Year: 2019
- Pattaya News
Elderly woman fifth person to die from ‘magic’ brew mixed with toad’s blood
PHOTO: Instagram/The Pattaya News There’s been another victim to people’s drinking a cocktail of alcohol and toad’s blood. Apart from sounding revolting, it can also kill you. The illegal brew has been in circulation with police still trying to apprehend the person selling it. A 78 year old woman from Chonburi, east of Bangkok, has died after drinking the alcoholic…
Read More » - Business News
Ban on used car imports comes into force in December
PHOTO: Roni Motors Thailand “After December 10, all used vehicles imported for personal use will be confiscated and destroyed immediately.” Keerati Ratchano, the director-general of the Foreign Trade Department, says his department is gearing up for a ban on importing used cars to Thailand, to be introduced by the Commerce Ministry in December. The ban was first announced in July…
Read More » - World News
Two K-Pop stars sentenced to prison for sexual assault, filming it and sharing it
PHOTO: soompi.com 30 year old K-Pop singer and songwriter, Jung Joon-young, and 29 year old musician Choi Jong-hoon have been convicted of conspiring in the sexual assault of a woman who was incapable of resisting. The decision was handed down by the Seoul Central District Court yesterday. The Court also found Jung guilty of filming women against their will and…
Read More » - Economy News
“The Thai economy is teetering on recession” – Kasikorn Bank
A financial analyst is sounding the warning bells saying that the Thai economy is on the verge of a recession while the baht will remain strong. The head of capital markets research at Kasikorn Bank, Kobsidthi Silpachai, says all eyes will be on Thailand’s economic growth to see if it slows in the fourth quarter, compared to the third. The economy…
Read More » - Tourism News
Taiwan’s Eva Air adds direct flights to Phuket from next April
by Bill Barnett of c9hotelworks.com As the tourist demographic matures and evolves, so does the airline mix landing in Phuket. Now Phuket’s direct international airlift is set to increase again with non-stop flights from Taipei, Taiwan on Eva Air. The island’s airline traffic is already almost booked out for the next few months with Phuket International Airport officials asking airlines…
Read More » - Economy News
Thai government introduces property stimulus package
PHOTO: homeservicerayong.com “Buyers must earn no more than 100,000 baht a month and be registered on the Revenue Department’s tax database.” Thailand’s Finance Ministry spokesman Lavaron Sangsnit says that the three major housing associations are ready to support the government’s latest stimulus measures to support home purchases. There was a meeting between Ministry officials and the Housing Business Association, Thai Real…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Thai bank returns 10 million out of 13 million stolen. “Sue us for the rest”
PHOTO: khaosod.com 13 million baht was stolen from a grandmother’s bank account by a bank employee. The bank has now returned 10 million baht and told her that if she wants the rest she’ll have to sue for it. The Thai language story didn’t announce the name or location of the bank although The Thaiger has ascertained it is in…
Read More » - Economy News
Thai household debt hits all-time high of 340K baht per house
Household debt in Thailand is at a record high. A survey carried out by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce shows that household debt has increased by 7.4% since this time last year and now sits at a record high of 340,000 baht. The survey was carried out between November 11-23, canvassing 1,201 people around the country. The…
Read More » - Health
First clinic to offer medical cannabis opens in central Thailand
PHOTOS: The Nation Thailand’s first clinic to offer cannabis oil as a treatment option is now open in the central province of Ang Thong. The Nation reports that yesterday’s opening was presided over by the country’s Public Health Minister, Prapon Tangsrikertikul. It’s understood that cannabis oil will be offered at the hospital in the event that conventional treatments prove ineffective.…
Read More » - Tourism News
Thai government confirms introduction of “double entry” tourist visa
PHOTO: The Nation The Thai government has announced a new double-entry tourist visa. The government says the new measures would allow a visitor to go in and out of Thailand to neighboring countries, such as Cambodia, Laos or Malaysia, then back into Thailand. The deputy secretary general to the PM, Kobsak Pootrakul, says a double-entry tourism visa will be introduced.…
Read More » - Thailand News
Pick-up destroyed by fire after dashcam exploded
PHOTOS: Sanook Beware exploding dashcams! A pick-up truck owner in Rayong province, eastern Thailand, has posted details on social media of how the dashcam in his vehicle “exploded”, starting a fire that destroyed the entire front of the truck. Thai Residents reports that the man’s girlfriend was using the vehicle at the time and had parked it at her workplace…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Thai driver nearly sends car into reverse plunge from fourth floor of car park
PHOTOS: JS100 Radio A woman has had a lucky escape after nearly reversing her car off the fourth floor of an office car park. The Bangkok Post reports that this is the second time a driver has repeated the feat at the car park of the Food and Drug Administration in Nonthaburi, north of Bangkok. A year ago, a driver…
Read More » - Events
Thailand Charter Week a great success for Thai yachting industry
