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Phuket sets heavy security for PM Yingluck Cabinet visit
PHUKET: Phuket will be under a high-level security crackdown ahead of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s visit for the Cabinet meeting on Monday and Tuesday. The news came at a meeting of Royal Thai Armed Forces intelligence staff with Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha at Phuket Provincial Hall. Also at the meeting to discuss the security plan were Phuket Provincial Police Commander…
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Phuket withdrawal: Kasikorn Bank services to go offline
PHUKET: All Kasikorn Bank online services across Phuket will go offline from 9:30pm on Saturday to 5am on Sunday as the bank shuts down its national network for system maintenance. The shutdown will affect all Kasikorn online services, including all ATMs and all Kasikorn debit card, credit card and K-Express cash card services. Any Kasikorn Bank cards used in ATMs…
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Possessed former security guard has fatal fall
PHUKET: A former security guard fell 10 floors to his death from his home and former workplace after claiming he was being haunted and possessed by ghosts. Khathayut Sukkhlum, 36, was fired from his job at the Sinsetthee Resident Town 1 building in the Hua Mark area of Bangkok about three months prior to his death. His broken body was…
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Weird World News: Young Guns set fire to castle, plunge down trash chute and take walk of shame
PHUKET: We were all young, free and stupid once. Let’s not forget that when we cast judgment on this trio of troublesome Young Guns who made the cut in this week’s Weird World News.Smoking is bad for castlesTWO Slovak boys are suspected of setting flame to a 14th century Gothic castle in Bratislava this week. Police believe the pair were…
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Phuket Gazette: Elephant butchered in Krabi
PHUKET: Livestock officials in Krabi are investigating the death of a male elephant found partially decapitated on a remote hilltop rubber plantation in Khao Khraam District yesterday afternoon, the Phuket Gazette has learned. The discovery of the carcass was reported to the Gazette by Khao Khram tambon chief Karim Laklaeng at about 2pm yesterday. [Reader discretion advised. Some readers may…
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PM Yingluck orders budget airlines to move to “Bangkok LCC’
PHUKET (The Nation): In a move that will affect all tourists flying from Bangkok to Phuket on low-cost airlines, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has ordered all low-cost carriers (LCCs) to move operations to Don Mueang Airport. The move is aimed at improving air and runway traffic at Suvarnabhumi Airport, but the plan is unlikely to ease the current turmoil frustrating…
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Phuket MICE tourists in Patong bus crash
PHUKET: Another bus full of passengers in Phuket, this time for a seminar, crashed into a house at the bottom of Patong Hill this morning. Nine of the passengers were taken to Patong Hospital for treatment of minor injuries. Lt Thanakrit Kiawyai of Patong Police told the Phuket Gazette that the accident happened at about 6:50am. “The bus had about…
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Phuket Land Office voices support for corruption probe
PHUKET: The chief of the Phuket Land Department has voiced support for the ongoing investigation into allegations that corrupt government officials colluded with private investors to have land title deeds issued on state land. “The investigation by the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission [PACC] into illegally-issued land documents in Phuket will serve as a deterrent to other people who might be…
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Phuket drug duo arrest lands Bt1mn haul
PHUKET: Phuket Police arrested a husband and wife who they say were found in possession of drugs with an estimated street value of more than one million baht. Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha announced the arrests at Phuket City Hall today, adding that a total of seven people were arrested in two separate police operations during the past week. At the…
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Health Minister pushes for unified emergency healthcare by April 1
PHUKET (The Nation): Private hospitals are willing to join a government plan to provide unlimited emergency medical treatment to all patients covered by healthcare schemes, starting on April 1, Public Health Minister Witthaya Buranasiri has announced. Mr Witthaya said that he had been discussing the plan with executives of hospitals, including private ones, across the country since March 8. All…
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Phuket business: Tourism campaign lures swingers; Tourism and hotel college enrolls for May
PHUKET: With the Thai summer just around the bend, club swingers are among the latest tourist group that the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has set its sights on. In a bid to increase golf tourists to the country by 10%, TAT this year has partnered with MasterCard to launch the “72 Hours Amazing Thailand Golf Paradise” campaign. All in,…
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Phuket Business: Sansiri sales on the up
PHUKET: Amid an oversupplied and flooded real estate market, many new developers in Phuket are struggling to close project sales. In contrast, Bangkok based mega developer Sansiri Plc has received promising feedback from buyers on the island. In the five months since taking on Phuket, the Bangkok giant has invested nearly 2.7 billion baht (approx US$ 90 million) in four…
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Phuket business: Tax filing deadline approaches
PHUKET: For anybody who generated income in Thailand last year – regardless of where or how they were paid – the personal income tax filing deadline is March 31. In this two-part series, the Phuket Gazette will outline the need-to-know basics for filing personal income tax in Thailand. First, we will cover taxable income, deductions and tax certificates. In the…
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Phuket Gazette: African news round-up
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community UN to meet with central African governments to fight Lord’s Resistance Army PHUKET (News Wires): The United Nations (UN) yesterday said it will meet in Uganda with government officials from central Africa next week to establish a comprehensive regional strategy to combat the Lord’s Resistance Army…
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Myanmar rushes headlong into brave new world
SPECIAL REPORTPHUKET: The Japanese salary-man’s blue suit brushed past the backpacker’s Bob Marley t-shirt as they passed in the guest house hallway.“No rooms. Fully booked,” said the desk clerk.The Japanese man was on his way to shore up a lease on a garment factory and the Irish backpacker was here in Myanmar to see the wonders of Inle Lake and…
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Phuket Heroines brought to life in Battle of Thalang
