News
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Top 5 luxury villas in Phuket and Koh Samui for your next holiday
Ask people to name the most beautiful places in Thailand, and you'll often hear Phuket and Koh Samui being mentioned. Who would disagree? One is renowned for its bustling nightlife, vibrant culture, and lively beach scene, while the other is...
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B26mn bid for lucky plates
PHUKET: A little more than 26 million baht (26,013,000) was earned at the 8th annual “Lucky License Plate Action” held recently at the Phuket Merlin Hotel in Phuket Town. This was five million baht short of the initial expectation of 31 million baht, and four million baht less than last year’s auction which raised 30 million baht. This year, a…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Dalai Lama decries Buddhist attacks in Myanmar; Russia, US target Syria peace; Ohio captives freed; SARS-like virus in Saudi
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Dalai Lama decries Buddhist attacks on Muslims in Myanmar Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Tuesday decried Buddhist monks’ attacks on Muslims in Myanmar, saying killing in the name of religion was “unthinkable.”The Dalai Lama, a foremost Buddhist leader, told an…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Red shirts to march on Bangkok; Smoking ban at airports; ICT Minister defends web censorship
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Concern as red shirts threaten mass protest The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Concern over the announced mass protest by red-shirt supporters – touted to attract some 100,000 supporters – has prompted Bangkok Governor Sukhumbhand Paribatra to instruct municipal police to tighten security at government compounds and landmarks…
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Phuket Italian restaurants make the grade
PHUKET: The Thai-Italian chamber of commerce brought their Ospitalita Italiana project to Phuket recently, awarding five Italian restaurants the ‘Q’ certificate of authenticity. The ‘Q’ for ‘quality’ award judges the restaurants genuinely Italian if they meet 10 criteria concerning the training of their chefs and their use of genuine recipes and Italian products, such as wine and olive oil. Not…
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Phuket loan shark, henchmen netted in raid
PHUKET: Crime Suppression Division officers arrested a Phuket loan shark and his six henchmen in a raid on a house in Thalang district late yesterday afternoon. Led by Maj Roongsak Maichandee and armed with a search warrant, the officers entered a house in Ban Muang Mai, off Thepkrasattri Road, and arrested Yutthana “Tum” Dorkjan, 31, for running a loan shark…
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Phuket hatchet-wielding thief still at large, motorbike recovered
PHUKET: A motorbike stolen by a hatchet-wielding man on the run was found yesterday parked at the Koh Kaew Post Office.The man, thought to be dangerous, is still at large.Police first encountered the man when they signaled him to pull over at a checkpoint in Cherng Talay on Thursday. He refused to stop, almost hitting a police officer as he…
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Reaching out for that helping hand
Suicide rates have increased 60 per cent worldwide over the past 45 years, according to the World Health Organization. Phuket is not immune, but there is help available for those in need. The Phuket Gazette’s Leslie Porterfield reports. PHUKET: KHEMMANIT Jantharaapa was 38 years old when she walked onto Thao Thepkrasattri Bridge in tears on April 24. She took off…
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Phuket beach party ends with shotgun blast
PHUKET: A man enjoying a laid-back beach party with friends at Kalim, north of Patong Beach, last night managed to push away a shotgun that was pointed at his head just before it went off. Khatawut Sangngam, 23, was with friends on Kalim Beach (map here) when three men rode by them on motorbikes, looked them over, and rode on.…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: B350bn water project hits corruption dam; Khon Kaen killer cop; Cheating teacher investigated
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Water projects may break corruption law The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The government might run into another serious legal problem; barely escaping the Administrative Court’s injunction last week, the Bt350-billion water-management project could be found to violate the Counter Corruption Act BE2542 (1999).A source at the Comptroller…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Israel plays down Syria war; EU tackles carbon; Auschwitz guard arrested; Women missing 10 years found alive in house
