- Phuket News
Phuket to observe two-day alcohol ban
PHUKET: The sale of alcohol will be prohibited nationwide on Thursday and Friday in honor of Buddhist holiday Asarnha Bucha and the beginning of Buddhist Lent. The ban will begin at midnight on Thursday and will last until midnight on Saturday, Capt Prudsatorn Yoothon of the Phuket Tourist Police told Phuket Gazette this morning. “We have been doing our rounds…
- Phuket News
Chinese tour bus flips on bypass road
PHUKET: A tour bus carrying Chinese tourists flipped over and crashed onto its side on the bypass road, opposite Premium Outlet Phuket, at about noon today. The bus, which was carrying 17 tourists and two tour guides, was heading northbound when the accident occurred. The crash trapped one Chinese tour guide and one tourist inside the bus, but rescue workers…
- Phuket News
Alleged love triangle leads man to slash cousin’s neck
PHUKET: Police have yet to press charges against two cousins who got into a fight last night in Nai Yang, leaving one with a slashed neck and the other with a bruised face. Police first learned of the incident when Halem Dami, 26, ran up to an area police box looking for help. “At about 8pm last night, Halem Dami,…
- Phuket News
SIM card registration deadline swiftly approaching
PHUKET: Prepaid SIM card users have six days left to register their cards or else be blocked from accessing data services and placing calls. “All users who have yet to register their SIM cards must do so before July 31. If you do not, you will be blocked from making any calls, other than those to emergency numbers,” says Wanna…
- Property
The Deck condo zooms ahead
PHUKET: Major property developer Sansiri Plc’s new condominium, The Deck, is attracting interest from both Thai and international buyers. The draw is likely a result of the condo’s prime location in the heart of Patong and the fact that construction is now 100 per cent complete, with just the final stages of architectural and interior work left to be done.…
- Phuket News
Alcohol relief: National ban details cleared up for businesses
PHUKET: A collective sigh of relief could be heard from Phuket officials as clarification of a national alcohol-sales ban officially arrived this week. The ban, passed by the Cabinet and signed into law by Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, forbids the sale of alcohol within 300 meters of an ‘educational institution’. However, what qualifies as an educational institution was originally…
- Business News
Business Buzz: Social media automation brings success on a platter
PHUKET: Is your business taking advantage of social media automation? These days, it is easy to get overwhelmed by the number of different applications and platforms that we can choose from on social media. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest, YouTube and Instagram are some of the most commonly known sites, but have you heard of SnapChat, Reddit, Quick-R, Flickr, Picasa,…
- Business News
Finance: Providing the best in the business
PHUKET: Following on from my article about the Millennium fund, I am writing this week about some Wall Street legendary fund managers that you can now access with relatively small allocation in a portfolio. Belmont has made its main business out of selecting the absolutely best managers in the world and offering access to them at reduced minimums. While the…
- Opinion
Opinion: War on drink
PHUKET: Enforcement of Thailand’s Alcohol Beverage Control Act has been inconsistent since it was passed in 2008. Restricting it further will penalize those who play by the rules, while heaping more reward on those who do not. Some of the more rational aspects of the act, such as banning the sale of alcohol at roadside service stations, have been fairly…
- Phuket News
Governor leads Big Cleaning Day event
PHUKET: Governor Nisit Jansomwong led about 300 people in a ‘Big Cleaning Day’ event along Thepkrasattri Road on Thursday morning in honor of HM Queen Sirikit’s 83rd birthday on August 12. Participants picked up trash along 2 kilometers of Thepkrasattri Road heading southbound toward Big C Thepkrasattri branch. “These sorts of activities are a way to inform people on the…
- Thai Life
Keep It Green: Cup of gold trumps angel’s trumpet
PHUKET: One of my all-time favorites is the datura, now fashionably known as the brugmansia. Its common moniker is angel’s trumpet, but in Thailand it’s known as lam pong. Although very tempting to do so, it is not going on the ‘top twenty’ list for one simple reason – it does not relish the climate in Phuket. On the slopes…
- Phuket News
PM Prayut pauses hotly-debated Krabi power plant project
PHUKET: Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the hotly-debated coal-fired power plant project in Krabi to be put on hold until a joint committee can ensure that all steps of the pre-construction process have been legally carried out. The prime minister’s order ended a 14-day protest yesterday in Bangkok. About 100 Krabi residents and environmental activists had gathered to…
- Phuket News
Phuket windshield smasher may have been ‘lovelorn’
PHUKET: Police believe a man’s unrequited affection for a woman may have led him to break the windshield of her car in Phuket last night. Matira Nantimaruj, 32, told Thalang Police that she discovered the damage to her Toyota Yaris when she went downstairs from her third floor apartment to investigate a loud noise. “Upon receiving the call at about…
- Phuket News
Media, PR pros hammer out new strategies
PHUKET: The Thai Public Relations Department (PRD) called media from the southern provinces to a seminar in Krabi last week in an effort to strategize ways to keep pace with international media and help foreigners understand the goings-on in Thailand. “We held the meeting so we could exchange thoughts and make sure local media and public relations professionals are on…
- Phuket News
Officials investigate rank pig farms in Chalong
PHUKET: Phuket Vice Governor Suthee Thongyam inspected a group of pig farms in Chalong yesterday after villagers had filed a complaint about foul smells and the pollution of a local canal. “About 100 locals filed a complaint with me about the farms, so I took the case to the Damrongtham Center,” said Kokchai Sae-iew, Moo 9 village headman. “There are…
- World News
Japanese company to compensate for wartime forced labor – Kyodo
