09-06-2017

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

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Bus service launch eyed as ‘New Year gift’

OUT FROM THE SHADOWS A young girl plays in the Child Advocacy Centre in Cherng Talay last Friday (June 2).

Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

POLICE INVESTIGATE CHILD SEX EXPLOITATION IN PHUKET AS PROTECTION CENTRE OPENS Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

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leading police investigator specialising in investigating sex exploitation and human trafficking has expressed grave concerns about child sex exploitation in Phuket.

Col Sanakorn Manmuang, Chief of Investigation of Royal Thai Police Region 8, told The Phuket News this week, “I have received some tip-offs from local people, including foreigners, in Phuket about suspicious be-

haviour that may lead to evidence of child sex exploitation on the island.”

Col Sanakorn heads a police unit specifically tasked with investigating sex exploitation and human trafficking in Phuket and surrounding provinces.

“I want to make sure Phuket will not become like Pattaya and Chiang Mai,” he noted.

“Phuket province is a base tourism destination, like Pattaya and Chiang Mai, where there are increasing numbers of tourists. We are concerned that as child exploitation is a hidden form of crime, it might be on the rise

in Phuket,” Col Sanakorn explained.

Investigations are continuing, he assured, but declined to reveal any further details.

“We are now collecting evidence.

I think our investigations might lead to evidence of children in the sex trade,” Col Sanakorn said.

Col Sanakorn expressed his concerns after Phuket last week became home to the first Child Advocacy Centre in Southern Thailand to spearhead a multi-agency campaign against human trafficking and sexual exploitation of children.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

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The branch in Phuket is to serve as the head office for operations throughout Southern Thailand, explained Darren Herbold, Director of For Freedom International (FFI) at the opening of the centre in Cherng Talay last Friday (June 2).

“The purpose of the child advocacy centre is to create a multi-disciplinary team (government and NGO) that provides victim-focused support to sexually exploited children,” he told The Phuket News.

The Thai government, in cooperation with the US embassy, have...

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Dozens duped by Facebook pyramid scheme as ‘boss’ flees > page 5

In golden chains Millions bilked by fake gold scam gang Eakkapop Thongtub editor@classactmedia.co.th

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The water off Karon Beach remained brown all day Wednesday. Photo: Tonya so say / Facebook

Brown beach water ‘natural’, says official T H E CH I EF OF T H E Karon Municipality Public Works Division has dismissed any notion that the brown water swirling off the south end of Karon Beach on Wednesday (July 7) was the result of wastewater discharged into the sea.

Instead, Chief Wanchai Saetan says the discoloured water along the beachfront was “natural”.

“It is not about wastewater. It is only plankton, which happens every year in the (southwest) monsoon season,” Mr Wanchai said.

“T he geog raphy of Karon Beach is conducive to allowing this to happen, and some people are suspicious of other reasons, such as wastewater and oil (from boats), because they have

never seen it before. It is just red plankton floating on the surface,” he added.

Mr Wanchai remained confident the brown beach water on Wednesday was a natural phenomenon without carrying out any inspections or enquiries.

“I have previously had water samples taken from this area tested by Phuket Rajabhat University, and they proved that it is red plankton,” he told The Phuket News.

Mr Wanchai confirmed that no action would be taken to clear the brown water from the beach.

“Let nature take its course. It will be gone after the wind calms down,” he said.

Tanyaluk Sakoot

olice have arrested six people for selling fake gold items of jewellery which have left gold shops around the island millions of baht out of pocket.

The arrests came after Buathip Thanetthanasombat, 35, owner of the Thongtip Gold Centre and its three branches on the island, reported that her shops had been sold various amounts of fake gold valued at B3,576,000.

Ms Buathip reported that on May 31 two women went to the Thongtip Gold Centre on Phang Nga Rd in Phuket Town and sold fake gold items, Phuket City Police Acting Commander Col Peerayut Karajaedee told a press conference on Monday (June 5).

On Saturday (June 3), police sighted the pickup used by the scammers and alerted officers at the Phuket Checkpoint in Mai Khao, who stopped the vehicle and arrested five people on suspicion of committing the crimes before they could leave the island.

The five – Prakong Rattanapratum, 36, and Boontean Khornsongkroh, 43, both from Chaiyaphum; Supharp Dam-

The six arrested scammers (seated left) are presented to the press on Monday. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub din, 40, and Phisit Sermsong, 42, both from Udon Thani; and Khanuengrat Harngamphang, 25, from Maha Sarakham – were all taken to Phuket City Police Station for questioning.

Police seized from the gang the pickup truck, 115 B1,000 banknotes, two fake gold necklaces, two fake gold rings, and one amulet covered in fake gold.

A sixth gang member, Arthit “Bee” Gongjorn, 28, from Khon Kaen, was arrested in Patong around midday last

Sunday (June 4).

All six confessed to selling the fake gold items and said that they met as a team in Bangkok on May 30 and travelled to Phuket in the Ford pickup to commit their crimes.

It was reported that Prakhong, Boontean, Khanuengrat and Arthit sold the items and that Supharp was in control of the money collected.

Police reported that in total the gang sold fake gold to the value of B1,311,500 to the Thongtip Gold Centre

Montri Rd, B1,293,000 at the Thongtip Gold Centre on Phang Nga Rd, and B800k worth to the Thongtip Gold Centre on Phra Baramee Rd in Patong.

Police are led to believe that three more people – Uraiwan Saeabkhong, 41, from Nakhon Ratchasima; Watcharabodin Watcharosin, 23, from Sakon Nakhon; and Arnon Pinwongwarn, 42 from Bangkok – are also involved with the gang and are still at large.

Police target child sex exploitation in Phuket Continued from page 1 ...identified Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Phuket as the first three locations for Child Advocacy Centres in Thailand, he added.

“In response to the Thai government’s national policy to suppress the crime of human-trafficking and child sexual exploitation, the Royal Thai Police’s Thailand Internet Crime Against Children (TICAC) is partnering with the For Freedom International Foundation (FFI), the US Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security with the aim to create a safe and child-friendly environment where child victims of trafficking and sexual exploitation are able to speak to a trained forensic interviewer about trauma that the child has experienced or witnessed,”

Mr Herbold explained.

“Our foundation is privileged to be able to support Thai law enforcement as they seek to suppress human trafficking. The FFI Foundation exists to support families and children from exploitation. We also seek to support the Thai government and law enforcement, specifically TICAC, as they work diligently to suppress human trafficking.

“We assist officers working on the ground using cuttingedge techniques, in conducting cases against offenders, starting from the initial interview process, finding and collecting evidence and witnesses, through to arrests and prosecutions.

“During this process, FFI are able to assist children and youths who are victims, integrating work with the related organisations, both nationally

Darren Herbold (left), joins Gen Tamasak Wicharaya (centre) and Joe Fonseca.

Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot and internationally,” he said.

Last Friday’s guest of honour, Gen Tamasak Wicharaya, a Level 10 Adviser of the Royal Thai Police who heads the TICAC division, said, “Our main task force is recruiting and preparing to train officers as the TICAC and ACT Phuket Child Advocacy Centres join to work more closely together.

“With this centre set up here, we can get in closer to any problems. This is about

children at risk facing violence and exploitation, so we have to be ready for any incident.

This is a place to receive and comfort children. All of our work is supported by the government.”

Joe Fonseca, the FBI’s Assistant Legal Attache in Thailand, noted, “Phuket is an area of Thailand that attracts tourists, but Phuket also attracts the worst people in society – the ones who exploit children. So we want to make sure that our team is here to support and help them.

“Residents here should welcome the centre. They should come and talk with the police here. These officers genuinely want to help these people,” he added.

Contact the Child Advocacy Centre by calling 089-1194779 (Ms Sookpranee). thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

PHUKET NEWS

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chief moved Storm lashes island as Airport after ceiling collapse Gov issues flood warning The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

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huket Governor Norraphat Plodthong issued a warning of the possibility of flash floods and continuous high winds as storm conditions battered the island on Tuesday (June 6).

High winds brought down trees lining the airport runway road on Tuesday as heavy weather hit the island midafternoon.

The warning also came after a meeting on Monday where Gov Norraphat urged the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), rescue workers and residents to be on alert for floods and strong winds, and urged people to pay attention to forthcoming weather forecasts.

“The Phuket DDPM office was informed today that in the coming days a southwestern monsoon will cover the Andaman region and that provinces to be affected include Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Trang, and Satun,” Gov Norraphat said on Monday.

“People should beware

High winds brought down tress on the airport runway road, with some of the large trees crasing through the perimeter fence to the runway itself. Photos: Eakkapop Thongtub of severe weather conditions and possible f lash f loods.

All vehicles should proceed with caution, and as wave heights are expected to be between two-to-three metres, and higher within storm systems, small boats are advised to stay ashore.

“We have ordered district and local administration offices to notify residents and tourists of the weather warning.

Officials are ready for any situations for 24 hours,” he added.

DDPM Region 18 office

Director Chatchawan Betjasiriwong told The Phuket News, “The two main highrisk areas are Thepkrasattri Rd in front of Thai Watsadu and Thepkrasattri Rd in front of the main Super Cheap store, where the soil makes them highly susceptible to floods.

“The first indicator of flood danger is if the rain continues non-stop for three days. Any areas which have three days of rain must be wary. Also, observe the colour of the water on the ground – if it becomes an orange or red colour,

then there is a possibility of floods and people may have to move to higher ground,” Mr Chatchawan said.

Meanwhile, the Thai Royal Navy Chief of Staff together with the Chief of the DDPM on Tuesday visited Phuket and Phang Nga to check on the DDPM’s preparations for the beginning of the southwest monsoon season.

Checks for readiness were carried out, and a demonstration rescue drill was held to show how to save people from drowning.

I N H ER LAST ACT AS Director of Phuket International Airport, Monrudee Gettuphan last Sunday (June 4) visited a passenger in hospital who suffered head injuries in a ceiling collapse at the airport’s Domestic Terminal last Saturday (June 3).

Buncha Sanguanam, 58, was sitting in the airport’s Domestic Departure Terminal waiting for his 3:25pm Nok Air flight to Bangkok when ceiling tiles and metal frames came crashing down on him.

Mr Buncha was initially taken to Thalang Hospital, but later transferred to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, where Ms Monrudee and other senior members of Phuket Airport management last Sunday assured him that Airports of Thailand (AoT) will pay for his medical expenses.

AoT, which operates Thailand’s six main international airports, had already arranged for a full refund on his flight ticket.

“Phuket International Airport’s insurance provider will take care of all medical expenses for the passenger,” one AoT representative from Phuket Airport told The Phuket News.

Buncha Sanguanam, 58, suffered head injuries in a ceiling collapse at the airport’s Domestic Terminal on Saturday. Photo: PR Dept Ms Monrudee declined to comment about her transfer to the position of Senior Executive Vice President of Airport and Aviation Standards, effective Monday (June 5).

“I moved to Bangkok today (June 5). Please ask the new (Phuket Airport) director,” was all she would say.

Phet Chan-charoen, General Manager of Don Mueang International Airport, will arrive on the island to become the new Phuket Airport Director this Friday (June 9), an AoT official told The Phuket News.

The Phuket News

Bus service to launch as ‘New Year’s gift’ THE PHUKET CITY DEVELOPment Co Ltd (PKCD) is looking to offer Phuket a New Year’s gift to usher in 2018 with the launch of the island’s first route of a fledgling island-wide bus service.

The consortium, which revealed its intention to bring a genuine bus service to Phuket last November, announced the news on Tuesday (May 30).

The “Phuket Smart Bus” project time will require B55 million investment to launch with 10 buses, Dr Phadet Jinda, one of the company’s co-founders said.

“All 10 buses will be ready by

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October,” Dr Phadet assured.

“Our goal for Phase II is to be fully operational with all 10 units (providing bus services) in January 2018 as the gift for Phuket people,” he said.

The air-conditioned, low-emission “Smart” buses will feature free WiFi, GPS tracking, CCTV, digital route information and signage, and entertainment TV screens. They will also provide spacious luggage compartment to cater to tourists and feature wheel chair ramps to allow easy access.

The B55mn system will also account for E-Ticketing, f leet-

management software and a bus control and service centre.

“Our objective is to respond to Phuket people’s demand to reduce traffic jams and accidents on the road, to increase the economic value of real estate along the routes and to provide routes connected to other forms of transportation (sea, land, air),” Dr Phadet explained.

An phone app will be launched to provide information about the bus services available, and which will provide a platform to learn about associated businesses and services in Phuket, such as hotels and tours.

The buses are expected to ready

by October, with the full service to launch by New Year. Images: PKCD The PKCD was formed by a group of Phuket business people in September last year with the goal of bringing progressive infrastructure developments to the island by working to support government

mega-projects.

To raise the funds needed to achieve such lofty goals, the PKCD holding company is to be listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Chutharat Plerin

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GENERAL MANAGER

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

A witness said the rider lost control as he attempted to overtake the 20-wheeler.

M-Slaz rider, 26, crushed A 26-YEAR-OLD THAI man died on Tuesday (June 6) when the motorbike he was riding on Chao Fa West Rd southbound in Wichit collided with car, causing him to fall under a 20-wheeled trailer truck.

Capt Eakkarat Chartphai of the Wichit Police arrived at the scene, opposite the Promphan store, soon after 3pm to find the truck stationary in the middle of the road.

Under the truck was the body of Jeerawat Chit-euea, 26. Nearby was Yamaha MSlaz motorbike and a crash helmet.

The truck driver, Raewat Phorleela, 33, was also at the scene.

Capt Eakkarat said, “We are investigating the incident. CCTV footage will be checked.”

Eakkapop Thongtub

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Drug suspect armed by ‘asking’ range for bullets The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

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olice say they have no action to take against a Phuket shooting range after it was discovered that an armed drug suspect acquired live rounds simply by “asking” for them.

The issue came to light after a team of Phuket Provincial Police officers led by Maj Ritthichai Chumchuay arrested Bannasorn “Beer” Tabpan, 34, from Tak Province, on Monday (June 5).

The raid, at about 3pm, was carried out after police received a tip-off that Bannasorn, who had previously been jailed on drugs charges, was back to taking drugs at his rented abode on Sakdidet Rd, south of Phuket Town.

Bannasorn was found in possession of two methamphetamine pills (ya bah) and 1.08 grams of crystal meth (ya ice).

He was also found in possession of an automatic hand-

The drug arrest revealed that any person can buy live ammunition from a gun range and take it home. Photo: Phuket Provincial Police gun, 14 rounds of 9mm bullets, seven rounds of .38-calibre bullets.

Bannasorn confessed that all items belong to him, noted Maj Ritthichai in his report.

“He told police that he brought the drugs from a man he named only as ‘Mr Bang’, who he said was a resident in Rawai,” Maj Ritthichai said.

“Mr Bang left drugs under

a tree opposite a motorbike repair shop on Kwang Rd,” he added.

Bannasorn also told officers that he bought the gun from an online shop via Facebook.

He added that he “asked” for the bullets from Kathu Phuket Shooting Range.

Col Akanit Danpitaksarn, a Deputy Commander and the Chief Investigator of the

Phuket Provincial Police, told The Phuket News on Tuesday (June 6), “We are looking into tracking down this ‘Mr Bang’ and we are certainly looking into this online gun shop selling firearms over the internet.”

However, regarding the live ammunition from a shooting range ending up in the hands of a drug suspect on Phuket’s streets, Col Akanit said, “There is no need to question Kathu Phuket Shooting Range further. Normal people can go to a gun range and buy bullets for use after their shooting session.

“If we have other suspicious issues, we will investigate them,” he added.

Meanwhile, Bannasorn was taken to Phuket City Police Station and charged with possession of Category 1 drug and illegal possession of firearm and ammunition without a permit.

Additional reporting by Eakkapop Thongtub

British man, 30, killed in Russian robbery fugitive arrested Muay Thai street crash PR MANAGER Natchaya (Nat) Sittiprasert 088 765 5881 pr@classactmedia.co.th

A RUSSIAN ARRESTED in Phuket is to be deported to his home country to face charges for the armed robbery of an apartment in 2013 in which he and his alleged accomplices made off with a reported 5.4 million rubles.

Evgeny Korovin, 26, was arrested in Phuket, but the date of the capture was not unveiled at a press conference in Bangkok last Thursday (June 1) led by Immigration Bureau Commander Lt Gen Nathathorn Prousoontorn.

Russian authorities alerted Thailand after learning that he had entered the country, Gen Nathathorn said.

