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Mangrove tourism project coming to Phuket
One mayor in Phuket is planning a new eco-tourism project involving mangrove forests. Ratsada Mayor Nakarin Yosangrat plans to make mangrove forests in the Tha Chin Canal and Bang Chee Lao area part of a protected nature reserve. The initiative is officially named the Ratsada Green in the City Project. Phuket’s Department of Marine and Coastal Services will also build…
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UPDATE: Fraudulent Japanese restaurant owner denied bail
UPDATE: Fraudulent Japanese restaurant owner denied bail The court denied the owner of Daruma Sushi’s request for bail this afternoon after he was arrested by police at Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday. Police say “Metha” has caused millions of baht in damages and has countless allegations against him. The 39 year old owner of Daruma Sushi – Metha Chalingsook – got into…
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Teen girl commits suicide after being allegedly blackmailed over naked pictures
A teenage girl has committed suicide after a man allegedly blackmailed her over some naked pictures. The man, in central Thailand’s province of Pathum Thani, was arrested this morning in connection with the suicide and for allegedly blackmailing other teenage girls online. The 27 year old man, Piyabutr Urai-ngam, reportedly lured the 14 year old girl into sending him naked…
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VIDEO: Pattaya police rehearse controlling drunk tourists with metal poles
Pattaya police – armed with what look like giant litter pickers – gathered on Jomtien beach in Pattaya yesterday to prepare for encounters with “armed, drunk and aggressive foreign tourists.” The police asked a foreign beachgoer to volunteer as an armed, drunk and out of control tourist. Half a dozen policemen behind a riot shield approached the “tourist” and pinned…
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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…
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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…
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4 suspects in wildlife trade arrested across Thailand
Environmental police arrested 4 suspected wildlife traders today in several provinces across Thailand. The Nonthaburi Provincial Court ordered arrest warrants for the group on June 14 on charges of colluding in illegal trading in wildlife and illegal possession of protected wild animals. Officers from Thailand’s Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression searched spots in Bangkok, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Ayutthaya, and…
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Police arrest 2 Iranian men for scamming people in Thailand
Police arrested 2 Iranian nationals today in Chanthaburi province, eastern Thailand. The men allegedly scammed people out of money on at least 2 occasions in Samut Songkhram province, southwest of Bangkok. The men would ask people to exchange banknotes, but then snatch the victim’s money and run off without giving anything in return. The 24 year old man and 32…
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Thailand develops cannabis test kits that detect THC levels in 15 minutes
Thailand took marijuana off its list of narcotics, but extracts with higher than 0.2% tetrahydrocannabinol – the “happy” chemical – are still illegal. The law was designed to discourage the recreational use of cannabis, but no one knew how it could be enforced, until now. Thailand’s Department of Medical Sciences has developed marijuana test kits that detect THC levels in…
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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…
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Thailand’s parliament police petition against new uniforms
Thailand’s parliamentary police aren’t seeing the point of their new uniforms scheduled for next year. The country’s roughly 200 parliamentary police officers are usually issued with 2 sets of uniforms, each costing about 5,000 baht. The budget for new uniforms would altogether require at least 2 million baht. Yesterday, about 60 parliament police officers submitted a petition to House Speaker…
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Phuket homeowner checks CCTV to find foreign couple canoodling outside house
A Thai woman away in Germany was lost for words on Tuesday when she checked her Phuket home’s CCTV camera footage to see a foreign couple – a man and woman – having sex in front of her house. Homeowner Waralak Frisch often resides in Germany with her husband, so she installed security cameras to check on the safety of…
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Fight between ex-husband and new man attracts 50 police to ER in Chiang Mai
A fight between a woman’s ex-husband and her new man brought chaos to an emergency room at a Chiang Mai hospital last night, so much that 50 officers arrived on the scene to sort things out. The storm began brewing between the men when the woman and her new partner went to her ex’s house to ask him to return…
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Thai PM faces fourth censure motion next month
The next political challenge for Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is next month when a censure motion is put to the lower house by opposition MPs. The debate is scheduled for July 18 – 22 and there is no certainty how the votes will eventually fall at this time. Renegade MPs, new political factions, the PMs falling popularity and a looming…
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UPDATE: Police arrest fraudulent Japanese restaurant owner at Suvarnabhumi Airport
UPDATE: Police arrest fraudulent Japanese restaurant owner at Suvarnabhumi Airport Today, Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau arrested the fraudulent owner of Daruma Sushi, a famous Japanese restaurant chain, at Suvarnabhumi Airport. “Metha” returned to Thailand today having fled to Dubai in the UAE on June 16, after he received over 500 complaints from unhappy customers and staff. Police said Metha caused…
