The Phuket News 11 May 2018

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

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PHUKET POLICEMAN FACES EXPLOSIVES CHARGE > PAGE 3

ON GUARD DROWNING, SURF DANGER HIGHLIGHT LIFEGUARD CRISIS AS ‘DROWNING SEASON’ BEGINS

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A tourist sits on the beach at Nai Harn wary as the monsoon surf roils the sand. Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

SPECIAL REPORT Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

E

vents over the past two weeks have highlighted the critical need for trained lifeguards to patrol Phuket’s beaches and for rescue teams to receive proper training in how to handle such reports and act accordingly.

A 36-year-old Thai tourist died from drowning despite being pulled from the surf by bystanders at Layan

Beach last week (May 1). Attempts to revive the tourist, Sanya Makwut, failed and other tourists were forced to watch as his body was carried away.

There are no lifeguards on patrol at Layan beach, or at the adjoining Leypang Beach, and the death of Mr Sanya marked the first beach drowning of the year during the notorious southwest monsoon, when dangerous surf and flash rips dominate along Phuket’s west coast.

With no central organisation to contact for information on the current status of lifeguards patrolling Phuket’s

beaches, or of rescues or drownings that may have occurred, The Phuket News learned of Mr Sanya’s death only after bystanders on the beach contacted the newspaper directly.

Likewise, this week a report of a foreign man missing in the water at Layan Beach on Tuesday afternoon (May 8) raised fears of another drowning.

The alarm was raised by a foreign woman living in the nearby Man Tawan housing estate who reported seeing a man with “fair-skin” and black hair in the water.

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“She said that a strong wave about two metres tall hit the man, but she did not see him resurface,” explained Wirut Saman, an official at the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation office at the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor).

With no lifeguards hired to patrol Layan or Leypang beaches, the DDPM Cherng Talay office is currently tasked with overseeing beach safety there.

The rescue team quickly began a search for the man, looking for any person in trouble in the water...

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Nico Papke trial for slaying Phuket girlfriend gets underway > page 4

Grave doubts over lifeguards Continued from page 1 ...However, the search was called hours later off as darkness fell.

The search resumed the next morning, but failed to locate the man or his body, leaving the search team to believe that the man may have returned to the beach safely later, or that the woman might have mistaken what she saw.

“There area where the man reportedly went missing has no lifeguards on duty,” Suchart Choothong, head of the DDPM Cherng Talay speedboat rescue unit stationed at Layan Beach, explained to The Phuket News.

“We don’t have the skills to rescue people in strong surf. Honestly, all we have are just officials who take care of the speedboat rescue unit to support or provide help as best we can.

“We need lifeguards who have the special skills to save people’s lives,” Mr Suchart noted.

The sentiment was echoed loudly

by Daren Jenner, International Marine Safety Officer, ISLA, based

LIfeguards patrol the swirling waters on Phuket’s west coast, where flash rips are common May-September. Photo: The Phuket News / file at Surin Beach, who noted that all beaches except Patong failed in the ISLA assessment of lifeguard protection.

“The International Surf Lifesaving Association has trained observers on Phuket’s popular beaches nearly every day. Most of these beaches have NO lifeguards at all. This situation is ongoing since 1st April 2018,” said Daren Jenner,

International Marine Safety Officer, ISLA, based at Surin Beach.

LP Laikhum Co Ltd under a government contract provides lifeguards at Surin, Bang Tao and Mai Khao beaches. However, coverage is fairly thin, with six lifeguards stationed at Surin, 11 at Bang Tao and just five to cover the 11-kilometre-long Mai Khao Beach – easily Phuket’s longest stretch of sand.

LP Laikhum Managing Director Dr Nutpol Sirisawang told The Phuket News this week that the lifeguards are on duty from 8:30am to 6:30pm each day, seven days a week, with four lifeguards “spare” to assist or cover when other lifeguards are not working, as each lifeguard has four days off each month.

However, of grave concern has been Dr Nutpol’s claims in front of Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong at the LP Laikhum lifeguard official launch on April 5, when he said, “Our lifeguards’ certificates have been issued by The Royal Life Saving Society Canada. They have completed the life-saving instructor course conducted by Thai Life Saving Club Surf lifesaving trainer through a course organised by the Phuket OrBorJor (Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation).”

Asked this week what qualifications his lifeguards have, Dr Nutpol avoided recognised certification and instead said, “Our lifeguards can swim, they know how to render assistance in the water, and they

can use equipment such as surf rescue boards as well as medical equipment and provide first aid, including CPR. “Also, lifeguards have to be fit and strong,” he added.

No details of the current government contract LP Laikhum is serving have been made publicly available since the previous B13mn contract to provide lifeguards at beaches in all three Phuket districts was rescinded, as confirmed by Phuket Governor Norraphat on April 5.

However, Dr Nutpol this week revealed that the current contract came into effect on April 16. Incredibly, he also stated that the contract will terminate at the end of this month (May 31), with no clarification of why that is so.

Dr Nutpol also declined to reveal how much the current contract is worth.

He was willing to say that his lifeguards actually started patrols on April 1, and that from April 1-15, “Laikhum had to pay by themselves to provide lifeguards”.

Condo mogul faces fraud charges SAW I T K E T ROJ, T H E prominent Phuket condo developer arrested last week on a fraud charge, has posted bail, police have confirmed to The Phuket News.

Mr Sawit, CEO of the Emerald Group of companies, posted bail approved by the Phuket Provincial Court on Tuesday (May 8), Capt Ekkachai Siri of the Phuket Tourist Police confirmed to The Phuket News.

The bail request was approved while the formal charge of a breach of Section 22 of the Consumer Protection Act by providing false statements through advertisements published via the internet and other media was presented to Mr Sawit at the court.

However, Capt Ekkachai could not confirm the amount bail was posted at.

The bail approval came despite police requesting that bail be denied.

Mr Sawit surrendered himself at Patong Police Station last Wednesday (May 2).

He was wanted on an arrest warrant issued by the Phuket Provincial Court in October last year.

Following police receiving an initial complaint from one buyer against Mr Sawit for

Emerald Group CEO Sawit Ketroj during questioning by police last Wednesday (May 2). Photo: Suthicha Sirirat not delivering condo units as agreed by contract despite receiving more than B2.8 million in payments, Mr Sawit now stands accused of defrauding investors of a total of more than B127.5mn, explained Tourist Police Chief Surachet Hakpan last week.

“Police began monitoring the projects in question and observed that the no progress was being made in the construction of the units, but the advertising of the units for sale continued,” Gen Surachet said.

“Hence, police moved forward with pressing the charge (against Mr Sawit),” he added.

The charge relates to many condo units in Emerald Group

projects in Phuket and Krabi, noted police in their report.

Specifically, the charge relates to units in the projects: The Emerald City Life Condo Patong; The Emerald Ao Nang Condo (Krabi); The Emerald Terrace Patong; and The Emerald – Central.

Capt Ekkachai urged any persons affected by failure of the Emerald condo projects to file complaints directly with the Patong Police Station.

He added that he expected the police investigation to take about one month to gather the required evidence to hand the case over to the Phuket Public Prosecutor’s Office for further action.

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

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visa fraud Phuket officer arrested Student crackdown begins on explosives charge The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

A

Phuket police officer is among eight suspects who have been handed over by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) for alleged links to Powergel explosives seized in Pathum Thani late last month.

Lt Yutthana Chidchol, a 46-year-old officer with the Sakoo Police, based near Phuket International Airport, was among the suspects handed over last Thursday (May 3), reported NCPO judge advocate Burin Thongprapai, noted a report in the Bangkok Post last Friday (May 4).

Lt Yutthana’s arrest was announced in Bangkok. No details of his arrest were made public in Phuket.

Lt Yutthana was named as a suspect during a raid on April 29, when police accompanied by soldiers found bomb-making materials hidden at a home in Cherng Talay.

Hidden in a corner of the property obscured by heavy jungle the officers found sev-

Lt Yutthana Chidchol of the Phuket’s Sakoo Police was among five people arrested over the Powergel explosives found in Pathum Thani. Ammonium nitrate was also found at his home during a raid last Sunday (May 4). Photo: Bangkok Post / Apichart Jinakul eral gallons of ammonium nitrate in four separate containers. Ammonium nitrate is a common agricultural fertiliser but also can be used as a deadly explosive agent.

The team of officers also found eight bundles of nonelectric detonators with wiring hidden at the home.

Also among the eight arrested in the Powergel case was Boonlert Nanphimai, 55, a wanted suspect in Thanyaburi District, Pathum Thani.

The arrest of Boonlert and Lt Yutthana follows the discovery of 1,800 bars of Powergel in cardboard boxes on the back of a pickup truck in Thanyaburi, after police stopped and searched the vehicle on April 26. The waterresistant, bar-like Powergel is normally used in the mining industry for quarry blasting, tunnelling and excavation.

Powergel usually becomes volatile when mixed with a precursor, such as fuel oil.

Penang consulate sets visa application limits

THE ROYAL THAI CONsulate-General in Penang has announced that it will limit the number of visas issued to just 100 per day, starting from Monday (May 14).

Persons with incomplete documents will not be permitted to enter the building and those found to have had their visa application rejected must not apply until next day, the consulate said in a notice issued on Tuesday (May 8).

Overstays incur a high risk of visa refusal and submission of fake documents will automatically incur a one-year ban on applying for a visa to enter the country, the notice warned.

Visa applications must be filled and signed and photos already attached to the form, and applicants must have the basic required documents: • copy of passport (+ page with Malaysian immigration stamp) • evidence of accommodation (hotel booking / house rental agreement) • travel information (booking of air ticket leaving Thailand) Financial statements provided must be only in Thai @thephuketnews

baht, Malaysian Ringgit, US dollars or euros, and only documents in English and/or Thai will be accepted, the notice confirmed. The Phuket News

The notice was posted on Tuesday (May 8). Image: Royal T hai C on sulate General, Penang

According to later police reports, more Powergel was found during a search of Lt Yutthana’s house in Phuket.

Investigations into whether the explosives could be linked with the insurgency in the Deep South are currently being carried out, the reports added.