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Japanese company to compensate for wartime forced labor – Kyodo Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Japanese construction company Mitsubishi Materials Corp plans to apologize and pay compensation to Chinese people over its use of forced labor during World War Two, Japan’s Kyodo News agency reported. The…
- World News
Nigeria marks polio-free year, raising global eradication hopes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Nigeria marks polio-free year, raising global eradication hopes Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Nigeria marked its first year without a single case of polio on Friday, reaching a milestonemany experts had thought would elude it as internal conflict hampered the battle against the crippling disease. It means the…
- Phuket News
Section of Kathu-Koh Kaew shortcut road closed
PHUKET: Access to Soi Koh Kaew 33 from Thepkrasattri Road, behind the Isuzu showroom in Koh Kaew, has been closed off as repairs are made to a roadside retaining wall. Construction is expected to be complete within 60 days. “During construction the road will be closed. There will only be one lane for exiting to Thepkrasattri Road. We can not…
- World News
China’s carbon exchanges bend the rules to meet compliance targets
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community China’s carbon exchanges bend the rules to meet compliance targets Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: The vast majority of firms covered by China’s pilot carbon emission exchanges met theirtargets this year, but success was achieved largely by flexible regulations and a supply glut that kept permits…
- Thailand News
Defence gets access to evidence for DNA tests in Thailand backpackers murder trial – lawyer
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Defence gets access to evidence for DNA tests in Thailand backpackers murder trial -lawyer Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: A Thai court has given defense lawyers access to evidence for DNA testing in the trial of twoMyanmar workers accused of murdering two British tourists in Thailand,…
- World News
Australian nurse who aided ISIS heading home, could face arrest
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Australian nurse who aided ISIS heading home, could face arrest Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: An Australian male nurse alleged to have given medical assistance to Islamic State militants fighting in Syria could face arrest for violating tough new security laws when he lands in Sydney…
- Thailand News
Thailand indicts 72 human trafficking suspects ahead of U.S. report
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Thailand indicts 72 human trafficking suspects ahead of U.S. report Phuket Gazette / Reuters PHUKET: Bangkok on Friday indicted 72 people suspected of involvement in human trafficking, just days before the United States issues its latest assessment of the country’s anti-trafficking efforts next week. Bangkok launched…
- World News
GLOBAL MARKETS: Asian shares catch gloomy mood from Wall Street
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community GLOBAL MARKETS: Asian shares catch gloomy mood from Wall Street Phuket Gazette / Reuters Phuket: Asian shares edged down in early trading today, on track for a weekly loss, while U.S. jobs data underpinned the dollar as it bolstered bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve is…
- Phuket News
Twelve hurt after truck flips in Thalang
PHUKET: A dozen people were injured today when a pick-up truck hauling migrant workers and a trailer with a backhoe flipped in northern Phuket. “At the scene we found a pick-up truck flipped over on the side of the road. Nearby, there was a trailer and a backhoe also flipped,” said Lt Kraisorn Boonprasob of Thalang Police. “There were 12…
- Phuket News
Pink chicks outrage animal activist on Koh Lanta
PHUKET: A group of brightly colored baby chickens tied up in a plastic bag has outraged foreigners visiting Koh Lanta, south of Phuket. Tourist Gina Jones, 33, and her husband were strolling down a beach on Koh Lanta when the bright colored fowl being sold as kids toys caught their attention, reported The Daily Mail on Monday. The pair then…
- Phuket News
Phuket Governor promotes production of local fruit
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Nisit Jamsomwong signed an agreement on Monday to boost production of the local jungle fruit ‘som kwai‘ (garcinia atroviridis). During a meeting on Knowledge-Based One Tambon One Product (KBO), which is aimed at integrating relevant sectors to boost the value of its products, Governor Nisit noted that som kwai have excellent nutritional and medicinal properties. “This agreement…
- Phuket News
Underpass contracts to be inked on Monday
PHUKET: Contracts for the construction of two new underpasses, one at Chalong Circle and the other at Bang Ku Intersection, are set to be signed on Monday. After the contracts are signed, work is likely to start on Tuesday, Samak Luedwonghad, director of the Phuket Highways Office, told the Phuket Gazette yesterday. “The revised budget for the Bang Ku underpass…
- Phuket News
Rassada Municipality ordered to remedy damaged homes
PHUKET: Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkhaosuttirak ordered Rassada Municipality to repair damaged property or pay compensation within 60 days to villagers whose homes were damaged during a Rassada Municipality drainage ditch construction project in 2013. Vice Governor Somkiet led officials to inspect the homes on Tuesday after homeowners filed a complaint to Governor Nisit Jansomwong that officials had failed to…
- Phuket News
Video Report: Distraught mum demands justice for dead daughter
PHUKET: The distraught mother of a 7-year-old girl who was killed after their pick-up truck crashed into a Phuket sinkhole continues to demand justice, as well as 10 million baht in compensation for the tragic accident last year. Nitikarn Rotrattanachai, who previously went by the name of Phakamon Duangchayatemcharat, arrived at the Thalang Police Station yesterday afternoon to follow up…
- Phuket News
Prison drug network cracked through Krabi, Trang busts
PHUKET: Krabi Police tapped in to a big-time prison drug network this week with the arrest of three major dealers in possession of 180,000 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills and more than 7 kilograms of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine), with a street value of about 40 million baht. The string of arrests began on July 17 when 39-year-old Chawalit Limpanit was…
