News
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Search for MH370: Seabed scans draw blanks, cyclone nears
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Cyclone threatens to disrupt search for missing Malaysian plane Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A tropical cyclone was threatening to hamper the search for a missing Malaysian jetliner in a remote stretch of the Indian Ocean on Monday, as a submarine drone neared the end of…
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Saudi Arabia sentences eight to death for 2003 attacks
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Saudi Arabia sentences eight to death for 2003 attacks Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A Saudi Arabian court on Monday sentenced three more men to death, raising the number of people condemned for their involvement in a suicide attack on expatriate residential compounds in Riyadh in…
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U.S. force in Afghanistan may be cut to less than 10,000 troops
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. force in Afghanistan may be cut to less than 10,000 troops Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan may drop well below 10,000 – the minimum demanded by the U.S. military to train Afghan forces – as the longest war…
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South Korean ferry crew’s desertion ‘tantamount to murder’: Park
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community South Korean ferry crew’s desertion ‘tantamount to murder’: Park Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Monday the actions of some crew of a ferry that sank with hundreds feared dead were tantamount to murder, as a four-year-old video transcript showed…
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Disappearance of Karen activist prompts concern; NACC denies bias; Teacher exam cheating probe begins
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Disappearance of Karen activist prompts concern The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Several organisations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International Thailand, are pressing Thai authorities to speed up investigation into the disappearance of a leading Karen activist. Por Cha Lee Rakchongcharoen, also known as “Billy”,…
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Thaksin ready to sacrifice family; Triple murder in Yala; and more…
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Thaksin ‘ready to sacrifice family’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is ready to “sacrifice his family” by ending its political roles so the country can emerge from the ongoing political impasse and move forward, his close aide said yesterday. However,…
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Ukraine peace deal falters as rebels show no sign of surrender
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Ukraine peace deal falters as rebels show no sign of surrender Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: An international agreement to avert wider conflict in Ukraine was faltering on Monday, with pro-Moscow separatist gunmen showing no sign of surrendering government buildings they have seized. U.S. and European…
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Police believe French national killed during robbery
PHUKET: Police believe a French national found dead in his rented Phuket bungalow on Friday was killed in the midst of a robbery. Officers are now working on identifying two suspects recorded by the resort’s CCTV cameras. The body of Fabrice Boigeol, 37, was found lying in a pool of blood partially under a stripped mattress in a room at…
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Chinese tourist drowns while snorkelling, prompts life jacket warning
PHUKET: The chief of the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) has issued a warning over the improper use of life jackets following a Chinese tourist drowning while snorkelling off Racha Yai Island on Saturday. Chalong Police were notified of the tourist’s death at about 3pm after the body of Ting Hong, 29, had been transferred from Racha Yai Island to…
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Tattooed body found off Phuket beach, believed to be foreigner
PHUKET: Police are trying to establish the identity of a body, believed to be of a foreign man, found floating off Pansea Beach this morning. The gruesome discovery was made by Santisuk Patkhim, a beach guard at the upscale Amanpuri Resort. Mr Santisuk secured the body then called Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers to help bring it to shore. “So far…
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Governor orders probe into “reckless’ bungy-jump operators
PHUKET: Governor Maitri Inthusut has ordered police to investigate the illegal construction site of the Phuket bungy-jump tower where two men died and one was seriously injured on Friday (story here). “I received a report that the bungy-jump tower was illegal. The owners were issued a permit to construct a building 12 meters tall, but they erected a structure reaching…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Prosecutors extend Korea ferry captain’s detention as death toll mounts
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Prosecutors extend Korea ferry captain’s detention as death toll mounts Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: South Korean prosecutors investigating a ferry disaster said on Sunday they would seek to extend the detention of the ship’s captain and two other crew by 10 days as they tried…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Malaysian plane lands safely after landing gear scare
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Malaysian plane lands safely after landing gear scare Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A Malaysia Airlines passenger plane with 166 people on board landed safely at Kuala Lumpur airport early this morning after being forced to abandon a flight to Bangalore because of problems with its…
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Phuket officials order a halt to deadly bungy jump
PHUKET: Officers have ordered a halt to any further development of the illegal bungy-jumping site in Phuket where two men died and one was seriously injured Friday night. “It was built more than four times higher than had been approved,” said Chalong Mayor Samran Jindapol. The Chalong Municipality had approved construction of a 12-meter jump tower. However, the final construction,…
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Kamala combats black water threat
PHUKET: Phuket officials pushed for a 300-million-baht water-treatment plant on Friday after Kamala residents filed a complaint about stinking black wastewater. Officials and residents chalked the rancid water up to laundries and residents washing clothes and releasing the untreated wastewater into a canal that connects to the sea, said Krit Sariya, chief of the Kamala branch of the Community Organizations…
