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

Phuket Update Storms are forecast for Phuket for the Loy Kratong Festival today, as well as north along the Andaman coast to Phang Nga and Ranong. The wet weather is predicted to continue on Monday and Tuesday, forecasters say.

telegraph.co.uk David and Samantha Cameron have cancelled their controversial trip to Thailand following mounting criticism that it sent the wrong signal at a time when Britain is facing widespread job losses and spending cuts. [The Camerons were tipped to holiday on Phuket.]

Phuketwan Update The six-year-old body of a Burmese boy was found drowned in a pond in the Vichit district of Phuket, south of Phuket City. The boy slipped away from his father to play, apparently stumbled down the bank and into the water, and was unable to clamber out to save himself.

abscbnnews.com A Korean known as Mini has won the Miss International Queen contest, a pageant for transvestites that organizers said was for those "interested in beauty and equality". Mini, 27, who works as a designer, fought off competitors from 15 countries to take the crown as well as 10,000 dollars in prize money at the event held in Thailand's Pattaya beach resort.

UKPA Burma's government ordered more than 80 people at a shelter for patients with HIV and Aids to leave after a visit by newly-freed democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the centre's organisers said. The centre's permit was not being renewed, said Phyu Phyu Thin, a pro-democracy activist who founded the operation.

abc.net.au Indonesia has demanded an inquiry into reports that a maid working in Saudi Arabia was killed by her employers and her body dumped by the roadside. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says a team has been sent to the Saudi town of Abha to investigate reports of the murder of the 36-year-old woman.

theage.com.au Captain Barry Jackson, president of the Australian and International Pilots Associations, summed it up as follows: ''TheAirlines need to decide whether experienced pilots are a cost or an asset. The Australian public had a safe aviation system in place; it is now being dismantled purely for reasons of cost.''

Phuketwan Update FC Phuket faces Loei City away at 4pm today in its campaign to win promotion to Thai Division One. Phuket team came from a goal down to beat Loei 2-1 in Phuket last weekend and sits second in Group B, with three of the remaining four matches scheduled for Phuket City's Surakul Stadium.

nationmultimedia.comBangkok's Wat Phai Ngern will host a grand merit-making and cleansing ritual - and demolish its morgue - next Saturday, following the discovery of more than 2000 human foetuses at the temple.

afp Indonesia's Yogyakarta airport, which had been closed for about two weeks by the eruption of the Mount Merapi volcano, has reopened, officials said. Merapi, which means "Mountain of Fire", has killed 283 people since it began erupting last month and more than 270,000 are still living in temporary shelters.

scmp.com Police arrested three graft-busters on suspicion of perverting the course of justice during an unprecedented raid on the headquarters of the city's anti-corruption body.

smh.com.au Letter: Thanks to the article 'One night in Bangkok' we stayed at the Atlanta Hotel in Sukhumvit last month. This hotel provides cheap, clean and comfortable accommodation. Our bill of $33 a night for a double room was amazing. The concern for the welfare of guests is outstanding and the restaurant wonderful.



DECEMBER 1 is World Aids Day, and in recognition of this the students at the British International School Phuket have organised The World Aids Day Event and Designers Against Aids. The events on the day will be geared towards raising awareness about HIV/Aids among youth in the community. They are also aimed at raising funds for the Life Home Project, a local organisation that provides assistance to women and children with HIV/Aids.

November 21 Phuket's Loy Kratong Festival: Phuket's Tin Mine Museum to open.
November 20-21 Korean Film Festival, Patong
November 20-21 2010 Andaman and Phuket International Soccer 7s
November 26-28 Phuket Honda Racing Fest at Saphan Hin, Phuket City
November 28 Laguna Phuket triathlon
December 4-11 Phuket King's Cup Regatta
December 5 Laguna Ironman title
December 3-5 North Phuket Culinary Arts Festival, Mai Khao resorts
December 15-20 Patong Carnival
December 16-18 2010 Asia Superyacht Rendezvous
December 17 US Consular outreach service on Phuket
December 30-January 9 Phuket Red Cross fair, Saphan Hin park, Phuket City
2011
January 6-9 PIMEX boat show, Royal Phuket Marina
January 22 QSI International fun run day at Bang Wad Dam, Kathu
January 23 The Great Phuket Rubber Duck Race Day, Laguna Phuket
February 9-13 The Bay Regatta - Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi