Month: April 2013
- Phuket News
Phuket Sports: AFF Suzuki Cup 2014 venue chosen
PHUKET: Singapore and Vietnam will jointly host the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup, the ASEAN Football Federation said on Wednesday (April 3). Speaking at the press conference before the start of the 2013 AFF Awards in Pahang, Malaysia, Duli Yang Teramat Mulia Tengku Abdullah ibni Sultan Ahmad Shah, the deputy president of the Football Association of Malaysia and vice-president of the…
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Phuket Sports: TrueVisions prepares for life after EPL
PHUKET: With the English Premier League (EPL) no longer on its program list, TrueVisions, a leading subscription-based television operator, has earmarked more than 1.5 billion baht for new content and technology, offering more high-definition (HD) channels and a fee discount for existing customers to retain them. The audio and visual broadcasting rights to the EPL soccer matches for the next…
Read More » - Business News
April festivities to generate millions for Phuket
PHUKET: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket office expects upcoming festivities this month to generate between 600 and 700 million baht for the local economy. TAT Southern Region 4 Office director Chanchai Doungjit talked about the current tourist situation ahead of the upcoming two-week festive period. He announced that the holiday period officially starts tomorrow, with Chakri Memorial Day,…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Bird flu toll hits 6; Argentina floods; Nobel Peace Prize stolen; Dancer Ruby riles Berlusconi
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China readies to fight new bird flu; Japan, HK on guard Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: China said it was mobilising resources nationwide to combat a new strain of bird flu that has killed six people, as Japan and Hong Kong stepped up vigilance and the United…
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Victim of vicious Phuket pit bull attack in fight to save leg
PHUKET: The Phuket resident savaged by a neighbor’s pit bull terriers in February – after he ran out of his house to help a woman who was being attacked by the dogs – is still in hospital fighting to save his right leg, which sustained a deep wound in the attack.Tiensak Aikpaiboon, 33, underwent another operation on his leg Wednesday…
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Villagers appeal to Prime Minister’s Office over Phuket land claim
PHUKET: Villagers fighting a land claim to 83 rai near an old tin mine in Chalong say they have turned to the Prime Minister’s Office to settle the dispute, in which they claim to have lived at the site for nearly a decade. The move to appeal to the Prime Minister’s Office follows more than 50 villagers turning out in…
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Phuket Immigration task force targetting foreigners nabs Russian
PHUKET: Phuket Immigration officers yesterday arrested a Russian woman caught without a passport and working illegally selling tours at a kiosk in Kata.Officers led by Capt Angkarn Yasanop arrested Natalia Nikiforova, 30, after an officer pretended to be interested in some of the tours on offer at the Rus Info tour counter on Kata Road.“She explained the tours to us…
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Phuket teacher sacked for performing Hajj reinstated
PHUKET: A Muslim teacher fired from Muslim Wittaya School for taking unapproved leave to join the Hajj has got his job back. Parinya Payadsub was fired after he went on the Hajj three times in five years, breaking a school rule that allows staff to join the Hajj once every five years. Following protests by teachers, students and community leaders…
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Phuket joins Royal project to turn aluminum trash into prosthetic legs
PHUKET: The chief of the Phuket Environment Office is calling for all donations of aluminum to donate to a nationwide project that seeks to recycle at least 80 tons of aluminum into prosthetic legs. The project, initiated by the Prostheses Foundation of HRH The Princess Mother (click here), aims to reduce the volume of garbage and make prosthetic legs more…
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Phuket motorcyclist survives slide under chicken truck
PHUKET: A motorcyclist riding the wrong way on Thepkrasattri Road ended up under a pickup loaded with fresh chicken meat last night, bruised and scratched but without major injuries. Wang Promma, 38, was riding his motorcycle north in the southbound section of Thepkrasattri Road, about 500 meters north of the Heroines Monument (map here), said Capt Narong Muangdoung of the…
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Laguna return to form in Phuket cricket league
PHUKET: As Phuket’s Jones Lang LaSalle cricket league nears completion of its round robin matches, teams are still fighting for a finals spot. Laguna returned to the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) after suffering a comprehensive defeat against league leaders Patong the previous week, hoping to get back on track against the Village, who were also defeated by Patong in their…
Read More » - Opinion
Phuket Opinion: Toothless, but no fairy
PHUKET: The other day I had the unpleasant middle-aged experience of breaking a tooth. Not just any tooth, but the right incisor tooth. Alfred E Neuman, eat your heart out. By some amazing stroke of luck, the tooth had broken off but the root stayed intact, which made my experience relatively painless and gave me the chance to consider my…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: US-Korea standoff deepens; Cuban ballet defectors, China bird flu death toll rises
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. to send missile defenses to Guam over North Korea threat Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The United States said on Wednesday it would soon send a missile defence system to Guam to defend it from North Korea, as the U.S. military adjusts to what Defence…
Read More » - Thailand News
Eastern European tourists inject 35bn into Phuket
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community East Europeans help drive Phuket’s tourism boom Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: Thailand’s current tourism bull-run is being underscored by a watershed of Eastern European travellers, a soaring source of business that delivered 1.6 million visitors last year, led by Russia with an 82-per-cent share,…
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Phuket Sports: Barton in trouble with ‘ladyboy’ tweet
PSG threaten action against Barton for ‘ladyboy’ tweets Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Paris St Germain (PSG) threatened action against Joey Barton yesterday after the Olympique Marseille midfielder likened Brazilian defender Thiago Silva to a transsexual and called him an “overweight ladyboy”. “These attacks are serious and go beyond a simple verbal clash,” the Ligue 1 leaders said in a…
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Phuket booze ban dampens Songkran revelry
PHUKET: Officials may have just thrown a wet blanket on party plans for Phuket residents and locals alike with the announcement that the sale, purchase and consumption of alcohol will be banned on Patong’s famous Soi Bangla on April 12 as part of a slew of new precautions to make Thai New Year festivities safer.Phuket officials today established six main…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: Motorcycling – No end in sight for the reign of Spain
Motorcycling – No end in sight for the reign of Spain Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Valentino Rossi is back on a Yamaha but it will take some heroics for the aging Italian great to wrest the MotoGP title from Spanish hands in the season that starts under the Qatar floodlights this weekend.Honda’s Dani Pedrosa lines up as the early favourite,…
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Famous boxer arrested in Phuket for dealing drugs
PHUKET: Karon Police yesterday arrested famous former Muay Thai boxer Sumonchai Mad-adam, better known to his boxing fans as Rungsaknoi Dejrit (“Powerfully Popular”), for dealing ya bah (methamphetamine) in the car park of a Phuket hotel. Maj Theeradet Jiraksa led fellow police officers in a sting operation, during which an undercover officer bought several pills from Sumonchai, 32, who was…
Read More » - Thai Life
Phuket Gardening: Sol o sombra? A seat in the sun
PHUKET: If you go to the huge, intimidating amphitheater that is a Spanish bullring to witness a series of corridas, you may be asked at the ticket office if you want “sol” or “sombra?” And the reason? The seats in the shade (sombra) are more expensive, because there you are shielded from the fierce rays of the Iberian sun. “Sol…
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Phuket Environment: Time for Racha to sink or swim?
SPECIAL REPORT PHUKET: With only two weeks remaining until the deadline set by Phuket Vice Governor Sommai Prijasilpa to have environmental protections in place on Racha Yai Island, questions are being asked about how much has been achieved and what remains to be done to protect the popular tourist island’s pristine environment. A campaign lasting nearly a year asking for…
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On the menu: Phuket’s Le Versace takes it to the next level
PHUKET: It is hot in Phuket at the moment, hot and dry, and the only relief comes when that scorching orb sinks below the horizon allowing for a slight drop in temperature. If you are fortunate, you may be able to enjoy that moment from a good vantage point. If you are very fortunate you will be watching the sunset…
Read More » - Business News
UK’s residency law changes may affect Phuket’s expats
PHUKET: With the Finance Act 2013, the UK is making changes to the statutory residency laws, which may affect some expats living in Phuket. It is well worth taking the time to review the changes if you are one of those who have just left the UK or who, and although you reside in Phuket, you maintain significant ties to…
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How Phuket expats can cut their investment costs
PHUKET: If you are like many expatriates in Phuket, or indeed across Thailand, you have probably failed to realize the impact trading or investment fees can have on your portfolio’s return, as such costs are often hidden and can quickly add up over time. In a rising market, these costs may not be so noticeable; but in a stagnant or…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Korea evacuation plan at the ready; Soldier abducted in South; Charter debate rages on
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community North Korea on Friday issued a new threat to attack the US, reacting to a show of force by two US B-2 stealth bombers that dropped inert munitions on to a South Korean training ground not far from the North’s border. Pyongyang said its targets were…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Korea crisis; UN passes small arms treaty; Israel fires on Syria; Four charged over Brazil nightclub fire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. deploys warship as tensions over North Korea rise Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Pentagon said on Tuesday that a second U.S. guided-missile destroyer had taken position in the western Pacific on a missile defence mission, as tensions rise over North Korea’s threats of war…
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Phuket doctors unaffected by health care pay reform
