Tara Abhasakun

A Thai-American dual citizen, Tara has reported news and spoken on a number of human rights and cultural news issues in Thailand. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in history from The College of Wooster. She interned at Southeast Asia Globe, and has written for a number of outlets. Tara reports on a range of Thailand news issues.
  • Phuket NewsJealous boyfriend who shot girlfriend on the loose in Phang Nga

    Jealous boyfriend who shot girlfriend on the loose in Phang Nga

    Yet another jealous boyfriend has shot his girlfriend in Thailand, this time in the southern province of Phang Nga. The man, 20 year old Chakrabongse, shot both his girlfriend and her friend as they were leaving the restrooms of a PTT petrol station. Police said the two women had just gone to a restaurant, and they had stopped to use…

  • World NewsTerrorists kill at least 20 in Somalia hotel attack

    Terrorists kill at least 20 in Somalia hotel attack

    Terrorists have shot and killed at least 20 people in a hotel in Somalia’s capital city of Mogadishu on Friday, and have wounded at least 50 others. Two security officials were among those injured at the attack at the Hayat Hotel, one of whom was an intelligence chief. The Al Qaeda-affiliated group Al Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack in…

  • Krabi NewsKrabi tour boat captain missing after falling into ocean

    Krabi tour boat captain missing after falling into ocean

    A tour boat captain in Thailand’s southern Krabi province has gone missing after falling into the ocean during a tour on Friday. The captain, 27 year old Apichart Boonrat, had been at the helm of a long tail boat between Yaman Island and Rok Island when he fell in, according to marine police. There had also been 14 tourists and…

  • Bangkok NewsEscalator accident at Bangkok train station leaves 27 injured

    Escalator accident at Bangkok train station leaves 27 injured

    Twenty-seven people were injured last night after a group of teenagers fell down an escalator at a Bangkok train station. Rescuers from Ruam Katanyu Foundation said earlier that the escalator at BTS Surasak station malfunctioned. But police say the accident was caused by someone slipping and falling down the stairs. BTS has now released a statement saying that an initial…

  • Phuket NewsFood fair coming up in Phuket

    Food fair coming up in Phuket

    The town of Kathu in Phuket is hosting a healthy food fair later this month. The seventh annual food fair and healthy market will take place from August 25-27. The fair will include a cooking competition, a music competition from students, family running, and live music. There will also be free massages, free cat and dog sterilizations, free haircuts, and…

  • Thailand Weather UpdatesHeavy rain expected for next few days in 40 Thai provinces

    Heavy rain expected for next few days in 40 Thai provinces

    If you live in Thailand and you’re not already packing an umbrella with you every time you leave the house, now might be a good time to start. The country’s meteorological department said today that it expects heavy to very heavy rain to pour down on 40 of Thailand’s provinces until Monday (August 22). The rains will likely hit these…

  • Pattaya NewsPattaya Police Station deemed “satisfactory” in annual evaluation

    Pattaya Police Station deemed “satisfactory” in annual evaluation

    Pattaya Police have received a high enough score to be deemed “satisfactory” in the Royal Thai Police’s annual assessment this week. The Pattaya Police Station scored 90% on the evaluation. The evaluation assessed police on: general service, criminal justice administration, security of lives and property, traffic control and management, personal management and development, and police drilling and tactics. The evaluation…

  • World NewsISIS member involved in plot that killed Americans gets sentenced for life

    ISIS member involved in plot that killed Americans gets sentenced for life

    Justice was served yesterday for one of the bloodthirsty savages of ISIS. The ISIS member, 34 year old former British national El Shafee Elsheikh, had been part of a plot to take hostages, which led to the killings of four Americans in Syria. Those slain included journalist James Foley and aid worker Kayla Mueller. ISIS members notoriously beheaded Foley in…

  • Pattaya NewsPrime suspect in Pattaya’s thefts against Indian tourists arrested

    Prime suspect in Pattaya’s thefts against Indian tourists arrested

    There’s been a major development in the chaos this year around thieves stealing from Indian tourists in Pattaya. One of the prime suspects has been arrested on August 15, police reported yesterday. Tourist Police Colonel Somchai Theerapatphaisarn said the suspect, named Frame, is a transgender individual. Somchai said Frame had fled to Bangkok, and they have allegedly confessed to multiple…

  • Thailand NewsVisa extensions for foreign visitors to Thailand coming in October

    Visa extensions for foreign visitors to Thailand coming in October

    It’s official, that Thailand’s CCSA has said yes to longer visas for foreign travellers to the country. Starting October 1 this year, the exemption period extension for foreign visitors will be extended from 30 days to 45 days. Meanwhile, the visa-on-arrival scheme will go from 15 days to 30 days, the CCSA announced yesterday. The visa extensions will last until…

