News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Government threatens legal action against local TV networks
BANGKOK (The Nation): Interior Minister Chalerm Yoobamrung Friday threatened to invoke Article 85 of the Criminal Code to take legal action against ASTV for broadcasting demonstrations of the People’s Alliance for Democracy [PAD].Chalerm said cable TV operators in the provinces who relay broadcasts of ASTV to their subscribers would also be taken to task by the government if they do…
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Crooked conductor caught in Mai Khao
THALANG: The Phuket Highway Police have arrested a bus conductor for stealing the equivalent of more than 18,000 baht from a young Aussie on his way to Phuket from Surat Thani.At a press conference yesterday afternoon, Phuket Highway Police Inspector Maj Jittrapol Kesornrak identified the suspect as Udon Thani native Rakpong Passawong, 22.His victim, 21-year-old Australian Jai Ruben Wadick, boarded a bus in…
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Kamala residents seek suspension of troubled cop
KAMALA: About 30 local residents this morning met Kamala Police Deputy Superintendent Lt Col Winai Kongkeaw to demand that one of his officers be removed from active duty because his behavior was “dangerous”.At 11 am, the residents, including Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) representative Sontaya Soontarak and other elected officials, explained to Col Winai that a police lieutenant under his command had…
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“Pastrygate” scandal intensifies
BANGKOK (Daily Xpress): Top Supreme Court Justice Kriengchai Jungchatupit says he would have arrested the lawyer suspected of attempting to bribe judges “on the spot”.“If I had been there, I would have arrested him on the spot,” says Kriengchai. “I would not have let him take the money back. I would have charged him with contempt.“I have learned that the person who…
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Aussies, Thais dominate Samui Regatta
KOH SAMUI: Ray Roberts, the top Asian sailor for 2008, Matt Allen, Commodore of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, and Andrew Short, also from the Sydney club, have won the top prizes in the International Racing Class (IRC)1, IRC 2 and Cruising Classes, respectively, in the 7th Samui International Yacht Regatta.Roberts, a regular racer in Phuket and Thailand, and…
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Snack box with a bonus winds up in court
BANGKOK (The Nation): The Supreme Court has set up a committee to investigate an alleged attempt by a politician’s lawyer to bribe court officials, which a spokesman for ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra described as “a joke and impossible”.Sarawut Benjakul, deputy secretary-general of the court, confirmed a report that a lawyer representing a politician had given a box of pastry filled with…
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Chief Ombudsman hears Phuket complaints
PHUKET CITY: Phuket people’s top source of grief were problems stemming from land, Chief Ombudsman Gen Theeradej Meepien told reporters after two days of hearing complaints from Phuket residents.Gen Theeradej and his staff heard complaints from local people and held public information sessions explaining the role of the Ombudsman’s Office at the Phuket Merlin Hotel on June 3 and 4.“This…
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Seafood prices ready to soar?
PHUKET: Royal Thai Navy Chief Adm Narong Yutthawong, who once served as Supreme Commander of the Thai Armed Forces, has met leading local fishing industry figures as part of his senatorial fact-finding tour into the impact of rising fuel prices on the nation’s fishing industry.At a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall on June 4, Adm Narong said that his tour…
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4 cars destroyed in Toyota Pearl blaze
PHUKET CITY: Owners of three vehicles waiting for repairs will have to wait a little longer before being reunited with their cars following a fire at the Toyota Pearl Phuket showroom and garage on Thepkrasattri Rd early on Saturday. Initial estimates put the loss from the fire at about 4 million baht, with damage to seven vehicles, four of which were totally destroyed. Police said they…
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Failure rate for Bangkok condos nears 50%
BANGKOK (The Nation): The chance of failure for condominium developers in Bangkok has grown to almost 50 per cent as competition heats up amid a glut of fresh supplies, warned Aquarius chief executive Yongyuth Chaipromprasert.After conducting a study over the past five months, the building consultant said even the inner Sukhumvit area, once deemed immune to downturns, “no longer guarantees success”.“The average take-up…
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Gen Apirak returns to Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Police yesterday morning held a ceremony bidding farewell Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth on his last day of duty as Phuket Provincial Police Commander and welcoming back his replacement, Pol Maj Apirak Hongthong.Gen Decha has been promoted to the position of commander of general staff at Police Region 8 headquarters in Surat Thani.Among those attending the ceremony were…
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Tawee still Karon Mayor
KARON: In the Karon municipal council election on Sunday, incumbent Mayor Tawee Tongcham, running unopposed, easily received the minimum 20% of all eligible votes required for him to reclaim the mayoral seat.Voter turnout was just over 60% of the 4,601 eligible voters. Of these, 2,269 people voted for Tawee.Eleven of the 12 regular council seats went to members of Tawee’s…
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PIH “bypass turnoff’to be closed
PHUKET: A provincial committee on traffic safety has decided to block the dangerous turnoff to Phuket International Hospital (PIH) from the bypass road southbound lanes for a trial period of one month.The committee, chaired by Phuket Vice-Governor Smith Palawatvichai, came to a unanimous decision on the issue at a meeting held last Thursday afternoon.Signs warning motorists that U-turns are forbidden…
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It’s a Toy Library
PHUKET: With the aim of developing children’s imaginations, emotional responses and social skills, the Phuket Community Foundation (PCF) and Phuket International Hospital (PIH) will be opening the island’s first toy library at the end of July. The PCF is appealing for donations of new and secondhand toys in good condition and it is hoped that, in time, a series of “toy…
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Fighting chance: green turtle has flipper amputated
CAPE PANWA: A green sea turtle rescued from a fishing net in Satun last week had a badly inflected flipper amputated at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) this afternoon.PMBC veterinarians led by Sontaya Manawattana said that the “flipperectomy” was the only way to save the animal, an otherwise healthy 20-year-old female.The turtle was found off Koh Rayatot Yai, in…
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Dial S for stolen
PHUKET AIRPORT: Following the arrest of two baggage handlers for stealing a mobile phone from luggage at Phuket International Airport, police are urging airline passengers not to pack valuables in checked-in luggage.At a press conference last night, Tah Chat Chai Police Superintendent Col Sakchai Limchareon said that Sarawuth Saowarun, 21, of Nakhon Sri Thammarat, and Chiang Rai native Surakrai Sirisor, 22, had…
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Megaquarium site still not chosen
BANGKOK: Plans by Minor International Plc to build a 2.1-billion-baht aquarium in Phuket are still in the land acquisition and design phase, and the company doesn’t expect to finalize plans or announce the project site until some time later this year at the earliest. In July 2007, Minor International Plc announced its intention to build Southeast Asia’s largest aquarium as…
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SPECIAL: Letter from Myanmar
BANGKOK: Since Cyclone Nargis devastated the Irrawaddy delta region in Myanmar on May 2, the world has stood by waiting to help those still suffering while the ruling military junta lets in only a trickle of relief supplies and workers. A Thailand-based Rotarian, whose name has been withheld at his request, describes the situation on the ground in Myanmar, and…
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Whale stranded in Patong dies
PHUKET: A dwarf sperm whale that washed up on Patong Beach this morning died from ingesting a wide variety of man-made items, researchers at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) today told the Gazette. The whale was discovered by local residents on the beach near the Soi Bangla intersection about 6 am. Villagers and Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers pushed the…
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US Navy servicewoman dies in Patong
PATONG: A US servicewoman accidentally fell to her death from a seventh-floor hotel room in Patong yesterday, the Gazette has been told.In a news release posted on its website at noon today, Manager Online quoted Kathu Police Superintendent Col Grissak Songmoonnark as identifying the woman as 25-year-old Ebony Cooper.There were few other details in the report, except that police were…
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Runaway bride
SAPHAN BURI: Being forced into a loveless marriage is an unhappy fate for any girl to endure, but not everyone takes the situation lying down. After being forced to marry the son of a wealthy local cattle owner, one young woman from Suphan Buri managed to escape with not only her freedom, but also the 400,000-baht sin sot (bride price)…
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Burmese aid on its way
CAPE PANWA: Stocks of donated food and emergency-shelter supplies today finally began their journey from the Third Naval Command at Cape Panwa to help victims of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar.Approximately 10 tonnes of supplies were loaded onto four container trucks heading for the Thai-Myanmar Border Fishery Co-ordination Center in Ranong province. From there, the supplies are expected to be distributed…
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PPEO moves to allay manual labor shortage
PHUKET: In a bid to ease Phuket’s manual labor shortage, the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) is accepting applications to extend by one year the work permits of the 19,000 Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian laborers working in Phuket whose work permits are set to expire this month.Employers can register their migrant laborers at the PPEO building on Rattanakosin 200 Pi…
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Laguna Marathon traffic restrictions announced
CHERNG TALAY: As the island gears up for the big Laguna Phuket International Marathon on Sunday, June 15, the event’s organizers have announced traffic restrictions that will apply during the marathon so athletes can safely complete the course. Traffic along the following roads will be directed by police for the safety of runners as follows: 1. All roads within Laguna Phuket…
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Kukri Badgers win Phuket Rugby 10s
KARON: In a high-quality match played to a packed Karon Municipality stadium on Sunday, the Kukri Badgers from the UK beat the Loki Odins from Canberra, Australia, by 12-5 to win the Overgaard 10th Anniversary Phuket International Rugby 10s. The invitational sides played impressive rugby on a relatively hard pitch that could well have done with some of the rain that…
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Declaration of emergency not warranted: Boonsrang
BANGKOK (The Nation): Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces General Boonsrang Niumpradit sought this morning to allay growing concern that the Thai government might declare an emergency situation to crack down on the current street protests in Bangkok.“Citing of the emergency law might do more harm than good to the country,” he noted, arguing that there are many options to…
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Declaration of emergency not warranted: Boonsrong
BANGKOK (The Nation): Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces General Boonsrang Niumpradit sought this morning to allay growing concern that the Thai government might declare an emergency situation to crack down on the current street protests in Bangkok.“Citing of the emergency law might do more harm than good to the country,” he noted, arguing that there are many options to…
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Burmese doing Thai homeWorks
PHUKET CITY: That unregistered, migrant laborers from Burma continue to play a key role in the island’s construction industry was confirmed on Tuesday when 28 illegal workers were arrested at the one-billion-baht “homeWorks” project site at the Darasamuth Intersection on the bypass road.The arrests followed a tip-off from the Phuket branch of Thailand’s internal intelligence service (santibaan) to Phuket Provincial…
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Quayle calls for better tourist safety
PHUKET CITY: Following a wave of Phuket Gazette reports of crimes against foreigners in recent weeks, British Ambassador to Thailand Quinton Quayle today voiced his concern over the personal safety of British citizens in Phuket.Speaking to the Gazette at the Royal Phuket City Hotel this morning, Mr Quayle said, “I think safety is a worrying aspect…“[Safety] is one of the things…
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French mercy mission ship diverts to Phuket
AO MAKHAM (Nation, Gazette): After 10 days in the Indian Ocean waiting for permission to enter Burmese waters, the 24,000-tonne French navy ship Mistral docked yesterday morning at the Phuket Deep Sea Port to unload tons of supplies intended for cyclone victims in Burma.French Ambassador to Thailand Laurent Bili said that an agreement had been reached with the Burmese military government making Phuket…
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