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

jakartapost.com A global ranking, revealing the countries that are most at risk of terrorist attacks, has rated Indonesia outside the extreme risk category despite last year's twin bomb attacks targeting international-chain hotels. The latest Terrorism Risk Index developed by London-based Maplecroft, for companies to assess terrorism risks to their international assets, saw Southeast Asian neighbor Thailand join the rank of most dangerous countries for the first time. Thailand ranked 11th last year. Iraq (1), Afghanistan (2), Pakistan (3) and Somalia (4) top the ranking of 162 countries and are rated, along with Lebanon (5), India (6), Algeria (7), Colombia (8) and Thailand (9), as the only extreme risk nations.

independent.co.uk Britain is at greater risk from terrorist attacks than the United States and Saudi Arabia, according to new research. The UK is ranked 41st in the Terrorism Risk Index drawn up by global analysts Maplecroft - the highest position of any European Union country, apart from Spain. Attacks are considered more likely in Britain than in China (43rd), the US (46th), France (56th), Saudi Arabia (61st), Germany (81st), Canada (116th) and Australia (120th).

mcot.net There have been neither cancellations nor postponements of foreign tourist visits to Thailand in the wake of the current political disturbances, according to Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor Suraphon Svetasreni. The TAT chief said some foreign tourists have contacted tourism officials and tour operators to keep abreast of the political situation, but there are no reported trip cancellations or postponements. Thailand's overall tourism industry has shown remarkable resilience, the TAT chief said.

Associated Press Tests conducted by Thailand's government have found that British-made bomb detectors it bought for a total of $21 million have an accuracy rate of only 20 percent, but they will continue to be used, officials said. Thailand has bought more than 700 of the GT200 devices since 2004 at an average price of one million baht each, and Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said no more would be purchased.

atimes.com Low-cost carriers accounted for 15.7 percent of Asia's aviation market last year, or just under one in every six seats sold in the region, according to the Center for Asia Pacific Aviation. That was up from just over 14 percent in 2008 and continues the upward trend from the mere 1.1 percent in 2001. Those market gains, analysts say, have come at the direct expense of the region's premium airlines.

news.com.au Australian polo figurehead James Ashton died on Sunday after falling from his horse during a match in Thailand. Tributes to the 69-year-old president-elect of the Federation of International Polo came from as far afield as Germany and South America as polo clubs around the world recognised his contribution to the sport.

afp.com The scale of devastation in Haiti is far worse than in Asia after the 2004 tsunami, a study says, predicting last month's quake could be the most destructive disaster in modern history. The stark assessment from the Inter-American Development Bank comes with Port-au-Prince still lying in ruins more than one month on, while the bodies of more than 200,000 dead pile up in mass graves outside the capital.

smh.com.au The drowning of an Australian girl, who became trapped by a filter drain at the bottom of a spa, was "preventable", a coroner has found. Deputy State Coroner Paul MacMahon has made four recommendations including that a ban be placed on installing active main filter drains on the floor of spa pools. Shannon Rankin, 11, drowned on March 25, 2006.

voanews.com Rights group Amnesty International says it fears Burma's military government plans to step up efforts to suppress ethnic minorities before this year's elections. The Amnesty International report warns that as Burma heads toward elections later this year, the military government is preparing to target ethnic minorities with new violence and threats.

Associated Press Kevin Smith admits he is "way fat" but says that shouldn't stop him from flying. The director and actor says a pilot ejected him from a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland to Burbank, California, saying he didn't fit properly in a single seat. Smith raised a stink about the incident on his Twitter page Sunday, saying: "I'm way fat ... If you look like me, you may be ejected from Southwest Air".

bangkokpost.com ToT has announced two phases of uplifts for its 3G network in Thailand, along with a doubling of speed to 14.4 MBPS, while 365 has added over a thousand new users to its fledgling service. ToT Senior Executive Vice-President Vichien Narkseenual said that April would see a network uplift in Bangkok, with every major office building and department store covered, as well as a boost in speed from today's 7.2 MBPS to 14.4 MBPS. Also in April, 3G networks in Chiang Mai and Pattaya will be operational. Khon Kaen, Hua Hin and Phuket will follow in May.

Reuters A Cambodian tycoon will launch a $100 million casino near the country's border with Vietnam this month to attract foreign tourists and develop the country's fast-growing entertainment industry. The Titan King Casino will open its doors on February 26 in Bavet, a town in Svay Rieng province, about 120 km from Phnom Penh, covering 2.5 hectares of land and employing some 6000 people, its owner, Kith Thieng, told Reuters.

theage.com.au With an investment of $S5.25 billion, Marina Bay Sands is, along with the more populist Resorts World, one of the two most expensive casino complexes ever built. Marina Bay Sands is so striking, even in its unfinished state, that it could be poised to eclipse, or at least challenge, Changi Airport and Raffles as Singapore's singularly most famous landmarks. The operators of Resorts World are predicting between 12 and 13 million visitors in the first year.

etravelblackboardasia.com 9.7 million travellers visited Singapore in 2009, and while slightly higher than the national forecast due to a strong surge in the last quarter, was still 4.3 percent down on 2008 figures. Tourism receipts were impacted even more, amounting to just $S12.4 billion a drop of 19 percent when compared to the same January to December period in 2008, as travellers tightened their belts.

afp A British Airways plane flying from London to Mexico was forced to do a U-turn over the Atlantic after concerns about a passenger on board, the airline says. Amid tightened security following the failed Detroit bombing in December, the flight carrying 318 passengers returned to London's Heathrow airport on Friday after a "data discrepancy" involving a US passenger, BA said on Monday.The plane was refuelled and left later that day.

TNA Thailand has been named the world's Best Tourist Country by a leading Swedish magazine, marking its eighth consecutive year for winning the award, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Thai ambassador to Sweden Thanarat Thanaputt and TAT Stockholm office assistant director Anchalee Kumwong last week accepted the Best Tourist Country Award presented by the Swedish publication Travel News in its 2010 annual Grand Travel Award ceremony.

smh.com.au It's hard to tell if Andrey Ternovskiy is on the cusp of something really big or whether his ChatRoulette website is just another in the long line of online playgrounds catering to narcissists and voyeurs. The 17-year-old Russian, who outed himself to The New York Times as the teen behind the latest internet sensation, says he created the website for fun late last year and was amazed when it suddenly took off and went viral.


.
Until February 19 Chalong Temple Fair.
February 19-21 Old Phuket Chinese New Year Festival, Old Phuket Town.
February 25-28 Phuket Gay Festival in Patong.
February 26-27 Phuket International Blues Rock Festival 2010 at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort and Spa, Karon.
February 26-28 Phuket Spicy Soccer 7s at Fifa Phuket Tsunami Centre.
April 9-13 Phuket Bike Week, including tattoo competitions, island rides and the Miss Phuket Bike Week contest.
April 14 Phuket Cricket Sixes begin.
May31-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 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.