Associated Press Thai TV says Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has rejected protesters' demands that he dissolve Parliament in 30 days to end a political crisis that has paralyzed the country. The report Saturday appeared likely to heighten tensions between the military and anti-government protesters.

nytimes.com In at least three northeastern cities, red shirts are holding nightly rallies, sometimes drawing thousands of people. On this poor and rugged plateau in Thailand's hinterland, farmers who say they were never interested in politics are donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to the red shirt movement.


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

wsj.com Red shirt protesters said they would be willing to give PM Abhisit Vejjajiva 30 days to dissolve Parliament and call new elections. Protesters offered a hint of compromise in Thailand's six-week political crisis, as fears mounted that the country could suffer lasting damage to its economy and reputation if a resolution isn't reached soon.

guardian.co.uk The offer to the government is understood to be an implicit demand that the red-shirt protest sites are not attacked during negotiations, and that a full, independent inquiry is held into the violence that has left dozens of civilians dead.

theage.com.au Bangkok is braced for a final, violent showdown in coming days between anti-government red-shirt protesters and army troops. Despite the loss of 26 lives already and pleas from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for restraint, a peaceful resolution is looking less and less likely as both sides dig in.

Phuketwan Update Ambassadors from Denmark, Belgium, Austria, Argentina and Peru met with red leaders yesterday in an effort to urge them to seek a peaceful solution to the protest. Other less pro-active nations simply issued travel alerts.

businessweek.com You might think this would be huge turnoff for investors in Thailand's hospitals, which count on patients coming from overseas - people who might stay at the Four Seasons, wear Prada clothes and carry Louis Vuitton bags - for an important part of their revenue. So far, though, investors are surprisingly sanguine about the impact of the unrest.

bangkokpost.com Deadly grenade attacks on Silom Road appear to have failed to break the spirit of people who live and work in the area. At noon yesterday hundreds of people, mostly office workers, flocked to the area near Sala Daeng station and Silom Complex where "multi-coloured" pro-government supporters have held a rally every lunchtime since Monday.

smh.com.au Recovered Bangkok blast victim Benjamin Rowse did not see the explosion, or from where the grenade came. He just heard it - and felt it. Mr Rowse, 26, from Australia, was only in Bangkok for a couple of days, on a ''visa run'' to renew his work permit for neighboring Burma, where he teaches English at a small school in Rangoon.

afp Muslim tourists in France will be forbidden to wear the full-face veil along with French residents under the government's plan to ban the garment in public places. ''When you arrive in France, you respect the laws in force .... Everyone will have to respect the laws in France. That's how it is,'' said Nadine Morano, a junior minister for families. Morano said women breaching the ban would be fined but would not be unveiled ''on the spot.''

dailymail.co.uk Men who have had a penis enlargement have been banned from joining Indonesia's police force. The chief of Papua's constabulary has said artificially enhanced organs cause a ''hindrance during training''. Papuans wrapp the penis with leaves from the ''itchy'' tree so that it swells up.

guardian.co.uk Volcano Q&A. I came home on my own - will the airline pay my costs? The airline must refund the cost of your ticket if your flight was cancelled but you chose to take a refund and make your own travel arrangements. However, after that it has no duty of care to you. From that point you are at the mercy of your travel insurer - assuming you have taken out a policy.

indiatimes.com The Indonesian government said the situation at a dry dock, where thousands of local workers attacked their Indian colleagues after being called ''dumb'', was under control, even as one of the four Indians injured in the incident remained in critical condition. Around 41 Indians working for PT Drydock World Graha in Batam island were evacuated to the Barelang police station by a police patrol boat after some 10,000 Indonesian workers attacked them and torched 38 vehicles.

cnn.com A Delta Air Lines flight was rerouted after a passenger threatened to blow up the plane, screamed ''get behind me Satan'' and sprayed passengers with water from a beverage-cart bottle, according to a complaint filed in federal court.



April 24 HotelTravel.com is sponsoring the 11th annual Child-Watch Charity Golf Tournament organised by the British Business Association at Phuket at Blue Canyon Country Club.
April 28 GreenLOVE festival to raise awareness about local and international environmental issues and solutions, British International School 8am-3pm.
April 29 Mom Tri's Boathouse on Kata Beach, 7pm, first of several popular Boathouse literary events of summer 2010. Bjorn Turmann, internationally recognised writer/speaker, will relate stories of his experiences with fiction, film and whatever else happens to be on his mind that day.
April 30 Lions Club Of Phuket Pearl is holding a jazz concert and dance night, performed by children from the Phuket Academy of Dance, at the Royal Phuket Marina. Details: 081 477 0342.
May 1 The Phuket Has Been Good To Us foundation, first fund-raising ball, Sheraton Grande Laguna Resort, 6.30pm-Midnight.
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.
May Annual Phuket seafood festival.
May Date to be finalised for Muay Thai kickboxing competition at Laguna Phuket.
May 21-23 Paragliding on Phuket.
June 4-13 Phuket International Film Festival, Coliseum Cineplex, Phuket City.
June 13 Laguna Phuket International Marathon. Fun runs, too.
December 4-11 Phuket King's Cup Regatta