  • World News“Drink more booze” Japan urges youth with new contest

    “Drink more booze” Japan urges youth with new contest

    Japan’s alcohol sales have gone way down since Covid-19 restrictions, and the government is desperate to bring them up again. Numbers show that Japan’s young drink quite significantly less than its old. While about 30% of people in their 40s to 60s drink regularly, only 7.8% of people in their 20s do. Meanwhile, sales at Japan’s pubs were cut in…

  • Central Thailand NewsShooting after comedy show in central Thailand, 1 seriously injured

    Shooting after comedy show in central Thailand, 1 seriously injured

    A comedy show has turned into a not-so-funny night. A shooting has been reported after a comedy show at a bar in central Thailand. One customer was shot and rushed to a local hospital seriously injured. The shooting happened in the early hours of Thursday morning in the main city district of Ratchaburi province. The bar had hosted two famous…

  • Pattaya NewsFerocious cobra bites rescuer’s girlfriend in Chon Buri

    Ferocious cobra bites rescuer’s girlfriend in Chon Buri

    A ferocious cobra bit a rescuer’s girlfriend in Chon Buri’s Sri Racha district this week. Locals had called the rescuer on Tuesday after spotting the two-meter-long monocled cobra in their house. The species is highly venomous. The 41 year old Pattipan, an officer from a foundation, arrived on the scene. He brought his girlfriend, 29 year old Apirat, along with…

  • Crime NewsAlleged kidnapper arrested, girl reunited with parents after months

    Alleged kidnapper arrested, girl reunited with parents after months

    A man who allegedly kidnapped a young girl in Phuket in February was arrested in South Thailand on Tuesday. The victim, a 13 year old girl, has been reunited with her parents. The suspect, 33 year old Somsak, allegedly kidnapped the girl on Rawai Beach in the main city district of Phuket, where she had been selling flowers. The girl’s…

  • Pattaya NewsFather tragically drowns while fishing in Chon Buri pond

    Father tragically drowns while fishing in Chon Buri pond

    A Chon Buri woman tragically lost her father, after he drowned in a deserted pond in the main city district yesterday. The woman, 22 year old Maneemol, went to look for her father, 54 year old Kwanjai after she noticed he had been out fishing for an unusually long time. Maneemol arrived at the pond to find her father’s bucket…

  • Politics NewsSri Lanka’s exiled president to head home after Thailand stay

    Sri Lanka’s exiled president to head home after Thailand stay

    Sri Lanka’s exiled president is planning to finally head home next week after staying in Thailand. The ousted leader, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has been on quite a journey ever since 100,000 angry protesters forced him to flee Sri Lanka on July 14. He first travelled to the Maldives and then to Singapore, where he was granted a temporary residence but without…

  • World NewsAnother Thai boxer dies from brain injury after fight in Malaysia

    Another Thai boxer dies from brain injury after fight in Malaysia

    Another Thai boxer has tragically died from a brain injury after a fight. The boxer, known as Petchkeng Kaiyanghadao, had been fighting in Malaysia, according to his martial arts club at Rajamangala University of Technology Phra Nakhon. In a Facebook post, the martial arts club described Petchkeng as a skilled fighter. Petchkeng had been an alumnus at the university. The…

  • Pattaya NewsVIDEO: Young Thais have a blast at Pattaya Music Festival weekend 2

    VIDEO: Young Thais have a blast at Pattaya Music Festival weekend 2

    Young Thais had a blast during the second weekend of the Pattaya Music Festival last night, and on Friday. Hundreds of teens took to Jomtien Beach to watch popular singers and bands perform live, including pop-rock artist ‘Stamp.’ Hip hop artists also performed. Video footage from The Pattaya News shows the eager youngsters packing onto the beach and the roads around it.…

  • Environment NewsAnti-Corruption Network complains of smelly wastewater in coastal Thai province

    Anti-Corruption Network complains of smelly wastewater in coastal Thai province

    A local chapter of the Anti-Corruption Network has complained of foul smelling wastewater released onto a beach in Thailand’s coastal province of Prachuap Khiri Khan, located near the Gulf of Thailand. The chapter says that six officials are overlooking the problems with a hotel dumping wastewater onto the beach near the town hall, in the main city district. A recent…

  • Crime NewsPhuket police nab 3,373 meth pills from 5 suspects

    Phuket police nab 3,373 meth pills from 5 suspects

    After two suspects were arrested in Phuket last week for having thousands of meth pills, five more meth suspects have been arrested on August 10-11. The five men were arrested in different areas of Phuket. Altogether, police ended up seizing 3,373 meth pills. One man was arrested in the west coast town of Karon. The 31 year old man, Charin…

