Thailand News
Discover the most recent and relevant news from across Thailand on The Thaiger’s National News page. Covering a wide range of topics, including politics, business, crime, and lifestyle, our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
Stay informed about the latest developments in Thai society, economy, and culture, as well as updates on travel, tourism, and expat life. With The Thaiger, you’ll never miss out on the essential news that matters to you.
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Maximising revenue and profit–isn’t that the ultimate goal for every business in the hospitality industry? If you run a hotel, you might have heard that revenue management is an effective way to boost your top-line revenue. It involves using data...
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Thailand’s lower house passes Marriage Equality Bill (first reading)
Yesterday, Thailand’s Parliament passed the Marriage Equality Bill in the first reading with 210 votes in favour, 180 votes in opposition and 4 abstentions. The bill – previously rejected by Cabinet in March – was pushed by Thailand’s Move Forward Party. A parliamentary committee has been set up to scrutinise the bill over the next 15 days before it is…
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New draft law will allow ex-cons to expunge criminal records
A new draft law will allow people who have been convicted of a crime and served their sentence to wipe the slate clean and start again. In the past ex-cons have found it difficult to find gainful employment after serving their sentence and as a consequence have gone on to reoffend. But if this new bill is passed it will…
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TAT says it’s the season for venemous jellyfish in Thailand
After thousands of “fire jellyfish” washed up on the shores of Krabi’s Bok Khorani National Park earlier this week, Thailand’s tourism authorities are warning of more venomous jellyfish to come. On Facebook, the Tourism Authority of Thailand has urged swimmers and snorkelers not to take any risks on beaches where jellyfish warning sings have been posted. TAT acknowledged that it’s…
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LGBTQ+ protesters in Thailand want marriage equality, not ‘civil partnerships’
Members of Thailand’s LGBTQ+ community gathered outside parliament today to submit a letter calling for the Cabinet to pass the Marriage Equality Bill. The bill would make Thailand’s marriage laws applicable to any couple, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation. The Marriage Equality bill was previously rejected by the Cabinet, who said it was redundant because they were instead…
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Labour Minister confirms 300 jobs axed by Shopee Thailand
The Labour Minister, Suchart Chomklin, confirmed yesterday’s report on the Shopee redundancies was accurate. He says 300 jobs are being axed, but insisted the Labour Ministry would help ensure sacked workers are looked after in accordance to employment legislation. The Singaporean company Sea announced during a town hall meeting yesterday of the planned layoff for one of its core businesses,…
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Robot dogs spotted “playing” at Chiang Mai University
As if Thailand didn’t have enough dogs roaming the streets already, Chiang Mai University’s Faculty of Engineering has manufactured a pack of robot dogs which have been spotted “playing” on a field at the university’s campus in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand. An unsettling video of the robot dogs posted on Facebook has netizens divided on whether the dogs – which…
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Domestic violence victim allegedly confesses to conspiracy to murder
A victim of domestic violence allegedly confessed to a conspiracy to murder charge on her arrest yesterday. The woman, Charoensri Thongkham, allegedly admitted to hiring a hitman to kill her husband because she couldn’t take any more of his violent abuse and long string of affairs. The 41 year old woman told police she had lived with her husband for…
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Walmart didn’t ban Thai coconut milk, says Ministry of Commerce
Walmart allegedly took Chaokoh coconut milk off their shelves in response to PETA’s claims that the Thai brand uses monkey labour in the production of their famous coconut milk. Today, Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce said Walmart “hasn’t banned Thai coconut milk,” but didn’t mention any specific brands. The US animal rights non-profit organisation PETA conducted an investigation into monkey labour…
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Policeman shot dead on duty in central Thailand
A group of teenagers on motorbikes fatally shot a policeman on duty in Pathum Thani province, central Thailand, in the early hours of yesterday morning. One 18 year old man admits to firing a gun in the direction of the policeman, but isn’t sure if it was the shot that killed him. Commander-in-chief Anan Orsuwan went to Soi Erawan 12…
