Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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A rare flowering plant species found in South Thailand
Researchers have found a rare flowering plant species in southern Thailand’s Narathiwat province. A team of biology researchers from Chiang Mai University found the plant in an evergreen forest in Janae and Sukhirin districts. The rare flowering plant belongs to the Annonaceae family, with the scientific name Phaenthuspiyae Wiya, Aongyong & Chaowaskul. The organisation Thailand Science Research and Innovation described…
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Greenpeace study reveals most plastic cannot be recycled
A new study by Greenpeace reveals most of the plastic generated in the world today cannot be recycled. The report, Circular Claims Fall Flat Again, released yesterday, says that while paper, cardboard, and metals are all recycled at a high percentage rate, plastic fails on a massive scale. The Greenpeace study reported that households in the United States generated about 51…
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Bangkok police give motorists 30 days to fix up noisy, illegally modified vehicles
Bangkok police want to fight noise pollution in the capital by cracking down on loud, illegally modified vehicles. Police said they will give car and motorbike owners 30 days to ensure their cars are no louder than the legal limit before imposing fines. According to Thai law, exhaust pipes cannot produce a sound exceeding 95 decibels. Superintendent of Prachachuen Police…
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PE teacher faces prison for alleged rape of teen student
A school teacher accused of raping a teenage student handed himself in to police today in northeast Thailand. If found guilty, the 45 year old physical education teacher faces up to 20 years in prison. Wachira Phanomkaen, a PE teacher at a school in the Kuchinarai district, is accused of raping a 13 year old girl. The 45 year old…
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Drunk SWAT policeman shoots man 9 times at nightclub in southern Thailand
A drunk Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) police officer shot dead a man inside a nightclub in Trang province, southern Thailand, at around 1am today. The SWAT officer fired 11 shots in total with a 9mm gun. Two more nightclub revellers caught in the gunfire were injured. At 1.13am, officers from Mueang Trang Police Station received a report that a…
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Thai doctor kidnapped in Africa returns home
A well-known Thai doctor who was kidnapped in Mali last month returns home today after being released by his captors. The 49 year old surgeon, Nopparat “Song” Rattanawaraha, was kidnapped while travelling near the Republic of Mali border in West Africa and held captive for 25 days. His captives let him go yesterday after he raised six million baht (US$156,000)…
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Tourism officials plan Loy Krathong events for 6 Thai provinces
The Thai holiday of Loy Krathong is coming up, and tourism officials are planning events in six provinces. Known as Thailand’s festival of lights, Loy Krathong is one of the biggest celebrations on the Thai calendar. This picturesque festival is a time for people to gather around rivers, canals, ponds, lakes, and other bodies of water to release lotus-shaped rafts…
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Refrigerator saves fisherman’s life in southern Thailand
A refrigerator saved a young fisherman’s life when his boat sank off the coast of Krabi province, southern Thailand, on Sunday. He lay in the fridge and floated for six hours until he was rescued by a passing fishing boat. On Sunday, 33 year old Anat Massoyot from Village 3, Nong Thale subdistrict, Mueang district took his long-tail boat out…
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Tragedy as parents drown saving their two children
The parents of two young children died in a drowning tragedy yesterday afternoon while trying to save their kids from a similar fate in southern Thailand. Witnesses revealed the family of five, 38 year old father Teerawut Phaosen, his 38 year old wife Piyanut, her 10 year daughter Kewarin, 8 year old son Phumpat, and Piyanut’s 40 year old sister…
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Academics in Thailand welcome President Xi’s third term
Academics in Thailand welcomed news yesterday that Chinese leader President Xi Jinping secured an historic third five-year term as general secretary of the ruling Chinese Communist Party. President Xi’s third term will be viewed as undemocratic and autocratic by the Western powers but Thailand’s top boffins believe continuation is the key which will benefit the kingdom and ASEAN countries. Thai…
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Govt set up complaints hotline about pricey veggies
Noticed an increase in the price of vegetables? So has the government and that is why a complaints hotline has been set up for consumers to log their gripes. The Commerce Ministry’s Department of Internal Trade (DIT) yesterday made known it will monitor increases in the nation’s vegetable prices and promises to come up with measures to control prices. DIT…
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Thailand’s 45-Day Visa Exemption Stamp & 30 days for VoA
https://youtu.be/t37I2Bwf3K8 Thailand brings back the 45-Day Visa Exemption stamp that was briefly in place from mid-2021 and has now been put into place for entries effective October 1, 2022. Thailand’s Visa Starting October 1, 2022, until March 31, 2023, travellers will be allowed to stay for 30 days or 45 days without prior approval of a Thai visa. During this…
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Moving to Thailand checklist – What you need to know before your move
There are several reasons why Thailand is one of the most desirable locations for ex-pats. Here, you can get affordable access to modern conveniences and year-round sunny weather. With its laid-back way of life, delectable cuisine, and vibrant culture, it’s certainly a remarkable place to call home. Plus, being close to nature is easy here, with everything from beautiful waterfalls…
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Flaming hot: toxic spicy noodles recalled
Some people like their noodles as spicy as possible. But there’s such a thing as to0 flaming hot, as the Thai Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a recall on Mie Sedaap brand Korean Spicy Chicken noodles due to contamination with a flammable pesticide. The instant noodles are being recalled by the FDA after traces of a pesticide called…
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Forever flooded – how do we break the disastrous cycle?
