Year: 2021
- Economy News
Covid-19 again lowers Thai economic growth forecast to 2.3%
Thailand’s economic growth forecast was lowered to 2.3% as the tourism outlook remains bleak as Covid-19’s third wave pummels the country. Back in October 2020, the Finance Ministry’s Fiscal Policy Office had originally predicted a 4.5% growth for Thailand’s GDP, when Covid-19 seemed to be waning in the country. By January, as the second wave hit, projections were reeled in…
Read More » - Food
Cooking food at home more? Most Thais are during Covid-19
Are you an excellent chef? Did Covid-19 force you to learn how to cook food? Or maybe it caused you to pay closer attention to how healthy, how clean, and how well packaged your food is? A new Suan Dusit Poll found that Thai people are eating healthier and eating at home as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The…
Read More » - Hot News
Unidentified metal sphere underwater near Phuket is not a bomb
While the strange object 6 metres underwater off the Phuket island of Koh Aeo is as yet unidentified, officials have determined that it is definitely not a bomb. Much to local relief of the local fishermen who spotted the object and reported it Friday, Thai navy officials determined the object was harmless. The spherical metal object was found underwater about…
Read More » - Thailand News
Thailand expecting 3.5 million Sinovac vaccines by end of May
Another 3.5 million Sinovac Biotech vaccines have been confirmed to be arriving by the end of May, health officials said Friday. With a slow vaccine rollout putting Thailand’s ambitious July 1 reopening plan in jeopardy, the confirmation of another batch of jabs is welcomed news. The head of the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation announced the first million vaccines will arrive in…
Read More » - World News
Burmese protests countrywide call for a “spring revolution”
Calls for a “spring revolution” erupted from thousands of protestors marching across Myanmar today to protest the Burmese military junta. The country has been in turmoil since the Feb 1 coup that overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and installed military rule. Protests have raged for 4 months despite the Burmese military cracking down on demonstrations, often violently and bloodily,…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Covid-19 testing increased, CCSA blames household spread
After a month of the worst Covid-19 outbreak ever in Thailand stemming from the nightlife and entertainment venue scene in Bangkok and around Thailand, authorities have set their sight on another treacherous virus spreader: your household. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration worries that while the number of infections being spread in the community and gathering places seems to be…
Read More » - Crime News
Social distancing violation busts Pattaya illegal loan scheme
Covid-19 safety violations brought down a Chinese man and 39 Thai employees running an illegal loan operation in Pattaya. The group was arrested for offering money lending services after violating the Chon Buri Disease Control orders and emergency decree restrictions of social distancing and large gatherings. Chon Buri police raided the office building in Nongprue on Pattaya Second Road and…
Read More » - Hot News
Suicide of Burmese worker by jumping from quarantined factory window
After being placed in a Covid-19 quarantine, a Burmese factory worker apparently committed suicide by leaping from his fourth-floor dorm window to his death. The man had worked in the production department at a factory in the Phra Samut Chedi district of the Samut Prakan province. The factory he worked at manufactures steel products inside a quarantined off area of…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE: 1,940 new Covid infections, 21 new deaths
Sunday’s report from the Thai health ministry says that there has been 21 new deaths in the last 24 hour reporting period. and 1,940 new cases. There has been 82 people dying over the past 5 days in the current 3rd wave surge of Covid 19 around Thailand. Whilst there’s been a general trend downward over the past week, the…
Read More » - Thailand News
Mor Prom app crashes yesterday as people rush to register for vaccine roll out
The new Mor Prom (doctors ready) app, where people registered under the Thai public health system can register for the next round of Covid vaccinations, has seized up after only one day being live. Before the crash some 300,000 people had registered for the vaccine. There is also a LINE account where people can register. About 1 million people were…
Read More » - Tourism News
Sriracha Tiger Zoo in Chon Buri closes its doors forever
One of Thailand’s most popular and visited Tiger zoos has announced that it’s closing its doors, permanently. Sriracha Tiger Zoo, a Chon Buri tourist magnet, located in Nong Kham, was in operation for 24 years. Wasan Temsiriphong, the MD of the Sriracha Tiger Zoo operation said that they will meet with employees on Monday to discuss termination payments and the…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
US pushed to join call for patent-free Covid vaccines
The United States is being pushed to join a scheme to persuade all manufacturers of Covid-19 vaccines worldwide to give up their intellectual property rights. This would make all Covid-19 medications, treatments and vaccines patent-free, allowing manufacturers around the world to produce them locally. India and South Africa proposed this plan at the World Trade Organization. As Covid-19 still spreads…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Nowhere to hide: Face masks required in all 77 Thai provinces
You hate them. We hate them. We all hate wearing them. You hate endless reporting on them. We hate writing over and over about it. But… Face masks. They are no longer optional anywhere in Thailand. First face masks became compulsory in a few places, then 31 provinces. Phuket even singled out “problem foreigners” refusing to wear masks. Soon 54 provinces…
Read More » - South Thailand News
Thailand’s Southern Insurgency – who’s fighting who?
Trouble in the ‘south’. Attacks against civilians and rangers. Insurgents attack Thai soldiers – the sorts of headlines that people have read about Thailand’s southern conflict for the past 70 years or so. Thaiger readers may wonder who’s fighting who, and why. The area has been coined the ‘deep south’ or the ‘restive south’ and has become, statistically, a more…
Read More » - Crime News
Japanese man who ran 12 million baht scam arrested in Pattaya
A Japanese man, now arrested in Pattaya by immigration police, ran a scam netting over 12 million baht from 46 victims before fleeing to Japan. The 46 year old man identified as Michuma had been living in Thailand for 2 years after arriving on a visitor visa. Suspicion was aroused after an informant told immigration officials that the man was…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
URGENT: Call for testing, Covid-19 on 7 Phuket flights
Authorities are calling for immediate quarantine and Covid-19 testing for 157 passengers of 7 flights to and from Phuket in the last few weeks. Passengers on these 7 domestic flights, mostly between Phuket and Bangkok, are considered at risk after Covid-19 infections were found on each flight. Seating charts were released with seat numbers and rows where Covid-19 infections and…
Read More » - World News
UN Security Council issues watered-down Myanmar statement
The UN Security Council has issued 4 statements regarding the military coup in Myanmar and the resulting humanitarian crisis, including a new one yesterday. The statements call for an immediate end to violence in Myanmar, but the wording was reportedly heavily watered down in order to achieve approval from Russia and China. The UK drew up the original Security Council…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE: 21 Covid-related deaths, infection numbers rise, provincial totals
All the provincial totals (below) from the NBT. Today’s Covid-19 infections were announced this morning and feature a new high in Covid-related deaths. 21 people have succumbed over the past 24 hour reporting period, according to the Thai Health Ministry. The people that died include 9 men and 12 women, aged between 39 and 90. 28,745 people remain in state-controlled…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Medical, business sectors blame government over Covid-19
Corporations are losing faith in Thailand’s political leaders as many in the medical, financial and business sector are placing the blame on the Prayut government for the current Covid-19 situation. They claim that corruption and cronyism is hindering and dampening a more decisive and productive course of action. The Chamber of Commerce has already offered logistical support to expedite vaccinations…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Returning Thais tested for Indian variant of Covid-19
A group of Thais just back from India who tested positive for Covid-19 are feared to have the very dangerous Indian variant. Health officials are rushing to confirm what strain of Covid-19 the returning travellers have. The Public Health Ministry already had labs analyzing samples to identify if it is indeed the Indian variant. India is currently deep in a…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Vaccine appointments from today via Mor Prom LINE account
Thailand has launched the Mor Prom account on the Line app today where locals can register to get their vaccine appointments. While 16 million people earmarked as vulnerable will get top priority for the free vaccines, everyone can sign up now, though it appears to be for Thai citizens only. Starting today, people can register for vaccination using the Line…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE: 1,891 new infections, 21 deaths
Today’s Covid-19 24 hour infections report features a new high in Covid-related deaths. 21 people have succumbed over the past 24 hour reporting period, according to the Thai Health Ministry. 1,891 new Covid infections have also been reported. Thailand’s total cases has now reached 67,044 since the start of the pandemic in Thailand in January 2020. 1,884 of those are local…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Thai people not given choice which Covid-19 vaccine they receive
It’s free but you don’t get a choice. Thai Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced that people will not be given a choice of which Covid-19 vaccine they receive. Amid widespread criticism of the slow rollout of vaccination in Thailand, the health minister discussed the process of vaccines being approved for distribution within Thailand. Many are concerned about possible side…
Read More » - Thailand Protest News
Activist Penguin transferred to hospital due to hunger strike
On the 46th day of his hunger strike in jail, activist student Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak has been checked into Ramathibodi Hospital to treat his weakening body. He was transferred from Bangkok Remand Prison after signs that his body was having trouble recovering from the food deprivation. After dropping 12.5 kilogrammes from 107 to 94.5 kg due to his hunger strike,…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Deja Vu: Cruise ship in Japan finds Covid-19 infection
In an unfortunate case of life coming full circle, Covid-19 has infected a passenger aboard a cruise ship off the coast of Japan. One infamous early outbreak of what at the time was a new and mysterious virus we hoped wouldn’t manage to spread worldwide was the case of Carnival Cruise Line’s Diamond Princess cruise ship. 3,700 people were quarantined…
Read More » - World News
Covid-19 and the coup may push half of Myanmar into poverty
