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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More Phuket Airport taxis approved
PHUKET: The Transport Ministry has formally approved a request by Airports of Thailand (AoT) to increase the number of taxis and vans that can operate at Phuket International Airport by 60. News of the approval came at a meeting chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Nivit Aroonrat at Phuket Provincial Hall on Friday morning. Phuket Land Transport Office director Kanok Siripanichkorn…
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Over Bt1m seized in Phuket meth arrest
PHUKET: A former driver at a local school was arrested at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint with 200 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills yesterday evening. Acting on a tip-off, Tah Chat Chai Police led by Lt Nopparat Kongsuk pulled over a red-plated Vigo pickup at 7pm. A search of the vehicle uncovered 200 ya bah pills stashed inside a plastic bag stuffed…
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Phuket SEZ a dream?; Mega-show for Phuket; Election fraud; court begins
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Special Economic Zones: Phuket hopes remain a dream In a development sure to raise eyebrows in Phuket, Sa Kaew province has been chosen to become a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to promote trade and investment in eastern…
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Environmentalists urge amendment of Phuket development plan
PHUKET: A written appeal to amend Phuket’s General Development Plan was submitted by local environmental and community groups last week. Addressed to Gov Wichai Phraisa-ngob, the letter was received by Vice Governor Teerayut Eimtrakul who commented that a committee would be arranged to consider issues raised in the document before passing on any suggested amendments to the Department of Public…
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Phuket Bus Terminal 2: the saga continues
PHUKET: A plan by the Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) to open its new provincial bus station by October 1 is in jeopardy because local residents oppose having buses do U-turns on Thepkrasattri Road, the Gazette has learned. PLTO Chief Kanok Siripanichkorn told the Gazette last week that his office hoped to have the 128-million-baht facility in operation by October…
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Phuket Opinion: More dam projects needed
PHUKET: Work on the much-needed 5.7-million-cubic-meter Klong Krata reservoir in the foothills behind Wat Luangpu Supha in Chalong can finally proceed, now that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) has finally approved a request by the Phuket Provincial Irrigation Office (PPIO) to use a 60-rai plot of Forest Department land needed to begin construction. The issues holding up…
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Phuket drowning victim identified
PHUKET: Police have identified the body of a man found washed up at Ao Yon over the weekend as that of Rawai resident Abdulloh Thaodaeng, aged 46. Phuket City Police were notified that a body was discovered lying face up on Ao Yon beach in tambon Wichit at about 2:30am yesterday. Police were initially unable to identify the corpse, clad…
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Phuket Poll: Foreign tourists lax on Thai culture
PHUKET: Foreign visitors to Phuket make some, but not considerable, effort to understand and respect Thai culture, the results of the latest Phuket Gazette Readers’ Poll reveal. A total of 325 readers took part in the two-week survey, posted on July 22, 2010. The poll followed a report by the local Culture Ministry office that a foreigner running a restaurant…
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Phuket wet market to open this month
PHUKET: Although vendors and city officials continue to haggle over costs, the new wet market on Ranong Road will open by the end of the month, Phuket City Municipality says. Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana and city council members met with vendor representatives at Phuket City Hall on Monday. Provincial Deputy Governor Teerayut Eimtrakul served as chairman of the meeting…
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Phuket preps for Indians; Swiss steers Serenity Phuket; Bridge bomb
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Phuket prepares for Pow Wow Phuket will be hosting an annual meeting of tour guide operators from India from Sept 24-27. A total of 1,500-2,000 representatives from the Association of Indian Tourist Guides will take part. Phuket…
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Andaman Motor Expo underway in Phuket
PHUKET: The Andaman Motor Expo 2010 is underway on the first floor of Central Festival Phuket’s HomeWorks complex. Among the makes on display are Toyota, Isuzu, Mazda, Proton, Mitsubishi, Chevrolet, BMW and Volvo. Companies selling car accessories and finance firms also have booths and displays. There are also classic cars on display, including a replica of the #53 Herbie “The…
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Work begins on new Phuket Town road
PHUKET: Construction began yesterday on a new road that will link Saphan Hin to Chao Fa East Road in Phuket Town. With an axe-chop to a cement bag, Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop kicked off the opening ceremony at 9:30am with Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana, Phuket MP Raywat Areerob and Phuket Rural Roads Office Director Teeraporn Jirarattanakorn. The ceremony took…
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Phuket government offices to close for Mother’s Day
PHUKET: All Thai government offices, including Phuket Immigration, will be closed August 12 and 13 for the birthday of HM Queen Sirikit. Her Majesty’s birthday on August 12 is also celebrated as Mother’s Day in Thailand. “Our office will be closed on August 12 and 13, and will reopen on August 16,” Phuket Immigration Chief Col Panuwat Ruamrak confirmed to…
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999 rare trees to honor Mother’s Day in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket City Municipality mark Mother’s Day, which in Thailand is on the August 12 birthday of HM Queen Sirikit, with a variety of public activities at Suan Luang Park on August 9. The activities include the planting of 999 yang na, or “hairy-leafed apitong”, trees. The Kata-Karon Hotel Business Association, together with Krungthai Bank, the Rotary Club of Tungkha…
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Phuket PAD protest; oil drills defended; Bangkok bombs; economy booms
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Phuket PAD adding fuel to temple fire Phuket members of the People‘s Alliance for Democracy are on their way to Bangkok this morning to join a rally at Government House. The Phuket contingent wants to help the…
