Month: February 2013
- Phuket News
Krabi villagers protest proposed coal plant over health concerns
PHUKET: Krabi villagers staged a protest, across the bay from Phuket, yesterday in fear that a proposed coal-fire power plant would damage their health as they allege a previous one had.Protest leaders Somyos Khanthong and Chalit Sukhotu, as well as about 500 Pakasai residents protesting an 800 Megawatt coal-fired power plant descended on Krabi Provincial Hall yesterday afternoon.The protesters wore…
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Phuket Health – Reality check of New Year’s resolutions
PHUKET: So January 1 has quickly passed and I wonder how many of you are still on track with your new year’s resolutions? The good news is you still have time to create lasting goals and redeem yourself if you’ve all ready fallen off the wagon! First, a ‘Reality Check’: Staying motivated and committed toward accomplishing your dreams is often…
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Phuket Pharmacy fined for illegally selling prescription drugs
PHUKET: A pharmacy in Chalong faced a lot of brass yesterday as Phuket Vice Governor Somkiat Sangkaosuttirak, Damrongtham Center (Ombudsman’s Office) chief Prapan Kanprasang, Chalong Mayor Samran Jindaphol and Phuket Public Health officers followed up on allegations that the store was illegally selling prescription drugs without a pharmacist on duty. “A local resident told our staff that the pharmacy was…
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Construction law practice in Thailand
PHUKET: Seeking a perfect home may be an arduous process but the complexities of building a property in Thailand are multiplied without a solid construction contract, as many homeowners and property developers will attest. A crucial part of any good contract is cost assessment and management. Many problems in construction projects occur because there is no written contract recorded between…
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Phuket prisoners don berets for scout training
PHUKET: A group of 60 male and female prisoners at Phuket Provincial Prison donned their green berets and picked up their red sticks (mai ngam) for the opening ceremony of a scout training course yesterday. Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut chaired the opening ceremony of the first guide course running from February 11 to February 14. “It is part of the…
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Southern curfew debate; Amnesty opposed; World expo bid under cloud
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community ‘Curfew could worsen things’ Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: While the government will determine on Friday whether to declare a curfew in the deep South, the Civil Society Council of the Southern Border Provinces said yesterday that the government’s strategies should stress peaceful processes not…
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Ireland’s Healy cited; Nadal wants time; Mancini and Lotus under pressure
Ireland’s Healy cited for stamp on England’s Cole Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Ireland prop Cian Healy has been cited for stamping on England’s Dan Cole during a maul in the first half of their 12-6 Six Nations championship loss in Dublin on Sunday, tournament organizers said yesterday. Healy contravened Law 10.4 (b), which states that a player “must not…
Read More » - World News
Pope to resign
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Pope Benedict XVI says he will resign on February 28 due to old age Phuket Gazette / News Wires PHUKET: Pope Benedict XVI surprised the world yesterday when he said he no longer has the mental and physical strength to adequately exercise his duties as head…
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Phuket’s Wat Chalong Fair 2013 in full swing
PHUKET: The Wat Chalong Fair 2013, a 7-day extravaganza of performances, food, games and shopping, is now in full swing (map here). Each night starting at 7pm, fair-goers can enjoy performances by Thai country music (luk-thung) stars and traditional Southern Thai Nang Talung shadow puppeteers. The crowd of thousands on opening night enjoyed a performance by Jintara Poonlarb, and the…
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Phuket tourist carrying roses dies in motorbike crash
PHUKET: Simon Ashley, a tourist carrying an Australian driver’s license, died when he lost control of his motorbike on one of the sharp curves between Patong and Karon early this morning. “A tuk-tuk driver who witnessed the accident said that he saw Mr Ashley leave Soi Bangla in Patong and head towards Karon with a bunch of roses in his…
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Blaze engulfs abandoned luxury hotel bordering Phuket National Park
PHUKET: Police suspect the fire that engulfed an abandoned luxury hotel near Nai Yang Beach in northern Phuket early this morning was started by thieves searching for copper wire. “The hotel, on the border of the Sirinath Marine National Park, was completely abandoned. Thieves most likely went onto the premises to salvage copper. We suspect they were attempting to burn…
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Oldest football club faces permanent relegation; Sports roundup
World waiting for Real v Man United clash, says Mourinho Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Real Madrid manager José Mourinho ran the rule over Manchester United yesterday before declaring that Wednesday’s Champions League clash between the sides was “the match the world is waiting for”. The last 16 first-leg game at the Bernabeu pits old adversaries Mourinho and Alex Ferguson…
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Myanmar urges expedited processing of its migrant workers in Thailand
BANGKOK: Myanmar has urged Thailand to speed up registration of its citizens working in the Kingdom, with nearly one million workers and hundreds of thousands of their children still undocumented as the deadline draws near. Myint Thein, Myanmar’s deputy labor minister, was in Thailand last week to monitor progress of the government’s scheme to register millions of migrant workers. Thailand,…
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Phuket Property: “Student life” at dcondo Kuku
PHUKET: Sansiri’s latest dcondo development in Phuket – a campus-style resort in Kuku – is selling out fast with pre-sales for the project having reached 50% and continuing to rise, as of the beginning of February. The development’s design concept is inspired by dormitories at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge in the UK. Sansiri has previously launched one other…
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Local officials step up talks, spending for ASEAN economy
PHUKET: Local officials continue to intensify dialogue, and thus anticipation for the 2015 ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), with the economic positioning for Phuket and the Southern region gradually beginning to take form. The latest ‘AEC – Phuket get ready’ talks, held last week at the Phuket Provincial Hall, covered the latest regional economic integration challenges and opportunities. Phuket Governor Maitri…
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Phuket Finance: UK pension transfers – Gibraltar
PHUKET: Since the QROPS (Qualifying Recognized Overseas Pensions Scheme) legislation was introduced on April 6 2006, an individual transferring their pension overseas does not have to transfer their funds to the same country or jurisdiction as they are retiring to. This opened the doors for many pension providers in several jurisdictions, predominantly the channel island of Guernsey, to offer QROPS…
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Phuket inflation tops South
PHUKET: Not only is Phuket still considered the most expensive consumer province in Thailand, but its annual inflation rate remains the highest in the South – the Kingdom’s most inflated region. Thailand’s cost of living in 2012, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose by 3.02% from the previous year, while overall inflation in Phuket was measured at…
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Attorney denies Norwegian man willed millions of baht to Phuket elderly, children
PHUKET: Police have not been able to find a will to substantiate rumors that a Norwegian man left a portion of his 100-million-baht estate to Phuket foundations for the elderly and for children. Frank Robert, 52, died on Saturday from pre-existing medical conditions, a Patong Hospital staffer told Patong Police. “I have talked to the attorney who will execute Mr…
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Severe weather wreaks havoc on US; 9 dead
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. Northeast digs out from blizzard, tornado strikes in South Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The U.S. Northeast was digging itself out yesterday after a blizzard dumped up to 40 inches (one meter) of snow with hurricane force winds, killing at least nine people and leaving…
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Phuket Books: Another man for all seasons
PHUKET: Hilary Mantel was a 56-year-old English novelist of indifferent success, when she sat down to write a novel about Thomas Cromwell, the chief adviser to Henry VIII. As she recounts in a recent profile in The New Yorker: “I was filled with glee and a sense of power, a sense that I knew how to do this… I knew…
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Phuket Gardening – Turning over a new leaf
PHUKET: Any New Year’s resolutions about gardening? Plenty. Everywhere in the garden I see Nature’s perfection and my imperfections. Mistakes a-plenty. Why, is there a gap in that flower bed? Ah! Because the multicolored acalypha I once put there succumbed to mildew and was never replaced. Why is the grass so threadbare near the fish pond? Because the area is…
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Live Wire – Putting the pieces together
PHUKET: In the past three editions of Live Wire, I’ve taken you through a detailed list of the internet packages currently available in Phuket and a description of what kinds of packages – “3G,” ADSL, Fiber, etc – most people will want. Last week I warned you about the truly awful experience one reader had with the new TOT 3G…
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Phuket United end losing streak, beat Leo Bang Seu at home
PHUKET: A 4-1 second-half run secured victory for Phuket United (7-4) in their match against Leo Bang Seu on Saturday night in Phuket Town. The much needed win ends the Andaman Pearl’s five-game losing streak. Played in front of about 500 fans at the Saphan Hin Indoor Sports Complex, the match was both team’s 20th of the 30-fixture Thai Futsal…
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Police catch Phuket gold thief using CCTV images
PHUKET: Phuket Police used CCTV images to track down and arrest a thief who snatched two gold necklaces from a woman driving her motorbike in Rassada. Nathawut Wannakoon, 22, was arrested at his home in Soi Imchit on Chao Fa Road (map here) by Phuket City Police on February 9 for the theft of the necklaces valued at 25,000 baht…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: Rugby’s Six Nations update
English coaches in awe of young side’s maturity Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: England’s renaissance under coach Stuart Lancaster continued apace yesterday with a first Six Nations win in Ireland in a decade that left the coach and his staff almost in awe of their young side’s maturity. It was a first trip to a damp Dublin for many of…
