Month: June 2014

  • Thailand NewsEU may delay signing pact with Thailand | Thaiger

    EU may delay signing pact with Thailand

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community EU may delay signing pact with Thailand The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The European Union has decided it will delay signing an agreement on closer economic and political ties with Thailand and is demanding a swift return to democracy, a draft document seen by Reuters…

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  • Thailand NewsMissing Karen activist ‘filed petition with Palace’ before disappearing | Thaiger

    Missing Karen activist ‘filed petition with Palace’ before disappearing

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Missing Karen activist ‘filed petition with Palace’ before disappearing The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Missing Karen activist Pholachi “Billy” Rakchongcharoen made a heartfelt plea for a return of his home in the forests of Phetchaburi to His Majesty the King in a petition sent before…

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  • Thailand News

    Senior labour officials transferred as migrant worker exodus slows

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Two senior labour officials transferred as migrant exodus slows The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) yesterday transferred two senior labour officials in charge of employment of migrant workers. Employment Department director-general Prawit Khiangpol was transferred to an inactive…

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  • World News

    Would-be bomber causing Stockholm lock-down surrenders to police

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Would-be bomber causing Stockholm lock-down surrenders to police Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A man who had threatened to set off explosives in the heart of Stockholm on Thursday, prompting an hours-long lockdown in the Swedish capital, finally gave himself up to police, a spokesman said.…

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  • Phuket News

    Lethal Suarez gives Uruguay 2-1 win over England

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Lethal Suarez gives Uruguay 2-1 win over England Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Luis Suarez struck twice including a dramatic late winner to earn Uruguay a 2-1 victory over England in a pulsating World Cup Group D match on Thursday. Restored to the lineup after injury,…

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  • World News

    Heavy rains, floods hit Bulgaria; 10 people killed

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Heavy rains, floods hit Bulgaria; 10 people killed Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Torrential rains and floods hit Bulgaria on Thursday, killing at least 10 people, cutting off electricity, blocking roads and sparking evacuations, officials said. Heavy rainfall in the Black Sea resort city of Varna…

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  • Phuket News

    Ukrainian ‘Pedo Heaven’ expat arrested in Phuket gets 30 years for child porn

    PHUKET: Ukrainian Maksym Shynkarenko, arrested in Phuket in 2009, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison on child pornography charges. Shynkarenko, 35, pleaded guilty to starting and operating a hard-core child pornography website for three years, for which a federal judge in New Jersey on Tuesday sentenced him to three decades in prison, reported Reuters. In January, Shynkarenko admitted…

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  • Phuket News

    Police ramp up Phuket taxi mafia money laundering probe, identify targets in Patong

    PHUKET: Officers from the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) will join the police investigation into taxi drivers who are possibly laundering money, as the Phuket taxi mafia crackdown continues with officers focusing their efforts on Patong. “We recently contacted AMLO and confirmed that a team from their office will come to Phuket this month to assist in our investigation,” Maj Gen…

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  • Phuket News

    Phuket residents rail against Kata beachfront land stake

    PHUKET: More than 100 Phuket residents gathered for three hours yesterday to halt the construction of a fence along Kata Beach, on land adjacent to Club Med Phuket, arguing that it was encroaching on public land. “We don’t understand how someone can build on this land; it is along the beachfront,” said Karon resident Wichit Yaowarot. “We want officials to…

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  • Phuket News

    Police say leads exhausted in death of 7-year-old Nong Dear

    PHUKET: The investigation into the death of a seven-year-old girl whose body was found dismembered in a Chalong forest late last year has reached a standstill. Nong Dear disappeared on her way home from a relative’s house on December 6 (story here) and her remains were found in a nearby wood on December 19 (story here). “This is a very…

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  • Phuket News

    After recent damage, Krabi seeks ways to protect ancient fossils

    PHUKET: Recent storm damage to fossil formations in Krabi’s famous Shell Cemetery has prompted local officials to declare the area off-limits and to request a budget to build a seawall at the site. “The fossils are 75 million years old,” said Pinij Engchuan, chief of Hat Noppharat Thara National Park. “They have been slowly cracking since the tsunami in 2004…

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  • Phuket News

    Turtles wash ashore in high seas

    PHUKET: Two sea turtles that washed ashore at Mai Khao Beach during recent rough weather are being treated at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC). “A Hawksbill was found on June 11 and an Olive Ridley was found yesterday,” said Kittipan Supkoon of the Mai Khao Marine Turtle Foundation (click here). “The Hawksbill is about 8-10 years old and 40…

