washingtonpost.com Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver announced that they are separating. The actor and former California governor and his wife have been married for 25 years.

bbc.co.uk Microsoft is in talks to buy internet phone service Skype, the Wall Street Journal has reported. According to the paper, the deal could be worth as much as $8.5bn, which would make it Microsoft's largest acquisition.

dailymail.co.uk Fears that some Thai hotels could be using unsafe chemicals first came to light two years ago when American Jill St Onge and Norwegian Julie Bergheim died at a resort. [Laleena Guesthouse on Phi Phi, actually.] Their symptoms, beginning with severe chest pain, and progressing to vomiting and fainting, were almost identical to the seven other tourists who died between January and March.


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

nzherald.co.nz Thai authorities will meet today to discuss the possibility that New Zealander Sarah Carter was killed after being exposed to high levels of a chemical used to kill bed bugs. Dr Pasakorn Akarasewi from Thailand's Ministry of Public Health said a video conference would be held between the Chiang Mai investigation team and health experts in Bangkok.

3news.co.nz The World Health Organisation is now investigating whether a NZ woman died from a chemical used to kill bed bugs in a Thailand hotel. Sarah Carter died in hospital in February after falling ill. TV3's '60 Minutes' uncovered evidence of chlorpyrifos in her hotel room at the Downtown Inn.

reuters Thailand is to hold a general election on July 3 in what is expected to be a close contest that could reignite a violent political conflict that has dogged the country for five years. Parliament will be dissolved on Tuesday.

nationmultimedia.com Foreign ministers from Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand agreed in Jakarta on a new formula for peace to try to settle the border conflict with Cambodia.

bbc.co.uk Fifa has announced a 17.5 million pounds plan to crack down on match fixing and illegal betting working alongside Interpol. Fifa president Sepp Blatter, who is up for re-election, said it was a response to match-fixing in Italy and the activities of Asian betting syndicates.

smh.com.au Move over, Thailand, Vietnam is coming through. Australian visitor numbers to this small but culturally rich country are up almost 130 percent, according to official figures, and wholesalers are reporting surging demand.

monstersandcritics.com Environmental and consumer groups backed a proposal in Malaysia's Sabah state on Borneo to ban shark hunting in a bid to conserve the species. The Malaysian Chinese Food Consumer Association said it would support the ban, and urged all eateries to offer alternatives to shark fin soup, a culinary delicacy popular among ethnic Chinese.

Associated Press Singapore's ruling party is under renewed pressure to cut immigration and boost social spending after the opposition made record parliamentary gains by campaigning for fewer foreign workers and higher wages.

chicagotribune.com According to BrandZ's Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands, Apple has unseated Google as the world's most valuable brand.

thephuketinsider.com Centara currently have big plans for Phuket with new upscale "Grand" labeled resorts coming up in South Patong and Koh Siray, and another Centra for Patong in the works.

pcworld.com Mozilla is building an army of volunteers in Indonesia to help customise Firefox and recommend add-ons, as the US-based non-profit organization seeks to retain its massive share of the browser market in the country. StatCounter puts the share at 75 to 80 percent, the browser's highest in Asia.

reuters.com A Malaysian man faces charges of attempting to smuggle nine Chinese aliens into the US on board the luxury RMS Queen Mary 2 ocean liner, officials said. Fatt Kwee Wong admitted to customs officials he was paid $3500 each to help the five women and four men sneak into the US.

afp Three imams including a US-born Muslim bound for a conference on Islamophobia were kicked off US domestic flights out of security fears, clerics and an airline say.

reuters Billionaire playboy Gunter Sachs, a former husband of 1960s sex kitten Brigitte Bardot, shot himself dead at his home in the Swiss resort of Gstaad at the age of 78.



IBAP meets at IndoChine on May 13 to hear Robert Mather on 'Phang Nga bay ecology, mangroves & sustainability.' Mr Mather is responsible for developing the International Union for Conservation of Nature's presence and program in Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore, as well as managing a new project on Building Coastal Resilience to Climate Change in eight provinces of Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
May 13 Royal Ploughing Day public holiday
May 31 New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City
May 17 Visakha Bucha Day public holiday
June 12 Laguna Phuket International Marathon
June 17 Phuket Property Dot Com Pro Am Invitational, Laguna
June 23-26 Phuket Fun Fly paragliding, Nai Harn
July 3 Phuket Navy League US Independence Day fair at Headstart International School
July 15 Asarnha Bucha Day public holiday
July 20-24 Six Senses Phuket Raceweek
August 12 HM The Queen's Birthday public holiday
October Vegetarian Festival, Phuket
November 26-27 9th Phuket International Soccer 7s
November 27 Laguna Phuket Triathlon
December 3-4 6th Andaman International Soccer 7s
December 4 Ironman 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship, Laguna


March 18-28 National Youth Games, Phuket

November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket