World News
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Sponsored Top 10 reasons for expats to get a comprehensive health insurance in Thailand
Moving to Thailand offers a prospect full of excitement and adventure, but in the same vein, if any injuries were to occur (and god forbid it does), the local healthcare system can be confusing at first glance for many expats...
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Surat Thani immigration police arrest human trafficking suspect from Myanmar
A 46 year old Myanmar national was arrested by Surat Thani Immigration Police today for allegedly smuggling six others into Thailand. The suspect, who is identified as Bumaw, was reportedly seen on a road in Tambon Talad in Surat Thani province’s Mueang district, and Immigration Police arrested him at the spot, nearly four months after the Surat Thani Court issued…
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10 year high: Real estate price spike in Singapore
Last year, Singapore home prices rose to their highest level in more than a decade, boosting the island state’s government’s decision to impose “cooling” policies that will hopefully help the Singaporean property market’s stability. According to estimates released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Friday, prices increased by 10.6% in 2021. This is the highest level since 2010, when they…
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TAT offices in India introduce online training course for Indian travel agents
Indian travel agents can now sign up for an online training course to brush up on their knowledge of all things Thai, thanks to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. According to a TTR Weekly report, the so-called Thailand Specialist Programme is designed to teach the travel agents about new attractions and tourist offerings in the Land of Smiles. Cholada Siddhivarn…
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Spike in Covid clusters at Malaysia schools, many parents still concerned with vaccinating children
Covid-19 is on the rise at a number of schools in Malaysia following their reopenings and fingers are pointing at teachers and staff for not following and enforcing disease prevention rules like wearing a mask. The country’s health minister even says teachers with coronavirus symptoms are still coming to class. The cluster outbreaks at schools come just as the government is…
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Malaysia’s new airline SKS is now flying to northern tax-free island resort Pangkor
Following the approval from the country’s civil aviation regulator last week, SKS Airways became the first airline to launch short-haul flights to Malaysia’s northern tax-free island resort of Pangkor yesterday, resuming domestic travel after months of closure due to the Covid-19 outbreak last year. The first flight of SKS Airways took off from the smaller Subang airport near Kuala Lumpur…
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Laos government allows Chinese firm to dig rare earth minerals, locals concerned
Villagers in northeastern Laos have voiced concerns over losing their land to a Chinese firm that was recently approved by the Southeast Asian government to dig for rare earth minerals. A government source says some displaced villagers will receive compensation. Although the Lao Ministry of Plans and Development signed an agreement on January 21 allowing the Tong Lee Seung Industrial…
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Indonesia vows to end Joke Widodo’s extension, says new president will be elected in 2024
The electoral commission of Indonesia declared today that Southeast Asia’s archipelago nation will see its next leader in February 2024, putting an end to rumours that President Joko Widodo may seek to prolong his second and constitutionally mandated last term. Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian, the General Election Commission, and members of the House of Representatives met earlier this week…
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Cambodia PM invites Myanmar junta to the Summit if progress made on peace plan
Despite objections from his counterparts, Cambodia’s leader and incumbent chair of the 10 member bloc, PM Hun Sen, confirmed he had invited Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing to the next ASEAN summit if he makes progress on a peace plan he agreed to last year. Hun Sen reportedly spoke to the military head, Min Aung Hlaing, today via video…
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Thailand and India strengthen relations, plans to work together on trade, tourism
After a break, Thailand and India plan to work together on trade, maritime activity, and tourism. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, India’s ambassador in Thailand said it was important to remember the overlaps between the two countries in culture, language, and religion. Earlier this month, the Indian embassy launched a competition for the best logo promoting bilateral relations…
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Thailand and Saudi Arabia to exchange ambassadors, resume full diplomatic ties
Following a meeting yesterday between Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and the Saudi leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, both countries have agreed to restore diplomatic ties in the near future. The Bangkok Post reports that Thailand and Saudi Arabia will exchange ambassadors as part of the agreement. Things have been frosty between the two countries since a diplomatic spat over…
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China donates US$19.5 million worth military equipment to Philippines
Last week, China allocated the Philippines US$19.5 million in military equipment as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vow to help the Philippines government with not only anti-narcotics and anti-terrorism efforts, but also disaster relief missions. China has helped the Philippines modernise its military in recent years by sending high-capacity weaponry and equipment to support ongoing missions despite tensions in…
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At least 19 killed Indonesia’s West Papua nightclub fire
At least 19 people have been killed in clashes between two groups in the town of Sorong in Indonesia’s West Papua province, authorities reported today, with the majority of the victims dying after the nightclub caught fire. “After the clash, it was found 18 other bodies inside the building. So the total casualty is 19 people,” the police officer informed local…
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Prayut’s Saudi Arabia trip a ‘breakthrough’ after 30 years of tense relations
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is currently in Saudi Arabia in an effort to restore Thai-Saudi economic and diplomatic relations. Experts say the trip, which is the first government trip between the two countries after 30 years, is a huge breakthrough after three decades of tense relations between the two countries. Relations first turned cold in 1989 after the Blue Diamond Affair…
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Firms warn of Hong Kong talent shortage as expats give up and leave due to ongoing Covid restrictions
Investment banks and corporate laws firms are among the businesses warning of an impending talent crunch in Hong Kong as ongoing travel restrictions force expats to give up and leave. According to a Reuters report, Australian lawyer Tania Sibree is one of many foreign professionals heading back home. “The hotel quarantine made it just so tough for people to travel…
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Taiwan reports 39 Chinese warplanes including H-6 bomber in air defence zone