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  • Thailand News

    Anti-lese majeste law lecturer released

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Key Nitirat member freed on condition he stays in country The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Thammasat law lecturer Worachet Pakeerut, a leading member of the Nitirat group, was released yesterday on Bt20,000 bail with the condition of not joining in any political movement or going…

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  • Thailand News

    Migrant worker exodus hits agriculture, construction sectors

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Migrant worker exodus hits agriculture, construction sectors The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Of the more than 100,000 Cambodian workers who fled Thailand, 60-70 per cent were in the construction and agricultural sector in the East, permanent secretary for Labour Jeerasak Sukhonthachart said yesterday. Over the…

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  • Pattaya News

    NCPO targets taxi mafia at Suvarnabhumi Airport

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Smart-card system for cabs to eliminate mafia role at Suvarnabhumi Airport The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) will introduce a smart-card system for the taxi queue at Suvarnabhumi Airport in a bid to end the “mafia-style operation” there.…

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  • World News

    Iraq asks US for air support to counter rebels

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Iraq asks US for air support to counter rebels Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Iraq has asked the United States for air support in countering Sunni rebels, the top U.S. general said on Wednesday, after the militants seized major cities in a lightning advance that has…

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  • World News

    King Felipe VI to be sworn in

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community King Felipe VI to be sworn in as Spain’s royals try to update Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Spain’s new king, Felipe VI, will be sworn in on Thursday in a low-key ceremony which monarchists hope will usher in a new era of popularity for the…

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  • Phuket News

    Champions Spain crash out of World Cup

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Champions Spain crash out of World Cup, Dutch march on Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Holders Spain crashed out of the World Cup on Wednesday with barely a fight after their second shock defeat while 2010 runners-up the Netherlands continued their perfect start with another high-scoring…

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  • Thai Life

    Phuket told to send seashells back to seashore

    PHUKET: Just because World Oceans Day has whizzed by with the speed of the Agulhas current, there is no reason to stop taking action to protect what is arguably the world’s most important resource – our oceans. To celebrate this year’s World Oceans Day on June 8, the owners of The SEA Co-Working Space and Marine Cafe asked participants to…

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  • World News

    Rohingya camp conditions in Myanmar ‘appalling’ – U.N. official

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rohingya camp conditions in Myanmar ‘appalling’ – U.N. official Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A senior U.N. aid official said on Tuesday she had witnessed a level of human suffering never seen before in camps for some 140,000 stateless Muslim Rohingya in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, displaced…

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  • World News

    After years of pressure, Japan bans possession of child porn

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community After years of pressure, Japan bans possession of child porn Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Japan’s parliament voted on Wednesday to outlaw possession of child pornography after years of international calls for a crackdown, but avoided a clampdown on sexually explicit manga comics and animation depicting…

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  • Phuket News

    Mayor denounces reports that legal Phuket beach club structures face demolition

    PHUKET: In an exclusive interview with the Phuket Gazette, Cherng Talay Mayor Ma-ann Samran this afternoon denied English-language reports in Phuket that buildings on the east side of the beachfront path at Surin Beach would be demolished. The news comes amid a flurry of reports about the demolition of beach club structures encroaching on the sand at the beach as…

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  • World News

    Syria air strike kills 20 in refugee camp

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Syria bombing kills 20 in refugee camp near Jordan border -activists Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Syrian army helicopters bombed a refugee camp along the Jordanian border on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people, mostly children and women, residents and opposition activists said. They said the…

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  • World News

    Former Turkish president Evren sentenced to life for staging 1980 coup

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Former Turkish president Evren sentenced to life for staging 1980 coup Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: General Kenan Evren, 96, who came to symbolise the “Pasha” officer class that dominated Turkish politics over decades, was sentenced to life in jail on Wednesday for leading a 1980…

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  • World News

    Israel re-arrests former Palestinian prisoners in hunt for teens

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Israel re-arrests former Palestinian prisoners in hunt for teens Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Israel re-arrested 51 Palestinians freed in a 2011 prisoner swap deal, the army said on Wednesday, in the sixth day of a hunt for three missing teenagers believed abducted in the occupied…

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  • Hua Hin News

    China scolds Vietnam for ‘hyping up’ South China Sea oil rig row

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China scolds Vietnam for ‘hyping up’ South China Sea oil rig row Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: China’s top diplomat scolded Vietnamese officials during talks in Hanoi on Wednesday for “hyping up” a row over a Chinese oil rig drilling in disputed waters in the South…

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  • Thailand News

    Junta to court martial anti-lese majeste law lecturer

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Anti-lese majeste law lecturer arrested and faced military court The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The junta has detained and charged Thammasat University law lecturer Worajet Pakeerat for defying a junta order to report. Worajet, who is known for his campaign against the lese majeste law,…

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  • Thai LifePhuket, get creative with Coke [video] | Thaiger

    Phuket, get creative with Coke [video]

    PHUKET: Coca-Cola has begun to roll out its “2nd Lives” campaign in Asian markets with the launch of a range of innovative and practical bottle tops that would make Inspector Gadget and the Swiss Guards jealous. “We have created fun tools with Coke bottle tops, bringing small moments of happiness into people’s lives. We hope to make a positive impact…

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  • Phuket News

    Power-mongering turns ugly as rift divides Phuket taxi drivers

    PHUKET: Amid news of taxi ranks being torn down at Phuket west-coast beaches over the past week, the taxi co-operative at Central Festival Phuket shopping mall has split into opposing factions and its president has appealed for help to close the rift. The co-operative was to serve as a model for taxi management in Phuket and was part of a…

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  • Phuket News

    Brazil delivering great quotes to go with great goals

    PHUKET: A World Cup that has delivered fantastic goals in the first round of group games has also produced gems away from the pitch with players and coaches coming up with memorable quotes. Croatia coach Niko Kovac got the tournament off to a fiery start by blasting the Japanese referee after their defeat by Brazil in the opening match. After…

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  • Business News

    Phillipp Graf von Hardenberg takes the reins at Thanyapura

    PHUKET: It takes one look at Phillipp Graf von Hardenberg’s resume to understand why he was appointed the new President and CEO of Phuket’s Thanyapura. Hailing from Germany, Mr Graf von Hardenberg wears many hats: business coach, entrepreneur, financier, educator, hotelier and if that is not enough – fundraiser and philanthropist. He has turned around the fortunes of the first…

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  • Phuket News

    Pinkeye outbreak leads to cancellation of Phuket FC vs Phang Nga FC warm up match

    PHUKET: In a statement posted on the Phuket FC official Facebook page, the club confirmed that tomorrow’s match against Phang Nga FC will not take place. The reason? A pinkeye outbreak. “Due to at least five of Phuket FC players suffering from pinkeye – a condition that can easily spread to other players – the warm up game between Phuket…

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  • World News

    Putin, Poroshenko discuss possible ceasefire in east Ukraine

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Putin, Poroshenko discuss possible ceasefire in east Ukraine Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, discussed a possible ceasefire in eastern Ukraine and the deaths of two Russian journalists there in a late night telephone conversation, the Kremlin…

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  • World News

    Migrant boat sinks off Malaysia, 42 missing

    PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Overloaded boat sinks off Malaysia, 42 Indonesians missing Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: An overloaded wooden boat carrying 97 suspected illegal Indonesian immigrants sank off Malaysia’s western coast early today, with rescuers searching for at least 42 missing people, Malaysian officials said. The passengers included women…

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  • Phuket News

    Police join forces to hunt B1mn holdup robbers

    PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Police are now involved in the hunt for two men on a motorbike who robbed gas station staffers at gunpoint and made off with nearly 1 million baht on June 11. The person riding pillion on the motorbike pulled out a gun and demanded money from the staffers transporting it from the Shell gas station on Phra…

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  • Phuket News

    Sunken pillar at Chalong Marina poses threat to boats

    PHUKET: Officials have posted a line of small red and white flags to mark a large metal pillar that lies submerged near Chalong Pier and is a possible danger to passing boats. The pillar, called a stanchion, had been attached to a pontoon and was part of the Chalong Marina still under construction. “The pillar broke during last weekend’s storm,”…

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  • Phuket News

    Rooney hits back at media following England criticism

    PHUKET: Wayne Rooney has criticized sections of the media who questioned his form and speculated that the England forward had been relegated to training with the reserves at their base in Brazil. The Manchester United striker came in for criticism following a muted performance in their opening 2-1 defeat by Italy in Group D on Saturday, with the Daily Mirror…

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