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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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French expat, 26, found hanged in Phuket
PHUKET: The body of a 26-year-old French expat was found hanging in a rented Rawai house on Tuesday.Chalong Police and Ruamjai Foundation rescue workers were notified of the death at about 4:30pm, after the owner of the house had entered the building to investigate a stench that was disturbing neighbors.“Officers on duty found the body of the foreigner sitting inside,…
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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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Serial Phuket resort thief nabbed
PHUKET: A joint investigation by police from Karon, Kathu and Phuket City has resulted in the arrest of a Bangkok couple who stand accused of robbing guest rooms at nine high-end hotels and resorts in Phuket.Ritthimeth Singhaumpai, 33, and Sasithorn Seekam, 22, were arrested on Wednesday after they entered the Jungceylon car park in a black-on-black Mercedes-Benz E200 sports sedan.The…
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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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Phuket Wake Park latest victim of illegal Russian raids
PHUKET: Following the arrest of 35 Russians found allegedly working illegally in Patong nightclubs last week (story here), three more Russians have been arrested at the tourist-popular Phuket Wake Park in Kathu. Cherdsak Wisutthikul, from the Department of Employment in Bangkok, led a team of 20 officers to raid the wakeboard park at about 5:30pm on Thursday. Following a chaotic…
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Phuket FC to entertain with Singhtarua
PHUKET: The Islanders will be hoping to get their push for promotion back on track when they host 4th place Singhtarua FC at Surakul Stadium this evening. Phuket FC lost their last away game to Air Force United 2-1. The match was the second time in three days the two teams played each other at Thupatemee Stadium, on the northern…
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Burmese girl, 6, first dengue fatality on Phuket this year
PHUKET: In the wake of a six-year-old Burmese girl dying from dengue fever after arriving on the island in April, the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) is urging everyone to bolster efforts to remove possible breeding grounds for mosquitoes potentially carrying the disease. The young girl was in Phuket for less than two weeks before she was admitted to Vachira…
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Tourist Police arrest illegal Thai tour guides
PHUKET: Seven Thais working illegally as tour guides catering to Chinese tourists in Phuket were arrested in the wake of a mass protest on Monday demanding the government take action against illegal guides. The protest on Monday focused on Chinese nationals “stealing” the jobs of Thai tour guides, though those protesting also asked Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosuttirak to raise…
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Phuket’s Top Cop calls for more CCTV cameras to fight crime
PHUKET: Phuket’s top brass highlighted the importance of CCTV in police investigations and the need for more cameras on the island at a meeting to discuss unsolved high-profile crimes with the Deputy Commissioner of Provincial Police Region 8 this week.“The Phuket Provincial Police only have about 300 CCTV on the island, which is not enough to cover everywhere,” said Phuket…
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Phuket Governor joins prison dawn search
PHUKET: A pre-dawn search of Phuket Prison on April 30 led by the Phuket Governor failed to discover any drugs or contraband being hidden by prisoners, reconfirming the facility’s status as a Department of Corrections “White Prison”.Governor Maitri Inthusut led about 200 officers, including Phuket Provincial Police Commander Choti Chavalviwat and Phuket Prison Chief Rapin Nichanon, in conducting the mass…
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Phuket Police suspect American died of drug overdose
PHUKET: A 29-year-old American woman found dead in her bed shortly after checking into a Phuket rental room is suspected of having suffered from a drug overdose, said Chalong Police.The woman was identified from her passport as Faetra Petillo, and family members have been notified of her death.At the scene Ruamjai Foundation rescue workers, who were contacted by Chalong Police…
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Phuket gal to compete in Miss Tiffany final tonight
PHUKET: Chayutara “Ying” Meechaiprasert will be Phuket’s sole hope in the final round of the Miss Tiffany Universe 2013 beauty contest, which is to be televised live across the country tonight.Ms Chayutara, a showgirl at the Aphrodite Cabaret on Phuket’s bypass road, will be sporting number 19 in the world-renowned ladyboy beauty pageant, the winner of which will go on…
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Topless Russians and other illegals scooped up in Phuket nightclub raid
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Employment officers arrested 35 Russians in four nightclubs last night following reports of topless dance shows in Phuket’s infamous nightlife destination, Soi Bangla in Patong. “We received reports of topless shows at nightclubs in the area and suspected there were also illegal workers operating,” said Kathu District Chief Veera Kerdsirimongkol, who led the raid on the four…
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Phuket Gazette Exclusive: Aldhouse – A view from the inside
PHUKET: Looking exhausted, Lee Aldhouse cut a lonely figure in his faded prison-issue overalls, surrounded by about 20 Thai inmates. He waited for the signal from the prison guard controlling the communication between visitors and inmates – a telephone – before picking up his receiver. The first thing he said was, “I cannot talk about my impending court case, but…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: NSC rejects BRN demands at Deep South peace talks; Yingluck slams agencies for abusing power
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community NSC rejects BRN demands at peace talks Phuket GazettePHUKET: The Thai authorities on Monday rejected demands by the southern Muslim separatists in their second round of talks, but both sides agreed to hold another meeting on June 13.National Security Council secretary general Lt-General Paradorn Pattanatabut, who headed…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Dutch rally on royal ascension; Egyptian students in mass poisoning; Putin under fire; Virgin Galactic test launch
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Dutch party on streets as royals prepare for handover Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Willem-Alexander will become the first King of the Netherlands in more than 120 years when Queen Beatrix passes the crown to her eldest son on Tuesday morning.“He’s ready, in every way,” Queen Beatrix said…
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Phuket Business: Small appliances see big growth in SE Asia
PHUKET: The Small Domestic Appliances (SDA) markets in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand grew by nearly 6% in value over a recent 12-month period, when compared to the same period the previous year. SDA sales in the five markets, tracked from February 2012 to March 2013, had a combined value of more than US$804 million. The survey by GfK,…
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Phuket Investor: The last time the markets were here
PHUKET: I recently read a report that had a comparative list of statistics from the last time the stock markets were up at these levels, which was just before the crash at the start of the financial crisis. Early this march, the DOW reached a previous high level of 14164.5 and then surpassed that level. I thought it might be…
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Phuket Business: Replicating your life savings
PHUKET: The new hot sector for technology investors is in the rapidly growing 3D printer business. 3D printing is the process of making a three-dimensional solid object of virtually any shape from a digital model. 3D printers use a 3D CAD (Computer Aided Design) file to create objects using a sequential layering process. This technology is used in jewelry; footwear;…
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Phuket Business: US tax regime – Comply or else…
PHUKET: At a US tax seminar held last month at the Holiday Inn, Patong, by the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) Phuket Chapter, American income earners and business operators were given a comprehensive update about the US tax regime’s reporting requirements and regulations. Two previous articles about the seminar – published in the Business section of the Phuket Gazette on…
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Phuket Video Report: Lucky sidecar driver saved by call of nature
PHUKET: A Phuket Town security guard heading home from work late last night had a lucky escape from becoming another Phuket road statistic after an 18-wheeled truck and trailer obliterated his motorbike with sidecar on Phuket’s busy Thepkrasattri Road. The truck driver did not stop at the scene. Kitti Muongthong, 35, pulled over near the u-turn about 200 meters north…
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Phuket boob job holiday? This round’s on me
PHUKET: A cosmetic surgery holiday company in Australia is now raffling off a trip to Phuket, complete with the option of breast augmentation surgery – all for the price of a round of drinks.The company, ID Rejuvenation, has paired up with the popular local nightclub Tryst, in Mackay on the Central Queensland coast, to offer the deal, reported the local…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: 5 dead in bridge collapse; NSC rebuts BRN demands; Scrap flood plan – academics
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community 5 dead in Ayutthaya bridge collapse The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: A suspension bridge over Pa Sak River in Ayutthaya collapsed yesterday evening, crushing five people to death underneath a pillar on one side, while wounding 15 others.The collapse also sent a large number of pedestrians and…
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Phuket Gazette World News: 3 dead in France collapse; US-Syria fears rise; Germany to stay in Euro
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Fugitive owner arrested as Bangladesh building toll reaches 377 Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The owner of a factory building that collapsed in Bangladesh killing hundreds of garment workers was arrested on Sunday trying to flee to India, as hopes of finding more survivors from the country’s worst…
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Armed robbers of Phuket yacht attempt escape from police
PHUKET: The two men* who were arrested for the armed robbery of the well-known Davinci catamaran last night attempted to escape from a police vehicle while being transported to court today, the Chalong Police confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. “The suspects broke the cage door at the rear of the vehicle while it was stopped at a traffic light on…
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