Taiwan air force has ordered its fighter jets to dispatch and missile defence systems activated yesterday after dozens of Chinese jets infiltrated the island’s air defence zone with an H-6 bomber. Although Beijing had not released a statement on the event, the warplanes were reportedly seen in the south-western Air Defence Identification Zone, which is self-declared airspace that is monitored…
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Indonesia calls for tougher sentences in child abuses as cases rise
The judiciary of Indonesia was slammed by right groups when a 10-year jail term was sentenced to a 37 year old Christian priest Benyamin Sitepu, the principal of Galilea Hosana School in Medan, who was accused of sexually assaulting six students under his care. The families were disappointed with the verdict by the Medan District Court as Sitepu did not…
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American retail giant Walmart shows interest in Laos
Walmart might be moving to Laos. An American multinational retail conglomerate, best known for its hypermarket and grocery store chains across the States, has shown its interest in Laos as a group of Lao-Americans met yesterday, including the Lao Overseas Affairs Department and the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LNCCI), to discuss investment in Laos. The team, led by…
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Indonesia to launch travel bubble with Singapore, entry to islands Batam, Bintan
A travel bubble is in the works between Singapore and Indonesia’s resort islands of Batam and Bintan. The Covid-19 situation at both islands in the archipelago is now under control and officials are moving forward with plans for a safe travel corridor, according to Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto during a virtual press conference today. “The government is pushing…
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Thai PM to visit Saudi Arabia as guest of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman
The Thai PM will be in Saudi Arabia tomorrow and Wednesday, invited by its leader, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. Prayut Chan-o-cha’s brief visit was confirmed by a statement from Government House yesterday. According to the statement, the visit aims to promote bilateral ties between both countries. A statement from the Saudi ministry says the trip is for both governments…
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Hong Kong warns against intervening in cull of Covid-19 hamsters
Facing a backlash after their order to kill about 2,000 hamsters caught up in a Covid-19 outbreak, Hong Kong officials are warning people not to intervene in the hamster euthanasia. 11 hamsters tested positive for Covid-19 in an outbreak that also spread to a worker at a pet shop, prompting authorities to spring to action Tuesday to curb the spread…
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Thai women’s football coach confident about World Cup Finals
Thai women’s football coach Miyo Okamoto is determined that player Chaba Kaew will qualify for her third straight FIFA Women’s World Cup. Miyo plans to send her best players to the cup, and some have previously been in cup finals. Myo said the team studies the Philippines team’s tactics in order to gain skills. She said that if her team…
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Laos government warns songwriter over sexually explicit lyrics
A songwriter from northern Laos’ Luang Prabang province has made a public apology for his sexually references in his music after being warned by the provincial Information, Culture, and Tourism Department. Not only have many people in the Southeast Asian country have criticised 31 year old Phimmasone Philachan’s sexually explicit lyrics, but he’s also apparently in violation of the Law…
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Nippon Steel makes $763 million acquisition of 2 Thai steelmakers
Japan is making a move to invest in Thai steel. Nippon Steel Corp, the largest manufacturer of steel in Japan has announced a strategic deal to buy stakes in two major steelmakers in Thailand. The deal is reported to be worth as much as US $763 million – about 25 billion baht. The giant steelmaker has been interested in acquqiring…
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Study shows 2 doses of Sputnik vaccine better than Pfizer
A Russian and Italian study showed that neutralising antibodies against the Omicron last longer in people who have had the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia than in people with the Pfizer vaccine. The study was done on a very small scale though, with just 51 people who received the Sputnik V vaccine and only 17 people with Pfizer. It was…
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First Thai rice export on Laos-China railway, step toward strengthening bilateral trade
The Lao-Chinese railway to Chongqing delivered its first Thai rice shipment of 1,000 tonnes, boosting hopes to strengthen bilateral trade and benefit the economy. More rice exports, and other farm exports, will follow, says the advisor to Thailand’s Agricultural Minister. The advisor added that the Thai government is looking into exporting fruit, orchids, rubber, cassava, palm oil as well as…
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Australian news outlet places Indonesian capital in Bali in online map screw-up
An Australian news outlet has had to replace a map they uploaded online that mistakenly placed the Indonesian capital Jakarta on the island of Bali. Channel 9 News attracted some ridicule, not least among Indonesians, after the inaccurate map went viral, according to a Coconuts report. The report acknowledges that to some outsiders, Bali is Indonesia, or to others, it’s…
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At least 3 killed, 7 injured as Myanmar’s army raid displaced camps in Kayah State
At least three refugees were killed and seven others were injured during the Myanmar army’s raids on refugee camps in eastern Kayah State, where innocent civilians were forced to leave their houses as fighting escalated between the Tatmadaw (army) and armed opposition groups. According to a source from the local Catholic Church in Myanmar who spoke to the Vatican News,…
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Vietnam eases entry procedures for foreign employees and returnees with valid visas
Foreigners with valid visas can now enter Vietnam without having to get approval from the immigration offices or local authorities, starting from Tuesday as the government eased entry restrictions. This means people with valid temporary residence cards (TRCs), permanent residence cards (PRCs), valid visas, and valid visa exemption certificates will be able to enter Vietnam without any permission from the…
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New Zealand closes its borders to arrivals over fear of Omicron outbreak
New Zealanders are currently unable to return home as the Covid-19 response minister Chris Hipkins orders a temporary halt to the only route back to the country due to the fully occupied numbers of managed isolation and quarantine, or MIQ, as demands soar following the threat posed by the Omicron strain yesterday. Although the ban would be temporary, no date…
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Facebook mistakenly banning ok content a growing problem
Language and expression have nuances, subtleties, and variety in meaning, both explicitly and implicitly stated. The problem is, Facebook often times does not. Society is facing an increasingly conspicuous problem of Facebook and other social media platforms using algorithms to block prohibited content while lacking any useful channels to rectify mistakes. Many people have experienced getting muted or banned temporarily…
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