Hot News
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Protests continue at 5 locations around Bangkok this evening – VIDEO
With the latest announcement from protesters about a new round of protests today, from 4pm, Police scrambled their resources to try and second guess the locations. Whilst the protesters are out-gunned by brute force and equipment, they remain nimble, digitally connected and committed to continue the latest round of protests, defying demand from the police that they are breaking the…
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Thai PM says he won’t resign as he has done “nothing wrong”
Unsurprisingly, Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is dismissing calls for his resignation as protests continue to escalate and protesters defy bans to rally in the streets of Bangkok. Rally organisers have already announced that they will be massing again today from 4pm, rumoured to be at numerous BTS stations around the central capital area. Out of a list of 10 key…
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Another protest scheduled in Bangkok at 4pm, police deny using tear gas last night
Another pro-democracy rally has been called today by protest organisers. With many of the original leaders now in custody, many more have stepped up to take their place and are using a sophisticated network of messaging and social media to stay one step ahead of the police and authorities that are trying to intercept their plans. Another rally is planned…
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Police break up Bangkok protest with high-power water cannons, more protests planned today
The latest round of protests took a violent turn last night when more than 400 police resorted to aiming high-powered water cannons directly at the students who were assembled in an otherwise peaceful display of unity. The protesters, mostly secondary and tertiary students, and young Thai adults, continued their demands for the release of their fellow protesters who had been…
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Mae Sot immigration chief transferred after inmate escape
Following the escape of 2 inmates, the immigration chief in Tak’s Mae Sot district has been transferred while an investigation takes place. The 2 Uighur inmates escaped by using soap to corrode the iron cell bars. They rubbed dish soap on the cell bars routinely. Over time, the iron started to rust and they were able to break the bars.…
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Bangkok in “State of Emergency” for 1 month, PM warns about possible curfew
For the next month, Bangkok will be in a “State of Emergency” with a ban on public gatherings of more than 5 people. If protests persist and get out of hand, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has warned today that the government will invoke a nightly curfew, prohibiting people from leaving their homes during certain hours. It should be said, that even…
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Train-car collision kills 1, second fatal railway crossing incident this week
A passenger train collided with a car, killing a woman and injuring 2 others at a railway crossing in Phetchaburi’s Khao Yai district last night. Just earlier this week, a freight train smashed into a charter bus, killing 18 bus passengers and injuring another 44 at a crossing by the Khlong Kwaeng Klan railway station in the Chachoengsao province. Officials…
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Bangkok city intersection closed and secured ahead of next rally at 5pm
Police have closed Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong Intersection and Ratchadamri Road, just hours before the next round of anti-government protests were scheduled to begin at 5pm. Ratchadamri Road is being closed all the way to the Pratunam intersection. The closure, on a Friday afternoon, provides the city an additional traffic headache. The police secured the area just before 2pm today. Early yesterday…
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Inmates escape from Thai prison using soap to rust the cell bars
2 Turkish inmates escaped from a Thailand prison in a daring, if not slippery, escape. Their main tool? Soap. They used soap to cover the bars of their cell in the Tak’s Mae Sot district. Over time, the soap caused the metal to rust and they were able to break the cell bars. Apparently, this isn’t their first cunning escape…
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2 activists could face life in prison for alleged violations against a royal motorcade
2 pro-democracy activists could face life in prison for alleged intention to harm HM the Queen’s liberty during Wednesday afternoon’s rally in Bangkok, which happened to coincide with the same time and same route as a royal motorcade. The Criminal Court issued the arrest warrants yesterday. Violence against the Queen or her liberty, in Section 110 of Thailand’s Criminal Code,…
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Human rights NGO, opposition parties, say State of Emergency infringes human rights
A Thai human rights NGO has criticised the government’s decision to declare a State of Emergency in Bangkok, as political unrest escalates in the capital and around the country. iLaw says the imposition of the emergency decree gives the PM the unrestricted right to use special powers that violate citizens’ human rights. iLaw points out that the new ban on…
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Phuket to host Cabinet meeting to review proposals for reviving local economy
Government officials are to hold a Cabinet meeting in Phuket on November 2 and 3, when they will meet with local authorities and business owners to hear their suggestions on re-igniting the province’s decimated economy. Phuket has been hit particularly hard by the country’s borders being shut since late March, with the absence of international tourists dealing a hammer blow…
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Activists vow to push ahead with political protests in Bangkok today
A mass gathering of protesters at Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong intersection and Ratchadamri Road ended around 10pm last night, with activists vowing to return for more of the same today. Members of Khana Ratsadon 2563 (People’s Party 2020) announced they will reconvene today to keep pouring pressure on PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s government. Among the group’s demands are a call for the PM…
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5,000 pack Bangkok’s central shopping district to continue the protest
Police have been taken aback by the huge amount of support for a protest at Bangkok’s famous Ratchaprasong Intersection, the site of the 2015 Erawan Shrine bombing incident where 20 people died. Bangkok, currently under a State of Emergency, declared by the Thai government in the early hours of this morning, is on edge this evening as huge crowds swarmed…
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Human rights lawyer Anon Nampa arrested, flown to Chiang Mai for sedition charges
After being arrested in Bangkok early this morning, along with numerous other protesters, human rights lawyer and pro-democracy activist leader Anon Nampa is apparently being flown up to Chiang Mai to face sedition charges for allegedly criticising the Thai Monarchy at a past event in the northern province. In Bangkok today, at least 20 protesters, who intended to camp out…
