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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New reservoir filling up
THALANG: Work on Phuket’s second major reservoir at Bang Neaw Dum in Srisoothorn is almost complete, with one million cubic meters of water already being held behind the dam. Supinyo Hoonpadungrat, head of the Phuket Provincial Irrigation Office, said that work on the earthen dam, spillway and associated waterworks is now “about 97% complete”. Mr Supinyo expects about 3.5 million…
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Province launches mobile “anti-poverty” clinic
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Province this morning launched a “Mobile Anti-Poverty Clinic” aimed at eliminating poverty in the province in accordance with government policy. The opening festivities took place on the grounds in front of Phuket Provincial Hall this morning, with Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha presiding. Naep Sinthong, who heads the province’s community development services unit, said the project is…
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Bangkok Airways gears up for high season
BANGKOK: Bangkok Airways will increase frequency on its Bangkok-Phuket and Phuket-Samui routes during the high season with a new schedule that starts on October 26, the carrier has announced. For the Bangkok-Phuket route, flights will leave Suvarnabhumi Airport at 8.10 am, 11.45 am and 5:30 pm. Flight time is just under 1.5 hours. For its Phuket-Samui route, flights will leave…
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Candid camera, Patong style
PATONG: Philanderers be warned: Phuket’s premier adult entertainment district is gearing up for a huge expansion in its closed-circuit television (CCTV) coverage, with real-time images of the action along Soi Bangla to be available to the public online 24 hours a day by year’s end, according to the town’s top cop. Kathu Police Superintendent Col Grissak Songmoonnark told the Gazette…
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Kamala beachfront shops destroyed
KAMALA: In an effort to beautify the beach front at Kamala, nearly 50 illegally-built businesses were bulldozed away on October 7 creating more walking space for tourists. Santi Atthasap, Vice President of the Kamala Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor), told the Gazette that the move was in line with a provincial policy to keep beaches tidy and attractive. The temporary structures,…
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Drinking session takes tragic turn
SUKHOTHAI: The more dipsomaniacal among us will most likely have had the unsettling experience of coming round, after a heavy session, not quite sure where we are or how we got there.Usually, this can be rectified by stumbling out, flagging down a taxi and demanding to be taken home, hopefully before the full force of the hangover sets in.One unlucky…
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Man arrested for Nanai Rd murder
PATONG: Phuket City Police early Saturday morning arrested a man for the stabbing murder of a woman who ran a snooker club and bar on Nanai Rd. Kathu Police Superintendent Col Grissak Songmoonnak identified the deceased as 31-year-old Krongjit Kantakart, from Lamphun province. Miss Kronjit’s murder was reported to Kathu Police at 1 am by her boyfriend, Suppachai Julawong, owner…
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Pork sales plunged during Vegetable Frenzy
PHUKET CITY: Much has been written about high prices of vegetables during the Vegetarian Festival, especially with recent flooding in other parts of the country destroying crops. But the 10-day period of vegetable-only consumption also had an impact on meat prices, especially in Phuket City, where the ethnic Chinese who make up the bulk of those taking part are typically…
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Guns seized at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint
TAH CHAT CHAI: Provincial and regional police held a press conference on October 5 to announce the seizure of 10 guns recovered during random checks at the Tah Chat Chai road checkpoint over a three-day period. The press conference was conducted jointly by Police Region 8 Commander Lt Gen Santarn Chayanon and Phuket Provincial Police Commander Apirak Hongthong. The seizures…
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Phuket PAD mobilizes to join Bangkok protest
PHUKET CITY (Gazette, Nation): Following the clash between People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) supporters and police outside Parliament in Bangkok early this morning, the Phuket PAD held a press conference at the ASTV office at 9 am to discuss their response. Led by Natjarong Ekpermsup, a panel of PAD representatives told the press that the Phuket PAD will now mobilize…
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Phuket PAD to join Bangkok protest after Veg Fest
BANGKOK (The Nation, Gazette): Despite the recent arrests of two key People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) leaders, the group’s Phuket members will refrain from taking any action in the province until the end of the Vegetarian Festival 2008 that ends tomorrow, its leadership has confirmed.Following the arrest of core PAD leader Chaiwat Sinsuwong last Friday, Southern region PAD coordinator Sunthorn…
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Child Labor in Phuket shames Junta
PHUKET: Burmese daily newspaper True News was ordered by the Press Scrutiny and Registration Board of Myanmar to suspend publication for two months, following its publication on September 30 of a large image depicting a Burmese child working on a construction site in Phuket.Mr Yeni, News Editor at The Irrawaddy, told the Gazette that, “An anonymous freelancer in Rangoon told…
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PAD Leader Chamlong Arrested
BANGKOK (The Nation): Political peace efforts suffered another big blow this morning with the arrest of key PAD leader Chamlong Srimuang. Eye-witnesses said Chamlong was arrested and detained at a voting booth for today’s elections for Bangkok governor. Chamlong had gone there to cast his own vote. He was arrested at 8 am when the polling station opened. His arrest…
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Top doc warns of Veg Fest virus threat
PHUKET CITY: The Vegetarian Festival is ostensibly a period of purity, but the Phuket Provincial Heath Office has nevertheless issued a statement warning people about the risks of HIV/Aids and hepatitis infection during the 10-day event. Phuket Public Health Office chief Dr Paisan Worrasathit told the Gazette, “We are cautioning people who hurt themselves with puncture wounds from items such…
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VIPs get familiar with Bangla
PATONG: Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kowsurat last night greeted tourists amidst the bright lights and booming sounds of Patong’s Soi Bangla, the heart of the island’s adult nightlife entertainment industry. Mr Weerasak was accompanied by Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, Patong Deputy Mayor Chairat Sukban, Kathu Police Superintendent Col Grissak Songmoonnark and a number of foreign ambassadors. The diplomats are…
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Dengue conference will go on, says Hilton
KARON: Reports that the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa is planning to cancel the upcoming international summit on dengue fever out of fear of a People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) protest at the resort are unfounded, a hotel spokesperson has confirmed. The Thai-language Manager online news service this morning reported that the hotel’s management called the Ministry of Public…
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Big turnout for Samkong Shrine procession
PHUKET CITY: Crowds lined the streets in Samkong this morning for the Vegetarian Festival procession starting at Lim Hu Tai Su Shrine, which kicked off at the auspicious time of 7:19 am after two hours of religious ceremonies. Visual highlights of the spectacle included dancing dragons and teams of men carrying ornate Chinese palanquins, with the deafening sounds of exploding…
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Coming soon: “5-Star Slaughterhouse’
PHUKET CITY: Even as tens of thousands of Phuket residents walk the streets in all-white clothing and abstain from meat, plans are afoot to build what authorities are describing as a “5-star” slaughterhouse capable of butchering up to 100 pigs per hour. The Phuket Provincial Livestock Office announced the project as part of its plan to designate Phuket as Thailand’s…
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Can I have your wife?
LOEI: A long friendship ended in tragedy on the night of August 30, when a man visiting his buddy’s house without warning asked if he could have his friend’s wife.At 7 am on August 31, Pak Chom Police duty officer Thongphum Premlao received a call from a villager, who reported a dead body hidden in a banana plantation near Ban…
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Phuket gets dismal rating for human security
BANGKOK (The Nation): Out of Thailand’s 76 provinces, human security is best in Chiangmai, worst in Bangkok, and second worst in Phuket, according to a 2007 government survey. “Phuket is second from the bottom,” Suwinai Wattatham, a senior official at the Human Security and Social Development Ministry, told a seminar yesterday. Against the average human-security score for the whole country…
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Veggiefest 2008 underway
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit yesterday celebrated the first official day of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival like thousands of other Phuket residents, by dressing up in white and enjoying a meat-free meal at a local shrine, in this case the Jui Tui Shrine on Soi Phuton. Gov Niran intends to refrain from meat and observe other rituals throughout the…
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Are you ready to Walk & Run?
PATONG: The local office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Phuket Walk & Run Association will hold the 2008 Phuket Walk & Run in Patong on October 12. The event is being held for fun and to promote Phuket as a sports tourism destination, said Nongnit Tengmaneewan of the Phuket TAT office. There will be three races:…
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Chalong cops nab snatch-and-run bandit
KATA: With the wave of snatch-and-run robberies in Chalong Police District making national television news in recent days, police there have been under intense pressure to put the guilty behind bars. Their first break came early yesterday morning with the arrest of a construction worker whose crime spree came to an abrupt halt at about 4 am when he crashed…
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Muggings in Rawai continue
RAWAI: A year after the still-unsolved murder of Norwegian Simen Knudsen, violent robberies against foreigners on motorcycles continue in Rawai – with the the perpetrators now carrying out attacks in populated areas during broad daylight.The latest victim is 38-year-old Sandra Ullrich, who suffered two fractures to the back of her skull when a pair of Thai men on a motorcycle…
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Renowned awards see Bangkok best for leisure
LONDON: Bangkok has been named “Best Leisure Destination” in the Asia-Pacific Region, and Phuket came in second best in the rankings by readers of Business Traveller Asia Pacific magazine in its Annual Travel Awards 2008. Bangkok’s Ascott Sathorn and Fraser Place Langsuan were voted first and third, respectively, in the category of “Best Serviced Residence” in Asia-Pacific, while Novotel at…
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Norwegian passes away in Rawai
RAWAI: A Norwegian expatriate resident of Phuket was found dead in the kitchen of his home Tuesday evening from what appeared to be natural causes. Chalong Police Duty Officer Lt Col Chana Suthimas identified the deceased as 51-year-old Terje Eilert Myking, who lived in Soi Samakkee 4 in Rawai. “We didn’t find any evidence at the scene to suggest murder,…
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Unlicensed foreigners in 60% of Patong motorbike accidents
PATONG (TNA, Gazette): The poorly-regulated “motorbike for hire” industry in Patong has contributed to an alarming number of motorcycle accidents in Kathu district, where more than half of the 500 accidents reported to Kathu Police involved unlicensed foreign motorcyclists, the government’s Thai News Agency (TNA) has reported. With many motorcycle rental shops in Patong, foreign tourists and expats can easily…
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Kamala hillside projects halted; others under investigation
KAMALA: A special adviser to the Minister for Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) on September 16 toured several sites in Kamala to inspect reports of encroachment and other building violations on projects there, as well as work on two hillside projects in the area that had already been ordered halted pending further investigation. Maj Gen Intarat Yodbangtoey toured the sites…
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American drowns off Karon Beach
KARON: Despite relatively calm conditions at the time, an American man drowned at Karon Beach Wednesday afternoon.Chalong Police Duty Officer Sanguan Muangtham identified the deceased as 54-year-old Michael Stephen Jones, holder of an American passport. At around 4:30 pm on Wednesday, tourists and members of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) Beach Guard noticed Mr Jones was in trouble about 20…
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Masseuse fire attacker out of prison
PATONG: The man who set alight a beach masseuse at Loma Park last year returned to the scene of his crime yesterday morning, where he was immediately assaulted by the victim’s father and brother. The attack was quickly stopped by Kathu Police, who released the pair after fining them 500 baht each. Few Gazette readers will forget the horrific tale…
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