DEPUTY PM Suthep Thaugsuban turned himself in to Department of Special Investigation officials at 8am today, fulfilling a demand that red shirt leaders say will end the Bangkok protest.

wsj.com Demonstration leaders have said they will ask supporters to disperse when Suthep submits to authorities. ''On whatever day Suthep turns himself in, we will stop our protest,'' red shirt leader Nattawut Saikuar said late yesterday from the main stage in Bangkok.

But later . . .

bloomberg Thai protesters vowed to extend their two-month occupation of Bangkok streets until police charge a deputy prime minister for ordering a military crackdown last month, jeopardising a proposal to end the standoff. Suthep Thaugsuban ''must be formally charged with a crime,'' red shirt leader Weng Tojirakarn said by phone.


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

smh.com.au British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will resign and pave the way for the election of a new Labour leader in September in a dramatic 11th hour bid to clinch a power sharing deal with the Liberal Democrats. Mr Brown drew audible gasps from the throng of assembled media when he appeared at a lectern outside Number 10 Downing Street to confirm he would end his political career.


wsj.com Philippine Sen. Benigno ''Noynoy'' Aquino III took a commanding lead in the race for the Philippines presidency. Early official results from national elections placed him well ahead of his main rivals, reflecting a desire among Filipino voters to break from persistent problems with corruption.With 57 percent of the ballots tallied, Mr Aquino is leading with 41 percent of the vote, followed by ousted former President Joseph Estrada with 26 percent and property magnate Manuel Villar with 14 percent.


nationmultimedia.com Deputy PM Suthep Thaugsuban will turn himself in to the Department of Special Investigation today, government spokesman Panitan Wattana-yagorn said. Red shirt leader Nattawut Saikuar said: ''Once Suthep actually turns himself in, we will end the protest and do like him.''


nationmultimedia.com Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya summoned US Ambassador Eric John to express disappointment over the meeting between US Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell and Thai politicians associated with the red-shirt protesters and former PM Thaksin Shinawatra. Kasit told the US envoy the government was democratic and allowed freedom of expression, but ''terrorists'' had infiltrated the red movement.


scmp.com Cabin crew at British Airways announced plans to strike for a total of 20 days this month and next, threatening yet more chaos for tens of thousands of travellers just weeks after an Icelandic volcanic ash cloud shut down European airspace.


afp Disappointed fans and critics slammed the first concert in Britain for 30 years by Julie Andrews, saying she had only sang sporadically and repeatedly left the stage. The Daily Telegraph said: ''Now the tills are alive with the sound of refunds.'' Andrews had warned before the concert that her voice had never recovered fully from a botched operation on her vocal chords in 1997.


Associated Press Malaysian prosecutors charged a police officer with fatally shooting a teenager in an incident that triggered a national outcry over claims of police brutality. It is the first time a policeman has been charged over the killing of a suspect. Activists say Malaysia's police have fatally shot more than 180 suspects, half of them Indonesians, since 2007. The death of 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah following a car chase last month.


nationmultimedia.com The Chiang Mai Convention and Exhibition Centre is expected to bring three billion baht of revenue into the northern province each year when its opens in October 2011. It will be the first such venue outside Bangkok that is owned and developed by the government. The next project is the Phuket Convention Centre, now in the final phase of study and site selection.


Bernama Malaysian officials met with the Thai authorities to resolve the issue of Malaysian buses and vans carrying tourists being prevented from entering Thailand. ''For the moment, they are still maintaining the decision to prevent Malaysian vans and buses from carrying tourists to Thailand,'' one said later. Thai Honorary Consul Langkawi, Datuk Shazryl Eskay Abdullah, said the problem should be resolved amicable for the benefit of the tourism industry in both countries. Drivers' tents stretch for one kilometer beside the road after the Thai Immigration Complex in Danok, retaliating against the Road Transport Department issuing summonses to drivers of Thai vehicles carrying tourists.


foreignpolicy.com Assistant US Secretary of State Kurt Campbell made an unannounced trip to Burma over the weekend, met with Nobel peace prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, and leveled some harsh criticism of the ruling junta on his return. The Obama administration seeks to mix engagement and pressure toward convincing the Burmese regime to hold free and fair elections, but none of that seems to be happening and Campbell acknowledged that the coming elections are likely to be a farce.


stickmanweekly.com I have questioned and criticised many aspects of the bar industry, from continually raising the issue that bothers me most, that of underage women, to the massive problem of unprotected sex and the resulting infections and unwanted pregnancies, to the damage done to the women involved and the men who partake. I have called the industry as a whole dirty - not because it is about sex for money, but because of the way so many operators lie and cheat and how so much that takes place is a facade and an illusion.


pnwlocalnews.com Craig Thomas Carr, 59, is being flown to the US from Cambodia to face charges he engaged in illicit sexual conduct with underage girls in Cambodia. The case was investigated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ''Pedophiles who believe they can escape the detection of law enforcement and travel overseas to commit heinous crimes against children should take note,'' said ICE chief agent Leigh Winchell.


heraldsun.com.au A couple who operated a Sydney brothel forced five women to live in ''conditions of slavery,'' making them work more than 100 hours a week even if they were sick. Trevor Frank McIvor, 62, and Kanokporn Tanuchit, 44, have each pleaded not guilty to five counts of possessing a slave and five counts of using a slave. Jurors also heard that the five women were recruited from Thailand by a third party, who arranged Australian visas for them.


smh.com.au Death-row inmate and Bali nine drug courier Scott Rush has been circumcised in Bali's Kerobokan jail. The procedure, performed on Friday, is commonly part of the ritual when a person converts to Islam, although the religious orientation of Rush - who has previously professed to be a Christian - could not be established last night.


Associated Press A javan rhino, one of the world's rarest large mammals, has been found shot dead with its horn chopped off in a national park. Authorities believe there are only three to five Javan rhinos left in Vietnam. Only 40 to 60 survive in Java, Indonesia. There are none in captivity. Rangers found the animal's carcass inside Cat Tien National Park in Dong Nai province on 29 April, already fully decayed, and authorities believe it could have died more than three months ago.



May 21-23 Paragliding on Phuket.
May 23 Tourism Authority of Thailand bicycle ride around Old Phuket Town. A guided tour, with meals and a t-shirt, for just 100 baht. Bookings from May 10. Details: 076 217138 or 076 211036.
May 31-June 5 Eight-nation football tournament for players over 55 at Surakul Stadium in Phuket City. Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Taiwan, Iran, Armenia competing.
June 4-13 Phuket International Film Festival, Coliseum Cineplex, Phuket City.
June 13 Laguna Phuket International Marathon. Fun runs, too.
July 21-25 Phuket Six Senses Race Week, Evason, Rawai
December 4-11 Phuket King's Cup Regatta

2011
February 9-13 The Bay Regatta - Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi