News
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Rawai vendors ordered to leave
RAWAI: Roadside vendors along Rawai Beach, where the issue of illegal vendors has been a persistent irritant for years, have been given eviction notices and have until July 3 to leave. On that date, officers of Rawai Tambon Administration Organization and the Muang District Office will check whether they have moved. If they have not, they will be forcibly removed,…
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Dead whale washed ashore
NAI YANG: A dead sperm whale washed up on Nai Yang Beach last night. The whale, 10 meters long and weighing around 3 tonnes, is thought to have been about 40 years old when it died,. Kongkiat Kittiwattawong, a biologist at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) in Cape Panwa, told the Gazette, “It was impossible to determine very much…
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Breakout duo recaptured
PHUKET CITY: Two detainees – a Filipino and a Liberian man – who broke out of the Phuket Immigration Office on June 10 while awaiting deportation, were both recaptured within days of their bid for freedom, much to the relief of the officer who was supposedly guarding them. The men – who had just completed sentences in Phuket Provincial Prison…
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New election ordered for Patong
PATONG: Thailand’s Central Election Committee (CEC) has declared the Patong Municipal elections of February 8 void and handed “yellow card” warnings to both parties in the poll. On June 11, the decision was passed to the apparent winners, the Patong Progress Party (PPP) of Songserm Kepsap, and to the rival Rak Patong Party (RPP) of Pian Keesin. A new election…
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Port Blair talks end in optimism
PORT BLAIR: Talks between a visiting Thai delegation and their counterparts in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands ended with no decisions but on a distinctly positive note. The 63-strong Thai delegation, including local and central government representatives, private sector figures and naval personnel, and led by Phuket Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura, visited the islands’ capital, Port Blair, from Friday to Sunday.…
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Jilted tourist hangs himself
PATONG: A young Norwegian tourist was found hanged in his room at the Baan Pornpateep rooming house on Taweewong Rd, Patong, at about 12.30 pm on Friday. Thomas Andreassen, aged about 21, apparently attached a rope to the shower head in the bathroom and hanged himself after his heart was broken by his Thai girlfriend. Pol Lt Col Chawalit Niemwadee…
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Abandoned baby “doing well”
PHUKET CITY: A baby boy, thought to be about two days old, was found abandoned on top of a dog kennel at a house close to Rajabhat Institute Phuket on Wednesday evening. Pranee Sonsuk was in her home when she heard her dog barking and the more unexpected sound of a baby crying. She rushed the rain-soaked infant to Bangkok…
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Skeleton believed to be missing Dutchman
CHALONG: A skeleton found yesterday evening near Yanui Beach is believed to be that of missing Dutch dive instructor David Wiewel. Local people found the remains at about 5pm while looking for shellfish, said Pol Col Chalit Kaewyarat, Superintendent of Chalong Police Station. The colonel said that it was impossible to tell from the remains whether foul play was involved,…
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World tournament will be a great success – Fifa
PHUKET CITY: Some training fields may lack toilets and dressing rooms, and the upgrade of Phuket’s Surakul Stadium has been delayed by rain. But John Schumacher, chief media officer of the International Federation of Association Football (Fifa), said yesterday he expects the final rounds of the Fifa U-19 Women’s World Championship 2004, to be played in Thailand in November, will…
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Great ball of fire!
KOH SIREH: When firefighters responded to a call from the 100-year-old Muslim community on Koh Sireh at about 4:30 on the morning of May 24, little did they know that they were about to witness a gaseous and ghostly apparition. It took city and provincial firefighting units about 30 minutes to extinguish the blaze at 12/24 Soi Si Sena and…
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Crapuccino, anyone?
THAILAND: Name any addictive drug and you will find users seeking ever-more efficient ways of getting it into their bloodstreams. The latest case is caffeine, the state-sanctioned stimulant found in coffee. Under the guise of “alternative medicine”, caffeine junkies are now taking coffee enemas. They claim that a good dose of java administered directly into the colon can have a…
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Dark times for black dogs
SRISAKET: Black dogs in Nongsimai Village 2 were slaughtered recently after a local shaman convinced villagers that soaking string in the blood of a black dog and wrapping it around their homes would offer protection from the dreaded phi porp – a female ghost that kills married men and eats their innards. After two village men died in mysterious circumstances,…
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Heavy rain and wind bring blackouts
PHUKET: Blustery winds and torrential rain led to blackouts in parts of Phuket yesterday when landslides and trees felled by strong gusts brought down power lines. TV and radio stations on Rang Hill in Phuket City were off the air for around 12 hours when two power poles came down. Engineers from the Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) restored power…
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Beauties in the beastly weather
PHUKET: The 40 contestants in the Miss Siam 2004 competition are in Phuket as part of their preparation for the contest, which takes place on June 12 in Bangkok, with prizes worth more than 3 million baht for the winner, plus a place in the Miss Tourism International competition. Apart from posing for the usual plethora of photos in various…
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TOT Phuket gets B128m budget bonanza
PHUKET: The Phuket office of the Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) has been granted a budget of 128.68 million baht to upgrade its services on the island. The announcement follows the return of TOT Phuket chief Pairoj Somsri from budget meetings in Bangkok late last month, at which he expected to be granted a budget of only 38.8 million baht,…
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Bail insurance now available
