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Fire kills 41, injures dozens more at Indonesian prison
At least 41 people have been killed and over 70 others have been injured after a fire ripped through an Indonesian prison on western Java, today. The fire at the Tangerang Penitentiary tore through the prison in the early morning hours. Most inmates were asleep at the time. Police speculate that the fire could have been caused by an electrical…
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Missing baby girl found by cave she was brought to as a sacrifice
In Chiang Mai, a toddler, who has been missing since Sunday evening, has reportedly been found. A man allegedly admitted to kidnapping the girl, who is almost 2 years old, and leaving her outside a cave as a sacrifice to the spirits of the mountains and forest. She was found in a hut just outside the cave. The 44 year…
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Vulnerable Bangkok students to receive Pfizer vaccines later this month
Adolescents, notably vulnerable students, in Bangkok will receive Pfizer vaccines later this month. The students, between the ages of 12 and 18, should get their vaccine at Navamindradhiraj University starting September 21, said the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration yesterday. The eligible students, who’ve been assessed by a doctor, must provide proof of having a disability, illness, or a chronic condition. The…
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Phuket update: 30 total Covid-19 deaths with 10 in the last 4 days.
With 234 new Covid-19 cases reported, the total infections in the Phuket Sandbox inches to nearly 6,000, deaths have seen a sharp rise on the island. 2 new deaths reported last night to bring the total to 30 Covid-19 deaths since April, a jump of 50% since Sunday. Over the last 5 months, 20 people had died of Covid-19 in…
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Thai immigration official transferred amid allegations of bribery
A Thai immigration official has been transferred and an investigation launched following allegations of corruption. The officer is accused of demanding regular bribes from an immigrant in the Hat Yai district of Songkhla, in southern Thailand. Officers from Immigration Division 6 have now launched an investigation into the claims. They insist the investigation will be transparent and impartial, adding that…
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12 million Sinovac doses to arrive this month or next
The Cabinet Committee has approved a 4.25 billion baht budget to buy another 12 million Sinovac doses. The vaccine will be used for the immunity boost and the cross-formula method. The approval came yesterday afternoon. The vaccine allocation will prioritise 4 target groups: Patients with 7 underlying diseases Those over 60 years old Medical officials, frontliners, public officials who work…
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Survey shows most Singaporeans reluctant to travel internationally for now
A survey carried out by online travel agency, Booking.com, shows that 63% of Singaporeans are not planning to travel abroad for now. While Singapore is on the “green list” for most countries, the survey shows that most Singaporeans remain cautious about overseas travel. In general, over a year and a half since the start of the pandemic, travel in the…
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Wednesday Covid Update: 228 deaths and 14,176 new cases
228 coronavirus-related deaths and 14,176 new Covid-19 cases were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has recorded a total of 1,293,656 confirmed Covid-19 cases. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA has recorded 16,769 more recoveries.…
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“No Place Like Home” – New Online Care Marketplace SAIJAI Launches Digital Start-Up in Thailand
Press Release A new digital on-demand online marketplace named SAIJAI has launched in Thailand and is setting its sights on democratizing home care in the country. Borne from a dynamic consumer behaviour shift over the past sixteen months to home-based lifestyle needs, the start-up brand is eyeing the Care From Home (CFH) marketplace, Thailand is the first market in its…
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Survey shows over half of Thai hotels are considering closing due to low demand
A survey conducted by the Bank of Thailand and the Thai Hotels Association shows that 52% of hotels are considering closing temporarily and 9% want to shut down for good. 62% plan to reduce their workforce costs as a result of the financial fallout from Covid-19, while 61% say they will cut expenditure elsewhere. The Bangkok Post reports that the…
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Tourism officials push for resumption of Russia flights in last quarter
The Tourism Authority of Thailand says it’s essential that commercial flights between Russia and Thailand be allowed to resume during the last quarter of the year. However, under Thailand’s emergency decree, international flights can only operate as semi-commercial, with limited seat capacity. Khanittha Phanworawat from the TAT’s Moscow office says this means the Russian aviation authority is still not allowing…
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Paris: Can a trial help heal victims of the Bataclan terror attacks?
Ever since November 13, 2015, Sebastien Dauzet has been feeling vulnerable. That night, nine gunmen attacked what he considers the heart of his neighborhood. Theterrorists killed 130 people in attacks at the Stade de France stadium just north of Paris, as well as in several bars and the Bataclan music venue in the capital. It was France’s bloodiest terror attack…
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Monkey taken to Si Racha veterinary hospital following electrocution and fall from tree
A monkey has been rescued after it received a severe electric shock and plummeted from a high tree in Si Racha, a district in the Chon Buri province. A motorbike taxi driver alerted Si Racha firefighters to the simian’s plight yesterday. Veterinarians from the National Park Wildlife and Plant Conservation Si Racha Office and officials from the Si Racha Electric…
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Belarus: Germany, EU slam Kolesnikova verdict
The news from Minsk did not come as much of a surprise: A court in the Belarusian capital on Monday sentenced the well-known Belarusian opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova to 11 years in prison. Her colleague in the Belarusian opposition’s Coordination Council, the lawyer Maxim Znak, was handed a 10-year jail sentence. Kolesnikova became one of the most prominent faces of…
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Couple held for questioning in connection with missing Chiang Mai toddler
Earlier today, the Thaiger wrote about how officials in Chiang Mai have been searching for a toddler that has been missing since Sunday night. Now, Thai PBS says a couple is being held in police custody for questioning in connection with the search. A 44 year old man, who is a neighbour of the missing girl’s father, and his wife…
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Vietnamese man gets 5 years in jail for spreading Covid
A man in Vietnam has received a 5 year jail sentence for breaking home quarantine rules and spreading Covid. 28 year old Le Van Tri has been convicted of “spreading dangerous infectious diseases to other people” after he went to his home province in Ca Mau from Ho Chi Minh City in July, says the Vietnam News Agency. Le Van…
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68 schools to reopen as part of “Sandbox Safety Zone in School” programme
A new school programme, the “Sandbox Safety Zone in School” is being launched to reopen 68 schools across Thailand. The programme is being launched by the Ministry of Education. Education Ministry spokesperson, Kesthip Supawanich, says the schools that are part of the new programme include 44 schools from the Office of the Private Education Commission, 20 schools from the Special…
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Protesters at Bangkok’s Asok intersection call on PM Prayut Chan-o-cha to resign
Protesters gathered at Bangkok’s Asok interaction yesterday, calling on PM Prayut Chan-o-cha to resign. For the past year, pro-democracy groups have been pushing for the prime minister to step down, but with the latest wave of Covid-19 surpassing more than 1 million infections, along with a limited supply of vaccines, protesters now say Prayut should resign due to mismanagement during…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 13,821 new cases; provincial totals
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says there are now 145,465 active Covid-19 cases in Thailand, a decline over the past several weeks. Yesterday, a spokesperson for the CCSA said Thailand has “passed its peak” in the latest and most severe wave of the virus where more than 1 million confirmed infections have been recorded since April 1. 241 coronavirus-related…
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Proof of vaccine might be needed to enter “high risk” stores in shopping centres
Along with restaurants in “dark red” zones planned to start requiring documents for dine-in services, people may also need to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test to enter certain stores in shopping centres starting in October. Employees will also need to be fully vaccinated, according to the Department of Health. A full list of “high risk” businesses…
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New project aims to mass test vulnerable populations in Bangkok neighbourhood
A new project, involving mass-testing for Covid, is being launched to help look after the homeless and other vulnerable people in Phra Nakhon, a district in Bangkok. The project, “Klong Lod Covid-free”, was started by a group of civil society organisations that are working with the government. The project gets its name from Klong Lod in the Phra Nakhon district.…
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Phuket plans new screening measures for visitors, effective Wednesday
Phuket is planning new screening measures for visitors starting Wednesday. The Phuket communicable disease committee announced the measures yesterday, which will require visitors who wish to see the island to provide evidence of where they are staying in Phuket with payment made in advance. Visitors will also be required to register through this website and show a QR code to…
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Singaporean who repeatedly refused to wear a face mask jailed for 16 weeks
A Singaporean woman who repeatedly refused to wear a face mask in public spaces has been sentenced to a 16-week jail term. According to a Coconuts report, 54 year old Phoon Chiu Yoke has pleaded guilty to 9 counts of breaching Covid-19 regulations. The woman achieved notoriety when a video of her refusing to wear a mask at the Marina…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 241 deaths and 13,821 new cases
241 coronavirus-related deaths and 13,821 Covid-19 infections were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 16,737 recoveries. There are now 145,465 active cases, a decline over the past several weeks. A spokesperson for the CCSA says Thailand has “passed its peak” in the latest and most severe wave…
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CCSA says easing of restrictions could lead to more infections if public lowers its guard
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has warned that the easing of restrictions could lead to a surge in infections in the coming weeks. Spokesman Taweesin Visanuyothin says that if the public gets complacent, mid-October could see infections shoot up again. According to a Thai PBS World report, the doctor has voiced concern after seeing crowds of people at the…
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Health Ministry says don’t panic, no cases of Mu variant found in Thailand
Thailand’s Health Ministry says there have been no cases of the Mu variant of Covid-19 reported in the country to date. The World Health Organisation has named Mu – or B.1.621 – as a variant of interest, as it could be more resistant to vaccines. However, the Bangkok Post reports that Dr Supakit Sirilak from the Department of Medical Sciences…
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Hua Hin to re-open to international tourists from October 1
Hua Hin’s re-opening is still on track for October 1, with officials hoping to welcome commercial flights and private jets to the airport. Yuthasak Supasorn from the Tourism Authority of Thailand says the Hua Hin Recharge programme covers 86.3 square kilometres between Hua Hin municipality and the district of Nong Kae. The Bangkok Post reports that once tourists receive a…
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Emergency decree could be coming to an end as infections decline
It’s been with us since March 2020, but the emergency decree declared by the PM at the start of the pandemic may be coming to an end. According to a Bangkok Post report, Natthapol Nakpanich from the National Security Council says the government may decide not to extend the state of emergency as new Covid-19 infections continue to drop. Natthapol…
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Guinea’s future uncertain as coup leaders tighten grip on power
The morning after the coup, the capital woke up on Monday to a new reality which has left Guineans with mixed feelings. “There is a great sense of uncertainty,” said DW’s correspondent in Conakry, Bangaly Conde. “Today we saw an image of Guinea we are not used to see. We are very disappointed with the army,” one Guinean told DW.…
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India’s ambitious palm oil push triggers biodiversity fears
The Indian government introduced a new plan in August to boost the production of palm oil. India is one of the largest consumers of palm oil, which is used in almost everything from soaps to chips. But the country still imports most of its palm oil. India also produces a range of other vegetable oils, like mustard and soybean, but…
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