Also presented to the press was alleged hitman Andrey Dyatkovskiy, “most wanted” by Russian authorities and Interpol for allegedly killing several people, reported the Bangkok Post.

Dyatkovskiy, 35, was arrested at a petrol station in

Gen Nathathorn explains the spate of arrests of Russians to the press in Bangkok. Photo: Post Today Roi Et on May 25 after his latest entry into the country on April 25.

He had fled police tracking him to Southern Thailand before moving to the Northeastern province.

Dyatkovskiy entered Thailand seven times, the last being in April, the press conference was told.

Fellow Russian Dimitrii Shkuratov, 29, was taken into custody at a hotel in Soi Sukhumvit 11 in Bangkok on May 19. He reportedly broke out of jail and attacked wardens in Russia.

Anatolii Samodov, 56,

was arrested at a Pattaya condo on May 22 after entering Thailand in June 2012.

Samodov was wanted for economic crimes involving state projects in Russia. He and other gang members allegedly threatened other bidders to pull out of auctions so he could win the projects, Gen Nathathorn said.

All four suspects will be deported to Russia, he added.

Dzyatkovskiy’s visa had been revoked while the other three had already overstayed at the time of their arrest, he added.

The Phuket News

A 30-YEAR-OLD BRITISH man died last Friday night (June 2) when he crashed his motorbike into a wall on Phuket’s famed Muay Thai street, Soi Ta-iad, at around 2:30am.

Capt Somkiet Sarasit of the Chalong Police confirmed that the man, Harry Isaac Hitman, crashed into a cement block wall and was dead at the scene by the time police had arrived.

“It is highly likely that Mr Hitman was driving too fast, lost control, and crashed into the wall. He wasn’t wearing a helmet,” said Capt Somkiet.

“The accident took place on Soi Ta-iad, about 50 metres from the junction with Chao Fa East Rd, close to the Home Mart hardware store.

“There were no eyewitnesses who saw the crash, but people found the man’s body in the road soon after it had happened,” he added.

Capt Somkiet explained that Mr Hitman held a valid UK driver’s licence for both

M r H i t m a n d i e d a f te r crashing into a wall on Soi Ta-iad in Chalong. Photo: Harry Isaac Hitman/ Facebook a motorbike and car and that he was in the country on a tourist visa.

“I cannot confirm how long he had been here or when he was planning to leave,” he said.

“All I know is that Mr Hitman was staying on Soi Ta-iad, but I do not know if he was here for fitness training, or how long he was going to stay.

“Alcohol and drug tests have been carried out at Vachira Phuket Hospital, but we don’t have the results yet,” said Capt Somkiet.

Shela Riva thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Poor plea for homes

PHUKET NEWS

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Rally against DMCR report of encroachment Premkamon Ketsara thaiassist@classactmedia.co.th

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huket Governor Norraphat Plodthong this week vowed to look seriously into resolving the problem of where entire communities of poor people may continue to live on the island without fear of forced relocation.

The news came after Gov Norraphat met with representative of more than 300 people from poor communities across Phuket gathered at Provincial Hall on Monday (June 5), calling for an update on requests for “Community Chanote” deeds.

“Community Chanote” deeds were introduced under the Democrat Abhisit Vejjajiva government in 2010 in order to provide poor communities across the country rights to live on and use government land for subsistence – but to never own or be able to sell the land. However, Community Chanotes were no longer supported or issued under the ensuing Yingluck Shinawatra administration.

A tourist photographs the sperm whale’s remains.

Sperm whale carcass found floating off beach More than 300 people from poor communities across Phuket gathered at Provincial Hall on Monday. Photo: Prawarit Musika In their call for an update to their plight on Monday, the villagers pointed out that they had already handed a formal written request to Phuket Vice Governor Siwaporn Chuasawad on March 20, when about 50 residents from 17 poor communities – all members of the “Phuket Community Network” – gathered at Provincial Hall.

That request asked for urgent action by Phuket Provincial Office in response to a report on April 19 by Wattai Chuchuern, who at the time was the Director of the

Management Division of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) Phuket Office.

Mr Wattai reported that at least six communities in Phuket should not be considered for a Community Chanote, as he claimed that all of the villagers seeking the community deeds were encroaching on protected mangrove forests or on private, or otherwise, already legally held land.

“The Acting Director of Phuket DMCR believes that six communities – Thasak, Koh

Millions lost in Facebook scheme OVER 30 MEMBERS OF a Facebook “Share Group” last Friday (June 2) filed a complaint at Phuket City Police Station against the leader of the group, who is said to be a local curry vendor, as she is alleged to have defrauded the group out of what police believe could amount to millions of baht.

The group filed the complaint at 8pm against Sirikarn Ruprohjeen, who is alleged to be behind the “Baan Waywa” Facebook pyramid scheme.

The complaint was filed after Ms Sirikarn closed all her Facebook and Line accounts after allegedly collecting some of the victim’s cash through an intermediate as usual on the first day of the month.

Maj Nattaya Supannapong, an investigator of the Phuket City Police questioned the victims to find that there over 90 people were involved in the group, some of whom live in other provinces and some even abroad.

“There are over 90 people involved in this scheme and at this stage we believe that between them they have lost several million baht,” said Maj Nattaya.

“Because there are many victims, and each were paying @thephuketnews

Victims file their complaints at Phuket City Police Station. different amounts into different schemes, we don’t yet know the exact amount,” Maj Nattaya added.

Ms A, one of the victims and a representative for the victims reporting the complaint, said, “The Tao (leader) set up the page ‘Baan Waywa’ at the beginning of this year and I have been paying money into the scheme since then.

“The group was running as usual until this month when she did not transfer the money to the ‘Luk’ (monthly recipient), so I tried to enquire about this via private messages. These messages were ignored and then her Facebook and Line accounts were shutdown.

“After realising this I started a Line group to gather information about this ‘Luk Shares’ group and started planning what I could do about it,” she said.

“I know that the leader of

this group (Ms Sirikarn) is the owner of a curry and rice restaurant in Phuket. She does not have a store, she works by delivery only.

“She managed to make this group known to many people… some are her customers, and they invited their friends and family to join, and it spread,” Ms A added.

Ms A explained that Ms Sirikarn had set up various payment schemes: daily, every two days, every 10 days, 15 days and monthly.

“I was personally cheated out of about B38,000 in an eight-day period, but in total Ms Sirikarn must have cheated people out of several million baht because there are different payment schemes and most us make payments daily. So there will be a lot of money lost,” Ms A said.

Eakkapop Thongtub

Phee, Ao Yon, Bang Rakmai, Hon Saithong, Thanit Thurakit Ruamsin – are not suitable for such ‘land living deeds’ (sic),” said the report.

“Most of the areas were settled near town and have grown into large communities. Some communities now include private businesses, some communities overlap other people’s land.

“These communities are all new and encroach on (already claimed) land and it must be checked how they got the land,” Mr Wattai wrote.

MARINE EXPERTS HAVE confirmed that a carcass found floating off Surin Beach last week was that of a sperm whale.

Lifeguards at Surin Beach reported finding the remains to Suchart Rattanaruengsri, Director of the Phuket Department of Marine and Coastal Resources’ (DMCR) Conservation Division, at 10am on May 31.

The remains were found floating about 500 metres off shore.

Director of the Public Health and Environment office of Cherng Talay Tambon Administrative Organisation (OrBorTor) Patsorn Visudthiwatcharakul together with Janevit Vanit, a vet from the Marine Endangered Species Unit at the Phuket Marine Biol-

ogy Centre (PMBC), arrived at the scene to find that the carcass had already been towed to shore by Wirun Chuea-saman, 48, head of the Surin-Bang Tao lifeguards using a jet-ski.

Ms Patsorn said, “Residents and tourists who had been in the area were warned to wear masks and to take a shower when they returned home as we were concerned that bacteria from the carcass may have spread.”

“The Cherng Talay OrBorTor were called and quickly buried what remained of the sperm whale,” she said.

Mr Janevit added, “It was the carcass of a sperm whale.

We collected some samples from the carcass to test at the laboratory so we can find what caused its death.”

Eakkapop Thongtub

Opinion 6

OPINION

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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CONTACT US

editor@classactmedia.co.th 076 612 550 KODCHANAT THINSEPON Editor

CHRIS HUSTED

Executive Editor

084 307 7408 execeditor@classactmedia.co.th Fifteen years working in news and covering local issues and events in Phuket, with 18-month hiatus spent working for the Brunei Times on Borneo. From Queensland, Australia; 10 years living in the UK before moving to Phuket in 2000. Degree in business management. Spare time spent sailing or with family.

MATTHEW POND

News & Sports Editor

editor3@classactmedia.co.th Originally from the UK; Has over six years experience as editor and reporter for Phuketindex.com magazine and website, and InPhuket magazine.

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Lifestyle Editor

editor1@classactmedia.co.th From Melbourne, Australia, Mark holds a BA from La Trobe University where he completed a double major in Anthropology and Media Studies.

He has over eight years experience as a journalist, photographer and editor for several magazines and newspapers.

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EDITORIAL

Making the grade

very now and then a little news story slips from view without attracting much attention, but appearances can be deceiving – sometimes these unnoticed stories allow us to peer into Thailand’s national psyche.

One such story appeared earlier this week when Education Minister Teerakiat Jareonsettasin announced that three subjects will be dropped from the Onet exam – the academic hurdles that students must pass in order to progress next grade – to “ease students’ burden so they don’t have to study too much for the exam”.

Among the subjects to be dropped is social science. The Minister was clear that students will still be required to study the subject but noted that, “the subject should be taught with emphasis on citizens’ duties in a changing social environment so they can apply what they

learn in real life”.

Adding, “I want social science taught in classrooms to focus on the duties of citizens and moral decency. The agencies concerned must establish a standard assessment criteria to regularly gauge students’ performance on those issues,” Oh dear. There was no mention of citizens’ rights and responsibilities, and no mention of the functions of government and its duty to the public. Instead, teachers have been ordered to teach the next generation what is expected of them and how they are to behave. That’s it, despite all the rhetoric about leading the nation forward, reinstituting a “revised” constitution and talk of elections next year.

Moreover, ensuring that “morality” is entrenched in the social science curriculum – of all subjects – while religion and culture (the other two

subject dropped) smacks of irony. Worse, the terms used seem to indicate that even the nation’s bastion of education fails to understand the basic differences between the study of “social science” and that of “humanities”.

Funnily enough, whether the Education Ministry knows it or not, economics – rated so highly by the current administration – is itself a social science.

This latest educational revision strengthens the tradition of maintaining a docile, uneducated voting public and further weakens any public understanding of how their own country works will go the way of the dodo.

The good news is that with Science retained in the Onet exams – along with reading, writing and counting – at least Thai school graduates will know what that means.

TOP 10 STORIES ON thephuketnews.com

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

British man, 30, dies in crash on Phuket’s Muay Thai street Ceiling collapse at Phuket Airport leaves one injured English woman, 68, fights for life in Phuket hospital after car accident kills son, husband Trio admits to bar girl murder Wild weather erodes beach north of Phuket Phuket Expat Finance: The Price of Learning Russian tourist found hanged at Phuket hotel Insurance to be compulsory for travellers to Thailand Two arrested over bar girl murder Frenchman found dead in Phuket hotel room

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HAVE YOUR SAY Take surf safety in your own hands

Re: Russian tourist drowns at Phuket beach How about being able to rent or buy an inconspicuous flotation belt that could, in emergency, be pulled up from the waist area to under the arms, and if more buoyancy is required, inflated via an air tube.

It would be some protection and allow buying some time if you are going to venture out into the deep. Could be sold along with soda by vendors walking the beach. Helmets protect motorcycle riders, flotation belts protect swimmers.

Rich 44 ..................................................

Great lifeguards

Re: Phuket lifeguards fly red flags for surf-danger warning This is what it takes to prevent drownings since the Thai/ Phuket government is too cheap to provide adequate funding for tourists protection. Lucky there are a couple good lifeguards in Nai Thon. I have seen these guys regularly standing at the water’s edge with whistles, keeping their eyes on stupid and careless

tourists, and taking matters into their own hands to protect people that have no idea about the ocean and its dangers.

This is unlike most other beaches (especially Kamala and Karon). Thumbs up to Nai Thon lifeguards!

Ben Pendejo ..................................................

Compulsory for who exactly?

Re: Insurance to be compulsory for travellers to Thailand Absolute rubbish. No way are they going to give us oldies who are over 70 any sort of health cover.

Marcher ..................................................

Earthly explanation

Re: All About Buddhism: The culture of karma I’ve encountered the same problem in the past with my TV changing channels by themselves. It wasn’t ghosts or spirits, it was my neighbour’s remote was the same frequency as mine!

Island Man ..................................................

Missing the point Re: Phuket consortium to

launch bus service as ‘New Year’s gift’ What a joke. The bus is not going to any of the tourist places such as Kamala, Patong, Karon, Rawai, Surin, etc. That is not solving any problems in regards to have cheap and reliable public transportation for tourists.

Tak ..................................................

being paid to churn out these ridiculous plans. Please, we don’t need a light rail system or the many years of traffic chaos its construction will cause.

We need reliable busses and a dramatic reduction in taxis.

Captain Jack

Wasteful plans

..................................................

Re: Phuket light-rail price tag jumps B9bn It angers me to see such massive amounts of money being used for something unnecessary. When we talk about infrastructure being important, that’s true, but concentrating so much on this outlandish project won’t benefit many and the cost will never be recouped. The estimated cost does not include the cost of six tunnels which will probably put the cost up way over B50 billion. Total waste of money.

Sue Yu2 B40 billion?! Think how many air-conditioned buses they could buy with that. This whole project is utter fantasy and I can’t believe people are still

Soon after they finish repairing the underpass they just built.

Pauly 44

Unwise actions

Re: Brit expat Danny Glass denies Phuket fatal reckless driving charge, seeks donations for legal help While I understand Mr Glass’ dilemma and anguish, he is doing himself no favours by making very public confessions as to his responsibility in the death, and secondly, attempting to fight the charge-also in as public a manner as possible which will only see him draw the ire of the court instead of sympathy. He’s heading down a very dark lane in a bad part of town. I’m wondering if he’s getting poor legal advice from an attorney with a wallet as main concern, not his liberty.

Somebody needs to intervene.

Christy Sweet

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

THAILAND NEWS

7

Killer ‘celebrity’ photo ire Immigration officials shunted after public outcry over images CHIANG RAI

A photo taken at Mae Sai immigration office shows Preeyanuch ‘Preaw’ Nonwangchai with a face mask flashing the victory sign next to an official last Sunday (June 4). Photo: Mae Sai Immigration Police

Bangkok Post

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wo senior immigration officers in Chiang Rai have been transferred to inactive posts following a public outcry over pictures of the suspects in the high-profile karaoke girl murder case.

Criticism flared after photos circulated online showing the three female suspects apparently relaxed and convivial, wearing make-up and posing casually with officers in immigration police custody.

The officers have been accused of giving them preferential treatment.

Preeyanuch “Preaw” Nonwangchai, Kawinta “Earn” Ratchada, and Apiwan “Jae” Satayabundit were arrested last Saturday (June 7) in the Myanmar town of Tachilek, accused of the murder of a 22-year-old karaoke bar worker Warisara Klinjui. They were then handed over to Thai immigration officers in Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district.

Another two suspects, Wasin Namprom, 25, and

Jidarat Promkhun, 21, were arrested on May 30.

The order to transfer the immigration officers was issued by Immigration Division 5 chief Maj Gen Bandit Tungkasanee to the Royal Thai Police (RTP). It was signed last Sunday (June 4), but the order was just released to the public on Tuesday (June 6).

Under the order, Lt Col

Rithikrai Karakol, deputy superintendent of Chiang Rai immigration office, and Capt Thawatsilp Boontanla, deputy inspector of the office, have been moved to the operations centre of Immigration Division 5.

Preeyanuch allegedly confessed to strangling Ms Warisara and dismembering her body. The victim’s body

Sentenced for lese majeste BANGKOK THE CRIMINAL COURT on Tuesday (June 6) sentenced Monta Yokrattanakan aka “Ying Kai” to seven years and six months in jail for lese majeste in claiming to be a royally appointed khunying (lady) and have a close connection to the palace.

Officials brought Monta, 61, from the Central Women Correctional Institution to the court on Tuesday for witness hearing.

Public prosecutors told the court that from May 2012 to August 2013 Monta had claimed on three occasions to be khunying and knew people in high places.