PHUKET: Insurance companies in Phuket now offer “bail insurance” policies providing cover of up to 100,000 baht for a premium of just 700 baht, the Phuket Provincial Insurance Office (PPIO) has announced. Sanong Sangsiriklanganakul, Director of the PPIO, said “The policies are aimed at Thai citizens – or foreigners living here – who don’t have recourse to the large amounts…
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Gov accepts “Phuket getting ugly’ judgment
PHUKET: Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura says he accepts the judgment of a survey in the respected National Geographic Traveler magazine that Phuket as a destination is “getting ugly”, and says that he is “ready to improve Phuket”. The “getting ugly” assessment was published by National Geographic Traveler magazine after it conducted a survey of 200 specialists in sustainable tourism, destination stewardship…
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Spas must pay ‘entertainment’ tax
PHUKET: In an effort to clear up confusion over taxes payable by the island’s spa industry, the Excise Department has confirmed that it classes most of the island’s spa businesses as entertainment venues – and therefore subject to 10% excise tax. “Spas that operate as entertainment venues [as opposed to beauty or health treatment facilities] must pay 10% excise tax,…
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“Smell of corruption’ in new land probe
PHUKET CITY: Senior police officers today inspected a 76-rai plot of land in the Panturat Hills behind Chan’s Antiques on the bypass road amid suspicions that corruption was involved in the issue of the land title. Crime Suppression Division Deputy Superintendent Pol Lt Col Korawath Panprapa and Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket City Police Station, were joined by…
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Tourism leaders agree Phuket “getting ugly’
PHUKET: Tourist business figures and environmental activists are, remarkably, in agreement with an assessment by one of the world’s top travel magazines that Phuket is “getting ugly” as a tourist destination. The “ugly” assessment was published by National Geographic Traveler magazine after it conducted a survey, in collaboration with the National Geographic Sustainable Tourism Initiative, of 200 specialists in sustainable…
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One-stop online bill payments coming soon
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket office of the Software Industry Promotion Agency (Sipa) has announced that in July it will launch a “one-stop” Internet website that will allow people to conduct business with a number of local government agencies without leaving home. Initially, the system will allow payment of electricity and some phone bills, and dealings with the Immigration and Transportation…
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Former Kathu Police Chief returns
PHUKET CITY: Pol Col Kokiat Wongvorachart, a former Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, will return to Phuket on Thursday as one of the four Deputy Commanders of the Provincial Police. Col Kokiat has been appointed to replace Pol Col Apirak Hongtong, who took leave of absence from the police to pursue a seat in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor),…
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Province “ready to tackle floods’
PHUKET: As the rainy season begins, the Phuket Provincial Government has listed 69 areas across the island as being vulnerable to flooding, and is establishing a center to deal with flood emergencies. Metha Mekarat, Chief of Phuket’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, told the Gazette that the list was the result of survey work conducted last year. Three areas were…
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Christinas win Phuket Rugby 10s
KARON: Christina Noble Children’s Foundation, from Dubai, beat The Jailers, from Rugby, England, 17-12 to win the 6th Phuket International Rugby 10s, held at Karon Municipal Stadium on Saturday and Sunday. The Cup final for the Clive Williamson Memorial Trophy on May 30 was a tribute to the top-quality rugby played throughout the tournament, with the “Christinas” lifting the cup…
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Police learn Dutch investigation techniques
PHUKET CITY: Thirty senior police officers from Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga yesterday completed a two-week course in applying analytical techniques to crime investigations, presented by Dutch crime experts. Pol Col Preecha Samuthpoaraya, Deputy Commander for Administration of Police Region 8, based in Surat Thani, told the Gazette that the main objective of the project was to reduce the number…
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Police urge closure of park at night
PHUKET CITY: Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket City Police Station, has made a formal request to Phuket City Municipality to close Rama IX Park (Suan Luang) between 10 pm and 4 am, because of the rising number of crimes committed in the park. Col Paween told the Gazette, “Suan Luang is a public place and is open 24…
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Bangkok backtracks on SorPorKor cancelations
BANGKOK (The Nation): The Agricultural Land Reform Office (ALRO) in Bangkok, which canceled 153 SorPorKor 4-01 papers held by 139 people in Phuket for misuse of the land, has announced that, after further investigation, it is recommending some people have their papers reinstated. Adisak Srisappakij, Permanent Secretary of the ALRO, told The Nation that he plans to ask the SorPorKor…
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Job seekers undeterred by downpours
PHUKET CITY: Heavy rain today failed to stop job hunters from attending the first day of the Phuket Provincial Employment Service Office (PESO) mass job fair at the Rajabhat Institute Phuket. More than 3,800 positions are up for grabs at the two-day fair, with 143 employers taking part, including 14 hotels. Most of the positions on offer are for sales,…
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It’s official – it’s the wet season
PHUKET: The Southern Meteorological Center (West Coast), located opposite Phuket International Airport, today issued a release suggesting hotels and the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Phuket office inform tourists that it is now the rainy season. The release follows widespread heavy showers resulting in 35mm of rainfall being recorded on the island today. Vichit Phuangsombat, director of the center, told the…
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Phuket tax office way ahead of target
PHUKET: The Phuket Area Revenue Office (PARO) expects to collect 2.9 billion baht in taxes by the end of the tax-collection year on September 30, Supanee Sripanyawichya, Chief of the PARO, has told the Gazette. “We collected 1.8 billion baht in taxes between October 1 and April 30,” she said. “That’s more than 40% higher than our target.” K. Supanee…
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