- Events
Major police presence expected at rally
Authorities yesterday announced that 4 companies of Bangkok police will be deployed to maintain peace and order at the major pro-democracy rally planned for this afternoon at Democracy Monument. The Metropolitan Police Bureau has arranged for 4 companies, 600 officers in total, to be present at the venue. Traffic police will also be dispatched to facilitate movement in the area.…
- Tourism News
Struggling Samui seeks government help
Desperate for tourism revenue during the ongoing travel ban and with not more than a dribble of domestic visitors, the president of the Tourism Association of Koh Samui says he needs to meet with the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration to come up with guidelines to allow foreign tourists to visit Samui. And soon. Worasit Phong-amphan says Samui saw 2.3…
- South Thailand News
Toddler, locked in hot van, dies after 4 day coma
A 2 year old boy is dead after 4 days in a coma, due to being left in a hot van outside a daycare centre in the southern Nakhon Si Thammarat province. Staff at Maharaj Nakhon Si Thammarat Hospital confirmed the death of Thanakit “Nong Kongbin” Yodmanee yesterday afternoon, saying his organs failed. The boy was taken to hospital on…
- Politics News
“Penguin” released on bail
22 year old anti-government activist Parit Chiwarak, known by his nickname “Penguin”, was released on bail this afternoon around 2:15 in Bangkok. He was arrested yesterday and charged with breaching internal security rules and breaking the Emergency Decree enacted in April to stop the spread of Covid-19, among other charges, by co-organising a protest on July 18. Since that July…
- World News
Joint operation nabs 29 illegal Cambodian migrants in a Kaeo
Officials in the eastern border province of Sa Kaeo, with help from other law enforcement agencies, arrested 29 illegal migrant workers from Cambodia last night in the Ta Prayha subdistrict. Led by the deputy commander of the Burapha Forces, an elite squadron also known as the Tigers of the East, a large team located the group, who were on foot…
- Crime News
Amnesty International demands “Penguin’s” release
The Thailand chapter of Amnesty International is calling on police to immediately release student protest leader Prit “Penguin” Chivarak, after he was arrested yesterday on charges of sedition and inciting public unrest. AI Thailand Director Niyanut Kotesarn said in a statement issued last night that the arrest of the Thammasat University student amounts to suppression of free expression and contravenes…
- Pattaya News
Chon Buri man dies after 25 metre fall
A 63 year old man is dead after he fall through a school gymnasium roof in front of his 3 sons yesterday in Chon Buri’s city district. Ban Bueang Police were notified of the incident, in a gymnasium area at Wat Khao Maipai School, yesterday afternoon. Emergency responders arrived to find the body of 63 year old Wichean Srinuan, on…
- Covid-19 News
New Zealand, Australia struggle with new coronavirus outbreaks
New Zealand reported 7 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 over the previous 24 hours, as a lockdown in the country’s biggest city, Auckland, was extended yesterday in response to the country’s first coronavirus outbreak in months. The new cases bring New Zealand’s total infections since the beginning of the outbreak to 1258; the number of currently active cases stands at…
- South Thailand News
2 year old in ICU after being left in scorching school van
A 2 year old boy remains on life support after he was left alone in a sweltering hot school van outside a childcare centre in southern Thailand. Thanakit “Nong Kongbin’’ Yodmanee is being treated in an ICU at a Hospital in Nakhon Si Thammarat. He was rushed to the hospital earlier in the week after he was found unconscious in…
- South Thailand News
2 bombing suspects dead, 3 soldiers wounded in Pattani shootout
2 suspected insurgents allegedly involved in Thursday’s bombings in Pattani’s Nongjik district, which killed 2 security officers and injured 3 others, were killed in a shootout yesterday in the southern province’s Yaring district. 3 more soldiers were wounded. The clash erupted in Buenaejuerae village in tambon Kolam where a combined team of soldiers, police and local officials were patrolling, according…
- Tourism News
Phuket proposes to welcome tourists by November
PHOTO: Willy Thuan Phuket business owners are pressing forward with a proposal to turn around province’s tourism industry by allowing long-stay tourists to resume visits to the southern resort island as early as November. Under the “4T” model put forward at a meeting of the provincial disease control committee, long-stay visitors have been identified as having the best potential to…
- Politics News
Police pinch “Penguin” ahead of student rally
Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak, the outspoken leader of recent student protests, was arrested yesterday as tensions mount ahead of a major pro-democracy rally planned for tomorrow afternoon in Bangkok. He faces multiple charges, including sedition. The arrest was made as the Thammasat University student prepared to join a pro-democracy event at the campus in Nonthaburi. After a policeman read out the…
- Pattaya News
Pattaya motorcyclist suffers severe injuries in collision
A motorcyclist in North Pattaya sustained serious injuries in a collision with a sedan last night. Emergency responders were notified of the accident, at a North Pattaya intersection on Sukhumvit Road, at 9pm. Police, emergency responders and reporters went to the scene to find the motorbike driver, who had suffered serious injuries, lying on the road. He was not immediately…
- Economy News
UPDATE: SET suspends trading of Thai Airways shares
UPDATE: Trading in Thai Airways shares was suspended by the Stock Exchange of Thailand this afternoon after auditors declined to sign off on its financial statements for the six months to June 30. Auditor Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Jaiyos said it couldn’t reach a conclusion on the statements due to issues including a lack of liquidity and debt defaults, which created…
- Politics News
Chulalongkorn students vow to protest despite last-minute ban
Pro-establishment Chulalongkorn University today abruptly cancelled a planned student protest at its Phra Boron field, citing “security and safety issues”. Nevertheless, student protesters told reporters the protest will go ahead despite the ban. Today’s is the latest in a series of anti-government rallies planned by students for the coming weeks. Student-led protests have swept the country since July, with demonstrators…
- Economy News
Thai Airways loses 28 billion baht in the first half of the year
Embattled, bankrupt Thai Airways suffered about 28 billion baht in losses for the first 6 months of this year, mainly attributable to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has seriously impacted its operations and crushed global travel, grounding fleets and shuttering many airlines altogether. The airline’s acting president said today that the pandemic has led to many countries, including Thailand, closing their…
- Covid-19 News
Covid-19 update: 17 new cases found in quarantine, deaths unchanged at 58 (August 14)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported this morning that 17 new cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in state quarantine over the previous 24 hours. The new patients are all Thai returnees, 15 from India and 1 each from Australia and the United States. The new cases bring Thailand’s total number of cases to 3,376 since the beginning of…
- Covid-19 News
NZ Covid-19 oubreak spread beyond Auckland with 12 new confirmed cases
In a major blow to New Zealand’s efforts to contain Covid-19, health officials there announced today that the resurgent coronavirus outbreak has spread beyond Auckland, its largest city. Health Minister Chris Hipkins said there were 12 confirmed cases of local transmission and 1 probable, following the shock reemergence of the virus in Auckland on Tuesday. He said 2 of the…
- World News
Top virologist says Covid-19 likely to mutate, making current tests useless
A prominent Thai virologist is warning that the Covid-19 coronavirus is mutating and could return in a different, more contagious, or potentially, more dangerous or less dangerous, form. Thiravat Hemachudha, director of the Health Science Centre of Emerging Diseases at Chulalongkorn University, says that Thailand “should begin preparing for possible ‘genetic code alterations’ of the novel coronavirus that causes Covid-19.”…
- Crime News
Doctor urges investigation into widespread healthcare fraud
A doctor representing 74 medical clinics yesterday petitioned the House of Representatives to investigate fraud allegations in patient access to Thailand’s universal health coverage scheme and ensure transparency in its implementation. The move follows an order by the Department of Health Service Support last week to temporarily close 2 Bangkok clinics for allegedly defrauding the scheme. That order came after…
- Crime News
Hit-and-run Bangkok woman confesses, apologises
