- Thailand News
400 new drinking fountains to be restored to Bangkok streets
Four hundred new pedestal drinking fountains will be reinstalled on Bangkok’s pavements. In December last year, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration assigned the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority to demolish 400 public drinking fountains from the city’s paths, that were first introduced in 1999, because they were old, creaky, and lacked maintenance. Metropolitan pedestrians complained to the authorities that they were unable to use…
- Visa Information
More than 100 foreigners in Phuket swindled by visa agency
More than 100 foreigners in Phuket enlisted the help of a non-profit organization and a class action lawyer after they were swindled out of thousands of baht by visa agents. Asia Titan Group ATG, and Phuket Siam Corporation Service, are 2 of the visa agencies named by foreigners who were lured into handing over cash for a visa extension. The…
- Bangkok News
UPDATE: Former Special Branch Officer names police involved in illegal casino operation
UPDATE An ex-Special Branch Bureau officer has revealed the names of police involved in the operation of an illegal casino in Bangkok that was raided last Friday and denies he had any part of it. Former Pol Lt Col Santana Prayoonrat was discharged from the police service 20 years ago after obstructing officers from making arrests in regards to an…
- Crime News
Taxi driver faces prison after allegedly attacking policeman while drunk
A taxi driver faces prison after allegedly attacking a policeman while under the influence of alcohol and fleeing the scene. The taxi driver, Charoensak Boonchuay, was spotted driving erratically by a police officer, Pongpan Ponchai, on his way home from work yesterday. Pongpan followed Charoensak until he parked his green and yellow cab in front of Huachiew Chalermprakiet University near…
- Central Thailand News
Thai netizens berate government for wasting public cash on working holidays
Thai netizens have slammed government officials in the central province of Pathum Thani for wasting taxes on a pointless trip to Phang Nga and Phuket. Government officials from the Mueng Tha Khlong District were supposed to be taking part in a working seminar to develop women’s potential in Phang Nga, and Phuket, from June 23 – 26. But the non-profit…
- Pattaya News
Foreign sex pest caught assaulting Thai beauty contestant
A drunken foreign man was caught sexually assaulting a female contestant at the recent Miss Universe Thailand beauty contest. The sex pest was captured harassing the woman at the parade, part of the Pattaya International Pride Festival 2022, last Sunday on a Facebook Live stream. Kasama “Tangkwa” Sue-tong, who was the third runner-up in the contest, told the Miss Universe…
- Bangkok News
3 Thai political activists tried to commit suicide in prison
Bangkok Remand Prison yesterday reported that 3 Thai political activists, jailed according to the lèse majesté laws, tried to commit suicide in prison due to stress. Two male prisoners slashed their wrists with a piece of metal while a third prisoner tried to overdose on 60 paracetamol tablets. Thai human rights lawyer, Arnon Nampa, yesterday announced the news on his…
- Tourism News
Fake voucher victims demand action against Pattaya travel agent
Angry victims lured into buying fake vouchers worth millions of baht are demanding immediate police action against a Chon Buri-based travel company after six months of procrastination. Sixty victims yesterday submitted a letter to the Central Investigation Bureau commissioner asking him to follow up on their complaints about being conned into buying fake vouchers from the Colour Ocean Group. A…
- Crime News
School director fired after allegedly covering up rape of 11 year old girl
An investigation has been launched to discover why the female director of a school in the central province of Kanchanaburi allegedly asked an 11 year old schoolgirl to keep quiet over her rape ordeal. The 11 year old girl was raped by a 12 year old boy in the classroom at a school in the Wichian Buri district on Tuesday,…
- Bangkok News
4.3 million baht seized in police raid on illegal casino
A police raid that seized 4.3 million baht from an illegal underground gambling den has sparked a bizarre war of words between the authorities and a nongovernmental organisation. More than 4.3 million baht was seized after police raided an illegal casino hidden on the underground floor of the Ayothaya Tower on Ratchadapisak Soi 18 in Huay Kwang district of Bangkok.…
- Phuket News
Phuket’s Central Patong shopping mall plans reopening and recruitment drive
Central Patong shopping mall in Phuket is launching a large-scale recruitment drive on the back of plans to reopen after a year of closure due to the pandemic. Central Department Store, the managers of the shopping centre, informed stores in the Central Patong shopping mall of the temporary closure on February 1 last year. But on Saturday, the Thai department…
- Thailand News
Pop star demands to know why her pet dog died on Thai flight
Thai pop star Prompwilai “Mimi” Leesiriroj has demanded an explanation from Thai Airways, and China Eastern, as to why her pet dog, Melody, died while travelling on a flight from Thailand to China on Friday. The 22 year old singer, also known as Mimi Lee, found stardom in China after she won a reality TV show called Produce 101 China,…
- Bangkok News
Bangkok approves 7 places to protest under Public Assembly Act
Bangkok has announced 7 public places where people can protest under the Public Assembly Act but stipulated that protestors must inform the relevant authorities before using the venues. Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt today signed a law declaration to approve the 7 public places in Bangkok. According to the statement, clarifying the specific places in Bangkok would help the city avoid…
- Northern Thailand News
60% of new HIV cases in a northern Thai province are from high school students
Healthcare workers from the northern province of Phitsanulok claim they discover 2 HIV cases every hour, and that 60% of HIV cases in that area are found in high school students. The statement was made yesterday at a healthcare meeting to discuss the silent danger of HIV at the Crystal Conference Room of The Park Hotel, Phitsanulok. The conference was…
- Bangkok News
Passengers still required to wear face masks on BTS Skytrain
Bangkok’s BTS Skytrain operator today insisted that all passengers still have to wear a face mask on their trains and around the platform area despite an announcement on the Royal Gazette platform that face mask wearing is now voluntary in Thailand. The Royal Gazette last night surprised people in Thailand with the official announcement that wearing masks is voluntary in…
- Tourism News
Pattaya bans local vendors from Na Jomtien Beach
Local authorities have banned vendors from operating on Na Jomtien Beach after they colonized a new stretch of the seaside resort in Pattaya to sell their products. The authorities issued the directive following a conflict over the public spaces on the popular beach between local sellers in Pattaya and visitors. In April, authorities added more sand to the seaside spot…
- Bangkok News
Bangkok’s Bon Kai community fire victims provided free accommodation for a month
The National Housing Authority has offered temporary accommodation for victims of a fire at Bon Kai Community in Bangkok. The authority says residents can stay free for a month and then pay 999 baht per month after that. The fire broke out on Tuesday at the Bon Kai Community on Rama 4 Road in the Pathumwan district of Bangkok. Fortunately,…
- Thailand News
Thailand expects economy to grow 3% next year
The Office of the National Economic and Social Development Council expects the Thai economy to grow by 3% next year, even if there is more tension between Ukraine and Russia. The council’s permanent secretary, Danucha Pitchayanan, says by coordinating with every country Thailand can grow despite the current choppy economical waters the world has to navigate. The 51 year old…
- Bangkok News
Motorbike rider dies in crash after argument with another rider
A motorbike rider crashed into an electric pole on a sidewalk and died after arguing with another rider on a road in Bangkok. Piyapong Suwarot got into an argument with a teenage motorbike rider, who accused the older man of cutting him off, on Pracha Uthit Road in the Tung Kru district of Bangkok. As a consequence, the 47 year…
- Bangkok News
Prison doctor allegedly threatened to shoot his female patient
A prison doctor allegedly threatened to shoot his female patient because he does not believe in her political beliefs. Political activist, Natchanit “Baipor” Duangmusit, was jailed on May 3 after being charged on April 28 with defamation of the Thai royal family under Section 112 of the nation’s criminal code, also known as lèse majesté laws. Baipor, and another female…
- Thailand News
Thais face death penalty if they take cannabis-related products into Indonesia
The Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, cautioned Thai people against taking cannabis and hemp into Indonesia as they could face the death penalty. The official Facebook page of the Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta today uploaded a picture with a message saying, “The Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta would like to warn Thai people not to carry cannabis, hemp,…
- Northern Thailand News
Former Thai public servant allegedly swindles 30.6 million baht from government
A former Ministry of Defence finance officer, with an online gambling addiction, has allegedly swindled 30.6 million baht from the Buntharik District Administration in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani and is on the run from the police. The Mayor of the Buntharik District Administration, Worrapoj Bootnart, yesterday informed the media that the district office last year hired a financial…
- Bangkok News
Bangkok’s plan to become the Venice of the East… again
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt yesterday met with the Federation of Thai Industries president to plan a grand project to turn the Hua Lamphong Canal into an example of the Venice of the East, an oft-mentioned nickname for Bangkok in the past. The 56 year old Chadchart met with Kriengkrai Thiennukul to discuss a solution to improving the city’s water quality,…
- Thailand News
Energy Ministry encourages consumers to use charcoal stoves to combat gas hike
The Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency has a solution to solve the recent gas hike: use a charcoal stove if cooking gas is too expensive. The department’s official Facebook page yesterday uploaded a picture of a stove, with a caption saying ‘a charcoal stove is durable, helps save money, uses less charcoal, and offers a lot of heat.”…
- Thailand News
Thailand offers 5-year income tax exemption for foreign actors
The cabinet approved a 5-year personal income tax exemption for foreign film stars who earn income from foreign movies shot in Thailand. The government revealed they wanted to attract more film crews and expected the movie industry to generate about 17.5 billion baht over those 5 years. The PM’s Deputy Spokesperson, Ratchada Thanadirek, says that the government wants to encourage…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s private bus sector threatens to axe services by 80%
Thailand’s private bus companies have threatened to axe services by up to 80% if the government does not allow them to raise fare prices in line with rising fuel costs. Twenty-seven of the nation’s private coach enterprises promised they will run a skeleton service of only 20% from July 1 unless the government allowed them to raise fares by 0.59…
- Crime News
Jealous policeman murders wife and daughter before committing suicide
A police lieutenant driven by a jealous rage murdered his wife and teenage daughter before committing suicide. Officers from Tung Kru Police Station were called to a resident’s home, in Soi Pracha Uthit 54 in Bangkok, yesterday morning and found the body of 57 year old Pongsakorn Thawekaew and his 39 year old wife, Benjawan Wuttisarn, in one bedroom, and…
- Bangkok News
New passenger terminal and driverless trains at Suvarnabhumi will be ready next year
The Airport of Thailand announced that the new passenger terminal at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok will be ready for use by April 2023. The Automated People Mover train, which will be the nation’s first driverless electric train used in Thai airports, will be available for passengers to travel between each terminal at the same time too. The President of the…
- Bangkok News
BMTA bus driver uses umbrella to keep rain out of his cab
A bus driver has embarrassed his bosses at Bangkok Mass Transit Authority by driving his vehicle while holding an umbrella over his head to keep the rain off. The bus driver uploaded the picture of himself on Facebook to show his bosses the old bus he drives desperately requires some much-needed maintenance. Unsurprisingly the post went viral. The picture was…
- Thailand News
Thai government to launch info about privacy laws to help small business
The government is to launch 8 law declarations before the end of the month regarding the Personal Data Protection Act, especially aimed at helping small and medium size enterprises. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha assigned the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, and relevant departments, to help the nation’s SMEs understand the PDPA because it’s new to Thailand. The PDPA was officially…