News
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Wichit wins good governance award
PHUKET TOWN: Wichit Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) has won a best-governance award and additional funding of 1.7 million baht in competition against seven other Phuket OrBorTor. OrBorTor Pa Klok received additional funds of 1.4 million baht for coming second and OrBorTor Sri Suntorn received 1.2 million baht for third place, Sorawich Chaiyasawat, Chief of the Phuket Provincial Local Administration Office,…
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Politicians call for swift end to probe
PHUKET: The Thai Rak Thai party’s candidate for MP in the next parliamentary elections, Dr Prasit Koeysiripong, has added his voice to those calling for a swift conclusion to the land investigation currently underway in Phuket. Dr Prasit, who is currently the President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor), told the Gazette today that although he did not have…
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Park chief to make encroachment complaint
THALANG: The Chief of Sirinat Marine National Park said today that he will report to the police at Cherng Talay Police Station tomorrow (July 2) that the park is being encroached upon in the area of Layan Beach. The Chief, Thanapong Aphaiso, went with park officers yesterday afternoon to check the southern end of the park, around Moo 6, Baan…
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Land Department calls for arrests
BANGKOK, The Nation: The Land Department in Bangkok yesterday requested the Crime Suppression Police (CSP) to arrest Thawatchai Anukul, Thawatchai Anukul, formerly registrar of the Phuket Provincial Land Office (PPLO) and of a district land office in Phang Nga, along with other officers who allegedly collaborated with him in issuing false documents and abusing their position as government officers. Documents…
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Concessions made to marine tourism
PHUKET TOWN: From July 1, foreign yachtsmen will be able to certify their foreign captains’ licenses for use in Thailand, in Phuket. Currently, foreign skippers need to travel to Bangkok or Kantang in Trang Province to certify their licenses before being allowed to sail their boats in Thai waters. Marine Department Director General Wanchai Sarathulthat said the license certification would…
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Top officials to discuss Phuket’s future
PHUKET: Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak and three other ministers will be among a high-powered meeting of top government officials in Phuket on July 4 and 5 to discuss development of the island, it was announced yesterday. The 35-strong delegation will include Public Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan, Information and Communications Technology Minister Dr Surapong Suebwonglee, Tourism and Sports Minister Sontaya…
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Police nab more illegal immigrants
PHUKET: Between similar periods in May and June, the number of arrests of illegal immigrants rose from 61 to 133, statistics from the Phuket Provincial Police reveal. The latest figures, covering June 1 to June 24, also show that 26 people were arrested for glue-sniffing and three more were held for possession and sale of ya bah (methamphetamine) in that…
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Lawyer evicted from SorPorKor land
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Court today ordered the eviction of a local lawyer from two plots of land in Chalong totaling 29 rai, ruling that he did not meet the qualifications to occupy agricultural land under the SorPorKor land reform program. The ruling comes just days after Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra complained that past legal cases against “important people”…
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Land abuse report to be filed on Friday
BANGKOK, The Nation: A full report on the results of the investigation into abuses of SorPorKor 4-01 land usage papers will be handed on Friday to the Land Department in Bangkok, and then to the Crime Suppression Police (CSP). Announcing this today, Pol Lt Gen Chidchai Wannasathit, Chairman of the SorPorKor Investigation Committee, said that abuses that will be covered…
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Beijing taken off Sars list
PHUKET: Following the World Health Organization’s declaration that Beijing has been removed from its list of Sars-affected places, Thailand has dropped its requirement for people arriving from China’s capital to submit to medical checks or other restrictions while in Thailand. Weerasit Raden, Chief of the Port Health Office at Phuket International Airport today said, “After it was announced that Beijing…
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German couple mugged at Nai Harn
NAI HARN: German tourists Rainer and Susanne Siebert were beaten unconscious and robbed in broad daylight yesterday as they walked near Le Royal Méridien Phuket Yacht Club at about 3 pm. The couple spoke with the Gazette today at Phuket International Hospital, where Mr Siebert is recovering from a head injury and his wife is recovering from two fractures to…
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Hong Kong dropped from Sars list
PHUKET: People arriving from Hong Kong are no longer subject to medical checks or other restrictions aimed at reducing the risk of Sars taking hold in Thailand, Weerasit Raden, Chief of the Port Health Office at Phuket International Airport announced today. “With Hong Kong being removed from the Sars alert list by the World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday, it has…
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Stolen yacht booty dumped on Koh Lone
KOH LONE: Some of the equipment stolen from yachts moored in Ao Chalong late last month has been found dumped on a beach on Koh Lone. Pol Capt Sakol Bunditsak, of Chalong Police Station, today said that fishermen reported to police that they had found some boat equipment in a black plastic bag on a Koh Lone beach. He added…
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Samsara developers speak out
PHUKET: For the first time since the Samsara luxury property development was put in the public spotlight by the Phuket land probe, representatives of the owners and developers of the project have spoken out about what they see as the unfair treatment they have received from the government. Colin McKay, Managing Director of development company Asia Island Homes (AIH), told…
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New Vice-Governor arrives Monday
PHUKET: A new Vice-Governor has been named to replace Manit Wattanasen, who was transferred this week to Pattani (see also https://thethaiger.com/news/index.asp?Id=2811 .) He is Pongpow Ketthong, originally from Phrae province. Most recently he was Chief Inspector in the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation at the Ministry of Interior in Bangkok, but before that his government service took him to…
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Land probe to cover all Thailand – Thaksin
BANGKOK: Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra today announced that the land investigation currently underway in Phuket will be widened to cover the entire country. Speaking to The Nation newspaper, he said, “Many SorPorKor titles were given to ‘important people’ – this was not the intent of the SorPorKor scheme. Legal cases brought against these people were weak, which is why the…
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B2m bounty offered for CD pirates
PHUKET: The government has offered a 2-million-baht reward for information leading to the seizure of mass CD-copying machines in Phuket, Oratai Thanajaro, Secretary to the Deputy Minister of Commerce, announced yesterday. Speaking at Kathu Police Station, K. Oratai said, “The Department of Intellectual Property and officers from Bangkok Metropolitan Police have been told that there is a big illegal CD-copying…
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Thavorn closes resort until high season
KARON: The Thavorn Palm Beach Resort will close from June 28 until October 1 for renovations, the management has announced. In a statement issued today, Managing Director Charearn Thavornwongwongse said, “In view of the current situation, Thavorn Palm Beach Resort has decided to take this opportunity to further renovate and develop the resort over the coming months.” He noted that…
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Anchalee slams “political games’
PHUKET: Phuket Democrat MP Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr today emphatically denied that she has any SorPorKor 4-01 land and branded the current land abuse investigation as being motivated purely by politics. At a press conference at her office, K. Anchalee singled out Newin Chidchob, Deputy Agriculture Minister, as being directly responsible for creating problems by misleading the press and the public by…
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Police appeal for patience in Pongtorn probe
SURAT THANI: A senior officer from Police Region 8 has denied press reports that an arrest has been made for the assassination of Phuket Land Office Deputy Chief Pongtorn Hiranyaburana seven weeks ago, and has appealed for the public to be patient. Pol Col Ronapong Saikaew, Superintendent of Investigation of Surat Thani Provincial Police Region 8, who is heading up…
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Manit slams corruption allegations
PHUKET: Vice-Governor Manit Wattanasen has blasted newspapers that alleged he has been moved to Pattani province because of involvement in the ongoing land scandals. V/Gov Manit will take up his new post on June 23. Speaking with the Gazette this morning, he stressed that his transfer had come about because the government needed an urgent replacement for Sanchai Yaisawang, one…
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Coral trafficker arrested
PHUKET TOWN: A local sorng taew driver was arrested at 7 am today when police officers caught him loading boxes of protected coral valued at 100,000 baht onto a van bound for Surat Thani. Acting on a tip-off, officers arrived at the Montri Rd terminus where vans bound for Surat Thani gather, as Phuket native Weerayuth Taodaeng, 41, was loading…
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Fast visas and permits for IT experts
PHUKET TOWN: In a bid to make Phuket more attractive as a Cyber Paradise, the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is pushing for visas and work permits to be processed in one day for “knowledge workers”. Dr Surapong Suebwonglee, Minister for ICT, announced after a seminar in Phuket yesterday, “We will push for work permits and visas to…
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Villagers seek justice for slain council member
CHERNG TALAY: About 200 Cherng Talay villagers carried the casket of a murdered village council member to the Cherng Talay Police Station yesterday to demand justice for his death. The victim, 33-year-old Sommit Kongtin, was allegedly clubbed to death by a gang of young thugs outside the Chok E-sarn Karaoke Bar on Srisoonthorn Rd at about 2 am on June…
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Fake goods worth B1m seized in Patong
PATONG: Almost 3,000 fake items with a street value of 1 million baht were seized in raids on stalls in Soi Kebsab and Thaweewong Rd on Saturday afternoon. The items, mostly leather goods but also including fake brand-name perfumes, clothes and pirated CDs, were seized in raids on nine stalls. The haul, which filled five police pickup trucks, was taken…
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A very dry “wet’ season forecast
PHUKET TOWN: A meteorologist from the Southwestern Regional Meteorological Center has forecast that Phuket will continue to receive less rainfall than normal this rainy season and is urging Phuket residents to strictly conserve water and augment domestic supplies by collecting rainwater. Tawat Tantham-Nu, director of the Southwestern Regional Meteorological Center, told the Gazette, “Much of Bang Wad Reservoir is now…
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Phang Nga resorts slash room rates
PHANG NGA: In a bid to beat the low-season blight, 14 Phang Nga hotels and resorts are offering half-price rooms for Thai nationals until September 15. The promotion, called Unseen Price, aims to promote Phang Nga tourist attractions being touted in the Unseen in Thailand travel campaign launched recently by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). To claim the discount…
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Dancing the doctor away
PHUKET TOWN: More than 2,000 residents from across the island joined Public Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan and leading Phuket figures at Saphan Hin on Thursday to “dance the doctor away”. The mass workout was organized as part of a Health Ministry fitness initiative to encourage people to exercise for at least 15 minutes a day. At the front of the…
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Belgian found hanging from tree
CHALONG: A Belgian businessman was found hanging from a tamarind tree at his home in Chalong on Thursday. His younger brother told police that Georges (Jo) Billiet, 43, had recently broken up with his girlfriend and that this had coincided with a downturn in his business. Pol Maj Sanae Panmee, of Chalong Police Station, said Mr Billiet’s body was found…
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Investigators swoop on Land Reform Office
PHUKET TOWN: Crime Suppression officers and Forestry Police today descended on the Phuket Provincial Agriculture Land Reform Office (ALRO) as part of investigations into the SorPorKor land use scandal. During the afternoon investigators also visited five pieces of land that are among those pinpointed in the massive land probe launched by the government. During a tense two-hour visit in the…
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