As part of the south braces for expected seasonal floods, a vast area of the lower north, including Nakhon Sawan, Ang Thong, and Isaan, remains inundated. An editorial in this morning’s Bangkok Post asks what we can do to prevent ourselves from being washed away in the tide. Many people have drowned over the past two months, and yesterday, an…
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Thai Airways refunds possible, reorganisation approved
Thai Airways International’s revised business reorganisation plan was approved by the Central Bankruptcy Court. The plan was submitted last month and the airline will now start on a course of financial restructuring. Does this mean everyone waiting for a refund from the Covid-19 pandemic and before Thailand’s flagship airline declared bankruptcy will finally get their money back? It is reported…
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Secrets of Silicon Valley’s underground Mercedes
California cops are investigating why a person or person unknown buried a Mercedes stuffed full of unused bags of cement in the yard of a US$ 15 million (570 million baht) home in the 1990s. The car was discovered Thursday morning by gardeners in the affluent town of Atherton about 30 miles south of San Francisco, with unused bags of…
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School principal given 50 years in prison over lunch corruption scandal in Thailand
Today, Thailand’s Criminal Court for Corruption sentenced the former principal of Ban Tha Mai School in Surat Thani province, southern Thailand, to 50 years imprisonment. The defendant Somchaow Sittichen confessed to stealing lunch money and serving kindergarten children plain rice noodles with fish sauce for lunch. The court found Somchaow guilty of 77 counts of corruption, each carrying a five-year…
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Soldier arrested for stabbing 15 year old at a nightclub
A soldier has been charged with attempted murder after he stabbed a 15 year old boy at a nightclub in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat last weekend. The teenager was stabbed in the back with a chisel in front of a nightclub in the Tung Song district of Nakhon Si Thammarat at about 2.45am last Sunday, October 16.…
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Reimagine with Anantara unveiling the new face of Anantara Chiang Mai Resort
Press Release Anantara Chiang Mai Resort welcomes back travellers from around the world with renovated accommodations and exciting new dining experiences in a prime riverfront setting. With COVID-19 waning, travel to Thailand now back to normal, and Chiang Mai ready to celebrate life once again. Anantara Chiang Mai Resort recently hosted a glamorous evening reception for Lanna royalty, foreign diplomats,…
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The Brahma statue thief who wants to paint the world blue
A thief with mental health problems stole a Brahma statue from a shrine at a school, in the Cha-am district of Phetchaburi province in the west of Thailand, painted it blue, before returning it to where he stole it from. Why? His favourite colour is blue. A teacher, Nu-sajee Kornrawee, posted CCTV footage and pictures of a thief on Facebook…
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Gambling addict sergeant steals 160 guns to pay off debts
A police sergeant with a gambling addiction faces time in prison after he was arrested for selling state guns to pay off his debts. Senior sergeant major, Chaowarit Phumkajorn, from Pak Kret Police Station in Nonthaburi province, near Bangkok, was arrested at 3pm yesterday in the Isaan province of Nong Khai after reportedly selling about 160 police guns to pay…
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true-dtac merger will increase mobile tariffs by 240%, warns watchdog
In a controversial move, Thailand’s telecom regulator has approved the merging of two key mobile operators in Thailand: true and dtac. A consumer watchdog says the five-member committee “failed to use its authority to protect the public interest” by turning the market into a duopoly with reigning operator AIS. After an 11-hour meeting, the five-member board of the National Broadcasting…
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Building in Phuket collapses due to heavy rain
A two-storey building in Phuket collapsed last night due to heavy rain. Fortunately, tenants left the property a day before the incident so no injuries were reported. The demolished building, located in Soi Prayoon 2 in the Talad Yai sub-district, Mueng district, in Phuket, offers 30 rental rooms. Only eight of the rooms were rented at the time of the…
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Court clears THAI for takeoff, as it doubles Aussie flights
Thai Airways (THAI) received a much-needed boost today when the Central Bankruptcy Court approved the airline’s request to overhaul its recovery plan. The news comes on the back of a THAI announcement that passengers increased by 80% this month and plans to double flights to Melbourne, Australia, in December. Thailand’s national flag carrier was told by the court to carry…
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Thailand to combat its methamphetamine crisis with cannabis
Thailand is going to attempt to fix its methamphetamine crisis with another formally-illegal drug, cannabis. In a recent study, meth addicts in Thailand were given CBD oil under their tongues to treat withdrawal symptoms, and the results were promising. Today, acting Director General of the Medical Department Dr Thongchai Kiratthihathayakhon said that methamphetamine is “Thailand’s biggest problem.” Meth-induced psychosis is…
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Thai baht plummets even further against US dollar
The Thai baht depreciated even further against the strengthening US dollar. Last month, the baht plunged to 38 to the dollar for the first time in 16 years. Today, US$1 is worth 38.35 baht. Market strategist at Krungthai Bank Poon Panitphiboon revealed that the baht weakened from 38.25 yesterday to 38.35 against the dollar this morning. As US bond yields…
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Ganja galore: Over 1,000 cannabis clinics have opened this year in Thailand
It is ganja galore as Thailand has seen over 1,000 cannabis clinics open this year alone. According to Bangkok Post, the public health ministry noted that out of 1,026 clinics opened this year, 929 are run directly by the ministry. But, to prevent unwanted consequences of the plant’s legalisation, the ministry says such clinics are also doubling as research units.…
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Residents shocked by fire on Pattaya soi
Residents and tourists were shocked by a fire that broke out in Pattaya yesterday. The fire started after an excavator got tangled with cable wires on Soi Buakhao 15, The Pattaya News reported. A witness said the excavator had been working on a drainage project on the soi when its arm got tangled in the wires above it. Firefighters managed…
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Builders uncover corrupt Thai Army practices
Construction workers say they fear for their lives after stumbling over corrupt Royal Thai Army practices while building army premises. The builders employed the help of a lawyer after they discovered shady dealings while working on army housing loan projects, reported Bangkok Post. They are frightened they will be linked to these corrupt practices. The builders lodged a complaint, via…
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