reuters Nepal has been hit by a magnitude 7.3 earthquake, sending people in Kathmandu rushing to the streets just weeks after a devastating quake killed more than 8000 people and destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes.

AP Two Indonesians and five Thai nationals have been arrested in Indonesia and accused of human trafficking connected with slavery in the seafood industry, police said

nytimes.com U Zaw Htay, the deputy director general of the Myanmar President's Office, said in a telephone interview that refugees who landed in Indonesia and Malaysia ''might not be from Myanmar.'' He ruled out ''internationalising'' the issue through regional meetings that Thailand has proposed.

afp The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) called on Southeast Asian governments to find and rescue thousands of migrants who are believed to be stranded at sea and at risk of death. Campaigners fear as many as 8000 migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar - among them many from the Rohingya minority - are being held at sea with dwindling supplies.


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



Phuket Update National police chief General Somyot Poompangmoung said that he would meet with his Malaysian counterpart in Phuket on Wednesday to discuss the Rohingya human trafficking crisis. Malaysia is the prime destination of boatpeople after they are smuggled to Thailand.

bangkokpost.com The Prayut Chan-o-cha government deserves praise for initiating talks on the Rohingya trafficking problem with Myanmar (Burma) and Malaysia, but it must turn the talk into deeds. It should be noted that Myanmar has always blocked official discussions on what they call the ''Bengali issue'' - refusing to recognise the Rohingya as their own people.

afp The Philippines plans to turn some disputed South China Sea islands into tourist sites to promote peace as China builds suspected military facilities on nearby reclaimed reefs, Filipino officials said.



cnn.com Vee turned out to be a broker, a link in the chain of human trafficking that supplies the Thai fishing industry with thousands of migrant workers and turns many of them into virtual slaves. Instead of a year on board a Thai fishing vessel, Senasook said he spent six, and was made to work 20-hour days in life-threatening conditions.

thesundaytimes.co.uk Despite pleas for action against the trafficking ships, nothing has been done. Instead, the Royal Thai Navy has filed a criminal defamation case against the journalist Alan Morison and his Thai colleague Chutima Sidisathian for their reporting of the issue on a local news website, Phuketwan. ''Trafficking of persons in Thailand has long been out of control,'' said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch.
http://goo.gl/7545zc

bangkokpost.com Thailand has a choice. The first is to deny everything and avoid injuring vested interests. The second option is an onslaught on the evil that Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha has acknowledged lies within the system - an evil perpetuated by xenophobia.



Phuket Update Phuket was again hit by a small earthquake at 10:45am on Monday, bringing the total to six. The magnitude 2.5 quake was at the same location, close to Koh Yao.

nationmultimedia.com Krabi chief public health officer Doctor Panas Soponpong warned tourists against swimming at beaches around the Phi Phi islands where a lot of jelly fishes were spotted after some tourists reportedly suffered skin burns when they touch the jelly fishes.

thetimes.co.uk Russian soldiers have described serving and fighting in Ukraine in a controversial report by Boris Nemtsov, the opposition activist murdered in February, that will be published today.

afp A Canadian woman has given birth aboard a plane to Tokyo after going into labour over the Pacific Ocean. The 23-year-old woman delivered a baby girl mid-air with the help of a doctor who volunteered after crew asked passengers for medical help.

bangkokpost.com The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal against the decision by two lower courts to impose a suspended prison term on a teenage girl, now 21, who caused a horrific tollway crash that killed nine people travelling in a passenger van in 2010.

afp North Korea did not test fire a ballistic missile from a submarine as Pyongyang claimed over the weekend and the country is still a long way from achieving such a capability, US officials said.

nytimes.com The top diplomat for the European Union said that the bloc was prepared to take action against migrant smuggling rings based in Libya even without the approval of the UN Security Council. But the diplomat also sought to assure critics that the people trying to cross the Mediterranean would be rescued and given an opportunity to apply for asylum in Europe.

theage.com.au Are you risking identify theft when you hand over your passport in a hotel? In many parts of the world, it is common practice for a hotel to request guests' passports, which will be photocopied, scanned or entered into a ledger.

afp Drug-resistant typhoid has become an invisible epidemic in Africa, scientists said after an unprecedented probe into the disease.

ctvnews.ca An armed group battling Macedonian police over the weekend left 22 people dead and aimed to destabilise the country with terror attacks, the country's president declared in a nationwide television address.

Frangipani Resort and Spa Langkawi/Facebook Rohingas refugees who have been detained in Langkawi today (11/5/15) We have donated soap, towels, fans and food but they need clothes urgently. For people living in Langkawi, please do make clothes donations straight to these makeshift centers. Food and water is also most welcome. [Great work, Frangipani. This doesn't happen on Phuket.]



freemalaysiatoday.com The mass graves along our Malaysian borders is a wake up call for urgent action against human trade syndicates. The discovery of mass graves near Perlis, on the Malaysia/Thailand border further entrenches the fact that trafficking is rampant and ongoing.

Try Phuketwan's Asean Today daily:
http://phuketwan.com/tourism/asean-today-malaysias-refugee-rush-bottoms-bother-angkor-russian-escapes-firing-squad-uber-hailed-22445/



afp Bafetimbi Gomis scored a late, technology-assisted winner as Swansea City compromised Arsenal's quest for automatic Champions League qualification with a smash-and-grab 1-0 away victory.

afp The NFL suspended New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady for four games without pay over the ''Deflategate'' scandal after an investigation found he probably was aware of ball tampering in a key playoff game.



June 20-21 Baba wedding at Old Phuket Town

July 14-16 Trial of Phuketwan journalists at Phuket Provincial Court

July 15-19 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek