative note that many children continue to grow up in Phuket without acquiring even the most basic computer skills, often because their parents cannot afford to buy them a PC or send them to places that can make one available without charge. This seriously deprives many intellectually gifted youngsters of an opportunity to…
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Phuket Opinion: Computer culture won’t yield to Thai Ministry
PHUKET: The efforts of the Culture Ministry (yes, we have one) to certify and brand as “white” certain computer game shops that it sees as ‘appropriate’ for youngsters, may or may not be a good idea. While the sincerity of the ‘white project’ is unassailable, many see it as presumptuous, interventionist and unlikely to succeed as the result of its…
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Thepchaiya wins Phuket snooker final as Bingham’s luck runs out
PHUKET: Thailand’s Thepchaiya Uh-nooh is the 2011 Sangsom Phuket Snooker Cup champion, having defeated the world number 17, Stuart Bingham, in a thrilling final this afternoon at the Royal Paradise Hotel, Patong. Bingham was the only ranked player who remained in the tournament which saw Thanawat Thirapongpaiboon (82), Alfie Burden (57), Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm (67) and Issara Kachaiwong (87) all fail…
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Phuket Governor gets married again
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha and his wife Mrs Nalinee today renewed their wedding vows this morning at a ceremony in Old Phuket Town as part of a two-day wedding festival to honor Baba Pernankan (“Straits Chinese”) traditions. Gov Tri and Mrs Nalinee were one of four guest couples invited to renew their vows at Hongsyok House on Thepkrasattri Road.…
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“Vote No’ rally takes to Phuket streets
PHUKET: A band of about 30 protesters took to the streets of Phuket Town this afternoon to support their call for people to “vote no” in Thailand’s upcoming July 3 general election. Starting from Queen Sirikit Park on Thalang Road in the heart of Old Phuket Town, the protesters made their way past the Clock Tower Circle in front of…
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FC Phuket’s Rock Rhino looks for first home win
PHUKET: New FC Phuket coach Sompong “Rock Rhino” Wattana will take to the sidelines for his first home match tonight, when Phuket takes on Chainat FC at Surakul Stadium. Kick-off will be at 6pm. All eyes will be on Coach Sompong, whose first outing was a 1-1 draw on the road at Air Force United last weekend. He has reportedly…
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Car theft: Phuket car rental firm seeks compensation
PHUKET: The owner of a small car rental outfit in Phuket is demanding insurance compensation for a car allegedly stolen by a Singaporean tourist, but the claims adjuster says none will be forthcoming. Somjit Prayunsri, 50, went to Patong Police Station yesterday to check if there had been any progress in the investigation into a Honda Jazz that she reported…
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Skytrain proposed for Phuket
PHUKET: The latest firm to present itself as a contender for building Phuket’s light rail system yesterday proposed building a skytrain – like the one in Bangkok – as the island’s mass transit system instead. Tophon Kraianupongsa, managing director of Gold Phoenix Construction Consulting (Thailand) Co Ltd, yesterday pitched the idea to Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha at a meeting at…
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Bingham and Thepchaiya in UK-Thailand Phuket snooker final
PHUKET: Five days of world class snooker in Phuket culminates with the final championship match at the Sangsom Snooker Cup being held at the Royal Paradise Hotel, Patong at 1pm today. Yesterday’s semi-finals saw two of the top 100 ranked players in action with an expected win and another upset thrilling snooker fans in the 200-seat auditorium. Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm (James…
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Phuket gold heist reward upped to B200k
PHUKET: The owners of a Phuket Town gold shop robbed in broad daylight last Saturday have upped the reward to a maximum of 200,000 baht for information that leads to return of the stolen jewelry. Jirasak and Chantana Tarnattanasombut on Wednesday said that those who recovered any stolen items would be given 30 per cent of its value as a…
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“Vote No’ election billboards in Phuket to stay – for now
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Election Commission Director Kitipong Thiengkunakrit yesterday confirmed to the Phuket Gazette that the billboards urging people to vote “none of the above” in the July 3 elections will stay until he receives from Bangkok an official order to remove them. The Election Commission of Thailand on Thursday ruled that similar billboards in Bangkok were in breach of…
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Phuket Tattoo artists ink compromise on religious tattoos
PHUKET: More than 100 tattoo business operators in Phuket were called to a meeting in Karon yesterday afternoon where they were asked to “cooperate” in the latest nationwide “cultural appropriateness” clampdown on Buddhist tattoos. The meeting followed the Ministry of Culture earlier this week announcing it would impose a ban on all religious tattoos. The ensuing controversy and heated human…
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Patong unites against vote buying and selling
PHUKET: Phuket’s top cop yesterday held a rally in Patong urging the 1,000 or so people in attendance to vote in the July 3 election, and to avoid vote buying and selling. Participants included Patong government officials, police officers, tuk-tuk drivers, local residents, school children and ladyboys. “I have heard a lot of talk about vote buying and selling in…
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Registration drive expected to legalize 30,000 Phuket workers
PHUKET: The chief of the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) expects 30,000 migrant workers to be processed in the month-long registration drive starting on Wednesday. “About 49,000 workers have already renewed their registration and we expect 30,000 new foreign workers to register [in the upcoming registration drive],” PPEO Chief Noppadon Ployyoudee told the Phuket Gazette. The Employment Office will set…
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New Phuket bus terminal “open by October’: transport chief
PHUKET: The new chief of the Phuket Provincial Land Transport Office, Teerayout Prasertphol, needs to “break” the traffic island in front of the new interprovincial bus terminal on Thepkrasattri Road if the terminal is to start operations by October. Work on the new bus terminal was completed in December 2009, but neither Rassada Municipality nor the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization…
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Bingham battles to earn a semi-final place in Phuket’s snooker cup
PHUKET: Stuart Bingham struggled against a defiant Passakorn Suwannawat in the last quarter-final of the Sangsom Phuket Snooker Cup (updated table of results here) being held at the Royal Paradise Hotel in Patong. The best of seven match started at 7pm with Passakorn looking more at ease than the world number 17. Passakorn took the first frame, but Bingham recovered…
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Wattana and Issara wait for Bingham in Phuket snooker cup’s last four
PHUKET: Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm (James Wattana) brushed aside compatriot Noppadun Sangnil to secure his place in Friday’s Phuket snooker cup semi-finals at the Royal Paradise Hotel in Patong. Noppadun did not trouble the scoreboard as Wattana racked up a 4-0 victory in today’s quarter-final encounter which started at 1pm. At 10am this morning, Thepchaiya Un-nooh and Dechatwat Poomjang gave spectators an…
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Phuket police hunt shooter of karaoke bar owner
PHUKET: Chalong Police are investigating whether the shooting on Monday of a karaoke bar owner in Karon, on Phuket’s west coast, was drug related. Three arrests have been made and a manhunt for the gunman and two accomplices is underway. Following a night of drinking with patrons, 42-year-old Somwong “Lui” Saemin was allegedly beaten then shot in the shoulder and…
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Bahrain F1 out!
