Year: 2020

  • Northern Thailand News2 Burmese nationals arrested while crossing river into Thailand

    2 Burmese nationals arrested while crossing river into Thailand

    Border forces have arrested 2 Burmese nationals as they were crossing a river in the northern province of Chiang Rai in an attempt to enter Thailand. There has been an increase in security patrols along the border with Myanmar in recent weeks, as the country experiences a spike in Covid-19 cases. There have been reports of Burmese nationals attempting to…

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  • Crime NewsAnti-corruption officials call on PM to reveal details of “Boss” inquiry

    Anti-corruption officials call on PM to reveal details of “Boss” inquiry

    The Anti-Corruption Organisation of Thailand is calling on the Thai PM to disclose the findings of a recent inquiry into the handling of the “Boss” case. The hit-and-run case against Red Bull heir, Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya, has been mired in controversy for years, and a decision in July to drop all charges was greeted with uproar around the country. The…

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  • Eastern Thailand NewsFamily hospitalised after elephant attack in eastern Thailand

    Family hospitalised after elephant attack in eastern Thailand

    A Cambodian family was hospitalised after a wild elephant attacked them at a rubber tree plantation in eastern Thailand. The parents and their 1 month old baby were camped at a Rayong plantation when the elephant passed by. The baby started to cry, startling the elephant. It apparently went into a panic and started to trample, according to the family’s…

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  • Covid-19 NewsTrials and tribulations of returning to Thailand in the Covid era – a personal view

    Trials and tribulations of returning to Thailand in the Covid era – a personal view

    A series of articles by David Jackson Sunday morning and I am sitting inside my viewless window in a Bangkok Hotel waiting in anticipation for a trip down to reception where, after five lonely days, I get to experience my first brief contact with a human – a nurse who will presumably force a swab up my nose. Welcome to…

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  • Politics NewsActivist vows university rally will take place, with or without permission

    Activist vows university rally will take place, with or without permission

    The political activist Parit Chiwarak, aka. “Penguin”, says a rally planned for September 19 at Thammasat University will go ahead, even if permission is refused from the University’s management. The gathering is set to take place at the university’s Tha Phra Chan campus in Bangkok, with Parit saying he expects around 50,000 people to attend. Khaosod English reports that the…

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  • South Thailand NewsMonkeys take over Songkhla home while family away for holiday

    Monkeys take over Songkhla home while family away for holiday

    Monkeys took over a Songkhla home in Southern Thailand while a family was away during the 4 day long weekend holiday. Monkeys were on the roof, in the trees and on the fence while trash was scattered across the yard and driveway. Luckily, the monkeys couldn’t get inside the home (although we bet they tried). Monkeys frequent the area near the…

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  • Politics NewsProtest leaders Anon and Panupong freed from jail on court order

    Protest leaders Anon and Panupong freed from jail on court order

    Two prominent anti-government protest leaders have now been released from Bangkok Special Prison, where they were being held on charges of violating their bail conditions. The human rights lawyer, Anon Nampa, and political protester Panupong Jaadnok, have been in and out of prison in recent weeks and, while out on bail, addressed the crowd at an anti-government rally, thereby breaching…

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  • Politics NewsForeign Ministry refutes Amnesty allegation that Thai government is gagging protesters

    Foreign Ministry refutes Amnesty allegation that Thai government is gagging protesters

    Thailand’s Foreign Ministry has hit back at an Amnesty International statement that accuses the Thai government of violating citizens’ rights to free speech and freedom of assembly. The statement, sent to Amnesty’s 8 million members worldwide, calls on followers to petition Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha to drop all charges against 31 leaders of anti-government protests. Amnesty is also calling on…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket hotels fighting for their lives as domestic tourism fails to support the island

    Phuket hotels fighting for their lives as domestic tourism fails to support the island

    In the wake of last weekend’s ministerial talkfest and discussions with local industry players on the island, Bill Barnett paints a bleak picture of a tourist island in freefall. All the shops, restaurants and hotels can’t remain empty, or merely keep their doors open with a handful of domestic customers, forever. Phuket’s hotel industry is reaching breaking point and drastic economic support…

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  • Covid-19 News970 now tested as part of the investigation into the infected Bangkok DJ

