News
Stay up-to-date with the latest news from across Thailand and beyond with The Thaiger. Our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from this stunning part of the world, covering a diverse range of topics, including local politics, business, culture, and tourism. Keep yourself informed about the Kingdom’s rich history, stunning landscapes, and thriving expat communities, as well as updates on events, attractions, and transportation.
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Phuket Gazette World News: Quebec premier vows ‘never again’ after 32 die in senior residence fire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Quebec premier vows ‘never again’ after 32 die in senior residence fire Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Quebec Premier Pauline Marois on Sunday said a fatal fire in a seniors’ residence was “unacceptable” but stopped short of saying her government would make sprinklers mandatory in homes for the…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Anger, violence rock voting in capital; Poll blockades across South; Northern snow just frost
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Anger and violence rock voting in capital The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Advance voting for the national election was disrupted yesterday by violence, with the murder of an anti-government protest leader and a dozen people injured. This includes voters who wanted to cast ballots.Police have said they…
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Phuket landlord, son, slain in lease dispute
PHUKET: A Phuket landlord and her son were gunned down in front of their family home in Thung Thong yesterday afternoon amid a heated a dispute over continuing a lease for a local curry shop that sold sugarcane juice. Police arrived at the scene (map here) at about 4:30pm to find Boonlet Thanom-anantakun, 42, standing next to the house with…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Anti-Thaksin protest leader slain in public shooting
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Anti-Thaksin protest leader slain in public shooting The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Suthin Taratin, one of leaders of People’s Army to Overthrow the Thaksin Regime, was killed by a gunshot to the head as he was leading a blockade at an advance polling station in Bangkok’s Bang…
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Phuket election alcohol ban starts tonight
PHUKET: Phuket will face an alcohol ban starting at 6pm tonight ahead of the advance voting tomorrow for the February 2 national election.“According to the Election Act, all alcohol sales in Phuket are banned from 6pm tonight through to midnight tomorrow because of the advance voting for the MP elections,” Phuket Election Commission (PEC) Director Kittipong Thiengkunakrit confirmed to the…
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Phuket Local Food Festival serves up a treat
PHUKET: The sixth annual Phuket Local Food Festival started at Saphan Hin last night, with Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut serving up healthy portions of local delicacies. “This is a great fair that all tourists should know about because it shows how beautifully unique Phuket is,” Governor Maitri said. “In addition to our beautiful beaches, we have a special culture and…
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Phuket traffic chief sets sights on B30mn record licence plate auction
PHUKET: The Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) is hoping to raise a record 30 million baht from the annual Lucky Licence Plate Auction being held in Phuket Town this weekend. The two-day event at the Phuket Merlin Hotel (map here) began today at 9:30am, with 301 licence plates to go to the highest bidders. All licence plates to be auctioned…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Peru clears former government leaders after probe of forced sterilizations
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Peru clears former government leaders after probe of forced sterilizations Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Peru has closed an inquiry into whether former president Alberto Fujimori and his cabinet members forcibly sterilized thousands of indigenous women as part of a birth control campaign that targeted the rural poor.Prosecutor…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Election can be delayed – court; Japan cancels all tours to Thailand; Govt scrambles for B130bn to pay rice farmers
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Poll can be deferred: court The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The February 2 election can only be postponed if the ongoing protests are brought to an end and there is no boycott of the election, a government figure said yesterday following a Constitutional Court ruling that the…
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Mum mourns murdered son at Phuket sentencing
PHUKET: The mother of Maxim Schantz, who was murdered in Phuket two years ago, arrived today at Phuket Provincial Court for the sentencing of one of her son’s murderers, Johan Sebastian Ljung. “Maxim was a very good son. He was beautiful. He had his father’s eyes,” Yvonne Schantz, 55, told the Phuket Gazette. “I had two children: Maxim and his…
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Thailand third worst in the world for road deaths; Phuket killing someone every three days
PHUKET: Over 300 people from throughout Southern Thailand yesterday concluded a two-day seminar geared to develop methods to reduce road-traffic deaths. Thailand currently ranks third in the world in annual road-death rates, with 38 fatalities per 100,000 people. Only Niue (a Polynesian island whose name translates to “Behold the Coconut”) and the the Dominican Republic have higher rates, said Thanapong…
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Special Report: Donation denial leaves blood in short supply
Special Report Pim Hoogeveen, a 61-year-old Dutchman, offered his blood to save a life. He responded to an urgent call for A-negative blood donations. His donation was refused. The Phuket Gazette’s Shela Riva investigates the process behind donating blood on the island – the restrictions and the rewards. PHUKET: The recent call by the Phuket Regional Blood Center (PRBC) for…
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Phuket Opinion: Putting the brakes on tourist bike accidents
Paitoon Sillapavisut, 41, is a Nakhon Sri Thammarat native who graduated from Ramkhamhaeng University in Business Management. He has been the senior manager of the Phuket branch of Road Accident Victim Protection Co Ltd Since 1998. Here, Mr Paitoon talks about what causes visitors to have motorcycle accidents on the island and suggests what measures should be taken to prevent…
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Phuket Opinion: Race against a fading pulse
PHUKET: The sustained work of the Phuket Regional Blood Center (PRBC) in organizing blood donation drives that have saved countless lives over the years should be applauded. However, it might be time to reconsider some of the more restrictive criteria over who can donate blood when it is a matter of life and death. Thanks to relatively recent advances in…
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BREAKING NEWS: Swede gets life in prison
