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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Officials launch crackdown on smuggled fuel
PATONG: Marine Police and Customs officers are conducting random inspections of ships in the Andaman region while police officers and Department of Energy officials are inspecting gas stations on the island in a crackdown on fuel being smuggled into Thailand.Arthon Keesiri, Director of the Investigation and Suppression Office, Excise Department, Ministry of Finance, announced at a seminar on Saturday, “The…
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Disinterest sinks “swimming with dolphins’ plan
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) and Danish marine biologist Judith Kongsted have announced that plans for a dolphin center at Cape Panwa have fallen through due to the lack of participants in a proposed fund-raising committee. Ms Kongsted had invited PMBC Director Wannakiat Thapthimsang and other potential committee members to attend a meeting at the Pearl Hotel…
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Beware of police impostors – Police Chief
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth yesterday warned people to be on the lookout for gangsters impersonating police officers.“Many rubber plantation owners have complained that thieves are disguising themselves as police, and even carrying pistols, in order to demand money from their Burmese laborers,” Gen Decha said.“Most cases reported have been from labor camps in…
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Chinese official calls for greater safety for tourists
PHUKET CITY: Yao Bomin, China’s Consul-General in Songkhla, has called for the Thai government to help make travel to Phuket safer for Chinese tourists following the deaths of three Chinese nationals from accidents in Phuket earlier this year.“The Chinese government is very concerned about the safety of Chinese tourists, especially as three have died as a result of accidents in…
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Publisher assassinated
PHUKET CITY: Opas Noothong, 59, owner of the recently-launched newspaper Fahkumnod (“Natural Order”) and of the Jao Khun Karaoke on Luang Por Rd, was gunned down by two teenagers while walking back to his office about 11:30 pm on Saturday.Pol Capt Rassada Kluengwong, of Phuket City Police Station, told the Gazette, “Witnesses said that K. Opas was walking from Chatuchak…
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Saudi giant buys Crowne Plaza
KARON: The Crowne Plaza Karon Beach Phuket resort has been bought by Dubai-listed hotel and resort investment company Kingdom Hotel Investments (KHI), which is headed by Saudi Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud.KHI paid US$98.5 million (3.7 billion baht) for the property, including US$30.5 million (1.1 billion baht) in debt.The Prince was listed by Forbes magazine earlier…
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THAI, Bangkok Airways sign cooperation deal
BANGKOK: Rivals Thai Airways International (THAI) and Bangkok Airways signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Thursday aimed at helping THAI coordinate its flights with services to Koh Samui and give it better access to destinations in China.THAI Acting President Somchainuk Engtrakul said that the signing of the MOU signifies development of network coordination between the two carriers.“This has an…
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Work permits renewed in 15 minutes
PHUKET CITY: Work permits are being renewed in just 15 minutes and new work permits approved faster than ever thanks to streamlined procedures recently introduced at the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO).PPEO Chief Boonchok Maneechot explained, “We have been using the new system for two weeks. I consulted with work permit officers for a month to find out the best…
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On yer bikes – Gov tells officials
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura this morning urged government officers to ride bicycles instead of using motor vehicles in order to save fuel, in light of the recent price hikes at Phuket gas pumps.At the monthly meeting of provincial chief officers, Gov Udomsak said, “We have to save fuel and save money. Please think of ways to do this.…
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Phuket delegation heading for Dubai
PHUKET: Vice-Governor Niran Kalayanimit will lead a delegation of government officials, tourism industry experts and the press to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in a bid to lure investment to Phuket from the UAE’s booming commercial capital, Dubai. The four-day trip, from May 6 to 10, will be paid for by the Governor’s Office. A total of 30 people are…
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Tsunami warning system “90% complete’ – Smith
KATA: Dr Smith Thammasaroj, who was appointed to establish the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) after the 2004 tsunami, today expressed satisfaction with progress on the country’s disaster warning system.“Tourists can sure of traveling safely in the Andaman region. Ninety percent of the warning towers are complete. The rest will be finished in the next three months,” he said.“The towers…
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Jammin’ to reopen Friday
PHUKET CITY: The popular Jammin’ nightclub will reopen Friday, following a month of rebuilding after the club caught fire early on April 1, causing an estimated 2 million baht in damage. The fire is believed to have been started by an electrical fault in the DJ pit. (See earlier story here.) Co-owner Mel Perdue told the Gazette today, “It’s all…
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Controversial plan for dolphins to “treat’ disabled people
CAPE PANWA: The Phuket Marine Biological Office (PMBC) is considering building a 200-million-baht “Dolphin Center” near its aquarium as a way of treating people with disabilities and promoting tourism. The project, which has already been approved in principal by Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura, would be run jointly with Danish marine biologist and dolphin expert Judith Kongsted. PMBC Director Wannakiat Thapthimsang…
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“Mick the Pom” jumps bail
PHUKET: When British murder suspect Michael John Taylor failed to make a scheduled court appearance yesterday, Phuket Provincial Court issued a warrant for his arrest and seized the land title document he posted as bail.Taylor, aka “Mick the Pom”, is on trial for the August 17, 2005, stabbing murder of his 28-year-old live-in girlfriend Jantra Weangta. He was released on…
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Angry monk beats dog-lover
PHUKET CITY: With no end in sight to Phuket’s stray dog problem and residents continuing to dump unwanted pets at temples around the island, monks find it difficult to keep temple grounds clean. On Friday morning last week, one senior monk grew so angry with an elderly dog lover who had come to his temple to feed the dogs that…
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Sriyada is Phuket’s first TRT MP
PHUKET: Dr Sriyada Palimapan yesterday became Phuket’s first Thai Rak Thai (TRT) member of parliament, despite amassing only 7,893 votes – equivalent to just 8.18% of the electorate in Phuket District 1.Her opponent, Thongchai Kaewthong of the Siam Party, received 2,456 votes.In District 2, TRT candidate Wisut Santikul failed to win a seat in Parliament because he ran unopposed and…
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Anchalee raps Gov over hospital deal
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) is ready to buy the abandoned Phya Thai Hospital but the deal is stalled because Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura has not yet approved a request for 215 million baht in bank loans to seal the deal, says OrBorJor President Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr.Speaking at a press conference at the OrBorJor offices, K. Anchalee said, “[The Governor]…
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Princess to open tsunami aid HQ
PHUKET: HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will pay a Royal Visit to Phuket next week to preside over the official opening ceremony of her Special Task Unit (STU) building in Tambon Wichit on Tuesday morning.The STU is dedicated to supporting the long-term recovery of tsunami victims in all six Andaman coast provinces. Funded jointly by Her Royal Highness’s Fund and…
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Election observers “impressed with polling’
PHUKET, PHANG NGA: Girawadee Khao-orn, one of the eight UN-affiliated election monitors who came to Phuket to check out yesterday’s poll, told the Gazette today that the observers were impressed with how voting was conducted in Phuket and Phang Nga. “We could see the efforts made by the Regional Election Commission, which tried to serve people in all areas, even…
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“Live with it,’ TAT tells complaining Kamala hotels
KAMALA: The losses hotels have suffered from tourists canceling bookings after seeing the rebuilding work on Kamala Beach are just a sacrifice they have to make, Wanchai Ruang-udom, the landscaping coordinator hired to complete the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Kamala beautification project, told the Gazette yesterday.“This is a sacrifice they have to make. This project was approved by Kamala…
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Double your pleasure
Wichai Hengjarernsook is in the junk business, and so not a man to overlook a bargain when he sees it. The 24-year-old native of Samut Sakhon’s Baan Paew District, where women are far-famed for beauty, couldn’t decide which of two identical twin sisters in his village he wanted to wed. So, being an astute businessman, he popped the question to…
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His wife’s a real bitch
Disappointment famously prompts extreme measures in victims. Disappointed of proper stage effects for his fiddling, Nero burned Rome; of artistic ambitions, Van Gogh cut off his ear; and of the American colonies, George III went mad. In Lampang Province, a 39-year-old man disappointed with women fell in love with a real bitch, – a two-year-old poodle named Olé – and…
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Thanyarat wins Senatorial race
PHUKET: Thanyarat “Gee” Achariyachai is Phuket’s first woman Senator, after winning yesterday’s Senatorial election by a convincing margin.K. Thanyarat, a former Juvenile Court Judge and wife of former Phuket Chamber of Commerce President Pamuke Achariyachai, polled 34,142 votes.In second place was Prawat Suwannadithakul with 28,539, followed by Dr Prasit Koeysiripong with 14,198 votes.Vote counts for the other candidates in the…
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Big Boy is back
PHANG NGA: A popular whale shark nicknamed “Big Boy” has been spotted off Koh Surin, and around Richelieu Rock, Hin Daeng and Hin Muang, Pakdee Khruthanang of the Phuket Eco-Tourism Association told the Gazette today.“Big Boy has been spotted off Koh Surin nearly daily since the beginning of last month,” she said.“He is about eight meters long and weighs more…
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Songkran road death toll totals five – or six
PHUKET: Road accidents claimed the lives of five people in the province during Songkran. Or six, depending on how one counts.Officially, five people died on the roads between April 7 and April 16, officers from the Phuket Office for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (ODPM) said at a press conference this morning. This was two higher than last year’s figure and…
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Phang Nga tsunami victims “have all been helped’
KHAO LAK: All Phang Nga residents who were in need of financial aid after the tsunami have received it, either through government assistance or in the form of private-sector donations, a senior provincial official has told the Gazette.“We can say that 100% of the people who lost homes and fishing boats have had them replaced,” Vice-Governor Opas Svetamani told the…
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Four candidates qualify for April 23 poll
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Election Commission (PEC) has announced that four people have been declared eligible to run in the April 23 parliamentary by-elections in Phuket, two in each voting district.The Head of the Phuket Election Commission (PEC), Dr Prapa Kayee, told the Gazette today that the candidates for District 1 will be Dr Sriyada Palimapan of the Thai Rak…
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“Lost’ boat finally heading home
ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS: Four months ago, Kilo, a 46-foot catamaran drifted off its anchorage in Phuket and ended up in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands.Today, after three months of wrangling with officials, the yacht’s owners, Chris Sieber and his wife Surapa Srijutanat, finally set sail from Port Blair in the Andamans, bringing Kilo back to Phuket.The yacht went missing…
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Islandia sold for B1.05bn
PHUKET: Central Hotels & Resorts and an unnamed investor have created a joint venture company named Karon Phuket Hotel Co and have bought the 316-room Islandia Park Resort in Karon. It will become the third Central property in the Karon area. The amount paid was not revealed by the partners, but hotel industry publications said that they paid a total…
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Property expo hits the mark
PHUKET CITY: Properties with a total value of more than 300 million baht were reserved at the Property Investment Exhibition 2006 (PIE), which drew to a close at Central Festival Phuket yesterday, said the organizer.Thanet Traiwut, Managing Director of exhibition organizer Delice Thai, said, “The exhibition was a success. About 80% of visitors were looking for a house and 20%…
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