Police pressed the lese majeste charge against her on July 7 last year. She denied it.

Before the witness hearing on Tuesday, Monta told the court that she changed her mind and wanted to plead guilty in the case, so the court gave its ruling.

The confession prompted the court to commute @thephuketnews

Monta ‘Ying Kai’ Yokrattanakan reports to the Crime Suppression Division on July 8, 2016. Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya the jail term for her three lese majeste offences from 15 years to seven years and six months.

Monta was also charged with human trafficking in two other cases.

In one, she was accused of luring three girls from Mae Hong Son and Pathum Thani provinces to do housework for her from June 2006 to October 2010 without pay and days off.

She also threatened to ask police to arrest their parents

unless they agreed to work for her.

In the other, Monta was accused of luring another teenage girl from Mae Hong Son to work as her maid under the same conditions from May 2008 to November 2010.

Earlier she said she had brought the teenagers so they could receive proper education. Witnesses were being examined in the two cases.

Bangkok Post

parts were recovered from a shallow grave in Khon Kaen’s Khao Suan Kwang district on May 25.

The Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) insisted Preeyanuch had been involved with a transnational drug network, citing its investigation.

“Upon questioning, Preeyanuch denied [links to the

drug ring],” ONCB secretarygeneral Sirinya Sitdhichai said. “This is her right, but the ONCB is seeking information and evidence from Myanmar’s anti-drug agency to support [the accusation].”

Wirachai Petchrat, chief of Khon Kaen Central Prison, where the suspects have been held, said on Tuesday that Apiwan had tested positive for drug use. She admitted to taking drugs in Myanmar, he added.

Mr Sirinya noted the ONCB has shared with Myanmar authorities the information of an arrest warrant for a man believed to have helped the trio flee over the border. He was identified as Thawatchai “Kao” Om-chompu.

Meanwhile, Srisuwan Janya, sec­retary-general of the Association for the Protection of the Constitution, on Tuesday petitioned the ombudsman to launch a probe into the list of as many as 99 police officers who claimed to be involved in the arrests of the murder suspects.

He said he feared some officers who were not really

involved with the operation may claim to have played a part to further their promotion chances.

Deputy national police chief Gen Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said ordinary arrest documents contain names of officers involved, such as those who supervised, issued orders, carried out operations and took part in the investigation.

In principle, all officers involved must be named on the document since they have to be present in court as witnesses, said deputy police spokesman Kritsana Pattanacharoen. It could take about two months for police to gather evidence on the case and forward the investigation report to prosecutors, he added.

But Gen Srivara insisted such name lists cannot be used to ask for promotions.

Mr Srisuwan also said the use of police aircraft to transport the three suspects to Bangkok and to Khon Kaen was unnecessary, as it costs B150,000 a trip. The suspects were flown to Bangkok for the sole purpose of a news conference, he added.

8

THAILAND NEWS

Army top brass vows to end soldiers’ illicit arms trade BANGKOK MILITARY TOP BRASS on Tuesday (June 6) vowed to suppress illicit arms trade by some low-ranking soldiers who have been involved in stealing and selling state weaponry online and across the border.

Army commander-in-chief Chalermchai Sitthisart said on Tuesday that 12 soldiers and seven civilians were arrested for illicit trade in weapons via Line mobile application and Facebook.

He identified one of the arrested soldiers as Sgt Thanakorn Boonyakan of the army’s 1st Engineer Battalion in Bangkok’s Bang Khen district.

The sergeant and accomplices started with trading in both registered and non-registered guns before stealing explosives and bullets for such sales, Gen Chalermchai said.

Their arrest followed the discovery of eight M67 grenades and bullets in two parcels at a private courier’s branch in Bangkok last Friday (June 2).

Their customers mainly bought bullets and grenades, the army chief said.

Gen Chalermchai also admitted soldiers had teamed up with counterparts in a neighbouring country to supply arms to ethnic groups in another neighbouring country. He declined to name the countries.

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

DSI to counter-sue ‘Boy Unity’ could face agency in court BANGKOK Bangkok Post

Marines show dozens of assault rifles allegedly seized from the pickup truck of Flt Sgt Pakhin Detphong. Photo: Jakkrit Waeklaihong The general referred to the arrest of a Thai Air Force Flt Sgt Pakhin Detphong whose pickup truck turned over in Trat province, bordering Cambodia, last Saturday (June 3). The truck was carrying 33 machine guns, dozens of grenades and thousands of bullets.

The weapons were being sent to ethnic groups unable to buy arms from a legal source, Gen Chalermchai said.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwon said on Tuesday that illicit arms trade involved non-commissioned soldiers and security measures were tightened to stop the business.

Deputy Defence Minister Udomdej Sitabutr said Gen Prawit already ordered police to nail masterminds in the illicit arms trade and loopholes at military arsenals were being plugged.

Bangkok Post

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he Department of Special Investigation (DSI) may pursue a counter suit against a supercar importer who on Monday (June 5) filed a lawsuit against the agency, DSI deputy spokesman Worranan Srilum said on Tuesday (June 6).

The DSI was studying points cited by Panusak Techaterasiri, aka “Boy Unity”, in his lawsuit.

If any part causes damage to the DSI’s reputation, a counter suit will be filed against him, said Mr Worranan, who also serves as director of the DSI’s Special Case Management Centre.

If Mr Panusak’s lawsuit doesn’t contain anything that could shatter the DSI’s reputation, it won’t do anything in response to his legal battle as he has every right to sue the DSI, he said.

Mr Panusak on Monday announced he had filed a B50-million lawsuit against the DSI, claiming its raids to seize alleged illegal cars from his showrooms had dealt his company a heavy financial blow.

The two showrooms, run

A Department of Special Investigation official inspects supercars in a showroom near the Bangkok-Chonburi motorway in Suan Luang district. Photo: Patipat Janthong

by STT Autocar Co on Ratchadaphisek and Sukhumvit roads, have not been able to do business since May 23, following the DSI raids which Mr Panusak said were carried out unlawfully.

He insisted 34 luxury cars belonging to his company and impounded by the DSI were imported and priced properly.

He challenged the department to prove otherwise with solid evidence.

The vehicles are among 160 luxury cars seized by DSI investigators during raids on

showrooms across Bangkok between May 18 and 24.

The DSI suspect the car prices were falsely under declared to avoid high import duties.

Mr Worranan said that the cars were seized for inspection and if they are later proved above-board, the vehicles will be returned.

Mr Panusak believes he is being “bullied” in this case because, he claimed, he once fell out with a high-ranking official at the Justice Ministry, which oversees the DSI.

Deputy DSI chief Korrawat Panprapakorn insisted DSI officials adhered to the law when raiding the showrooms and the department did find irregularities with the car prices.

Asked to specify a time frame for the investigation into the supercar tax evasion scandal, Mr Worranan said it is still impossible to say when the case will be wrapped up because the DSI has to be extra careful in handling this case.

It must also work closely with the Customs Department.

Activist scoffs at Egat Krabi coal-fired power plant KRABI A LEADING OPPONENT of a proposed coal-fired power station in Krabi has dismissed the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand's (Egat) claim that construction of the plant will begin in the next four years, saying it is unlikely to get off the ground.

Prasitchai Nunual, coordinator of the Save the Andaman from Coal network, predicted plans for the controversial project will end up being scrapped as a result of changing energy trends in the next five years.

Fossil fuels will be obsolete, he said, speaking a day after Egat reiterated its intention to construct the

controversial plant near the coastal city.

However, Mr Prasitchai said he and his network would continue opposing the project if Egat presses ahead with a new Environment and Health Impact Assessment (EHIA) study. He also said current EHIA regulations didn’t provide transparency and credibility to the project.

“Egat should suspend the EHIA study until current regulations have been amended,” he said.

His group will only accept an EHIA study conducted under new regulations, he added.

Groups opposing the plant will meet the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment on June 16 to follow up on a bill on environment quality promotion. The bill is giving cause for concern, particularly a clause that allows a state agency in charge of a project to seek out a construction firm before an EIA or EHIA study is approved, said Mr Prasitchai.

Civic groups will call on the government to revise the clause, he added.

The Save the Andaman from Coal group also will demand the government set up an independent body to conduct an EIA or EHIA study for state projects, instead of hiring a private consultancy firm to conduct one, he said.

Anuchart Palakawongse

A protest is held against the Krabi’s coal-fired power station earlier this year. Photo: via Bangkok Post Na Ay ud haya , assist ant governor of Egat’s Project Community Relations and Environment department, earlier admitted plans for the Krabi plant may have to be adjusted and could be delayed for another four years, to comply with the government’s policy to increase renewable energy to 40%.

He said Egat needs to restart the project’s EHIA

study process from scratch, including the hiring of a new consultancy firm, arranging public hearings – which is expected to be complete in two years – and an approval process which needs another year.

A source close to Egat also admitted there was a high chance of the project being scrapped.

Bangkok Post thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

ASIA NEWS

9

Vietnam a taggers’ delight

Ho Chi Minh City turns into a canvas for local graffiti artists VIETNAM

Dan Nguyen, a California-born Vietnamese artist who moved to Ho Chi Minh City about five years ago, works on his graffiti at “3A Station”, a graffiti hub and street art area in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Hoang Dinh Nam/AFP

AFP

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hrouded by fumes and surrounded by spray cans, Vietnamese graffiti artist Kong conjures his latest masterpiece, a monkey clutching an aerosol, a coloursplashed act of rebellion in a communist country where the youth are expected to follow strict social mores.

“Young people want to break the rules,” said the 21-year-old, his fingers speckled with paint.

“We want to see more interesting things on the street or on the wall, so we do graffiti to express ourselves.”

Kong belongs to the growing ranks of graffiti artists in Ho Chi Minh City, where subcultures – BMX biking, skateboarding and breakdancing – jostle for space on the hipster scene.

For many the spray can is a tool of rebellion – illicit spraypainting is a way of defying restrictions in an authoritarian country where artists must have their work approved

@thephuketnews

before exhibitions, shows are routinely shut down, and works deemed controversial are replaced by a black “X” on gallery walls.

But Kong knows better than to dabble in politics, opting instead to paint playful images less likely to incur the wrath of censors.

Yet many artists like him believe there is something almost political in the very act of spraying a wall – and rejecting parents’ expectations

to find a stable job.

Kong fell into graffiti as a teenager, bored with online gaming and looking for a creative outlet.

But his parents didn’t approve, hoping instead he might find a steady office job.

“They still don’t like it... they think it’s a dangerous game and it’s bad for my health because of the spray paint,” he said with a chuckle.

Ho Chi Minh City is now a graffiti hotspot, thanks to

pioneering artists – both local and foreign – eager to fill blank wall space.

“It has become a part of Saigon, you can’t imagine Saigon without graffiti,” said independent curator Nguyen Nhu Huy, using the city’s former French colonial name.

Today, the city has several hubs for graffiti and street art, such as ‘3A Station’, a collection of colonial buildings that were reportedly occupied by the CIA during

the Vietnam War. The walls are bursting with colour and plastered with art – including Kong’s wide-eyed primate and a massive rooster wearing sunglasses – luring tourists taking Instagramworthy selfies.

Though not technically allowed, police tend to turn a blind eye.

And residents have come to love the free art for the most part, said Danny Daos, a local graffiti artist.

“The government doesn’t like us... They (used to say) that we make the walls dirty, but the people like us so we do our graffiti,” he said.

Yet even some seemingly tame images have been subject to vandalism.

One mural promoting environmental safety was defaced in the central city of Danang, though the artist doesn’t know who took issue with it.

Acts like these may deepen the reluctance of some young artists to take on controversial topics.

“In school they’ve been taught how to think and what to think, so I think there’s

some ingrained censorship for sure,” said Dan Nguyen, a California-born Vietnamese artist and DJ who moved to Ho Chi Minh City about five years ago.

But perhaps the biggest threat to the artwork today is a construction boom, which some public pieces have already fallen victim to.

“Now the city is growing up, development with a lot of building, a lot of security, so it’s really hard for us to paint masterpieces,” said Daos.

Hemmed in by towering high-rises on all sides, the colonial properties home to ‘3A Station’ have been sold to developers hungry to get their hands on the valuable downtown land.

Occupants have been told it will be demolished within weeks.

Though heartbroken, 3A’s coordinator Mai Do believes Ho Chi Minh’s graffiti culture will grow, even after her space is gone, as artists are finding new spots to showcase their work.

She added: “That’s a good way for them to survive.”

10 WORLD NEWS

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Route 66 revs back to life

America’s iconic road experiencing a nostalgia-driven revival UNITED STATES AFP

F

or decades, Route 66 captured the imagination of travellers the world over, offering a glimpse of a bygone era of American history, when people hit the road in search of adventure and a better life.

The two-lane highway established in 1926 and coined the “Mother Road” by John Steinbeck seemed to encompass the essence of America, threading through eight states from Chicago to Santa Monica.

But after it was decommissioned in the 1980s in favour of larger and faster thoroughfares, Route 66 appeared headed for the dustbin of history as the mom-and-pop stores, kitschy motels, diners and petrol stations that lined the road gradually shut down.

“Entire towns folded up and what had been a 4,000kilometre carnival became to a large extent a 4,000km ghost town,” explained David Knudson, founder and executive director of the non-profit

People walk past the ‘End of the Trail’ for Route 66 sign at Santa Monica pier in California. Photo: Frederic J. Brown/AFP National Historic Route 66 Federation.

In recent years, however, the iconic road that has been immortalised in countless books, movies, music (“Get your kicks on Route 66”), and a TV series has been ex-

periencing a nostalgia-driven revival that is attracting tourists from around the globe.

“Foreigners come to travel the road because it gives them a chance to experience America before we became generic,” said Michael Wal-

lis, a historian and author of Route 66: The Mother Road.

“It’s still the road of adventure because nothing on Route 66 is predictable,” he added. “I often say, ‘You know what you are going to get at McDonald’s ... but if you are on an old two-lane such as Route 66, you could go into a cafe, a greasy spoon, a pie place, a diner and you don’t know what you’re going to get.’”

Wallis said the fastest growing groups of tourists on Route 66 are Chinese and Brazilians, as well as Europeans drawn by the idea of the open space and the “road trip of a lifetime”.

“I have clients in their 20s and 70s who are fascinated by this road and everyone is looking for convertible Mustangs and Harley-Davidsons to experience it,” said Zsolt Nagy, who twice a year organises Route 66 road trips that cost up to $8,000 (B272,480) per person.

“Business is booming, the

roads are better, the signs are better, it’s coming back to life,” said Zsolt, who is from Hungary and who fell in love with the open road about 10 years ago when he travelled it.

“I think the legend is growing like crazy.”

Bob Russell, the Mayor of Pontiac, about two hours southwest of Chicago, said his small community of about 12,000 people is a prime example of the resurgent interest in the road.

“It has been an amazing transformation,” he said of the town which boasts four museums, 27 large murals and is considered one of the jewels of Route 66.

“There is a special aura for Route 66 to the overseas people because it represents freedom, the open road, your scarf around your neck and your hair blowing in the wind.”

D r iv i ng t od ay along stretches of the fabled highway – 85% of which can still

be travelled – one can see renovated motels with blazing neon signs, newly opened museums, quirky sights and souvenir shops galore.

There are also half-abandoned communities and crumbling ghost towns that echo Steinbeck’s epic 1930s novel of the great depression, The Grapes of Wrath, the story of a family that embarks on a journey along Route 66, fleeing the Oklahoma dust bowl for California.

And while the road for many may evoke images of a more innocent America, as encapsulated in Norman Rockwell’s paintings, Route 66 had a more sinister side for black travellers.

Half of the 89 counties that lined the highway were known as “sundown towns” where African Americans were banned after dark.

The author Candacy Taylor was researching a travel guide on Route 66 when she stumbled on The Negro Motorist Green Book, which listed safe places along the road – and notably revealed that the Ku Klux Klan ran Fantastic Caverns, a popular tourist attraction in Springfield, Missouri, and held cross burnings inside.

“All of the American narratives around what it means to hit the open road and the freedom and the symbolism that comes along with that was a dramatically different story for black people,” said Taylor, who encourages people to “look beyond the bobby socks, the Chevys and the chrome” to experience the real Route 66.

