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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Phuket Gazette World News: Tunisia approves new constitution, appoints government
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Tunisia approves new constitution, appoints government Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Tunisia’s national assembly approved the country’s new constitution on Sunday in one of the final steps to full democracy three years after protests erupted into an uprising that toppled autocrat Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.Just before the constitution’s…
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Phuket Gazette World News: U.S. carries out air strike in Somalia
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. carries out air strike in Somalia targeting militant suspect Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The U.S. military carried out a missile strike in Somalia on Sunday targeting a suspected militant leader with ties to al Qaeda and al Shabaab, a U.S. military official told Reuters, speaking on…
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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 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 polls not worth violence, says election chief
PHUKET: Kittipong Thiengkunakrit, Director of the Phuket Election Commission (PEC), has vowed to close advance voting polling booths in Phuket tomorrow if protesters arrive in numbers to rally against the February 2 national election. “We will avoid any possibility of a fight. We do not want to have any problems at the polls,” he told the Phuket Gazette today. “It’s…
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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 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 World News: Ukraine leader pledges government reshuffle ahead of more rallies
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Ukraine leader pledges government reshuffle ahead of more rallies Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, in what appeared to be an offer of concessions to the opposition amid violent protests against his rule, pledged on Friday to reshuffle the government next week and to amend…
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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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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: Good time walking
PHUKET: I read the article written by Don Limnun-thaphisit regarding the Lardyai walking street (story here). However, I did so after stumbling upon the event by chance last weekend. I expected another of the ubiquitous Thai markets with fried chicken, cheap knock-off goods and blaring dance music. What I discovered was a place with much more character. A plethora of…
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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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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: Rights group says Muslims massacred in Myanmar amid official denials
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rights group says Muslims massacred in Myanmar amid official denials Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Security forces in western Myanmar massacred at least 40 Rohingya Muslims last week, including women and children, a human rights group said on Thursday, quoting witness accounts, despite official denials of the killings.Bangkok-based…
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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’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 shivers: lowest temperatures in five years
PHUKET: Yesterday was the coldest day Phuket has seen in five years, the Southern Meteorological Center confirmed. “The minimum temperature in Phuket was 19 degrees Celsius. Our normal lows at this time of the year are 21 to 24 degrees,” said Metta Armeen, the director of weather surveillance at the center. A high pressure system from China has pushed cold…
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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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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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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: Coldest weather in decades hits Thailand
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Coldest weather in decades hits Thailand The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The temperature in the Thai capital Bangkok fell to its lowest in decades today, during an unusually cold winter that has already claimed 63 lives in northern parts of the country, the government said.“Bangkok hit its…
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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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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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Thailand Futsal: Jackson re-signs with Phuket; season opener postponed
PHUKET: Due to the ongoing social-political unrest in the Kingdom’s capital, the Futsal Thailand Premier League (FTPL) 2014 season’s planned January 25 kickoff has been postponed.It is now hoped that the season-opener will commence in February, an administrator of the island’s pro five-a-side footy club Phuket United said.“The [season] start was postponed due to the political [unrest]. The season should…
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