Malaysia
- World News
20 arrested by Muslim officers at Malaysian LGBTQ+ party
If you are in Malaysia, choose your Halloween costume wisely. Muslim officers arrested 20 people and broke up a 1,000-person LGBTQ+ Halloween party, citing cross-dressing and encouraging vice. Activists reported that Islamic religious authorities raided the popular party at REXKL in Kuala Lumpur late Saturday night. The party was attended by many members of the LGBTQ+ community in Malaysia’s largely-Muslim…
- World News
Thailand eager to take tourist overspill from Laos-China railway
Thailand believes it will take advantage of the spillover from the Laos-China high-speed railway once the mainland fully opens its borders next year. The Association of Thai Travel Agents (Atta) reckons about 3 million Chinese travelers will take advantage of the almost 423 kilometres electrified railway that runs between the Lao capital of Vientiane and Boten town in northern Laos…
- South Thailand News
Thai military denies torturing and killing Deep South rebel
The Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) said peace talks with the Thai government will be harmed if they are responsible for the torture and murder of a Deep South rebel whose body was found in the Golok river, on the border of Thailand and Malaysia, last month. The tortured body of 42 year old Zahri Bin Abdullah – also known as…
- World News
Over 1 million Malaysian tourists have arrived in Thailand this year
Over 1 million Malaysian tourists have made their way to Thailand this year, and officials hope to keep pushing the numbers up. Between January 1 and October 7 this year, 1,041,293 Malaysian tourists arrived in the Land of Smiles. Malaysian tourists in the kingdom are now venturing to more of Thailand’s provinces than they used to. Tourism Authority of Thailand…
- World News
Woman kidnapped in Malaysia found in southern Thailand
UPDATE The cosmetics agent who was kidnapped from her home in Malaysia two weeks ago has been found in southern Thailand. Yesterday, she was rescued by police and has since returned home. Seven Malaysian men have been arrested and detained in relation to the woman’s abduction, under Section 3(1) of Malaysia’s Kidnapping Act (1961), said Malaysian police. At 5.10pm on…
- World News
Embassy warns citizens not to take cannabis from Thailand into Malaysia
The Malaysian Embassy in Thailand sent out a warning to remind citizens that taking cannabis across the border into Malaysia is illegal. Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country to decriminalise the plant back in June, which is now widely accessible in every nook and cranny of the nation. As soon as Thailand legalised weed, the Malaysian government banned its citizens…
- World News
Drug cartel in southern Thailand allegedly kidnaps Malaysian woman over drug feud
Thai police are assisting Malaysian police in their search for a cosmetics agent who was abducted from her home in Tumpat in Kelantan state in Malaysia last week. Thai police believe she was smuggled across the border into southern Thailand where she is being held captive, according to a spokesperson. The New Straits Times reports that four men in a…
- World News
Malaysia launches new cheaper, easier digital nomad visa
Hot on the heels of Thailand’s grab at attracting long-term residents through their new LTR visa, Malaysia has released a digital nomad visa option that appears to be far cheaper and easier to qualify for. The De Rantau Programme will go live on October 1 and will offer a 12-month digital nomad pass. The website states the goal is to…
- World News
Taipei accuses Beijing of interference at trade fair in Penang
The Taiwan government pointed the finger of blame at China after their beauty queen representative was banned from joining fellow contestants greeting guests at the 2022 World Congress on Innovation & Technology (WCIT) in Penang, Malaysia. Malaysian trade event organisers stopped Miss Taiwan, Kao Man-jung, waving the Taiwan, or Republic of China, flag on stage. She was later seen in…
- World News
Thailand to build another bridge to Malaysia
The Thai government has reiterated its plan to build a new bridge over the narrow Golok River, which will serve as another border crossing. The Thai and Malaysian governments hope that the bridge, which will connect Sungai Golok district in Narathiwat province to Kelantan in Malaysia, will boost tourism and trade ties between the bordering countries. The new bridge will…
- World News
Thailand’s largest group of foreign tourists come from Malaysia
In July, Malaysians made up the largest portion of Thailand’s foreign arrivals, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. Thailand welcomed 220,554 Malaysian tourists in July, most of them arriving via the land border crossing in Songkhla province. In a post-pandemic world, Malaysian travel to Thailand has never been easier, with the removal of Thailand Pass and insurance requirements. The…
- Thailand News
Helicopter crash in Malaysia reported pilot alive, then dead
Yesterday above the skies of Malaysia, a helicopter mysteriously disappeared as air traffic control lost all contact. This morning the helicopter’s pilot was reportedly found alive in the wreckage only to be declared dead later on. At 11.37am yesterday, the helicopter took off from Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, also known as Subang Airport – a secondary airport of the…
- World News
Royal Caribbean offers cruises to Thailand & other Asian locations in 2023
Royal Caribbean has announced a new series of Asian cruises on their ship ‘Spectrum of the Seas,’ setting sail in 2023 and 2024. Beginning in Singapore, travellers can set off on cruises for 5, 7, 9 or 12 nights, visiting various locations in Asia including Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Taiwan and Japan. Guests can choose from cruises which make stops…
- World News
Popular Phuket-Penang route relaunched by Firefly Airlines
A popular route for expats is back in operation now Firefly Airlines recommenced its flight route between Phuket and Penang. On Friday, the trip resumed for the first time in over two years since being grounded, like so many other flights and routes, by the Covid-19 pandemic. The flight will run four times per week connecting the two popular island…
- World News
Tourism Malaysia visits Songkhla and Bangkok to lure Thais
As Thailand has lured more and more Malaysian tourists across the border for short-haul holidays, Malaysia started marketing tourism to Thai people as soon as the borders began to open again after the Covid-19 pandemic. Thailand added more train services across the border at Padang Besar into the country and Malaysia welcomed tours sent by Thai travel agents. Malaysia overtook…
- World News
Malaysia considers medical cannabis law shaped by Thai policy
While the decriminalisation of cannabis in Thailand has been somewhat rocky and haphazard, it has inspired Malaysia to rollout legalisation similarly. The Malaysian Minister of Public Health is slated to meet with Thailand’s Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul to discuss how the kingdom went about legalising medical cannabis. Malaysia is currently considering similar laws to those Thailand adopted to…
- South Thailand News
Southern Thailand rebel group considers 3 month ceasefire for Buddhist Lent
Another round of “peace talks” between the Thai government and rebel groups in Thailand’s Deep South was wrapped up yesterday at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Barisan Revolusi Nasional (BRN) – one of the most active and well-established insurgent groups in the south – is considering Thailand’s request for a three month ceasefire for the duration of Buddhist…
- World News
Malaysia detains 3 Thais who tested positive for cannabis
Three Thais travelling to Malaysia for the long weekend were imprisoned for three days and fined the equivalent of 50,000 baht after they tested positive for cannabis, reported Amarin TV on Friday. The tourists crossed over the border into Malaysia via the Wang Prachan checkpoint in Satun province and were asked to provide a urine sample on arrival in Weng…
- World News
3 Thais detained and fined in Malaysia following drug tests
Three Thais planning to travel to Malaysia during the long weekend were in for a surprise. The travellers had been crossing a checkpoint into Malaysia from South Thailand’s Satun province this week. When Malaysian authorities took urine samples from the three, they were found to have traces of marijuana in their bodies. The tourists were fined 50,000 baht, and jailed…
- World News
Southeast Asian Arts Forum 2022 is ready to rock n roll
If the arts, sustainability, and storytelling are your thing then you’re in luck because the Singaporean-based Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts is hosting a Southeast Asian Arts Forum 2022. The two-day hybrid forum, on August 4 and 5, kicking off at 1pm Bangkok time, wants to highlight where the arts stand in terms of sustainable practices in Southeast Asia. The…
- South Thailand News
Malaysian man arrested in Thailand for laundering gambling money
Luck may have run out for a rich Malaysian businessman who allegedly laundered money from online gambling as police picked him up in Sadao in the Deep South Thai province of Songkhla. Teow Wooi Huat also known as Tedy or Jho Low 2, is accused of laundering money connected to online gambling in Thailand and is also wanted in Macau…
- World News
A push for Thai travel to Malaysia
Travel agents in Thailand are pushing for more Thais to make their way to Malaysia. According to the president of the Thai Travel Agents Association, Malaysia’s adventure tourism was growing among young people before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out. The TTAA travelled to Malaysia this week with almost 100 outbound tour firms. Due to a large number of Malaysian travellers in…
- World News
Singaporean swindlers have fled to Thailand
A Singaporean couple wanted for swindling US$22 million from customers has fled to Thailand. The Singaporean man, Pi Jiapeng, and his Thai wife, Pansuk Siriwipa, hid in a lorry container as they made their escape from the police and Interpol after conning more than 200 customers out of their hard-earned cash for luxury goods that were not delivered. The Singapore…
- World News
Travel between Thailand and Malaysia by train for just 50 baht (RM7)
After two years, the Shuttle Train which connects Thailand and Malaysia will resume services on Friday. The Shuttle Train connects Padang Besar in Malaysia to Hat Yai in southern Thailand. The journey takes around one hour and tickets cost just 50 baht or 7 Malaysian ringgits. The service was temporarily suspended as a Covid-19 prevention measure by the Malaysian government…
- World News
Malaysia set to replace India as tourist king of Thailand
As Thailand Pass prepares to meet its end come July 1, it looks as if Malaysia is in line to replace the kingdom’s current tourist king, India. Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said yesterday that once Thailand Pass is no more, a larger number of Malaysian tourists than Indians is expected to make their way to the ‘Land of…
- Thailand News
Thais face death penalty if they take cannabis-related products into Indonesia
The Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, cautioned Thai people against taking cannabis and hemp into Indonesia as they could face the death penalty. The official Facebook page of the Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta today uploaded a picture with a message saying, “The Royal Thai Embassy in Jakarta would like to warn Thai people not to carry cannabis, hemp,…
- World News
Malaysian cockfighter sneaks across border and gets shot in southern Thailand
A Malaysian man who illegally crossed over the border into Thailand for a cockfighting match got shot in Sungai Golok, Narathiwat province, last Saturday night. His chicken won the fight, but his luck soon changed when a group of Thai nationals shot him in the hand on his way home. Scared of getting into trouble with the authorities, the injured man…
- World News
Malaysia’s Cabinet agrees to abolish mandatory death penalty
Malaysia’s Cabinet voted in favour of abolishing the mandatory death penalty. According to proposed changes to the law announced on Friday, the death penalty would not be abolished completely, but Malaysian judges would no longer be forced to issue the mandatory death penalty for 11 types of serious crimes, including drug offences, kidnapping, murder and terrorism. Malaysia’s parliament will still…
- World News
Singapore is looking to Thailand and other countries for its chicken supplies
Singapore’s chicken supply is depending on Thailand, plus a few other countries, after Malaysia banned poultry exports last month. Before the ban, about a third of Singapore’s chicken came from Malaysia. In a country that takes its Chicken Rice meal VERY seriously, the situation has become an acute supply chain shortage in the island nation. Singaporean Minister of State for…
- World News
Record breaking amount of methamphetamine pills seized in Asia
More than one billion methamphetamine pills were seized in East and Southeast Asia last year, according to a report released by the United Nations. The illicit synthetic drug market is constantly evolving in East and southeast Asia, with every country in the region reporting methamphetamine as their drug of greatest concern, according to the UN. The UN’s report says most…