PHUKET: Swedish national Johan Sebastian Ljung was today sentenced to life imprisonment for the stabbing murder of Maxim Schantz in Phuket two years ago. He was also ordered to pay 12.5 million baht in compensation to the victim’s family. Mr Ljung, 28, and Tommy Viktor Soderlund, also 28, were arrested by police in a hotel room at Surin Beach, on…
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Phuket protesters will not shut down emergency services, leader vows
PHUKET: Emergency services throughout Phuket will remain untouched by protesters, the key protest leader on the island vowed yesterday. “We aim to shut down every government building to encourage officials to support us instead of working for Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and the corrupt government,” protest co-ordinator Suratin Lian-udom told the Phuket Gazette. “But we will not touch any emergency…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Indian woman gang-raped on orders of village court
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Indian woman gang-raped on orders of village court Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: A 20-year-old woman in eastern India was gang-raped by 13 men on the orders of a village court as punishment for having a relationship with a man from a different community, a senior police officer…
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Phuket Gazette World News: South Sudan government and rebels sign ceasefire
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community South Sudan government and rebels sign ceasefire deal Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: South Sudan’s government and rebel troops loyal to sacked Vice President Riek Machar signed a deal on Thursday to end fighting that has lasted more than a month and killed thousands.The leader of President Salva…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: PDRC ponders blocking advance polls; Public gatherings banned; Red shirts marshall; Kwanchai recovering
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PDRC plans to block advance voting The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The anti-government protesters will try to disrupt advance voting for the February 2 election in Bangkok on Sunday, an informed source said yesterday.Leaders of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) will decide today whether they should…
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Phuket’s DJ Doris to be honored with Celebration of Life, special radio show
PHUKET: Paul Norris, the renowned ‘DJ Doris’ from Phuket Island Radio 91.5FM, will be honored in Phuket with a “Celebration of Paul’s Life” memorial on February 5. The event will be held at the Irish Times pub at Jungceylon in Patong (map here), starting at 7:30pm. Mr Norris died in an early-morning motorcycle accident on January 12, a tragedy which…
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Phuket Airport staff brings woman home, is found dead in bed
PHUKET: A young airport employee was found dead in his room yesterday afternoon, the possible victim of a heart attack.Pongsakorn Janthorn, 21, who worked at Phuket International Airport as a wheelchair attendant, had not been alone the night before he died.“On Tuesday night he came home late, around midnight,” said his roommate, Peerapol Pajjamoon. “He had a woman with him,…
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Phuket mission to replace tsunami warning buoy
PHUKET: A six-day expedition to replace a tsunami warning buoy that has been displaced from its anchorage in the Indian Ocean will depart Phuket on Monday.“The buoy has been severed [from its base unit] for months,” said Surachai Srisarakham, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), in a statement issued yesterday.“It took time to obtain the…
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Australia Day message from the Australian Ambassador to Thailand
PHUKET: Australia Day is the ideal day to reflect on Australia’s domestic and international achievements. It is also an opportunity for Australians and Thais alike to celebrate and reflect on the relationship between our two countries. Over several generations, Australians and Thais have built a solid bilateral relationship, establishing excellent models of cooperation and finding new ways to learn and…
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Phuket Poll: Patong is island’s trump
PHUKET: The famed nightlife of Patong draws more tourists to Phuket than any other single attraction, according to the results of the Phuket Gazette‘s latest online poll. With the passing of yet another record-breaking year that saw millions of travellers arriving on our shores, the Gazette asked readers, “What single feature draws the most tourists from around the world to…
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Cambodian man found dead in a Phuket fruit orchard
PHUKET: A Cambodian man who was found hanging by the neck in a fruit garden on Tuesday night may have killed himself to escape pain, a co-worker said.Diam Korn, 19, had complained of serious stomach pain for about a week, said Jan Gree.“We bought medicine for him and advised him to go to the doctor, but he wouldn’t go. He…
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Phuket FC get paired with Pattaya United in 2014 season opener
PHUKET: The island’s pro football (soccer) team, Phuket FC has been paired with Pattaya United in the first match of the Yamaha League One (YL1) 2014 season, which will kick off on February 22 and 23.It has not yet been confirmed whether Phuket’s home match with Pattaya will be on Saturday or Sunday. Pattaya United, were the only squad to…
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Don Battles – Merchant of the Orient: no regrets
PHUKET: “This Thailand, you farang!” Perhaps it’s that simple for many fainthearted foreigners struggling to justify distorting dreams for self-made financial freedom in the “Land of No Surprises”; but for one Phuket expat, entrepreneurial legend, the plot turned out to be a tad thicker. Anyone doing business in Phuket – or even just entertaining the prospect – should definitely read…
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Phuket drug busts net two suspects, one armed
PHUKET: Police yesterday arrested a man at a Phuket Town hotel found in possession of drugs with a street value of more than 200,000 baht. Acting on a tip-off, officers raided a room at the Sunanta mansion on Sakdidet Road (map here). “We were informed by undercover police that this man was selling drugs to teenagers in the area,” said…
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Phuket Marine chief blames captains for ramming hidden mooring blocks
PHUKET: Phuket Marine Office Chief Phuripat Theerakulpisut has blamed boat captains for ramming hidden concrete mooring blocks in Chalong Bay, saying local skippers should know where the unmarked moorings lie on the seafloor. His comments follow the sinking of the 10-million-baht luxury cruise boat Lady Andaman, which struck an unmarked sunken mooring block while approaching Chalong Pier on Monday (story…
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Swedish tourist dies in Phuket motorbike crash
PHUKET: A Swedish man on his way to the beach yesterday morning was killed when his motorbike went off the road in Thalang.A friend who was following on another bike told police that the pair were headed to Nai Yang Beach.“He overtook my motorbike on the curve and lost control,” the friend said. “The bike fell over and he bounced…
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