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- Phuket News
Phuket worker camp raid turns up guns, drugs
PHUKET: Police arrested three suspects for possession of drugs and illegal firearms during a raid on a worker camp in Phuket yesterday. Two of the Thai suspects were named as Chatchana Poosangka, 29 and Nattapong Rithidet, 19. A 16-year-old minor was not named. “We had been keeping an eye on the camp as a number of teenagers were visiting it…
- Phuket News
Phuket orangutan in critical condition
PHUKET: An orangutan recently confiscated from Phuket Zoo is in critical condition. The beloved 13-year-old orangutan Milo was moved from the Phang Nga Wildlife Nursery Station to the intensive care unit of the Pasupalun Livestock & Wildlife Hospital in Kanchana Buri on Thursday. “Initial tests have shown that her red blood cell count is very low. She also has vitamin…
- World News
Bangladesh Bank exposed to hackers by cheap switches, no firewall
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Bangladesh Bank exposed to hackers by cheap switches, no firewall Phuket Gazette / Reuters DHAKA: Bangladesh’s central bank was vulnerable to hackers because it did not have a firewall and used second-hand, $10 switches to network computers connected to the SWIFT global payment network, an investigator…
- Business News
Finance: The right time to get back into the stock market
PHUKET: While all of my long term clients (and myself) have been in cash for some time, there will be a time to get back into the stock market, but when will that be? To recap recent market action: major United States and global indices have already moved higher off their panic February lows, led by retail, gold, materials and…
- Phuket News
One tonne of dead fish found in Phuket park
PHUKET: A large number of fish and shrimp have died in a pond in Suan Luang Park in Phuket Town from either a rise in temperature or polluted water, confirmed officials. “The local community around the park has complained about the dead fish,” said Phuket City Deputy Mayor Thavorn Jirapattanasophon. “About one tonne of dead fish have been found since…
- Opinion
Opinion: Will clubbing Phuket’s beach venues prove to have been worth it?
PHUKET: The demolition of the government-built buildings along Surin’s beachfront, which once housed a number of iconic Phuket beach clubs, marks the end of an era on the island. Unlike numerous other beach venues that have been demolished since the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) started to sweep opportunistic, mafia-style business ventures from Phuket’s sands, tearing down these…
- Phuket News
Excuse Buster: The hidden health dangers of fungi
PHUKET: “It is ironic that this humble fungus, hailed as a benefactor of mankind, may by its very success prove to be a deciding factor in the decline of the present civilization”, said Dr John I Pitt, in The Genus Penicillin, 1979. ‘Antibiotics save lives.’ But has our overuse of antibiotics for killing bacteria contributed to creating a dangerous internal…
- Phuket News
Phuket voted 8th among world’s top 10 islands
PHUKET: Phuket has won eighth place among the world’s top 10 islands in the latest reader survey conducted by travel review website TripAdvisor. Phuket was described by TripAdvisor as an island with “blue lagoons and salmon sunsets [that] make for a dream-like atmosphere, and indeed, a vacation here can feel a bit surreal”. It also said: “Water sports are the…
- World News
Belgium says seen signs that IS has sent more fighters to Europe
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Belgium says seen signs that IS has sent more fighters to Europe Phuket Gazette / Reuters BRUSSELS: There are signs that more Islamic State inspired militants have been sent to Belgium and Europe, Belgian authorities said on Tuesday, maintaining the country’s threat status at the second-highest…
- Bangkok News
Patong Bay water sent to Bangkok for testing
PHUKET: Officials have recently collected samples of water in Patong Bay and sent them to Bangkok to determine whether it is pollution or algae that has caused the sea water to turn brown. Akkarawat Hirunphun, an environmental specialist in the Phuket-based Regional Environmental Office, and his staff inspected the green-brown water along the Patong coast (story here) for contamination. “We…
- Phuket News
Surin beachfront operators make one last plea
PHUKET: More than 30 Surin business operators begged the Phuket Governor to postpone the looming demolition of their shops along the recently dubbed ‘Honorary Beach’. Though the well-known Catch Beach Club had already thrown in the towel with its ‘One More Time’ party held on Saturday night (story here), other business operators were hoping that the governor would step in…
- World News
Quake kills 272 along devastated Ecuador coast
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Quake kills 272 along devastated Ecuador coast Phuket Gazette / Reuters Ecuador: The death toll from Ecuador’s biggest earthquake in decades soared to 272 on Sunday as survivors cobbled together makeshift coffins to bury loved ones, lined up for water and sought shelter beside the rubble…
- Phuket News
Rotting whale carcass could still reveal clues
PHUKET: Marine biologists are hoping that the rotting carcass of a five-tonne whale, found washed up yesterday on Lampi Beach, Phang Nga, will reveal clues about how it died. Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) staff had been looking for the dead cetacean, ever since it was spotted floating off Koh Bon in the Similan National Park by a tourist on…
- Phuket News
Patong Girl wins Grimme Award
PHUKET: The Grimme Institute in Germany awarded its prestigious Grimme Prize to the lead Thai actress in the movie Patong Girl for her stellar performance in the trilingual film set in Phuket. Aisawanya Areyawattana flew to Marl, Germany to join other cast members on April 8 for the award ceremony, which was broadcast on German television. The Thai-German co-production is…
- Phuket News
Milo the orangutan on the mend [video]
PHUKET: Milo, an orangutan recently confiscated from Phuket Zoo and moved to the Phang Nga Wildlife Nursery Station, is on the mend from a debilitating blood disorder. “Her legs became weak, she could not walk and did not want to eat,” explained Songkrit Jearanasin, a vet at the station. “After analyzing her blood, we confirmed that she had vasculitis.” Vasculitis,…
- Phuket News
Pak Khlok residents raise concerns over new marina plans
PHUKET: Pak Khlok residents are worried that a new marina to be built in the area will have a negative impact on the environment and their livelihoods. The Kung Bay Marina is one of four new marinas slated to be built along the Andaman coast as part of a government-supported initiative to develop marine tourism in the region (story here).…
- Pattaya News
Battling the HIV/AIDS stigma
PHUKET: Eighteen year old ‘Nok’ is a normal, healthy-looking school girl struggling to cope with a dark past brought about by the shame and stigma of being diagnosed HIV positive. She found out she had contracted the disease when she became pregnant at 15 years old. “I was scared and confused. I asked my parents for help and they made…
- Opinion
Opinion: Legalizing Phuket’s illegal laborers
Kriengkrai Arpabuthsayapan is the head of the Phuket Provincial Office of Labor Protection and Welfare, a position he has held since May 2015. From Surin Province, Mr Kriengkrai has worked in the field for more than 15 years, serving in many provinces during his career. He graduated with a Master’s Degree in Labor and Welfare Development from Thammasat University. Here…
- World News
Earthquake hits Myanmar, no immediate reports of major damage
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Earthquake hits Myanmar, no immediate reports of major damage Phuket Gazette / Reuters YANGON: An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 struck northwestern Myanmar on Wednesday, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said, sending strong tremors through Myanmar, eastern India, Bangladesh and parts of Nepal. There were…
- World News
Facebook’s next frontier: chatbots, live video
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Facebook’s next frontier: chatbots, live video Phuket Gazette / Reuters SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook Inc said yesterday that it has opened up its Messenger app to developers to create “chatbots,” hoping that by simulating one-on-one conversations between users and companies it will expand its reach in customer…
- Property
Across the land: Unusual times in Phuket tourism
PHUKET: A typical ‘high season’ in Phuket is usually from November to April every year, with the ‘peak season’ being December and January. However, this has not been the case for 2015/2016, where the high season and peak season has passed by hitting a large speed bump. Almost all businesses on the island – tour companies, sailboat hires, hair &…
- Business News
Finance: What is a contrarian investor to do these days?
PHUKET: If you read my columns regularly, you know that I like to try to approach investing from a contrarian viewpoint. This basically means going against the crowd and the current trend, or essentially buying things when they are beaten and battered down and selling when everyone else loves them and thinks the run will last forever. So what does…
- Thai Life
Keep it green: This sceptered isle – speedboats, sunloungers and jet-skis
PHUKET: I recently drove along Rawai Beach Road, and counted the number of speedboats hoovering up passengers for island day-trips to Ko Phi Phi and Racha. There were 27, mostly belonging to one company. Later that day, I took the ravishingly beautiful route round Prompthep Cape, down the twisting road to Nai Harn beach and on to secluded Ao Sane…
- Opinion
Opinion: Skewing statistics – the positive and negative
PHUKET: The recent revelation that Phuket has the highest reported incidence of human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/Aids) cases in Thailand should be a cause for concern and increased personal awareness, but not panic. As pointed out by the local Provincial Health Office, Thailand’s province-based statistical reporting of national trends in the global HIV/Aids pandemic has been…
- Thai Life
Let’s not forget the younger expat sailors
PHUKET: There are plenty of young expats around that bring their own passion into the Southeast Asia regattas and races. Want a few names? Elizabeth Schoch, known as Liz to most, and her boyfriend, Alfie, who often crew on competing boats. They are true enthusiasts and communicate their passion for sailing with great vigor. How about Mig Wehrle and Meike…
- Phuket News
Officers hunt for dead whale in Similan National Park
PHUKET: National park officers are searching for a large whale carcass spotted off Koh Bon in the Similan National Park on Saturday. “We have received pictures of the whale, which was reportedly already sunburned and foul-smelling. However, we’ve yet to locate the animal,” said Nut Kongkasorn, chief of Mu Ko Similan National Park. National park officers are hoping to recover…
- Thai Life
Appeal of traditional Songkran
PHUKET: For many visitors to Thailand in mid-April, Songkran festivities appear, on the surface, to be just a fun and boisterous way to keep cool, but the traditions of the Thai new year celebrations are rooted in a much gentler aspect of Thailand’s Buddhist culture. The four-day festival is a highly significant astrological event in the Buddhist calendar. It marks…
- Business News
Cold business for Songkran
PHUKET: Songkran can be a lucrative time of year for the island’s ice makers as sales rise with the summer heat. Many revellers load barrels onto pick-up trucks, filling them up with water and a big block of ice. In fact, Songkran ice sales are a good barometer for measuring the state of the tourism industry on the island, according…
- Pattaya News
Tough new laws to help clear Phuket beaches of animal touts
PHUKET: The stakes will be raised for those engaged in the illegal, exotic-animal trade once the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment signs a new law draft, which is expected to take place after the Songkran break. “For more than 20 years we have witnessed the illegal killing and exploitation of endangered and protected wild animals for tourism. Every day,…
- Phuket News
Immigration denies claim of ‘Intelligence report’ citing Uyghur terrorists in Phuket
PHUKET: A recently leaked ‘intelligence report’ that has created a stir on social media was knocked back yesterday when Immigration Commissioner Nathathorn Prousoontorn told local media in Phuket that there were no records of the the report’s alleged terrorist suspects entering Thailand. The report had indicated that four terrorists had entered Phuket and Samui to destabilize the popular holiday destinations.…