News
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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The need to define Phuket with a clear voice
PHUKET: Efforts by local hotel industry leaders to revive the Phuket Hotels Association in order to give a unified voice to the island’s tourism industry could not have come at a better time (story here). Phuket needs a positive public relations push to provide foreign visitors with clear, accurate information about the “new Phuket”, in contrast to its mafia-infested, pre-coup…
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Two die, two injured, travelling four-up on Phuket motorbike
PHUKET: Two ethnic Mon men died and another two were seriously injured in Phuket after the motorcycle they were riding slammed into a tree last night. “According to witnesses the four men, all riding on the same motorbike, were travelling at high speed when they hit a tree on Thepkrasattri Road near Baan Tah Reua Shrine at about 11:40pm,” explained…
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The Royal and Ancient golf club votes to allow women members
PHUKET: The Royal & Ancient golf club’s decision on Thursday to allow women members after 260 years has been widely welcomed within and beyond the game. Here are a selection of reactions to the vote, which was passed with an 85 percent majority: Peter Dawson, chief executive of the R&A: “This is a very important and positive day in the…
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Hunt for Koh Tao killers stalls
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Hunt for Koh Tao killers stalls The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police are confident that their investigation and the evidence obtained will help them catch the killers of the two British backpackers who were bludgeoned to death on Monday on the resort island of Koh…
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Death threats, powerful people force Phuket national park chief to resign
PHUKET: Death threats and influential people unhappy with the reclaiming of public land have forced Sirinat National Park Chief Kitiphat Tharapiban to step down after only three months. “There are many reasons that I have to resign. We had many conflicts with powerful people, even though I was doing the right thing,” Mr Kitiphat said. In August, military bodyguards were…
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Three men ambush British motorist in northern Phuket
PHUKET: Three men ambushed a British national and his wife as they slowed their motorbike at a speed bump in northern Phuket last night. “My wife and I were attacked and knocked off our motorcycle at 9:00… on the road that connects Sri Soonthorn Road with the Alan Cook Cricket Ground,” Iain Richardson told the Phuket Gazette. “Three teenagers were…
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AMCHAM forum sets course for New Phuket
PHUKET: Is Phuket lacking identity? What makes the Phuket brand? How can the island benefit from the current winds of change? These and other issues were addressed at the September 12 AMCHAM forum, titled “The New Phuket”. The latest installment in the AMCHAM seminar series took place at the Angsana Laguna Phuket ballroom and saw a number of speakers, both…
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Smoke on the water: Boat operators warned of Phuket haze
PHUKET: Boat operators have been warned of limited visibility at sea as hazy skies shroud Phuket following heavy rains and subsequent warm weather. “The haze is a result of recent heavy rainfall combined with high levels of humidity in the atmosphere,” said San Jantharawong, chief of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Phuket office. “In this situation, visibility…
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Phuket police hunt mother of dead newborn found in Patong
PHUKET: Police are searching for the mother of a newborn boy whose body was found dumped in a pile of trash in a small street in Patong this morning. Laiad Pongtuan, 55, was scouring through trash while looking for plastics and other recyclables in Soi 8 off Nanai Road, when he came across a large black plastic bag. “When I…
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Man, believed drunk, falls off motorcycle, drowns in ditch
PHUKET: A man drowned last night after falling off his motorcycle into a roadside ditch flooded by recent monsoon rains. Police were called to the scene – opposite a Muslim cemetery in Sakoo, south of Phuket International Airport – where they found the body of Supap Petcharat, 58, lying in the 70-centimeter-deep ditch. His motorcycle was lying on its side…
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PM Prayuth under fire for tourist safety bikini remarks
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community PM Prayuth under fire for tourist safety bikini remarks The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Britain Thursday raised concerns after Thailand’s junta leader Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha suggested that female tourists wearing bikinis could be more vulnerable to attack, as DNA tests failed to yield a breakthrough…
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DNA test clears British suspect from Koh Tao murders
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community DNA test clears British suspect from Koh Tao murders The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A Briton questioned over the murder of two countrymen on Koh Tao on Sunday did not match DNA found on the female victim, police confirmed today. The man, Chrtstopher Alan Ware,…
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Phuket health officials challenge Chang over Vegetarian Festival ‘beer flags’
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) has filed a complaint against those responsible for emblazoning flags heralding the upcoming Vegetarian Festival with Chang Beer logos. Krit Sakulpat, deputy chief of the PPHO, led a delegation to Phuket City Police Station yesterday to lodge a formal complaint against ThaiBev, the company that produces Chang Beer, and Jui Tui Shrine for…
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K-1 World Max Final is coming to Thailand
PHUKET: The world-renowned Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) tournament – K-1 World Max Final – is coming to Thailand on October 11. During the event, which will be held at the Indoor Athletics Stadium in Pattaya, Thailand’s martial arts fans will witness Buakaw Banchamekgoing battle it out with Enriko Kehl. The event will be telecast live worldwide. Should Buakaw be able…
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Six arrested over rival student street slayings
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Six arrested over rival student street slayings The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Six students are facing the charge of premeditated murder for fatally shooting three students from a rival college to take “revenge for a female friend” who was killed last month. This case provides…
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Man who hanged 2 dogs named amid online furore
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Man who hanged 2 dogs named amid online furore The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police have identified a man who allegedly killed his two pet dogs by hanging them from a petrol station’s garage roof beam in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district on Tuesday and…
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Koh Tao Murders: Police turn focus to friends of slain man
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Koh Tao Murders: Police turn focus to friends of slain man The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police investigation into the murder of two British tourists on Koh Tao last Sunday has shifted from migrant workers to friends of the male victim, while autopsy results have…
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No order to ‘erase’ Thaksin from Phuket textbooks – yet
PHUKET: No orders have been issued to Phuket officials to remove mathayom history textbooks that mark Thaksin Shinawatra, the first prime minister in Thailand’s history to lead an elected government through a full term in office. However, Mr Thaksin has been erased from the history presented in textbooks that the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has recently ordered…
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Tax havens only for the rich
PHUKET: The annual report published by tax relocation specialist Bradley Hackford has recently named the top ten jurisdictions for 2014. They use five criteria in total, which include quality of life, security, geographical location and accessibility, as well as the quality of the economic citizenship program. Sadly, for most, the achievable tax savings make the high sticker price of establishing…
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British backpacker arrested for Koh Tao murders
PHUKET: Surat Thani Police have arrested a British tourist suspected to be involved in the murders of fellow Britons Hannah Witheridge and David Miller on Koh Tao late Sunday night, reported Thai news agency PBS. Police named the suspect as Christopher Alanvare, said the report (click here). Mr Alanvare was arrested after resort employees reported seeing him walking near the…
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Phuket Town water shut off for pump station repairs
PHUKET: Taps throughout Phuket Town ran dry at 9am today as Phuket City Municipality shut off the water supply to some areas so that workers could repair power cables for one of the main water pumping stations serving the town. The water supply is scheduled to return at 4pm. For more information, call the Phuket City Municipality Water Supply Office…
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Electric shock puts Phuket TOT worker in hospital
PHUKET: A Phuket TOT worker was rushed to hospital after suffering an electric shock while installing cables near the Baan Kamala Intersection yesterday afternoon. Kamala rescue workers arrived at the scene at about 2pm, where they found two men attempting to remove 19-year-old Boonlong Taweepa from a hodge-podge of wires, Lt Solae Damad of the Kamala Police told the Phuket…
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Income tax to drop
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Income tax to drop The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Cabinet yesterday approved the reduction of personal income tax to 5-35 per cent from 10-37 per cent, while corporate income tax has been set at 20 per cent of net profit. Government spokesman Yongyuth Mayalarp…
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Myanmar suspects of British tourists’ murder released
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Myanmar suspects of British tourists’ murder released The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police last night ruled out three Myanmar workers being involved in the murder of two British tourists, as the government appeared to call into question the “behaviour” of the victims themselves. The bodies…
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Phuket’s new high-tech Dibuk Hospital rounds up medical care
PHUKET: Construction has started on the much-hyped circular Apple headquarters in Silicon Valley, California, but Phuket is about to beat the IT giant with the opening of the new high-tech Dibuk Hospital later this month. And yes, it’s round too. Walking around the new hospital building leaves one quite impressed. And walking around gains a whole new meaning in a…
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Phuket’s One-Two-Go air crash a disaster “not to be remembered’: airport officials
PHUKET: There was no official memorial service today, September 16, to remember the 89 people who died in the crash landing of One-Two-Go Flight OG269 at Phuket International Airport seven years ago. “We do not want to perpetuate horrible memories of the incident. It was a tragedy and not a day to remember,” Phuket Airport Director Prathuang Sornkham told the…
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Phuket preps for 2014 Vegetarian Festivals – both of them
PHUKET: Yellow and red flags are popping up around the island ahead of the world-renowned Phuket Vegetarian Festival, which will kick off on September 24 at shrines across the island. The much anticipated annual festival, which will run until October 2, will begin with a ceremonial raising of go teng poles to allow the Jade Emperor and the Nine Emperor…
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Three suspects questioned about murder of British tourists on Koh Tao
PHUKET: Three Myanmar workers were detained on Tuesday to be questioned about the murder of two Britons on Koh Tao, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan said today. The bodies of David Miller, 24, and Hannah Witheridge, 23, were found early Monday morning with severe head wounds. A bloody hoe was found 35 meters from the murder scene. Police will question…
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Brigade of Krabi officials tear down more than 100 illegal structures
PHUKET: An 800-strongbrigade of Krabi officials removed 80 squatters from an old palm oil plantation and demolished more than 100 illegal structures today. “We told the people that they had to leave the area before noon,” said Bunnsueb Samakrad, director of the Forest Resource Management. “This land belongs to the Royal Forest Department. After the palm oil company’s licence for…
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Sixteen corrupt officials to be charged for B100bn national park land scandal
PHUKET: Sixteen officials will face negligence charges for their alleged involvement in causing more than 100 billion baht of damage by illegally issuing land documents in Phuket, the Royal Forestry Department revealed in Bangkok yesterday. The accused officials had been involved in issuance of illegitimate land deeds and documents since 1987, department head Theerapat Prayurasiddhi said. Eight of the officials…
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