“It’s an American icon, just like Marilyn Monroe or Elvis,” she said. “But Route 66 is not perfect and shiny, there are a lot of cracks in that metaphor, in that illusion of what America is.”

thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

BUSINESS NEWS 11

Cape Sienna skybound HOSPITALITY

The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

T

he already impressive Cap e Sie n n a Hotel & Villas resort at Phuket’s Kamala Beach is undergoing a variety of improvements, including redecorating 70% of the entire resort’s guest rooms.

“In keeping with our aim to be recognised as one of Phuket’s most reputable and stylish 4.5-star resorts featuring great cuisine and creative beverage offerings we shall rebrand ourselves to Cape Sienna Gourmet Hotels & Villas from November 1 onwards,” explained a release issued by the resort last week.

“With this year’s renovation of rooms, restaurants and bars, we strengthen our emphasis on improving our product in order to achieve excellence in service and to enrich our guests senses with a unique place to cater for all senses.”

During the rebranding overhaul three room buildings

The Vanilla Skybar terrace will undergo a major refurbishment and re-open with a ‘Gastro Pub’ as the resort rebrands itself as the Cape Sienna Gourmet Hotels & Villas. will be completely renovated and new room categories created.

“We will redecorate all rooms in those buildings which represent 70% of all our rooms,” said the release.

“As rooms will be renovat-

ed by building the disturbance will be minimal,” it added.

“This year we are renovating our rooms and expanding the Vanilla Skybar terrace and adding a Gastro Pub in it.

Plum Prime Steakhouse will have the terrace covered so

that guests (and staff) don’t have to worry too much about the weather, explained Frank Dreist, ‎ General Manager at Cape Sienna Hotel & Villas.

“In addition, an external lift from our drop off in front of the hotel will go straight up

to PLUM and Vanilla providing easier access,” he added.

During the fit-out, the Plum Prime Steakhouse will be open for service indoors only, the outdoor terrace will not be available.

Meanwhile, the resort’s Vanilla Skybar will receive added terrace space, a stylish Gastro Pub with fantastic views as well as a wedding lawn.

The Skybar will be open for service indoors only for most of the time; a short complete closure will be announced closer to the date. As with the steakhouse, during the refurbishment the outdoor terrace will not be available.

The resort’s Sienna Rocks beachfront café bar closed on June 1 while the new “Sienna Rocks Cafe” is created. The venue is scheduled to re-open on August 31, while the Pool Restaurant buffet line will be expanded and undergo improvements of its own.

Noting the rebranding reflected in the resort’s name change, Mr Dreist explained, “Why Gourmet Hotel? Well, we believe that many guests

not just looking for a room and standard hotel fare…

They are looking for experiences, discoveries and they are looking for resorts which feature creative and innovative restaurant products.

“They are food lovers, or “foodies”, and when they go on holidays and explore the city or beaches at night, they want to experience great atmosphere and indulge themselves without having to worry too much about where to go, how to get there, traffic time and cost,” Mr Dreist pointed out.

“We offer this to them, with a very good variety of restaurants all featuring different products with one common theme – excellent tasty food with some of the best seaviews on the island for fair prices.

“We feel that there is still space and a niche for hotels which provide something different, creative and with great variety. Where guests who enjoy good Food & Beverage offerings will not get bored easily, where they really can chill out and enjoy their wellearned time off,” Mr Driest noted.

insurance back on the boil MICE Mart to bring B75mn boost Travel TOURISM MICE

THE THAILAND DOmestic Mice Mart, of which ‘Stage 1’ was held at the Duangjitt Resort & Spa in Patong last week, is expected to seal deals bringing more than 15,000 MICE travellers to Phuket and elsewhere in Upper Southern Thailand in the coming year, generating an estimated more than B75 million for the region.

Jirut Isaranggoon Na Ayutthaya, Acting Director of the Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), noted that the move to hold the Thailand Domestic Mice Mart in Phuket this year was part of a plan to boost revenues generated in the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions) industry nationwide.

“The TCEB target is to have 26mn MICE travellers in the domestic market nationwide generating B54 billion in fiscal 2017,” he said The TCEB has ramped up its efforts to create opportunities for buyers and sellers in the MICE market, Mr Jirut added, noting that the Thailand Domestic Mice @thephuketnews

The Thailand Domestic Mice Mart held in Phuket last week is expected to bring a B75mn boost to Upper Southern Thailand. Photo: PR Dept Mart in Phuket had attracted more than 200 participants from Southern Thailand as well as Thai Airways, Thai Smile, AirAsia and Bangkok Airways.

“This year we have expanded our cooperation with industry members in the Andaman cluster (Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Ranong, and Trang),” he said.

“We are also working with (industry members) in other southern provinces, especially those that support the MICE market well, such as Nakhon Sri Thammarat, Surat Thani, Chumphon, Satun and other buyers all around the country,” he added.

In line with the national government’s “Thailand 4.0”

policy, the event used online registration and promotion through websites and social media, he added.

At the opening ceremony on May 31, Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong said, “The Phuket Vision 20142017 (plan) aims to make Phuket an international tourism city based on long-term development, to prepare the island to comprehensively become a ‘Smart City’ and a ‘MICE City’, to be a model of potential development and ready for MICE industry.

“In fiscal year 2016 (Oct 1, 2015-Sept 30, 2016) Phuket had 142,000 MICE travelers generating more than B356.44mn,” Gov Norrpahat noted.

The Phuket News

ALL FOREIGN TOURISTS will soon be required to have travel insurance before entering Thailand under a proposal put forward by a committee of the Tourism and Sports Ministry, according to an informed source.

The plan has been proposed by a committee working on the development of Thailand as a wellness tourism hub, and will be forwarded for consideration by the national tourism policy commission.

The requirement should not be seen as a “hurdle” to

Foreign travellers queue at immigration on arrival at Suvarnabhumi airport..

Photo: Pattanapong Hirunard / Bangkok Post visitors to Thailand, the source said on Monday (June 5).

Under the proposal, the Office of the Insurance Commission would draft details on insurance policies and insurance distribution channels,

including the installation of automatic vending machines at international airports and border checkpoints.

The Tourism and Sports Ministry first proposed requiring foreign visitors to have travel insurance last year, explaining it did not have enough staff to supervise the safety and welfare of the growing number of tourists.

Hospitals have until now often been left carrying the cost of medical treatment of uninsured tourists injured during their stay in Thailand and who have no means to pay their bills.

Bangkok Post

12 BUSINESS NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

TAT zeros in on cheap tours TOURISM

Suchat Sritama

T

he Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is seeking ways to lure online tour agents (OTAs) away from selling only cheap “low quality” packages, with a revamped focus on attracting more Chinese free, independent travellers (FITs).

The move continues the government’s stance on eradicating tours which take advantage of visitors to Thailand, especially group tours from China, said a release issued

by TAT last week.

“The (previous) measures have been successful in protecting group tourists, but newer cases of low prices offered by online overseas agents in China have emerged, many aimed at the FIT sector.

“Attempts to address this led to a meeting of Thai tourism industry players in December 2016, which resulted in the formation of the Online Tourism Club (Thailand) in January this year,” the release noted.

The club, comprising 44 tour operators and attractions across Thailand, is working

Members of the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA) pose for a photo after announcing their efforts to counter online tour agents (OTAs) in China still selling ‘zero-dollar’ tours. with the TAT and related public and private agencies to stem the practice of the below quality online prices selling in the FIT market, especially in China.

The sector is perceived as having huge growth potential for Thailand and many FIT travellers search for tickets and deals via online channels.

Club President Nipon Boonmasuwaran said, “Some online travel agents are more interested in increasing website traffic and building databases in order to boost their company’s shareholding values than in offering memorable holidays to tourists planning trips to Thailand.

“By selling lower prices, they have undermined the industry creating unfair conditions for operators. Now, we need to tackle unscrupulous operators targeting FIT travellers,” he added.

Srisuda Wanapinyosak, the TAT Deputy Governor of Marketing – Asia and South Pacific, said, “The TAT is pleased to extend our assistance by helping to promote the standard pricing of the Club’s members via our communication channels.

“We will also organise roadshows to Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou, where online Thai tourism operators can meet with operators of 10

major Chinese travel websites to discuss cooperation. They will also sign a memorandum of understanding to demonstrate their commitment to promote fair competition.”

The TAT will promote the initiative by the Online Tourism Club (Thailand) at the Thailand Travel Mart Plus 2017 as well as through its five offices in China.

Meanwhile, more than 100 online tour operators in China are still selling cheap tour packages to Thailand despite the two countries’ efforts to solve the “zero-dollar tour” problem. The government’s crackdown on zero-dollar tours last October scared off

several operators from getting involved in illegal tour operations, but the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA) and the Professional Tourist Guide Association of Thailand say they have observed many operators, mostly in China, continuing to sell low-priced tour packages online.

“Some are still violating the agreement made by the two countries to crack down on zero-dollar tours,” said ATTA president Vichit Prakobgosol. “This unfair trade could cause huge damage to Thailand’s image.”

He said the tour operators attempt to sell packages lower than a minimum price at B1,000 per person per day.

“Travel operators sell cheap packages and will later charge about B9,000-10,000 from each tourist while they are in Thailand,” Mr Vichit said. “It is expected that a lot of Chinese tourists will be treated unfairly and risk being abandoned if they don’t pay for expensive optional programmes.”

Wirote Sitaprasertnand, president of the Tourist Guide Association, said about half of the Chinese tourists travelling to Thailand use travel compa-

nies. Each tour company touts intensive promotions to lure customers.

He said a few hundred tour companies involved in the Chinese tourist market are trying to encourage tourists by using cheap packages especially during peak periods falling twice a year.

“More victims are likely to be seen here during the peak periods for the China market, Chinese New Year in late January-early February, and the National Holidays known as the Golden Week in October,” Mr Wirote said.

“If we can prevent the selling of zero-dollar tours ahead of the high season, there should not be a big problem.”

According to the ATTA, more than 10,000 travel companies in China are involved in outbound travel. Of the total, 1,000 firms are supplying tourists to Southeast Asia including Thailand and 100 of them are online operators.

“The ATTA wants the government to be aware they are selling zero-dollar tours again.

If it is unable to deal with the problem, the zero-dollar tour problem can’t be truly solved,” Mr Vichit said.

Bangkok Post

Marriott tops AP Property Awards PROPERTY THE PHUKET MARRIOTT Resort and Spa, Nai Yang Beach, on Phuket’s northwest coast, is celebrating after winning major honours at the Asia Pacific Property Awards.

It was a hugely successful night for the resort, which opened in June 2016. In total, the beachfront property took home three awards.

“It’s been an amazing year since our resort opened in June 2016,” said David Ippersiel, General Manager, Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Nai Yang Beach.

“We are grateful to everyone for these awards, including our wonderful guests and brilliant associates, who have made our first year so successful.

“It is our goal to build a strong international reputation and to achieve excellence in everything we do. These awards will give us further confidence to develop innovative ideas and raise the quality of hospitality in Phuket. We thank you for your trust,” he said.

The awards won, with accompanying notes from the resort, were as follows:

From left: Roger Panow, Panchan Noimeecharoen and GM David Ippersiel hold the three awards.

Thailand’s Best Interior Design Hotel: Phuket Marriott Resort and Spa, Nai Yang Beach underwent an extensive, multi-million-dollar renovation prior to its opening, and the results are clear to see. The stunning low-rise property combines contemporary style with classical Thai elements to deliver the ultimate beach resort experience.

Thailand’s Best Wedding Venue: The spectacular and secluded beach on which the resort lies makes it the ideal venue for destination weddings. Couples can exchange their vows on the soft, silky sands, as the gentle waves of the Andaman Sea lap against the shore. Alternatively, indoor function venues are available.

Asia’s Best Wedding Venue: An increasing number of

couples from across the world are choosing Phuket’s shores as the setting for their dream wedding. On its stunning private beach, Phuket Marriott Resort and Spa, Nai Yang Beach can host many different types of ceremony, including Indian, Chinese, Western and Thai weddings.

“The Asia Pacific Property Awards celebrate the highest levels of achievement in all sectors of the property and real estate industry. Entries were received from as far afield as Australia, China, India, Japan, Thailand, and even Turkmenistan, so for Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Nai Yang Beach to have received these awards is truly an outstanding achievement,” the resort noted in a release.

The Phuket News thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The educational program that’s changing brains

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

15

Jamie Monk rediscovers Krabi’s stunning scenery

16

Local baker Anucha Jittanupong’s popular ‘Phuket Traditional Buns’ are his contribution to the island’s diverse street food culture.

SWEET STREET TREATS

Tasty pastries are a unique local take on a traditional dessert

Tanyaluk Sakoot reporoter2@classactmedia.co.th

P

huket-born entrepreneur and baker Anucha Jittanupong has been serving up his popular “Traditional Phuket Buns” at markets around the island for over two years. But despite the name, the delectable buns are baked according to Anucha’s own recipe, which was inspired by traditional Chinese pastries, and modified to suit local tastes and ingredients.

“I used a different style of dough, and different ingredients for the fill-

@thephuketnews

ings, which Thai people like, to make it a unique dessert for Phuket Province. The buns are an easy gift to give to friends and family which reflect the local Phuket culture,” says Anucha.

The round buns are filled with a variety of sweet and savory fillings, glazed with egg wash, topped with sesame seeds and baked until golden brown. You can pick one or two buns with of your favourite fillings to eat as you stroll around the market or grab a mix-and-match gift box of six buns to take home and share with friends and family.

“They’re perfect for Phuket people’s lifestyle, as they like desserts like kanom tao (steamed yellow bean cake) and kanom khai (egg cake) in the morning with their coffee,” says Anucha.

Anucha has experimented with various flavours since he began baking the buns for his market stall. At last count he had 11 flavours on offer, including sweet barbecue pork, red bean, corn cream, taro cream, Thai tea, ham and cheese, chicken with chilli paste, chocolate brownie, chicken with honey, purple sweet potato cream and green tea.

“My most popular fillings are the sweet barbecue pork and the taro cream, but I tell people that every flavour is worth trying once!” he says.

Anucha’s buns cost between B25-30 each. If you want to give them a try keep an eye out for Anucha’s stall at these markets: Lad Yai Market (Phuket Walking Street) on Sunday in Phuket Town, Chalong Night Market at Homepro on Tuesday and Chillva Market in Samkong from Wednesday to Saturday. Visit: facebook.com/ phuketbuns

14 CULTURE

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Love blooms for the late King Phuket is crafting half a million handmade flowers for the Royal Funeral

Shela Riva reporter1@classactmedia.co.th

P

huket Municipality is calling on local people trained in the craft of making dok mai jan (artificial flowers for funeral rites) to share their knowledge with others in an effort to produce half a million of the handmade flowers for the royal cremation day of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

The flowers, traditionally made from the fragrant wood of the auspicious kalamet tree (mai chan hom) which has been used for royal funeral urns and cremations pyres since the time of King Naresuan in the 17th century, are symbolic of love and respect for the deceased. Millions of dok mai jan will be produced across the Kingdom in the lead up to the Royal Funeral in October.

Ajarn Wanpen Seegaewkiaw was trained in the art of making

dok mai jan as a young student and has quietly retained the skill for decades. She has now been invited by the Phuket Skill Development Centre to pass on her knowledge to volunteers across Phuket so they can craft thousands of symbolic flowers in time for the late King’s funeral in October.

The Phuket News spoke to Ajarn Wanpen during a dok mai jan workshop held at the Limelight Avenue shopping centre in Phuket Town on May 27, where a large group of volunteers were busy making flowers using white paper.

“I like to think of us as like mother hens, we have formally trained in the art of making them, so we can pass it on to others when needed,” says Ajarn Wanpen.

“It shows love to the person who has died. It is an offering. It represents love, that is ultimately why we do it.”

Still commonly used in Buddhist cremations, the small white flowers – each requiring about

20 minutes to craft – have been a funerary custom in Thailand for centuries, but as is often the case, the tradition has adjusted to changing circumstances.

“At first it was made from mai jan hom (kalamet tree wood), but now that is very rare and expensive. So these days they are made more commonly from corn leaves, banana leaves, anything that is natural and doesn’t cause environmental harm,” she says.

“It doesn’t have to be paper, but with many months until the funeral we cannot use natural materials like leaves, as they would begin to go brown. But for the stem of the dok mai jan we are using mai jan wood,” says Ajarn Wanpen. “However, the main rule is to not use materials derived from plastics,” she adds.

The handmade flowers are normally placed on the coffin to be cremated with the deceased, but due to the national magnitude of the Royal Funeral, each province

Volunteers craft ‘dok mai jan’ flowers for the funeral of the late King Bhumibol during a recent workshop held in Phuket.

