Legacy Phuket Gazette
- Phuket News
Phuket hit-and-run kills one
PHUKET: Police are trying to track down a pick-up truck driver involved in a hit-and-run accident that left one man dead and another injured in northern Phuket last night. Police and Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers rushed to the scene, near Phuket International Airport, at about 8:30pm and found 31-year-old Soonthorn Payabal dead on the ground next to a motorbike. “Sarawut…
- Phuket News
Down at the dojo: Phuket martial arts club finds a new home
PHUKET: The Phuket Martial Arts & Buerki Judo Club group has found a new home at the FunStart Family Sports and Leisure Club, and is calling on the island’s youngsters to put down the video games and pick up the powerful martial arts of judo, jujitsu, aikido and aikijitsu. The judo club has been established on the island for years,…
- Phuket News
Phuket police hunt for suspects in drive-by motorbike shooting
PHUKET: Police are searching for two male suspects involved in a drive-by motorbike shooting that left one Phuket construction worker dead late Wednesday night. Vuthisak Pungsombut, 19, was driving a motorbike with his coworker Pongsak Sukjam, 44, riding pillion, back to the workers’ camp where they live after watching a football match at a nearby shop in Srisoonthorn, Lt Col…
- Food
Discovering familiar flavors in new ways in Phuket
PHUKET: We all feel adventurous sometimes, eager to try new things, explore the terra incognita. Yet, there are times, when all we crave is the well known, the familiar, the home-cooked. La Gritta’s new “Discovery Menu” is the right choice, no matter what your mood is. Scanning through La Gritta’s new Discovery Menu is more relaxing than exciting. It’s all…
- Opinion
Opinion: Future cloudy for 2015 AEC
Robert Virasin, a licenced US attorney, has served as a legal manager of Siam Legal International since June 2014. Prior to joining the firm, he received his Masters of Law in International Business from Chulalongkorn University, a bachelor’s degree from University of California and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Houston Law Center. Here, Mr Virasin discusses the future…
- Thailand News
B420mn fund to help shore up rubber prices
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community B420mn fund to help shore up rubber prices The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The government and private rubber-business operators will jointly launch a 420-million-baht fund, with the aim of tackling the tumbling price of rubber. Pongsak Kerdvongbundit, honorary president of Thai Rubber Association, said private…
- Thailand News
Police corruption scandal: Brother claims Pattani fugitive abducted
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police corruption scandal: Brother claims Pattani fugitive abducted The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The brother of a Pattani-based businessman who is missing after facing allegations of running a contraband-petrol trade in the South met Bangkok police yesterday to defend his sibling, saying he was framed…
- Thailand News
Koh Tao murder suspects appeal to Suu Kyi
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Koh Tao murder suspects appeal to Suu Kyi The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Two Myanmar men charged with murdering two British tourists in Thailand have written to Nobel Peace laureate and Myanmar opposition leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi pleading for help, protesting their innocence and…
- Thailand News
Hitler ends up on cutting room floor
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hitler ends up on cutting room floor The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A controversial scene in a short film produced by the Prime Minister’s Office, featuring an image of Nazi Germany’s former dictator Adolf Hitler, has been removed following an uproar. PM’s Office Minister Panadda…
- World News
Hong Kong protesters defiant as officials clear main protest site
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hong Kong protesters defiant as officials clear main protest site Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Hong Kong police arrested pro-democracy activists and cleared most of the main protest site on Thursday, marking an end to more than two months of street demonstrations in the Chinese-controlled city,…
- Phuket News
Laguna Phuket launches initiative to help struggling beach vendors
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket has announced the launch of a beach vendor support center to assist those who lost their jobs as a result of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) beach cleanup campaign earlier this year. The “Local Vendors Support Center” will comprise shops from which vendors and other service providers, including masseuse and tour-desk operators, can continue…
- Phuket News
Uber gains legal traction in Phuket
PHUKET: The Department of Land Transportation (DLT) came to terms with Uber this week, making it clear that the taxi-booking firm was legal, but that any promotion of illegal taxi drivers in Phuket or elsewhere in Thailand was banned. “We are not banning the use of the Uber application, but we are banning the use of black-plate vehicles, because they…
- Thai Life
Titans line up for Phuket’s Asia Superyacht Rendezvous
PHUKET: The impressive 72m luxury cruiser MY Titania has announced it will be joining the 14th Asia Superyacht Rendezvous, which begins tomorrow off Phuket’s Kata Beach. Launched in 2006 by Lürssen Yachts, the Titania will join other greats at the three-day event, including MY Moonsand, which was fully completed in 2004 and was the flagship of the Royal New Zealand…
- Opinion
Opinion: No more umbrellas, no more Phuket
PHUKET: My family, together with two other families, have travelled together to enjoy our holidays in Phuket, and Karon Beach in particular, every Swedish winter for the past 13 years. But now it’s over. We are able to see Karon Beach from a web camera that broadcasts video online from a resort beside the beach – and because there are…
- Business News
Phuket Finance: Russian ruble does the slide
PHUKET: I have been asked a lot recently about the dramatic moves in the Russian currency, the ruble. What effect will it have on tourism to Phuket? What effect will it have on the real estate market? The obvious thing that is certain is that if the Russian currency remains weak Phuket will be more expensive for Russians who are…
