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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World News: Fact-finding mission to investigate violence against Rohingya
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international communityOIC fact-finding mission travels to Myanmar to investigate violence against Rohingya MuslimsPHUKET: THe Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has announced a mission is traveling to Burma (Myanmar) today to investigate the recent violence against Rohingya Muslims.The fact-finding mission is scheduled to last for ten days and will also…
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Phuket Live Wire: Wait until Christmas
PHUKET: Last week I talked about the direction the computer industry is headed as we barrel along toward the Christmas season. If you’re thinking about buying any new electronics – computer, tablet, phone, maybe even a TV – it would be worthwhile to stay on top of developments between now and Christmas. Some of the stuff coming down the pipe…
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Weather advisory for Phuket, Andaman Coast
PHUKET: The Thai Meteorological Department has issued a weather advisory for the six Andaman Coast provinces of Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun.Southwest monsoonal conditions prevailing over the west coast will bring wind gusts and heavy to very heavy rain in some areas. Flash flooding may occur in risk areas; people are advised to proceed with caution. Wind-driven…
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Phuket Business: Pineapples please
PHUKET: A pineapple trading center was opened in Phuket recently in a move aimed at centralizing provincial supply of the fruit, and thus increasing its market penetration potential across Southeast Asia. Vinai Kwankaew of the Phuket Agriculture Office said that pineapples have become the province’s most significant revenue-generating fruit. Phuket pineapples are known for their sweet flavor, tasty and yellow…
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Phuket poll: Have you ever cheated on your partner?
PHUKET: Results of the annual international sex survey by condom manufacturing firm Durex reveal Thai couples to be among the most promiscuous on the planet. The results have stirred up controversy, denials and debate throughout the country. To get a local angle on all this alleged infidelity, the Phuket Gazette online asks its own esteemed readers whether they have ever…
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Phuket Business: Beer, wine and automobile excises poised for revision
PHUKET: In light of Cabinet’s recent approval of tax hikes for cigarettes and liquor, the Excise Department is now looking to increase revenue shares from the trade of beer, wine and automobiles.Quoted in a report by the Nation, Benja Louichareon, director-general of the Excise Department, said, “The department is also looking at whether it should increase tax on beer and…
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Phuket Business: AMCHAM affirms commitment to saving the environment
PHUKET: The American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) Greater Phuket Chapter assembled at Holiday Inn Patong for its third meeting of the year recently. Organized in conjunction with environmental organization, SEEK, the evening’s discussions focused on ways that hospitality and tourism stakeholders can implement “Green Tourism” practices while reducing operational overheads and thus increasing profit margins. The meeting followed an all-day,…
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Body of Burmese worker found at Phuket construction site
PHUKET: The decomposing body of a worker from Myanmar was left undiscovered at a Phuket construction site for at least three days before being found late yesterday afternoon. Thalang Police were notified of the body at 6:15pm. Arriving at the scene with Phuket Kusoldharm Foundation workers, police found the body pinned between a wall and some metal scaffolding at the…
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All silent on “insecticide’ causing deaths of Canadian sisters
PHUKET: A spokesperson at the forensic laboratory at Ramathibodi Hospital in Bangkok today declined to confirm or deny reports that insecticide containing DEET had been identified as the cause of death of Audrey and Noemi Belanger. The sisters, Audrey, age 20, and Noemi, 25, from Quebec, Canada, were found dead in their hotel room on Phi Phi Island on June…
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Hunt continues for suspect in Phuket Police shooting
PHUKET: Chalong Police continue to search for a suspect who remains at-large following the June shooting of an on-duty officer in a live music venue in Phuket. Lt Col Boonlert Onklang of the Chalong Police told the Phuket Gazette today (September 4) that his officers are still searching for Phiromchai “Un” Tuaktham, the only one of five suspects wanted in…
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French tourist killed, another comatose in Phuket motorbike crash
PHUKET: One French tourist is dead and another remains in a coma after the motorbike they were riding crashed on the beach road in Karon before dawn yesterday.Chalong duty officer Boonlert Onklang said that police were informed of the accident, at a curved section of the beach road near the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort, at 3.40am. Arriving at the scene,…
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“Hungry ghosts’ inspire new Phuket TAT chief to push cultural tourism
PHUKET: The new director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket office is drawing up plans to push Phuket’s cultural festivals after witnessing his first Por Tor festival in Phuket.Director Chanchai Doungjit told the Phuket Gazette this morning that he is devising a four-year plan to bring tourists in from around the world by expressly focusing on Phuket’s cultural…
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Flood takes steam out of Tiger Discotheque extension inquiry
PHUKET: The investigation into whether or not the alleged “extension” to the ill-fated Tiger Discotheque in Patong was legal fell flat last week after Patong Municipality admitted that it had lost the original plan to the building in a flood nearly a decade ago. The investigation was launched after four people died in the lethal blaze at the club, located…
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World News: Lufthansa cabin crew strike causes flight cancellations
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hundreds of flights canceled as Lufthansa cabin crews strike Phuket Gazette / News Wires PHUKET: Cabin crews at German airline Lufthansa today launched a fresh strike at two major airports in Berlin and Frankfurt over an escalating pay dispute, a labor union said, forcing the airline…
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“…but I do believe there is an issue here.”