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Phuket’s annual Vegetarian Festival expected to draw in 350 million baht
WARNING: Graphic photos and video below. After months and months of an economic slowdown induced by the coronavirus pandemic and the lack of tourists, thousands of people are expected to arrive to Phuket over the next 2 weeks to take part in the annual Vegetarian Festival. It’s expected to generate more than 350 million baht, according to the Tourism Authority…
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Students at Naresuan University mark 1973 uprising with candlelit vigil
As tens of thousands of protesters gathered at Government House in Bangkok yesterday, students at Naresuan University in northern Thailand were commemorating a 1973 uprising with a candlelit vigil. The October 14, 1973 popular uprising, known as the “Day of Great Sorrow” was a defining moment in Thailand’s history, ending the ruling military dictatorship of the time and changing the…
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Gunman surrenders after holding Phuket woman hostage for 4 hours
A man who held a Phuket shopkeeper hostage at gunpoint has surrendered following a 4 hour stand-off with police. Nation Thailand reports that the incident occurred in the sub-district of Srissontorn last night. Police say they had earlier pursued a group of teenagers wanted for drugs offences. 1 of the suspects ran into a motorbike repair shop near the Banya…
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UPDATE: Bangkok under a State of Emergency, protests ‘cleared’, 20+ arrested,
Bangkok awakes to a State of Emergency, imposed at 4am to quell the growing support of the latest protest movement. The Thai government has used its emergency decree powers to impose a “State of Emergency” in Bangkok, and placed a ban on gatherings of any more than 5 people. The tough new security laws, put in place early this morning,…
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Parents press ahead with class-action against school at centre of abuse claims
A school in the central province of Nonthaburi is facing a class-action lawsuit from parents, amid allegations of abuse at the facility. The claims originally came to light when a teacher was captured on CCTV physically abusing students in her care. In the footage, Ornuma Plodprong, aka, “Khru Jum”, can be seen repeatedly hitting students, pushing one to the floor,…
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Anti-government activists arrested at Democracy Monument rally denied bail
20 pro-democracy activists, arrested at yesterday and last night’s rally at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument, have been denied bail and continue to be held in a prison in the capital. The protesters, who include Jatupat Boonpattararaksa, aka, “Pai Dao Din”, and Chaiamorn Kaewwiboonpan, a singer-songwriter known as “Ammy”, have been charged in relation to the political gathering on Tuesday and Wednesday.…
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Police arrest protest organiser after she calls for a new rally in Bangkok this afternoon
Police have arrested 2 more key organisers of the pro-democracy rally after one of them read a statement calling for another protest in Bangkok shopping precinct this afternoon. Panussaya Sitthijirawattanakul, a critic of the monarchy and one of the protest organisers, was arrested at a Bangkok hotel just after hosting a Facebook, livestream, “calling on people to join a rally planned…
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Activists vow to fight on despite arrest of leaders, emergency decree
Activists from Khana Ratsadon 2563 (People’s Party 2020) say they will not surrender and will continue to fight what they term, “the dictatorial power and its feudal followers”. “Khana Ratsadon (“People’s Party”) was a Siamese group of military and civil officers, and later a political party, which staged a bloodless coup against King Prajadhipok’s government and transformed the country’s absolute…
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Phuket tax revenue plummets during pandemic – VIDEO
The Covid-19 pandemic led has tax revenue in Phuket to be cut in half. Border closures, banning international tourists, has caused the tax revenue for the popular island destination to plummet. From January to August, total tax receipts year on year fell by more than 46%, according to data from the Phuket Area Revenue Office, obtained by The Phuket News. In…
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Truck drivers carrying ‘royal supporters’ face charges for travelling on expressways
6 truck drivers carrying loads of ‘royalists’ to the Democracy Monument, are facing charges pressed by the Expressway Authority of Thailand, or EXAT. The yellow-clad ‘supporters’ of the royal family stood tightly packed on the bed of Department of Law Enforcement trucks, riding down the Kamphaeng Phet-Yommarat tollway. They were all dressed in yellow, a colour that symbolises the Thai Monarchy.…
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6 people found guilty for “pretty” Bangkok model’s death
A man has been sentenced to 8 years in prison for the death of Thitima “Lunlabelle” Noraphanpiphat, a 25 year old model who was found dead last year in the lobby of a Bangkok condominium. Rachadech “Nam Oon” Wongthabutr was found guilty of illegally detaining Lunlabelle and leaving her dead body in the condominium. 5 other people were found guilty…
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Police stop protesters as they march towards Government House in Bangkok – PHOTOS
Protesters started their march from the Democracy Monument on Rajdamnoen Avenue toward the Government House around 3pm today. But they were barred from passing an intersection for an hour. They were prevented from passing the Panfah Lilas intersection where police had set up a blockade and had hundreds of police there to enforce the blacking of the intersection. The police…
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Royalists take over the protest route to make way for Royal motorcade
Maybe the headline should be “The Empire Strikes Back, Thai style”. A group of dressed in yellow, many who are military and police officers, took over the pro-democracy protest route to make way for the Royal motorcade. The dates of both the protest, announced back on September 20, and the motorcade for HM The King to travel to oversee a…
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Digital Economy Ministry dismisses “fake news” that mobile phones cause cancer
Thailand’s Digital Economy and Society Ministry says people shouldn’t fall for claims that leaving your mobile phone beside your head at night will result in cancer. The ministry is urging people not to believe that electromagnetic waves from the phone will cause brain cancer, adding that such a claim constitutes “fake news”, and saying citizens should refrain from sharing it…
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Royalist hospital director threatened with fake gun
The director of Bangkok’s Mongkulwattana Hospital has brushed off an incident in which a man threatened him with a fake gun. Rienthong Nanna says the perpetrator probably has mental health issues, after the man showed up in the outpatient department brandishing a gun, which turned out to be fake. “The man was arrested and charged with several serious offences, and…
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