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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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American Alzheimer’s patient, living in Thailand, heads to The Philippines
PHOTOS: Thaivisa “Mum is doing OK. She keeps forgetting who I am. But we must live completely in the moment with Alzheimer’s, and stay happy.” In an exclusive interview with Thaivisa, the daughter of the Alzheimer’s patient who claimed that her 77 year old mother was forced out of Thailand by new immigration rules, sent Thaivisa photos of their departure.…
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Tourism body confident that tourist number will reach 40 million in 2019
Predictions are, despite a few bumps along the way, that the number of tourists coming to Thailand in 2019 will still reach 40 million. The University of the Thai Chambers of Commerce’s Centre for Economic and Business Forecasting is still positives following campaigns promoting tourism in local cities and the extension of the waiver of the visa-on-arrival fee. The Director…
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Buri Ram villagers urged not to harm wild elephants
FILE PHOTO Buri Ram provincial officials are asking villagers living near a Thai national reserve forest not to harm wild animals, including elephants, that may wander out of the forest. Officials say they’ve spotted a large herd of 32 wild elephants in the Krapod mountain, part of the restricted area. Sa Saengsawang, the director of the province’s national resources and…
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Day 2 of Samui Regatta 2019. A beautiful day, unless you’re a sailor.
The best laid plans… The breeze was on early this morning as the race management left the beach. The plan: head straight out off Chaweng Beach and lay a startline. Leaving the “shelter” of the bay, the wind died off the further they went out. A few nautical miles off shore and everyone joined in the waiting game. Meanwhile close…
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Chinese tourist injured as suspects snatch bag in Rawai, Phuket – VIDEO
Suspects have now been rounded up and are in custody after allegedly snatching a bag from a Chinese tourist who was walking in Rawai, south of Phuket, last week. The Chinese tourist was injured in the fracas. The Chalong Police were notified of the incident on a road near Rawai beach last week. As the tourist was walking along the…
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Netizens say the policeman’s drunk. Police chief says he ‘is sick’. VIDEO
A video clip of a policeman falling off a motorcycle onto the footpath on the roadside has gone viral in Thai social media. Netizens say the Phuket policeman was clearly drunk but the local police chief maintains ‘he was just sick’. The video clip of the policeman shows he was on a motorbike and was losing his balance. The incident…
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ASEAN group calls for end of judicial ‘harassment’ of Thai MPs
The ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, based in Jakarta, is calling on Thai authorities to end what they describe as harassment of the Future Forward party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit. They’ve also asked the ruling Junta to stop their efforts to undermine anti-military parties in the new Thai parliament. Charles Santiago, Chair of APHR and a Member of Parliament in Malaysia…
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Patong municipality reports untreated wastewater from Kalim hotel to police – VIDEO
VIDEO: Bong Marquez The video of the untreated wastewater bursting on Kalim beach on Sunday afternoon has caused an official report made to Patong police. A Facebook user “Bong Marquez” posted a video of the black water gurgling up through the sands at Kalim Beach and into the Patong Bay on Sunday. The video has had 230,000 views. Patong’s…
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Port fire damage exceeds 100 million baht
by Pratch Rujivanarom Thailand Port Authority director Kamolsak Phromprayoon says that losses from the huge fire and chemical spill at Laem Chabang Seaport on Saturday are estimated to be more than 100 million baht, while environmental campaigners are urging authorities to demand compensation from the people responsible for carrying the undisclosed hazardous chemicals. On Saturday morning toxic chemical cargo onboard…
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Stellar fleet line-up on Day 1 of Samui Regatta, Thailand
Samui Regatta is a highlight event on the regional regatta circuit that attracts a high calibre fleet of boats and sailors from around Asia to enjoy some top racing off the tropical island, followed by nightly prize-givings on the beach. “Regattas don’t get much better than this” was the consensus at last night’s official opening of the 18th Samui Regatta,…