A bowl of ‘dok mai jan’ daffodils. will have designated locations for burning dok mai jan to express their love and reverence for the late King Bhumibol.

Phuket will have three locations for the ceremonial burning of dok mai jan: one at Saphan Hin, one at Wat Ket Ho in Kathu and one at Wat Manit in Thalang, Ajarn Wanpen explains.

“Over the next few months we are recruiting any interested volunteers to contribute – including tourists. Other organisations around Phuket, such as hotels and even the prison, are also holding seminars to teach people how to make them.

“Today we have two teachers here at Limelight teaching about 100 volunteers over three days how to make dok mai jan in the shape of daffodils. The end aim is to collect about 2,000 flowers as a result of the three days here.

“The total aim across Phuket is to make around 500,000,” Ajarn Wanpen says. “Although several million flowers are expected to me made across the Kingdom in time for the Royal Cremation in October,” she adds.

“All over the country they are making seven kinds of flowers: daffodils, orchids, roses, lilies, cotton roses, Chinese roses and miniature Chinese roses. Here in Phuket, for the King’s funeral, we are making daffodils, as daffodils were one of the King’s favourite flowers during his time spent studying abroad.”

Volunteers must be careful not to compliment the beauty of the flowers – they should not be called “beautiful”, as doing so may suggest you desire an object meant for the dead.

“They can, however, be called ‘elegant’ (ngarm),” notes Ajarn Wanpen.

“They also cannot be given to any living person or used for any purpose other than the funeral. It can only be given from the maker to the deceased,” she added.

“Also, they should not be brought inside houses,” she pointed out. “It is considered bad manners to do these things.”

For interested volunteers, the next seminar open to the public will be held at Training Building 3, Phuket Skill Development Centre in Srisoonthorn, Thalang at 9am-4pm on June 12-14. Please contact Mr Praphan Maneechot on 086 368 7035 before June 10. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

EDUCATION 15

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

UWCT pioneers brain training Students with learning difficulties reap rewards of innovative program Mark Knowles editor1@classactmedia.co.th

U

nited World College Thailand (UWCT) in Phuket is the first and only school in Thailand to offer the groundbreaking Arrowsmith Program.

Aimed at helping children overcome learning difficulties, the program is the culmination of more than thirty years’ work by noted psychologist and author Barbara Arrowsmith-Young.

Based on the theory of neuroplastic­ity, the program aims to rewire and retrain the brain to effectively process and interpret information through the repetition of targeted cognitive tasks. Each task is designed to strengthen the neural networks underlying a particular cognitive area – such as auditory and visual memory, problem solving, reasoning, numeracy and comprehension.

The premise of the Arrowsmith Program is that the weaker cognitive areas that contribute to learning difficulties can be strengthened through cognitive exercises. Once the source of the learning difficulty is addressed, the learner’s ability to perform complex tasks will also be improved.

The Phuket News recently spoke to Hugo Moore, UWCT’s Arrowsmith Program Coordinator, about the theory behind the program, how it was established and the benefits students are experiencing.

How long has the program been running and how many students are now participating?

We began a pilot study of the program with one student in August of 2015. The benefits soon became apparent, and when the program was publicised, families from across the continent and beyond began to contact us. Families have relocated to Phuket at the beginning of every term since specifically to join the program. We now have 14 students enrolled and continue to receive regular inquiries.

How was the program established and what was involved?

The idea was initiated by our school’s founder and Chairman Mr Klaus Hebben. The school, and its parent company Thanyapura, reflect Klaus’ interests in education, mindfulness and meditation, sport, exercise, diet and healthcare.

A student completes a cognitive training task. @thephuketnews

When Klaus read Norman Doige’s best-selling book The Brain That Changes Itself he first became aware of Barbara ArrowsmithYoung’s life and work implementing the science of neuroplasticity to change the lives of students worldwide.

Klaus and I discussed and agreed that to establish the program and I subsequently attended training in Toronto with Barbara and her team. This in turn led to the certification of UWCT, and myself, enabling us to provide the program for the first time ever in Thailand. Since then, we have recruited and sent another teacher, Hayley Condron, for training – enabling us to expand our provision further still.

Have you been involved in similar programs for special needs students before?

I was fortunate enough to gain my teacher training and qualifications at Cambridge University, graduating in 1996. I have spent the majority of my career in the field of Special Education at schools in the UK, Sri Lanka, Bangkok, Australia and now Phuket.

I am grateful to say that the past two years have changed the way I see Special Education forever.

The Arrowsmith Program has enabled dramatic results for students at UWCT with a diverse range of learning difficulties, such as dyslexia and Asperger’s syndrome, that I had not even imagined possible, until now.

How did parents initially respond and how did you identify students that might benefit?

The majority of parents who have enrolled their children were aware of the Arrowsmith Program. They had been searching for a school in the region that provides these cognitive training exercises and were excited and relieved to have found it here in Phuket.

Determining a student’s suitability for the program is always done on a case-by-case basis – in consultation with parents, teachers, the Head of School and myself.

A suitability checklist is available from our website which can provide parents with an initial indication before contacting myself for further discussion.

Please explain a bit about how the program works into the regular curriculum?

All students are individuals and designing each personalised Arrowsmith schedule is done with their well-being, personal interests and future aspirations as the starting point. The full time program requires a commitment of four 40-minute training sessions per day. Achieving permanent physical change to the brain is a process that requires time, commitment and concentration over many repeated sessions. Much like going to the gym

From Left: UWCT Arrowsmith Program Coordinator Hugo Moore with Arrowsmith Program Founder Barbara Arrowsmith-Young and Arrowsmith Program Teacher Hayley Condron. and building muscles.

Once cellular change has occurred to the brain, it cannot be forgotten or reversed, so life changing results are possible but parents and students need to put some of their regular school subjects on hold whilst we make these changes happen. Once a student has completed the program they return to the main school curriculum without the need for additional learning support, technological aides or compensations.

What are some of the improvements you’ve observed in students since starting the program?

As we approach the end of our second year we are delighted to say that teachers from across all subject areas and age ranges have reported extremely encouraging improvements from our Arrowsmith students. Unsurprisingly, those students who have been participating the longest have showed the most dramatic results.

However, perhaps of even greater importance is the difference obvious to everyone that knows these students – in terms of their personality, confidence and happiness.

They have turned their experience of school and education around 180 degrees. From repeatedly being unable to cope with academic demands, experiencing self-doubt and feelings of low self-esteem, these pupils are now rightfully proud of their accomplishments.

Do you think there is a growing demand for this kind of program in Phuket?

I believe awareness of Arrowsmith Program in Phuket has grown as a result of Barbara’s recent visit and the achievements of our students at UWCT. We have experienced an increase in inquiries and student enrolments during the first quarter of 2017. Research indicates that the number of students in school populations who have a Specific Learning Difficulty is around 10%. We have no reason to expect this number to alter significantly in the foreseeable future.

However, I would say that we have only just started to tap the potential of using the science of neuroplasticity to assist these students.

Where can parents learn more about the program?

We welcome enquiries from all parents interested in finding out more. The Arrowsmith Program page of the UWCT website and our Arrowsmith at UWCT Facebook page are both excellent resources for potential families to find out more before contacting myself for further discussion. We currently accept suitable students from grades 3-12.

For more information email: admissions@uwcthailand.ac.th or hugo.moore@uwcthailand.ac.th. Call +66 (0)76 336 076 or visit: uwcthailand.net/stories/ student-support/arrowsmith-program or facebook.com/ arrowsmithuwct/

16 EXPLORE

The Emerald Pool attracts crowds of holiday-makers all year round.

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The breathtaking view of Krabi from the summit of the Tiger Cave Temple.

Emerald pools and temple views Returning to Krabi after a decade, Jamie rediscovers its stunning sights JAMIE’S PHUKET Jamie Monk editor@classactmedia.co.th

It really is a wow moment!

Once you’ve caught your breath, the view takes your breath away again.

Limestone karsts line the roads.

K

rabi Town is just 60 kilometres across the bay from Phuket Town, but more like 160km, or maybe a little more, by road. But for this trip we left home early and were driving over the bridge from Phuket at 8:30am, and by 10am, we were getting close to Krabi Town. There’s some great scenery in the Phang Nga/Krabi region so it’s a very nice drive.

I wanted to see the local town, so we chose an inexpensive hotel called Just Fine near the river and the night market. Rooms were B1,000 per night and it was indeed... just fine. There were only two places I certainly wanted to see: the Emerald Pool and the Tiger Cave Temple (named for the tiger paw prints found inside a cave on the temple site). On our first afternoon we drove towards the Emerald Pool about one hour south-east of Krabi Town on the way towards Trang. We arrived at the entrance to the Emerald Pool about 1:30pm. The entry fee was B200 for me, B20 for my wife, and B10 each for the kids. Some people get angry about this dual pricing. There were a lot of cars parked and the entrance was like a little market with food stalls and clothes and souvenir stalls.

There were two paths from the entrance to the Emerald Pool. One was marked as being a quicker 800 metre walk and the other a 1,400m walk along a mangrove walkway. Of course, we chose the longer, more interesting route. I only saw a few foreign tourists there, although I know this place is on many tours. The walk to the Emerald Pool was very nice, the area is full of pools of varying hues and waters which are full of minerals.

For dinner we wanted something more than street food and found a restaurant called Anchalee just over 1km north of the town centre. Had lots of southern Thai food on the menu and lots of seafood. The prices were quite decent, not too cheap, but it turned out the portions were huge and we over-ordered. Everything very tasty, so it’s recommended and we’ll probably eat here again on our next Krabi trip.

Now, day two of our trip was meant to start with a walk up to the Tiger Temple just outside town, but I think the food the night before was a little too good, I ate

The Blue Pool can be seen on the walk to Krabi’s famous Emerald Pool. too much and had stomach pain in the night, culminating in a little sickness, so we took the day very easy. Our hotel was right opposite a good coffee shop, so I got a latte in the morning and we just took a bit of a drive around, stopped for a little walk by the river and then headed to the “shell cemetery” also known as “fossil beach” which is between town and Ao Nang beach. I thought it would be an interesting stop to show the kids some geology, but it was high tide and the signs indicated that it was best to visit at low tide, so we skipped it.

When driving back from the Emerald Pool the day before we’d seen signs for a hot spring waterfall, a bit closer to Krabi Town, so we went that way. The hot spring is just east of the small town of Khlong Tom. Quite a few cars there when we arrived, but it’s less busy than the well-known Emerald Pool. It was quite nice! Me and the kids took the plunge.

The water was hot! A sign recommended only 20 minutes in the water and that was certainly enough.

We headed back to town, but the weather was against us with dark clouds and some light rain falling. Nevertheless we took a walk along the river to the south and found another night market with lots of food stalls. On a drier evening we’d have eaten there. Krabi, with the town built along the river, is a nice town. There’s also quite a few statues and pieces of art along the river. We liked it and again wondered why we’d never been after all these years!

The rain started so we headed to the hotel, only a few minutes away, but ventured out later for dinner at a place called Baitoey, recommended by the hotel staff – it was good, and a little shopping as I needed a pharmacy and we’d seen a bookshop on the riverfront, but by 9pm it

had closed already. There was also this old, dusty looking bar on the riverfront, looked a bit like a wild west saloon and the only customer was a sleeping motorbike taxi driver.

We still wanted to tackle the Tiger Temple. I’d call this a family achievement. The first thing to say is – if you want to hike up to the Tiger Cave Temple, start early! And carry water. We started walking at 7:20am, but it was already hot. A sign tells you there are 1,237 steps to the top and right from the start it’s steep.

The step numbers are painted on posts on the way up. 100, 200, 300, only a thousand more? Signs warned of monkeys and we saw a few, but they did not seem aggressive. The views started to get good around the 900 step mark. It’s only when you get to the top that you see the 360-degree views with the mountains and the amazing karst landscape of Krabi. It really is a wow moment! Once you’ve caught your breath, the view takes your breath away again.

We were all quite proud to have conquered this hill! Great views, very peaceful, and we spent about half an hour at the top, resting and enjoying life. It took us about 1 hour 10 minutes to walk up.

Hot and sweaty, but I had carried plenty of water and we’d started early.

Our little Krabi trip ended with lunch back at Baitoey restaurant by the river where we’d eaten the night before, and with us wishing we’d not taken a fourthfloor room in a small hotel with no elevator! Up and down four floors after the Tiger Cave Temple. Ouch.

Krabi – we’ll be back soon! You’re not so far from home!

Jamie Monk blogs about all things Phuket at his website: jamiesphuket.com thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

BOOKS 17

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

A novel 20 years in the making

Arundhati Roy’s new book owes much to her lifelong political activism Claire Cozens

A

rundhati Roy’s eagerlyawaited second novel went on sale on Tuesday (June 6), two decades after her prize-winning debut The God of Small Things propelled her to global fame and launched her career as an outspoken critic of injustice in her native India. Roy became the first Indian woman to win the prestigious Booker Prize with her 1997 work, which sold around eight million copies and turned the young author into a star of the literary world.

In the years that followed, she turned to non-fiction writing, taking on issues ranging from poverty and globalisation to the conflict in Kashmir in essays that were often highly critical of India’s ruling class. Her campaigning earned her the wrath of many in the Indian establishment and has clearly influenced her latest novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, which she has said took 10 years to produce.

Publisher Penguin says it takes the reader “from the cramped neighbourhoods of Old Delhi into the burgeoning new metropolis” and on to the troubled Kashmir Valley and the jungles of central India, wracked by a long-run-

@thephuketnews

Arundati Roy became the first Indian woman to win the Booker Prize with her book ‘The God of Small Things’. ning Maoist rebellion.

“There was this huge sense of urgency when I was writing the political essays, each time you wanted to blow a space open, on any issue,” Roy told The Hindu daily in an interview published last week.

“But fiction takes its time and is layered... It is not just a human rights report about how many people have been killed and where. How do you describe the psychosis of what is going on? Except through fiction.”

Roy was lauded at home when she became the first resident Indian to win the Booker for her novel about twins growing up in the southern state of Kerala. Previous Indian winners had lived outside the country.

The Times of India in an editorial titled “Novel Indian” quoted a “prophecy” by James Joyce – “The East shall wake the West awake/And ye shall have night for morn” – which it said “seems to be coming true”.

Roy recalled in a recent BBC interview how she was suddenly on the cover of every magazine – until she spoke out against India’s nuclear tests a year later.

“Not that I had a say in it, but I was being marketed as this new product of the global India,” she said.

“And then suddenly the govern-

ment did these nuclear tests... And I wrote this essay condemning the tests, and at that point the fairy princess was kicked off her pedestal in a minute,” she added.

Roy, now 55, went on to become one of India’s most famous and polarising authors. She was briefly jailed for contempt of court over her activism and still faces a sedition charge for challenging India’s right to rule over the disputed Kashmir region in 2010.

She argues that India’s economic boom has made a small minority rich

on the suffering of the poor, and has spent time researching the work of Maoist rebels fighting for land rights in the resource-rich jungles of central India.

Her criticism of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been particularly fierce. She once called for India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be put on trial over the deadly anti-Muslim riots that occurred in the state of Gujarat in 2002, when he was chief minister.

Modi has been dogged by accusations he turned a blind eye to the violence, but a Supreme Court-ordered investigation cleared him of any wrongdoing in 2012.

Internationally, Roy remains a huge draw, lauded both for her activism and her writing, and the reviews for her second novel have been broadly – though not universally – positive.

The Financial Times said it was “as remarkable as her first”, and promised her admirers would not be disappointed, while The New Yorker called it a “scarring novel of India’s modern history”.

But some critics were sceptical about her attempts to introduce her political causes into her fiction. “‘Ministry’ is two decades of polemic distilled into one book, with a superstructure of fiction to hold it together,” said The Economist. “It does not work.”

AFP

18 ISLAND SCENE

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The entire Class Act Media Team pose for a photo in front of the company's Kathu office.

CLASS ACT MEDIA CONTINUES GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH IN 2017 The entire team from Class Act Media took the occasion of receiving their new distribution vehicle to pose for a group photo outside the company's Kathu Headquarters.

Pictured are staff from the company's English, Thai, Russian and Chinese newspapers – The Phuket News, Khao Phuket, Novosti Phuketa and Puji Dao Xinwen – as well as the team from The Phuket News TV, Live 89.5 Radio and administration, accounting and distribution departments.

Laguna Phuket Senior Assistant Vice President – Services, Anthony Loh, meets some of the students.

A total of B560,800 was donated to the Phuket Panyanukul School.

LAGUNA PHUKET AND TOON FROM BODYSLAM PRESENT DONATION TO SCHOOL On Monday (June 5), Laguna Phuket management visited Phuket Panyanukul School for children with disabilities to present a donation raised from the “Laguna Phuket presents Big Body+ Charity Concert 2016” which was cancelled in August 2016 due to unforeseen circumstances. The total amount of B510,800 was raised. But, much to the school’s astonishment, Thai rock star and Bodyslam rock band vocalist “Khun Toon”, made a surprise appearance and presented a personal donation of B50,000 to the school.

Executive Chef Alfonso De La Dehesa and his team accepting the award.

BANYAN TREE’S WATERCOURT AWARDED BY THAILAND TATLER Watercourt Restaurant at Banyan Tree Phuket has been awarded Thailand Tatler Best Restaurants 2017 in the category of “Resort’s Best Restaurants – International”. The team from both the kitchen and dining room accompanied Executive Chef Alfonso de la Dehesa on stage to accept the award.

From left: Francois Pelotti, Alexandre Bystrzejewski, Nishant Grover, David Ippersiel and Roger Panow.

PHUKET MARRIOTT RESORT & SPA CELEBRATES ITS FIRST ANNIVERSARY Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Nai Yang Beach held a monk blessing ceremony to mark the occasion of the resort’s first anniversary last Thursday (June 1). Resort staff, management, associates and executives from TCC Asset World joined in the meritmaking ceremony on the day. thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Class Act Media PR Manager Natchaya Sittiprasert with Khun Toon from Bodyslam.

From left: Half Marathon Winners Danchai Pumkong and Elle Brookes and Full Marathon winners Inoue Tomomi and Nakajima Hiroki.

ISLAND SCENE 19

From left: Managing Director of Laguna Phuket Ravi Chandran, Governor Norraphat Plodthong, TAT Phuket Office Director Anoma Wongyai and staff signal the start of the Marathon.

From left: Scot Toon and Paul Poole.

LAGUNA PHUKET MARATHON SEES RECORD TURNOUT OF OVER 7,000 COMPETITORS The Laguna Phuket Marathon 2017 saw a record turnout of almost 7,000 runners over the two-day event, the marathon and half marathon proved the most popular events, and with more than 1,600 in the marathon distance alone, it was the largest field of marathon runners ever at the event. Live 89.5 presenters Chris and Donna broadcast live from the event and even landed a live interview with famous rocker Toon from the band Bodyslam.

From left: Colin, Ti and Bird.

Team Dusit Thani. @thephuketnews

The Kalapattana School Team.

The team from Bangkok Hospital Phuket were on hand to provide first aid for the marathon.

20 EVENTS

FRI

9 JUN

Pool Competition at Expat Sports Bar The competition at 9pm - Expat Sports Bar at the Expat Hotel Soi Taipan Patong. See map at www.expathotel.com

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM competition. And, local organic produce and products will be for sale. Come see the excitement and celebrate local cuisine. Entry fee is 300 baht for adult and 100 baht for children under 12. Proudly sponsored by The Phuket News and Live 89.5.

sauce, mint sauce. Reservation recommended 350 baht P.P., shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

TUE

11 JUN

Bodega Italian Brunch

TEX MEX

Experience our exquisite ‘Italian Sunday Brunch’, which began on May 7 and runs weekly throughout the season. Choose from a wonderful variety of dishes, including lobster spaghetti, foie gras on saffron risotto, grilled suckling pig, live pizza and pasta stations and much more. Email for reservations at Bodega & Grill: Paneenart.Pengraksa@angsana.com

TEX MEX BUFFET IN KARON AND PATONG TWO CHEFS! A feast for everyone to join, mouthwatering Fajitas, crunchy Tacos, delicious Mexican Spring Rolls, creamy Guacamole, Jalapeños, Tomato Salsa and sour cream. Salad, Beans, Corn, Cheese and Onion.

Nachos and spicy Ground Pork. + MORE. Two Chefs Live Band on stage from 8 pm to late. www.twochefs. com Karon 076-286-479, Patong 076-344-914.

Mussels night @ Shakers

WED

Traditional Sunday Roast Angus O’Tool’s Karon Beach

Steak Night

14 JUN

Lunch or dinner served from 2pm. Your choice of either roast beef, chicken, loin of pork or leg of lamb served with roast and boiled potatoes, three fresh vegetables, Yorkshire pudding and gravy. Only B350 per person which includes a free glass of house red or white. Opposite Centara Karon Resort. See: otools-phuket.com

Go Live Sunday Seafood Brunch ‘June Oysters Special’

Delicious special cuts of beef are offered especially for meat lover. Reservations, HYATT REGENCY PHUKET RESORT, fnb.phuhr@hyatt.com, 076 231 234 # 5106.

13 JUN

Live Sports at Expat Hotel

1.2kg mussels served with french fries, your choice, your style: nature, marnière, provençale, garlic & cream or Thai style. Reservations recommended 295 baht P.P., shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

SAT

sauces, bread, buns and garlic bread. Reservation recommended. 395 baht P.P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

NRL, AFL, Soccer, Rugby Union. Any live sport, we will show it. Expat Hotel, Soi Taipan, Patong. www.expatsportsbar.com

SUN 10 JUN

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Sunday Brunch It’s Sunday, Enjoy the most family friendly brunch of the island !! Wide selection of Thai & international dishes - Foam party for the kids – All sports events covered at Champions and more for the parents!

Only 499 THB !!Served From 12.00 until 15.00 Booking strongly advised. Tel: (0) 76 303 300. Reservations, Novotel Phuket Surin Beach Resort.

The Banyan Tree Brunch experience offers a generous selection of live fresh, local and imported seafood with exceptional lobster dishes, Japaneses starters, mouth-watering meats, Asian wok and Western grill treats. Gourmet cuisine, exceptional service, Live Jazz and tranquil surroundings, The Banyan Tree Brunch has something for everyone!

Every Sunday 12.00 - 15.30, Prices start from THB 2,800 net per person. Reservations: Banyan Tree Phuket, fb-phuket@banyantree.com, 076 372 400.

MON

All you can eat BBQ Ribs night 6PM – 11PM: All you can eat BBQ Ribs served with salad buffet, potato salad & choice of sauces.

Reservation recommended. 350 baht P.P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

THU

15 JUN

12 JUN

RETRO NIGHT Iron Chef Kids at QSI The First Annual International Student Cooking Competition and Food Fair will take place on QSI’s campus in Kathu on Saturday, from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm. Student teams from across the island will construct two signature dishes which will be judged by two celebrity chefs. Many local restaurants will be providing samples to taste while you watch the

All you can eat Sunday Roast Buffet Beef, Pork & Lamb – Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas, Carrots, fried mushrooms, grilled tomatoes – Yorkshire pudding – roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes – gravy, mushroom

All you can eat BBQ night 6PM – 11PM: Beef, Pork, Chicken, Burgers, Sausages, Prawns & Squids, salad buffet, Choice of potatoes and

THE TWO CHEFS BAND WILL TAKE YOU BACK TO THE 70s & 80s WITH SOME OLD GOODIES AND TAKE REQUESTS! EVERY THURSDAY @ TWO CHEFS KARON – PATONG – KATA CENTER. CHEF’S RETRO SPECIAL: FLAMBEED RIB-EYE STEAK 300g, ONLY 495 BAHT; BANANA FLAMBE, ONLY 95 BAHT. www.twochefs.com Karon 076-286479, Patong 076-344-914, Kata Center 076-330-065 COME FOR THE FOOD | STAY FOR THE FUN!!

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THU

EVENTS 21

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

WED

15 JUN

12 JUL

MIDSUMMER PARTY PIWC Luncheon June PIWC Luncheon June will be held at Divino Tapas Restaurant in Boat Avenue, Cherng Talay. Registration starts at 11.30 am followed by Lunch at 12.15 pm Please send your booking to info@phuketiwc.com, attention Carole Dux Price for members is 600 baht and for guests 750 baht.

A traditional Swedish SMÖRGÅSBORD with a large selection of cold and hot dishes + desserts. Pickled herrings, Smoked salmon, Prawn cocktail, Roast beef, Grilled “Gravad lax”, Watermelon and Parma ham salad, Potato salad, Beetroot and feta cheese salad, Lobster soup, Meatballs, Pork cracklings, Blueberry pie, Chocolate Fountain with fresh fruits, Lemon cheese cake, Coconut balls. All this and more for only B795!

Children just B395 (under 3 years free). Two Chefs’ Famous House Band will be performing an ABBA Tribute and Swedish Classics. Games - Quiz - Fun - Gifts – Prizes. Reservations: Call Two Chefs Kata Center on 076 330 065.

SAT

24 JUN

Architect & Engineering Exhibition 2017 Welcome to the best exhibition in Phuket and Andaman coastline for construction tools and materials and architectural design & décor items comprising a wide range of products and technology. This is a great opporturnity to introduce construction materials and decorative items to the Phuket and Andaman area.

Venue: Second floor, Royal Phuket City Hotel. More information please visit www.pic-phuket.com or info@ pic-phuket.com. Proudly sponsored by The Phuket News and Khao Phuket.

EVERY DAY

Chalong Bay Experience

by Marriott Resort Phuket Merlin Beach 1950 THB net price per person. 3pm - 5pm leaving at 2pm. Including transportation, distillery tour, cocktail class and Thai pantry dinner with Chalong Bay. Call for reservations on: 076 335 300.

FRI

23 JUN

Rotary Club of Patong Beach Lunch meeting at Days Inn, Patong - every Friday except first week of every month. Starts at 12pm. Dinner out at selected restaurant - every first Tuesday of every month. Start at 7pm. Fund Raiser Quiz Night at Aussie Pub, Kamala - every last Wednesday of every month starts at 7.30pm. For more info please visit rotarypatong.org

Kajonkiet International School (KIS) presents ANNIE Saturday, June 24 at The Simon Star Cabaret Show Samkong. Doors open 9am. Tickets are 400 THB, including a buffet breakfast. Annie is the classic story of an orphan girl searching for her parents in New York City. Filled with upbeat songs and loveable characters, Annie is a musical to be enjoyed by the whole family. CALL: 089 652 7599 to reserve your tickets. This event is sponsored by The Phuket News and Khao Phuket.

FRI

30 JUN

La Gritta’s Discovery Menu Take your taste buds on a culinary tour through some of the finest Italian flavours. Chef Patrizia has created a six-course discovery menu consisting of the appetiser, main course and dessert, priced at 1,590 THB++ per person. The terms and conditions are subject to change without prior notice. Reservations, lagritta@amari.com 076 292 697.

Laguna Phuket Hospitality Challenge 2017

MANNY PACQUIAO AUTHENTIC GLOVES

7 Nights 7 Themed Dinners at Rim Talay

The second annual Laguna Phuket Hospitality Challenge – Charity Golf Tournament will take place at Laguna Golf Phuket. The event sees hospitality professionals from Phuket and surrounding areas come together at the award winning golf course. To register your team, please visit www.lagunagolf.com/phuket or email golf@lagunaphuket.com for more information.

Proudly sponsored by The Phuket News, Live 89.5 and Khao Phuket.

Bring your passion to reality for the authentic boxing gloves signed by “Manny Pacquiao” up for silent auction and the winner will be announced on June 30, 2017 on Swissotel Resort Phuket Patong Beach’s Facebook page and all proceeds will be donated to “The Destination Kids Foundation”. For enquiries or about bids please contact: Facebook: www.facebook. com/SwissotelPatong Email: events.phuketpatong@ swissotel.com Call: 076 337 000.

Make each night unique! Enjoy our themed dinners with the cool sea breeze. World of Curries @790 THB++, Thai & International Buffet @790 THB++, Seafood Night @980 THB++, Ribs, Wings & Rings @770 THB++, Butchers Night @market price, Surf & Turf @950 THB++, Thai Seafood Gala @980 THB++. The terms and conditions are subject to change without prior notice. For reservations, rimtalay@amari. com or 076 340106-14 #8027.

@thephuketnews

MISCELLANEOUS

DAILY EVENT UPDATES ON

22 TIME OUT

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Crossword by Myles Mellor & Sally York 1. The Canary Islands were named after which animal?

2. How many players are there in a netball team?

3. On a menu what is Bombay Duck?

4. Which food is to blame for most cases of salmonella?

5. The song ‘Yellow’ gave which band its first top-five hit in the UK? Answers below, centre

SUDOKU

Easy

Across 1. Doom partner 6. Grill residue 9. Mickelson, to friends 14. Zodiac sign 15. Anonymous Wade opponent 16. Hawk’s haven 17. Passes over 18. Backwash producer 19. Renders blind, in falcon training 20. Tennis great 23. Metered praise 24. Showy events 25. Trawlers’ nets 27. Hit with a paddle 30. Gp. with crude interests 31. July 4th reaction 32. Far from flexible 35. One of Adam’s boys 39. Tennis great 43. Giant fair 44. Lofty home 45. Couple’s adjective 46. Again, in different form 49. Argue over a price 51. Central German city 54. Prepare eggs in a way 56. Famous JapaneseAmerican 57. Tennis great 62. Away from center

64. Atty. group 65. Lose successfully 66. Sister of Clio 67. Playground user 68. Become fixed 69. Visited again 70. Biblical ending for speak 71. Mattress supports Down 1. Amorphous food 2. Gimlet flavoring 3. Brief notice of departure 4. Sandinista Daniel 5. Blowout on the court 6. Distinctive quality 7. Daytime dramas 8. Munich man 9. Temporary occupant 10. Center of a hurricane 11. Common refrigerant 12. Squiggly Spanish symbol 13. Positive replies 21. One needing rehab 22. Certain snake 26. U.N. agency 27. Reference work, usually

28. Elaborate lie 29. Tan 30. Fish market feature 33. What rodents do 34. Milieu for axels 36. Site to speak your piece 37. Last Hebrew month 38. Recitation accompanier 40. Follow one’s feet 41. Nothing, to Caesar 42. Warmth 47. Limited 48. Young figure 50. Roadway material 51. Bearer of a dozen roses, maybe 52. Make accustomed to 53. Trivial amounts 54. Wood-soled footwear 55. Joker player Ledger 58. It may be tempted 59. Excel fodder 60. Entrance into a mine 61. Eyesight enhancer 63. When a plane is due in, briefly

Solutions to last week’s puzzles:

Answers to this week’s Pop Quiz: 1) Dogs; 2) Seven; 3) Fish; 4) Chicken; 5) Coldplay

GOT YOUR NUMBER

ISLAND VIEW

This week in history

2

June 9, 68 AD The Roman emperor Nero commits suicide, after quoting Homer’s Iliad, thus ending the Julio-Claudian dynasty and starting the civil war.

4

June 10, 1990 British Airways Flight 5390 lands safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit causes the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There were no fatalities.

minutes today sees more photos taken than by all of humanity in the 19th century.

minutes is all it takes for silence to become awkward.

June 11, 1184 BC Trojan War: Troy is sacked and burned, according to calculations by Eratosthenes.

26

items the average woman packs in her suitcase that she’ll never need.

June 12, 1994 Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle “Ron” Goldman are murdered outside Simpson’s home in Los Angeles. Her estranged husband, O.J. Simpson is later charged but acquitted by a jury of the murders.

600

disruptive apes overran Xianfeng village in China after a nearby monkey park was closed due to lack of funding.

June 13, 313 AD The Edict of Milan, signed by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Valerius Licinius granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, is posted in Nicomedia.

1 billion

US Dollars is the estimated cost-benefit of the trees lining California’s streets, by fighting pollution and saving energy.

Source: Uberfacts

June 14, 1789 Mutiny on the Bounty: HMS Bounty mutiny survivors including Capt William Bligh and 18 others reach Timor after a nearly 7,400km journey in an open boat.

Angry clouds head for Surin Beach. Photo by Paddy Plage Got an unusual or particularly beautiful picture of Phuket?

