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Sponsored Where to shop for sports gear at Jungceylon Phuket
Phuket might be known for its beaches and nightlife, but the island also has a thriving fitness culture. From Muay Thai gyms to beach runs at sunrise, staying active is part of daily life for many who live here (as...
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Palang Pracharath MP fights to keep seat on panel
An MP accused of committing a serious ethical violation said that she will fight to keep her committee seat, even if she’s asked to give it up. The lawyer for MP Pareena Kraikupt of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party told the Bangkok Post that if the National Anti-Corruption Commission tells Pareena to vacate her seat, she will seek an official ruling…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 6,978 new cases; provincial totals
62 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 19,826 with 19,732 of those fatalities during the latest wave, which was first recorded on April 1. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 6,978 new Covid-19 cases and 7,697 recoveries. There are now 96,463 people in Thailand being…
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Government wants 76 billion baht to support rice farmers
The Finance Ministry has announced a plan to use a 76 billion baht package to support Thai rice farmers. The ministry is working with the Budget Bureau to create a scheme that ensures a guaranteed income for the farmers, which would offer some cushion against the unpredictable issues that plague farming such as floods, droughts and pestilence. There is already…
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US journalist Fenster faces charges of terrorism and sedition
Danny Fenster, the American journalist that was taken into custody as he attempted to leave Myanmar in May, has had additional charges of terrorism and sedition levied against him today. He is now facing a maximum sentence of life in prison for those charges, a grave turn from the original 6 years he was facing for the accusation of promoting…
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Germans launch fundraiser to rescue stranded Afghans
The German civil society organization Mission Lifeline — known for its role in helping rescue refugees from drowning in the Mediterranean — has launched a fundraiser aimed at assisting vulnerable Afghans obtain passports to facilitate their emigration. Citing German government sources, the German Press Agency (dpa) reported that in early October about 25,000 people in possession of German visas were…
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AirAsia flights from Kuala Lumpur to Phuket return for Sandbox scheme
AirAsia has announced that it will resume its flight from Kuala Lumpur to Phuket. This comes in the wake of Thailand’s reopening to international travelers on November 1. This flight will allow visitors to enter the country through the Phuket sandbox programme. The first flight was an Airbus A320 that took off from Kuala Lumpur at 11:15am. The route is currently…
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British Foreign Secretary arrives in Thailand for talks with government officials
The UK’s Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss, has arrived in Thailand, where she will meet with PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and other government officials. Thailand is her second Southeast Asia stop, following a visit to Malaysia in which she met with PM Ismail Sabri and Foreign Affairs Minister Saifuddin Abdullah. The UK is seeking to strengthen its ties with Southeast Asia and other…
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Pattaya Beach fight over an affair on TikTok results in 5 arrests
A fistfight that broke out and gathered a crowd on Central Pattaya Beach near the mall resulted in 5 people being arrested. Pattaya City Police were alerted of a fight at around 10:30 in the evening on Monday night and went to the scene to investigate. In the patrol unit arrived, they found a few fights on and around the…
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FDA warns against smuggled Johnson & Johnson vaccines
In Sa Kaeo province in Eastern Thailand, the Food and Drug Administration is warning people to avoid offers of Johnson & Johnson vaccines that were illegally smuggled into Thailand after a patient apparently brought in a vaccine to a private clinic and paid to have medical staff administer it. The single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine has been approved for use…
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Thai government defends sale of antigen test kits banned in the EU
They’ve been banned in the EU, but the Thai government says the cheap antigen test kits from NovaGen can be used here because they’ve been approved by the Thai Food and Drug Administration. Sirikul Methivirangsan from the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation says the reason they’re banned in the EU is due to the bloc requiring some additional paperwork. According to a…
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Thailand now generating electricity at world’s biggest hydro-solar farm
As part of Thailand’s push to become a carbon-neutral country by 2050, the world’s largest hydro-solar hybrid energy farm has officially gone online and is now generating electricity. The solar farm floats atop the Sirindhorn Dam in Ubon Ratchathani and is as big as 70 football fields. The massive installation floats on Sirindhorn Reservoir along Lam Dom Noi River, about…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 6,978 new cases and 62 deaths
6,978 new Covid-19 cases and 62 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA has recorded 7,697 recoveries. There are now 96,463 people in Thailand receiving medical treatment for Covid-19. In the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 in Thailand, which was first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has reported 1,960,610…
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Officials to get tough on people smugglers, use MoUs to bring workers in legally
The labour minister says people smugglers face arrest and having their assets seized as part of a crackdown on migrant workers being brought into Thailand illegally. Since Thailand’s re-opening to international tourists, border officials have seen an increase in the number of illegal migrants attempting to cross into Thailand to secure work. Suchart Chomklin says the criminals running people-smuggling operations…
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The UN says more than 3 million people in Myanmar need life-saving aid
The UN is urging Myanmar’s military leaders to allow unimpeded access to more than 3 million people who need life-saving aid. Martin Griffiths, the UN humanitarian chief, says since the February 1 coup, the numbers of those at-risk of losing their lives will only rise. The ongoing violence has not showed signs of slowing, and Griffiths says if a peaceful…
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How will EU react to Poland-Belarus border crisis?
