Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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UPDATE: Pushback from local associations over the Thai government’s “Phuket Model”
UPDATE: Amidst the “plans” and “models” being proposed by the government to re-open Thailand to some form of general tourism (nothing confirmed yet), there’s also been some pushback from operators in some of the hardest hit areas. The government had proposed the Phuket Model as a way of kicking off tourism from early October. But the model involves a mandatory…
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Survey: majority support students’ freedom of expression
A recent survey by the National Institute of Development Administration, or Nida Poll, found that a majority of Thais agree with students across the country giving the anti-government”3 finger salute” and wearing white ribbons, saying that they have the right to free expression. The study was conducted August 25-27 on 1,317 people aged 15 and over, of various levels of…
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Second locally produced Covid-19 vaccine proves effective in monkey trials
A doctor at Chulalongkorn University yesterday announced that announced tests of a new locally produced Covid-19 vaccine on monkeys have proven successful. The head of the Thai Red Cross Emerging Infectious Disease Health Science Centre, Dr Thiravat Hemachudha, says the latest vaccine, which uses proteins from tobacco leaves, was been tested on mice and monkeys with satisfactory results and will…
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Surat Thani forest ranger found dead
A member of the local forest patrol, who had gone missing after his boat struck a stump near the Ratchaprapha dam in the southern province of Surat Thani, was found dead yesterday. Thanakorn Chana-aksorn, from the Khlong Ya forest protection unit, is suspected to have suffered head injuries from the impact of the crash and subsequently drowned in the incident…
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TAT launches “White Vest” tourism campaign
The Tourism Authority of Thailand this week launched its “White Vest” tourism campaign this week, based on intensive training to promote safety, hygiene and world class customer service at tourist spots throughout the country. Those who pass the campaign will be awarded a white vest and a certified ID badge that they can wear to signify to all tourists, both…
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House committee postpones meeting on subs purchase… again
A Parliamentary committee meeting on the Royal Thai Navy’s controversial purchase of 2 Chinese submarines has been postponed for a third time, until Monday. The Democratic party vehemently opposes the purchase, saying the 22.5 billion baht would be better spent on Covid-19 relief efforts and aiding the recovery of the nation’s battered economy. Democrat MP Akkharadet Wongphithakrot, acting as spokesman…
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Covid-19 update: 1 new imported case, no deaths (29 August)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported a single coronavirus today – an asymptomatic returnee from the Netherlands in state quarantine – bringing the total in Thailand to 3,411 since the outbreak began. A CSSA spokesperson said said the new case is 30 year old employee who arrived in Thailand on August 15 and stayed at a state quarantine facility…
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Spokesperson says “Phuket Model” won’t be enacted nationally anytime soon
The deputy government spokesperson Traisulee Traisoranakul said yesterday that the so-called “Phuket Model”, the island’s proposed “safe and sealed” program to reintroduce tourism from October, will not be implemented in the near future and rolled out to the rest of the country. She also encouraged Thai people ti “go on vacation to help the local economy”. She made no mention…
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There is no date for the reopening of general tourism in Thailand, except Phuket
Deputy government spokesperson Traisulee Traisoranakul says Thailand will not be “fully reopened to foreign tourists” along the lines of Phuket’s “safe and sealed” model, because the government and CCSA has to consider too many details. Thailand’s largest island, Phuket, is going to be a pilot program for the partial re-opening to any tourist that wants to visit – but with…
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Debate rages behind closed doors on allowing return of foreign tourists
The debate over allowing foreign tourists back into Thailand is heating up, even as plans are being made for the “Phuket model” and airlines cautiously begin announcing charter flights for long-stay foreign tourists later in the year. Thailand has gone nearly 100 days without a confirmed locally spread case of Covid-19, putting it in a tough spot compared to countries…
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New lease on life for 7 of Thailand’s budget airlines
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha today threw a lifeline to 7 of Thailands’ domestic low-cost airlines, beginning with the injection of 24 billion baht in soft loans for the struggling aviation sector, battered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Representatives of Thai Air Asia, its long haul division Thai Air Asia X, Thai Smile, Thai Lion Air, Thai Viet Jet, Bangkok Airways and Nok…
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Human Rights Watch talks protests, democracy and foreigners attending protests
The Thaiger spoke to Brad Adams, the Asia Director for Human Rights Watch about some of the challenges of the current Thai government and the protests that are showing no signs of abating. Do you think the student movement, alone, will be enough to press the Thai government to make meaningful changes? The students are playing a leading role in…
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Should foreigners go to protests and get involved in Thai politics?
Should foreigners get involved in the Thai protests? Is it any of our business? Is there a danger of being targeted and thrown out of the country? Most foreigners, certainly the vast majority, will say they’re uncomfortable even discussing local politics with Thais, especially THAT other big topic. Most are happy to walk the beaches, explore or sit in the…
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Satellite captures flood devastation in Thailand’s lower-north
The devastation wreaked by heavy floods in Sukhothai and Phitsanulok, provinces in the lower-north of the country, can be seen from space. A report in Nation Thailand says an Italian satellite, Cosmo Skymed-1, has captured photos that show over 125,000 rai of land is submerged as a result of heavy rainfall in the area. PHOTO: Nation Thailand Around 100,000 rai…
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Pro-democracy activist mounts campaign near Bangkok memorial
Political activist Jatupat Boonpattararaksa has started a campaign he’s calling “Camp Not Jail” near a Bangkok memorial that commemorates pro-democracy activists who were killed in a 1973 rally in the capital. Jatupat, commonly known as “Pai Dao Din”, has erected a number of tents, where he screens documentaries about democracy to attract the attention of passersby. Nation Thailand reports that…
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Environmentalists concerned with rise of takeaway trash during lockdown
How much plastic do you toss in the garage bin when you’re done eating your takeaway order? An environmentalist says 1 person throws away about 1.5 kilograms of trash each day. With many stuck at home during the lockdown period, food delivery sales skyrocketed, but so did the amount of trash each person throws away. Thai environmentalists are concerned and…
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CCSA considers another 2 groups of foreigners for return to Thailand
The next batch of returnee categories is now being considered by the CCSA. This time, foreigners with permanent residences who have been stranded overseas for the past 6 months, and long-term foreign residents, will receive priority when the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announces the next date for the next phase of lifting the shutters on Thailand’s borders. The chairman…
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Thai Airways launching direct flights to Phuket for “Safe & Sealed” campaign
Thai Airways is dusting off its fleet and getting ready to relaunch international travel, with direct flights to Phuket from 6 countries planned to take off in the next few months. It’s all designed to co-incide with the announced “safe & sealed” campaign which the Thai government hope will re-boot tourism for the beleaguered island. Thai Airways flights have been…
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TikTok CEO quits amid pressure to sell
Kevin Mayer, the high flying CEO of TikTok, quit today under US pressure for the platform’s Chinese owner Bytedance to sell popular video app, which Washington says is a national security threat. In a letter to employees, Mayer said his decision to leave comes because the “political environment has sharply changed.” Mayer, a former Disney executive, joined TikTok as CEO…
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Progressive MP raises “3 finger salute” in Parliament
An opposition MP from the eastern province of Chantaburi, along the Cambodian border, raised eyebrows today when she flashed the pro-democracy “3 finger salute” immediately after after speaking about state repression of student protestors. The salute has become the student movement’s trademark gesture of solidarity. Yanathicha Buapuean, an MP for the Move Forward Party said: “These actions are intended to…
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Human trials of Thai-made vaccine delayed by months
Thailand’s hopes of having a locally made coronavirus vaccine early next year appear to have been dashed; the head of Thai team developing the vaccine said in a press briefing yesterday that Thailand will delay human trials due to limited production capacity at overseas facilities. Kiat Ruxrungtham, director of the Chulalongkorn University’s vaccine development program, said health authorities had planned…
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PM issues ominous warning as students submit manifesto
Yesterday, leaders of the student movement Free Youth submitted their now-infamous 10 point manifesto on reforming the Monarchy to a House committee for consideration. Panasaya Sitthijirawattanakul, a leader of a group calling itself the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration, forwarded the 10-point manifesto, which was compiled at a demonstration on August 10 at Thammasat University, to Move Forward Party…
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Government orders social media companies to block more websites deemed offensive
The Minister of Digital Economy and Society says his ministry is asking social media companies to block access to content that breaches Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act. Buddhipongse Punnakanta has confirmed that court orders are in place to block over 1,000 links said to contain offensive content. Of those, 661 can be found on Facebook, 289 on You Tube, and 69…
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Stopped by police? Here’s the new fines for traffic violations
If you drive a motorbike in Thailand, odds are you’ll get stopped by police at a checkpoint. Most of the time police, are just checking for driver’s licenses and making sure those riding on motorbikes are wearing helmets. In the past, some police have charged up to 500 baht for not having a Thai driver’s license. Now it’s set at…
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Amnesty International accuses Facebook of caving in to Thai Government
“The company should not have given in to the demands in the first place.” Facebook has acquiesced to the Thai Government’s demands to remove a Facebook Group that had been critical of the Thai Monarchy. The page, “Royalist Marketplace”, had a following of a million people and administered by a self-exiled Thai living in Japan. The group’s page cannot be accessed in…
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International tourists ‘essential’ to Thai economy, PM says
“If nothing is done, things will get worse. Premises will be shut down. Employees will be laid off. How can the government afford to help them all?” Thailand needs tourists to pick its economy back up, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says, adding that a system needs to be put in place that would both prevent the spread of the coronavirus and…
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Man confesses to serial rape of mentally challenged 14 year old girl
Police in the eastern border province of Buri Ram said today that a man who confessed to raping a 14 year old girl is out on bail and not considered a flight risk. The victim’s family complained that police dragged their feet in the investigation. 65 year old Somchai Kerdpra confessed to police and the media to assaulting the girl,…
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Popular TV co-host forced to quit after insulting students
A boycott by those pushing for democracy led a popular TV personality to quit her job as a Thai news co-host. Activists boycotted her shows after she made a derogatory post on Facebook insulting students and calling them “demon kids.” Ornapa “Ma” Krisadee, a transgender woman, was forced to leave her job as a co-host for a news programme for…
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Prominent dissidents arrested, bailed again
A pair of prominent activists, outspoken lawyer Anon Nampa and Panupong “Mike Rayong” Jodnok, have been granted bail after their arrests Monday for sedition in connection with the Free Youth movement’s protest at Thammasat University, north of Bangkok on August 10. Both have been arrested before. Student activist, Panupong was arrested in the eastern Rayong province while waiting to greet…
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GrabFood hungry for more customers
The lockdown boosted food delivery sales, but GrabFood is still hungry for more customers. They’ve launched a major marketing campaign called “Feed Your Hunger” with discounts and deals to get more people ordering food through the mobile application. The campaign goes from now until October 4. They’re offering free delivery service for those in a 3 kilometre radius. Many of…
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