PHUKET: A large crowd attended last night’s highly-stylized re-enactment of the Battle of Thalang in Phuket last night. Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha chaired the opening ceremony for the event, which got underway at 7:30pm at Thalang Victory Memorial Field. Gov Tri played the part of Rama I, while his deputy Chamroen Tipayapongtada played his arch-enemy, the commander of the Burmese…
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WFFT charges top DNP officials with defamation
PHUKET: A Dutch-born wildlife activist has filed defamation charges against top-ranking Thai officials of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) for claiming his shelter in Petchaburi was involved in the torture and trade of protected wildlife species. The charges are the latest salvo in the battle between the DNP and the Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand (WFFT),…
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US Consular Outreach in Phuket
PHUKET: The American Citizen Services section of the United States Embassy in Bangkok will be at the Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort in Karon on Thursday morning as part of its “consular outreach” service. Consular staff will be available to provide following services from 8am until noon: • Passport renewal applications • Notarial services • Embassy registration and/or address change…
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Phuket Gazette: New horned dinosaurs found in Canada
– World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Scientists discover two new horned dinosaurs in North America PHUKET (News Wires): Scientists at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in Ohio have discovered two new plant-eating horned dinosaurs which lived between 75 to 83 million years ago, it was announced yesterday. The fossils were found in Canada. The…
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Phuket business: A speculative investment
PHUKET: I remember as a young kid growing up in the US often seeing bumper stickers on cars with slogans about freeing Burma. When I was I first planning to move to Phuket, Thailand I still had no idea where Burma was, as the maps now showed some country I had never heard of called “Myanmar” bordering the Kingdom to…
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Phuket Airport “black taxis’ given ultimatum
PHUKET: Phuket International Airport Director Prathuang Sornkham and Wantha Phummararossukontha, Assistant Director of Phuket Provincial Transport Office (PPTO), have warned illegal taxi drivers to obtain the correct license plate or face stiff fines. Mr Wantha said action was being taken as many passengers had complained of overcharging by “black plate” taxi drivers, and the concerns he had received from legitimate…
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Official corruption: PACC names Phuket “model province’
PHUKET: The ongoing probe into official corruption by government officials in allowing land title deeds to be issued on state land should shore up investor confidence, the Phuket governor says. Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha told the state-run MCOT news agency that the probe by the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) began in secrecy six or seven months ago in Phuket,…
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Phuket Police net bumper haul in serial thieves’ arrest
PHUKET: Police are urging residents in Chalong whose houses have been robbed recently to come forward and claim items recovered after the arrest of two suspects landed more than 100 stolen goods. The news comes after Phuket Provincial Police Commander Chonasit Wattanavrangkul presided over a press conference at Chalong Police Station yesterday, held to present Thawatchai Tipyotin, 42, and Jenjira…
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Phuket ready for ‘Battle of Thalang’ re-enactment tonight
PHUKET: In the run-up to the highly-anticipated re-enactment of the Battle of Thalang tonight, Phuket students and local leaders yesterday made offerings to a shrine dedicated to Phuket’s two heroines: Thao Thepkrasattri and Thao Srisoonthorn. Yesterday, members of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) and Phuket Rajabhat University (PKRU) joined local residents at a special shrine set up in the…
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Andaman Motor Show drives Phuket car sales
PHUKET: The 14th Andaman Motor Show currently under way at HomeWorks, opposite Central Festival Phuket on the bypass road, is enjoying one of its best years in car sales. The six-day event, this year under the theme “Summer on the Beach”, ends on Wednesday. “We don’t have final figures for the overall number of car loan applications yet, but I…
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Phuket lifeguards vow to “not let tourists down’
PHUKET: A re-run of last year’s beach safety scare has emerged following the Phuket Lifeguard Club warning that their contract will terminate on April 2, and that they have not received any official notification of what is to happen next. Phuket Lifeguard Club President Prathaiyut “Nut” Chuayuan today told the Phuket Gazette that he had received no information as to…
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Phuket Gazette: Afghanistan & Pakistan news round-up
– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community U.S. soldier goes on shooting spree, kills 16 Afghan civilians PHUKET (News Wires): A U.S. service member was arrested early yesterday morning after going on a shooting spree in southern Afghanistan, killing sixteen civilians in their homes and injuring several others, officials said. The attack happened at around 3:45am…
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Phuket to hand out souvenir shirts for Cabinet meeting
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Office will provide special “souvenir” shirts for Cabinet ministers and VIPs attending the Cabinet meeting in Phuket on March 19-20. Vice Governor Somkiat Sangkaosuttirak announced the decision to have souvenir shirts handed out at a meeting at Phuket City Hall last Thursday. The main points were the shirt style, color, pattern and the number of shirts…
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Students holidaying in Phuket survive Phang Nga crash
PHUKET: Five medical students on holiday in Phuket escaped with minor injuries when the car they were traveling in struck a tree in Phang Nga yesterday.Lt Eakkapop Phuthong of Takua Thung Police received a report at 5:30pm that a vehicle had overshot a curve on Takua Thung Road at Baan Kuan, Kok Kloy.“Sidan Hayeesamadae, a 25-year-old male, was driving four…
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Phuket sports: Practice makes perfect… almost
PHUKET: One of the shortest courses ever set was organized for the second race of the Ao Chalong Yacht Club (ACYC) Irish Times Race Series. From the Ao Makham safe water mark and back, with two short loops around the Ban Nit safe water mark – the total course length was only nine nautical miles. On Saturday, David Liddell from…
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