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Brother of pregnant Thai woman murdered in Taiwan demands justice
The brother of a Thai woman murdered in Taiwan is calling on police to catch the killer. Thirty-eight year old Yingyot Sae Li said the man who murdered his sister and her husband had been very close to his family, and grew up in the same village as them. His sister, Potjanee, had been 5 pregnant with twins when the…
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Government to temporarily waive TM6 immigration forms
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha briefed media yesterday after the cabinet’s weekly meeting and revealed the government has agreed to temporarily scrap the Tor Mor 6 immigration form. The TM6 form is the arrival/departure card foreigners fill in providing passport details, name and address, etc., on their entry and exit from Thailand. Deputy Government Spokesperson Traisuree Traisoranakul says scrapping the TM6 would…
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AirAsia targets Indian travellers as China remains grounded
Low-cost Malaysian airline AirAsia is turning to India for international travellers after China cut itself off from the rest of the world. AirAsia, which mostly targets the Southeast Asian market, is experiencing a surge in business from Indian travellers visiting Indonesia and Malaysia. This comes after China, historically one of Thailand’s prime tourism markets, cut itself off from travel with…
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Man finds corpse in abandoned house in eastern Thailand
On Sunday, a Thai man walked into an abandoned house in Rayong province, eastern Thailand, to find a skull in the middle of the living room and a decomposed, headless body in the bathroom lying next to the toilet. The man who discovered the corpse was 60 year old Charlie Pairotsorn, who was planning on buying the house and surrounding…
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US Defense Secretary visits PM Prayut in Bangkok
Yesterday, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in a bid to “reinforce” longstanding military ties between the two nations, which date back to 1818. Austin and PM Prayut, who is also Minister of Defence, “shared perspectives on regional security issues, and discussed opportunities to strengthen the US – Thai alliance,” according to the US Defense…
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Court upholds 8-month suspended jail sentence for ex Thai MP
Former Palang Pracharath MP for Ratchaburi province, Pareena Kraikupt, yesterday says she is undecided whether she will challenge the Appeal Court decision to uphold a lower court sentence of an 8-month jail term, suspended for 2 years, and a 66,666 baht fine for defamation. A defamation case was filed against the 46 year old by former Future Forward MP Pannika…
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Police investigate death of 2 teens and elderly man in Pattaya road accident
Police are investigating the death of 2 teenagers and an elderly man after they died in a road accident in Ban Bueng, Chon Buri, on Sunday. Emergency services were called to the scene of the accident in the Nong Chark sub-district and found the bodies of two 14 year old boys by the side of a damaged motorbike and a…
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Thailand warms to drop temperature checks
The Ministry of Public Health will suggest to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration to remove temperature measurement devices and checkpoints from all the country’s airports and other locations throughout Thailand because there is no evidence proving that the checks prevent the spread of coronavirus. The Head of the Health Technical Office from the Ministry of Public Health, Rungruang Kitphati,…
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Fire jellyfish warning in Krabi, southern Thailand
Red flags were raised to warn tourists not to swim on one beach in Krabi, southern Thailand, after large numbers of “fire jellyfish” washed up on the shore yesterday. Morbakka fenneri, known as the “fire jellyfish,” doesn’t get its name from its pinkish-red colour but from its potent sting. Thousands of small but venomous fire jellyfish washed up on Hong…
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Thailand’s tsunami warning system still works, says Disaster Department
Thailand has worryingly lost connection with two tsunami detection buoys, but the country’s tsunami warning system is still effective, insists the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, or DDPM. Indian authorities recently recovered one of the buoys in the Indian Ocean after the department lost contact with it on October 22 last year. The department is trying to recover a…
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Chaokoh deny any monkey business amid PETA investigation
Thai coconut-milk producer Chaokoh say there is no monkey business going on in the production of their products, in response to a PETA investigation. The US-based animal rights non-profit organisation conducted an investigation in 2019 singling out Chaokoh for the abuse of young monkeys in Thailand. PETA’s report alleged monkeys are “chained, abused, and forced to climb trees to pick…