- Thai Life
Excuse Busters: How cheating can be good
PHUKET: The perfect diet is the diet which gets you results and suits your personality and lifestyle. I want you to know that you can cheat during a diet and still see the results you want. How strict do you really need to be to get great results? This, in my opinion, is one of the most important questions you…
- Thai Life
History: Nakhon Sri Thammarat – The short-lived kingdom of the South
PHUKET: Nakhon Sri Thammarat was a powerful city in the south of Siam during the 18th century. Foreigners often called the city “Ligor”. The ancient city spread its influence over many of the smaller towns in the region. Although powerful, Nakhon Sri Thammarat was never truly independent. The city’s governor answered to the King of Ayutthaya. In the year 1765,…
- Opinion
Opinion: Make transparency in ‘martial law raid’ Phuket’s blanket of safety
PHUKET: The recent joint police and military raid on the home of a prominent resident of Srisoonthorn has resulted in an order from Phuket’s governor for an investigation into why such heavy-handed tactics were required in what is ostensibly a case of alleged check fraud. While the December 3 raid failed in its goal to bring Mr Padungsak Songyot into…
- Phuket News
Phuket truck slams into Patong Hill power pole after brakes fail
PHUKET: A six-wheeled truck loaded with cinder blocks slammed into a Phuket power pole on Patong Hill after the vehicle’s brakes failed this morning. Police arrived at the scene at about 10am. No one was injured in the accident, police officers told the Phuket Gazette. The driver told police that he was delivering the cinder blocks from Phuket Ka Cement…
- Phuket News
Bus ban ignored: Phuket tour bus plunges down Patong Hill
PHUKET: A Phuket tour bus carrying Chinese tourists plunged down Patong Hill yesterday afternoon, obliterating a police box before crashing into a temple wall. The driver Pirom Joppromraj, 49, told police that the brakes failed as he descended the steep slope into Patong at about 5:15pm – during big vehicle restricted hours. A Patong Hill bus ban was put in…
- Opinion
Opinion: Time to forge a new future for Phuket
Bhuritt Maswongssa is the vice president of Marketing at the Phuket Tourist Association (PTA). Originally from Yala, he moved to Phuket in 1985. Vice chairman of the Patong Resort Hotel; a law graduate from both Ngee Ann College in Singapore and Ramkhamhaeng University in Thailand; and a master’s graduate in business from Phuket Rajabhat University; Mr Bhuritt is a force…
- Phuket News
Video Report: Phuket’s HomeWorks re-opens amid promises of safe shelves
PHUKET: HomeWorks, the busy home-improvement store on Phuket’s bypass road, re-opened to shoppers today amid promises that the shelves had been inspected and were safe to use. A shelf collapse at the store on Sunday resulted in a family of three, including an 11-year-old girl, being rushed to hospital with injuries after they were pummeled by falling paint buckets (story…
- Phuket News
Phuket Cricket: Laguna notch up win in season opener
PHUKET: Laguna opened their account in the new Phuket Cricket Group (PCG) senior league by outfoxing Thalang in the opening match of the season, played at the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) last Sunday. As is tradition, the first match of the season was between last season’s finalists. Laguna, who had a disappointing T20 season, were looking to make amends after…
- Cannabis News
Phuket dope peddler nabbed in Patong sewing shop sting
PHUKET: Police arrested a 54-year-old man in Phuket yesterday for possession of 1.5 kilograms of kratom*, which he sold through his sewing shop on Nanai Road. Undercover officers entered the no-name shop in Patong at about 5:30pm and asked Prasert Chookong if he had any kratom for sale. Mr Prasert obliged, and was promptly arrested. “We bought 20 fresh kratom…
- World News
CIA tortured, misled, US report finds, drawing calls for action
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community CIA tortured, misled, US report finds, drawing calls for action Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The CIA misled the White House and public about its torture of detainees after the Sept. 11 attacks and acted more brutally and pervasively than it acknowledged, a U.S. Senate report…
- Thailand News
NRC pushing PM direct-election plan
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community NRC pushing PM direct-election plan The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Despite concern and opposition, the National Reform Council (NRC) panel on political reform insisted again yesterday that a direct election of the prime minister would help reduce vote-buying. It added, however, that a winner in…
- Thailand News
Koh Tao murder trial date brought forward by 2 months
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Koh Tao murder trial date brought forward by 2 months The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The hearing of witnesses in the murder case of two British tourists on Surat Thani’s Koh Tao has been moved from February 25 to December 26, 2014, after the Myanmar…
- Thailand News
Red-shirt Arisman loses appeal, gets a year in jail
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Red-shirt Arisman loses appeal, gets a year in jail The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Court of Appeals yesterday upheld a lower court’s ruling and sentenced red-shirt leader Arisman Pongruangrong to one year in prison after finding him guilty of defaming former prime minister Abhisit…
- Thailand News
NACC expects ‘milestone year’ in fight against graft
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community NACC expects ‘milestone year’ in fight against graft The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) chairman Panthep Klanarongran yesterday stressed that every Thai citizen’s determination and cooperation were essential in fighting graft and creating a corruption-free society. Such community action is necessary for…
- Thailand News
Police corruption scandal: Amlo agrees to freeze 104 plots held by Pongpat
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police corruption scandal: Amlo agrees to freeze 104 plots held by Pongpat The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Anti-Money Laundering Office yesterday agreed to freeze 104 plots of land worth about 400 million baht jointly held by former crime-buster Pol Lt Gen Pongpat Chayaphan on…