    970 now tested as part of the investigation into the infected Bangkok DJ

    3 of the bars where the 37 year old DJ, Thailand’s first locally transmitted Covid-19 case in 101 days, are said not to have observed basic preventions required in a workplace – temperature screening, wearing a face mask and social distancing. It’s also been revealed that the bars offered a “glass sharing” special menu as part of their promotions. The…

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  • South Thailand News2 insurgents killed, 4 ranger injured in Songkhla clash

    2 insurgents killed, 4 ranger injured in Songkhla clash

    Rangers have shot and killed 2 suspected insurgents in the latest clashes in Thailand’s Deep South, this time in Songkhla’s Chana and Thepha district last night. Police and soldiers headed to the area after receiving reports that 4 insurgents were in the ares and travelling on 2 motorcycles. The suspects dispersed as the police and soldiers arrived. 3 separate clashes followed.…

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  • Pattaya NewsCar bursts into flames as the new owner drives home after buying it

    Car bursts into flames as the new owner drives home after buying it

    A 28 year old man who bought a second-hand car in the central province of Angthong got the shock of his life when the vehicle burst into flames as he was driving it home. The Pattaya News reports that Charaswit Bank was driving his just-purchased second hand Honda Civic home to Sattahip, in the eastern district of Chon Buri, when…

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  • World NewsTak hospital doctor pleads for medical supplies to treat Burmese Covid patients

    Tak hospital doctor pleads for medical supplies to treat Burmese Covid patients

    A hospital doctor in the northern province of Tak has taken to Facebook to plead for donations of medical supplies and personal protective equipment. Nattagarn Chuenchom works in a state-run hospital currently treating Covid-19 patients from neighbouring Myanmar, which is experiencing a small surge in virus numbers. The current total of cases in Myanmar is 1,419. Yesterday another 166 cases…

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  • Pattaya NewsThai Hi-So hits Thai celebrity in the face with a bottle at Pattaya club

    Thai Hi-So hits Thai celebrity in the face with a bottle at Pattaya club

    Celebrities at 10 paces. Police are investigating reports of a half-Thai ‘celebrity’ who has reported being hit in the face with a bottle at a nightclub in Pattaya. Thai media reports say that Jirat “Hiso Champ” Petnunthawong attacked openly gay 33 year old Rusameekae Fagerlund in a fit of jealousy. Jirat told police that he saw Rusameekae talking to his celeb girlfriend,…

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  • Phuket NewsMinister eases local concerns over Phuket tourism plan

    Minister eases local concerns over Phuket tourism plan

    The Minister of Tourism and Sports has rushed to reassure Phuket locals who have voiced concern over a tentative plan (now postponed) to re-open the province to foreign visitors. Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakarn says there may have been some miscommunication, as he reassured Phuket residents that they would not be forced to accept any tourism plan. The minister, along with a…

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  • South Thailand NewsForeign tourist dies after falling from cliff at Ranong waterfall

    Foreign tourist dies after falling from cliff at Ranong waterfall

    A tourist from Uzbekistan has died after slipping from a cliff edge while taking a photograph in the southern province of Ranong. The man, named in a Nation Thailand report as Soipov Abdullokh, was visiting Ngao Waterfall National Park with 5 Russian tourists. Ngao Waterfall National Park is between Ranong and Chumpon in Southern Thailand. The incident happened around 1.00pm…

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  • OpinionSplitting atoms in the Big Bang – a day in the Big Mango

    Splitting atoms in the Big Bang – a day in the Big Mango

    OPINION by Bill Barnett of c9hotelworks.com Despite the global pandemic, Bangkok’s rapid-fire megacity growth trajectory has remained largely in place. While life in Covid-19 times is a bit like sparring with wild gangs of chaos monkeys in a dead-end ally, thankfully one of the singular guilty pleasures of these strange times is the ability to at least travel domestically. Last…

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  • Business NewsRise of food delivery apps in Thailand exposes rights disparity

    Rise of food delivery apps in Thailand exposes rights disparity

    The owners of the highly popular food-delivery apps are facing growing calls to improve welfare rights for their workers, as more people opt to take on a full or part-time job as a “rider”. Speaking at the online seminar, “When Riders Strike Back”, Akkanut Wantanasombut from Chulalongkorn University says employment law needs to be expanded to cover new roles such…

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  • Tourism NewsChinese official rules out return of China-Thailand tourism anytime soon

    Chinese official rules out return of China-Thailand tourism anytime soon

    China is not yet ready to welcome international tourists, says a senior embassy official in Bangkok. Speaking to Nation Thailand, Yang Xin from the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China to Thailand, says that, while domestic tourism has resumed in China, the country is not yet ready to open its borders to foreign tourists, nor is it encouraging its…

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  • TravelLondon to New York in under 4 hours – Will there ever be another Concorde?

    London to New York in under 4 hours – Will there ever be another Concorde?

    We’d flown in propeller-powered planes, then jets. Supersonic was the next evolutionary step in flying people around the world as the 1960s came to a close. Now, 50 years after Concorde’s early flights, supersonic flight is again just another aviation pipe dream as we pack into our cheap ‘flying buses’ which are not much different from the first successful commercial jets…

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  • Pattaya NewsCar damaged by construction debris falling from high-rise building in Pattaya

    Car damaged by construction debris falling from high-rise building in Pattaya

    Construction debris has fallen from a 23 storey building in Pattaya, badly damaging the parked car it landed on. Police in the city were notified of the incident, which the Pattaya News reports happened around 7.30pm last night. Khok Kriat, the 51 year old owner of the white Honda Jazz, filed the police report as a result of his hatchback…

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  • Tourism NewsWill the Flying-V be the shape of passenger travel in the future?

    Will the Flying-V be the shape of passenger travel in the future?

    Since the first Boeing 707 (Dash 80) had its test flight in 1955, and earlier the UK’s De Havilland Comet in 1949, not much has changed in the way of passenger jet configuration – long, thin fuselage, wings, jet engines hanging underneath, with a big tail and rudder. Since then it’s been a gradual evolution of the same theme (we’ve…

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  • Covid-19 NewsBringing Thai nationals home is a team effort

    Bringing Thai nationals home is a team effort

    As the world ground to a crawl thanks to Covid-19, things began ramping up at the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with staff working tirelessly to help Thai citizens abroad get back home. MFA staff are based both in Thailand and overseas and are tasked with assisting Thai nationals during emergencies such as natural disasters or indeed, a pandemic, wherever they…

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  • Phuket NewsThai tourism cavalcade rolls into town to get feedback on Phuket Model

    Thai tourism cavalcade rolls into town to get feedback on Phuket Model

    The who’s who of Thai tourism toured Phuket over Saturday and Sunday speaking to local tourism players and local officials about the situation on the island and gather some feedback about the so-called “Phuket model” which had been proposed to open the island to limited tourism from October 1. Ironically, the delegation rolled into town when the island was probably…

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  • World News3 returnees to Thailand reported as “re-infected” with Covid-19

    3 returnees to Thailand reported as “re-infected” with Covid-19

    There has been 6 new cases of Covid-19 announced in Thailand today. But 3 of the men, all Thais, were previously infected but had been certified “virus-free” before their flights from Singapore on Friday. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration today announced that the men, aged 43, 53 and 56, tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving in Thailand just 2 days…

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  • Environment NewsPM denies government split over toxic chemical ban

    PM denies government split over toxic chemical ban

    As officials continue to debate a recently-introduced ban on paraquat and chlorpyrifos, the PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha denies the government is split on the matter. He points out that coalition governments will always have differing viewpoints and that such differences will not affect the administration’s overall unity. Currently Glyphosate hasn’t been included in the ban. “Our core priorities are public health…

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  • Tourism NewsPhuket launches app, passengers rate taxi drivers

    Phuket launches app, passengers rate taxi drivers

    How was your taxi ride? Passengers will soon be able to rate their Phuket taxi drivers using a new smartphone application. The province’s project “Hello Taxi Happy Phuket” involves 300 drivers aimed at maintaining standards like fair pricing. Customers will be able to rate their ride experience on the app and driver’s will be scored on their service. So, if…

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  • OpinionReturning happiness back to the Thai people. So how’s that going?

    Returning happiness back to the Thai people. So how’s that going?

