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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. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Thailand is a popular place for digital nomads because it is affordable, culturally rich, and convenient for remote work. With friendly locals, great weather, and delicious food, it offers a high quality of life. Cities like Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and...
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US President-elect Biden eyes 306 electoral college votes, to Trump’s 232
US President-elect Joe Biden has likely bagged 306 votes in the Electoral College vote that decides who wins the keys to the White House. At this stage Donald Trump has won 232 votes in the tally. First to 270 Electoral College votes wins the US Presidency. Even if the state of Georgia somehow flips in a recount – historically unlikely –…
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Protesters advise police of plan for today’s Bangkok rally, several routes affected
The pro-democracy group, “Bad Students”, has formally submitted details of today’s rally to officers at Chanasongkram Police Station in Bangkok. Posting on its Facebook page, the group says it has advised police of its plans to assemble in front of the Education Ministry on Ratchadamnoen Road at 1pm today, before marching to the Democracy Monument. There, the group will join…
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South East Asian leaders foreshadow a pivot to the US in the new administration
So what will the presidency of US President-elect Joe Biden mean for south east Asia? And how will it differ from the administration of President Trump? South east Asia already knows Joe Biden from his term as US vice president from 2008 – 2016, and his “Asia pivot” that provided high-level diplomacy and resources with strategic trade relationships. The Obama-era…
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Overseas investors buy Thai bonds, optimistic that Covid-19 vaccine will revive tourism
With hopes that a Covid-19 vaccine will be the key to open Thailand’s doors back up to international tourism, overseas investors are putting down money into Thailand’s financial market. Thai baht has strengthened by nearly 3% since the end of October, a top performing currency in Asia following the Indonesian rupiah, and it’s expected to strengthen even further over the…
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Pattaya beer bar catches on fire, landlord accuses evicted tenant of arson
A Pattaya landlord is accusing an evicted tenant of arson after a beer bar housed in his building caught on fire late yesterday morning. Police and firefighters are continuing their investigation and did not comment on what they suspect caused the fire. The building owner, 68 year old Chanathida Rasamussen, says the fire was out when he arrived at the…
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Expat awaits trial for drug charges, mother in England worries and works to pay the bills
While 27 year old expat Louis Bentley awaits trial in Thailand for drug charges, his mother back in England is working 12 hour shifts to pay her son’s bills. For his mother, Michaela, the anticipation of waiting for the her son’s February court date, in a country so far from her with laws she’s unfamiliar with, has been “horrendous.” Louis…
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Human feces dumped in watershed contaminates Karen people’s drinking water
A truck allegedly dumped a tank of human feces in a watershed that drains into water sources used by a group of Karen people, leaving the community in Northern Thailand’s Tak province with no clean drinking water. Around 200 Karen people gathered at a police station in the Phop Phra district to file a complaint. For generations, water drained from…
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Pork dyed with pig blood sold as expensive beef in Bangkok
Eaten at a barbecue restaurant in Bangkok? There’s a slight chance the beef may have actually been pork. Apparently, local meat suppliers steeped pork in pig blood to give it that red meat colour and sold it to Bangkok eateries as expensive beef, according to Thailand’s Department of Livestock. Meat and cattle carcasses were seized from a home in Nakhon…
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Pheu Thai MP says charter amendment court hearing is government delaying tactic
The Pheu Thai MP for Ubon Ratchathani has attacked the ruling Palang Pracharat party and members of the Senate for what he sees as an attempt to slow down the charter amendment process. Somkid Chuakong says asking the Constitutional Court to decide if the opposition’s attempt at a charter re-write is in violation of the supreme law, is merely an…
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Who are these Thai student protesters, and what are they protesting about?
What’s behind all the protests in Thailand right now? What are the protesters demanding? Who are they? Since August, an organic – mostly young Thais – political movement has been building. It’s different from every other protest movement in the past. The people attending the rallies don’t really align themselves, or identify with, the past political factions. They’re not red…
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Singer and political activist plans to fight on, while sticking to bail conditions
A Thai singer-songwriter arrested for his role in pro-democracy protests, says he will continue the fight, while adhering to his bail conditions. Chaiamorn Kaewwiboonpan, aka, “Ammy”, says he plans to continue singing and speaking at political gatherings, having discussed the matter with his lawyer. The singer says his lawyer has advised him that he can still speak at rallies, provided…
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Qatar Airways to offer biweekly flights from Phuket to Doha
Things are starting to take off at the Phuket International Airport. Qatar Airways will resume bi-weekly flights from Phuket to Doha starting on December 4. The move is a major step forward after a halt of international travel to the island due to Covid-19 lockdown measures. Last week, an empty Emirates Airlines flight landed in Phuket. Although it wasn’t carrying…
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Student protesters to repeat calls for PM’s resignation at Bangkok rally tomorrow
A group of student activists going by the name, “Bad Students”, have confirmed plans for tomorrow’s anti-government protest in Bangkok, where they will once again call for the PM’s resignation. The pro-democracy activists will assemble outside the Ministry of Education building, before marching to the Democracy Monument. It’s understood the protesters will reiterate their 3 key demands: the resignation of…
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Vamco kills 7 as typhoon-weary communities mop up in northern Philippines | VIDEO
‘Vamco’, aka Ulysses in The Philippines, is now a severe tropical storm heading westward towards the central Vietnamese coastline after making landfall on The Philippines yesterday as the latest typhoon. At least 7 people have died and 12 others missing after Vamco made landfall on Wednesday night. A 68 and 70 year old are among those killed. More than 180,000…
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Flights grounded, Thai Airways pilot becomes Grab driver
Some pilots are spending more time on the ground these days due to the pandemic-induced travel restrictions. One Thai Airways pilot is using his time away from the air to get to know the traffic on the ground as a Grab driver. “The sky is closed,” pilot Mahesak Wongpa wrote on Facebook in a post sharing his story about becoming a…
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Plans to build bridge connecting Koh Lanta to Krabi mainland in the works
Plans to build a bridge connecting Koh Lanta with Krabi’s mainland is in the works . Currently, a ferry service transports people and vehicles on a boat, which is more like a barge than a ferry, to and from the island. It’s a fairly time consuming process that often backs up traffic. The Department of Rural Roads has an environmental…
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Third person killed by an elephant in the past month in Chon Buri’s Bo Thong district
A woman tapping rubber trees was stomped to death by a wild elephant in Chon Buri’s Bo Thong district. She is the third person in the district killed by an elephant in the past month. The wild elephants have been an ongoing problem and district chief Kittipong Kittikul says he’s been trying to control the wild animals in the area.…
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Symptoms improved for 70% of patients on cannabis treatment – Health minister
Thailand’s pro-marijuana public health minister boasts that symptoms have improved for at least 70% of the country’s medical cannabis patients. Thailand’s 311 medical cannabis clinics at hospitals have treated more than 14,200 people, most who are diagnosed with terminal cancer, according to Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul. Other patients using the cannabis treatment are patients with Parkinson’s disease, drug-resistant neuropathic…
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Hundreds of pigs killed in truck accident after driver allegedly fell asleep
A trailer truck packed with pigs flipped, killing hundreds of the pigs, after the driver allegedly fell asleep behind the wheel. Nation Thailand described the scene as a “horror film.” Lifeless bodies were stacked on top each other while injured pigs screamed and squealed in pain. The driver is facing reckless driving charges. The pigs were packed in a triple-decker…
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Thai Airways adds another 21.5 billion baht debt in Q3 report
Thai Airways has accumulated more losses, on top of a decade of annual losses, for the latest quarter. At the moment the national airline’s debt is four times higher than last year’s debt. The airline, already struggling, has been mostly grounded since the end of March. At the end of last week Thai Airways put 34 of its old planes…
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Police to deploy more female officers ahead of Saturday’s rally in Bangkok
Police in Bangkok say they plan to deploy more female officers to assist with crowd-control measures ahead of Saturday’s planned rally in the capital. The Royal Thai Police says most of those gathering at the Democracy Monument and the Education Ministry are expected to be students. RTP spokesman Yingyos Thepjamnong says that, while protesters have a right to voice their…
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Chon Buri man allegedly killed neighbours over dispute about their barking dog
A Chon Buri man allegedly shot and killed his neighbours because their dog was barking. 49 year old Jirat Wuttimananon turned himself in to police and allegedly admitted to fatally shooting the married couple after an argument about the barking dog. He faces murder charges. “I have been annoyed with the dog for a long time and made many complaints.…
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Thai immigration officials confirm several yachts have applied for STV entry
Immigration officials say a number of Special Tourist Visa applications have been received from yachts hoping to enter Thailand. It’s understood most of the yachts, thought to be around 10 in total, are from Malaysia and Singapore, and seeking to dock in Phuket or Pattaya. Archayon Kraithong, deputy commission of the Immigration Bureau, says everyone on board the yachts will…
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Parliament to debate draft charter amendments over 2 days next week
Parliament Speaker Chuan Leekpai says members will meet on November 17 and 18 to vote on 7 draft amendments to Thailand’s constitution. Nation Thailand reports that 6 of the drafts are the work of the government and a number of opposition MPs, while the 7th is from the Internet Dialogue on Law Reform, with the support of more than 100,000…
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Public concern prompts government to shelve 10-day quarantine plans
The Public Health Minister says concern from members of the public have led the government to shelve plans to reduce quarantine for overseas arrivals from 14 days to 10. Anutin Charnvirakul’s statement comes after a number of infections that have left officials a bit perplexed. One involves a woman recently returned from France who tested positive for Covid-19 after she’d…
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TripAdvisor slaps warning on Thailand’s ‘Sea View Resort & Spa’ review page
Be careful if you want to trash a Thai hotel in the land of fragile egos who use the handy tools of eager lawyers and draconian libel laws. Now TripAdvisor, the review website everyone loves to hate, is warning potential travellers to a particular Thai hotel that they could face severe consequences for sharing negative opinions about their experience. One visitor,…
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Monks prohibited from participating in political protests
Monks and novices are banned from joining political protests and urgent notifications have been sent to temples advising them that monks could be expelled for participating. As the pro-democracy movement continues, some monks have already been seen at rallies calling on government and monarchy reformation as well as a rewrite of the 2017 Constitution. The National Office of Buddhism director…
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Thai Airways sells warehouse items and leases offices for extra cash
In its latest move to generate just a little more cash in the midst of bankruptcy, cash-strapped Thai Airways is leasing out its office buildings and auctioning off in-flight items like bowls, cups, mugs and packages of “refreshing tissue.” Thai Airways also recently put 34 passenger airplanes on the market. With the coronavirus-induced travel restrictions, Thai Airways cannot operate fully…
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North Taurid meteor shower visible from Thailand tomorrow night
A North Taurid meteor shower will be visible from Thailand tomorrow around 7pm with a few, but very bright meteors expected to light up the sky, according to National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand. Around 5 meteors could shoot across the sky per hour and the ones that do could be bright meteors known as “fireballs.” The Taurid meteor stream…
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Bangkok motorbike taxi driver allegedly stabs another driver to death
A Bangkok motorbike taxi driver allegedly stabbed and killed another driver during an argument. Although the women picked up passengers from different areas, they often clashed. Motorbike taxi driver Thongthae Janmun is facing charges of intent to murder. The women got in a dispute yesterday. The victim slapped Thongthae on the head, then Thongthae allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed…
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