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Phuket laundry raided over wastewater poisoning canal and wells
PHUKET: A commercial laundry in Chalong has been ordered to restrict its operations pending an inquiry into untreated wastewater poisoning of private wells and killing fish in a nearby canal. Officials led by Chalong Mayor Samran Jindaphol Friday morning raided the laundry, located along a dirt track off Soi Klumyang, about 300 meters south of Wat Chalong. “Just the stench…
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Two dead in Phuket bungy jumping accident
PHUKET: Two men died and one was seriously injured in a Phuket bungy-jump test last night after the lift they were on crashed to the ground. The owner, Tossaporn Suksri, 27, and his mechanic Pitakchai Wongsricha, 30, were waiting in the lift for their turn to test the jump when a malfunction caused the platform they were standing on to…
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Video Report: Phuket’s B70mn one-stop yacht center to open Monday
PHUKET: Two years behind schedule and 70 million baht in the making, Phuket’s long-awaited one-stop yacht center will open with a two-week trial period, starting on Monday. “Officers involved in yacht-arrival services, such as immigration, customs and the harbor master, are now moving into their new offices,” Phuket Marine Chief Phuripat Theerakulpisut told the Phuket Gazette. The rotunda-style building at…
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Avalanche kills at least 12 guides in deadliest incident on Mount Everest
PHUKET: An avalanche sweeping down Mount Everest killed at least 12 Nepali guides on Friday in what may be the deadliest single incident on the world’s highest peak. The avalanche struck a perilous passage on the main route to the summit as sherpas were preparing the way for climbers at the start of the season. Nepal’s tourism ministry listed the…
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Police suspect French national murdered in Phuket
PHUKET: A 37-year-old French national was found dead in his underwear in a rental room in Phuket this afternoon. The Parisian was found in a pool of blood partially under a stripped mattress at the Morgot Resort in Chalong. There was evidence of blunt trauma to the side of his head. Police believe he had been dead for more than…
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Ticking off the Songkran bucket list – respect before revelry
PHUKET: By the time you read this, I hope you took a plastic bag with you to the shop to buy your copy of the Phuket Gazette. Songkran has once again come and gone, having been celebrated by the traditional bucket load. Most Phuket oldtimers I know choose to stay indoors during the Thai New Year, happily avoiding the deluges…
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Sustaining Phuket people and environment
Sayan Chanachaiwong, 56, has been Kathu District Chief for about five months. With a master’s degree in political science from Ramkhamhaeng University, he worked as district chief in the restive Deep South province of Narathiwat for more than nine years, most recently in Su-ngai Padi, before coming to Phuket. Here, he talks about his three priorities for Kathu. PHUKET: My…
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Video Report: ITF Seniors Tennis tournament at Thanyapura a success
PHUKET: Thanyapura Phuket ITF Seniors Tennis Tournament organizers said they were very pleased to see such a great turnout of players at the event, which took place from April 7 to 12. Many players also expressed their gratitude to the event organizers and praised the quality of the facilities where the tournament took place. It was a good start for…
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Phuket closes Songkran Seven Days of Danger with one dead, 22 injured
PHUKET: The Songkran Seven Days of Danger national road-safety campaign drew to a close at midnight last night with Phuket amassing a tally of one death and 22 people injured during the week-long holiday. Saeree Panitkul, the chief administrative officer at the Phuket Provincial Office, reported the news at the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket office (DDPM-Phuket) this…
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Shady Business: Phuket beaches kept out of the sun
Special Report Just over a generation ago, there were few chairs or umbrellas on the sands of Phuket. Now, they cover up to 80 per cent of many popular beaches. Last June, the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism said their excessive numbers have a negative impact on tourists’ experiences. What’s happening, and who’s in charge? The Phuket Gazette’s Irfarn Jamdukor…
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Unwanted babies in Phuket are not to be abandoned
Special Report The discovery of a newborn boy abandoned in the bed of a pick-up truck in front of a luxury resort on April 10 has highlighted the issue of unwanted pregnancies on Phuket. Many women, not knowing which way to turn, abandon their babies or seek illegal abortions. The Gazette‘s Chutharat Plerin explores what options are available for pregnant…
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Navy defamation case proceeds against PhuketWan
PHUKET: Alan Morison and Chutima Sidasathian of local blog PhuketWan were released on bail yesterday on charges of criminal defamation and other offenses in connection with a story they published on trafficking in Rohingya. Mr Morison, an Australian, and Thai national Ms Chutima published a story last July that contained excerpts from a Reuters Special Report alleging that some Thai…
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Phuket Gazette World News: At least nine Nepali guides killed in Everest avalanche
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community At least nine Nepali guides killed in Everest avalanche Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: An avalanche swept down a slope of Mount Everest on Friday, killing nine Nepali mountaineering guides at the beginning of the main climbing season, a Tourism Ministry official said. The avalanche hit…
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Phuket officials threaten protest over Club Med lease
PHUKET: Kata-Karon officials yesterday threatened public protests if the lease for the Club Med resort located on 39 rai of public land along the Kata beachfront is renewed. The 30-year lease, which began in 1985, will expire on September 24 next year. “For 30 years we have been waiting for the contract to expire,” said Kamnan Winai Chidchiew, who led…
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Korean Association Phuket calls for donations to aid victims of ferry disaster
PHUKET: The Korean Association in Phuket is collecting money to help those affected by the sinking of the South Korean ferry on Wednesday – both survivors and victims’ families. As many as 271 of the 475 passengers on board when the ship began sinking are still unaccounted for (story here). Many of those missing are schoolchildren. “We have called on…
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