Other suspects handed over included Nattachai Thanapatsatchaporn, 57, Channetti Thanapatsatchaporn, 55, and 47-year-old Sophon Termpanthunont.

THE CRACKDOWN ON foreigners fraudulently using student visas as a way to stay in the country long term began in Phuket last Thursday (May 3), with inspections of three language schools in the south of the island.

The campaign began at 1pm with officers conducting inspections of the TTT Language School near Chalong Pier, the LinguaPlus Language School just south of Chalong Circle and the Phuket Rawai Language School in Baan Bangkontee, Rawai.

Capt Ekkachai Siri of the Phuket Tourist Police confirmed to The Phuket News that no irregularities were discovered at any of the three language schools.

“We checked that the venues had current, valid business registration licences and certificates from the Ministry of Education allowing them to operate as language schools,” Capt Ekkachai said.

“We also checked the passports and visas of all the teachers and the students enrolled in courses at the schools,” he said.

“We were checking for overstays and we check the

Tourist Police found no irregularities at any of the language schools inspected last Thursday (May 3). Photo: Phuket Tourist Police attendance records to ensure the foreigners enrolled in the courses were actually attending the classes,” Cap Ekkachai explained.

“We will continue with more inspections of other language schools elsewhere across the island next week,” he added.

Capt Ekkachai warned on April 30 that the raids were coming in the wake of raids carried out on 74 international schools in Bangkok to bust foreigners who had overstayed their visas, in an operation called X-Ray Outlaw Foreigner.

Tanyaluk Sakoot

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PHUKET NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM PHUKET SEVEN DAY WEATHER FORECAST

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Foetus found dumped in local canal Jason Beavan 086 479 7471

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SALES SUPPORT Siriporn (Nok) Seangmas 086 479 7470 sales@classactmedia.co.th

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GENERAL MANAGER

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

POLICE ON THE ISLAND are seeking to find the mother of a 4-month-old foetus found dumped in a canal in Chalong last Wednesday (May 2) by workers dredging the canal.

Lt Sakrin Saengchareu of the Chalong Police received notice that a foetus had been found in a canal in Soi Kruwatthana at 11:30am.

The foetus was discovered by a crane operator at the scene. However, Forensic Police were unable to tell the sex.

“The foetus was taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital.

Now we have to find out the mother. Then we will investigate further and see whether charges will be pressed,” said Lt Col Sanan Chanrong of the Chalong Police.

Eakkapop Thongtub

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Alcohol test not standard in serious road accidents The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

T

ha Chatchai Police have confirmed that they do not test drivers involved in serious accidents for alcohol or other substances as standard procedure.

Instead, they decide whether or not the person is alert and sober enough to have been operating the vehicle.

The news came on Wednesday (May 9) as Capt Akkara Sivilai of the Tha Chatchai Police confirmed to The Phuket News that Nitthaya Keawkwan, 24, was not charged for drunk driving as she was not tested.

Ms Nitthaya was driving on Thepkrasattri Rd in Mai Khao at 2:50am last Sunday morning (May 6) when her pickup truck flew across the median strip and slammed head-on into a tour bus travelling in the opposite direction.

A bottle of Hong Thong Thai whiskey was found in the cab of her pickup truck

A bottle of Hong Thong Thai whiskey was found in the cab of the pickup truck at the scene. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub and officers at the scene reported that her behaviour had indicated that she was drunk, and that she was to be tested for alcohol at Tha Chatchai Police Station.

However, that did not happen, Capt Akkara confirmed to The Phuket News on Wednesday.

“I don’t know why the report appeared in this way. I did not take her to have the alcohol test at the police station. She did not seem like she was

drunk,” Capt Akkara said.

“Ms Nitthaya was not drunk when I met her at the scene. She told me that she was driving northbound to take her friend home when she dozed off. That is why her pickup truck crossed the road and caused the accident,” he said.

Regardless, Ms Nitthaya has been charged with reckless driving causing damage to property and other persons, Capt Akkara confirmed.

Capt Akkara also confirmed that Ms Nitthaya’s friend who was a passenger in the pickup truck at the time of the accident, did not suffer serious injury.

The friend was rushed to hospital before police arrived at the scene.

“Straight after investigating the scene, we went to the hospital to see her friend.

She suffered scratches only,” Capt Akkara confirmed.

Additional reporting by Eakkapop Thongtub

Murder trial of Nico Papke begins, drugs charge added SALES REPRESENTATIVE Kiattisak (Rudy) Deamer 088 754 1371 sales2@classactmedia.co.th

THE TRIAL OF GERMAN national Nico Papke for the murder of his Thai girlfriend in Phuket last year began last week, with the Phuket Prosecutor moving ahead with the charge of murder under Section 288 of the Thai Criminal Code.

If found guilty, Papke faces 15 to 20 years imprisonment, or the death penalty.

Papke, who worked as a fitness instructor in Rawai, initially confessed to killing his girlfriend Pischa “Lek” Nampadung, a 35-year-old beautician at a salon in Rawai, However, during his first court appearance in October Papke changed his plea from guilty to not guilty, claiming that he did not intend to kill Ms Pischa.

Regardless, Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent Lt Col Somsak Sopakarn told The Phuket News at that time that police would forge ahead with the murder charge. That promise was upheld at the initial trial hearing on April 30.

“We have enough evidence to prove that Papke murdered Ms Pischa and that he also attempted to conceal her body,” Col Somsak confirmed.

Nico Papke recounts his steps for police after his arrest in October last year.

Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub Ms Pischa’s body was found on July 10 last year dumped in the Phuket jungle wrapped in blankets and bound with packing or insulation tape beside the road about 600 metres along a newly graded track leading into the jungle on Muang Chaofa Rd. However, a surprise twist in proceedings is that following the initial trial hearing on April 30, according to the Phuket Provincial Court court register Papke now also faces a charge involving a Category 1 narcotic.

Under the Narcotics Act, Category 1 drugs include heroin; amphetamine; methamphetamine; MDMA (Ecstasy) and LSD. Papke is next scheduled to appear in court on June 5.

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Plea to push electric cars Oslo experts call for government to start rolling out EV infrastructure Sture Portvik, Project Leader E-mobility for Oslo, the electric car capital of Europe, presented his plan for EVs in Phuket. Photo: PR Dept

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L

eading proponents of the electrical vehicle (EV) push in Norway were in Phuket this week to propose to local officials to start looking toward building the infrastructure required to encourage people to use electric cars on the island Sture Portvik, Project Leader E-mobility for Oslo, the electric car capital of Europe, along with Snorre Sletvold, President of the Norwegian electric vehicle association, presented their arguments for a cleaner Phuket to Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong at Provincial Hall on Monday afternoon (May 7).

Present to support their call was Thai Ambassador to Norway Prasittiporn Wetprasit.

The proposal was to look at supporting the use of EVs in Phuket as part of the Phuket Smart City project, starting with a feasibility study on installing the infrastructure needed.

“The government has a policy to promote the use of electric vehicles to reduce

pollution and reduce global warming, which is a major problem in many countries around the world,” said Amb Prasittiporn.

“One solution to solve the problem is the use of electric cars, or EVs, and many countries are now beginning to push people to use more electric cars,” he added.

Amb Prasittiporn pointed out that Norway is leading the

way as one of the countries with the most electric car users in Europe.

“The venture will be the start of a long-term partnership that will drive tangible results,” he said.

In a report by the Agency for Urban Environment, City of Oslo, Mr Portvik pointed out that installing the charging infrastructure was the launch point for any drive

The announcement follows ‘The Phuket News’ last month breaking the news that Phuket currently has the highest infection rate in the country. Photo: via NNT

Health Ministry issues warning of higher dengue virus infections THE MINISTRY OF PUBlic Health has instructed its local offices nationwide to urge people to eliminate mosquito breeding grounds, to prevent a dengue fever outbreak as Thailand begins easing into the rainy season.

According to the Department of Disease Control, more than 7,500 people have been infected with dengue virus since the beginning of this year, with the majority of patients in the south of Thailand.

The announcement also follows The Phuket News last @thephuketnews

month breaking the news that Phuket currently has the highest infection rate in the country.

The Department of Disease Control expects the number of dengue fever patients to be higher this year. Deputy PermanentSecretary to the Ministry of Public Health Dr Opas Karnkawinpong has told the public health office in each province to encourage people to destroy the breeding grounds of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes around their own homes and public places.

The Aedes aegypti mosquito specifically carries various strains of the dengue virus.

Those infected by the virus will develop a fever with a temperature of up to 40ºC within five to eight days after a mosquito bite.

Symptoms may include red rashes, vomiting, having a headache and a runny nose.

They should be taken to the hospital immediately if the fever does not come down within two days of taking medicine.

NNT

toward EV use.

“To kick-start the adoption of EVs the City of Oslo has contributed to the proliferation of an adequate charging infrastructure. Today Oslo is Norway’s, and probably the world’s, largest owner of charging infrastructure.

“Seeing is believe. Easily available charging infrastructure made driving an EV attractive and convenient, but also

helped to raise public awareness and increase understanding about EVs,” he wrote.

Mr Portvik also pointed out that the City of Oslo over the past five years had driven the EV push with the following policy initiatives: • Free public charging infrastructure (normal charging) • Free parking (saves a lot of money) • Access to bus lanes (regional/local roads, saves time) • Grants for private charging infrastructures on private ground (shopping centres, housing communities etc.)

• Free passing through toll gates (regional/local roads) • Support for quick charging operators (grants, jointventures) • A zero emission municipality fleet within 2020. So far more than 500 EVs (50% of the fleet) • Zero emission public transportation within 2020 (so far 56%, incl. electric trams, metro, bio gas and hydrogen, buses etc.)

• Green procurement of goods and transport (demanding deliveries by zero emission)

However, Mr Portvik also made plain that to make the EV revolution possible, three critical success factors required were: • EVs must be cheap to buy (no purchasing tax, no VAT) • Cheap to use (free parking, free electricity, free passing in toll gates) • Convenient to use (easy access to charging) He added, “You also need the right product to succeed.”

Governor Nopparat supported the idea.

“Phuket is ready to push forward with this project.

Phuket will launch this as a pilot project in accordance with the Smart City policy,” Gov Norraphat said.