Wishuda Vittayasinthana, a 37 year old businesswoman, was interrogated at Bangkok’s Bang Sue Police Station yesterday following a major traffic incident on Tuesday night. She told police she went out drinking due to business stress before crashing her Mercedes into a motorcycle at Khae Rai Intersection around 10pm. In a panic, she lost control of the car and rammed into…
- Politics News
PM denies, downplays protesters’ harassment claims
PM Prayut Chan-ocha today downplayed student protestors’ claims that his government was stalking and harassing them. Student activists, Panusaya (Roong) Sithijirawattanakul, spokesperson for the Thailand Student Union and Parit (Penguin) Chiwarak posted this morning that they were about to be arrested by government authorities at 5am, but no arrests were made. “Anyone can post anything online. They said they are…
- Northern Thailand News
Police: No foul play in Vorayuth witness’s death
Police today ruled out the possibility of murder in the death of a key witness in Red Bull drinks heir Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya’s hit-and-run case. The regional police commander in Chiang Mai, where the witness died in a motorcycle incident last month, said new autopsy results found no trace of any suspicious substance apart from alcohol in Jaruchart Mardthong’s body.…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand urged to promote itself as production hub for medical supplies, PPE
Thailand is being encouraged to promote itself as a manufacturing hub for medical and personal protection equipment as part of its financial strategy amid the coronavirus crisis, as industries like tourism and hospitality struggle. The director of the Centre for International Trade Studies at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce told reporters that the latest survey of 200…
- Politics News
Authorities deny stalking student activists, deny arrest imminent
Student activists said today they were stalked by what they believed were plainclothes police officers at their residence overnight. Pro-democracy campaigner Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, who is the spokesperson for the Student Union of Thailand, said on her Facebook that she saw several men loitering around her dormitory near Thammasat University’s Rangsit Campus, while another activist, Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak, reported that several…
- South Thailand News
2 killed, 4 injured in separate bomb attacks in Deep South
2 men are dead and 4 injured after security forces, protecting teachers in the southern border provinces of Pattani and Narathiwat, were attacked in 2 roadside bomb blasts this morning. The attacks come on the first day of the resumption of in-person classes in schools across the nation. The dead have been identified as paramilitary ranger Emlookman Hayilamae, and soldier…
- Covid-19 News
Auckland cluster grows with 13 new Covid-19 infections reported
Health officials in New Zealand announced yesterday that the new coronavirus cluster in Auckland has risen to 17 cases, raising the prospect of an extended lockdown in the country’s biggest city. National health chief Ashley Bloomfield said there are 13 new confirmed infections, all linked to 4 family members found on Tuesday, ending New Zealand’s record of 102 days without…
- Economy News
Study finds 82% of Thais “confident” in reopening tourism sector
As Thailand gradually reopens its borders, new findings from a global study suggests that 82% of Thais are confident that Thailand is well prepared to reopen its tourism and leisure activities, the highest globally. The study also found that tourists from Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, and India are all targeting Thailand as their first destination when their countries’ borders…
- Technology News
Study finds smartphone addiction among Thai children on the rise
A study by the Thai Health organisation shows that Thai children spend an average of more than 35 hours a week on smartphones or the internet. It indicated that children who spend most of their time on smartphones and computers are at risk of developing gaming addiction and even violent behaviour. The director of the Healthy Child, Youth, and Family…
- Politics News
Protesters add more demands as academics defend manifesto
Pro-democracy demonstrators yesterday called on schools and colleges to allow on-campus rallies as pressure grows on them to ban “risky” political activities. The leader of the opposition Move Forward Party posted on Facebook that safe places for students to air their views are dwindling and that youngsters “should be allowed to carry out activities there”. Pita Limjaroenrat’s remark came after…
