Associated Press Authorities arrested a first-class passenger at Suvarnabhumi whose suitcases were filled with baby leopards, panthers, a bear and monkeys. The man, a 36-year-old United Arab Emirates citizen, was heading for Dubai.


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

smh.com.au Qantas is said to be planning to set up a premium airline in Malaysia to widen its network in Asia and service the fast-growing corporate travel market. The airline rebuffed speculation but said ''all options are on the table.''

abc.net.au Two key anti-government red shirt leaders have been sent to jail in Bangkok just over a month before a landmark general election. One of the leaders, Jatuporn Prompan, is a sitting MP, but his parliamentary immunity expired after the election was called.

guardian.co.uk European nations moved to reverse decades of unfettered travel across the continent when a majority of EU governments agreed the need to reinstate national passport controls amid fears of a flood of immigrants fleeing the upheaval in north Africa.

bangkokpost.com There is no medical evidence to confirm claims a bedbug killer containing chlorpyrifos was responsible for the deaths of guests at a Chiang Mai hotel, says province governor ML Panadda Disakul. He made the statement after meeting foreign diplomats and representatives of foreign consulates based in the northern province.

nzpa "We can't jump to a conclusion that toxin exposure was the cause of the death because the substance was allegedly found in the hotel room alone, not in the victim's body," said Chiang Mai Public Health Office deputy chief Surasing Visaruthrat.

nationmultimedia.com Dr Surasing said that the probe had progressed half way and the initial possible causes (infection, chemicals, crime, drug and environment) had been narrowed to infection, infection [ed; chemicals, probably] and environment - all of which needed further investigation.

Associated Press The victims were women from New Zealand, France and the US, a Canadian man, an elderly British couple and a Thai tourist guide, four of whom had been staying at the same hotel.

reuters Airports of Thailand reported a 3.6 percent drop in quarterly net profit, even though passengers and flight were growing, due mainly to a decline in foreign exchange gains. AoT, which runs six airports including Phuket, said in a statement it made a net profit of 1.71 billion baht versus 1.78 billion baht a year earlier.

scmp.com Hong Kong's 50-cent levy imposed on plastic shopping bags in 2009 has cut the number of bags dumped in landfills only marginally while increasing the disposal of reusable bags, according to the city's environment watchdog.

afp Malaysian premier Najib Razak met church leaders in a bid to ease religious tensions stirred by a report that minority Christians wanted to replace Islam as the official religion. Church leaders have angrily denounced the report.

afp Singapore Airlines rebounded strongly from the global recession, reporting its full-year net profit soared in 2010-11 as travel demand recovered. But the airline cautioned that the near-term is expected to be difficult due to surging oil prices, concerns over the US economy, the impact from Japan's quake-tsunami disasters and worries over Europe's sovereign debt crisis.

scmp.com A month of trial runs on the much-hyped high-speed railway line between Beijing and Shanghai began, with the first test run on the 1318 kilometre link completed in less than five hours.

Associated Press Australian police charged a man with people smuggling over a deadly boat crash on a remote island that killed 48 asylum seekers. The 40-year-old Iranian-born, Australian citizen was deported from Indonesia to Australia and charged with multiple counts of people smuggling.

theage.com.au The fate of 13 Indonesian teenagers, crew from boats carrying asylum seekers into Australian waters, will be considered in a Darwin court tomorrow. The teenagers, aged from 13 to 17 years, have been held for prolonged periods in detention without charge.

wsj.com A Cambodian former prosecutor was sentenced to 19 years in prison in what was the first case tried by the country's new anti-graft agency, AFP reported. Top Chan Sereivuth was convicted of corruption, illegal detention and extortion.

intoday.in An hour and a half's flight from Bangkok, Koh Samui is by no means a hidden paradise. However, it is much quieter and cleaner than its more popular cousins Phuket and Pattaya.

reuters Britain is crammed with overpriced restaurants, plagued by expensive hotels and let down by overrated tourist attractions, according to the latest edition of the Lonely Planet guide to the country.


IBAP meets at IndoChine on May 13 to hear Robert Mather on 'Phang Nga bay ecology, mangroves & sustainability.' Mr Mather is responsible for developing the International Union for Conservation of Nature's presence and program in Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore, as well as managing a new project on Building Coastal Resilience to Climate Change in eight provinces of Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

May 13-22 Phuket's village fair of local products, food and entertainment, Saphan Hin
May 13 Royal Ploughing Day public holiday
May 17 Visakha Bucha Day public holiday
May 31 New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City
June 12 Laguna Phuket International Marathon
June 17 Phuket Property Dot Com Pro Am Invitational, Laguna
June 23-26 Phuket Fun Fly paragliding, Nai Harn
July 3 Phuket Navy League US Independence Day fair at Headstart International School
July 15 Asarnha Bucha Day public holiday
July 20-24 Six Senses Phuket Raceweek
August 12 HM The Queen's Birthday public holiday
October Vegetarian Festival, Phuket
November 26-27 9th Phuket International Soccer 7s
November 27 Laguna Phuket Triathlon
December 3-4 6th Andaman International Soccer 7s
December 4 Ironman 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship, Laguna


March 18-28 National Youth Games, Phuket

November 14-21 Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket