nytimes.com The first seven of the 33 miners who had been trapped underground for two months ascended to the surface here early Wednesday morning.


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

THE ESTABLISHMENT of one emergency telephone number for all English-speakers on Phuket is likely to be raised when honorary consuls and embassy representatives meet with Phuket's new governor Tree Ackaradecha next month. A variety of numbers for various emergencies have evolved over the years - but none of them has proven reliable around the clock or caters effectively in all emergencies for English-speakers.

bangkokpost.com Police have detained 15 Pakistanis on suspicion of being involved with a foreign terrorist group. A combined force of 30 soldiers and police raided Yala My House hotel in Muang district and took the 15 men, who had checked into four rooms, away for questioning.

Phuketwan Update Phuket is capable of becoming the yacht and superyacht building and maintenance centre for South East Asia, a conference on marine technology heard this week. Suthinee Phupaka, Director of the Industry Ministry's Office of Industrial Economics, told the conference at the Phuket Merlin Hotel in Phuket City that Phuket could grow rapidly from a capacity of dealing with 1300 vessels each year to almost five times that figure.

cbc.ca Immigration advocates say Canada may have contravened international law if it had any role in the arrest of Tamil migrants in Thailand, even if they were headed for Canada. Police raided 17 apartment buildings in suburban Bangkok, arresting 155 Sri Lankan migrants accused of being in Thailand illegally while awaiting transport elsewhere.

wsj.com A much-awaited tax measure isn't expected to do much to prevent inflows as foreign investors still see Thailand as an attractive destination to park their funds even after factoring in the additional tax burden. Thailand's move is the latest by a government seeking to contain a surge of hot money into emerging-market nations.

unogateway.com Researcher Chanasai Tiengtrakul discussed Thailand's tourism industry in "Globalisation and Development: Island Tourism and Phuket." Mirroring the US are Phuket's poor living standards for those who work in hospitality. Workers hold umbrellas over the heads of rich tourists on the beach by day but tread home to shack-like neighborhoods. Thailand's essence has yet to be fully explored because it remains hidden behind a veneer of western consumerist culture and tourist expectations.

afp Landmines left over from decades of civil war in Cambodia are still killing people on a weekly basis, new figures show. In the first eight months of 2010, 45 people died because of landmines or other ordnance, according to a data collection body set up by the Cambodian Red Cross and Handicap International.

nationmultimedia.com Prakit Chinamourphong, president of the Thai Hotels Association, said Bangkok hotels were only half-full, with slight bookings for the high season, as most tourists are worried about the security situation. Only tourists from India seem unconcerned about the widely reported explosions in Bangkok, he said.

bloomberg Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong's biggest airline, will replace economy-class seats in long-haul planes after passengers complained about discomfort, according to three people familiar with the plan. The existing coach seats, which have fixed-backs to prevent passengers from disturbing the person behind them when reclining, will be refitted and moved to short-haul and regional aircraft.

Associated Press Detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi says she will not vote in Myanmar's November 7 national election, even though authorities have informed her she is on the electoral roll.

cnn.com More than a million people went on strike in France - the biggest demonstrations yet in a series of rolling strikes against government plans to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62.

theglobeandmail.com New data this month from the British pollster Skyscanner seem to support suspicions that sex is still the most sought-after airborne encounter. Twenty-one per cent of 400 respondents said they've already joined the Mile High Club, often with a stranger they met on a flight. And 94 percent were keen to join.



Until October 16 Vegetarian Festival, Phuket
November 2-7 Phuket womens' beach volleyball, Karon beach
November 5 Phuket Charity Pro Am Golf, Blue Canyon
November 6 Charity golf at Tab Lamu, near Khao Lak: Call Sam on 089 875 1995 E: sam@khaolakappeal.com
November 19 AustCham at the new Westin Hotel at Koh Sireh from 3pm. E: harry@ladypie.com Tel: 081 2731740
November 21 Loy Kratong Festival
November 28 Laguna Phuket triathlon
December 4-11 Phuket King's Cup Regatta
December 5 Laguna Ironman title
2011
January 6-9 PIMEX boat show, Royal Phuket Marina
February 9-13 The Bay Regatta - Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi