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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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10 biggest challenges retirees face in Thailand (and how to overcome them)
Retiring in Thailand comes with many benefits, like warm weather, affordable living, and a rich culture. However, it also brings challenges. Retirees must deal with visa rules, healthcare costs, language barriers, and cultural differences. Rising medical expenses, required insurance, and...
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Wife of ‘lovely motorcycle taxi driver’ has her say
There’s always two sides of a story. This time the wife of the ‘lovely’ motorcycle taxi driver who had his ‘heart-breaking’ story posted all over social media on Tuesday, is having her say. The man, at the time, claimed that he had paid the mortgage for eight years but the house was in her name and she now had another man. So…
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“No need to join coalition government” – Democrat politician
PHOTO: Facebook/Parit Wacharasindhu With around 55 seats won after Sunday’s election, the Democrats are one of a few political parties which will hold the balance of power. They will be able to choose between joining an alliance with a Pheu Thai-led bloc or siding with the Phalang Pracharat-led camp. But Parit Wacharasindhu, a new generation Democrat Party member, says he…
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Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, continue to suffer under persistent haze
PHOTO: Chiang Rai Times Air pollution levels remain high in many of the northern population areas with little respite on the horizon for the smog-stricken northern provinces. Chiang Mai Natural Resource and Environment Office director Saratcha Suriyakul Na Ayudhaya says that public, private and other sectors are contributing to the lowering the levels of air pollution by spraying water and…
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Seven Chinese tourists injured in Pattaya tour bus crash
PHOTO: Pattaya Mail Seven Chinese tourists have been injured after their tour bus overturned on Sukhumvit Road in Jomtien Beach, south of Pattaya. The victims were rushed to Pattaya Memorial Hospital after the Bangkok-registered tour bus careered into a traffic-island drainage canal in front of the Ambassador City Hotel. The Pattaya Mail reports that sixteen other passengers on the bus…
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Two day rescue of six baby elephants stuck in mud pool in Nakhon Ratchasima – VIDEO
PHOTOS/VIDEO: DNP Six baby elephants have been rescued from mud pool in Nakhon Ratchasima following two days of delicate efforts from officials. The Department of National Parks Wildlife and Plants Conservation reports that they found the baby elephants on Wednesday while forest officers were patrolling in the forest in Sengsang, Nakhon Ratchasima, northeast of Thailand. During the afternoon they stumbled…
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Event Round-Up – April 2019
by The Sponsorship Experts – Paul Poole (South East Asia) The first ever ASEAN Gastronomy Tourism Fair will kick off on April 9-10 at CW Tower Ratchadapisek Bangkok. Hosted by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, it is the first time all 10 member states of ASEAN will come together to build a strong foundation for gastronomy tourism in the…
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Democrat’s 50 parliamentary seats up for grabs
The Democrat Party is hedging their bets at the moment with differing views among the remnant of the political party as to where they should throw their support in the new parliament. Yesterday they were juggling their options, as both Pheu Thai and Phalang Pracharat claimed legitimacy to form the next government. Senior Democrat politician Thaworn Senneam, who won the…
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Leopard cat found dumped in plastic box in Kathu
A leopard cat has been saved after being found dumped inside a plastic box in Kathu. The head of Khao Phra Thaeo Non-Hunting Area Study Centre Pongchart Chueahom says he had received the healthy leopard cat kitten from a local. “After that we went to the Thalang Police Station to file a report about the dumping of a protected animal.”…
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German tourist beaten over Chiang Mai karaoke bar bill
by Thanakorn Wongnang A German tourist in Chiang Mai has filed an official complaint with police, claiming he was assaulted by staff at an allegedly over-priced karaoke bar. The trouble started when he refused to pay the extortionate 10,000 baht bill. 35 year old Arthur Wojciechowski, who ended up with facial bruises from the assault, told Muang Chiang Mai deputy…
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Bus driver fined after dropping oil on Patong Hill – VIDEO
PHOTOS/VIDEO: Kathu Police / Law Enforcement 201 / Newshawk Phuket A bus driver has been fined after his bus dropped oil onto the road as it was coming down from Patong Hill. Motorbike drivers had been been injured after slipping on the oil slick. The CCTV footage shows the incident when the bus was going down from Patong Hill, dropping…
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Three Samut Prakan residents arrested with 868 kilograms of marijuana
Three men have been arrested with a whopping 868 kilograms of marijuana hidden in two houses in Samut Prakan, south-east of Bangkok. Police held a media conference to announce the arrest of two 33 year olds, Somporn Kimya and Supachai Neesungnone along with an 18 year old Thawatchai (surname withheld). Metropolitan Police Lt Gen Sutthipong Wongpin says police seized the…
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Election results: Phalang Pracharat wins popular vote, Pheu Thai wins most seats
The Election Commission, acting on increased pressure from a number of political and NGO complaints, has released the general election popular vote count, saying the pro-junta Phalang Pracharat won the most popular votes at over 8.4 million, while Pheu Thai came second with 7.9 million votes. This afternoon’s media conference came as a surprise as the EC had been dodging…
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Out of town ‘monk’ assaults and kills another monk at a Chiang Mai temple
PHOTOS: MThai.com Chiang Mai police were called to the Ku Kham Temple in Mae Ping after witnesses claim they saw a roving monk beat another man to death, apparently another monk. Both were, according to the temple monks, from out of town. Sanook reports that 55 year old Phra Wichian was allegedly seen viciously punching and kicking the other man, around…
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Two die, many injured in three separate bus incidents
PHOTOS: โนนสูง “อาสา” ฐานหน้าโรงพยาบาลโนนสูง Two people have died while many others have been injured in three separate bus accidents early this morning around Thailand – two in Nakhon Ratchasima and another in Nakhon Sawan Just after midnight a truck collided into the back of a bus at an intersection in Krok Phra, Nakhon Sawan, central of Thailand. Two people sustained…
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Bomb making equipment discovered in Krabi cave
Krabi officers have discovered bomb-making equipment inside a cave in Krabi. Yesterday officers raided the cave on Koh Talu in Ao Lueak, Krabi after they found that the cave is part of an area of a company who received a concession to produce and farm bird nets. To men died from their injuries after stepping on mines along the shores…
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Hospitals train staff to recoup money from non-paying foreigners
“…many foreigners sought treatment for ailments or injuries at public hospitals and many failed to fully pay the bills, resulting in multi-million baht in debt.” The Public Health Ministry’s Department of Health Service Support has provided training to public hospitals in tourist provinces to help them collect fees from foreigners, director-general Dr Nattawuth Prasertsiripong said yesterday. The move is aimed at…
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British man, serving a 50 year sentence, waits to be transferred to the UK
PHOTO: Facebook/Help get Lance Whitmore home Lance Whitmore, sentenced to 50 years in prison in Thailand for the possession of ecstasy, will be transferred to the UK to serve the remainder of his sentence. The British citizen, originally from Bromsgrove, England, was 27 when he was caught with 200 ecstasy tablets in Pattaya in 2014. The former soldier had been…
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Phuket policeman shoots himself, dies in hospital
A Vichit policeman has shot himself at a house in Rassada early today. Police were notified about the incident just after midnight at a house in Rassada, east of Phuket Town on the island’s east coast. Police and emergency responders arrived to find the man on the floor of his bedroom surrounded by pools of blood. A bullet wound was…
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Study: Psychosis in teens linked to air pollution
“One of the most consistent findings over the past few decades has been a link between cities and psychosis.” Whilst the high levels of air-pollution, smog and smoke remain high in the north and north-eastern provinces of Thailand, a new study has been released that links high levels of smog and psychoses in young adults. Joanne Newbury, lead author of…
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Motorbike passenger dies in accident with minivan in Thalang
A motorbike passenger has died after a motorbike, he was travelling as pillion, collided with a minivan in Thalang. The Thalang Police were notified of the incident at 5.20am yesterday on Paklok – Mueang Mai Road in Paklok, Thalang. Police and emergency responders arrived to find a motorbike crashed on the road. The motorbike driver, 26 year old Orrachun Kongkaew…