The European Union is once again scrambling to respond to a crisis on its external borders, what officials have called a “hybrid attack” orchestrated by the Belarusian regime to push migrants toward the bloc’s external border. After the situation escalated dramatically on Monday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “The Belarusian authorities must understand that pressuring the European…
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Interview: UN genocide advisor says Ethiopia’s warring parties must talk
Alice Wairimu Nderitu of Kenya is the United Nations special adviser on the prevention of genocide. She is also an experienced mediator in the field of peacebuilding and violence prevention, having led as mediator and senior adviser in reconciliation processes. DW: The situation in Ethiopia is deteriorating at an alarming rate and there have been calls for action from the…
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Miao Po-ya: Meet Taiwan’s first-ever openly LGBTQ council member
Miao Po-ya is the first-ever openly LGBTQ member to join a local council in Taiwan. She is breaking barriers by winning the support of young people as well as the older generation, which tends to favor traditional gender norms. SOURCE: DW News
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South Korean elections marred by corruption allegations and mudslinging
Four months ahead of the South Korea’s presidential elections, accusations of scandal, abuse of power and corruption are dominating the debate, instead of discussions on policies and plans for the future. President Moon Jae-in must step down at the end of his single, five-year term in March, and clearly hopes to pass the baton on to Lee Jae-myung, a former…
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Indonesia to administer Covid-19 boosters once 50% are fully vaccinated
Indonesia has announced its plans to start offering Covid-19 booster shots to members of the public, as soon as 50% of its population is fully vaccinated. According to Reuters, the nation’s health minister made this announcement yesterday, and reported that he expects the program to get started by the end of this month. Indonesia was at one point Asia’s Covid-19…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 6,904 new cases; provincial totals
61 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the CCSA today, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 19,764 with 19,670 of those fatalities during the latest wave, which was first recorded on April 1. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 6,904 new Covid-19 cases and 8,024 recoveries. There are now 97,244 people in Thailand being…
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Bangkok authorities warn of more flooding along Chao Phraya during high tide
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration released more warnings on flooding as the Chao Praya river has been overflowing during high tides, with water waist-deep in some neighbourhoods. Residents in Bangkok and Samut Prakan who live along the river are being advised to watch the rising water level. The high tides will reach 1.31 metres above sea level at 11:26am, and 1.20…
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PM Prayut emphasises importance of Thailand-US partnership
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha held a meeting with members of the US Congress yesterday, in which he stressed the importance of the relationship between Thailand and the United States. He also made it clear that he wanted to pursue further cooperation and partnership with the US as the two countries move forward. Members of the US Congress paid a visit to…
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Cambodia leads Asia for highest percentage of fully-vaccinated population
Cambodia is topping the list in Asia for the country with the highest percentage of fully-vaccinated individuals in its population. The country’s 16 million-plus population has seen around 82% receiving at least 2 doses of a Covid-19 vaccine since November 3, according to ourworldindata.org. The percentage of those fully-vaccinated has beat out Singapore, Brunei and South Korea by 1%. And,…
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Deepavali holidaymakers leave popular Malaysian cities full of rubbish
Popular tourist spots in Malaysia are resembling rubbish dumping grounds as the recent 4 day Deepavali holiday, ended in mounds of litter. The Deepavali, or Diwali, holiday last week saw the Penang Island City council cleaning up an estimated 5,256 tonnes of garbage. Xavier Sebastian, the city council urban services department director, told the Straits Times that the increase was…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 6,904 new cases and 61 deaths
6,904 new Covid-19 cases and 61 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the CCSA. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA has recorded 8,024 recoveries. There are now 97,244 people in Thailand being treated for Covid-19. In the latest and most severe wave of the virus, first recorded on April 1, the the CCSA has reported a…
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Malaysia and Singapore confirm travel bubble for vaccinated travellers
From November 29, vaccinated passengers can fly between Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Singapore’s Changi Airport, without having to quarantine. Bloomberg confirms that both countries have agreed a travel bubble arrangement for what is one of the world’s busiest air corridors. It’s understood the agreement could also be extended to land crossings in the near future. Vaccinated travellers will not…
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Thai officials seize illegally imported medical goods worth around 5 million baht
The Food and Drug Administration and Thai police have confiscated a large quantity of illegally imported medical supplies, according to a Bangkok Post report. The seizure happened yesterday, during a raid on 2 warehouses in the Bang Kapi district of Bangkok. In total, the authorities seized products worth around 5 million baht, including Covid-19 test kits. Anan Nanasombat, chief of…
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Thai government to stock up on new Covid-19 treatments
Thailand’s Public Health Ministry plans to order 2 types of antiviral oral treatment in its fight against Covid-19. The Bangkok Post reports that the ministry wants to order supplies of the Molnupiravir antiviral pill, as well as Pfizer’s new oral treatment, Paxlovid. Dr Atthasit Srisubat from the Department of Medical Services has confirmed the decision, following the recent order from PM…
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Afghanistan: People struggle to make ends meet amid economic turmoil
Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in mid-August, the conflict-stricken nation has been dealing not only with political turmoil but also a severe economic crisis and increasing poverty. The Taliban takeover saw billions of dollars in central bank assets frozen and international financial institutions suspend access to funds. Some $9.5 billion (€8.2 billion) in central bank reserves remain blocked…
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Pakistan: How patriarchy is raising the risk of deadly breast cancer
Pakistan has one of the highest rates of breast cancer in Asia, and trends suggest this is likely to increase unless more is done to remove barriers on early screening. An estimated 40,000 women die each year in Pakistan due to breast cancer, and 83,000 are diagnosed with the disease, according to the Shaukat Khanum Research Center in Lahore. Health…
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