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.
The Thaiger is your essential resource for staying connected with Thailand’s captivating blend of tradition and modernity. To remain in the loop with the country’s most trusted news source, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.
-
Sponsored
How IG International allows you to trade safely
Trading is much more accessible today, thanks to the advancement of technology. All you have to do is open your web browser or download an app, set up an account, and you’re all set to trade. But here's the thing...
-
Rape-murder case awaiting forensics results
RAWAI: Police investigating the rape and murder of Phuket native Tada Sa-nguansak, 49, whose body was found in broad daylight on Friendship Beach June 28, are awaiting the results of forensics tests being carried out in Bangkok.Pol Lt Col Peerapan Meemak of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette, “We are waiting for tests results from the Forensic Laboratory Institute in…
-
A bloody offal story
CHALONG: Residents of Chalong Village 10 called police on the evening of October 11 to report a pile of apparently-human organs tossed into a thicket along Saneh Soi 10. Shocked and in fear that a serial killer was on the loose, they were somewhat relieved to eventually learn that the abandoned innards were of canine, not human, origin. Responding to…
-
I’ve got WHAT in my hair?
Hair styling has long been a key part of the female beauty regimen, regardless of what fashions have come and gone. Hair accessories, however, do not usually come flavored, lubricated or coated in spermicidal jelly – well, not until now. The latest rage in hair products was brought to light by some young women in Chiang Mai, who discovered that…
-
Trio of transgressors
Three monks welcomed the end of Buddhist Lent, called Ork Pansa, with an over-indulgence in bad habits this year: one crashed his pickup drunk-driving, one forced himself on a young woman, and another shot and killed a fellow monk… all on the nights of October 7 and 8. The first, a monk from Buri Ram, celebrated the end of Lent…
-
Mystery of the missing robbers
A young Irishman who was treated for a head injury at Patong Hospital told police he was attacked and robbed while entering his hotel room. However, Police discounted his version of events – saying he was probably too drunk to remember what actually happened. Pol Lt Col Boonlert Onklang of the Kathu Police identified the self-proclaimed “victim” as an Irishman…
-
US Olympic champs through to FIVB semi-finals
KARON: Americans Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, top seeds for the FIVB Phuket Thailand Open being held at Karon Beach this weekend, secured a place in the semi-finals by defeating fourth-seeded Nila Ann Hakedal and Ingrid Torlen of Norway 21-17, 19-21, 15-11 in 48 minutes.The win extended Walsh and May-Treanor’s winning streak in the tourney to 11 matches The duo…
-
B1m fugitive arrested in Phitsanuloke
PHITSANULOKE (The Nation): Fugitive murder suspect Thai-American national Saner Wonggoun was arrested yesterday at a market in Phitsanuloke province.The former US Air Force non-commissioned officer pleaded guilty to a murder charge filed by local police in California for the murder of his pregnant wife Sopha in 1994, police said.The arrest came just seven days after Thai and US authorities announced…
-
Foreign teachers: eligible bachelors only need apply
PHUKET: Schools across the island will ask Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit to petition the Ministry of Education (MoE) to ease new regulations requiring all new teachers to have at least a bachelor’s degree and to pass an extensive background check before they can begin work.The decision was made at a meeting at the Phuket Educational Service Area (PESA) office on…
-
Phuket beaches fail “5-star’ award
PHUKET: Visitors seeking a “five-star” beach experience in Thailand will have to head to either Krabi or Satun, as none of the eight beaches in Phuket monitored by the Pollution Control Department (PCD) will be awarded the coveted “5-Star Tourist Beach” rating for 2006.Dr Pornsook Chongprasith, Director of the PCD’s Marine Environment Division, told the Gazette that only three beaches…
-
Misbehaving medium beaten and arrested