“I want to apologize for the timing of my comments but I do believe there is an issue here.” Oscar Pistorius has apologized for his outburst after he lost the final of the 200 meters at the Paralympic Games in London. South African Pistorius, known as Blade Runner, was beaten to the post by Alan Oliveira in a shock result,…
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Local TAT chief bullish on Phuket tourism industry
PHUKET: The new director the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in Phuket Town has proclaimed the “low season” a thing of the past with so many tourists arriving year-round. Speaking at the “Governor Meets the Press” gathering at Provincial Hall today, TAT Southern Region 4 Office director Chanchai Doungjit expressed confidence in the performance of the Phuket tourism industry,…
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Phone call ends suicide drama atop Phuket billboard
PHUKET: A troubled man, who this afternoon climbed atop a billboard opposite the Central Festival Phuket shopping complex, has climbed down to safety and is now in police protective custody. Phuket City Police Superintendent Sermphan Sirikhong identified the man as Sathien Promsang, originally from Trang province. “Mr Sathien told us that he had come to Phuket to find his wife…
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Booze and ballots don’t mix: Phuket poll
PHUKET: A majority of Phuket Gazette readers think the election-weekend alcohol bans should remain in place despite their cost to the local economy, the results of our online readers’ poll reveal. A total of 1,599 readers took part in the two-week survey, which was timed to span consecutive weekend alcohol bans: the first an island-wide ban for the Phuket Provincial…
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Phuket Sports: Islanders almost bag the Cat
PHUKET: The Islanders maintained their 10th place standing in the 18-team Yamaha Division One football league thanks to a 1-1 home draw against Nakhon Ratchasima FC on Saturday evening. The match, played under clear skies at Phuket FC’s Surakul Stadium, drew a crowd of about 2,500 fans, including dozens of Korat “Swat Cat” fans who travelled all the way from…
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Landslide win for Phuket’s Pian Keesin – the Mayor of Patong
PHUKET: Pian Keesin was re-elected to a third consecutive term as Patong Mayor yesterday, with members of his “Rak Patong” party winning 17 of the 18 seats contested to give him an unassailable majority in the new city council. Turnout for the polling, which ran from 8am to 3pm, was 63.5% of 12,831 eligible voters. There were 217 spoiled ballots…
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Gov orders crackdown on firecrackers, food prices for Vegetarian Festival
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha has expressed his concern over the overzealous use of firecrackers and the skyrocketing prices of vegetables during the upcoming Phuket Vegetarian Festival, this year to be held from October 15-23. The news came at a meeting between Governor Tri and other senior officials and the Phuket Vegetarian Festival committee at Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday. Among…
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Phuket Airport expansion finally underway
PHUKET: Wing Commander Pratheep Wichittho, Deputy Director of Airports of Thailand (AOT) Public Co Ltd, today announced that the long-awaited 5.7-billion-baht expansion project at Phuket International Airport is finally underway. Mr Pratheep was joined at a press conference at the Royal Phuket City Hotel by Phuket Airport Director Prathuang Sornkham, who said that the expansion project would not adversely affect…
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Australian Govt rejects Bamford blast over Phuket rape claim
PHUKET: The Australian Government has flatly rejected allegations by one of their own citizens, Stevie Bamford, who went on Australian national television and accused embassy officials of telling her to lie about her alleged sexual assault ordeal on Phuket. Ms Bamford, 21, alleged on the prime-time television show Today Tonight that Australian consular officials told her to confess to lying…
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Phuket Opinion: There’s no place like home
PHUKET: The low turnout for the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) council election last weekend highlighted yet again the problems the island faces due to the fact that so many migrant workers who live here continue to maintain house registrations in their “home” provinces, in some cases despite having lived and worked on the island for over a decade. The…
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DEET in lethal “party cocktail’ killed Canadian sisters: Autopsy
PHUKET: Krabi Provincial Police are now investigating where Canadian sisters Audrey and Noemi Belanger were possibly given a lethal cocktail containing kratom leaves and cough syrup, which may also have contained the insect repellent compound DEET. The sisters, 20-year-old Audrey and Noemi, 25, from Quebec, were found dead in their hotel room on Phi Phi Island on June 15. Police…
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Phuket FC Coach: “Anything can happen’ tonight against Korat
PHUKET: Fans of Phuket FC are confident that their side will not walk away without at least a point in tonight’s home football match against a slightly better-ranked, yet tired and injury-riddled Nakhon Ratchasima FC side. To be played at Surakul Stadium in Phuket Town, the 25th fixture of the season will kickoff at 6:30pm. The Islanders’ Head Coach, Narong…
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Phuket Sports: Futsal soon “United’; World futsal cup draw
PHUKET: The island’s professional futsal (five-a-side indoor football) team Phuket United is set to begin pre-season training for the Thailand Futsal League (TFL) 2012-2013 season, scheduled to kick off unofficially by next month. Speaking on the phone from Bangkok, the team’s secretary, Samak Rattanatilok na Phuket, informed the Gazette that the team has finally received confirmation from the TFL about…
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Phuket ready for “hungry ghost’ festival
PHUKET: Phuket City Municipality has organized a wide range of activities for the annual Por Tor festival from September 2 to 15, including colorful street processions tomorrow and next Sunday. Promoted internationally by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) regional office in Phuket Town, the Por Tor festival has its roots from the Chinese “Spirit” or “Hungry Ghost” festival (zhong…
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Pedal power from Deep South arrives in Phuket
PHUKET: A sortie of 130 cyclists from Narathiwat arrived in Phuket this afternoon, pedaling their way from the troubled province in Thailand’s Deep South to Phuket Provincial Hall in just three days. There to welcome the cyclists was Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) Chief Dr Sak Tanchaikul. “This bike rally was a cooperative effort between the Phuket Public Health Office…
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Once in a Blue Moon
PHUKET: The National Astronomical Research Institute (NARIT) has announced that the rare lunar event, known as a ‘Blue Moon’, is scheduled to occur tonight. NARIT Deputy Director, Dr. Sarun Posayachinda elaborated that a Blue Moon refers to the second full moon within a given month. A full moon generally takes place once a month. This occurrence happens approximately once every…
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