Organisers of the Thailand Charter Week hope to make next year’s event even bigger after this month’s successful inaugural edition at Phuket Yacht Haven. Yachts hosted familiarisation cruises around Phang Nga Bay and surrounding areas. The second edition is being held from November 14-18, 2020. Many of the world’s most renowned brokerage houses, Asia’s leading charter companies and Thailand-based yacht service…
Read More » - Phuket News
Phuket tollway and tunnel project, linking Kathu and Patong, awaiting approval
PHOTOS: Phuket People’s Voice Phuket’s first ever tolled highway, to be built linking Kathu to Patong route, is awaiting approval from the government’s committee on public-private partnership. This will be the first ever tolled highway in Thailand that also allows motorcycles. The infamous, and much-discussed, Patong Tunnel, and accompanying link roads, has been a slow-burn story over the past two…
Read More » - World News
Mon refugees continue to flee Myanmar to Thailand
PHOTO: Piyarat Chongchaoren Myanmar’s ethnic Mon civilians continued pouring across the border into Thailand yesterday, fleeing from the fighting between Burmese troops and rebels on the border near the western province of Kanchanaburi. The fighting began on Wednesday morning in Myanmar’s Bo Yeepun village, about 2km from the Three Pagodas border pass in Sangkhla Buri district. More than 700 people…
Read More » - World News
Cambodia offers olive branch after letter from Trump
Cambodia’s leader Hun Sen us offering to renew relations with the US after receiving a letter from US President Donald Trump. PM Sen’s offer marks a turnaround in relations with the country he once accused of trying to overthrow him. Hun Sen thanked Trump for assurances that Washington was not seeking “regime change” in Cambodia. “Both countries’ foreign affairs teams…
Read More » - Crime News
Two Aussies, Nigerian and Thai arrested with a kilogram of crystal meth – VIDEO
PHOTO: Pattaya ‘Drug Cartel’ Sting Operation Two Australians, a Nigerian and a Thai woman have been arrested in Pattaya with a kilogram of crystal methamphetamine valued at 350,000 baht. A team of police raided a home in the Nong Prue district and arrested 46 year old Jamie Robert Hansom and 58 year old Steven Brett Hovi, both Australian, 38 year old…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Soi Dog reaches new milestone – neutering 100,000 animals in one year
“The day we see no suffering of stray animals on the streets and the eradication of rabies in Thailand.” That’s the long-term goals of the Soi Dog Foundation. The non-profit organisation has made great strides towards these so far in 2019 by surpassing 100,000 stray dog and cat sterilisations in a calendar year for the first time in its history,…
Read More » - Environment News
Member of committee to ban farm chemicals quits in protest over U-turn
PHOTO: Assoc. Prof. Jiraporn Limpananont Pongspaj Samranvejporn – Thai PBS World The Thai Industry Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit is being challenged over his claims of a “unanimous vote of support” to overturn the decision to ban the controversial agri-chemicals. A member of the National Hazardous Substances Committee, that oversaw the original ban on the agri-chemicals paraquat, chlorpyrifos and glyphosate, has resigned in…
Read More » - Pattaya News
Major fire averted after resident leaves the chicken cooking in Pattaya
PHOTO: The Pattaya News Disaster has been narrowly avoided after a fire started in an electric skillet at a condo in Pattaya, filling the building with smoke and terrifying adjacent residents. Pattaya City police were notified of the fire at 9pm Tuesday, at a condominium primarily for local Thais. Firefighters and police rushed to the scene to find smoke gushing from…
Read More » - Expats
German busted for 5 day overstay in Pattaya
Five Chonburi immigration officers have arrested a 45 year old German man outside a hotel in Pattaya. “Bert E” had overstayed his visa by five days and was handed over to Pattaya police. The immigration police are now making examples of even minor transgressions of the visa rules. The five-man task force was sent by the chief of Chonburi immigration, who…
Read More » - World News
US President Trump signs bill protecting Hong Kong rights
PHOTO: Voice of America Despite fears in some corners that he would attempt to veto it, President Trump has signed into law a US bill in support of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. It’s a move that is unlikely to assist in the current negotiations as the trade war between China and the US continues. AFP reports that Trump had…
Read More » - World News
Thai Airways absent from new Top 10 list of world airlines
PHOTO: airlineratings.com The airline review website AirlineRatings has just announced its list of the Best Airlines 2020 and Thailand’s national carrier is absent. In fact Thai Airways isn’t even in the top 20 airlines, as compiled by the website. The Nation reports that the list was drawn up by seven editors with a combined 200 years’ experience in the travel…
Read More » - Environment News
Over 50% of businesses ignoring orders on wastewater release into central Thailand canal
PHOTO: Iloilo Wanderer The Pollution Control Department says over 50% of businesses are ignoring orders regarding the discharge of wastewater into Klong Saen Saeb. The canal connects Bangkok’s Chao Phraya river with the central Thailand provinces of Prachinburi and Chachoengsao. The Nation reports that between 2016 and 2019, over 289 establishments out of 600 have stuck to the rules issued…
Read More » - Pattaya News
Pattaya taxi drivers attacked by group of Grab drivers
Taxi spats are now turning into taxi wars over challenges to ‘turf’ long established by traditional taxi services in Thailand, now under pressure from the newer app-based services. The most recent scuffle in Pattaya where over 10 Grab drivers have allegedly attacked a group of regular taxi drivers. Reports by Thai-language 77kaoded and The Pattaya News say the incident took…
Read More » - Health
“Medical cannabis is no panacea” – Thai FDA
PHOTO: syntheticurinereview.com The Thai Food and Drug Administration is again warning the public that cannabis is not a magic medicine that can cure all illnesses. The FDA deputy secretary-general Dr Surachoke Tangwiwat has repeated the warning that cannabis cannot cure many illnesses, including diabetes, high blood pressure and heart problems as well as mental illness. The doctor has issued the…
Read More » - Bangkok News
New car stolen by mystery man from vehicle service centre
PHOTOS: Sanook.com A woman has filed a police report at Huamak police station in Bangkok after her newly-purchased car was stolen from a service centre where she had dropped it off for repairs. Thai Residents reports that the 27 year old woman, Nantawan, has also filed a complaint with the Office of the Consumer Protection Board. She claims she brought…
Read More » - Environment News
“New” committee reverses ban on farm chemicals
The Thai government will lift the proposed ban on the herbicide glyphosate, and delay the ban on paraquat and the pesticide chlorpyrifos for six months. It’s an astonishing turn of events given the extensive public debate and insistence by some government ministers that it WON’T reverse the ban under any circumstances. Just two days ago Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s…
Read More » - Politics News
Thailand unlikely to abolish the draft
Thai Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwon says military conscription won’t be scrapped any time soon, as there aren’t enough volunteers signing up for service. Prawit told reporters conscription is meant to avoid manpower shortfalls, but admitted that conscripts represent a small percentage of all recruits, appearing to contradict himself. “If conscription is abolished and something untoward happens to Thailand, there won’t be…
Read More » - World News
300 flee over border to Thailand from fighting in Myanmar
PHOTO: Facebook\Day SA About 300 ethnic Mon people have fled from Myanmar into Thailand to escape fighting near their village, between Burmese troops and Mon rebels, according to a border source. Joint forces of Myanmar’s army and the Karen Border Force on Wednesday engaged the rebel army near the Three Pagodas Pass on the Thai border. The incident happened in…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Bangkok City Hall launching walking streets around the city next month
PHOTO: Khao San Road – Upsplash Walking streets are the new rage in Bangkok. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration is planning three temporary walking streets in Bangkok as a trial and to stimulate tourism in the areas. The locations are Silom, Yaowaraj and Khao San roads. The projects will start on Sunday, December 13. Deputy Bangkok Governor Sakonthee Patthiyakul says that…
Read More » - Phuket News
Another leatherback sea turtle lays eggs in Phang Nga
Today (November 27), Dr. Thon Thamrongnawasawat posted on his Facebook about a positive update on the leatherback sea turtle eggs at Thai Mueang Beach in Phang Nga, as it seems a new mother turtle just laid eggs on the beach and the spot is quite close along the coast to the previous one. Dr. Thon said that the first mother…
Read More » - Politics News
Parliament removes support banner from FFP’s offices
PHOTOS: Facebook Parliamentary officials have taken down a large signed banner supporting the Future Forward party’s leader leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit from the door to the party parliamentary offices, saying it was “inappropriate.” Last week Thanathorn was stripped of his MP status by the Constitutional Court. He was stripped of status for owning shares in a media company when he registered…
Read More » - Bangkok News
New ‘Hanuman’ unit formed to act as a SWAT team in special situations
The Crime Suppression Division of the Royal Thai Police has set up a new SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) team to replace the former police commando unit. That has now been moved under the Ratchawallop Royal Guards Command. The new SWAT unit title “The Hanuman Unit”, after the monkey god Hanuman, is currently staffed by 40 officers under the command…
Read More » - Transport News
New MRT stations in Bangkok take you to the city’s historic spots
Thailand’s Mass Rapid Transit Authority, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and Bangkok Expressway and Metro Public Company Limited are inviting locals and tourists to visit attractions near four of Bangkok’s MRT stations. Attractions include China Town, temples, palaces and shopping areas. The new Wat Mangkon, Samyot, Sanam Chai and Itsaraphap MRT stations have been designed to include retro styling to…
Read More » - Transport News
All national highways in Thailand to have four lanes by 2022
Thailand’s Highways Department says all national highways in the country will be four-lane roads, two lanes in each direction, within three years. Daily News says the Director-General of the Highways Department, Sarawut Songsiwilai, made the announcement yesterday. Sarawut says the expansion will mean the country’s highways are better prepared to accommodate an increase in traffic using the network. It’s understood…
Read More » - World News
Thai exports to neighbouring countries may lose out to China
PHOTO: asia.nikkei.com The director of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce’s Centre for International Trade Studies says Thailand risks losing the export markets of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV) to China within five years. Aat Pisanwanich says that between 2004 and 2018, exports from ASEAN nations to China were 4.1 times higher and valued at US$194.54 billion,…
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