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Israel says ‘no winds of war’ despite Syria air strikes Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Israel played down weekend air strikes close to Damascus reported to have killed dozens of Syrian soldiers, saying they were not aimed at influencing its neighbour’s civil war but only at…
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Tourism Minister: International licenses a must for Phuket car, bike rentals
PHUKET: Tourists will need to have a valid international driver’s license to rent cars and motorbikes, the Minister of Tourism and Sports announced on Saturday. The news came as Tourism and Sports Minister Somsak Pureesrisak sifted through a slew of issues facing the state of tourism in the Andaman provinces of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi at a meeting at…
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Phuket Tourist Police arrest illegal Chinese guides
PHUKET: Tourist Police arrested two Chinese nationals in Phuket Town yesterday for working illegally as tour guides catering to Chinese tour groups. Phuket Tourist Police Inspector Urumporn Khundejsumrit named the two men as Hung Jin Tia, also known as “Mr Tawan”, 34, and Cao Jiandong, 40. Accompanying Tourist Police in the raid on the men’s tour kiosk on Phun Pol…
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Phuket football: Islanders unable to tame Port Lions
PHUKET: The Islanders drew 1-1 with the Port Authority of Thailand’s pro soccer team, Singhtarua FC on Saturday night at Phuket’s Surakul Stadium, and the home team will feel unlucky not to have claimed all three points. Playing their 9th fixture away, in their first season ever in the Thai Division 1 (Yamaha League One or YL1), the Singhtarua FC…
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Inventive thieves fail to rob Phuket ATM with blowtorch
PHUKET: In a first-of-its-kind robbery in the area, thieves attempted to rob an ATM machine at the Deep Sea Port by using a blowtorch.“This is something new for us,” said Sub Lt Suporn Muengkai of the Wichit Police. “We haven’t had anyone try to rob an ATM with a blowtorch before.”The robbery at a stand-alone ATM on Sakdidet Road occurred…
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New Phuket court to deliver tourists justice
PHUKET: A new series of courts will be established in Phuket and other key vacation destinations in Thailand, including Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Phang Nga and Krabi, to assist foreign visitors.“Tourists who are the victims of thefts and robberies may have to face a lengthy trial and experience inconvenience because they only stay in the country for a short time,”…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Corruption hits new high; Brit mum campaigns for road safety; Abhisit to face more 2010 murder charges
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Thais becoming inured to corruption, TDRI says The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: With bribes hitting 30-50 per cent of project prices, and the public showing signs of becoming inured to the practice, corruption has reached a critical point, the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) says.…
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More trekking elephants suspected illegal in Phang Nga raids
PHUKET: Officers from the regional Natural Resources and Environment Crime Suppression Division have identified 26 more elephants they suspect were illegally acquired. The news follows raids on elephant trekking companies in Phang Nga, north of Phuket, earlier this week, during which officers identified 40 elephants they suspect are illegal (story here). The trekking camps are well known for providing popular…
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Tourism minister pledges to push B100mn Phuket Port expansion plan
PHUKET: The Minister of Tourism and Sports, in Phuket to inspect the Deep Sea Port today, has pledged to push forward the 100-million-baht plan to expand Phuket’s key port facility.“I will raise the issue with the Minister of Transportation next week,” Somsak Pureesrisak told reporters today.Joining Mr Somsak in his visit to Phuket today was Tourism of Thailand (TAT) Governor…
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Man arrested for selling corals at Phuket market
PHUKET: Police last night arrested a market trader for selling pieces of dead coral as ornaments fitted to leather bands at the popular Saphan Hin Park in Phuket Town. Officers moved in and arrested Suphachok Worramatamart, 37, after they received a tip-off that dead specimens of coral were being sold at the market. Marine Police Region 8 Deputy Superintendent Lt…
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Phuket to host joint full-scale tsunami drill
PHUKET: Rescue services from three provinces will join Phuket emergency first-responders for three days of intensive training and to conduct a full-scale tsunami response drill on May 29. The fellow rescue teams to join the exercise will be from the Andaman provinces of Krabi, Phang Nga and Trang. The rescue crews will explore response plans on May 27-28 and stage…
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Dwarf sperm whale treated, released in Patong
PHUKET: A dwarf sperm whale measuring 2.4 meters long was treated with a dose of antibiotics and released back into the sea after being spotted off Patong Beach on Wednesday.Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) officers received a report of the ill whale at about 8:30am.The animal, weighing only an estimated 150 kilograms, was found in front of the police box…
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Phuket Opinion: Year-long road safety in Phuket
PHUKET: The nationwide Songkran Seven Days of Danger road-safety campaign was deemed to be a raging success on Phuket, with only one fatality on the island’s roads during that period. The strong police presence and abundance of police checkpoints definitely made a difference. But the checkpoints have vanished along with the police. Is that their work for the year done?…
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Phuket Opinion: Partners for life
Jeerattakarn Nuannum, 30, was born in Phuket and graduated from Phuket Rajabhat University. After joining Phuket’s renowned Simon Cabaret Show as a performer in 2002, the Phuket native became a fashion model at Phuket Pop Top Model in 2008. Here, Jeerattakarn explains what rights the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community expect to be granted if Thailand moves ahead…
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Phuket Opinion: Don’t ignore the signs of suicide
PHUKET: Mankind, the first of nature’s creations, has so “fully evolved” that some of our number willingly end their own lives. For those of us who have never had to battle depression, the very idea of committing suicide probably seems like the ultimate waste. After all, our time on this inexplicable stage called “life” is ephemeral enough indeed – why…
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Governor proposes solution for Rassada water pollution
PHUKET: After inspecting the site in Rassada where highly polluted wastewater is pumped directly into the Bang Yai Canal in Phuket Town (story here), Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut has drawn up a plan to solve the problem. Before drawing up his plan, Gov Maitri broadened his scope of appraisal and inspected drainage ditches behind the Radio of Thailand official residences…
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Phuket hits high on buffalo agenda
PHUKET: After previous editions in Cairo, Delhi, Manila, Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires, the World Buffalo Congress will this year make its way to Thailand, where Phuket will host the triennial event at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort and Spa in Karon from May, 6 to 8. More than 500 participants from 35 countries are scheduled to attend the event,…
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Immigration chief highlights Rohingya plight in Thailand
PHUKET: Immigration Bureau Commissioner Pharnu Kerdlarpphon, in Phuket for a closed-door meeting of high-ranking officials, has expressed his concern for the growing number of Rohingya refugees being detained in Thailand.Lt Gen Pharnu’s visit to Phuket on Tuesday was to head a meeting tabled to discuss the bureau’s “working policy” at which Phuket’s own immigration superintendent did not attend.Following the meeting,…
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Phuket bike burner confession treated as ambiguous, police continue search
PHUKET: A man who rambled while confessing to police that he had burned several motorbikes in Phuket has been arrested while police continue their investigation and look for accomplices.Police picked up Thaweesak Nathang, 37, on Monday because he looks similar to a man seen in CCTV images of a motorbike burning in Kamala.When questioned by police, Mr Thaweesak confessed to…
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After five months, missing American Brett Bean calls home
PHUKET: Brett Bean, the American expat whose disappearance last November gained extensive press coverage, has contacted his family after 155 days of unnerving silence, the Phuket Gazette has confirmed. “It was a very brief call,” his mother, Lynne Bean, said. “We still do not know where he is, but it was very good to hear his voice,” she added. “At…
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40 elephants suspected illegal as raids strike tourism trekking companies
PHUKET: Officers from the regional Natural Resources and Environment Crime Suppression Division raided seven tour companies in Phang Nga this week following reports that the companies were in possession of illegal elephants. Col Watcharin Phusit, who headed the elephant raids in Phuket last year, also led the raids north of Phuket. “We investigated the ATV Tour Company, Pang Kaew elephant…
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