theage.com.au Up to 85 people are believed to have been aboard an asylum seeker vessel feared sunk off the Indonesian coast early on Friday morning. A spokeswoman for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said it was not clear if any people had survived the sinking in or near the southern part of the Sunda Strait.


PHUKET: The daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media. Beware of inconsistent imitations.

bangkokpost.com The surge in international tourist arrivals, especially from China and Russia, is causing a shortage of high-quality coaches, according to the Tourism Transportation Association. Jiradej Huayhongthong, TTA deputy chairman, said there an estimated 5000 tour buses nationwide but only 2000 are qualified to serve both domestic and international tourists.

scmp.com The death toll from H7N9 bird flu in China reached 10 with another victim in Shanghai, as China confirmed 38 human cases of H7N9 avian influenza.

nationmultimedia.com In Phuket, 15,500 condominium units worth 34.6 billion baht have been launched as of last month and 75 percent or 23.7 billion baht worth have been sold, according to the Agency for real Estate Affairs. Sales average 1630 units a month, so the inventory in the market would take about 2.3 months to sell out.

bangkokpost.com Billions of baht in cash have been tracked to the southern provinces, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office now is convinced it is being used to finance terrorism and the increasingly violent insurgent roadside bombings.

standard.co.uk A historic international agreement that rape during war is a grave breach of the Geneva Convention was announced in London by William Hague. Angelina Jolie, the Hollywood actress and United Nations special envoy, told the gathering that for too long victims of rape had been overlooked.

guardian.co.uk The billionaire founder of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, has launched a new initiative to push for immigration reform, describing America's current system as "unfit for today's world." The group is called FWD.us, (pronounced Forward US).

bangkokpost.com Asia-Pacific airlines outperformed those in other regions in terms of profitability in the last quarter of last year, with benchmark airlines registering a rise in net profit of nearly 200 percent.

nationmultimedia.com Visitors to Thailand are more likely to overspend than in other travel destinations thanks to the country's attractive shopping sector, according to a recent study.

independent.co.uk Sales of PCs have been hit by the biggest decline in 20 years thanks to consumers increasingly choosing tablet computers over their less portable counterparts. Research showed a 14 percent plummet in sales to 76.3 million worldwide for the first three months of the year, far exceeding the 7.7 percent forecast.

en.ria.ru Russian President Vladimir Putin promised ''100-percent support'' for Russian Buddhists during a visit to the country's Buryatia republic, where about 20 percent of the population is Buddhist.



TRAVEL site TripAdvisor is holding two Master Class sessions on Phuket on April 23 at the Movenpick Resort & Spa, Karon Beach Phuket. Sessions are 9.30am-12.30pm or 1.30pm-4.30pm. Register via TripAdvisor.

hospitalitynet.org Shaun Dunhofen has been appointed Hotel Manager at Indigo Pearl in Phuket, Thailand. Shaun brings over 10 years of experience in his career in operations and management at luxury boutique hotel and resorts.

japandailypress.com The Rohingya community in Japan claims that they have been barred from attending a gathering to welcome Burma (Myanmar) democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi when she visits Japan later this month. Even in the small expatriate Burmese community in Japan, the tension between the Muslims and Buddhists is palpable.

thejakartapost.com More tourism research is needed to develop new attractions and destinations in Bali amid close competition with other countries in Asia, an academic said. Nyoman Sudiartha from Udayana University's school of tourism said that tourism should be developed based on research to identify changing trends and behavior or interests of tourists.

nytimes.com The US film 'Django Unchained' was abruptly pulled from theaters in China on its opening day, a surprising move that came after some scenes were reported to have been edited to conform to the wishes of Chinese censors.

afp France's Grand Rabbi - the country's leading Jewish religious figure - resigned with immediate effect, after admitting to plagiarism in his books. Gilles Bernheim acknowledged that a claim on his CV that he was awarded a prestigious philosophy academic status was not true.

afp Heroin courier Abdul Haleem Abdul Karim, 30, has become the first convicted drug trafficker in Singapore to avoid a death sentence following reforms in the application of capital punishment, officials said.

editorandpublisher.com Digital, not print, represents the future for newspapers. Unfortunately, newspapers so far have failed to attract a significant number of individuals who came of age in the digital age. The generational disconnect is profound.



goal.com British firm Hawk-Eye has been confirmed as the provider of goal-line technology for the Premier League from next season. Hawkeye's camera-based system is now set to be installed in stadiums over the summer months, with the technology to be used for the first time in August.

bbc.co.uk Hawk-Eye uses seven cameras per goal to detect the ball and claims its system, used in tennis and cricket, is ''millimetre accurate, ensuring no broadcast replays could disprove the decision''.

bbc.co.uk Australian Marc Leishman and Spain's Sergio Garcia set the pace in the opening round of the 77th Masters at Augusta. The pair both shot 66 for a one-stroke lead.

afp Tiger Woods, who last won a major title in 2008, shot a two-under par 70 in the first round of the Masters, the same opening score as in three of his four Augusta National wins.

dailymail.co.uk It is remarkable, the distance Tiger Woods can achieve, the sense of isolation. Even when his ball landed in the plastic beer glass of an unsuspecting spectator on hole three, he managed to maintain an air of detachment. He did the job, he saved par, he moved on.

theage.com.au Michael Clarke's phenomenal batting in 2012 has earned the Australian captain another accolade, as Wisden's leading cricketer in the world. Clarke is just the third Australian to receive the honor, after champions Ricky Ponting in 2003 and Shane Warne in 2004.

nationmultimedia.com Thai hopes rest with a veteran duo after defending champions and current Asian Beach Games winners Varapatsorn Radarong/Tanarattha Udomchavee crashed out in the women's quarter-finals of the 4th Khanom-Chang Asian Beach Volleyball Tour Khanom Open at Nadan Beach in Nakhon Si Thammarat.



ISLAND BLISS and Trisara are holding a Ready-to-Wear Collection Fashion Show 2013 5pm-7pm on April 27 at Trisara, 800 baht admission or 1200 baht with post-runway dinner, goes to the Good Shepherd Phuket. rsvp sales@trisara.com

April 13-17 Songkran New Year Festival

April 13 Angsana Laguna Phuket with XANA and Attica invites guests and Phuket locals to celebrate Thai New Year with a full day program. Entrance is freewith a lot of fun activities from Songkran water wars parade to Miss Songkran Competition and much more.

April 14-21 Phuket Bike Week

April 22-28 Phuket Pride Week, with the theme ''Same Same Not Different.'' Grand Parade 4pm April 27.

April 28 Kata-Karon Mini-Marathon, Karon Park

May 1 National Labor Day

June 9 Laguna Phuket International Marathon

July 17-21 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek

October 5-13 Phuket Vegetarian Festival

November 9 Asian Cup Triathlon Sprint, Patong

November 10 ITU Long Distance Series triathlon, Patong

November 17 Loy Kratong Day

November 24-December 1 Challenge Laguna Phuket Tri-Fest. Laguna Phuket

December 5 HM The King's birthday



November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket