freemalaysiatoday.com Human Rights Watch has urged Thailand to follow in Malaysia's footsteps by allowing the UN High Commissioner for Refugees access to a group of detained Rohingya asylum seekers. Its Asia director, Brad Adams, said that Thailand's stand contrasts sharply with that of Malaysia's where the authorities allowed UNHCR to visit and assess the cases of 93 detained Rohingyas last year.


A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

smh.com.au Supporters of President Hosni Mubarak have stormed a crowded anti-regime rally in central Cairo, sparking pandemonium in which three people were killed and at least 639 were injured, witnesses say.

ft.com As Tahrir Square in central Cairo turned into a battlefield between supporters of Mubarak and protesters who want him to step down, the crisis in Egypt appeared to be deepening with no side willing to make further compromises.

almasryalyoum.com ''Attacks on anti-government demonstrators are now occurring in other key cities across Egypt,'' reported Amnesty International.

mcot.net Thailand's Foreign Ministry said it would send a second special flight to collect some one hundred Thai nationals caught in riot-torn Egypt on Thursday.

jordantimes.com The national coalition of opposition parties in Jordan appeared divided over participation in planned street protests that call for economic and political reforms. The Islamic Action Front and the leftist Popular Unity Party said they were proceeding with a plan to organise peaceful rallies in several parts of the Kingdom calling for sweeping reforms.

nytimes.com In another reverberation of the popular anger rocking the region, the longtime president of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, announced a series of concessions that included suspending his campaign for constitutional changes that would allow him to remain president for life and pledging that his son would not seek to be his successor.

voanews.com In Israel, which has counted on its more than 30-year-old peace treaty with Egypt for regional stability, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now confronts a new unknown in the country's very dangerous neighborhood.

nationmultimedia.com The People's Alliance for Democracy issued an ultimatum to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, saying they must secure the release of two Thais jailed in Phnom Penh for espionage within three days - or it will intensify its Bangkok rally dramatically.

pr-usa.net Celebrations for the Chinese New Year starts this week in Phuket, Thailand. This year is the year of the Rabbit and the Tourism Authority of Thailand have gone to great lengths to ensure this year's celebrations are better than ever.

bangkokpost.com Low-cost carriers are thriving in Asia-Pacific so much so that they would represent 33-40 percent of combined airline seats in the region by 2015 or 2016 from less than 20 percent currently, according to an aviation expert.

Phuket Update Corporate social responsibility group, the Pure Blue Foundation, has successfully generated 400,000 baht during its inaugural gala fundraising auction 'Coral Couture,' in aid of rebuilding damaged reef ecosystems in Phuket's Phang Nga area. An ambitious plan has been created to construct a coral reef park 20 metres offshore from the boutique, luxury Aleenta Resort & Spa Phuket-Phang Nga on Natai Beach. [Ed: So it's now ''Phuket's Phang Nga.'']

dpa Singapore Airlines confirmed an incident with one of its Airbus A380s, saying the crew of a superjumbo detected the smell of smoke in a toilet just before the plane landed safely in Singapore from Hong Kong on January 31.

upi.com Sugar prices topped 36 cents a pound on the InterContinental Exchange after a powerful storm ravaged Australia's primary sugar growing region.

reuters Thousands of people fled their homes and crammed into shelters in northeastern Australia as the most powerful cyclone in the country's history barrelled toward a string of popular tourist cities lining the coast.

smh.com.au North Queensland residents are this morning finding out how destructive Yasi has been after a terrifying night where the region was battered by the worst cyclone in living memory. At 7am, the cyclone was downgraded to a category two storm.

npr.org A Norwegian lawmaker has nominated WikiLeaks for the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, saying that its disclosures of classified documents promote world peace by holding governments accountable for their actions.

prweb.com Phuket passenger traffic smashed all previous records with 3.5 million arrivals during 2010 - or 22 percent growth over the previous year - with new markets such as Russia and China emerging as the major drivers of growth.

reuters The days of R&R on Thailand's famous Pattaya beach could be numbered. One of Asia's most popular beaches is being eaten away by erosion at a rate of nearly two metres a year.

afp News Corp's Rupert Murdoch has launched The Daily, a digital newspaper created for Apple's iPad, in the latest move in his drive to get consumers to pay for news online. The Daily will be sold through Apple's App Store and iTunes and cost US 99 cents a week or $US39.99 a year.


pr-usa.net Chinese New Year festivities in Phuket will officially begin at 4pm on February 3 with a fireworks display and an acrobatics show at Sanam Chai in Phuket Town.

February 3 Chinese New Year Festival, Phuket
February 8-10 Old 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
March4-6 Pool Asia Expo and Conference, Hilton, Phuket
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


Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket