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.
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Army denies punishing sergeant over graft allegations
In a press briefing yesterday, an army spokesman denied that a sergeant is facing punishment for exposing alleged graft in an army unit, saying rather that Narongchai Intharakawee faces disciplinary and criminal action for “dereliction of duty”. Previous reports said Narongchai, who serves as a budget clerk at the army ordnance department, claimed he has been intimidated, threatened, and faced…
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Heavy rains, thundershowers predicted nationwide
Thailand’s Meteorological Department says a low pressure cell is covering the upper Bay of Bengal, and the strong southwest monsoon across the Andaman Sea and Thailand is becoming stronger. Continuous rains are predicted across much of the country today, especially in the afternoon, with isolated heavy rains in some areas. People in the North, the East and the South are…
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Show of support for Japanese man stranded in Pattaya
Several local organisations have rallied to help a homeless Japanese man living on Pattaya beach after being left destitute by the Covid-19 crisis. It’s understood that Pattaya Tourist Police found the visibly upset man on the beach with his luggage. After a representative from the Pattaya Japanese Association was called to translate, police learned that the man had been stranded…
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Man arrested after hacking bank account of nearly 400,000 baht
Police arrested a man for fraud after he hacked into a rich businessman’s bank accounts using a smartphone sent in the mail, posing it as a prize. 34 year old Anontwat Vorametchayangkul took 395,000 baht from the man’s accounts, police announced yesterday. He has a background in computer science, and police say he is wanted in 9 cases which are…
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Hospital director denies corruption, threatens to sue government health official
The director of Khon Kaen Provincial Hospital in north-east Thailand is threatening Public Health Permanent Secretary Dr. Sukhum Kanchanapimai with a lawsuit following allegations of corruption. Dr. Charnchai Chanvorachaikul was transferred to Chanthaburi province in the east of the country following unconfirmed reports of corruption relating to donations to the Hospital Development Fund. Dr. Charnchai completely denies the allegations, which…
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Prachuap Khiri Khan’s scenic Ao Manao beach reopens today
Chon Buri and Hua Hin aren’t the only places reopening their beaches. Today, Ao Manao, the scenic beach in the western province of Prachuap Khiri Khan will also be open to the public. The crescent shaped bay belongs to the Air Force Wing 5 miltary base. Like all Thai beaches, it’s been closed for two months due to the Covid-19…
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Electricity discount has been switched off
Yesterday the Ministry of Energy announced that the national electricity discount from March to May, which differed based on the amount of electricity used and size and type of the venue, has ended and will not be renewed. But, at best, the discount was merely a perfunctory political gesture, not a useful saving for most Thai residences. The discount was…
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Government to decide which “red” businesses can reopen in next phase
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration revealed today that the government is now considering which high-risk or “red” businesses will be allowed to reopen under Phase 4 of lockdown easing. CCSA spokesman Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin says that the virus could be with us for months or even years, so the government must carefully consider which “red” high-contagion-risk businesses can reopen.…
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Bangkok braces for Black Lives Matter rally
The death of black American George Floyd at the hands of police burgeoned into a storm of protests reaching across the globe; one that will reach Bangkok this weekend. The vast majority of demonstrations over the past 8 days in the US have been peaceful, but some have turned violent and curfews have been imposed after looting in a number…
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Thailand News Today – Thursday, June 4
17 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand, all repatriated citizens from Middle East Today the Centre of Covid-19 Administration reported 17 new cases of Covid-19 infection. All the cases were repatriated Thai personnel returning from the Middle East. Most the returnees were asymptomatic and were confirmed as infected after a second test. • 13 of the new cases had returned from…
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17 new Covid-19 cases in Thailand, all repatriated citizens from the Middle East
Today the Centre of Covid-19 Administration reported 17 new cases of Covid-19 infection. All the cases were repatriated Thai personnel returning from the Middle East. Spokesperson Dr Taweesilp reported that most the returnees were asymptomatic and were confirmed as infected after a second test. “13 of the new cases had returned from Kuwait, 12 were men aged 31-56, and the other…
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TAT will use domestic tourism as dress rehearsal for international returns
“…the tourism sector will continue to be stifled by disease control measures until a Covid-19 vaccine is developed.” Due to the current ban on international arrivals, extended several times and now in effect until at least July, the Tourism Authority of Thailand has created a strategy to support domestic tourism and “learn from the experience”, as it eases into the…
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Carpenter killed at migrant workers’ camp
A Burmese carpenter was killed early yesterday morning at a central Thailand workers’ camp which houses hundreds of migrant workers. 32 year old Thein Tun, was stabbed multiple times and was dead by the time police arrived at the Sino-Thai Engineering camp in the Samut Prakan province, just south of Bangkok. Police found a knife but are still looking for possible…
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Thailand’s health volunteers are ‘unsung heroes’ WHO rep says
Thailand’s village health volunteers have been deemed “unsung heroes” in the coronavirus pandemic by a World Health Organisation representative for Thailand. “The volunteers have helped keep the number of cases low by educating villagers about the virus and prevention measures as well as collecting temperatures.” While Thailand had the first coronavirus case outside of China, the country has not been…
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Government says Cambodian workers should remain in Thailand during Covid-19
The director general of Thailand’s Employment Department, Suchart Phonchaiwisetkun, says Cambodian labourers should remain in Thailand while the fight against the Covid-19 goes on in the region. He was speaking following a meeting with the the Cambodian Ambassador, Ouk Sorphorn, where they discussed how Thailand would deal with its migrant workforce during the pandemic. According to a report in Nation…
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Beauty clinic designs special face masks for facial treatments
A skin and beauty clinic has designed a mini face mask for clients getting close-up facial treatments to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and comply with the rules set out by the government. But the mask allows therapists to still get to most of the face so they can apply the same procedures. Waleerat Clinic in Bangkok made re-usable…
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Woman in southern Thailand accused of murdering daughter
A 54 year old woman, named by police as Prateep Chindawong, has been arrested for the murder of her 29 year old daughter in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat. Police say Chonthicha Jindawong was stabbed to death with a screwdriver. Thai media reports say the accused had claimed her house was broken into and that the intruder killed…
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Heavy rains, thundershowers predicted nationwide
Thailand’s Meteorological Department says the southwest monsoon across the Andaman Sea and Thailand is getting stronger today, while the low pressure area covers upper Vietnam. Isolated heavy rains are likely in the North, the Northeast, the Central region including Bangkok and its vicinity, the East and the South. People should prepare for severe conditions. Here is the forecast for the…
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As Thailand’s beaches reopen, crowds flock back
Yesterday, the Queen’s birthday and a public holiday, saw many of Thailand’s popular beaches heaving with visitors as they reopened for the first time since their closure by the Emergency Decree in March. People across the country took advantage of the easing of inter-provincial travel restrictions that took effect Monday. Chon Buri’s Bang Saen beach in Chon Buri was almost…
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Private daycares and nurseries desperately want to reopen
Parents are returning to work, but daycares are still shut down to prevent any potential spread of the coronavirus. Private daycares are telling the government they want to reopen, warning that many parents may place their children in unauthorised daycare centres. Private daycare centres say its crucial that they open soon, but their call to open in the third phase…
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Developers need to clear stock, heavy discounting in property market
ADVERTORIAL Property prices are expected to decline by double digits in the next few months as Thailand’s property developers begin to offer more sales incentives in response to post Covid-19 markets. A recent survey by leading property portal FazWaz indicated that 50% of Thailand’s property developers are considering discounting at least 20% off minimum benchmark prices. Brennan Campbell, CEO at…
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No date for resumption of international arrivals: PM
In an apparent effort to quell rumours and undue optimism, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is downplaying the notion that international tourists will be allowed to return to Thailand in July. The government had set a tentative deadline of 1 July for lifting all restrictions put in place under the Emergency Decree to combat the spread of Covid-19. Last week it was…
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Major makeover proposed for Pattaya’s Walking Street
… but few are impressed. Images on the Facebook page of Pattaya City reveal plans for a major re-imagining and makeover of one of the resort’s most notable, and notorious, landmarks – Walking Street. Gone are the grotty road, broken pavements and lurid signs and frontages, and in their place will be an easy to navigate walking area fit for…
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PM distancing himself from party room clashes
PM Prayut Chan-o-Cha appeared to distance himself from party politics, and internal strife within the ruling Palang Pracharat party, after 18 members resigned en masse to pave the way for the election of a new executive committee, party leader and secretary-general. He repeatedly deflected questions from reporters about speculation that the resignations were intended to replace party leader Finance Minister…
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Powering up tuk tuks for a new era in Bangkok
Electric tuk-tuks have been in use in cities around Thailand for some time, but now the Thai Electric Vehicle Association has launched a new post-Covid-19 electric tricycle as an alternative form of public transportation in the “new normal” era, and supports the vehicle to promote Thai tourism after the national lockdown is fully lifted. EVAT sees the three-wheeled transport as…
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Chiang Rai policeman fired over torture death of university mascot dog
When the body of Tia, the mascot dog of Chiang Mai University was found in May, suspicions arose immediately. It was initially announced that Tia, or “Shorty” in English, had been run over by a car, and police later said a student had come forward to confess. But animal rights group Watchdog Thailand, based in Chiang Mai, investigated the incident…
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Covid-19 update: 1 new imported case (June 3)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced a single new imported case of Covid-19 at this morning’s daily press briefing. The patient is a 26 year old student who recently returned from Saudi Arabia and was sent directly to a state quarantine facility. The new case raises Thailand’s total 3,084 since the start of the outbreak in January, with 2,968…
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Woman found hanged in Nakhon Ratchasima, son found drowned nearby
Police in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima report that a woman was found hanged in a workers’ shelter and her 12 year old son drowned in a nearby pond at a sand depot yesterday. Workers arriving in the morning discovered the woman, hanged with electric wires from the beam of the shelter in tambon Chum Phuang, according to the…
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Sergeant says he’ll go to court to fight army corruption
After accusing the Thai army of corruption, a sergeant says he’ll now go to court to hash it out and strip his rank to get justice. Sgt. Narongchai Intharakawi, a clerk for the Army Ordnance Department, is accused of deserting his post amid a complaint he made against the army regarding alleged fraud. A video of the a superior officer…
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4 metre python caught after eating school’s pets
Cats and chickens have been going missing at a central Thailand school for the past month or so. Turns out they ended up in the stomach of a 4 metre, 70 kilogram python. The Pranchanukul Rescue Team in Ratchaburi eventually caught the python yesterday and released into the wild, away from villages. Ratchaburi is on the Burmese border, west of…
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