Email it to execeditor@classactmedia.co.th

June 15, 2012 Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to successfully tightrope walk directly over Niagara Falls. Source: Wikipedia thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Jobs

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CLASSIFIEDS 23 The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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Jobs

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FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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CLASSIFIEDS 25

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Trades & Services

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

ADVERTISING SERVICES

CLEANING SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

FISHING CHARTERS

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

MARINE SERVICES

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Trades & Services

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

classifieds@thephuketnews.com

MOVING SERVICES

MARINE SERVICES

STORAGE Reserve Your Storage Space

Call 076 29 29 09

or visit mystorageasia.com

 Sizes to Suit all Budgets  Personal & Business Storage  Motorcycle Storage  Left Luggage Service  We Sell Boxes  Storage Insurance Inclusive

Secure, Clean & Cost Effective Self Storage Jungceylon Shopping Center, Patong, Phuket

TRAINING

HOME DECORATION

ADVERTISE HERE

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CLASSIFIEDS 27

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Buy&Sell

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

BOATS, YACHTS FOR SALE Sell 1/2/3 engine speed boats

3 engine speedboat: Length 13.5m; Width 3.4 m; Capacity 45 passengers + 3 crew. Front seats. 2 engine speedboat: Length 11.6 m; Width 2.83 m; Capacity 32 passengers + 3 crew. Front seats. 1 engine speedboat: Length 8.1m; Width 2.40 m; Capacity 15 passengers + 3 crew. All boats are in good condition. Prices start at 600 000 THB. Vladimir, sales@joydive.asia, 084 182 8685.

Motorboat for sale

Superb “Bayliner 215” motorboat with trailer built in 2010 and fully maintained throughout. Full service record. 650,000 baht O.N.O 650000, Barry Daniel, Fisherman Way, Chalong, Phuket 83100, baz_gunner2000@ yahoo.com.au +66843053974.

Long Tail Boat For Sale

Ready to go “Long Tail Boat” with or Without Captain (Thai) Get special price, please call 085 781 9167 (English) Bangtao Beach, Phuket, B275,000, giorgionaef@aol.com 085 781 9167.

Boating deal of the year: 7.5m baht (reduced from 10m baht)

Due to serious health reasons, the owner must part with his beloved 80’ tour boat.

CAR FOR SALE New wiring throughout, power outlets, transformer and voltage meters. New upholstery throughout bar and enle Honda Jazz 2009 tertainment area. Engines & generator fully reconditioned t sa n e g r & serviced. All maintained to European standards. Ideal U 1500cc Auto boat for quality day trip business. beachsando1@gmail.

57,000km. One owner since new. com 080 695 3933.

Regularly serviced by Honda. Tax and Insurance until the end of June and available now at right Steel boat for sale offer. Reduced by 40,000 bht, REDUCED to 330,000bht 32 metre steel boat for sale. Built o.n.o, Andy +66846909144, andysmalster@gmail.com 2012, 2 x Cummings engines, 2014 Nissan Juke For Sale 10hrs work only. International 2014 Nissan Juke, one owner, full REG. Excellent for live-aboard history, leather interior, rear sensors, or ferry. Price 6MB. Contact: call Joe 087 8918912 or climate control. Perfect Phuket runemail joe@similan-divers.com about, only 82000km. 530,000, soiana56030@gmail.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES com, 0950 924 729

Beauty Salon with Equipment

For Sale, Nai Harn Beauty Salon with Equipment & lease, B290,000. Salon Equipment replacement cost is more than B300,000. All equipment shown as new. Must view to see excellent opportunity to purchase Salon for extremely good price in prime location. Call Nok for details 098 017 8818.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES Restaurant set up for sale

A fully equipped restaurant in the highly sought after Boat Avenue mall in Laguna.

Stainless steel kitchen, Wi-Fi, bar counter, service area. Ready to go in days. Email: jukeboxphuket@gmail.com 081 090 1608.

Looking for investor / partner

Looking for investor / partnership for Patong beach front location to start with Japanese and Indian restaurant.

Narin, narinpga@gmail.com 081 826 9390.

CAR FOR SALE Toyota Corolla Altis 1.8G VVTI

2013 - 35,000km - Automatic White - CD Radio, Air-con, Alloys Excellent Condition, Only used for school runs. 525,000, Duang, Royal Phuket Marina, gavinmullins@hotmail.com 083 093 9724. @thephuketnews

CABLE TV PULSE TV. ASIA’S No.1 EXPAT TV

140 channels (HD & SD) in English, French, German & Thai. All Premiership & Euro Leagues live plus all your favorite Soaps & Series from back home. ON-Demand Movie/TV Series library with over 700 of the latest titles, more added daily & with our CATCH-UP Facility (Records all Channels for instant Playback) you’ll never miss a show. This is not kodi – Our high quality set-top boxes come pre-loaded with our own in-house developed App backed up by our own high-speed Asia based Servers & Online Support Network. PULSE TV, sales@ pulse-tv.net +66(0) 99 316 6212.

FINANCIAL, LEGAL Bangkok law firm in Phuket

The Bangkok law firm PUGNATORIUS Ltd. provides its foreigner-focussed legal support and assistance through a trusted partner law firm in Phuket. For a protected corporate structure in full compliance with the law. For a comprehensive due diligence which truly lives up to its name. For a most efficient hotel business licensing process. For a more competitive design of the property development. The PUGNATORIUS advantage is badly needed at a place where foreign investments are typically built on sand. Protect your investment in paradise.phuket@pugnatorius.com, (00) +66 22 072 647

CAR FOR SALE Convertible

Mercedes CLK 200 Cabriolet W-209 Brabus Package - seat 4. Excellent condition and fun to drive. 37,400km.

1,199,000 Bht. Eng - Thai 094 695 3536 / 063 992 3226.

GARDEN, PATIO ITEMS Tiya’s Hammocks new shop offer

Native Habitat Phuket - Tiya’s Hammocks new shop location now open opposite Tesco Lotus Extra Samkong, Phuket Town near Fascino Pharmacy. Come now to try both Luxury and Colorful hammocks and pick your favorite ones. Perfect for a gift, souvenir, your own home or villas, resorts and beach clubs for your guests. Open Tue - Sun 10:00 to 19:00. Mention this advertisement to get extra discount 5% on top of our standard discount table.HammockPhuket@yahoo.com, 089 600 0041

MEMBERSHIPS Loch Palm Golf Membership

Lifetime Loch Palm Golf membership for sale. 400,000 baht, the Loch Palm transfer fee of 72,000 baht will be shared equally between the buyer and seller. sales@ joydive.asia

Phuket Country Club Golf Membership

Golf membership for sale, includes transfer fee of 60,000 THB. 450,000, David, dsgrabham@yahoo.co.uk 087 881 7545.

Life Time Family Membership

Blue Canyon: 750,000 THB includes 140,000 transfer fee.

Loch Palms: 425,000 THB includes 72,000 transfer fee.

Tanita, 094 695 3536 / 063 992 3226.

MOVING SERVICES Looking for a Moving Company?

With over 15 years of experience Bigmove Phuket is the number 1 provider of moving and shipping in and out of Phuket Thailand. We provide storage in a state of the art clean, secure, storage facility located centrally in Phuket. www.bigmovephuket.com 081 797 5377.

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Buy&Sell

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

PROPERTY FOR SALE

MUSICAL Colin Hill is now offering:

Live Music: Solo, acoustic, easy listening, to full event band. Professional, quality, legal live music for any budget. Guitar lessons: Beginner to very advanced. Guaranteed fast results. Also Bass lessons to intermediate level. Home School tuition: English, Geography, History, Social Studies grades 7—10. Qualified Secondary School Teacher with Diploma of Teaching.

English language tuition: For Thai students or adults. www. colinillyhill.com / 089 777 3063 / illy@3bbmail.com.

PUBLIC NOTICES Notice To The Public

Mr Anuchit Aomthonglang whose photo appears, Position was Customer Service Representative is now no longer employed by Go Vacation Thailand (DER Asia Tour Co., Ltd.) as of June 1 2017.

Go Vacation Thailand would like to state that it does not take any responsibility for this person’s actions.

Ms Sarochinee Urachuern, 849 Worawat building 7th floor, Silom Rd, Bang Rak 10500, kunchlipa.u@ go-vacation.com, 022671202, 022671128

OTHER SEARCHING FOR PAUL VAN DIJK

Searching for Paul Adraan van Dijk. The executors of the estate of Adraan Geurt van Dijk are searching for Paul Adraan Van Dijk, formerly of New Zealand (aged about 57 – born 15 June 1960 or 15 June 1961). Paul is believed to be residing in Thailand. Please contact the executors’ solicitor by email: nick@hjc.co.nz

REAL ESTATE SERVICES e Urg

nt

Need condo issues resolved?

We can help with condominium and estate-related, developer, management, non-compliance, Juristic Person issues. Structure (by-laws) register at land dept, provide CJP services, in-depth advice and organize, AGM/EGMs. Email : development@amsasean.com

PROPERTY FOR SALE LAND NEAR WATERFALL FOR SALE

Prime Kathu land with panoramic views and quiet location. Star ts from 400sqm. Perfect for private Villa. Close waterfall with more land plots and different beach!!! Start from 2.5 MB, K. Pam, Phuketmyhouse@gmail.com +66 (0) 94 829 3619.

WEBSITES, IT For Sale: hoteldealsphuket.com

PHD has 125,000 pages indexed in Google and an average of 22,000 page views per month!

See stats image. Also see the selling points on the link below. Quick sale: 33.000B!, Mark, mr.m.hopkins@gmail.com

PROPERTY FOR SALE HOUSE FOR SALE/RENT IN RAWAI

Land 620 sqm. 2 story with 4 bed & 2 Bathroom, fully equipped kitchen, 4 Air-con, big tropical garden with swimming pool, car park, Wi-Fi. In a very quiet area. For long lease 70,000 Baht/month. Email: harrij@loxinfo.co.th 11.9 MB Negotiable, Harrij@loxinfo.co.th 089 731 0283.

LUXURY GERMAN POOL VILLA

URGENT SALE BY OWNER: Luxury Villa, Floor Area 420m2 – Land Area 800m2 (Approx.), High perimeter wall with sliding gates, 6 Bedroom, 7 Bathroom, Maid- & Guest-App, Saltwater Pool with Jet-Stream, Spa with Sauna, Roof Top Jacuzzi & Massage Room, Chanote Freehold - Can be sold with holding company, Price: 18.9 mio Bath. Tel.: 062-9851024 Sandra Grunewald, 68/124 Kwang Road., 062-9851024.

COMMUNITY

PROPERTY FOR SALE LAND FOR SALE IN RAWAI

4 Rai, 2ngn, 64tlw, total 7.456sq.meter. chanotte title. Near Shell Museum, 3 minute to Rawai Beach. Great for project. already have electric and road. Email: harrij@loxinfo.co.th 36 MB, Harrij@loxinfo.co.th 089 731 0283.

Beautiful Land in Rawai For Sale

Beautiful mountain view with option of sea view land of 742m2 for sale in Rawai with chanote title. For more information contact 085 790 2021.

PROPERTY FOR RENT

Long term luxury Villa

Luxury 2 bed villa available for long term rental 10 minutes from Patong with outstanding sea views from B95,000 per month. We have other villas available for shorter rentals. Contact Justin 084 242 6952 (Eng) or Tan 094 596 2558 (Thai).

PROPERTY FOR SALE

4 bedroom house in Chalong

4 king bedrooms (one with ensuite, the others with dedicated bathrooms), 5 bathrooms (1 with a bath, the other showers), Living room, Morning room (lounge/diner), 2 studies, Home cinema, 7 seater, DVD/CD library, 2 carports, 3 separate entrances (+ 5 French windows, a total of 8 exits).

Property is at the end of a quiet Soi near Big Buddha, no passing traffic. It overlooks a stream and jungle. The garden is 12 years old with bananas, papayas, mulberry bushes, cherry bushes, flowering plants and shrubs and several palm trees. There are frequent bird visitors…2 birdbaths. Just a few minutes drive from Tesco and Villa/Home Pro on Chao Fa West. Only 12 min drive to Central or big Tesco/Big C/Makro. 16.9MB (negotiable). Area of the site: 137.9 square wah (approx 560 square metres). To view, call 081 415 5522 or email m.allen.phuket@gmail.com

5 BED LUX SURIN VILLA FOR SALE

URGENT SALE BY OWNER: Reduced from THB28.9m to JUST THB16.750.000! MUST SEE! My luxury lake-side 5 bedroom pool villa is within a secure gated community and is only 5 minutes walk to Surin & Bang Tao beaches. A MUST SEE Villa, requiring a little upgrade, but is a TRUE bargain for anyone looking to enter Phuket’s most exclusive property market. Call owner(Cass)NOW on 0925 710 770 for viewing, or visit my web ad for full details: www. hoteldealsphuket.com 16.750.000, Cass, 0925 710 770 thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

SPORT 29

End of a dry spell BADMINTON

Bangkok Post

R

atchanok Intanon ended her title drought with her second Thailand Open crown at Nimibutr Stadium last Sunday (June 4).

The 22-year-old top seed again proved her superiority over Busanan Ongbamrungphan, claiming a tough 21-18, 12-21, 21-16 win in an 84-minute final of the US$120,000 (B4 million) Grand Prix Gold tournament.

R at cha nok also be at Busanan to become the first Thai women’s champion at the national open in 2013.

Ratchanok’s last victory came at the 2016 Singapore Open, her third successive Superseries win after the India Open and the Malaysia Open, nearly 14 months ago.

Having failed to defend her three Superseries titles in April, this victory should be a big boost for Ratchanok’s confidence as she now turns her focus to the $1mn (B34mn) Indonesia Open Superseries Premier event next week.

Meanwhile, Busanan, who had to settle for a runner-up

@thephuketnews

Sports Authority of Thailand Governor Sakol Wannapong (left). Photo: via Bangkok Post

Thailand finally gets its MotoGP MOTOGP Ratchanok Intanon with the Thailand Open trophy. Photo: via Bangkok Post spot for the third time, should take heart from her impressive performance that proved the 21-year-old is edging closer to the world’s top 10.

Busanan was also beaten in last year’s final by Japan’s Aya Ohari.

Chayanit Chaladchalam and Phataimas Muenwong’s bid to keep the women’s doubles title in Thailand failed at the final hurdle as they lost to Greysia Polii and Apriyani

Rahayu of Indonesia.

The fifth-seeded pair, cheered on by a relatively small but vocal group of Indonesian fans at Nimibutr Stadium, won the title match 21-12, 21-12.

Thai shuttlers will now prepare for the Indonesia Open, which will be held in Jakarta between June 12-18.

Ratchanok, seeded eighth in Jakarta, will have a tough opening match against Saina

Nehwal. The unseeded Indian lost to Busanan in the semifinals last Saturday (June 3).

Nitchaon Jindapol will face Kim Hye-Min of South Korea, Busanan will meet a qualifier, while Pornpawee Chochuwong will have a tough opener against fourth seed PV Sindhu of India.

Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk will meet Rajiv Ouseph of England in the first round of the men’s singles.

THE SPORTS AUTHORity of Thailand (SAT) announced on Monday (June 5) that it had reached an agreement with commercial and television rights holder Dorna Sports to stage MotoGP races in the Kingdom for three years, starting next year.

The deal was made during a meeting between SAT Governor Sakol Wannapong and Dorna Sports executives

at the weekend in Italy.

The 2018 race in Thailand will take place from October 5-7 and is expected to be held at Buriram International Circuit.

The event will be organised ahead of races in Japan, Australia and Malaysia.

Dorna Sports will soon send the SAT a formal letter of confirmation.

There will be 20 MotoGP races next year including three new venues – Thailand and Kazakhstan and Finland.

Bangkok Post

30 SPORT

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

International domination Japanese athletes take top podium places at Laguna Marathon MARATHON

Top three overall results in all distances

The Phuket News editor3@thephuketnews.com

M

ore than 4,000 runners lined-up last Sunday morning (June 4) to run the Marathon and Half Marathon distances at the 12th Laguna Phuket Marathon.

With a record turnout of almost 7,000 runners over the two-day event, the Marathon and Half Marathon proved the most popular and with more than 1,600 in the Marathon distance alone, it’s the largest field of Marathon runners ever at the Laguna Phuket Marathon.

Flagged off at 4am, Marathon runners enjoyed the beautiful course and quiet lanes in the North of Phuket, the rolling hills, Sirinat National Park and running along Bang Tao beachfront and finally running through the grounds of Laguna Phuket to finish at Laguna Grove.

In the lead group early on was Thai ultra-distance specialist Sanya Khanchai who, after a seventh place finish in the 10.5

Nakajima Hiroki, winner of the Marathon at the 2017 Laguna Phuket Marathon. kilometre last Saturday (June 3) stepped up to his favoured Marathon distance, but it was Japanese runner Nakajima Hiroki who stole an early lead and at the 10.5km split was more than 12 minutes ahead of the second placer.

Nakajima went on to extend his lead further and finish in a time of 02:34:57.6, beating last year’s winning time by almost three minutes, and more than 30 minutes ahead of second place finisher David Escolar

Ballesteros (ESP). Cheng-Ya Sha (TWN) finished third.

After a slow start Spanish athlete Zigor Iturrieta finished hard in fourth, just 50 seconds off the podium.

In the female race the early leader was Sabine EggerWeickhardt (AUS) but as the temperatures soared Japanese long-distance specialist Inoue Tomomi reigned her in and was the runaway winner in a time of 03:10:34.6. Ana Ferreira (PRT), a full 20 minutes

back, finished second ahead of Martyna Jakobczyk (POL) who finished in a time of 03:38:19.6 In the Half Marathon, last Saturday’s 5km winner Rattakarn Lamanee (and last year’s 10.5km winner) stepped up and was amongst the early leaders but it was fellow Thai runner Danchai Pumkong who lead to the half way point and went on to extend his lead and run out the win in a time of 01:19:37.6.

Danchai also finished second in last Saturday’s 10.5km and won the Marathon at Laguna Phuket Marathon in 2012.

Thailand’s Danchai Pumkong won the Half Marathon distance at the 2017 Laguna Phuket Marathon.

Picking up his pace in the second half of the race, Rattakarn came through for second ahead of Thirapong Yongthio (who finished second behind Rattakarn in last Saturday’s 5km), making it a Thai 1, 2, 3.

Elsewhere in the Half Marathon race, Paralympic Marathon champion and world-record holder, Mr Eitan Hermon from Israel placed sixth in the highly competitive 40-49 age group, and finished 13 overall.

In the female field, Phuketbased triathlete Elle Brookes

Marathon (Male) Nakajima Hiroki (JPN), 02:34:57.6.

David Escolar Ballesteros (ESP), 03:05:16.6 Cheng-Ya Sha (TWN), 03:09:03.5 Marathon (Female) Inoue Tomomi (JPN), 03:10:34.6 Ana Ferreira (PRT), 03:31:06.0 Martyna Jakobczyk (POL), 03:38:19.6 Half Marathon (Male) Danchai Pumkong (THA), 01:19:37.6 Rattakarn Lamanee (THA), 01:23:51.7 Thirapong Yongthio (THA), 01:24:24.4 Half Marathon (Female) Elle Brookes (AUS), 01:38:38.4 Patteera Ruengjai (THA), 01:45:04.2 Benjamas Phujit (THA), 01:45:53.2 10.5km (Male) Marcus Ong (SIN), 00:36:24.4 Danchai Pankong (THA), 00:37:59.0 Mark Honsa (PHI), 00:38:32.2 10.5km (Female) Immogen Simmonds (GBR), 00:39:41.1 Ling Er Choo (SIN), 00:43:56.8 Claire Adorna (PHL), 00:47:52.1 5km (Male) Rattakarn Lamanee (THA), 00:17:38.0 Thirapong Yongthio (THA), 00:18:44.3 Samuel Canavan (AUS), 00:19:28.7 5km (Female) Hayley Newman (AUS), 00:20:26.6 Thirajit Boonsaen (THA), 00:23:39.1 Justina Zeng (SIN), 00:23:47.9 from Australia did the early running but Sukanya Srisawad (THA) and Patteera Ruengjai (THA) kept her in their sights.

However, Sukanya fell off the pace later in the race and fellow Thai Benjamas Phujit came through to take third in a time of 01:45:53:2, just nine seconds ahead of British athlete Annie Pedroni.

Celebrating a sixth consecutive participant record, close to 7,000 runners took part in the

12th Laguna Phuket Marathon which is sanctioned by the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races, and is organised by leading sports management company Go Adventure Asia with professional timing and results

by Sportstats Asia, ensuring the highest of international standards.

Live 89.5 was a proud sponsor of this event.

Premier League Predictions: Congratulations to Stephen P. Holtham

(The Red Card Gang), who with 226 points was the Overall winner of The Phuket News’ Premier League Predictions Competition for the 2016/17 season. Stephen won himself a two day/one night private fishing charter to Racha Island on board Wahoo Luxury Yacht Charter Phuket’s yacht Reel Blue worth B180,000. thephuketnews

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

SPORT 31

Stroll under pressure

Rookie Canadian driver looks to turn things around on home soil BOX OF NEUTRALS Michael Lamonato michael@boxofneutrals.com

C

anadian Lance Stroll will arrive in Montreal for his first home grand prix as a Formula One driver this weekend but his rookie season thus far has failed to go to plan.

Stroll is Formula One’s newest teenage sensation-tobe, debuting for Williams in Australia this season at just 18 years and 148 days old.

He arrived in Formula One after mercilessly crushing his competition in European Formula Three in 2016 to win the series by a mammoth 187 points – but F3 was the culmination of a necessarily truncated junior career for his age.

The Canadian had accumulated just three full years of car racing before making the leap to F1, even bypassing the sport’s favoured GP3 and GP2 feeder categories to take

Williams’ Canadian driver Lance Stroll prepares for the first practice session of the Formula One Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 24. Photo: Saeed Khan/AFP his seat at Williams.

His talent behind the wheel and the deep pockets of his billionaire father, the Canadian investment tycoon Lawrence Stroll, have fuelled his meteoric rise in equal parts, but the pair’s haste to contribute to the in-vogue motorsport attitude of debuting junior drivers early has left Lance lacking a crucial racecraft.

In none of his six races has Stroll scored points. Twice he was let down by his car, but twice he crashed out in avoidable accidents and twice he was simply too far off the pace to have an impact.

By far his most troubling performance was at the Spanish Grand Prix, a race often considered a litmus test for car and driver given the sport’s decades of experience at Barcelona.

There Stroll was embarrassed by senior teammate Felipe Massa, who came from more than 17 seconds behind the Canadian with 29 laps to go to finish almost 12 seconds ahead at the flag – an inexplicable difference of one second per lap. Stroll finished the race in last place.

In 2017 Williams is competing to be the fourth-best team on the grid, but its cam-

paign thus far has relied solely on the 20 points scored by Massa, the driver it forced into retirement to make way for Stroll before Valtteri Bottas’s Mercedes defection granted the Brazilian a reprieve.

The team languishes in sixth place and a distant 33 points away from its fourthplace target as a result, and it is at risk of slipping further down the championship table.

“He's a young kid, people forget that,” deputy team principal Claire Williams told Autosport ahead of the race. “We always said from the outset that he needed some time to familiarise himself.

“I know he’ll be looking forward to going to Canada, but there will be a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders, and it’s a difficult track.”

The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is indeed one of the sport’s most intimidating circuits, but it is one at which Williams, with its low-downforce aerodynamics and classof-the-field Mercedes engine,

has excelled.

The team has scored two podiums and two top-four qualifications in the last three years, ramping up expectation on the teenager to score his first points this weekend.

There is arguably no better environment than Williams for Stroll to grow as a driver in Formula One – its welcoming atmosphere is credited for Massa’s post-Ferrari career revival – but the question of whether Stroll’s rapid promotion was best for his career will hang heavy on his season should it remain stalled.

The Canadian dollars flowing into team coffers will ameliorate a poor debut to some extent, but with the driver line-ups among Williams’s midfield rivals the strongest of recent times, Stroll may not have the luxury of time to validate his early progression to Formula One. Don’t forget to listen to the Box of Neutrals radio show each and every Saturday from 9am.

Beckham Miami team edges closer after land deal FOOTBALL DAV I D B E C K H A M ’ S hopes of launching a Major League Soccer franchise in Miami took a giant step towards becoming reality Tuesday (June 6) after city officials approved the sale of land crucial to a proposed stadium project.

Miami-Dade County commissioners voted by 9-4 to approve the transfer of a threeacre parcel of land worth $9 million (B306mn) to Beckham's consortium, which reportedly hopes to launch its MLS team by 2021.

Beckham’s group had already purchased six acres of land next to the site for some $19mn (B646.19mn) in Miami’s

Live Sports TV Schedule *Times may be subject to change

SPORT START STOP Friday June 9

Rugby Union 14:30 Rugby League 16:45 18:45 Tennis 16:30 Soccer 17:00 Aussie Rules 16:30 Cricket 16:30 Saturday June 10 Rugby Union 12:00 22:00 Rugby League 16:25 19:45 Soccer 22:45 Rugby Union 14:30 Cricket 16:30 Tennis 18:30 22:30 Motor Racing 23:45 Motor Bikes 16:00 Aussie Rules 10:30 13:30 16:30 Sunday June 11 Aussie Rules 12:00 Rugby League 13:00 Tennis 16:30 19:30 Motor Bikes 14:30 Motor Racing 00:00 00:45 Cricket 16:30

EVENT

TEAMS / INFO

16:35 18:45 20:45 23:00 19:00 19:30 23:30

Super Rugby Hurricanes v. Chiefs NRL Broncos v. Rabbitohs NRL Sea Eagles v. Knights (D) French Open Day 13 Roland Garros - Men’s Semi Finals Friendly Brazil v. Argentina AFL Adelaide Crows v. St Kilda ICC Champions Trophy New Zealand v Bangladesh, Cardiff

14:00 00:00 18:25 21:40 00:45 16:30 23:30 21:30 00:30 01:15 20:00 13:30 16:30 19:30

Friendly Friendly NRL NRL WC 2018 Qualifier British Lions Tour ICC Champions Trophy French Open French Open Formula 1 MotoGP AFL AFL AFL

Australia v. Fiji South Africa v. France Eels v. Cowboys Titans v. Warriors (D) Scotland v. England British Lions V. Crusaders England v Australia, Edgbaston Women’s Singles Final Men’s Doubles Final Qualifying, Montreal Qualifying, Catalunya, Spain Hawthorn v. Gold Coast SUNS Brisbane Lions v. Fremantle Essendon v. Port Adelaide

15:00 15:00 18:00 21:30 19:30 00:45 03:00 23:30

AFL NRL French Open French Open MotoGP Formula 1 Formula 1 ICC Champions Trophy

Carlton v. GWS Giants Titans v. Roosters Women’s Doubles Final Men’s Singles Final Main Races, Catalunya, Spain Raceday, Montreal Grand Prix of Canada India v. South Africa, The Oval

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Overtown district.

“We look forward to working with the Miami community to bring our vision for the neighbourhood to life,” Miami Beckham United said in a statement, describing the deal as a “major milestone” towards its MLS team.

“Our loyal fans in Miami and around the world have been waiting for this moment for years, and we’re thrilled that we’re getting closer to our kick-off.”

The group hopes to build a 25,000-seat stadium on the site.

Beckham’s group has said the cost of the stadium, which still needs to be approved by city planners, will be met by private investors with no public funds being used in its construction.

“We are not here to take money from the county or the city, we will pay for this project ourselves, privately, we will pay property taxes and we will be good neighbours,” Miami Beckham United official Tim Leiweke said.

Beckham announced in 2014 that he intended to bring a team to the South Florida city, exercising an option he was granted when he joined the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007.

Under that deal, Beckham was granted the right to launch an expansion team for $25mn (B850.25mn) instead of the typical fee estimated at more than $100mn (B3.4 billion).

But the former England, Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder ran into a

David Beckham. Photo: Eisele Johannes/AFP series of problems finding a stadium site, failing with bids for three other potential locations amid local opposition.

Major League Soccer chiefs, meanwhile, have repeatedly warned Beckham’s group that the clock was ticking on their franchise plans and that the league will not grant an openended time-frame to get the

expansion team off the ground.

“We’ve had great patience and worked hard with David and his partners for many years now. We are at the point where it is beginning to impact our expansion plans as we roll out teams 25 to 28,” MLS commissioner Don Garber said in March.

AFP

Sport

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

editor3@classactmedia.co.th

FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017

Young Canadian looks to make his mark at home > p31

Main photo: Andrew Walker (left) prepares to pass the ball during the quarter-final match against Fiji at the Rugby Sevens World Series in 2008.

Photo: Greg Wood/AFP Inset: Walker at the Phuket Int’l Rugby 10s. Photo: Matt Pond

TALKS WITH WALKS

Ex-Wallabie Walker was here for 10s, vows to return RUGBY Matt Pond editor3@classactmedia.co.th

I

n last week’s edition of The Phuket News, and in this writer’s article concerning the Phuket Vagabonds taking home the Cup for the second time in the event’s history, it was mentioned how the event is now drawing bigger names from the world of rugby, and one name mentioned in that article was that of ex-Wallabie Andrew Walker who was here representing the Lord Howe Woodhens.

For those who don’t know Walker, he is an indigenous Australian rugby player who had represented his country in both rugby league and rugby union – a dual code international.

He was the first dual code international to represent his country at rugby league before representing rugby union.

Born on November 22, 1973, in Shoalhaven, New South Wales, Walker grew up in the nearby town of Nowra, and began his career as a rugby union player for Randwick, where he played alongside Eddie Jones in their 1991 premiership-

winning season.

But his career has also seen him play for the St George Dragons, Sydney Roosters and the ManlyWarringah Sea Eagles to name a few.

But it was in July 2008 at the age of 35, when Walker, who was at the time playing for the Easts Tigers in the QLD Cup competition, finally announced his retirement from representative rugby union.

The reason given by Walker for his retirement was fatigue and a need to spend more time with his family who supported him through his successful but troubled career.

However, in early January 2010, Walker signed a minor contract with the Goodna Eagles Rugby League Club based in Ipswich, Queensland, becoming the biggest signing in Ipswich Rugby League history.

Moreover, as recently as February this year, Walker was seriously thinking about making a return to the playing field with the ACT Brumbies who were considering offering the now 43-year-old a fulltime comeback deal.

In what would have been a remarkable comeback story for an ex-rugby league and rugby union star, Walker emerged as a genuine recruitment option after impress-

ing coach Stephen Larkham at the Brisbane 10s.

Larkham said the Brumbies coaches were “half joking at first”, but declared the Brumbies were open to all options, including signing Walker, as they attempted to fill the holes left by departed stars and season-ending injuries.

Had the deal gone through, Walker would have become the oldest player in Super Rugby history, but only if he were called upon – but sadly that didn’t materialise, presumable given his age.

The Phuket News was lucky enough to get a chance to speak to Walker on May 28, ahead of the Lord Howe Woodhens victory over the Bangkok Bangers Colts, in the Plate Final of the Phuket 10s.

Although calling it a day in his professional rugby career back in 2008, Walker is still very much involved in the rugby community.

Walker last year helped coach the Lloyd McDermott development team, an indigenous side that features in the National Schools Championships.

More recently Walker has been based in Darwin, where he still enjoys a game with the South Darwin Rugby Union Football Club, and also works with a youth group which as-

sists young offenders housed in the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre.

“This is something that I really enjoy doing,” Walker told The Phuket News. “I’m just trying to help these young kids so that they’re prepared for when they make the transition back into the outside world.”

Why is this issue so important to Walker?

Well few people have experienced the highs and lows of life like Walker, and he has certainly seen the a lot of the lows – a childhood of poverty, racism and abuse; becoming a father at 17 and dealing with drug and alcohol issues that cost him a large part of his career.

But Walker’s original motivation for working with these young people was to pass on the life lessons he has learned the hard way. From teenage pregnancy to alcohol and drug abuse, the need for employment training and, as much as anything, arming themselves with the tools to ensure good decision-making.

But turning his attention back to rugby, Walker said that although he has previously played in similar competitions this was his first time in Thailand for the Phuket 10s.

“I’m really enjoying this experience. It was Adrian ‘Moose’

Skeggs who got me involved with the Lord Howe Woodhens and they have such a great bunch of people on their team,” he said.

“I’ve personally known ‘Moose’ for years and just after playing in the Brisbane 10s competition for the Brumbies he called me and said that he saw that I still had what it takes to play and wanted to know if I would join them for this trip.

“How could I refuse,” he added.

But Walker explained that he and his teammates weren’t just here for fun.

“Ah mate, as soon as you run on that pitch it’s not about having fun, it’s rugby and it’s serious,” says Walker.

“But saying that, the time has not just been about rugby and as a whole this holiday has been fantastic.”

Would he come back? “I’ll always come back now,” he said with 100% enthusiasm.

When asked what he thought events like the 10s does for rugby, Walker said, “Events such as the Hooters International Rugby 10s, despite being held on a small island as it is, can only make rugby bigger, not only for Phuket but also for Thailand,” he said. thephuketnews