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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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Thanathorn calls on Thais to demand Constitutional amendment
Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit is calling a Constitutional amendment “necessary,” and encourages supporters to “take a strong stance against dictatorship.” The former MP also says it’s time for people to take a clear stance on the issue. “The country is at a crossroads and it must decide whether to rewrite the current Constitution in blood, or if it…
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Bangkok’s new Silom Road walking street a great success
PHOTO: INN News “Walk, Eat, Taste, and Explore”. And thousands descended on Silom Road to welcome the new walking street destination yesterday. Street performers, crowds and live music transformed Silom Road into Bangkok’s newest walking street yesterday with the first of the new walking street-style markets opening up in Bangkok. There was also another one in Yowarat Road in Chinatown. The…
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Thailand still a top destination for Chinese ivory buyers
PHOTO: Thai Embassy A survey by The World Wide Fund for Nature reveals that Thailand remains a top destination for illegal ivory sales. The survey also indicates, perhaps surprisingly, that a majority of Chinese tourists, traditionally the biggest ivory buyers, have no desire to buy ivory. WWF Thailand polled 214 tourists from China at five prime retail locations across Bangkok, in…
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Surat Thani fisherman missing after falling off boat last night
FILE PHOTO: Khaosod English Police and rescue crews are still searching for a fisherman missing since last night. Today’s search off Koh Samui involves ships and aircraft of the 2nd Naval Area. The search was launched as soon as police were alerted about a fishing boat crew member who fell into the sea off the island late last night. At…
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Walking street-led economic recovery
And it starts today at two locations in Bangkok. In its latest campaign to encourage more spending and boost tourism Bangkok’s government is launching a series of walking streets today before the Thai government spreads the walking street ‘boost’ to other provinces. Silom and Yaowarat roads are becoming pedestrian walkways today and other provinces have temporary walking street events starting on…
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Future Forward’s Thanathorn says he’ll “bring people to the streets”
It’s the biggest political rally since the general election in March, probably the largest rally in five years since before the military coup in 2014. Thousands of supporters chanted “Prayut get out” at an anti-military demonstration called by former MP, Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Jungroongruangkit. Thanathorn told demonstrators that last evening’s rally on the skywalk linking the National Stadium…
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“Phuket’s economy is shrinking” – University report
PHOTO: Rocket Bird Travel Company “Phuket’s economy is shrinking.” A report released by the local Prince of Songkla University reveals some disturbing trends for the once-booming tropical paradise. Chayanon Phucharoen, the university’s associate dean of research and graduate study says that Phuket’s economy is undergoing a transformation. He blames the strong Thai baht and says digital disruption is funnelling tourist services…
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Justice minister says he’ll speed up kratom decriminalisation
Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin says he will speed up the decriminalisation of kratom, after researchers registered patents for kratom-based medicines in Japan and the US. Kratom is a local plant, related to coffee, whose leaves are still classified as a narcotic in Thailand. Somsak said his ministry has formed a committee to consider legalising kratom-based medicines. Kratom leaves are a mild…
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Police hunt suspect for stabbing ex-girlfriend at work
Police in Chonburi province are hunting a suspect over the stabbing his ex-girlfriend whilst she was at work. Authorities in the Bowin district of Sri Racha, just north of Pattaya, were notified of the incident at about noon on Friday. The incident happened at at a factory in Hemmarat. 21 year old Sasiwimon Mutaphon survived the attack but was seriously injured…
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“This is just the beginning” – Thanathorn warns the government
PHOTOS: Thousands gathered in the first large anti-government rally in over five years – Khaosod English He tried to do it legitimately by running for office in the March election. His party performed above expectations, garnering the third highest number of votes after less than 12 months of existence. And Thanathorn was just votes away from being elected Thailand’s Prime Minister.…
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Baby dumped on the steps of a bank in Rawai, Phuket
PHOTOS: Phuket Newshawk/Phuket Hotnews On December 13, at about 4pm, Chalong police received a report about a baby found abandoned in front of Siam Commercial Bank, in Rawai. At the scene, police found a baby boy with fair skin and appeared like a mix caucasian/Asian. The infant was crying but the witnesses who called police were trying to hold, comfort…
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Video of couple having sex in Bangkok tuk-tuk goes viral – VIDEO
Social media users in Thailand have had plenty to say about a video that appears to show a couple having sex in the back of a tuk-tuk speeding through Bangkok. Some would say using this particular mode of Bangkok transport is exhilarating enough without adding anything else into the mix, but the Chiang Rai Times reports that one couple decided…
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Chonburi police arrest nine Chinese nationals for alleged amulet scam
Police have arrested nine Chinese nationals in an investigation into alleged amulet fraud in Chonburi, eastern Thailand. The Nation reports that the accused were running a shop at a Chonburi temple, where they sold fake amulets and Buddha images for prices that ranged from 1,000 baht to over 10,000 baht. They are accused of working with tour agents to target…
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Phuket’s economy is entering a period of recession – PSU report
PHOTO: kapumail Phuket’s Prince of Songkla University Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism has completed a lengthy report about the health of the island’s tourism, saying that tourism and Phuket’s economy are in poor condition. Part of the report says that, despite a 4% rise in visitor numbers in 2019, revenue from tourism is falling. “The economy of Phuket is entering…
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Social media meltdown over tuk-tuk sex trip in Bangkok
PHOTO: Facebook/Khun-Khachen Thai netizens are in a frenzy over two posted video clips showing a woman sitting on a male passenger’s lap and, it appears, enjoying sex with him in a the back of the tuk-tuk on a Bangkok street early in the morning. The videos have since been taken down (just to save you the effort). There are two…
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Public hearings on Pattaya Tram Project start Monday
Whilst Phuket’s tram project has been shelved temporary, the much-discussed Pattaya tram project starts public hearings on Monday when the city hosts its first public sessions on the feasibility study. First proposed in 2016, the tram would make a circle around Beach Road and Second Road and then into Jomtien Beach. Finally however, with more funding now allocated and a…
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Thanathorn invites supporters to a rally in Bangkok at 5pm
PHOTO: time.com The Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit is inviting his supporters to join him at a rally today. In a live video broadcast via his Facebook page, he invited people to a gathering at 5pm this afternoon at the Pathumwan intersection skywalk on Rama I Road. Stripped of his MP title he is now aiming to rally the voice…
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Apple’s Tim Cook drops into Bangkok during Asia tour
PHOTO: Apple’s Tim Cook Visits Bangkok to meet with photographers, Students and WWDC (Apple Web Developers) scholarship winners Apple’s CEO Tim Cook was in and around Bangkok yesterday. Apple’s boss has been documenting the journey on his Twitter account. Tim kicked things off with a visit to the Wat Arun Buddhist temple on the Thonburi west bank of Bangkok’s Chao Phraya…
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Thai Immigration Chief softens stance on tourist and expat visas
#shutdoorafterhorsehasbolted The head of Thai Immigration has told his department not to be too strict on tourists and scare them away from returning to Thailand. According to PattayaOne, the Chief has asked for his staff to “show some humanity”. Lt-Gen Sompong – also known as Big Oud, after his predecessor was nicknamed Big Joke – was doing a presentation during a…
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Tourist numbers down 40% compared to last year, and last year was bad – Pattaya
PHOTO: pinterest.com “Tourists are down 40% for Pattaya’s high season.” This from the Pattaya Entertainment and Tourism Industrial Association when speaking to Sophon Cable TV today. And last year wasn’t good either. Damrongkiet Pinitkarn, secretary of the association says that this high season before the New Year, the number of tourists at night clubs and bars has significantly decreased compared…
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Forecasts are in negative territory for south east and wider Asia
PHOTO: asiahouse.org The Asian Development Bank has trimmed its forecasts for economic growth in developing Asia this year and next as growth in the People’s Republic of China and India are weighed down by both external and domestic factors. Closer to home, south east Asia’s growth projections have also been revised down slightly to 4.4% for 2019. Economic woes of…
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Foreigners and Thais conned out of 45 million baht in Pattaya property scam
Police in Pattaya are hunting for a 49 year old real estate agent, Jidapha Sirikhong, who is alleged to have scammed both Thai and foreigner residents in a 45 million baht property scam. The Pattaya News reports that Jidapha is the owner of Som Property, with an office in an unnamed condominium building near Jomtien beach, where she took deposits for…
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Shoppers flee smoke-filled mall after overloaded power strip catches fire in central Thailand
PHOTO: sanook.com Customers in a shopping mall in Samut Prakan province, south of Bangkok, raced for the exits as smoke coming from a toy store began to fill the building. The incident, which happened in the Bang Phli district, home to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, is believed to have been sparked by a poor-quality power strip that appears to have shorted and…
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Thailand’s health chief issues hydrogen balloon warning
PHOTO: City Pass Guide The chief of the Department of Health says people must exercise caution around hydrogen balloons, warning that they can be dangerous, even fatal. The warning comes from Dr Panpimol Wipulakorn after a balloon exploded in Kanchanaburi province, western Thailand, earlier this month. “Explosion of balloons are reported frequently, since most of balloons contain hydrogen, which is inflammable,…
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Three year old daughter of migrant workers killed at construction site
PHOTO: The Nation A three year old Cambodian girl has died after being crushed by a truck at the construction site where her parents were working. The Nation reports that the incident took place yesterday, at a construction site in Samut Prakan province, south of Bangkok. It’s understood the nature of the parents’ work patterns meant they were unable to…
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Pattaya officials warn residents about outbreak of Chikungunya virus
Health officials in the Bang Lamung area of Pattaya say that many cases of the Chikungunya virus have been reported this year. Most commonly, the infected mosquitoes involved are Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, two species which can also transmit other mosquito-borne viruses, including dengue. From January to the end of October there were 90 cases in Bang Lamung. The virus,…
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Aung San Suu Kyi shows contempt for case against Myanmar army in international court
PHOTO: LA Times Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has shown contempt for UN judges investigating the genocide case relating to the Myanmar army’s attacks on the Rohingya in 2017. In her speeches she defended the generals she once defied, for their genocide against the muslim minority living in the Rhakine state, west of the country. Her supporters gathered…
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So you want to move to Vietnam?
“Whilst Thailand is often nicknamed the ‘land of a thousand 7-elevens’, with a convenience store on just about every corner, there are very few of these in Vietnam, for now.” With the Thai Baht on a high at the moment, along with stricter enforcement of visa rules, some expats say they’ve had enough and are heading to Vietnam, or some…
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Thai economy not desperate, just a bit slow – Finance Minister
PHOTO: The Nation Thailand’s Finance Minister says the economy is not in a critical situation, it’s just on a bit of a “go-slow” right now. Uttama Savanayana adds that he’s hopeful the situation will improve next year with the go-ahead on a number of large national infrastructure projects. Thai PBS World reports that the minister references the Government’s stimulus efforts…
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Foreign and Thai business partners cleared of human trafficking charges in Bangkok
PHOTO: Daily News “At the appeal hearing yesterday, the defendants had their convictions quashed after the court doubted testimony from one of the victims.” A foreign man employed as a nightclub manager in Bangkok’s notorious party zone at Nana has been acquitted of charges of human trafficking and acquiring women for prostitution. ThaiVisa reports that Michael Pearl, a 47 year old…
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