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Elderly Thai couple marry after knowing each other for 10 days
An elderly couple from Phetchabun, northern Thailand, got married yesterday after knowing each other for a total of 10 days. The lovebirds met on the ridge of Pak Huay Dam in Khon Kaen and it wasn’t long before they decided to get married and live with each other in their old age. The 72 year old groom Nuan Mala did…
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Farmers feed cannabis to chickens in northern Thailand
Chickens at a farm in Lampang, northern Thailand, are in a “good mood” after the antibiotics in their chicken feed were replaced with cannabis. Not only are the chickens showing higher immunity against disease, but they also have a lower body fat percentage than usual, making for a delicious Khao Man Gai – or chicken rice – according to one…
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Police step up search for minister’s missing father
Police stepped up a search for the missing father of a government minister charged with land encroachment by Thailand’s National Anti-Corruption Commission. Soonthorn Vilawan, father of Deputy Education Minister Kanokwan Vilawan, is allegedly on the run after failing to turn up in court on Thursday to face charges of forest encroachment. The NACC told media Thursday the anti-graft watchdog had…
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CCSA to consider more suggestions on lifting Covid restrictions
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration on Friday will consider more suggestions in regards to lifting Covid restrictions, with PM Prayut Chan-o-cha insisting that public safety is still a priority. Adjusting the colour-coded Covid concept and relaxing the rules for nightclubs will be among the recommendations discussed. The CCSA is open to any new ideas and recommendations from different parties…
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Thailand’s Digital Economy Minister ‘clarifies’ about the posting of crime pics or videos online
Thailand’s Digital Economy and Society Minister, Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, is warning crime witnesses that spreading pictures or videos of the incidents via online channels ‘could’ violate the new Personal Data Protection Act or PDPA. The minister says the safer way to help victims is to hand the evidence to the police officers. Thailand officially operated the PDPA or the Personal Data…
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Two Indian tourists die in motorbike accident on Koh Samui mountain
Two Indian tourists have died in a motorbike incident yesterday evening on the Thai Gulf island of Koh Samui, southern Thailand. The pair were driving down the Khao Pom mountain on a rented motorbike when they crashed into a barrier on a curved road. The men’s bodies were found on the mountainside. At 6:30pm yesterday, Koh Samui Police Station received…
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Governor pledges to make Bangkok better for its most vulnerable
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt called for “cooperation” after he pledged to make the city better after chairing a task force meeting designed to help improve lives of the city’s most vulnerable. The 56 year old city chief met with several associations on how best to promote the rights and interests of those most vulnerable in the metropolis. Attendees included associations…
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How Thailand plans to transition into the endemic phase
Thailand will begin to “relax” Covid-19 restrictions in the coming weeks as the country shifts into the “endemic phase.” “U2” and “3Por” measures will be implemented to ensure public health and safety during the transition, according to Thailand’s Covid-19 Situation Administration, or CCSA. The next CCSA meeting will be held on Friday, June 17. The Ministry of Public Health will…
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How can parents keep kids busy during Bangkok summer holidays
Summer holidays for Bangkok international schools are nearly here. For working parents who are trying to balance work, and family, and will be spending at least some of the summer in the city, the question is how to keep their children busy and engaged? One of the best online resources for expat parents looking for activities is BKK Kids. With…
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Nightlife closing times, revised mask requirements and more land border re-openings
Thailand’s Covid taskforce are meeting this week to consider three proposals made from around various Ministries and industry stakeholders. It’s going to be a pivotal week for the CCSA. Announcements are expected by this Friday. One of them is to remove the requirement to wear face masks in public, although it is widely considered that, even if this concession is…
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