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60 year old arrested over alleged rape of neighbour’s 14 year old daughter
Police have arrested a 60 year old man for allegedly raping a 14 year old girl in Khon Kaen.The suspect, identified only as ‘Song’, was arrested after the girl’s mother filed a police complaint saying the man had allegedly raped her daughter, and on several occasions. The woman told the police that she first learned of the rapes on March…
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Brunei’s ‘vicious’ new Islamic criminal laws – Amnesty International
Brunei, an ASEAN country, has announced the introduction of draconian sharia criminal laws. Included, death by stoning for gays and amputation for theft. The new penalties come into effect on April 3. And, by the way, the new laws also apply to children. It’s all covered under the new Brunei Sharia Penal Code. Not surprisingly governments and rights groups around the…
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Police hunting for murder killed and buried man in cement in Bangkok
PHOTOS: Siam Ruamjai Pu-in Foundation Police are hunting for a suspect who killed a man and buried him in cement in a drum in Bangkok. They say they’re seeking a 47 year old caretaker of a construction business in Bangkok’s Bang Khen district following the Tuesday night discovery of the body of his 38 year old distant relative and colleague…
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Patong announces ‘Songkran Festival on the Beach’ schedule
Patong Municipality has announced details for this year’s ‘Songkran Festival on the Beach’ in Patong which will be held at Bangla Park on April 11-13, at the end of Bangla Road. April 11 Sand pagoda forming contest Miss Songkran Beauty Contest Thai dancing shows April 12 Shows from entertainment operators EDM music show April 13 Food offering to monks on…
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Boeing 737 Max 8 has engine problems during take off in the US
Another bad week for Boeing. This time an incident as an American airline moves its fleet to a common airfield to supervise testing and software upgrades following the 737 Max fleet grounding. A Southwest Airline Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft had to do an emergency landing after having engine problems after take-off in Florida on Tuesday. No passengers were aboard the Southwest…
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Chon Buri volunteer policeman to be charged with assault after clubbing toddler
by Theerawat Thongma, Dethawee Theewarangkool The parents of a two year old boy say they will press charges after a civilian volunteer policeman in Chon Buri struck him with his baton while trying to beat the parents for trying to dodge a traffic checkpoint. The incident took place last night. The couple say the volunteer didn’t notice the boy sitting…
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Cement truck company fined after dropping cement on Patong Hill – VIDEO
PHOTOS/VIDEO: Kathu Police A Phuket-based cement truck company has been fined after the truck dropped cement as it was climbing Patong Hill yesterday afternoon. The CCTV footage shows the incident when the cement truck was going up on Patong Hill and dropping cement on the road along the way. The incident was reported by Kathu Police. The cement company manager…
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Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam disses Pheu Thai ‘coalition’
“The final seat tally is subject to change since the commission has only announced 95 per cent of the voting results.” Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam has called Wednesday’s announcement of a Pheu Thai-led coalition preparing to form a government merely psychological strategy that will not bear fruit. “The truth will be known after May 9 when the Election Commission endorses…
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Two year old child injured after being struck by volunteer police at checkpoint in Pattaya
PHOTOS: Mint Mint A mother of a two year old child claims her son was knocked unconscious after a volunteer police hit him with a baton last night in Pattaya. The Siam Ruamjai (Pu-in) Foundation reports that just after midnight this morning a two year old boy Silan ‘Nong Sam’ Ninkham was being treated at the Bang Lamung Hospital in…
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Six parties poised to announce coalition government at 10am
Six pro-democracy parties, led by Pheu Thai, are announcing their intention to form a coalition government this morning. The number-crunchers say, even without the support of BumJaiThai and the Democrats, they have 252 house seats to form a majority government (they need at least 251 seats in the 500 seat parliament). The parties siding with Pheu Thai to form the…
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