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) today confirmed that the introduction of the new P4P “Pay for performance” system of calculating rural doctors’ remuneration will not affect any public health care services in Phuket.The news follows at least 146 doctors – among them 11 specialists –announcing they will resign their positions at public hospitals across the country in protest…
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Phuket Police stage riot control drills
PHUKET: More than 300 officers from every police station in Phuket have been rehearsing their riot control skills at the field behind Phuket City Police Station yesterday and today in preparation for a contest that will pit them against fellow police from throughout Upper Southern Thailand.“The objective is to maintain our preparedness for situations of civil unrest and to prepare…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: Baseball opening day – a celebration of hope and renewal
Baseball opening day – a celebration of hope and renewal Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The crack of the bat, packed crowds and the smell of hot dogs on the grill signaled Major League Baseball’s Opening Day, a celebration of hope and renewal giving teams and their fans a fresh start to a new season. It is a rite of spring…
Read More » - Property
Phuket Property: Sansiri housing project targets hi-end segment
PHUKET: Relieving anticipation in the single-house property market to the north of Phuket Town, Sansiri Pcl finally lifted the curtain on ‘Burasiri Koh Kaew’, the developer’s first up-market resort-style, detached housing development in Phuket. Valued at about one billion baht, the new development is superbly located in the Koh Kaew sub district, just opposite the British International School. The project…
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Phuket Sports: The rise of Thailand’s futsal team
PHUKET: Sitting on a weathered white couch in the VIP section of the Saphan Hin Indoor Sports Complex, Thailand’s national futsal coach, Vic Hermans looks like he’d rather be on the touchline at the Phuket United vs Surat Thani match instead of watching it from the stands. The Dutchman visited Phuket recently to check out a few members of the…
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Phuket British school issues statement over Russian motorbike crash victims
PHUKET: The British International School – Phuket (BIS), this morning issued a statement concerning the two teenage Russian students who are in hospital after a serious motorbike crash on the bypass road on Saturday (story here). Neil Richards MBE, headmaster at the school, wrote in the statement today: “On Saturday 30 March 2013, two students of Russian nationality, from the…
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Luckless fisherman lands crocodile in Phuket heartland
PHUKET: Decades since a freshwater crocodile was last spotted in the wild on Phuket, a local fisherman on Sunday accidentally landed a baby specimen while fishing in Srisoonthorn, in central Phuket.Khamchit Sangsuwan, 32, a resident in the neighboring district of Kathu, went fishing at Baan Bang Jo canal. After two hours of luckless angling, the end of his line suddenly…
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Phuket Tech: How to change your address – Live Wire
PHUKET: Many of my friends here in Phuket are in the process of changing their email addresses from blahblah@phuket.ksc.co.th to blahblah@phuketemail.com. Some of them have written to me, asking why a disruptive change like that is necessary, and looking for recommendations. Can’t say I blame them: changing an email address is considerably more difficult, in this day and age, than…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Leaning tower condemned; Thaksin tweets; Natural Fruit human rights under fire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Tilting building near Bangkok urged demolished The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: A seven-storey apartment building under construction at the back of Zeer department store north of Bangkok has been declared off limits, after it tilted and was inspected by local administrators.Public works officials with Khu Khot Municipality…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: Liverpool FC to visit the ‘Big Mango’
PHUKET: Liverpool FC have announced the club will visit Thailand as part of their 2013-14 pre-season tour presented by Standard Chartered. The Reds, who last visited Thailand in 2009, will play a match at Bangkok’s Rajamangala National Stadium on Sunday, July 28. Liverpool FC are estimated to have over 14 million followers in Thailand and this summer’s visit will form…
Read More » - World News
Phuket Gazette World News: 13 dead in Myanmar Muslim school fire; US-Korea tensions rise; Sex attacks hurt India tourism; Death penalty sought for Dark Knight shooter
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community 13 children die in fire at Muslim school in Myanmar Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: An electrical fire at an Islamic school in Myanmar’s biggest city killed 13 children early on Tuesday, authorities said. The children, all boys, died of suffocation in the fire at a…
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Trash fires cause evacuations on Koh Lanta
PHUKET: Villagers on Koh Lanta, across Phang Nga Bay from Phuket, have evacuated their homes because of respiratory problems caused by garbage fires at a landfill. Local authorities say they are unable to control the fires. The villagers sought to publicize the trash burning problem about three weeks ago by appealing to the Krabi Press Club, saying that local authorities…
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