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Phuket prepared for Chinese New Year
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) has prepared an extravagant celebration to ring in the Year of the Water Snake with the arrival of the Chinese New Year tomorrow. The celebration is slated to kick off at Sanam Chai (across from Phuket City Hall, map here) at 4pm. “Acrobats from Henan, China will be performing as well as other…
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American tourist found dead in Phuket hotel
PHUKET: A 23-year-old American tourist was found dead in his Cherng Talay hotel room by staff after he failed to checkout at noon yesterday. Staff at the Resident Resort and Spa Retreat called Cherng Talay Police at about 10:30pm to report the death. “When we entered the room, we found the man face down on the bed,” Cherng Talay Police…
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Phuket Deputy Honorary Consul: Russian tourists cause most problems, not expats
PHUKET: Santi Udomkiratak, 48, has been the Deputy Honorary Consul of the Russian Federation for the provinces of Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga since 2008. Born and raised in Phuket, Mr Santi received a degree in mechanical engineering from King Mongkut’s University of Technology in Bangkok. Here, he gives his views on Russians in Phuket. Most of the problems we…
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PACC it all in, Phuket
PHUKET: This week’s exclusive lead story in the Phuket Gazette newspaper about the decision of the Public-sector Anti Corruption Commission (PACC) to shelve its investigation into encroachment cases here in Phuket comes as a disappointment – but not much of a surprise. Phuket has a long history of land probes, all of which are motivated by political forces. In the…
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Public sector Anti-Corruption Commission packs in Phuket land title investigations
PHUKET: The investigation by the Public sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) into allegedly illegally issued land titles covering more than 500 rai of land in Phuket has silently been dropped.The PACC, set up specifically to fight corruption among government officials, quietly dropped the probe into hundreds of Phuket land titles just days after Col Dusadee Arayawuth, who had initiated the investigation,…
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Chinese New Year: the year of the snake nears
PHUKET: As billions of Chinese around the world bid farewell to the year of the dragon tonight, they prepare to welcome tomorrow’s ‘invisible moon’, which marks the official start of a new year – the year of the snake. That’s right, the Chinese New Year officially begins tomorrow, February 10. The most important festival in the Chinese calendar, Chinese New…
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Rawai Municipality takes charge of one of many environmental issues plaguing Racha
PHUKET: The Rawai municipality was assigned to take charge of the mounting trash-disposal issues on Koh Racha Yai despite progressive local government talks yesterday with hotel and resort representatives about a conglomerate of environmental issues facing the once pristine island. “Though hotel and resort representatives agreed to take care of the trash-disposal problem themselves, I have assigned the Rawai Municipality…
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Phuket cement truck flips on late-night trip down Patong Hill
PHUKET: An out of control cement truck flipped at the bottom of Patong Hill last night, skidding on its side into a motorbike and two houses before coming to a halt about 50 meters away from Wat Suawan Kiriwong Patong on Phra Baramee Road (map here). No one was seriously injured. “It was about 1am last night, and I was…
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Entertainment: ‘Lost in Thailand’ draws more Chinese; Crazy about cabaret
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community ‘Lost in Thailand’ draws more Chinese Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: Chinese New Year in Thailand this year is likely to see a taste of real culture from China. Thanks to the movie “Lost in Thailand”, a huge box-office success in China, a greater number…
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PATA meeting questions whether Thai culture is good for tourism
PHUKET: Despite the various shortcomings in Thailand’s service industry, tourists keep coming back, two Thai journalists recently told a tourism meeting in Bangkok. Attending the meeting, Ken Scott, Managing Director of his own communications firm, ScottAsia Communications, reports: Thailand is a like a cunning cheer leader, a good looker, an easy date who cheats at her exams and gossips about…
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Syrian rebels maintain pressure; UN denounces
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Assad’s forces try to beat back rebels closing on Damascus Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Syrian government forces battled on Friday to recapture sections of the Damascus ring road from rebels pressing in on the capital, opposition activists said. War planes fired rockets around Jobar, Qaboun…
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Phuket Old Town festival to showcase Chinese heritage
PHUKET: The annual Phuket Old Town Festival will begin on February 15, ushering in the three-day celebration of the town’s historical origins and unique ethnic mix of cultures. To announce this year’s festival, leading Phuket dignitaries gathered at Queen Sirikit Park on Thursday night. Joining Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupana in announcing the event were representatives from Phuket City Municipality,…
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