Phuketwan MediaWATCH
A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.
smh.com.au A suicide bomber killed at least 35 and wounded dozens on Monday when he blew himself up in the packed arrivals hall of Moscow's largest airport in an attack slammed by the Kremlin as an act of terror. There were scenes of carnage at Domodedovo airport in southern Moscow as corpses were stretchered out of the smoke-filled arrivals area.
cnn.com Airports around the world are likely to boost security checks in the wake of Monday's deadly bombing in Moscow, experts say. "Arrivals has always been thought of as the 'soft' area of an airport," explained CNN's Richard Quest.
guardian.co.uk The bomber entered the ground floor of Domodedovo airport's terminal building apparently unchallenged. Up to 168 people were injured, many of them critically. Relatives waiting to meet family members and arriving passengers were killed instantly.
nationmultimedia.com Graft in the admission fee system at Andaman marine parks is believed to cost the government 1 billion baht in lost revenue each year. "The problem has been going on for many years already," the owner of a diving-tour company in Phuket said, on condition of anonymity.
heraldsun.com.au Two suspects in the brutal killing of good Samaritan hero Luke Mitchell have been arrested in Thailand. The fugitives - and a third suspect who police are still hunting - fled within hours of the fatal attack on the 29-year-old who was stabbed and left for dead after coming to the aid of a stranger in Melbourne in May 2009.
smh.com.au Luke Mitchell's alleged killers fled to Thailand just hours after the stabbing. Last week, Thai nationals Sarud Seehaverachart, 28, and Thatiya Terdputham, 35, appeared in court after being arrested late last year. It is understood a request has been made for the pair to be extradited to Australia.
nationmultimedia.com According to a report by hospitality consultancy C9 Hotelworks, future development for Phuket sees 5749 more rooms, representing a 12.9percent increase over existing supply. "Patong [on Phuket] is experiencing wildfire growth and a transformation is underway for the central entertainment district, where projections show more than 50 percent of new hotel supply will be massed over the next five years," the company said.
Phuketwan Update The Phuket Community Foundation is celebrating the success of its 2011 Rubber Duck Race Day Fundraiser, held at Laguna Phuket on Sunday. While the bean-counters are still at work, PCF Director Janyaporn Morel said: "We know that income from donors and sponsors, and from the public on the day, was well over 800,000 baht.''
cairns.com.au Thailand is inadvertently handing the Great Barrier Reef diving industry a helping hand by closing seven of its best reefs. The popular dive and snorkelling spots will be closed to tourists to let them rejuvenate after rising sea temperatures caused severe damage to the coral reefs.
sky.com A British man has been arrested after a passenger plane was diverted to Stansted Airport under an RAF escort, police have confirmed. The Etihad plane was travelling from Abu Dhabi to London Heathrow but was diverted when a passenger began making threats.
reuters Malaysian budget carrier AirAsia said its passenger load factor was at 82 percent of total capacity in the fourth quarter of last year, up three percentage points from a year ago.
property-report.com The Royal Coast Company has launched Jindarin Beach Club and Resort on Coconut Island, a two-minute boat ride from Phuket. The resort, comprised of two four-rai parcels fronting the ocean, is built with sustainable features including solar power, water recycling, and use of natural local materials whenever possible.
cbsnews.com Witnesses say they saw a woman throw herself from the 23rd story of a Buenos Aires hotel Monday and survive. The woman landed in a sitting position on the roof of a taxi whose driver got out just before the impact deeply dented his roof and shattered the windshield.
Phuket Coming Events
January 25 Muangtong United versus FC Phuket, 6pm. Tickets 50
baht, 100 baht
February 3 Chinese New Year Festival, Phuket
February 8-10Old Phuket Town Festival, food and walking street fest
February 9-13 The Bay Regatta - Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi
February 18 Makha Bucha public holiday
February 23-26 Phuket Gay Pride Festival, Patong
February 25-26 Phuket International Blues and Rock Festival 2011
February 26-27 Phuket Spicy Soccer 7s, Phuket International Academy
March 14-19 ADFEST 2011 at Movenpick Resort, Phuket
March 27 Earth Hour commemoration on Phuket
April 13-15 Songkran Festival
May New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City
Phuket Coming Events 2014
Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket
1am Closure Demo Another large group of nighttime workers protests over a government crackdown that has squeezed profits and salaries across Phuket City and southern Phuket.
Phuket Night Venues Protest at Closing Crackdown
New Phuket Weekly Newspaper 'to Launch on March 4'
Latest Phuket will gain a new weekly newspaper from March 4, entrepreneur and publisher Simon Samaan has disclosed to Phuketwan. He says it will be ''good for Phuket.''
New Phuket Weekly Newspaper 'to Launch on March 4'
Second Rohingya Boat Lands South of Phuket
Boatpeople crisis A second vessel carrying stateless Rohingya brings to more than 150 the number who have landed on Thailand's Andaman coast in a new wave of arrivals.
Second Rohingya Boat Lands South of Phuket
Russian Tour Firms 'Banned for Five Years'
latest Phuket authorities have acted to ban for five years six Russian tour agents who were employing ''zero baht' policies to maximise their return from tourism in Thailand.
Russian Tour Firms 'Banned for Five Years'
Phuket Blaze Razes Shanties, Poor Patong Families Left Homeless
Breaking News Fire fighting reinforcements were called in to battle a big Patong blaze that destroyed a shanty town and left 40 families of street vendors homeless.
Phuket Blaze Razes Shanties, Poor Patong Families Left Homeless
I can certainly confirm the graft claims made in regard to Mu Koh Similan.
The Thai Boat captains conspire with the Park Rangers and they insist paying the fees without foreign staff, including the tour leader, being allowed to accompany them.
For some strange reason the fees have to be paid in cash on the island and neither pre or post payment to a bank account is possible.
Along with the cash the Captains always bring in cigarettes and alcohol for the Rangers. I doubt they do it out of the kindness of their heart.
Someone should cross check the numbers of divers reported to have visited Similan by dive companies and the fees submitted by the Rangers. This is not difficult to do because for every trip official passenger lists have to be submitted by the dive companies anyway.
I promise you there will be a huge disparity.
Let's see if any of the authorities is serious about tackling this issue. Most likely not.
Posted by Chris on January 25, 2011 10:05