  • Central Thailand NewsPolice find fake Covid-19 tests worth millions in central Thailand

    Police find fake Covid-19 tests worth millions in central Thailand

    After raids this week, police have found tens of thousands of falsely labelled Covid-19 tests, along with medical supplies, in central Thailand worth about 2 million baht. Police posed as customers to crack down on a building in the province of Nakhon Pathom, and a house in the province of Nonthaburi, on July 11. In the Nakhon Pathom building, police…

  • World NewsUPDATE: Rushdie is talking again, attacker pleads not guilty

    UPDATE: Rushdie is talking again, attacker pleads not guilty

    UPDATE Renowned author Salman Rushdie appears to be recovering after being brutally attacked while giving a speech in New York City on Friday. The 75 year old was taken off a ventilator yesterday, and his agent confirmed that he was talking again. Rushdie has three stab wounds to his neck, four to his stomach, a puncture wound to his right…

  • Crime NewsForeign parrotfisher in Krabi says he’s sorry

    Foreign parrotfisher in Krabi says he’s sorry

    UPDATE The foreign man spotted parrotfishing off an island in South Thailand’s Krabi province has said today that he is sorry for his actions. The man had been fishing in the Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. Catching fish in a national park is illegal under Thailand’s National Park Act BE 2562. A storm of Thai netizens went…

  • Economy NewsAfter poor South Koreans die in flooded basement home, will there be change?

    After poor South Koreans die in flooded basement home, will there be change?

    After a poor South Korean family died after being trapped in a flooded basement apartment this week, authorities are discussing changes to poor areas of Seoul. Across the capital city, 13 people were killed because of the floods. The family of three who died in the basement home included a woman in her 40s with down syndrome, the woman’s sister,…

  • Phuket NewsFire breaks out at Patong bar

    Fire breaks out at Patong bar

    A fire broke out at a Patong bar on Thursday, at the tourist hotspot of Bangla Road. Firefighters rushed to the scene to find smoke coming out of the bar. Firefighters reported that the incident was caused by sparks from a high voltage electric cable above the bar. Luckily, no injuries were reported. A photo by The Phuket Express shows…

  • World NewsUPDATE: Salman Rushdie on ventilator, details on stabber emerge

    UPDATE: Salman Rushdie on ventilator, details on stabber emerge

    UPDATE Fearless writer Salman Rushdie has sustained some very serious injuries after a man stabbed him yesterday at a speech he gave in New York. The attacker stabbed the 75 year old wordsmith in his neck and torso. Rushdie is now on a ventilator at a hospital, and unable to speak. Rushdie’s agent says his liver is damaged, nerves in…

  • Thailand NewsCampaign to get international training for Thai teen declared record sprinter

    Campaign to get international training for Thai teen declared record sprinter

    One young Thai athlete is giving the kingdom a new reason to be proud. World Athletics has declared a Thai teenager the fastest 100 metre sprinter in the world at under 18 years old. The 16 year old boy, Puripol Boonson, recorded 10.09 seconds in a 100 metre sprint, and 20.19 seconds in a 200 metre sprint, at the World…

  • World NewsSingaporean and Thai swindler couple arrested in Malaysia

    Singaporean and Thai swindler couple arrested in Malaysia

    The Singaporean and Thai couple who allegedly swindled millions of dollars in luxury goods has been arrested in Malaysia on Thursday. The couple, 26 year old Singaporean man Pi Jiapeng, and 27 year old Thai woman Siriwipa, were caught by Malaysian police at a budget hotel in the city of Skudai in Malaysia’s southern state of Johor. The husband and…

  • Northern Thailand NewsNigerian and Vietnamese couple found dead linked to drug trade

    Nigerian and Vietnamese couple found dead linked to drug trade

    The two foreign nationals found buried in a forest in northeast Thailand last month might have been linked to the drug trade, according to the national police. The couple, a 38 year old Nigerian man and a 33 year old Vietnamese woman was found buried in a forest in Nakhon Ratchasima province on July 28. Today, Thailand’s national police chief…

  • Pattaya NewsFree noodles for beach cleaners after Pattaya Music Festival mess

    Free noodles for beach cleaners after Pattaya Music Festival mess

    Music festivals are fun, but they often create heaps of trash. One Pattaya noodle vendor felt sympathy for some beach cleaners dealing with the mess from the Pattaya Music Festival this past weekend. So she decided to treat them to her noodles for free. The vendor, 51 year old Walaiphan, said she saw how hard everyone was working to clean…