KATHU (Kom Chad Luek): Tung Tong Police are preparing to file charges of “deceiving the public” against a mah song (“spirit medium”) who pretended to skewer his tongue with a sword during this year’s vegetarian festival, but in fact ran the blade through a pig’s tongue that he had secretly concealed in his mouth to fool onlookers.The incident was reported…
-
Hazy days
PHUKET: The mysterious haze that descended on Phuket yesterday is the result of a high-pressure system centered in China and local atmospheric effects and not related to forest fires in Sumatra, the island’s top weatherman has told the Gazette.Chumnong Chitpukdee, Director of Southern Meteorological Center (West Coast) Phuket, said that low visibility along much of Thailand’s Andaman Coast was from…
-
THAI boosts flight services
BANGKOK: Thai Airways International (THAI) on Tuesday increased its weekly number of domestic flights from Bangkok to Phuket from 77 to 82. The increase is part of its route extension and adjustment plans to cope with an expected increase in air passenger traffic during the northern winter period. The extra flights will continue until March 24, 2007. Service on the…
-
New board members take control of Blue Canyon
THALANG: Yongyos Palanitisena has announced that a four-man committee comprising himself, Chaichana Ratanatraiwirat, Wisut Srisangkaew and Nuntaporn Asumpinapong will oversee the running of Blue Canyon Country Club (BCCC) in place of the full board of Murex, the company that owns the BCCC.Yongyos made the announcement following an October 29 meeting, at The Metropole hotel, attended by seven newly-appointed members and…
-
Valentino and wife released on bail
BANGKOK (The Nation): Well-known Phuket resident Tan Teik Hai, aka “Valentino”, and his wife Suwaphat Kheereephon were released on bail of 600,000 each on October 29 following their arrest on charges of encroaching on a vast plot of beachfront land on Koh Yao Yai in Phang Nga.Tan, a Malaysian national who serves as the honorary consul to Morocco, and his wife,…
-
Illegal Nai Harn resort raided
NAI HARN: Two construction foremen were arrested and their equipment seized on Wednesday in a raid by forestry officials on a resort complex being built illegally on protected forest land above Baan Krating Jungle Beach at Ao Sane, accessible from the road that runs through Le Royal Meridien Phuket Yacht Club.The raid was carried out by 30 volunteers and officials…
-
Honorary Consul couple arrested
BANGKOK (The Nation): Police last night arrested Malaysian national and honorary consul to Morocco Tan Tek Hai, known better on the island as “Valentino”, 56, and his wife Suwaphat Kheereephon, 41, who is an honorary consul to Djibouti.The couple were arrested by Department of Special Investigation (DSI) agents at their home for allegedly encroaching on a large plot of public…
-
Thousands turn out to mark Vegetarian Festival
PHUKET CITY: More than 10,000 people took part in a parade on Monday as part of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival. The parade included representatives of 18 shrines, many businesses as well as students from schools around Phuket . The procession started at 4 pm at Queen Sirikit Park on Thalang Road and walked along Phuket Rd to Saphan Hin, where…
-
Nominee crackdown halves new company registrations
PHUKET: Only 76 new companies were registered in September – compared with 135 and 132 during the same month in 2005 and 2004, respectively – following the August 15 announcement from the Ministry of Commerce that rules regarding foreign partnerships would be strictly enforced.Veerachai Tantiwathanavallop, Chief of the Phuket Commercial Registrations Office, told the Gazette that the number of new…
-
Phuket Carnival to be record-breaker
PATONG: This year’s Phuket Carnival, a celebration held to ring in the official start of the high season for tourism, is being touted to be the biggest ever with a record 3 million baht in funding provided by the Phuket Tourist Association. This year’s activities will be centered along Thaweewong Rd, between Soi Bangla and the Holiday Inn on Soi…
-
Tuk tuk, taxi drivers to get crash course in English
PHUKET CITY: One hundred Phuket taxi drivers, tuk tuk drivers and airport limousine drivers will have the chance to take a crash-course in English language and in hospitality on November 3, as the Tourism Authority of Thailand Region 4 office holds its first training session for the livery of Phuket. The course will be held at the Phuket Merlin Hotel,…
-
Another man gunned down
RASSADA: A Kathu man was gunned down while riding his motorcycle near Phuket Rajabhat University around 1:30 am on Wednesday.The man, identified by police as Panumas Chusawas, 23, was killed by at least four .38mm bullets while riding, with a friend riding pillion, along the Ban Kuku-Samkong road.The friend was unharmed and notified police. He declined to reveal his name…
-
Two nabbed in Patong drug bust
PATONG: Undercover police arrested two ya bah (methamphetamine) dealers in a sting operation on Nanai Rd early Thursday morning, seizing almost 100 pills.Kathu Police Inspector Maj Serm Kwannimit led the arrest, with other officers arranged to buy 95 pills at 25,000 baht at the Blue Sky Residence on Nanai Rd.Somjin Srikwan, 39, and Athen Lenukul, 33, both natives of Songkhla…
-
Burial for 422 tsunami victims
PHANG NGA: Three religious ceremonies – one Buddhist, one Christian and one Muslim – were performed October 16 in preparation for burying 422 unidentified tsunami victims in Baan Bang Muang Cemetery.Pol Col Khemmarin Hassiri, Superintendent of the Thai Tsunami Victim Identification unit, told the Gazette, “These 422 bodies have not been claimed and we have no information about them, so…
-
Kho En “death bend’ solution awaiting contractor
MAI KHAO: Three months after the villagers of Baan Kho En protested unsafe driving conditions along Thepkrasattri Rd by setting up a roadblock, officials and locals have agreed that the problem has been temporarily resolved, with no deaths along the stretch of road since the protest. Villagers, however, are still awaiting proof that the government will widen the road as…
-
More Maneaters wanted”¦
KRABI: Thai Occidental Productions is casting for the next in its series of Maneater feature films being shot in Krabi and Phuket. “We will start filming on Monday, but will be shooting in and around Phuket from November 1 to 4,” Ms Hall told the Gazette. Extras and small-part actors are needed for scenes including a staged crocodile show and…
-
Beach Volleyball: Brazilians top seeds at Phuket Open
PHUKET: The World No 1 pairing of Larissa and Juliana from Brazil have been named as No 1 seeds at the Phuket Thailand Open, the final round of the Swatch FIVB Beach Volley World Tour 06. Seeded No 2 are current Olympic and World Champions Misty May-Treanor and Kerry Walsh from the USA. Two more Brazilian teams – Ana Paula…
-
Pongpayome appointed new Ministry of Interior Permanent Secretary
BANGKOK (The Nation; Gazette): Former Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi has been promoted from Deputy Permanent Secretary to Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Interior (MoI).K. Pongpayome, 58, governed Phuket from 2000 to 2003 and was one of five pioneer Governor CEOs. After leaving the province, he took up the post of Director-General of the Department of Local Administration (DOLA) and…
-
Patong wastewater plant now open
PATONG: The drive to keep Patong Bay free of seaweed in the upcoming high season took a big step forward with the opening of a new wastewater treatment plant on October 12.The center, built by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s Wastewater Management Authority (WMA), with 13 million baht from the Danish International Development Assistance (Danida) fund, uses a…
-
Phummisak appointed to NLA
PHUKET: Phummisak Hongsyok, former Mayor of Phuket City and President of the Phuket Real Estate Club, has been appointed to serve in the National Legislative Assembly, a new 242-member body which will serve as the country’s interim parliament while the new constitution is being drafted.K. Phummisak said that he thought he was selected because of his background in business and…
-
Price freeze ordered for Veg Festival
PHUKET CITY: To prevent price-gouging in the upcoming Phuket Vegetarian Festival, the Phuket Internal Trade Office (PITO) has announced that they will inspect shops to ensure that prices of vegetables and other festival supplies are not above currently recorded market prices, and that prices are clearly marked on all products.Phuket Commercial Affairs Chief Thada Piyaporn said that more vegetables will…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.