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“We’re not mafia,’ say Phuket taxi drivers
PHUKET: Phuket taxi drivers denied any mafia behavior, or association with any mafia organizations, at a meeting with Dussadee Arayawuthi, deputy permanent secretary for the Justice Ministry, on Friday. Kata-Karon taxi drivers joined beach vendors and other locals airing their grievances at the meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall. “We were following the established rules. We don’t understand why we are…
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Phuket Zoo stonewalls orangutan investigators
PHUKET: Phuket Zoo management is stonewalling officials investigating the case of Milo, a 13-year-old orangutan. “The Zoo manager, Surapong Chanthaweewong, has refused to answer any questions with regard to how the orangutan was obtained, cared for, or ‘released into the wild’,” said Piyawat Sukhon, chief of the Khao Phra Thaeo Non-hunting Zone. “He simply told us that we should continue…
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SUP champion comes to teach paddling in Phuket
PHUKET: Champion standup paddleboarder and founder of the Stand Up Paddle Athletes Association (SUPAA), Chase Kosterlitz, starts a five-day standup paddleboard (SUP) clinic tomorrow. “Chase has a wealth of paddling knowledge and has competed at the elite level for a number of years. His depth of paddling experience and his ability to teach offers a great opportunity to learn. Whether…
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Tourist drowns in Karon
PHUKET: Lifeguards pulled the body of a tourist from the waters off Karon yesterday. “I saw the man floating face down about 100 meters from the swimming area,” said lifeguard Mongkol Tanpisamai. “We immediately dispatched a rescue boat to retrieve him. We provided CPR – however, I’m certain he was dead when we pulled him from the water.” Though the…
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Justice Ministry promises probe Phuket vendors’ grievances
PHUKET: About 300 Karon residents and business operators crowded into a meeting room at Phuket Provincial Hall Friday morning to air their grievances about beach regulations. Karon Beach vendors told Dussadee Arayawuthi, deputy permanent secretary of the Justice Ministry, that they were badly affected by the beach regulating policies implemented within the past two years. “Look at Pattaya, where beach…
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Video Report: Orangutan saved, new laws needed
PHUKET: Last week’s rescue of the Phuket Zoo orangutan, Milo, led to a firestorm of social and political activity bolstering efforts to close legal loopholes abused by exotic animal traders in Thailand. An amendment to the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act BE 2535 (1992) that will require those who posses animals named on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered…
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500-strong police force arrests Krabi squatters
KRABI: About 500 Krabi police officers joined a mass raid to arrest about 100 oil palm squatters on Thursday. “We surrounded the area to check on the squatters who were trying to claim the land as their own after the previous owner’s license expired,” said Plai Phraya Police Superintendent Chamnan Chamnankij. “These people were still living on the plantation after…
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Indian man kills 14 members of own family, then hangs himself
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Indian man kills 14 members of own family, then hangs himself Phuket Gazette / Reuters NEW DELHI: A man in India stabbed 14 members of his own family to death, including seven children, before hanging himself, police said on Sunday, in one of the country’s worst…
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Enraged elephant kills mahout at trekking camp
KRABI: An enraged bull elephant stomped his mahout to death at a trekking camp in Ao Nang on Saturday. The 12-year-old male elephant named ‘Plai Sridor Nakorn’ was in musth – an annual period of heightened testosterone levels – and had been chained up after becoming highly aggressive. The animal killed Anantamek Thongtae, 21, when the mahout attempted to unchain…
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Twin suicide bombing kills 70 in Baghdad’s deadliest attack this year
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Twin suicide bombing kills 70 in Baghdad’s deadliest attack this year Phuket Gazette / Reuters BAGHDAD: A twin suicide bombing claimed by Islamic State killed 70 people in a Shi’ite district of Baghdad on Sunday in the deadliest attack inside the capital this year, as militants…
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Officials investigate Kamala Beach encroachment allegations
PHUKET: Officials are looking into allegations that vendors at Kamala Beach are encroaching beyond the ’10-percent zone’, which was established to restrict commercial activities to a small portion of the popular Phuket beach. An anonymous tip-off from a Phuket expat alleged that beach chairs, umbrellas, food stalls and tents have spread beyond the demarcation poles of the 10-percent zone. Photographic…
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Cobra takes stand in Phuket bathroom
PHUKET: It was fright night yesterday for a woman in Phuket Town when she was confronted by a two-meter-long cobra that had taken up residence in her bathroom. The woman entered the room at about 11:30pm without switching on the light. In the darkness, she heard a slithering and hissing sound behind her. When she did turn the light on,…
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Philippines may ban pop singer Madonna for disrespect to flag
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Philippines may ban pop singer Madonna for disrespect to flag Phuket Gazette / Reuters MANILA: American singer Madonna may face a ban in the Philippines for disrespecting the country’s flag in her concerts this week in Manila, a domestic broadcaster said on Friday, citing an official.…
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Patong awaits bid to bury beachfront cables
PHUKET: The project that will see unsightly power cables along Patong’s beachfront moved underground is awaiting finalization of the bidding process. The 230-million-baht project will be jointly funded by the Phuket Provincial Electric Authority (PEA) and the Patong Municipality (story here). “Contractors have submitted their bids to the PEA headquarters in Bangkok and one will be chosen by March,” confirmed…
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National balloon and music festival coming to Phuket
PHUKET: Hot air balloons will be filling the sky above the island during the Songkran holiday this April for the very first ‘Phuket Thailand Balloon Music Festival’. At least 20 hot air balloons are expected to take part in the national balloon fiesta, to be held April 14-17 at Phuket Paradise Park, near the British International School Phuket (BISP). Balloon…
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Business Buzz: How to master email marketing
PHUKET: Other than branding, one of the primary functions of social media marketing is to create a database of potential customers. But building the database is only the first step, so what do we do with it once we have it? I have previously discussed the importance and value of your database; now I am going to show you how…
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Breaking News: Stickup artist robs Phuket bank
PHUKET: Police are scrambling to track down an armed bank robber who made off with an estimated 400,000 baht cash from a Phuket bank this afternoon. The masked man walked into the Krungthai Bank branch on Sakdidet Road in Phuket Town, drawing his gun and demanding cashiers hand over all easily accessible cash. “We are currently checking CCTV footage and…
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Formula 1 powerboat race coming to Phuket
PHUKET: The Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) has good news for water-sport enthusiasts as Phuket plans to host a Formula 1 powerboat race in November to promote the island as an international tourist and water-sport destination. “This is a joint venture between Thailand and Singapore. The expected date of the event is November 4-6,” MOTS Phuket Office Director Santi…
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Phuket officials confirm no troubled waters for bridge players
PHUKET: Phuket police have confirmed that playing bridge in Phuket is not illegal as long as there is no gambling involved. The confirmation follows reports of police and military officers raiding a bridge club earlier this month in Pattaya, which led to the arrest of 32 foreigners, including an 84-year-old Dutch woman (story here). “I was unaware of the arrests…
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Finance: Understanding stop loss orders
PHUKET: With global stock markets off to a rough start this year, it’s time to take a closer look at stop loss orders and how they can help as well as hinder you from achieving your investment goals. So what exactly are stop loss orders? A stop loss, or simply a stop order, is an automatic trade placed in advance…
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Teens steal motorbikes from police station
KRABI: Six young men were arrested on Wednesday night for stealing motorbikes from the Krabi City Police Station to chop and sell as spare parts. Four of the six were minors – 16 and 17 years old. The other two suspects were named as Sarawut Chinsri, 20, and Jakkapong Nonsri, 18. “I first noticed that a motorbike from the impound…
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U.S., backed by China, proposes tough N. Korea sanctions at UN
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S., backed by China, proposes tough N.Korea sanctions at UN Phuket Gazette / Reuters UNITED NATIONS: The United States presented a draft Security Council resolution on Thursday that it had negotiated with China, that would dramatically tighten existing restrictions on North Korea after its Jan. 6…
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Canadian teacher re-arrested for sex abuse to return to Jakarta prison
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Canadian teacher re-arrested for sex abuse to return to Jakarta prison Phuket Gazette / Reuters JAKARTA: A Canadian teacher is expected to return to a Jakarta prison on Friday, a family member said, a day after Indonesia’s Supreme Court overturned his acquittal on charges of sexually…
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Teenager near Tokyo found to have Zika virus after returning from Brazil
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Teenager near Tokyo found to have Zika virus after returning from Brazil Phuket Gazette / Reuters TOKYO: A male teenager near Tokyo was found to have been infected with the Zika virus after a visit to Brazil, Japan’s first case of the infection since the virus…
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“Jet-ski Champion’ transferred out of Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket’s long-standing champion of jet-skis on the island leaves the province today after being transferred to the landlocked Nonthaburi Province Marine Office. “I leave at 11am and will start my work there on Monday,” former Phuket Marine Office Chief Phuripat Theerakulpisut told the Phuket Gazette. Mr Phuripat declined to specify exactly why he was transferred after almost six years…
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Phuket fears motor home stampede
PHUKET: Nearly a dozen motor homes and recreational vehicles (RVs) recently spotted on the island prompted officials to rethink regulations for such vehicles entering Thailand. “I was told that these vehicles stay over night in public places, such as Saphan Hin, Ya Nui and Nai Yang beaches,” said Phuket Vice Governor Prajiad Aksornthammakul at a meeting on Wednesday. “I’m worried…
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Opinion: Orchestrating freedom for orangutans
PHUKET: The tale of the disappearance of orangutan Milo from a local zoo and her subsequent rediscovery a few days later deserves a slot in the annals of the ‘Amazing Thailand Always Amazes’ series. Now that the issue has drawn the interest of the national and international media, the Phuket Gazette hopes that sustained interest will pressure the Department of…
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Maimed Phi Phi divers return to Russia
KRABI: Two Russian divers who were seriously injured in a speedboat accident earlier this month have safely returned home, confirmed a Krabi official. Sergei Dmitriev, 30, and Dmitry Kurynov, 48, were diving near Maya Bay on February 5 when they were hit by a speedboat, causing one diver to lose his leg and the other to suffer serious injuries (story…
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Phuket Vice Gov steps in to take charge of Sirinath case
PHUKET: Officials confirmed on Tuesday that initial investigations indicate that only 27 of the 715 much-disputed plots of Sirinath National Park land have been proven legal, said Phuket Vice Governor Chokdee Amornwat. The vice governor spoke with a committee, comprised of experts and officials, formed to investigate and resolve issues surrounding the national park’s land disputes. The committee was set…
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Phuket Heroines’ Memorial Festival March 5-19
PHUKET: This year’s Heroines’ Memorial Festival, running March 5-19, is sure to impress all in attendance with cultural and historical activities to honor war heroes Thao Thepkrasattri and Thao Srisoonthorn. “The purpose of this event is to honor the heroism of Lady Thepkrasattri and Lady Srisoonthorn, who sacrificed their blood and lives for generations to come,” said Phuket Governor Chamroen…
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