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Tourist Police raid the C Ekkamai condo to arrest people running rooms as ‘hotel’ – Bangkok
PHOTO: Thai Tourist Police Bureau page on Facebook Follow up to a story last week where residents of a condo tower in Bangkok were complaining that many of the rooms were being run as a quasi-hotel. The Thai Tourist Police Bureau sent 40 officialst to the luxury Bangkok condominium. The raid was actually last Thursday, three days after the story…
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Lee Kuan Yew’s grandson marries same sex partner in South Africa
by The Star – Asia News Network The grandson of the late Singapore PM Lee Kuan Yew, Li Huanwu, has married his “soul mate” in Cape Town, South Africa. This was revealed by Li’s partner, Heng Yirui, who made the announcement on his personal Instagram account. “Today I marry my soul mate. Looking forward to a lifetime of moments like this with…
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Pattaya officials looking to limit pet ownership
Pattaya Mail are reporting that there’s been a renewed push to limit the number of pets residents can keep and make registration compulsory in Pattaya. Pattaya’s deputy mayor Manote Nongyai chaired a May 21 meeting on new regulations governing the keeping and registration of dogs and cats. The proposals are based on a Public Health Department memo from February 2016…
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Toxic chemicals responsible for port fire and evacuation of locals
PHOTOS: The Nation Highly flammable toxic chemicals found inside the burned out cargo at Laem Chabang Seaport in Chon Buri, just north of Pattaya, hadn’t been declared. The Director of the Port told reporters that 18 out of 35 remaining cargo containers on the ship held calcium hypochlorite and chlorinated paraffin wax. The fire broke out onboard the South Korean ship…
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Landlady posts photos of a Bangkok rented apartment after a nine year lease
PHOTOS: Nathalie Ruangdet Firstly, put down whatever you’re eating. A landlady has vented her grief online to show the results of a nine year tenant who had vacated the property in Ramkhamhaeng, Bangkok. Sanook reports that he had left the key with security and needed his deposit back. Nathalie Ruangdet, the landlady, went round to check the property. She says that…
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Taxi driver injured – stabbed by his colleague in Mai Khao, Phuket
A taxi driver was injured after being stabbed by his colleague at a company headquarters in Mai Khao yesterday. The Sakoo Police were notified of the incident at a company in Mai Khao yesterday. Police and emergency responders arrived at the scene to find the injured 46 year old Sangwarn Panin. He was taken to the Thalang Hospital. 36 years…
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Structures on Nui and Freedom beaches in Phuket to be demolished
Illegal structures on Nui and Freedom beaches in Phuket are to be demolished after officers seized encroached land in parts of the Narkerd Reserve Forest. Nui Beach (not to be confused with Ya Nui Beach) is north of Nai Harn Beach. Freedom Beach is north of the beach in front of Le Meridien Hotel (maps below). The investigation follows officers…
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Tough times ahead for next Thai government after hard fought weekend votes
It took most of two days for the new parliament to elect a House Speaker and two deputies. All votes, after much prevarication, won by slender margins. The Palang Pracharat Party is emerging as the party with the numbers but there are tough times ahead for any government as the votes have not been falling uniformly and the ‘swing’ parties…
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Fishing trawler capsizes off Phang Nga in local storm cell
An isolated Saturday night storm cell off Phang Nga capsized a fishing trawler. The entire crew, about 30 or so people, were rescued soon after. The kamnan of Lam Kaen tambon in Tai Muang district, Umakorn Phaeyai, said this morning the mishap occurred 20 nautical miles offshore. She said the crew of the 53 tonne Thanakorn 1 waited for rescue…
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The magic disappearing murky and muddy waters of Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach
PHOTOS: Pattaya Message Officials from Chon Buri Municipality says there is no source of wastewater found after inspections along the canals. The video of the untreated sewage and wastewater gushing into the Gulf of Thailand has accumulated 1.5 million views already. Read more and see the video HERE. The ‘stop gap’ solution was a real STOP GAP solution as they rammed…
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Former PM Chuan elected speaker of lower house
If the first item on the new parliament’s agenda is any indication, it’s going to be a very dynamic lower house. Things didn’t go smoothly on the first day. Ex-PM Chuan Leekpai, a Democrat candidate proposed by the pro-junta Phalang Pracharat Party, secured 258 votes to 235 for Pheu Thai nominee Sompong Amornvivat. One MP abstained. Some Pheu Thai PMs…
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Thailand’s hero of the day: Phitsanulok big-biker ‘Tik’
PHOTO: Itthiphon ‘Tik’ Petchphibunpong – Daily News Kudos to Mr Big Bike, as he’s been nicknamed, the hero of the moment, who took matters into hand to help a family needing urgent help and was stuck in traffic in Phitsanulok in northern Thailand. 28 year old ‘Tik’, aka. Itthiphon Petchphibunpong, was riding his bike in heavy traffic when he was…
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Bali flights cancelled as Mount Agung stirs again
Mount Agung, Bali’s active volcano, has erupted again, spewing ash and hot lava that ran down 3 km from the crater, causing authorities to cancel flights in and out of Denpasar. Indonesia’s Center of Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG) says the eruption was recorded at 19:30 Central Indonesian Time (WITA) and lasted for 4 minutes and 30 seconds. The…
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25 workers injured after container explosion at Laem Chabang Port
At least 25 port workers have been injured and locals evacuated after an explosion in a container on a ship at dock at the Laem Chabang Port in Chon Buri, east of Bangkok, this morning. Laem Chabang’s port director Vice Admiral Yutthana Mokkhao says an urgent investigation is being undertaken to determine the contents of the container. The Hong Kong ship…
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80 year old Malaysian tourist dies during Thai massage in Songkhla
PHOTO: Thai Rath A tourist has died during a ‘traditional Thai’ massage in a hotel in Sadao, in the southern province of Songkhla, just across the border from Malaysia. Pol Lt Thanatsak of the Sadao police found the 80 year old Malaysian man dead in his hotel room. He was laying on his bed and clothed in a t-shirt and brown…
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“Nothing but rude Indians, Chinese and Arabs” – Pattaya locals go feral online
“Where are all the nice ones – like Americans – who spend cash and behave well!?” PHOTO: Sophon Cable Sophon Cable TV on Facebook has quoted the head of the Eastern Seaboard Hotel Association, Sanpetch Supphabowonsathian, saying advance bookings for this high season in Pattaya showed a 5-10% increase on last year. But as the local hotel association were upbeat over…
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Motorbike rider dies near Rama 5 bridge in Nonthaburi
PHOTOS: Sanook A motorbike rider has died following an incident near the Rama 5 road bridge in Nonthaburi yesterday. The Honda CBR 650 was unrecognisable following the crash, both wheels had been ripped off in the collision. An orange bike helmet was on the road nearby. The head of the rider was found some distance away. The torso of the rider was…
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Dinosaur footprints found in north-eastern national park
PHOTO: Thai PBS Footprints from a dinosaur that inhabited north-eastern Thailand 140 million years ago, have been discovered in the north-east. About a dozen of the footprints are thought to be from a Theropod dinosaur which existed on Earth during the Cretaceous period which stretched from 146 to 65 million years ago. Thai PBS reports that they were found embedded…
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Three injured in fresh seafood pickup accident in Krabi
A pickup truck has lost control and collided with a fresh seafood pickup truck in Krabi. Locals helped to collect the fresh seafood and take it back to the pickup truck. The incident is the third ‘seafood’ crash incident this week. Klongtom Police were notified of the incident yesterday afternoon on Petchkasem Road in Klogtom. Police and emergency responders arrived…
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IKEA Thailand launches full online store
“…it took IKEA about two years to study the market demand, develop the infrastructure, and prepare everything before launching their e-commerce service in Southeast Asia.” by Kwanchai Rungfapairsarn IKEA Thailand has announced the official launch of its IKEA Online Store as it gets set to better provide for individual customers across the Kingdom. IKEA Thailand say the seamless online shopping…
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