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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Sponsored Planning to extend your Thai visa? Why health insurance is more important than ever
If you plan to stay longer in Thailand, having health insurance is now more important than ever. Thai immigration often asks for proof of medical coverage when you apply to extend your visa. This applies to many types of visas,...
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Cement truck driver blames brake failure after vehicle overturns
A driver was able to escape serious injuries after the cement truck he was driving flipped over in Banglamung yesterday morning. The driver has blamed brake failure for the incident. Emergency responders were notified of the accident on Saturday morning at 10am in Baan Ton Krarok. Police arrived to find the overturned cement truck on the road. The 61 year old sustained…
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Bangkok Pride Parade demands reforms and rights for sex workers
The Thai LGBT community was joined by anti-government protesters in yesterday’s Pride Parade in Bangkok, which travelled from Sam Yan intersection to Silom. The parade took on a more political tone this year and was calling for democracy and equal rights, amid the usual demands for the resignation of Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and reforms to the role of the…
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Police were waiting at the thief’s home after a bungled Bangkok gold shop robbery
Note to aspiring gold thieves – leave your ID card at home before you head out for the robbery. One gold thief has learned the hard way after accidentally dropping his ID card in the gold shop as he was rushing to escape. The incident happened last Thursday at 11am at a gold shop inside the Tesco Lotus Phatthanakan. Central Bangkok…
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Changes proposed to dress codes, haircuts and gender identity for Thai students
The ‘Bad Student’ campaign and its withering attacks on the Thai education minister appear to have hit their mark. The Education Ministry has now announced amended regulations that cover dress codes and haircuts for students after a 4 month campaign. The Bad Student protests have been under-reported due to the larger protest movements, but have seen hundreds of students conducting…
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Police say they’re well prepared for this afternoon’s anti-government protest
An anti-government rally is planned for today, scheduled to start around 4pm. Police say they have taken steps to ensure that no laws are broken and that the rally remains peaceful. Some 15 companies of what are reported to be crowd control police will be deployed at the Royal Plaza. Rally organisers have already foreshadowed they intend to march to an…
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Letter to President Donald Trump
OPINION John Magee was the owner of The Thaiger’s predecessor, the long-running Phuket Gazette. As a US citizen and longtime Republican, he’s penned a letter to the US President Donald Trump… November 7, 2020 Dear Mr President: Let me propose something to you in the simplest possible English, with no word exceeding ten letters or five syllables. As an American…
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CCSA update: 1 local Covid case detected in Krabi, another case in ASQ in Phuket
A 38 year old Dutch man has tested positive for Covid-19 in Phuket. The man was staying at an Alternative State Quarantine venue in Phuket. And an Indian restaurant worker in Krabi has also tested positive, this time a case of apparent local transmission. 10 other positive cases were detected today, including 8 people in quarantine and 2 Burmese truck…
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Phuket & Koh Samui face financial ruin in the short to medium term – VIDEO
Phuket and Samui are both islands, fed mostly by arrivals at their international airports. Of course, both remain closed and the islands are trying to survive on a dribble of domestic tourists. And there’s no sign of hope any time soon for the future. Bill Barnett is ‘Mr Hotel & Hospitality’ for Thailand and the region. What does he see…
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Vietnam plans to keep borders closed and not rely on vaccine strategy
The Vietnamese Covid-19 task force says it plans to maintain its strategy of containing the coronavirus rather than “rush into a vaccine”, even if a successful vaccine becomes available, that could pose a financial burden the country. Vietnam, despite a month-long surge around Da Nang, has been able to largely contain the local outbreak. Yesterday the world’s Covid numbers reported…
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Police brace for large anti-government rally at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument on Sunday
A protest rally planned for the Democracy Monument on Ratchadamnoen Avenue tomorrow afternoon is shaping up to be the largest gathering up to date. Since July, anti-government rallies have been building, in number and frequency, with a consistent list of demands outlined in a 10 point manifesto. These, broadly, call for the resignation of Thailand’s PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha, the dissolution…
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Pent-up demand for outbound Thai travel sparks new travel bubble talks
Travel bubbles are back on the table as countries in the region battle to find some safe solution to their tourist shortfall. Thailand, in particular, earns such a high proportion of its GDP from travel and tourism, that it is seeing a major financial shortfall after closing its borders. This, in the context of no new Special Tourist Visa applications…
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Financial hardship spiking Thailand’s suicide rate
Thailand’s police and health workers continue to work with online influencers such as Drama Addict, Mam Po Dum and More Lab Panda, to help identify, and if necessary intervene, in people sharing distressing messages over their battles in the current Covid era. Police have also been recruited specialist to help to prevent suicides and provide counselling. Thailand’s Department of Mental…
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Thailand News Today | Shorter quarantine, STV update, THAI jets for sale | November 6
Last day of the week and a day full of news about the STV, Chinese travel bubbles and the PM saying he’ll step aside if there’s someone better to take his job. Thailand News Today, with Tim Newton. Retired Thai official with Covid-19 dies after returning to Thailand A 66 year old retired Thai official, diagnosed with Covid-19, died yesterday…
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Phuket police investigate alleged teacher abuse
Police are investigating a teacher at a central Phuket school after a complaint was filed accusing the teacher of kicking a pre-school student in the face. The Pavena Foundation for Children and Women reported the incident to the Wichit Police. The 5 year old student’s grandmother initially reported the alleged abuse to the foundation. In an interview with police, the grandmother…
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Man allegedly beats wife and son to death before attacking neighbour
A 50 year old man has been arrested for allegedly killing his wife and son, then setting their bodies on fire at their home in Nakhon Pathom, in central Thailand. Phan Thopa is facing charges of murder and arson as well as physical assault causing injury after he chased after a neighbour and hit her with a hammer, breaking her arm.…
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Man shot and killed, bomb explosion in deep south
A man was fatally shot and later, as rangers were patrolling, a bomb exploded – both incidents were in the Southern province of Narathiwat, an area plagued with violence from the more than two-decade-long insurgency. Around 6am this morning, 48 year old Sorpree Arma was shot dead in the Sri Sakhon district just as he was leaving his home to go…
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Thai TV debate: Royalist accuses Jewish Americans of funding pro-democracy protests
A debate between a royalist and a pro-democracy supporter got heated and turned into shouting during a broadcast on a Thai news channel. In one bizarre exchange, the royalist spokesperson accused Jewish Americans of backing the pro-democracy movement. The ongoing political protests, calling on government and monarchy reformation, has led to a divide in Thailand with a split between those…
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10 day quarantine proposal passes first stage of approval
A health sub-committee of the government’s Covid-19 task force has approved a reduction in quarantine from 14 days to 10, for visitors arriving from “safe” countries. They would be those that are at a similar risk level to Thailand, or slightly higher. Those arriving from countries considered “high risk” will still need to carry out 14 days’ quarantine. The proposal…
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Alleged robber drops ID card while running off with 110,000 baht in gold
An alleged gold shop robber dropped his Thai identification card as he ran off with 2 gold necklaces worth more than 110,000 baht. The suspect, a food delivery driver, allegedly stole the jewelry from a gold store at a Tesco Lotus in Bangkok’s Phattanakarn district. Shop employees say a man wearing a hat and face mask asked to see 2…
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Pattaya police stage fake brawls as part of training drill
Police and rescue workers in Pattaya have carried out a training exercise that involved simulating fake brawls in a nightclub and a hospital. Officers were taking part in a drill to prepare them for such incidents, with an increase in domestic tourists expected in the coming high season months. Pattaya has a number of large events coming up, including a…
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PM says he’d be happy to step aside if someone better comes along
The Thai PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha, says he’d have no problem stepping down if someone better could take over, adding that he’s tired of all the power now. “If in the future, there is a person who is better, more capable and more honest than me, similarly honest, (he or she) would continue the work and be in charge of the…
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Thailand considering no-quarantine travel bubble with China
With no new Special Tourist Visa applications for November, the Thai government is considering a no-quarantine travel bubble plan with China. Officials hope that if approved, the scheme could be put into operation in time for Chinese New Year in February. China currently has 22 low-risk provinces, as they have not recorded a Covid-19 case in over 150 days. The…
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Koh Samui Covid-19 case: Recovered and released from quarantine
The 57 year old woman who recently tested positive for Covid-19 in Koh Samui has been cleared and released from quarantine. The Samui Hospital director told the Bangkok Post that the woman has fully recovered and tested negative for the virus. The woman and her family flew from Paris to Bangkok on September 30. They completed a mandatory 14 day…
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Foreign minister meets with Phuket-based diplomats to discuss the island’s future
The Thai Foreign Minister and Deputy PM, Don Pramudwinai, has met with a group of European and Asian diplomats based in Phuket to discuss the future of the southern island province. Attendees came together to talk about economic stimulus measures that could help Phuket, which has been hit hard by Covid-19 travel restrictions and the closure of Thailand’s borders. According…
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New rules at Bangkok police checkpoints after bribe complaints
Police at Bangkok’s Thong Lor station have set up what they say is a “new style” of checkpoints in response to complaints saying drivers were forced to pay police officers. Along with new rules to prevent corruption and bribery, the officers also need to be “polite.” The Thong Lor police station has accumulated a reputation over recent decades. It was…
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Thailand News Today | Political homes, Adult site bans, Nok Air rehab | November 5
Thailand News Today, the most-watched English-speaking Thai TV news service in the world. Short, sharp, to the point. Make it a part of your day. Young Thais say political divide has caused conflict with their parents The ongoing political protests have led to a new, raw divide in Thailand with a split between a younger generation demanding democracy and an…
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Digital Minister defends decision to ban Pornhub
Following backlash on the move to block PornHub and other websites considered “offensive,” the Minister of Digital Economy and Society Buddhipongse Punnakanta says he is standing by his decision, adding that the pornography violates children’s and women’s rights. Pornography is illegal in Thailand. Buddhipongse says the explicit videos gave access to users of any age. He says Pornhub not only…
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First group of Special Tourist Visa travellers complete quarantine
The first group of foreign tourists to enter Thailand after a 7 month ban due to the pandemic have completed the mandatory 14 day quarantine and are ready to travel the country. Some of them will be visiting beaches, but Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yutthasak Supasorn says their exact whereabouts are confidential. Thai PBS reports 33 tourists, who arrived…
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Lottery winning monk leaves temple because so many people asked for money
The monk who recently won 18 million baht in the lottery and decided to give the winnings away apparently had to leave his temple because people kept coming by asking him for money. He’s now at a temple at another province, but he’s keeping the location a secret. A monk at Wat Thinnakorn Nimit in Nonthaburi, just outside Bangkok, says…
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Young Thais say political divide has caused conflict with their parents
The ongoing political protests have led to a new, raw divide in Thailand with a split between a younger generation demanding democracy and an older generation trying to protect Thailand’s Monarchy. Student-led protests continue to call for reform of the government and the country’s monarchy. They’ve spoken up about topics considered “unprecedented” in Thai society. Royalists, generally an older generation,…
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