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German-Thai couple nabbed for Phuket burglary
KAMALA: A German and his Thai girlfriend were arrested Wednesday for burglary and possession of stolen goods after the couple’s alleged victim spotted one of them carrying her missing handbag in Kamala, police said. Natthapakin Kuanchaipruek, superintendent at Kamala Police Station, presented Karsten Lange, 45, and his girlfriend Pattranit Morida, 29, at a press conference yesterday. Police said Mr Lange…
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Preah Vihear protest: Phuket PAD off to Bangkok
PHUKET: Phuket members of the People’s Alliance for Democracy will travel to the capital tomorrow to join a rally at Government House, where they will pressure the government to resolve the ongoing dispute over the Preah Vihear temple. Preah Vihear temple, built on the hilly border between Thailand and Cambodia, was awarded to Cambodia by the International Court of Justice…
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Six confess to drug charges in Phuket
PATONG: Kathu Police held a press conference on Tuesday to announce the arrest on Monday of six drug suspects, all of whom confessed to being members of a major drug ring selling ya bah (methamphetamine) and ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) to tourists in Patong. The conference was chaired by Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Superintendent Kosol Watrakon and Kathu Police Superintendent…
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Brit biker sets record for Thai King
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. PHUKET: Away from his home in Chiangrai for more than three months, British expat Alan Bate completed his trip around the world in honour of His Majesty the King of Thailand yesterday and set a new record…
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Phuket Police: ‘Serial suicide’ girl a con artist
PHUKET: The “suicidal” teenage girl who threatened to hurl herself from a pedestrian walkway in Phuket Town yesterday is actually a serial con artist who has tried similar scams in other parts of the country, police say. Phuket City Police Superintendent Wanchai Ekpornpit told the media today that police left Phuket yesterday to escort 19-year-old Orasa Lapruek back to her…
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Baba Peranakan mass wedding in Phuket Town
PHUKET: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is organizing a mass wedding ceremony in the “Baba Peranakan” (Straits Chinese) tradition to take place in Phuket Town this month. The colorful event, organized jointly with the Phuket Peranakan Association (PPA) and Phuket City Municipality, will take place August 14 and 15. It is intended both as a celebration of Peranakan culture…
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Business brisk at Phuket City Pawnshop
PHUKET: The general state of the economy – not World Cup gambling – is responsible for brisk trade at the Phuket City Municipality Pawnshop, officers say. The shop, on Kamorapat Road in Phuket Town, currently has 480 million baht out on loan to 31,280 customers, according to a release by the municipality. Borrowers appear to be pawning more valuable items,…
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Phuket crash helmet campaign: fines start July 1, 2011
PHUKET: The public awareness part of the Phuket City Police “100% motorcycle helmet use” campaign will run another full year before offenders will face fines, it has been announced. The campaign, which began in April, is intended to bring helmet use in Phuket City Police District to 100%, both among operators and their passengers. July 1 this year was initially…
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Cockfighting a gamble in Phuket
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world about Thailand, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. PHUKET: Initially reported by the Phuket Gazette on Monday, a raid on a cockfighting ring in Phuket on Sunday has caught the attention of online gambling journal ‘Gaming Zion’, which in a report filed last night looks…
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Phuket students prevent suicide leap
PHUKET: A group of Satree Phuket School students were able to talk a troubled teenager out of committing suicide by jumping off the pedestrian footbridge near their school this morning. Satree Phuket 12th-grade student Nat Koeypoekaisan said he was walking over the footbridge that spans Thepkrasattri Road when he noticed the young woman climbing over the handrail, facing out over…
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FC Phuket 2 – Satun United 1
PHUKET: First-place FC Phuket won a key football match on Sunday, with a clutch 2-1 road win over second-place Satun United. Satun United, coming off a 1-0 win over Hatyai FC, were in high spirits for the match against FC Phuket, who won the first encounter played at Surakul Stadium in March by a score of 2-0. In second place…
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Chinese firm interested in light rail project for Phuket
PHUKET: Representatives of a mainland Chinese construction conglomerate paid a visit to the Phuket Governor today to discuss the possibility of building a light-rail public transport system for Phuket. Francis Soo of Ershisanye Construction Group met Gov Wichai Phraisa-ngop at Provincial Hall this morning to express his firm’s interest. Founded in 1953, Ershisanye is engaged in construction engineering, mining development…
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42 arrested at Phuket cockfight
PHUKET: Forty-two people were arrested and charged with gambling following a raid at a Phuket cockpit yesterday afternoon. The raid, led by Crime Suppression Division Area 5 Inspector Sitthikiat Srichan, came at 1:30pm at a rubber plantation area off Soi Suanwat in Rawai Village 1, behind Rawai Temple. Among those arrested were two women, one of whom was pregnant. All…
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Dems in Phuket: unity sought, top cop consoled
PHUKET: During a Democrat Party seminar in Phuket over the weekend, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban urged fellow Democrat MPs from throughout the south to take a creative, friendly approach in trying to mend the fractious issues dividing the country. DPM Suthep was speaking at a party seminar entitled “Join Forces and Solve the National Crisis” at the Phuket Merlin…
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Thai jails swamped with inmates
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news from around the world compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. PHUKET: The number of prisoners in Thailand’s 143 jails is now well over capacity, with more than 200,000 inmates around the country. About 60 per cent have been jailed for drug offences, Corrections Department chief Chartchai Suthiklom says. In…
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