http://siamnews.net Asia News with a Business Perspective Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:24:03 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14442-video-one-of-the-coolest-taxis-youll-ever-find-in-bangkok/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14442-video-one-of-the-coolest-taxis-youll-ever-find-in-bangkok/#comments Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:00:17 +0000 bsullivan http://siamnews.net/news/14442-video-one-of-the-coolest-taxis-youll-ever-find-in-bangkok/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14442-video-one-of-the-coolest-taxis-youll-ever-find-in-bangkok/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14413-from-the-editor-thai-travel-news-is-having-plastic-surgery/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14413-from-the-editor-thai-travel-news-is-having-plastic-surgery/#comments Wed, 18 Jan 2012 01:46:38 +0000 tan http://siamnews.net/news/14413-from-the-editor-thai-travel-news-is-having-plastic-surgery/
So I felt that I owe you an explanation, but we’ll be back on track with more of the latest news and up-to-date travel info from Thailand. Have a great year of the dragon!  Jared Sheldon  editor@thaitravelnews.net   ]]> http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14413-from-the-editor-thai-travel-news-is-having-plastic-surgery/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14348-video-hua-hin-new-years-eve-fireworks-display-doesnt-go-quite-as-planned/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14348-video-hua-hin-new-years-eve-fireworks-display-doesnt-go-quite-as-planned/#comments Fri, 06 Jan 2012 07:44:09 +0000 voanews http://siamnews.net/news/14348-video-hua-hin-new-years-eve-fireworks-display-doesnt-go-quite-as-planned/
The fireworks caused a number of explosions that showered the beach resort. Fortunately no-one sustained any injuries, but the terror can be clearly seen in the faces of those running away from the wayward fireworks.

The pyrotechnics extravaganza was supposed to last several minutes ended up lasting less than half a minute. ]]> http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14348-video-hua-hin-new-years-eve-fireworks-display-doesnt-go-quite-as-planned/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/politics/14300-thailand-scores-yingluck-a-6-49-out-of-10/ http://siamnews.net/politics/14300-thailand-scores-yingluck-a-6-49-out-of-10/#comments Sun, 25 Dec 2011 02:59:44 +0000 tan http://siamnews.net/news/14300-thailand-scores-yingluck-a-6-49-out-of-10/
The survey was undertaken with all of Thailand’s provinces represented on various factors to gauge their opinions of the performance of the current government. According to the results, people were far more critical towards the government as a whole, with the cabinet scoring  6.44 for its intention to work, 6.33 for sincerity, 6.21 for   performance, 6.13 for not interfering in the work of permanent officials, 6.09 for unity, and 5.87 for honesty. For individual ministers, respondents gave the Defence Ministry the highest score of 6.63, Tourism and Sports 6.56, Tourism and Sports 6.44, Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives 6.43, Foreign Affairs 6.42, Culture 6.41, Social Development and Human Security 6.40, Education 6.37, Industry 6.36, Finance 6.33, Science and Technology 6.27, Labour 6.13, Interior 6.10, Natural Resources and Environment 6.09, Energy 6.06, Justice 6.05, Commerce 5.91, Transport 5.87, and Information and Communication Technology 5.84. Opinion of the government varied according to region, with the score for overall performance at 7.29, while the South were least supportive, providing a rating of 5.44. Related Video ]]> http://siamnews.net/politics/14300-thailand-scores-yingluck-a-6-49-out-of-10/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14315-bangkok-governor-declares-city-free-of-floods/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14315-bangkok-governor-declares-city-free-of-floods/#comments Fri, 23 Dec 2011 10:10:31 +0000 thailand-business-news http://siamnews.net/news/14315-bangkok-governor-declares-city-free-of-floods/
The garbage that remains leftover following the floods is expected to be removed by Monday, with the exception of Nong Khaem, which will be removed by Wednesday at the latest. Mr Sukhumbhand also pointed out that the BMA and public health officials had received strong praise from the World Health Organisation (WHO) for work carried out to prevent any serious outbreak of flood related diseases.  Mosquito prevention operations will continue on a daily basis until the middle of January.

The Governor spoke highly of city officials for their outstanding work during the crisis, with many suffering personally due to the flooding as it gripped the outer suburbs of Bangkok for around two months. He also highlighted the exceptional work carried out by almost 4,000  volunteers that helped clean the city following the foods. Related Video ]]> http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14315-bangkok-governor-declares-city-free-of-floods/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14332-two-russians-beaten-up-by-two-ladyboys-in-pattaya/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14332-two-russians-beaten-up-by-two-ladyboys-in-pattaya/#comments Fri, 23 Dec 2011 01:53:41 +0000 Zhong Li http://siamnews.net/news/14332-two-russians-beaten-up-by-two-ladyboys-in-pattaya/
The two men, aged 22 and 23, received more than the original price of 1000 baht that they paid for oral sex when they discovered that the women were not actually women. After a swinging session and the sobering realisation, the young Russian tourists wanted their money refunded, with the two ladyboys flatly refusing their requests.

