PhuketWATCH Daily Media Wrap
PHUKET: The daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media. Beware of inconsistent imitations.
Today's Top News Items
bangkokpost.com The year 2015 will be a monumental year for Thailand with a flurry of national reform and charter drafting efforts picking up speed in the next 12 months, while a decision on the impeachment of Yingluck Shinawatra could shake the military regime right at the beginning of the year.
bangkokpost.com Almost 4000 victims have been killed in 16,969 violent incidents in the deep South over the past 11 years since the southern violence erupted, figures show.
The Lost AirAsia Flight
afp Weather was the ''triggering factor'' in the crash of AirAsia Flight 8501 with ice likely causing engine damage, Indonesian officials say, as rough seas continue to hamper the search for more bodies and wreckage.
afp AirAsia downplayed an incident that saw one of its planes turned back before takeoff in Indonesia, a week after another of its jets crashed into the Java Sea with 162 on board.
Phuket World of People
bangkokpost.com Thailand's National Police Chief Pol Gen Somyot Pumpanmuang, has revealed that a special police unit will be set up to target foreign transnational criminal gangs operating in Thailand or using the country as a shelter. According to a recent study by the Thailand Institute of Justice (TIJ), at least 22 transnational gangs have chosen Thailand as an operating base.
mirror.co.uk Beyonce and Jay Z, holidaying on Phuket, were hand in hand throughout the day as they soaked up culture at the Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
tmz.com The first couple of hip hop then hit up the FantaSea attraction in Phuket, Thailand . . . and this time Beyonce upped her tourist game by donning a traditional headpiece.
telegraph.co.uk A rapist and murderer is to be put to death in Belgium this week, despite Europe's ban on the death penalty, after a court granted him the right to euthanasia. Frank Van Den Bleeken, 52, is not physically ill but claims his ''psychological suffering'' is unbearable and that he would prefer to die than spend more of his life behind bars.
nnt Based on the statistics of the World Health Organisation and University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, Thailand is ranked second in terms of traffic fatalities with 44 deaths per a population of 100,000 per year. Coming first and third are Namibia and Iran with 45 and 38 fatalities per a population of 100,000 respectively. According to the global statistics, the average number of people died in road accidents is 18 per a population of 100,000 per year.
reuters Buckingham Palace stepped up its denial that Prince Andrew had sex with an underage girl and named the alleged victim who had sought to preserve her anonymity, according to British newspaper reports.
news.com.au The Australian mother at the centre of explosive sex claims that have rocked Buckingham Palace claims she entertained Prince Andrew in a private sex ''dungeon'' after being pimped out to the prince by billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein who kept her captive.
dailyrecord.co.uk Prince Andrew holidayed with Epstein in Thailand in 2001 and was snapped surrounded by topless women on a yacht. A handyman claimed Prince Andrew often had massages when he was a guest at Epstein's Palm Beach mansion. Juan Alessi said the Prince enjoyed daily massages from young women and often emerged ''smiling'' after rub-downs.
nationmultimedia.com Foul play is suspected in the hanging of a 29-year old Frenchman on Koh Tao in Surat Thani on Thursday, as the man's hands were tied behind his back. The incident has been widely discussed on social media as bloggers questioned the circumstances around the tourist's death.
cnn.com Five men have been arrested in India over the alleged rape of a Japanese tourist, police in the city of Kolkata told CNN. The men allegedly operated as a gang, targeting single, female Japanese tourists.
nnt International Living, a North American magazine for the retired, has continued to put Thailand on its World's Best Places To Retire In 2015 list on its website, based on opinions from expats living in European, Asian, and American countries in the previous year. Thailand has been ranked at number nine on this list in 2014 and has dropped to number 10 this year.
pattayaone.net In the early hours of Friday, Pattaya Police were called to the Bali Hai Port area to assist Swiss tourist Henri Kaspar, 59, who had allegedly been attacked by three Thai street vendors who were reportedly angry that he refused to purchase an item from them.
independent.co.uk A leading peer is calling for the divorce law to be tougher on women as she believes the current system teaches them to go out ''and find a footballer.''
news.com.au A man with two penises has written a revealing tell-all memoir about his wild sexual exploits and painful medical emergencies
Around the Asean Region
independent.co.uk Passengers were ordered off an AirAsia aircraft in Surabaya when the engine failed, just minutes before it was due to take off. When the airline said the flight was to go ahead, 90 per cent of passengers refused to get back on board. The aircraft landed safely in Bandung.
See Phuketwan's new Asean Today column
http://phuketwan.com/tourism/asean-today-deaths-mar-viet-holiday-warns-threat-beyonce-visits-angkor-wat-hero-dies-saving-boy-21656/
Phuket World of Sport
goal.com Arsenal had Per Mertesacker and Alexis Sanchez to thank for guiding them into the fourth round of the FA Cup after a 2-0 win over Hull.
mirror.co.uk League One Sheffield United caused another upset to dump Premier League QPR out of the FA Cup. Marc McNulty's opener and a Jamal Campbell-Ryce brace saw the Blades stun Harry Redknapp's Hoops with a deserved 3-0 win.
telegraph.co.uk Yeovil Town 0 Manchester United 2: Class tells through Ander Herrera and Angel di Maria goals.
bbc.com Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara scored his 11th Test double century to move one behind Australia legend Don Bradman's all-time record. He made 203 on day two of the second Test against New Zealand to help his side to 356 all out, a lead of 135.
Coming Events on Phuket 2015
January 6-11 Phuket International Boat Show
January 7-17 16th World Pencak Silat Championship 2015
January 21 Australian embassy outreach to Phuket Call 02-3446300, e: consular.bangkok@dfat.gov.au
February 12-15 Phuket Yacht Show
(moderated)
Posted by Peter on January 5, 2015 07:19
Editor Comment:
Sorry to cut your comment Peter but that report's just not accurate. Hard to understand why. There is no suggestion that personal umbrellas have been banned from the beaches. Most of the vendors at Patong are back and operating. It's possibly an old report from last year, now badly out of date. In any case, we wouldn't steal somebody else's report like that.