Year: 2011
- Phuket News
Finn fights off knife-wielding thugs in Phuket Town
PHUKET: A Finnish tourist is recovering from a gash to his arm after fighting off two young thugs who attacked him with a knife in the heart of Phuket Town before dawn this morning. The Finn, 59-year-old Heikki Antero Malkki, arrived at the bus station on Phang Nga Road at about 3:30am. He had just arrived from Malaysia and planned…
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BREAKING NEWS: Sale of Phuket’s Laguna Beach Resort approved
PHUKET: THE 252-room Laguna Beach Resort in Phuket has transacted to Laguna Phuket Club Co, a Thai company controlled by Singapore-based private equity fund Recap. According to documents filed with the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the Board of Directors of Laguna Resorts and Hotels (LRH) approved the sale of the company’s 60% shareholding in the resort for 723.565 million baht.…
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Phuket communities disappointed by Cabinet inaction
PHUKET: Six communities in Phuket, of 34 others across Thailand, hoping to receive “community” land title deeds have reacted with disappointment after Cabinet’s decision yesterday not to address their concerns. A Prime Minister’s Office regulation announced last year called for the government to legalize and protect communities who make their living on idle plots of government land. After a lengthy…
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British tourist drowns in Phuket
PHUKET: A party among friends turned tragic early this morning when a British tourist, whom Cherngtalay police had originally identified as French, entered the surf and drowned at Phuket’s northern Bang Tao Beach. Lt Col Wicharn Suwannasit of the Cherng Talay Police identified the victim as 34-year-old Daniel Medhurst. He was a guest at the Best Western Laguna Phuket Resort,…
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Phuket police seeking survivor of assassination attempt
PHUKET: Police are seeking a half-Thai, half-French man recovering from a gunshot wound sustained in Phuket Town Sunday afternoon. They expect to arrest his assailant soon. Phuket City Police duty officer Anek Mongkol said he suspects the victim, 27-year-old Patong businessman Markudom Boulbet, may be intentionally avoiding police questioning. Mr Boulbet was shot once in the right shoulder by a…
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Phuket consuls keep pressure on tuk-tuk, jet-ski scams
PHUKET: Following the success of the honorary consuls’ meetings in Phuket, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has announced that a nationwide gathering of all honorary consuls will be held at the ministry in Bangkok next month. News of the meeting was announced by Korn Suwanasai, director of the MFA Passport office in Phuket, at the first Phuket Honorary…
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PHUKET DINING: Great value at vintage vamp Kopitiam
PHUKET: If you crave quality Chinese-accented Thai cuisine, and might like to savor it in a retro ambiance, you need to visit the latest addition to Old Phuket Town’s culinary scene. Kopitiam Cafe and Restaurant – a family-owned kitchen located at the Yaowarat Road end of Thalang Road – opened only three months ago but has already established itself as…
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Mayor Pian ponies up for Phuket police houses
PHUKET: Patong Mayor Pian Keesin today handed over one million baht to build two retaining walls around accommodation being built for Phuket police officers. Mayor Pian handed over the cheque to Kathu Police Superintendent Col Arayapan Pukbuakhao at a ceremony at Patong Municipality offices this morning. The money was garnered from rental fees levied on fair operators for staging a…
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Phuket police raids reap grenade, drugs
PHUKET: Complaints to police about “suspicious youngsters” in a housing estate in Wichit sparked three days of raids that led to 13 arrests and netted seven stolen motorbikes, heroin and other drugs – and a defunct grenade. The raids followed tip-offs from residents at Irawadee Village who complained about youngsters constantly riding motorbikes without license plates through the estate, located…
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Phuket’s “landless’ pin hopes on Cabinet support
PHUKET: The fate of six Phuket communities hinges on the outcome of a key Cabinet meeting tomorrow that could result in their gaining title deeds to the state-owned land they live on. The six villages are among 35 nationwide selected to pilot a Prime Minister’s Office regulation from last year that allows for issuance of so-called “community” Chanote land titles.…
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Phuket police investigate Englishman’s “whiskey poisoning’
PHUKET: Patong police have sent a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label whiskey for laboratory tests to determine whether a 77-year-old Englishman found dead in his Phuket guest suite was poisoned. Duty Officer Lt Col Jongserm Preecha today told the Gazette that the tests were only a precaution. No evidence of fighting was found in the man’s room, in a…
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Phuket jokers have “nothing to declare’
PHUKET: Stand-up comedians Nick Doody, Josh Howie and Michael Legge amazingly cleared Customs at Phuket International Airport yesterday ahead of their Punchline Comedy Club performance in Patong on Wednesday. The comedians, who will be performing at the Holiday Inn Resort Phuket on Wednesday night were picked up by the Phuket Stretch Limo Company, the only stretch limo operator in Thailand.…
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Five Phuket tourists die in Cha-am horror crash
PHUKET: Five tourists returning home from a holiday in Phuket were killed yesterday morning when their minivan slammed into the back of an 18-wheel truck on a highway in Cha-am District, Petchaburi province. The minivan driver, Uthen Faksaeng, 34, is in police custody and will be charged with causing death by negligent driving, police say. The 10 passengers of the…
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Phuket Island View: Get more creative with Phuket’s image
PHUKET: I was happy to read Janpen Upatising’s article last week [Phuket Gazette: ‘Lights, camera, action for future island creativity’, February 12]. As a retired creative marketer, I can say that if there’s demand, or if you can create demand for something and supply it, you will be successful. Phuket needs to develop at least one festival or event each…
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Phuket Petition: Foreign donations critical in recurring calls for blood
PHUKET: Coming as it does every year during the high season for tourism here in Phuket, Valentine’s Day once again coincided with urgent pleas for donations of rare negative blood, this time for a Danish road accident victim desperately in need of it. Negative blood types are very rare among Thais, who make up the bulk of the donors at…
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Phuket woman, 80, dies in family water well
PHUKET: Police are treating as accidental the apparent drowning death of an elderly woman whose body was discovered in the family water well early this morning. Thalang Police Inspector Lt Patiwat Yawdkhwan was informed of the death by the family of the victim, 80-year-old Saner Bureerak, a resident of Thepkrasattri Village 4. Responding to the 4:30am call with Kusoldharm Foundation…
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Ex-PM Chuan Leekpai in Phuket
PHUKET: Former prime minister Chuan Leekpai, currently adviser to the ruling Democrat Party, arrived in Phuket today to preside over the Baba Symposium 2011. The one-day conference, being held at the Phuket Merlin Hotel in Phuket Town, brings together “Baba Peranakan” ethnic Chinese from throughout Ranong, Trang, Phang Nga and Phuket provinces. Mr Chuan himself is of “Baba” origin. His…
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Phuket weekend with your Gazette
PHUKET: This week’s Andaman Edition of the Phuket Gazette went on sale last night and our Nationwide Edition was released in Bangkok and placed aboard the major international airlines serving Thailand early this morning. Both editions contain reams of information not available here in the Gazette Online. NEWS – Tunnel of Love? An update on the Patong Tunnel plan, and…
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Phuket snatch bandits strike again
PHUKET: A pair of Phuket snatch bandits have robbed no fewer than five people in the same part of Phuket in the past 30 days, according to one of the most recent victims. The victim, a woman who asked that her name not be revealed, lost over 30,000 baht to the bandits when they pounced on her in front of…
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Phuket palm oil frenzy amid shortage fears
PHUKET: Shoppers in Phuket yesterday snapped up a cache of government-distributed palm cooking oil amid fears the household necessity will soon disappear from local stores. The Phuket Commerce Ministry Office (CMO) received 24,000 bottles of palm oil for distribution to help ease the shortage. For months now, major retailers in Phuket have been rationing sales of palm cooking oil to…
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PHUKET FINE DINING: Beat the rush to Brush
PHUKET: Kalim Bay has developed into Phuket’s fine dining epicenter, where the island’s trendiest restaurants stretch from Baan Rim Pa to IndoChine, and include the White Box, Acqua and Lim’s – and now the stylish new five-star bistro Brush Restaurant & Lounge. Brush is the creation of Australian sculptor John Underwood, whose studio also created the award-winning interiors at Phuket’s…
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Phuket Bus Terminal inches forward to opening
PHUKET: Phuket Bus Terminal 2 should open by mid-year, after which time an unprecedented traffic control experiment will begin on Thepkrasattri Road, officials say. Kanok Siripanichkorn, chief of Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO), this week assured the Phuket Gazette that the new terminal will open no later than June. Work on Phuket Bus Terminal 2 was completed in December 2009,…
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Phuket Live Wire: TOTtering along
PHUKET: After a truly terrible week of slow international download speeds and patchy service, TOT’s download speeds have improved across much of the island, although several TOT customers are still reporting problems. Surprisingly, TOT Fiber Optic now appears to be the fastest commercially available Internet package – although it’s quite expensive. We also continue to log truly amazing wireless “3G”…
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The sacred unborn baby of Village 11
SUPHAN BURI: For 10 months now, residents of a village in Suphan Buri province have been wondering when Niphawan Bunjaroen, 35, is going to give birth. Niphawan, who lives in Village 11 in Nong Makha Mong subdistrict, claims to have been pregnant with her fourth child for a rather long time: 19 months, to be precise. Doctors say the maybe-mother-to-be,…
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Phuket Games Mascot: Chinese dragon devours starfish hopes
PHUKET: The humanoid blue starfish unveiled at the beginning of this month as Phuket’s official mascot for the 28th Thailand Youth Games has been laid to rest – to be replaced by a “cute” sea dragon. The news follows a meeting on Tuesday at which Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) Phuket Office Director Wirat Patee confirmed the starfish mascot idea…
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Phuket snatch banditry on the rise
PHUKET: Phuket City Police are urging women to be extra cautious when walking along the street as attacks by young snatch bandits are increasing – and proving hard to catch. Duty Officer Capt Kittiphum Tinthalang told the Phuket Gazette today that bag snatching attacks are becoming more common. “Nowadays, we get reports of bag snatching all the time,” he said.…
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Phuket bars asked to close for Makha Bucha holiday
PHUKET: Patong Police Superintendent Col Arayapan Pukbuakhao has asked all bars in Patong to be respectful and observe the Buddhist Makha Bucha Day tomorrow by not selling alcohol. Keeping in mind the tourist nature of the resort town, he added, “Bars will be allowed to sell alcohol after midnight tomorrow.” Under his jurisdiction as police chief for Kathu police district,…
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‘Brand Phuket’ boosted by northern resort alliance
PHUKET: Dissecting the term ‘destination marketing’ has proved an enlightening experience. Wikipedia describes it as: “A proactive, strategic, visitor-centered approach to the economic and cultural development of a location, which balances and integrates the interests of visitors, service providers, and the community.” Despite its wordiness, this pretty much sums up what destination marketing is all about. For those not in…
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Phuket Poll: How safe is Phuket?
PHUKET: Road accidents, burglaries, drownings, murders, con artists, frauds, drugs… local news junkies might get the impression that crime makes Phuket a pretty dangerous place to live in or visit, but is it really? The latest Phuket Gazette poll asks our esteemed readers how safe the island really is. So have your say in Phuket’s popular online poll by clicking…
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Saving Phuket’s cultural heritage
PHUKET: Old Phuket Foundation President Kawee Tansukatanon spoke last week to the Phuket Gazette about preserving the resort island’s traditions, community values, and unique heritage. Reporter Janpen Upatising, herself a Phuket native, filed this report: Smartly dressed and upbeat, Kawee exhales and furls his lips in a smile as he recalls growing up in Phuket in the late 1960s. He…
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BREAKING NEWS: Teen missing from Phuket found in Songkhla
PHUKET: The teenage girl feared sold to a Phuket brothel has been found alive and well at a fairground in Haad Yai, Songkhla. La-ongda “Tanyong” Narmsra, 14, was reported missing by her family, a clan of fairground attraction operators, on February 9. For the Phuket Gazette‘s previous reports click here and here. Initially fearing abduction, Tanyong’s mother reported the girl’s…
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Phuket tourist trapped in a gutter
Phuket Island View: The following lament was filed at the Phuket Gazette office last week by Phuket tourist Hans Skarholm: This is our first visit to Phuket and I would like to report something that has happened to my wife. On Friday afternoon we came back to Karon Beach on a local bus from a visit to Phuket Town. When…
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BREAKING NEWS: UN visits Rohingya refugees in Phuket
PHUKET: The United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) visited the 33 Rohingya men in custody at Phuket Immigration today, the Phuket Gazette has confirmed. The UNHCR hopes to determine where the men come from, what their protection needs may be, and whether or not they are seeking refugee status. Originally, 68 men were detained in Phuket after their boat…
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Phuket Tourism: Has Phuket been ruined by tourism?
PHUKET: British TV personality Phillip Schofield revealed in a recent Daily Telegraph interview that he thinks Phuket – in particular Promthep Cape – has been ruined by tourism. Recounting a recent trip to Promthep Cape with his wife, Schofield told the newspaper he was shocked by how much the place had changed for the worse since he visited in his…
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Phuket’s Scott Duncanson wins Bay Regatta
PHUKET: Testing weather and clever course design allowed this year’s Bay Regatta to be hailed as one of the best, with Scott Duncanson and his crew on Quantum Fusion M taking top honors in the Racing class. It was not plain sailing for Ducanson, however. He managed to scramble the last of his crew together only on registration day. Racing…
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Phuket Memorial for Tony Knight to be held Saturday
PHUKET: The memorial service to mark the passing of popular Phuket yachtsman Tony Knight has been rescheduled to Saturday night. “There have been many, many messages of sadness over Tony Knight’s death and the loss of a good friend and formidable character, with everyone expressing the desire to attend the wake planned for him,” said Mick Kealy, commodore at Ao…
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Police focus on Phuket youngsters in Valentine’s sweep
PHUKET: More than 100 Phuket police officers and volunteers conducted a sweep of Patong last night in a “Valentine’s Night” crackdown on youth crime. The coordinated raids targeted internet cafes, computer game shops, public parks as well as rented rooms and houses police knew to be occupied by young people. The raids began after a “rallying of the troops” at…
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