With the devastating double whammy of a global pandemic and the military coup descending into civil war, the UN fears that nearly half the people of Myanmar could be living in poverty by next year. The United Nations Development Program predicted that up to 25 million Burmese people could suffer below the poverty line by the beginning of 2022. The…
Read More » - Thailand News
Thailand News Today | ‘Soft’ curfews around the country, Phuket restrictions extended | April 30
Several Thai provinces have introduced nightly ‘soft’ curfews as the fight to curb the spread of Covid continues, all expats living in Thailand are eligible to receive the Covid vaccine, Koh Samui says the island is still pinning its hopes on a July 1 re-opening for vaccinated foreign tourists and Phuket’s governor has extended the Covid restrictions and entry measures…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
New Covid-19 infections fall, but critical cases rise
Don’t let the decrease in new daily Coronavirus cases mislead you. The number of critical Covid-19 cases and deaths are on the rise and Thailand is far from over the Coronavirus pandemic. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration put out a notice today reminding people that vigilance is still imperative and that people need to follow safety measures and should…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Thailand’s airlines getting airport fee waivers to help with rehabilitation
Thailand’s airlines are getting airport fee waivers to help with rehabilitation efforts until March 31 of next year. The latest aid is part of a slew of measures to boost the aviation industry after Covid-19 left it in shambles. The Civil Aviation Board is also letting the airlines claim refunds for airport fees previously paid before the new measures were…
Read More » - Thailand News
Patrol at Thai-Myanmar border arrest more than 200 migrants over the past 4 days
More than 200 migrants have been caught illegally crossing the Myanmar border into Kanchanaburi over the past 4 days. Many of the Burmese people detained by border patrol officers say they were coming to Thailand for work and had paid off brokers to set them up with jobs. Due to the influx of migrants crossing the border, provincial authorities called…
Read More » - Pattaya News
Pickup truck driver swerves into water off Pattaya
The driver of a pickup truck claims that he swerved to avoid an out-of-nowhere motorbike when his vehicle flew off the road and into the ocean of Jomtien, south of Pattaya, last night. Na Jomtien Police received an accident report around 8 pm last night and went to investigate. The blue pickup truck was asea and taking on water when…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Brazil’s Covid death toll rivalling US
Brazil’s Covid-19 death toll is now rivalling the US as it became the second country to see over 400,000 deaths since the pandemic began. Experts are saying that number is expected to keep surging as the vaccine roll out has been slow to take off, as well as restrictions loosening in recent days. They also warn that loosening Covid measures…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Thailand seeks rights to produce Favipiravir antiviral drug
With thousands of people in Thailand being treated for Covid-19 and hundreds in critical condition, the Thai government is now seeking the rights to produce the Japanese-made antiviral drug Favipiravir. In Thailand, the drug has been used to treat those infected with Covid-19, typically those with serious conditions. A very, small portion of Thailand’s population has been fully vaccinated against…
Read More » - Thailand News
Popular Thai comedian Kom Chauncheun dies of Covid-19
Covid-19 claimed the life of Kom Chauncheun, a popular Thai comedian, who died this morning after an 18-day hospital stay. The comedian tested positive for the Coronavirus 18 days ago and checked into the hospital immediately after. He had been treated at a private hospital but transferred to Ramathibodhi Hospital, a government-run facility as his condition worsened. On Thursday Kom…
Read More » - Covid-19 News
Concerns raised over Thai PM’s new Covid powers
Concerns are being raised over Thailand’s PM being handed sweeping Covid powers which could promote an increase in real or perceived “authoritarianism”. Critics say he could assert even more control under the guise of handling the pandemic. The newly appointed powers were published in the official Royal Gazette, which detailed 31 laws now being under direct control of PM Prayut…
Read More » - Politics News
Criminal Court rejects Ratsadon protesters’ bail again
Thailand’s Criminal Court is rejecting the Ratsadon protesters’ bail again, referring to the same reasons made in previous rejections by the court. Earlier yesterday, supporters of the jailed protesters gathered outside the court, handing a letter demanding the release of the 7 prisoners. Panupong Jadnok, Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak, Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, Chaiamorn Wibulkaew, Arnon Nampa, Chukiat Saengwong and Parinya Cheewinkulpahtom have…
Read More » - Politics News
Draft law on NGOs still cause for concern for activism groups
Tension continues to build over Thailand’s proposed draft law that broadly defines and strictly regulates NGOs that government officials tout as bringing transparency, but critics say stifle activism and freedom. The Draft Act on the Operations of Not-For-Profit Organisations would broadly define what constitutes an NGO and require many activism organisations and groups that may speak out in opposition to…
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