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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,…
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Sri Lanka petroleum company in extreme debt, country hitting “rock bottom”
Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is snowballing even further. The island nation’s PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said Sri Lanka might be falling to “rock bottom” now that its major petroleum corporation is in extreme debt. He said that because of the debt, no other countries are willing to provide Sri Lanka with fuel. “Currently, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation is $700 million in…
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Commuters asked not to flick hair on the BTS Skytrain
Here we go again. Commuters on the BTS Skytrain with long hair have been asked to refrain from flicking their hair because there is a danger it will hit the faces of other commuters, especially during rush hours, the BTS Skytrain operator says. Several commuters complained about passengers flipping their hair on the train and, on occasion, accidentally hitting the…
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Koh Samui tourist viewpoint to temporarily close following troubling inspection
A tourist attraction in Koh Samui is set to temporarily close after officials inspected the site. Officials from the southern province of Surat Thani discovered yesterday that Overlap Stone viewpoint had been operating without a business operator licence. Furthermore, there was no bridge construction licence for the bridge that connects to the site’s giant rock mass. Now, the viewpoint is…
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Grab bike ‘taxis’ forced to get commercial licenses in Thailand
A win for ‘Win’ motorcycle taxi riders today after new rules force Grab riders into the same transportation regulations. Of course, the new rules will probably force up the prices for Grab bikes from next month when the app-based ride-hailing service will have to comply with the same rules governing ‘Win Motocy’ motorcycle taxi riders. The orange-safety-vest-clad Win drivers are…
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Thailand’s former PM Thaksin compares marijuana to opium
Thailand’s former PM Thaksin Shinawatra is the latest to weigh in on the “happy plant.” In a video address to Thais last night, Thaksin compared marijuana to opium, warning that people need “proper science and education.” He said that when opium first came on the scene, it also had many properties that people used it for, however, it was used…
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Getting rid of masks and revised closing times in Thailand – waiting for official rubber stamp
Whilst we might be rid of the Thailand Pass on July 1, there appears to be an administrative delay to the changes in mask requirements and changes to the closing times. In clarifying new face mask guidelines, Dr Taweesilp Visanuyothin, the spokesperson for CCSA says that all 77 provinces in Thailand would be redesignated as green zones. Previously there were…
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Weather wreaks havoc on Pattaya
Heavy rain, wind, and floods have wreaked havoc on Pattaya yesterday. Areas with serious flooding and damage included South Pattaya, Central Pattaya, Soi Siam Country Club Pattaya, Soi Buakhao, and Pattaya Third Road. Glass panels knocked out by fierce winds fell from buildings onto several cars in Central Pattaya. Meanwhile, several roads including Sukhumvit Road were under water, disrupting traffic.…
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BEAM me up! App-based electric scooters come to Phuket
by John Magee What costs 200 baht in a taxi but 30 baht on a BEAM? Chances are that you’ve seen these little purple scooters BEAMing around Phuket, particularly in the Laguna area, Patong, and Phuket Town. Indeed, they are appearing in growing numbers not only in Thailand but also, for starters, in Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Turkey, and…
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Novices caught smoking cannabis kicked out of Thailand’s monkhood
A group of novice Buddhist monks were kicked out of the monkhood yesterday after they were caught smoking cannabis from a bong at a famous temple in Buriram province in northeast Thailand. The young men – who had been ordained for a total of 4 days – were taking part in a drug addiction programme jointly run by Thailand’s Buddhist…
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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…
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Government launch mental health app to combat depression
A mental health evaluation app by the Department of Mental Health, and collaborators, has been developed to identify the early signs of depression. The app can be downloaded to your smartphone as part of the Mor Prom application. In Thailand, more than 1.5 million people suffer from depression, with over 4,000 cases of suicide every year. Another 53,000 people have…
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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…
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Thai tourism targets half a million Korean visitors by end of the year
The Tourism Authority of Thailand aims to draw in over 500,000 South Korean travellers in 2022 and hopes to increase that to 1.3 million next year. This comes after the easing of travel restrictions in South Korea and Thailand. In 2019, South Korea was an important market for Thailand, with around 1.9 million visitors bringing in 75 billion baht in…
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Thai Army lifts ban on Lazada to help country boost economy
The Royal Thai Army has lifted a boycott of the e-commerce platform Lazada. The company, owned by the Alibaba Group, was banned from delivering parcels to military premises all over the country for 42 days because of an offensive advert that insulted the Thai Royal Family, and disabled people. Last month Lazada goods were banned from entering Royal Thai Army…
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