“Smart Environment and Green City are both set in the provincial development plan and to promote the use of electric vehicles, or EVs, is consistent with this – and may even start with public service vehicles,” he added.

“It is government policy to encourage the use of electric cars to reduce pollution in response to global changes in the future,” Gov Norraphat said.

Opinion 6

OPINION

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

editor@classactmedia.co.th

EDITORIAL

Many eyes make light work

CONTACT US

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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.

I

t often seems that little progress will ever be made on Phuket’s chronic issues of illegal rubbish dumping and untreated wastewater flowing to the sea. But occasionally a flicker of light appears at the end of the dark tunnel of depressing news and official apathy. Kindling this light is technology and social media’s ability to empower the public to highlight such problems and force officials into action.

This week a prominent expat environmental activist visited The Phuket News’ office to sing the praises of the government’s “Pineapple Eyes” group – hosted on the popular Line messaging app.

The group encourages all residents and expats to join and post photos, along with a detailed description of the location, of dumped rubbish and pipes discharging untreated wastewater. All well and good

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.

TANYALUK ‘MANGO’ SAKOOT Reporter 091 165 0260 reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

NITAD ‘TAE’ MANEE THANAPONG ‘OAK’ KHAO-AMPHAIPHAN NIRAVIT ‘MOS’ VORAVANITCHA Graphic designers

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

Wonderful work Just now, driving my motorbike near Rawai Beach, I found a group of Western people cleaning the sand of plastic. One Thai child was also helping them. (Later confirmed as the “Clean the beach boot camp”.)

We who love Phuket and Thailand have to thank these volunteers who want to defend this wonderful land which risks becoming a lost paradise.

Government institutions should understand how precious the treasure of nature is here: much more than gold.

In all the schools teaching about the defence and respect of nature has to be essential.

Plastic is useful but becomes a poison if left in nature. In the Mediterranean Sea many dolphins and whales die because they eat plastic.

Patrizio Forci ...................................................

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or even tens of thousands of members, it will impress upon the authorities the widespread public concern and demonstrate how detrimental the issue is to the island’s international image.

It needn’t stop there, a plethora of social media platforms can be used to bring these issues to provincial, national and international attention. As many tourism reliant destinations have found, it is becoming increasingly hard to sweep environmental issues under the rug – particularly when under the spotlight of widespread and persistent public and media attention. It’s just bad for business, and if there is one thing we know, it’s that when an issue affects the bottom line it suddenly makes more sense to begin to address the problem quickly and effectively.

Search “Pineapple Eyes” on our website for more information on how to join the group.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Phuket student-visa crackdown begins Black water empties onto Phuket beach Phuket condo mogul arrested for fraud Attempt to sell Phuket beachfront state land for B3.6bn draws fire Man drowns in dangerous Phuket surf, no lifeguards as ordered Papke’s Phuket girlfriend murder trial begins Fake visa schools to be hit with charges Mystery surrounds these abandoned buildings in the hills above Kata Phuket Opinion: The long, long learning curve Penang consulate limits visa applications to 100

Visit thephuketnews.com for all the latest news

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MARK KNOWLES

Lifestyle Editor

cynics might say. But according to the activist we spoke to, she has been overwhelmed by the effectiveness of the group in prompting swift action.

An active member of the group, she cited a recent instance where she posted photos of an overflowing, rat infested waste dump and its location at 9am – by noon that day government workers had removed the rubbish, hosed the area, treated it with antibacterial liquid and posted photos back to the “Pineapple Eyes” group as it was happening.

Impressive indeed.

The group now numbers some 460 members and is growing by the day. It is incumbent on all of us who bemoan these problems facing the island to join this group as and actively share instances of waste and pollution we see through the app. Perhaps, as the group grows into the thousands

TOP 10 STORIES ON thephuketnews.com

Re: Top officials linked to education fund theft Yes, I embezzle B88 million and the worst penalties I can expect are a transfer, or God forbid, my dismissal! Please dismiss me so that I can go

spend my ill-gotten gains in peace! This is why corruption will never be rooted out in Thailand. In any other civilized country, I would be sent to jail and ordered to repay what I had stolen.

RBS47 ...................................................

First things first

Re: Electric cars punted for Phuket Yes, Norway and more European countries are doing fine with changing to electric cars.

However, Thailand and especially Phuket is not ready for it. Just read the list of ‘policy initiatives’… I can’t imagine that there are authorities here able to implement them.

Perhaps they should first try to do something about ensuring that the smokey busses, lorries, trucks and mini vans install effective exhaust pipes.

Let’s be realistic.

Kurt It would be a great idea if the electricity required came from hydro-electric and other renewable sources, like in Scandinavia. But in Thailand it just pushes the pollution to the coal fired power stations.

Sir Burr

Discover Thainess

Moral failures

Re: PACC finds blankets scam in Sing Buri These corrupt immoral thieves are the lowest of the low. Unlike like the standard corrupt officials, pilfering highway projects and other public improvement programs, these criminals rob from those that need help the most.

How did such a large percentage of the Thai population end up with such broken moral compasses? Shameful.