Shortly after, a violent altercation broke out, which saw the Russians throw a few hits.  The ladyboys retaliated with intense ferocity, throwing bottles and scratching them with their acrylic nails. Pattaya police were called to the hotel were the incident took place after a call was made that two foreign tourists had been beaten up by a couple of ladyboys.

The first officers at the scene found the two injured Russians injured with minor cuts and bruises caused by broken bottles and nail scratches.

The Russians identified the two ladyboys who were taken to the Pattaya police station for questioning, with further detailed investigations and prosecutions to take place in accordance with Thai laws. Related Video ]]> http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14332-two-russians-beaten-up-by-two-ladyboys-in-pattaya/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14254-new-years-eve-celebrations-around-thailand/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14254-new-years-eve-celebrations-around-thailand/#comments Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:46:57 +0000 Zhong Li http://siamnews.net/news/14254-new-years-eve-celebrations-around-thailand/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14254-new-years-eve-celebrations-around-thailand/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14227-tourism-authorities-to-giveaway-free-five-star-bangkok-holiday/ http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14227-tourism-authorities-to-giveaway-free-five-star-bangkok-holiday/#comments Fri, 09 Dec 2011 01:50:32 +0000 Thailand Real Estate http://siamnews.net/news/14227-tourism-authorities-to-giveaway-free-five-star-bangkok-holiday/
The competition, titled ‘Bangkok Wish List’ will give one lucky winner the chance for a five-star holiday to Bangkok, staying at the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, as well as return business class airfares from their home country. Bangkok tourism authorities hope to win back the confidence of international tourism with a free trip giveaway. Participants in the competition must create a list of their five favourite attractions in Bangkok, along with a brief reason as to why their entry should be chosen.

The competition will feature on Facebook and Twitter, with the winning entrant scoring the most ‘likes’ and ‘retweets’.

The competition is aimed at stimulating the nation’s tourism industry back to pre-flood levels.  The floods took the lives of almost 700 people, displaced millions and affected the livelihood of more than 10 million people. In Bangkok, floodwaters inundated Bangkok’s secondary airport at Don Mueang, which led to hundreds of flight disruptions as Nok Air and Orient Thai relocated their flights to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport. Meanwhile, the Tourism Council of Thailand has revealed a revised number of international arrivals for this year.  Despite the floods, the forecast of arrivals in Thailand has been reduced by 1.2 million Original estimates estimated a total of 19.5 million, but due to the floods a revised figures of 18.3 million visitors has been forecast. ]]> http://siamnews.net/tourism-2/14227-tourism-authorities-to-giveaway-free-five-star-bangkok-holiday/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/asean/14180-vietnamese-tour-groups-have-begun-returning-to-thailand-after-1-month-flooding/ http://siamnews.net/asean/14180-vietnamese-tour-groups-have-begun-returning-to-thailand-after-1-month-flooding/#comments Wed, 30 Nov 2011 01:28:18 +0000 Thailand Real Estate http://siamnews.net/news/14180-vietnamese-tour-groups-have-begun-returning-to-thailand-after-1-month-flooding/ http://siamnews.net/asean/14180-vietnamese-tour-groups-have-begun-returning-to-thailand-after-1-month-flooding/feed/ 0 http://siamnews.net/politics/14156-eu-voices-concerns-over-thailands-lese-majeste-laws/ http://siamnews.net/politics/14156-eu-voices-concerns-over-thailands-lese-majeste-laws/#comments Tue, 29 Nov 2011 04:53:29 +0000 thailand-business-news http://siamnews.net/news/14156-eu-voices-concerns-over-thailands-lese-majeste-laws/
The jail sentence given to the man has caused outrage amongst human rights groups, such as Amnesty International and the EU, which wanted to remind of the fundamentals that make up “the rule of law, democracy, and the respect for human rights”. “The EU urges the Thai authorities to ensure that the rule of law is applied in a non-discriminatory and proportional manner consistent with upholding basic human rights, including freedom of expression,” the statement said. Mr Ampon was charged for “lese majeste” under the Thailand’s super-tough Computer Crimes Act, which aims to uphold the controversial laws on material on the internet.

Thailand’s Computer Crimes Act has raised the concerns a number of human rights groups.

The law has many critics who say that they are being used purely as political revenge, with many people claiming “lese majeste” is often used as an underhanded way of settling old scores. Under Thai law, authorities are duty-bound to investigate all reports of complaints against those who supposedly break the law. Foreigners in Thailand are not exempt from the laws, with a number of high profile trials held over the last decade.  Those convicted of the crime are generally issued with a royal pardon shortly after their conviction. ]]> http://siamnews.net/politics/14156-eu-voices-concerns-over-thailands-lese-majeste-laws/feed/ 0