Month: August 2020
- Politics News
A night of drama as 2 protesters face court in Bangkok over “sedition” charges
Anon Nampa, a human rights lawyer, and student activist Panupong Jadnok, are both under arrest on “sedition” charges after they took part in protests on July 18. They’ve been arrested under Section 116 of the Criminal Code and for allegedly violating the Emergency Decree. After a night of dramatic legal to-and-fro, the 2 were back in court again this morning. Anon…
Read More » - Bangkok News
Snake bites Bangkok 4 year old using toilet
The mother of a 4 year old girl described how her daughter survived a snake bite received while sitting on the toilet, proof that nowhere is safe from the reptiles that lurk in Thailand’s sewers. Audy Punnada Leung-Aram warned other parents on Facebook after reporting the terrifying incident at her condominium near Onnut Skytrain Station. At about 5am, she took…
Read More » - News
Which Asian Country Googles Beer the Most?
Which Asian Country Googles Beer the Most? It’s International Beer Day and countries in Asia seem to be thirsty for a beer this year – well, at least on Google. With numerous government-implemented social distancing measures in place, people flock online to buy their wants and essentials. Unsurprisingly, many of them search for beer online, especially those in countries with…
Read More » - Thailand News
Chon Buri’s Nongprue joins fight against dengue, chikingunya viruses
Following the lead of Chon Buri’s Si Racha subdistrict, Pattaya’s Nongprue is rolling out its campaign to contain the spread of the chikungunya and dengue fever viruses after many cases were reported locally and hospital visits increased. Both viruses comes from bites of infected mosquitoes. The Public Health and Environment Division of Nongprue in Banglamung are warning the public to…
Read More » - Politics News
Activist lawyer arrested after questioning Monarchy’s role
34 year old Thai activist and civil rights lawyer and Arnon Nampha was arrested this afternoon for “sedition” and “breaching the emergency decree”. He was apprehended in front of his Bangkok condominium at around 2pm, according to the head of Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, Yaowalak Anuphan. He is currently in police custody. “Arnon can only be detained no more…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Covid-19 update: 15 new imported cases, no new deaths (August 7)
In the biggest jump in weeks, perhaps months, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today reported that 15 Thais tested positive in state quarantine over the previous 24 hour period. It was, however, the 74th day without a domestically transmitted case. CCSA spokesman Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin said all 15 new patients were asymptomatic, 4 men who recently returned from Egypt…
Read More » - Northern Thailand News
Armed teens terrorise Buri Ram village
Video emerged yesterday of a gang of youths, dressed in school uniforms, marauding through Khok Mai district in Isaan’s Buri Ram province on motorbikes and firing guns. Initial investigation revealed that the gun-happy gang had done this before, riding into Laluad village and attacking residents by throwing objects at them and firing into in the sky. Officers retrieved footage from…
Read More » - Crime News
The phone of a key witness in the “Boss” case was stolen and destroyed
It’s now been revealed that the phone of a key witness in the Boss Yoovidhya hit-and-run case was stolen and destroyed after the witness died in a Chiang Mai traffic incident last week. It’s the latest in a long list of wtf moments in the botched 8 year long investigation. 40 year old Jaruchat Madthong died last Wednesday after colliding…
Read More » - World News
Mother, infant son reunited after 5 months
A young Malaysian mother was reunited with her infant son yesterday after being stranded in Thailand for 5 months. She was marooned while on a visa run when Malaysia closed its borders in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 18 year old Nurahaleesa Jeh-awae was joyfully reunited with her 6 month old son at the Sadao district border crossing in…
Read More » - Politics News
Deputy PM: 2 ways to amend Thai Constitution
As the government has agreed in principle to amend Thailand’s Constitution, Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam says there are 2 approaches to amending it – with or without a referendum. Wissanu, a legal expert, said yesterday that amendments which require a referendum are changes to Chapter 1 (which contains general provisions), Chapter 2 (which deals with the Thai monarchy), and Chapter…
Read More » - World News
Discovery of unexploded bombs in eastern Thailand linked to Cambodian civil war
5 unexploded bombs have been discovered in the eastern Thai province of Sa Kaeo, with the devices believed to be relics from the Cambodian civil war in the 1970s. Locals from the village of Tubtim Siam alerted officials after finding the unexploded ordinance in their area. The Pattaya News reports that the devices included bombs and anti-tank mines. The devices…
Read More » - Pattaya News
Chon Buri Grab driver falls 4 floors down elevator shaft
A 40 year old Grab driver in Chon Buri’s Samet subdistrict fell 4 floors down an elevator shaft in an apartment building Wednesday night, after the lift doors reportedly opened but the elevator had not arrived. The man, whose name was not provided, was returning from delivering an order at an apartment building located near the new Muang Electricity Market.…
Read More » - Bangkok News
4 motorbikes catch fire outside Government House in Bangkok
4 motorbikes have mysteriously caught fire in a car park outside Government House in Bangkok. A report in Nation Thailand says the incident took place outside the Secretariat of the Prime Minister’s Building, with the fire quickly put out and no injuries reported. Police from Bangkok’s Dusit Station arrived swiftly, accompanied by fire trucks from Samsen Fire Station. However, the…
Read More » - Expats
Bangkok Midnight Marathon 2020 bans foreigners
It’s official. The Bangkok Midnight Marathon 2020 is closed to foreigners. Popular blogger and Samut Prakan school employee Richard Barrow posted the news last night saying… “For some reason, the organisers of this year’s Bangkok Midnight Marathon have decided not to allow foreigners to run. I hope this doesn’t become part of the ‘new normal’.” Unsurprisingly, the social media outrage was…
Read More » - Thailand News
Trump decries “Thighland’s” unfair trade practices
OPINION Gaffe-prone US President Donald Trump, recently mocked for his mispronunciation of the name of Yosemite National Park as “YO-semite”, has stuck his foot in it again: Finland is obviously for fins, Switzerland for switzers, Iceland for ice and Holland for the nethers. Surely there’s a home for everyone’s favourite part of the leg, between hip and knee? Very stable…
Read More » - Koh Samui News
Samui ferry company facing legal action over environmental impact of capsize
Thailand’s Ministry of National Resources and the Environment is threatening to sue the Raja Ferry company as a result of environmental contamination from the capsizing of a ferry off Koh Samui. The cargo ferry sank in rough weather last Saturday night, while attempting to transport rubbish from Samui to the Surat Thani mainland, resulting in dead and missing crew. The…
Read More » - World News
Thai government says it’s ready to help Lebanon following Beirut blast
Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Don Pramudwinai, says the country is ready to provide assistance to Lebanon in the aftermath of the explosion that rocked the capital, Beirut, earlier this week. The cause of the blast has not been confirmed, but is believed to be due to over 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate that was being illegally stored at a warehouse…
Read More » - World News
2 Thai men injured in Beirut explosion
The government says 2 Thai nationals have been injured in the huge explosion that rocked the Lebanese capital’s port area in Beirut, earlier this week. The Bangkok Post reports that both men have been treated for minor injuries, mainly cuts from broken glass. According to Thailand’s Labour Ministry, one of the men, named as Veerayut Boonrak, is a cook at…
Read More » - Crime News
Alleged “Arab mafia” members arrested in Bangkok
The chief of the Thai immigration police today announced the arrest of two Arabs in Bangkok’s Nana area. INN reports that they’re “local mafia”, running protection rackets and committing robberies and assaults. The case began when a Thai salon owner filed a report with Lumpini police claiming that her husband and 3 year old son were assaulted by 2 men…
Read More » - World News
Concerns over virus spread in boarding houses as Hong Kong records 95 new cases
Hong Kong has seen a slight uptick in Covid-19 infections, with a new daily total of 95 cases. A report in Coconuts says a domestic helper from Indonesia has tested positive for the virus after a stay in a boarding house. Such boarding houses are used by agencies in Hong Kong to accommodate domestic workers who are in between jobs.…
Read More » - Crime News
Bangkok police nab illegal Nigerian 2 year overstayer with cocaine
A Nigerian man who entered Thailand illegally 2 years ago has arrested in Bangkok’s Suan Luang area and found to be in possession of cocaine. Thailand’s immigration chief says immigration officers were keeping tabs on a drug distribution network and soon had a black man in their sights at a condo building in the Suan Luang area of the capital.…
Read More » - World News
US fares worse than Mexico and Russia in world misery ranking
The Bloomberg Misery Index for 2020 has been released, using economic predictions for 2020 inflation rates and employment compared to figures from 2019. The list features 60 countries where sufficient economic forecasting data is available to Bloomberg. It’s not looking good for the US, which has plummeted 25 spots. The timing couldn’t be worse for President Trump as he campaigns…
Read More » - Economy News
Thailand’s GDP forecast to fall up to 9% this year
Thailand’s GDP is set to fall 7-9%, year-on-year, according to the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking. The fall is, not surprisingly, being fallout from the catastrophic drop in tourism and lower exports. Kalin Sarasin, chairman of the Board of Trade of Thailand, says the expected contraction was revised downwards from 5-8%. The committee also predicted exports would drop…
Read More » - Crime News
Human trafficking and drugs suspects nabbed using airport biometrics
2 suspects have recently been arrested using the biometric security system recently installed in international airports across Thailand. In the first case, a suspected human trafficker was apprehended after returning to Thailand during the Covid-19 crisis. Immigration officers received information from Chiang Mai police about a person travelling into Thailand from Japan. On July 14, a Thai citizen returned to…
Read More » - Thailand Weather Updates
Showers expected today just about everywhere around Thailand
More rain on the way through the forecast period, especially in the North, Northeast and the East. The TMD is reporting that a monsoonal trough “lies across the upper North and the upper Northeast to the low-pressure cell over the South China Sea, while the southwest monsoon across the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand is intensifying”. “People should…
Read More » - Koh Samui News
Remains of another ferry disaster victim found, in the sunken vessel
The body of another victim of Saturday’s Surat Thani ferry disaster have been located, trapped inside the sunken vessel. Divers in Surat Thani found the remains of the missing female crew member in the sunken Racha 4 ferry, but were unable to recover the body. The deputy commander of the Second Fleet said today that the divers found the victim…
Read More » - Bangkok News
BTS pillar collapse injures 5 – VIDEO
5 construction workers were injured in the early hours of this morning when a column under construction along a future elevated train line came crashing down. A Skytrain Pink Line pillar under construction collapsed on Chaengwattana Road in Nonthaburi’s Pak Kret district, just north of Bangkok. The workers were about 7 metres from the ground and pouring concrete on top…
Read More » - World News
Philippines plummets in to recession as virus numbers spike
The Philippines, reeling from Covid-19 lockdowns that have destroyed businesses and thrown millions out of work, plunged into recession after its biggest quarterly contraction on record, data showed today. The Philippine Statistics Authority says GDP 16.5% year-on-year in the second quarter as the country endured one of the world’s longest stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of the virus that’s…
Read More » - Technology News
10 new 5G towers going up in Nong Prue, Pattaya
The Nong Prue tambon, to the east of Pattaya City, will be the home of 10 new 5G WiFi “Smart Poles” . The installation starts this month. The announcements were made by the Nong Prue Mayor Mine Chiyanit and the team from United Technology Enterprise who are installing the new towers and technology. The Smart Pole set ups will be installed…
Read More » - Crime News
Bangkok casino gunman’s killer surrenders, confesses
In the ongoing saga of Monday’s fatal shooting a Bangkok gambling den, a suspect surrendered to police today for shooting dead a gunman in the illegal casino in Bangkok’s Yannawa district. A man calling himself “Boy BanKrua” turned himself in to police and handed in the gun he allegedly used. The suspect says he shot 61 year old Taworn Sisot,…
Read More » - Crime News
Police questioned as casino shootout evidence goes missing
Bankok police are being questioned over their handling the Monday’s shooting incident at an illegal gambling den in the capitol’s Thung Mahamek area, in which 4 people, including a police officer, died, and whether officers are concealing evidence. The secretary-general of the Justice Reform Institute said yesterday that police appear to be treating the shooting in the same way they treated…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
COVID-19 update: 2 new cases found in state quarantine, no new deaths (August 6)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration this morning reported 2 new cases of Covid-19, both returnees from the US, bringing the national total of confirmed cases to 3,330 since the outbreak began in January. A CCSA spokeman said the new patients are a 42 year old man aged 42 and a woman, aged 62, both Thai nationals. They arrived on…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
No current plans to extend list of foreigners allowed back into Thailand
There is no immediate plan to extend the list of foreigners being allowed to come to Thailand at the moment. Specifically still excluded are retirees with valid visas, homes and families in Thailand. The directive comes from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Since Thailand’s experience with Covid-19, it has closed its borders to tourists and visitors, stranding both Thais and…
Read More » - Central Thailand News
Cabinet approves 435 million baht to control hungry elephants, monkeys
The Covid-19 crisis hasn’t just affected humans and businesses; it’s had a profound impact on Thailand’s wildlife- much of which was dependent on tourism for survival. As a result, the Cabinet on Tuesday approved a budget of 435.3 million baht to reduce the impacts of wildlife on people. The budget was requested by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.…
Read More » - World News
Latest travel advisories for SE Asia, UK, Canada
While Thailand’s borders are still closed to all but a very few foreign visitors, there are outbound flights to some destinations, but the Covid-19 crisis means that entry requirements are fluid and often unpredictable; Singapore will require some returning residents who self-quarantine to use an electronic monitoring device effective August 10, while Myanmar has extended the ban on international flights.…
Read More » - Bangkok News
US ambassador visits Thai clean-tech company Equator Pure Nature
The United States Ambassador to Thailand, Michael George DeSombre visited American-founded Thai clean-tech pioneer Equator Pure Nature yesterday to discuss perspectives on US businesses and American-founded companies in Thailand, their contributions to Thai society, primarily during the Covid-19 pandemic, and their role in assisting the development of Thai entrepreneurs, particularly women. Thailand is among countries recognised worldwide as having best…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Tourism sector pin hopes on “Safe and Sealed” scheme to lure international visitors
In the latest plan to bolster Thailand’s withering tourism industry, business operators are proposing a new inbound tourism plan called “Safe and Sealed”, to replace the delayed “travel bubbles” scheme and prevent Thailand realising the worst-case revenue scenario of only 675 billion baht next year, down from 3 trillion in 2019. At a joint meeting yesterday of the Tourism and…
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