Thailand
Cambodians admit to raping French tourists in Thailand – foreign ministry

– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community
BANGKOK: March 1, Five Cambodian fisherman have confessed to raping and assaulting French tourists on an isolated Thai beach, Cambodia’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.
Thai police said four French tourists were attacked late on Saturday on Koh Kood, a remote island near Thailand’s maritime border with Cambodia known for its untamed jungle and pristine beaches.
Thai police investigators said the attackers swam from their fishing boat to assault the group and raped two women at knifepoint. They were caught while trying to escape.
Cambodia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement that the five fishermen confessed to Eat Sophea, Cambodian Ambassador to Thailand, that they raped and assaulted the tourists.
“During the interview with the Cambodian ambassador the five fishermen confessed to have really been involved in the cases of rape and assault,” the ministry said in a statement.
“It happened while the five fishermen were in a drunk state.”
The five have been charged with rape and violent assault.
It is the latest high-profile case to hit the popular holiday destination, raising serious questions about tourist safety in the Southeast Asian country.
In December, two migrant workers from Myanmar were found guilty by a Thai court of killing two British tourists on a beach on the southern Thai holiday island of Koh Tao in 2014.
Thailand remains a popular tourist destination, despite a slew of high-profile crimes against tourists last year and an August bomb attack at a popular Bangkok shrine that left 20 people dead, most of them foreigners.
The government expects a record 32 million people to visit Thailand this year. Tourism remains one of the few bright spots in the Thai economy which has struggled since a 2014 coup by the military.
— Phuket Gazette Editors
Keep in contact with The Thaiger by following our Facebook page.
Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
Coronavirus (Covid-19)
Foreign tourists must use Covid-19 tracking app when travelling to Thailand

Foreign tourists travelling to Thailand will need to download the Covid-19 contact tracking mobile application “ThailandPlus” before arriving in Thailand and use it throughout their stay. The app will notify travellers if they have been in close contact with any confirmed cases.
Throughout their trip to Thailand, tourists will need to keep the app “on” and check in and out of various locations by scanning QR codes. The app requires access to the smartphone’s GPS , but the Tourism Authority of Thailand says the information collected will only be used for public health purposes and will not infringe on the tourists’ right to privacy.
Travellers will also need to upload a recent headshot as well as supply their Certificate of Entry number and reference ID from the Royal Thai Embassy.
The app is a spinoff to the “Thai Chana” and “Mor Chana” apps. All use GPS and Bluetooth as well as QR code scanning to detect the users’ locations. The apps sparked controversy and many Thais expressed concerns about their privacy, but the government has assured the public that information will be kept private.
The development of the app is a collaboration between the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Digital Government Development Agency.
Click HERE to download the ThailandPlus.
SOURCE: TAT
Keep in contact with The Thaiger by following our Facebook page.
Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
Thailand
Thailand News Today | Pollies in jail, Covid originated in Thailand? | Feb 25

Today on Thailand News Today, a number of government ministers have ended up in jail, the vaccines are about to roll out but experts say the injections are not the end of the pandemic, and A Pattaya motorbike taxi driver is being accused of attacking a Chilean national. We’ve also get a special report on the channel about accusations that surfaced this week that Covid 19 may not have started in Wuhan at all, but in Thailand. That’s all coming up now on Thursday’s Thailand News Today.
A number of government ministers have been jailed for their part in protests against the government of Yingluck Shinawatra that crippled Bangkok and ultimately led to the 2014 military coup. Yesterday, the Criminal Court handed prison sentences to 29 former members of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee, some of whom were serving as MPs in the current Chan-o-cha administration.
Police have shut down a network of online casinos in raids that took place across 7 provinces, with 19 suspects arrested, and cash and other goods seized. In total, 8 online casino networks in 7 provinces have been shut down, with police apprehending 19 out of a total 22 suspects.
A specialist in infectious diseases at the Faculty of Medicine of Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University says the arrival of vaccines does not mean it will automatically be safe to re-open to foreign visitors. Thira Woratanarat says opening the borders too soon will only put Thailand in more danger, pointing to a lack of data on the efficacy of vaccines against transmission.
The Thai Ministry of Public Health is being praised after seemingly doing an about face over whether Bangkok’s Chatuchak Weekend Market could be the source of Covid‐19. After health officials denied that the World Health Organisation was investigating the market, a recent Facebook live press conference saw the Ministry acknowledging that unregulated wildlife trades may endanger public health.
A Pattaya motorbike taxi driver is being accused of attacking a Chilean national, leaving his nose broken and face bloodied. The 24 year old Salvatore Chilean, filed a report to the Pattaya City Police at around 2am this morning after saying he had left a nightclub on Pattaya’s Walking Street after it had closed.
Keep in contact with The Thaiger by following our Facebook page.
Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
Thailand
Canadian Embassy to help Thailand recruit English teachers

Thailand officials want more native speaking English teachers and plan to recruit more than 10,000 English teachers for 300 schools to improve English proficiency among Thai students. To help draw in potential teachers, the Education Ministry is teaming up with the Canadian Embassy in Thailand.
Teachers will be placed in schools once the pandemic has eased. Recruitment for the plan is expected to be completed by May, according to Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan. He says the Cabinet has approved an agreement between the ministry, embassy and the Thai-Canadian Chamber of Commerce for the recruitment plan.
The ministry plans to focus on teaching language in early levels of education because young students are at a suitable age for building communication skills, Nataphol says. Teachers will be either native English speakers or Thai teachers who hold an English degree, according to Nataphol.
Along with 10,000 English teachers, the Cabinet also plans to recruit 10,000 Chinese teachers. Teachers will also receive training.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
Keep in contact with The Thaiger by following our Facebook page.
Never miss out on future posts by following The Thaiger.
- Thailand3 days ago
Polygamy is not under Thai law, but the lifestyle is still practiced
- Thailand2 days ago
Tourism officials aim for vaccinated travellers to enter Thailand by the third quarter of 2021
- Coronavirus (Covid-19)2 days ago
PM says Thailand will consider lifting quarantine for vaccinated tourists
- Coronavirus (Covid-19)3 days ago
59 foreign tourists arrive in Phuket, first to undergo the luxurious “villa quarantine”
- Bangkok4 days ago
Bangkok bars and nightclubs may soon reopen, CCSA announcement expected today
- Crime2 days ago
Drunk police officer shoots and beats vendor on Bangla Road in Phuket
- Chiang Mai2 days ago
4 top tourist destinations to be prioritised for Covid-19 vaccine distribution
- Bangkok3 days ago
Bangkok restaurants to be allowed to serve alcohol until 11pm