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

History repeats

Re: Mystery surrounds these abandoned buildings in the hills above Kata These buildings caused the fall of the Chuan Leekpai government in 1995. A paragraph from a The New York Times article reads: “The land scandal stemmed from the discovery that several wealthy Thai families on Phuket, a resort island, had benefited from a Government program intended to redistribute land to poor farmers”. Those four apartment blocks are built on the land mentioned.

Not far enough

Re: Thai marine parks to limit visitors nationwide Thailand’s Similan Islands have been closed for half of the year for more than 20 years and yet these closures have not resulted in any noticeable improvements.

Anyone who dove them in the 1990s would cry to see them today.

These kind of steps to restrict the impact of mass tourism are essential but they need to be properly enforced and will not save the parks without more pro-active steps to limit damage and pollution while they’re open.

Captain Jack 69 ...................................................

Swept under the rug once again

Re: Black water empties onto Phuket beach, stuns tourists They will dredge the canal to allow the raw sewage, sorry, I mean “dirty water”, to flow into the sea quicker.

Then they will plant some magic chrysanthemums. Ok. Job done then. Consider the problem solved…

Timothy

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Premchai pleads not guilty to ivory charges

THAILAND NEWS

7

BANGKOK

Bangkok Post

E

mbattled construction tycoon Premchai Karnasuta, his wife and an associate pleaded not guilty to possession of two pairs of African elephant tusks, at the Criminal Court on Monday (May 7).

Mr Premchai, 64, his wife Khanitta, 64, and Wandee Somphum, 71, arrived at the court in the morning to lodge the plea in connection with the ivory tusks – about a metre long and worth millions of baht – seized from his residence in Bangkok in February.

They did not have to seek additional bail because they were previously granted bail of B300,000 each during an earlier court process. The three were at the court for about two hours. Afterwards Mr Premchai told reporters that he denied all charges and that the court set a witness hearing for June 25. He also said that he was worried about the outcome of the case.

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A mahout uses a chicken bone to predict that the B30 million restoration of the Royal Elephant Kraal in Ayutthaya will proceed smoothly. Photo: Sunthorn Pongpao

Ancient elephant ‘kraal’ facelift plan AYUTTHAYA Khanitta Karnasuta, wife of Premchai Karnasuta, leaves the Criminal Court Monday (May 7). Police seized the ivory from Mr Premchai’s residence following a search of his house in Huai Khwang district, Bangkok, on Feb 7. Photo: Pornprom Satrabhaya The ivory case followed authorities’ search of Mr Premchai’s house on Soi Sun Wichai 3 in Huai Khwang district, Bangkok, on Feb 7, where they discovered the tusks along with 43 guns and ammunition.

During a police interrogation, the three defendants said Mrs Khanitta had inherited the legally acquired tusks in 1987 and that she and Miss Wandee reported the possession to the

Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation on April 15, 2015.

Mrs Khanitta said the tusks came from domestic elephants and Ms Wandee signed a document of assertion to that effect. However, genetic testing found the ivory came from an African species, which cannot be registered under Thai law.

Mr Premchai and three others were first arrested on the night of Feb 4 for allegedly

hunting animals in Thungyai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, a Unesco World Heritage site, in Kanchanaburi province.

They were found in possession of the carcasses of protected animals, including a rare black leopard and its pelt.

The arrest led to numerous charges against Mr Premchai, president of Italian-Thai Development Plc, concerning poaching and the possession of firearms and the tusks.

OW NERS, MAHOUTS and Brahmin priests led 10 elephants to worship deities in a ceremony marking the start of a B30 million restoration of the centuries-old Royal Elephant Kraal on Monday (May 7).

They are traditionally required to first seek permission from the sacred place, built during the time of the kingdom of Ayutthaya, and perform a ritual to predict the outcome.

Thongrian Miphan, president of the elephant founda-

tion, led 10 elephants to the ceremony at the kraal in Phra Nakhon Sri Ayutthaya district. Brahmin priests and nine revered mahouts also took part.

The kraal, listed by the Fine Arts Department as a national archaeological site, is showing the wear of time and countless visitors.

Authorities said its nearly 800 large talung, or pillars, where elephants are tethered, will be a focus of the repairs.

In the past, mahouts used the kraal to show the king how they rounded up and caught elephants.

Bangkok Post

8

THAILAND NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Government plans to end photocopy mania BANGKOK

Bangkok Post

Black muck fouls Jomtien Beach in Pattaya after wastewater was washed out to the sea after days of rain. Photo: Screengrab from Facebook page of Anond Seelaphusidh

Black wastewater fouls Jomtien Beach CHON BURI TOURISTS ARE STAYING away from Jomtien Beach after foul black wastewater poured out into the sea, polluting one of Pattaya's most popular attractions.

The black water gushed from a stormwater culvert and spread along about a kilometre of beach and out into the sea, immediately in front of many hotels, last Sunday (May 6).

Visitors were unhappy and complained about the authorities' slow response.

Their complaints mounted as videos of the foul muck were posted on Facebook by

user Anond Seelaphausidh.

Pattaya city spokesman Pol Maj Gen Phinit Manirat said on Sunday the discharged wastewater was in an area overseen by Na Jomtien municipality, but local officials in the province must solve the problem together because “it's the same sea”.

Officials have been sent to inspect the area.

The black water appeared as Pattaya was hit by three days of heavy rain, which was thought to have washed accumulated waste out to sea.

It was unclear whether seaside resorts were also to be blamed for releasing wastewater into the sea.

Bangkok Post

T

he Office of the Public Sector Development Commission (OPDC) has teamed up with the Electronic Government Agency (EGA) to eliminate the need to submit hard copies of official documents at government offices by August this year.

Ac c ord i ng t o OPD C Secretary-General Tosaporn Sirisamphan, the move was an order from Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha to establish a “no copy” policy and develop an electronic archive-based approach in certification processes.

Official documents often required by government agencies – including the countless copies of documents of foreigners kept by Immigration – include copies of national identification cards and house registration, among others, he said.

Mr Tosaporn said both agencies will coordinate with government bodies to find ways to end the requirement to print

The number of photocopies of the same documents filed with immigration and other government offices time and time again may soon be coming to an end. Photo: Shela Riva out hard copies of documents by the specified deadline.

“This will be imperative to developing more efficient governmental processes and meet public demand for modern government services,” he said.

In the meantime, an ap-

plication on government agencies to help the public will be launched by the end of the month, EGA chief Sak Segkhoonthod said.

Called “Citizeninfo”, the app will tell users which documents are needed at govern-

ment offices, he added.

Mr Sak said the service will include feedback, where the public can rate the quality of service they receive from an agency. The app will be accessible to Android and iOS users.

Another motorcyclist felled by internet cable SAMUT PRAKAN

Rescue workers show the fallen internet cables found on the road in Samut Prakan where a woman motorcyclist was entangled and fell from her bike on Thursday May 3. Photo: Sutthiwit Chayutworakan

ANOTHER WOMAN MOTORCYclist has been injured by falling overhead internet cables, this time on a road in Phra Samut Chedi district of Samut Prakarn province – the third such incident in 10 days, one of them fatal.

The incident happened on a road leading to Wat Khusang in tambon Naikhong Bangplakod about 11pm on Thursday (May 3), Pol Capt Suwit Phudonnang, duty officer at Phra Samut Chedi station, said.

Police and rescue workers called to the

scene found a motorcycle laying in the middle of the road with cables wrapped around the front of it. A car was parked nearby on the roadside, its left side mirror damaged.

Amnuay Khammungkhun, 46, owner of the parked car, told police he heard something hit the left side of his vehicle.

He looked to his left side mirror to see what it was and discovered it was damaged. He immediately stopped and got out of the car. He saw a motorcycle and its woman rider both lying on the road.

There was an internet cable entangled around the front of the bike and other cables on the road. He called the police,

well aware that other accidents had been caused by fallen cables recently.

Police suspected the overhead cabling crossing the road had been hit by a truck or other tall vehicle, causing them to fall and entangle Ms Chalisa as she passed below They would examine surveillance camera footage to find out what happened.

The owner of the cables would also face legal action, police said.

Earlier, a woman motorcyclist was killed when an overhead cable wrapped around her neck in northeastern Khon Kaen province on April 25.

Bangkok Post

thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

ASIA NEWS

9

‘Expanding the beautiful’ Tokyo’s digital art museum immerses, interacts with visitors JAPAN Anne Beade

T

he waterfall appears to run down the wall of a room and across the floor, but the flow is an illusion – a digital exhibit at a new interactive museum in Tokyo.

The flower-filled waterfall is the work of Japanese collective teamLab, known internationally for their innovative “digital art” that combines projections, sound and carefully designed spaces to create otherworldly, immersive experiences.

After exhibitions around the world, they are opening this summer a museum dedicated entirely to their unique brand of artwork.

The space is being billed as a first, a digital museum with artwork that envelops and interacts with visitors.

One space features a bucolic rice field, another is filled with seemingly endless hanging lamps that illuminate as the visitor nears, the light moving from one lamp to another around the room.

Elsewhere, a waterfall filled with flowers appears to flow over a hill or waves crash along the walls,

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A member of Teamlab collective stands in a digital installation room with hanging lamps, that illuminate as the visitor nears at Mori Building Digital Art Museum in Tokyo. Photo: Behrouz Mehri / AFP throwing spray towards the ceiling.

The exhibits are designed to flow into one another and interact with each other and the viewer. Some follow visitors or react in different ways when they are touched.

“We have created a borderless world made up of pieces of artwork that move by themselves, communicate with each other and mix perfectly with others,” teamLab cofounder Toshiyuki Inoko, 41, said.

“I would like this space to become a place where we can remem-

ber that borders do not exist in our world,” he said.

Some exhibits also encourage visitor participation – in one, viewers are “propelled into space” by bouncing on a trampoline in the midst of an intergalactic projection, in another they can dance in unison with performers who appear as translucent silhouettes.

Inoko, who has a background in physics, founded teamLab in 2001 with four fellow Tokyo University students, but the collective didn’t

make its artistic debut until 2011, with a show at a gallery in Taipei.

Three years later, New York’s Pace Gallery began promoting their work, and in 2015, they organised their first exhibition in Japan, drawing nearly 500,000 visitors over 130 days.