PHUKET: “Of course it’s not on. The schedule cannot be rescheduled without the agreement of the participants – they’re the facts.” Bernie Ecclestone, head of Formula 1, explains that the Bahrain Grand Prix will not go ahead unless all the drivers consent to participate. The FIA have apparently neglected to consider a section of their own code. Article 66 clearly…
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Phuket police have ‘vagabond ladyboys’ in sight
PHUKET: Ladyboys have become an entertainment mainstay in Patong, but unwitting tourists are seeing a shadier side to the festive scenes with robberies and assaults by ladyboys wandering the streets and beachfront. Patong Police are working to curb these crimes before it affects tourism and have found that the issue stems from ladyboys moving to Phuket from other provinces. Ladyboys,…
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Baby “Cream’ haunts dreams, refuses to sour
VILLAGERS in Nakhon Ratchasima are queueing up to place toys in front of the corpse of a nine-month-old baby on display in a local temple. They say the body of Suphansa Lilaphamonkit, known as “Nong Cream”, has miraculously failed to rot, despite the baby dying four years ago. Nong Cream was born on July 11, 2006, but died on April…
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No more nun-sense at Phuket temple
PHUKET: Scandals involving monks are fairly common in Thailand, but the most recent clerical debacle involves the banishment of an elderly temple nun after a public outcry over her behavior at a well-known Phuket temple. About 50 local residents gathered at Wat Kitti Sangkaram (Kata Temple) early yesterday demanding the immediate dismissal of 74-year-old Mae Chee Euam (Nun Euam), who…
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Robson quits Thailand football manager post
PHUKET: Bryan Robson last night resigned as manager of Thailand’s national team.Secretary General of the Football Association of Thailand (FAT), Worawi Makudi said in a statement to the press, “Bryan wished to resign, and his contract was terminated by mutual consent. I cannot give any more details.” Robson, 54, was diagnosed with cancer and underwent an operation earlier this year.…
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Bingham moves on and Burden goes down in Phuket snooker cup
PHUKET: World number 17 Stuart Bingham booked his place in the next round of the Sangsom Phuket Snooker Cup with a stylish display against Thailand’s Chuchart Trairattanapradit. Bingham defeated Chuchart by a score of 4 frames to 1. That game began at 1pm at the Royal Paradise Hotel and Spa in Patong. In an upset earlier this morning Alfie Burden,…
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No Tiger in the Open
PHUKET: “To not have one of the greatest players that have ever lived at the US Open is massive.” Defending US Open golf champion Graeme McDowell from Northern Ireland expressing shock at Tiger Woods withdrawing from this year’s US Open [June 13 – 19] at Congressional Country Club, Bethesda, Maryland US. — Neil Quail
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Cabinet resolution opens window to register Burmese workers in Phuket
PHUKET: In a bid to get more members of Phuket’s huge alien workforce legally registered, the Phuket Provincial Employment Office has announced it will open a “one-stop” registration center at its offices at Saphan Hin. Employment Office chief Noppadon Ployyoudee explained to a recent meeting of provincial officials that before Parliament was dissolved Cabinet passed a resolution that extended the…
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Phuket Live Wire: Surfing waves at high speed
PHUKET: Understanding the changing tide of internet speeds on Phuket is easier said than done. Everybody wants to know how fast their internet connection is running, and what they can do to speed it up. Fortunately, internet speeds in Phuket have been improving – dramatically in some cases. The general SOP level (“Screams Of Pain”) this year, compared to two…
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Body of missing deckhand found off southern Phuket
PHUKET: The body of deckhand Nati Tavorn, reported missing by his Phuket employer early yesterday morning, was found floating off Coral Island (Koh Hei) yesterday afternoon. The body, discovered at about 5pm, was returned to Chalong Pier at about 6pm and taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital, his employer Martin Eleveld told the Phuket Gazette. Mr Nati, 50, was a deckhand…
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German TV crew in Phuket “satisfied’ with dirty water recourse
PHUKET: The host of the popular German TV travel show We Save Your Vacation today said he was “satisfied” with the action being taken by Phuket authorities to ensure untreated wastewater does not contaminate Phuket beaches. Environmental engineer Siripong Pasari of Southern Thai Consulting Co Ltd today treated Mr Benko to a full explanation of what happened in March, when…
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No break for Phuket Snooker Cup star
PHUKET: Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm (James Wattana) ranked 67 in the world thrilled his Phuket fans with back-to-back wins over the past 24 hours at the Sangsom Phuket Snooker Cup. The tournament is being hosted at the Royal Paradise Hotel and Spa in Patong and features several of the world’s top 100 players. Play began at 1pm today with Ratchapol Pu-Ob-Orm (Wattana)…
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