Year: 2019

  • World News

    ‘No homosexuals in Malaysia” – Malaysian Tourism, Arts and Culture minister

    Malaysian minister grilled in Germany over policy on gays, Jews ahead of travel fair Malaysia’s Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Mohamaddin Ketapi has caused ripples in Germany after making an ill-informed remark about homosexuality. “Homosexuality? I don’t think we have such a thing in our country.” “I cannot answer whether it’s safe or not,” he was quoted as saying by…

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  • Thailand News

    Three dead and nine injured after truck brake failure in Sa Kaeo – VIDEO

    SCREENSHOT: Facebook/อนันชัย พูพิลึก Three people are dead, nine people are injured and five vehicles have been damaged after a truck’s brakes failed in Sa Kaeo, near the Cambodian border. Thairath reports that the accident happened in Sa Kaeo yesterday. The truck collided head on with five vehicles as it sped down a hill. One of the sedans caught fire after…

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  • Phuket News

    Rawai luxury villas on ‘pause’ along Ao Sane beach

    PHOTOS: Chatchanon Na Thalang Rawai Municipality have put a halt to the construction of the controversial luxury villas being constructed on the cliffs overlooking Ao Sane Beach. The municipal building officers say a pool and spa were found under construction, in contravention with the approved plans. Rawai Mayor Aroon Solos says, “the construction of four buildings, including a pool, is…

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  • Koh Samui News

    Enthusiastic Dutch lover gets his marching orders in Koh Samui

    SCREENSAVE: Channel Seven News A Dutch man, who fell fell in love with a Thai female staffer at the resort where he was staying in Koh Samui, wouldn’t take no for an answer. The incident is reported to have happened at the Lamai Hill Villa. Channel Seven news says the issue became an obsession for him, convinced his good looks would…

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  • Northern Thailand News

    Where there’s fire, there’s smoke – Lampang mountains

    Adding to the air pollution woes of the north, bushfires have been keeping state firefighters and volunteers busy trying to control the outbreaks in the mountains east of Chiang Mai and north of Lampang. The efforts yesterday were to battle a front of multiple fires in Doi Phra Baht forest in Lampang’s Muang district. Fires have been erupting in multiple…

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  • Phuket News

    Two killed when motorbike rider and passenger ploughed into a house

    A motorbike driver and passenger have died after a collision in Thalang this morning. The Thalang Police were notified of the accident on Thepkrasattri Road in Thalang at 3.10am. Police and emergency responders arrived to find a motorbike after it had collided head-on with a wall at the front of a house. Nearby they found two bodies, later identified as…

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  • Chiang Mai News

    Tourists head to Nan for stunning yellow blossoms

    PHOTOS: Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Nan branch office Tourists are enjoying the stunning blossoms of the Golden Trumpet Tree around Nan province. The yellow flowers of the Tabebuia Chrysantha are now in full bloom in Nan’s Thung Chang district. Nan is east of Chiang Mai on the Laos border. A local group this week invited people to take photos of…

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  • South Thailand News

    “Measles vaccine doesn’t cause autism” – conclusive Danish study

    Even as measles outbreaks continue to mount among clusters of unvaccinated children around the world, in developed countries as well as a concentration in Thailand’s southern provinces, yet another large study finds NO association between the measles vaccine and autism – a reason often parroted by parents for refusing vaccination for their children. Measles infected 2,280 people and killed 18…

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  • Thailand News

    Weather for March 6

    Bangkok Partly cloudy. High 35ºC. Winds S at 15 to 25 km/h. Phuket Partly cloudy. High 31ºC. NE winds shifting to WNW at 15 to 25 km/h. Chiang Mai Generally clear. High 36ºC. Winds S at 10 to 15 km/h. Pattaya Generally clear. High 31ºC. Winds S at 15 to 30 km/h. Hua Hin Partly cloudy. High 32ºC. Winds SSE…

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  • Phuket News

    Wanted Russian arrested after hiding in Phuket for four years

    PHOTOS: Immigration Bureau A Russian man, wanted over illegal financial business dealings after hiding in Phuket for four years, has been arrested. The Immigration Bureau says that the suspect, 36 year old Alexey Dolzhenkov, a Russian national, was arrested last week. Immigration officers allege he was a broker who operated illegal financial businesses in the Russian language, from Phuket. They claim he…

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  • Environment News

    Air quality for Thailand – March 6

    Central Thailand Members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Southern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants…

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  • Business News

    Bangkok Airways spending 3 billion on new planes, airports

    PHOTO: A Bangkok Airways ATR 72-600 dwarfed by a Thai Airways ‘jumbo’ Bangkok Airways is putting aside 3 billion baht to finance two new aircraft to support their growing passenger numbers. The local airline is forecasting a 3% growth in bums-on-seats this year to over 6 million passengers. The airline’s CEO says they hope to purchase two new ATR 72-600…

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  • Environment News

    Thailand to ban import of plastic waste

    The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is proposing to the Thai cabinet a total ban on the import of plastic waste into Thailand. The ban would start in 2020. Thai PBS reports that the Natural Resources and Environment Minister Gen Surasak Karnjanarat says, that as imports of plastic waste are to end next year, Thailand will increase recycling of…

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  • Covid-19 News

    Singapore Covid-19 patients to have their meals, medicine delivered by robot.

    Patients at a Singapore hospital suspected or confirmed to be infected with the Covid-19 coronavirus will soon get their meals and medicines from a robot. What’s more, a second robot is being deployed to clean, and will chat with patients in four languages, as well as “Singlish.” Details of the use of the robot technology were outlined in Singapore’s Ministry…

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  • Chiang Mai News

    Wheelchair-bound man shot dead under a flyover in Chiang Mai

    A man has been found dead with two gunshot wounds under a flyover in Chiang Mai’s Meuang district. He was an amputee and still seated in his wheelchair when police attended the scene. Police were alerted at 7.30am this morning that a body had been discovered in a wheelchair beneath a flyover on the Chiang Mai-Lampong road in Tambon Tha…

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  • Thailand News

    Chinese man arrested for using Thai ID card to lure foreign investors

    PHOTOS: Tourist Police Bureau A Chinese man has been arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport after using a Thai ID card to operate fraudulent businesses. The Tourist Police have arrested Chinese man ‘Zhang Qing Po’ who used a Thai identification card with the name ‘Tawatchai Laoyeepao’ The arrest follows an investigation where officers discovered that Tawatchai was advertising on a Chinese website…

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  • World News

    China lowers growth targets to lowest in 28 years

    “A more complicated environment as well as risks and challenges, foreseeable and otherwise, that are greater in number and size.” by Chong Koh Ping, The Straits Times – Asia News Network China will set lower growth targets, between 6-6.5% this year, as the world’s second largest economy loses steam due to the ongoing trade war with the US along with weaker…

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  • Krabi News

    12 year old strangles himself in home accident

    PHOTOS: Daily News A twelve year old boy has died in a tragic accident after putting his head in fish netting holding up a motorcycle tire used as a child’s swing. Daily News reports that his name was ‘Boy’ and that he died on the way to Krabi hospital. A 59 year old neighbour, Niphon Sapsungnern, says that his son…

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  • Thailand Election News

    Thanathorn’s “unfinished 1932 mission” questioned

    PHOTO: Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit appears on Channel 3 “May I ask what is the 1932 unfinished mission that Thanathorn, the party leader, announced he will complete?” The Future Forward party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit’s controversial remarks, that one of the party’s policies is to complete the ‘unfinished mission of the 1932 coup makers’, has provoked a strong reaction among Thai royalists. The…

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  • South Thailand News

    72 year old grandmother raped and killed in Chumphon

    PHOTOS: Daily News A Chumphon man returned from a short fishing trip to find that his wife was missing from the house. 72 year old Pornwichai looked everywhere but was unable to locate her. Eventually the family dog Bunnam came running to the house. Pornwichai said to his pet: “Have you seen your mum then?” The dog became agitated and…

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  • Pattaya News

    Foreigner found hanged from tree in Pattaya

    PHOTO: Facebook/Pattaya Update News A local Pattaya resident has found an unidentified foreigner hanged from a tree in a vacant lot on upscale Pratumnak Hill. The man told police that he went into the area to relieve himself and noticed the foul stench. Forensics officers and members of the Sawang Boriboon rescue foundation worked with police at the waste ground…

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  • Bangkok News

    MasterChef Thailand responds to furore on social media

    “Masterchef Thailand says no law had been broken by using the ray.” After the weekend controversy over the cooking of a stingray on the Thai MasterChef program, the program has issued a statement…. The statement issued yesterday says… “the stingray used in the cooking segment on MasterChef was Aetobatus Narinari (Eagle Ray) which are commonly found and eaten as local…

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  • Phuket News

    Russian woman dies after falling from fourth floor in Patong

    PHOTOS: Patong Police A Russian woman has died after falling from the fourth floor at a hotel in Patong earlier today. Patong Police were notified of the incident at the hotel on Ratchapatanusorn Road at 2.15am. The foreign woman was identified by police as 27 year old Elena Kusovnikova, a Russian national. Her body was on the ground in front…

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  • Northern Thailand News

    250,000 northerners seek help for smog-related conditions

    Up to 250,000 northerners are seeking medical treatment for four different illnesses that have flared up amid the intense air pollution between February 17 and 23. The Office of Disease Prevention and Control 1 in Chiang Mai has put the figure of affected residents at 248,618, including a high numbers of respiratory complaints among children under four and cardiovascular concerns…

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  • Thailand Election News

    Future Forward deputy leader admits sharing fake news

    The Future Forward party deputy leader Lt-Gen Pongsakorn Rodchompoo has told the Technology Crime Suppression Division police that he shared a fake news story about Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan. But he claims he had no way of knowing that it was fake. Thai PBS reports that Pol Lt-Gen Surachet Hakparn, commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, posted in Facebook today saying…

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  • World News

    Upstart Chinese start-up shades Samsung and Huawei

    A Shenzhen-based manufacturer of flexible displays has launched, and is selling, the first workable flexible screen smartphone, beating Samsung and Huawei into the foldable market. At this week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Samsung and Huawei made all the noise with their new $2,000 foldable phones. But they very secret with specs and not available for review with people clamoring…

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  • Thailand News

    Weather for March 5

    Bangkok Partly cloudy. High 33ºC. Winds S at 15 to 30 km/h. Phuket Partly cloudy. High 31ºC. NE winds shifting to WNW at 15 to 30 km/h. Chiang Mai Generally clear. High 36ºC. Winds S at 10 to 15 km/h. Pattaya Partly cloudy. High 31ºC. Winds S at 15 to 30 km/h. Hua Hin Partly cloudy. High 32ºC. Winds S…

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  • Environment News

    Air quality for Thailand – March 5

    Central Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution. Northern Thailand Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to…

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  • Phuket News

    Motorbike driver dies after collision with minivan in Thalang – VIDEO

    A motorbike driver died soon after colliding with a minivan at a U-turn in Thalang yesterday. The Tha Chatchai Police were notified of the incident at 1.08pm yesterday on Thepkrasattri Road in Mai Khao. Police and emergency responders arrived to find the silver minivan waiting for police. Nearby they found a man, later identified as 55 year old Kreangsak Sanaewit,…

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  • Food

    Is cooking endangered rays on ‘MasterChef Thailand’ OK?

    by Pratch Rujivanarom The cooking of what appeared to be spotted eagle rays during the MasterChef Thailand TV show on World Wildlife Day last night is sparking social media outrage over the appropriateness eating endangered species on mainstream media. Despite experts confirming that fishing, cooking and eating spotted eagle ray is completely legal in Thailand, as Thai law still does not…

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  • World News

    A family of three grooms Vietnam’s most edible golf course

    One of Vietnam’s leading golf layouts, Laguna Golf Lang Company, is staying at the top of its maintenance game with the talents of a very special group of greenkeepers. A family of water buffalo. As every superintendent worth their salt will tell you, prime conditioning is key to the success of every leading golf course. Dedicated greenkeeping staff at top…

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  • Opinion

    Statistics don’t lie, agents do

    OPINION Anyone currently involved in the Thailand property market will be happy to note that Thailand’s global ranking for transparency within its real estate market (Jones Lang LaSalle, 2014) has improved from 39th in 2012 to 34th in 2019. What does this actually mean for the majority of us? Unfortunately, the answer is very little indeed! With almost no…

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  • Bangkok News

    Royal Coronation schedule takes shape

    His Majesty King Maha Vachiralongkorn has asked that his coronation ceremony should be ‘economical’ and ‘in line with Royal tradition’. The instructions have been forwarded to Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam, head of the coronation organising committee. The Coronation ceremonies will be held between May 4-6. Describing the ceremony as second only in importance to the Royal cremation of the late…

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  • Bangkok News

    18 busted in e-cigarette and vaping raid in bangkok

    Whilst a new vaping and e-cigarette lobby group continue to push the government for a review on laws on vaping and e-cigarette products, the police are notching up more crackdowns on the sales of products related to vaping. Read about the lobby group HERE. Sixteen Thais and two Burmese men have been arrested in Bangkok for selling e-cigarette devices, nicotine…

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  • Food

    A toast to female chefs – Women in Gastronomy 2019 Bangkok

    Leading female chefs and wine makers will gather in Bangkok for the International Women’s Day culinary forum at Banyan Tree on March 8. The second edition of the global food forum Women in Gastronomy (WIG) organised by Gastronauts Asia will showcase an array of acclaimed female food personalities from Thailand and beyond. The full-day symposium will feature presentations and panel…

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  • Thailand News

    Event Round-Up – March 2019

    The month kicks off with one of Thailand’s most unique and bizarre festivals and celebrations, that of the Tattoo Festival in Nakhon Chaisi in the province of Nakhon Pathom, around 50 kilometres west of Bangkok. Held at the Wat Bang Phra temple on 2 March, the festival also goes by the name Wai Kru Sak Yant after the spiritual tattoos…

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  • Thai Life

    The marijuana amnesty. What does it mean and how can I apply?

    The Thaiger neither endorses, recommends or has any opinion on the possession or use of marijuana. This information is merely provided as a service to our readers. So, the big question, how can you RIGHT NOW, legally, smoke or use marijuana in Thailand? Thais and expats living in the kingdom now have new options following the enactment of a law…

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