    OPINION “The flames are rising. Let us be the ones who step in, before it is too late.” Lyrics from the Prayut-penned ditty which was written to help “heal” Thais after the May 2014 coup. The event, some 6 and a half years ago now, brought then-General Prayut Chan-o-cha to the helm of the good-ship Thailand. Following the writing of a…

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  • Northern Thailand News12 workers injured as tunnel collapses in north-eastern Thailand

    12 workers injured as tunnel collapses in north-eastern Thailand

    A tunnel under construction in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima has collapsed, injuring 12 workers. The tunnel is an underpass running below the Map Kabao-Jira Junction dual railway track. The underpass was bring constructed by the Italian-Thai company. According to the Bangkok Post, the scaffolding being used gave way due to concrete being poured unevenly, creating too heavy a…

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  • Covid-19 News100s of protesters defy orders, arrests at Melbourne demonstrations

    100s of protesters defy orders, arrests at Melbourne demonstrations

    UPDATE: The city’s lockdown provisions have been extended another 2 weeks. Australian police have arrested protesters in Melbourne as 100s of people joined protests against the various state Covid-19 restrictions. The protests have been particularly large and vocal in the souther city of Melbourne which has been under draconian lockdown provisions for 5 weeks. Some anti-Covid-19 restriction groups also shifted…

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  • Pattaya NewsDomestic tourists give Pattaya a boost over holiday weekend

    Domestic tourists give Pattaya a boost over holiday weekend

    There has been some respite for Pattaya’s battered tourism sector over the 4 day long weekend, as domestic tourists visit the city for the extended break. The public holidays on Friday, September 4, and Monday, September 7, are replacements for the Songkran festival that was cancelled in April as a result of Covid-19. But the water fights were put on…

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  • Politics NewsOpposition party does U-turn on senate powers

    Opposition party does U-turn on senate powers

    The Pheu Thai Party says it will now back a proposal submitted by the Kao Klai party to strip the Senate of powers to elect the PM. Abolishing such authority would involve an amendment to the country’s Constitution, which Somkid Chuakong from Pheu Thai says his party is not opposed to. Both the vocal anti-government protest groups, Free People and…

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  • Visa InformationThe end of the visa amnesty – get your house in order

    The end of the visa amnesty – get your house in order

    Up to 500,000 foreigners are now thought to have been part of the Thai government’s visa amnesty which was introduced in April for foreigners, both on tourist and other visas, who were stuck in Thailand and unable to leave. Around the world, planes had been grounded and Thailand closed its borders at the time. Six months later, and following 2…

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  • Politics NewsStudents gather at Education Ministry, issue ultimatum

    Students gather at Education Ministry, issue ultimatum

    “Thai education has made us puppets. We are not robots of the system; we are the youth and have the right to express ourselves.” The Education Ministry in Bangkok has been chosen as the stage for another student rally, with around 300 young people, from 50 schools, gathering there yesterday afternoon. The students have been repeating their 3 key demands,…

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  • Phuket NewsPhuket re-opening could be postponed

    Phuket re-opening could be postponed

    The Tourism Authority of Thailand says plans to re-open Phuket to foreign tourists could be delayed as a result of the country’s first local case of Covid-19 in over 3 months in Bangkok. TAT governor, Yuthasak Supasorn, was speaking as officials visited the island to meet with local businesses and discuss disease prevention measures and preparations for a scheduled October…

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  • Covid-19 NewsMobile Covid-19 testing unit at condo after resident tests positive

    Mobile Covid-19 testing unit at condo after resident tests positive

    A mobile coronavirus testing unit was parked in front of a Bangkok condominium today after a former resident tested positive for Covid-19 earlier this week. The Urban Institute for Disease Prevention and Control says they stocked the biosafety trailer with enough equipment to test 300 people. A 37 year old DJ tested positive for Covid-19 during a routine check at…

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  • Northern Thailand NewsMan arrested for allegedly trafficking 112 million baht worth of drugs

    Man arrested for allegedly trafficking 112 million baht worth of drugs

    Police arrested a 50 year old man for allegedly carrying 112 million baht worth of illegal drugs. Police searched his pickup truck at a Sakon Nakhon checkpoint in Northeast Thailand and found 75 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, methamphetamine pills and marijuana. The methamphetamine was separated into 1-kilogram packs. They also found 2,000 methamphetamine pill, known as speed, police say. The…

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