Laos
- Thailand News
Police arrest tiger cub smugglers in Central Thailand
Police seized a four month old tiger cub in a car park in the central province of Nonthaburi yesterday. Three men wanted on arrest warrants were arrested on suspicion of possessing and trafficking protected wildlife without permission. All three men confessed to importing the tiger cub from Laos. The cub was found in a basket inside a Honda pickup truck…
- Northern Thailand News
Chiang Rai officials detain 12 Chinese nationals after illegal border crossings
Border officials in the northern province of Chiang Rai have caught 12 Chinese nationals, in 3 separate operations, after the men entered Thailand illegally. According to a Bangkok Post report, the arrests happened in the Chiang Khong and Chiang Saen districts of the province in recent days. The detainees claimed they worked in casinos in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos and…
- World News
Laos and Thailand agree to re-open border checkpoints
The government of Laos has agreed to re-open border checkpoints with Thailand imminently, according to Thai government spokesman, Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana. The decision follows a courtesy call between the Lao ambassador to Thailand, Seng Soukhathivong, and PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. During the call, the Thai PM said a plan by Lao PM Phankham Viphavanh to make an official visit to Thailand this…
- Thailand News
Thai durian farmers prepare to face China’s zero-Covid-19 policy at the border, again
Durian growers in Thailand are preparing for stringent import checks with their biggest buyer — China, as the country continues to enforce its zero-Covid-19 policy at the border. Last year, Thailand exported more than 875 thousand tonnes of its pungent yellow fruit to China by land, sea and air, generating an estimated 3.4 billion USD, according to the Department of…
- Thailand News
Thai customs officials have dogs sniff for pork at Laos border to prevent smuggling
Thai customs and livestock officials now have trained dogs sniffing for pork that could be smuggled over the Laos border. This news comes after about 300 kilograms of pork were found at a dump near the moon river yesterday. Officials think a pork trader who hoarded too much pork might have dumped it there. They have deployed the dogs at…
- World News
Myanmar sees rapid uptick of narcotics production, trafficking since coup
Illicit drug production and trafficking in Myanmar has rapidly increased since the February 2021 military coup, when Tatmadaw (Burmese army) seized power and overthrew the civilian, elected government. A senior official from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime says, that over the past year, there has been a spike in narcotics production, particularly methamphetamine, in the country’s Shan State…
- World News
Healthcare standards in Laos need to be improved, country’s health minister says
Health officials in Laos are being pushed to do a better job of increasing access to and enhancing the quality of the country’s public healthcare system, similar to how private hospitals and clinics operate. Although Laos has been able to protect people’s right to healthcare in recent years, and most people now have access to better quality health services, the…
- Tourism News
Tourism officials call for travel bubble talks to resume with Thailand’s neighbours
Thailand’s tourism minister is pushing for travel bubble discussions to resume with neighbouring countries now that the Test & Go scheme has re-started. The Bangkok Post reports that Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn would like to see more reciprocal travel arrangements with countries like Malaysia, Laos, and Cambodia, pointing out that such places normally generate significant cross-border traffic for Thailand. According to Phiphat,…
- World News
Four people reportedly arrested during Laos’ second-largest illegal drugs bust last week
Four people were arrested during the second-largest seizure of illegal drugs by Laos police in Huay Xai province north of Bokeo last week, with authorities reporting 36 million methamphetamine pills, a total weight of 590 kilograms, were found. The UN Office of Drugs and Crime regional representative, Jeremy Douglas, says… “Those four who were arrested were pretty low-level… there were…
- World News
Smoke blankets over Laos capital Vientiane, landfill fire releases toxic fumes
Clouds of toxic smoke billowed over the Laos capital of Vientiane after a fire broke out at a landfill over the weekend, according to the local media outlet Laotian Times. Authorities have yet to issue a comment about what caused it. Smoke blanketed the skies in and surrounding the Xaythany District, causing locals to complain about the stink over the…
- World News
Asia’s second largest drug bust: 36 million meth pills in Laos
After a record-breaking bust in October, police in Laos have just captured 36 million meth pills, the second-largest Asian drug bust on record. A United Nations official confirmed the bust earlier today and say it points to changes in the patterns of drug smuggling in Southeast Asia. In the bust earlier this week, 36 million meth pills were found along…
- World News
Laos workers to return Thailand as borders reopen for migrants from neighbouring countries
For the first time since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, Thailand will reopen its borders to migrant workers, especially from Laos, who are now granted permission to return to Thailand with the approval of their employers next week after a hiatus due to Covid-19. Reports say many people continue to cross the border illegally in search…
- World News
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…
- Northern Thailand News
Truck with 20 tonnes of smuggled pork caught at Laos border
With pork prices skyrocketing and shortages looming, people are turning to chicken until it began being affected too, then crocodile meat, while many merchants call for an increase in the importation of pork products, and accusations fly of companies hoarding frozen pork. Now, instead of the more common busts of trucks full of meth pills or marijuana, police at the…
- World News
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…
- China News
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…
- Thailand Travel
2022 Calendar Watch: Ring in the summer rains with a blast at this year’s Rocket Festival
If you’re craving a pyrotechnic spectacle to fill the gap between Chinese New Year and the Fourth of July, then head northeast to Isaan in mid-May for “Boon Bang Fai” — the annual Rocket Festival. Here you’ll watch teams of tipsy farmers guzzle bottles of local brew and rice wine as they climb rickety bamboo scaffolding with large projectiles slung…
- World News
Laos PM visited Vietnam’s capital for three days to enchance bilateral relations
Laos Prime Minster, Phankham Viphavanh, has visited Hanoi for three days to meet with Vietnam’s Pham Minh Chinh on Saturday to enhance bilateral relations between the two nations, according to official reports. The two leaders then discussed ways to improve economic cooperation and agreed to increase connections between their economies, particularly through land-road, railway, aviation, and marine port projects, including…
- World News
Laos reports first case of Omicron strain, traveller from overseas
Laos reported its first Omicron case yesterday involving a woman who travelled from overseas. The woman’s family member, who was travelling with her, also tested positive for Covid-19, but the Omicron strain was not detected, according to the National Taskforce Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control. Both travellers are fully vaccinated. Before landing in the capital of Laos, Vientiane the…
- World News
Laos adds 14 more countries to its Travel Green Zone entry scheme
Laos officially reopened to international tourists on January 1, and now the country has added another 14 countries to the Travel Green Zone scheme today, which allows fully vaccinated travellers to visit Laos with just a 24 hour quarantine at their hotel upon arrival. The initial list of countries approved for the Travel Green Zone scheme… China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand,…
- World News
“Chat girls” in Laos forced into prostitution at a Golden Triangle casino
Inside China-run Golden Triangle Economic Zone next to the Mekong River in far northern Laos, many young women from neighbouring countries come to look for jobs to make a decent income to support their families back home. Many of the vacancies would advertise as “chat girls” to sell shares in the new company to casino patrons, but many struggled to…
- Thailand News
Earthquake in Laos shakes Thailand, cracking 425 year old Buddha statue
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake in Laos shook Thailand and caused a 425 year old Buddha statue in the northern border province Nan to crack. The shake could be felt by those in Thailand’s northern and northeastern provinces. The earthquake struck at 4:06am this morning with a depth of 10 kilometres, according to the Meteorological Department’s Earthquake Observation Division. It was…
- World News
Malaysia donates 283,400 AstraZenaca vaccine doses to Laos
Laos received a total of 283,400 AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines at Wattay International Airport in Vientiane, which were donated by Malaysia as a part of ongoing global efforts to end the pandemic. Laos is set to reopen to international tourists in 2022 and plans to vaccinate at least half of the adult population by the end of the year in order…
- Northern Thailand News
Methamphetamine, cannabis seized near Mekong River
Narcotics rangers seized smuggling convey of 104,000 methamphetamine tablets and 50 kilograms of what the Bangkok Post says was “premium-grade” dried cannabis (street name “brick weed”) from Laos across the Mekong River into Thailand’s Ban Phaeng area in Nakhon Phanom last Saturday night. The Ranger Company 2108 patrolling squads were on duty when the drugs were seized on Highway 212…
- World News
Uptick in road crashes in Laos, speeding and drink driving major causes in Vientiane
A recent survey focused on Laos’ increase in traffic crashes found that over three-quarters of drivers in the capital Vientiane are habitually breaching speed limits and about a third of individuals driving in the evening have consumed alcohol. The country’s Department of Transport lead the surveys, with technical and financial support from the World Bank. Researchers also documented accounts from…
- Business News
Businesses call on government to accelerate return of migrant workers
Businesses in Thailand are urging the government to speed up the process that will allow for the legal return of migrant workers from neighbouring countries. The Labour Ministry recently confirmed its intention to sign MoUs with Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos that would permit workers from those countries to enter Thailand from December. However, according to a Bangkok Post report, Thailand’s…
- Covid-19 News
Half a million vaccine doses set aside for return of migrant workers
The Thai government has set aside up to half a million Covid-19 vaccine doses as it prepares for the return of much-needed migrant workers. The move comes following confirmation from Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin that Thailand will sign MoUs with neighbouring countries to allow workers to enter through legal channels. Officials have vowed to crack down on people smugglers and…
- Thailand News
Illegal border crossing on the rise along with tourism reopening
While Thailand is eager to see foreigners entering the country after Monday’s reopening, not all foreigners are as welcome as others. A crackdown on migrants crossing land borders illegally and entering the country without quarantine caught more than 3,000 people in this past week. A spokesperson for the Internal Security Operations Command correlated Thailand’s reopening to international tourism with the…
- World News
55 million meth pills seized in Laos in biggest SE Asian bust ever
One for the record books – police in Laos have made the largest drug bust in East and Southeast Asia’s history, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Police in Laos stopped a shipment and seized over 55 million meth pills and more than 1.5 tonnes of crystal methamphetamine yesterday. The bust was confirmed by 2 security…
- Visa Information
Labour Ministry confirms timeframe for registering undocumented migrant workers
The Thai government has issued a timeframe during which employers must register undocumented migrant workers, thereby allowing them to obtain work permits and work legally. According to a Bangkok Post report, the Labour Minister, Suchart Chomklin, says the measure applies to migrant workers from Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, and is being introduced to mitigate the risk of further Covid-19 outbreaks.…