Since then, they have shown across the world, with exhibitions in London, Silicon Valley, China and elsewhere and the collective has grown to some 500 members.

They describe themselves as “ultratechnologists”, who combine expertise in speciality fields, including engineering, robotics and architecture, with hands-on manual labour to produce art.

While teamLab works are now in several permanent collections, the new museum will be the first permanent space completely devoted to the collective’s pieces.

The cost of the project has not been disclosed, but a team member said that each piece of artwork can cost around US$1-2 million (B31.7mn-B63.4mn).

The collective will have some 50 exhibits in the space covering 10,000 square metres in the bayside Odaiba area of Tokyo.

They have partnered with prop-

erty management company Mori Building, and secured support from Japanese companies ranging from Panasonic to Epson.

Dubbed the Mori Building Digital Art Museum: teamLab Borderless, the facility will open its doors on June 21, charging 3,200 yen (B919.39) a ticket.

Maintaining the artwork requires a bank of 520 computers and 470 projectors, but the real key is the set of sophisticated algorithms that generates images in real time.

The artworks are “neither prerecorded animations nor images on loop,” says teamLab. The collective say they want to use digital technology to “expand the beautiful”.

“Unlike a physical painting on a canvas, the non-material digital technology can liberate art,” they say in an explanation of their work.

“Because of its ability to transform itself freely, it can transcend boundaries.”

“The fact that the universe transforms with the presence of the other is very important for us,” Inoko said.

“I am as much a part of the artwork as the other visitors,” he said.

AFP

10 WORLD NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

America’s cold case culture A string of stalled or dead cases given fresh impetus by writers UNITED STATES Veronique Dupont

U

S detectives analysed DNA to capture the former policeman alleged to be the notorious “Golden State Killer” – but it was a book that sparked renewed interest in the murders.

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, a chilling true-crime bestseller

by Michelle McNamara, was published after she died suddenly in her sleep in 2016, and is to be adapted into a documentary series for HBO. Joseph James DeAngelo, 72, arrested after a 40-year search, was on April 27 charged with the 1978 murders of a newly-wed couple shot dead in Rancho Cordova, a suburb of California’s capital Sacramento.

He is a suspect in 10 other murders committed in California between 1976 and 1986, according to authorities, while the Golden State Killer has been linked by DNA or other evidence to more than 50 rapes.

“Think you got him, Michelle,” McNamara’s husband, the entertainer Patton Oswald, tweeted following the arrest on April 24, with horror writer Stephen King and the actor Rob Lowe also praising her steadfast work.

It was the latest in a string of stalled or dead cases given

Joseph James DeAngelo, the suspected ‘Golden State Killer’, appears in court for his arraignment on April 27 in Sacramento, California. Photo: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images / AFP fresh impetus by journalists, including the probe into real estate tycoon and multiple murder suspect Robert Durst, and the dubious conviction of Adnan Syed made famous by the acclaimed “Serial” podcast.

Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones has denied that McNamara’s book put investigators on DeAngelo’s trail but admitted it had revived public interest and generated a flood of new leads.

The author, who could almost have passed for Jodie Foster’s FBI trainee Clarice Starling in The Silence of the Lambs (1991), set out her theory in a 2013 article for Los Angeles magazine that

“marketing matters” in the solving of murders.

The authorities had entrusted her with a neighbourhood plan found at the scene of one of the crimes, likely drawn by the killer, in the correct calculation that the story would prompt calls.

Paul Holes, a now-retired Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office investigator whom McNamara contacted for her book, considered her “an investigative partner”, he told CBS news magazine show 48 Hours last year.

“It was nice to be able to talk to someone who knew as much about the case, and that she could talk the case with me

and rattle off things,” added Erika Hutchcraft, of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, on the same program.

McNamara came up with the “Golden State Killer” moniker for her quarry, whom she suspected was military or police-trained, given his ability to handle weapons and the care he took to wear gloves.

She wrote that she had come to know almost everything about the killer, from his blood type to his penis size – “conspicuously small” – and that he was built “like a runner or a swimmer”.

“One victim’s phone rang 24 years after her rape. ‘You want to play?’ a man whis-

pered. It was you. She was certain,” McNamara said in her book, addressing the killer directly.

“You played nostalgic, like an arthritic former football star running game tape on a VCR. ‘Remember when we played?’ I imagine you dialling her number, alone in a small, dark room, sitting on the edge of your twin bed, the only weapon left in your arsenal the firing up of a memory, the ability to trigger terror with your voice.”

Even though satisfied that the police would eventually use advances in science to flush out the killer, the insomniac author had become exhausted, taking powerful anti-anxiety drugs that contributed to her death.

“He can’t hurt me, I say, not realising that in every sleepless hour, in every minute spent hunting him and not cuddling my daughter, he already has,” McNamara wrote.

Launched in December 2015, Netflix’s Making a Murderer featured the 2007 killing of Teresa Halbach in Wisconsin, for which Brendan Dassey was convicted.

The series raised questions about the US legal system and prompted many to believe Dassey and his uncle Steven Avery were wrongly convicted of the killing.

A federal court in Wisconsin found in 2016 that Dassey,

over the course of multiple interviews, had been tricked into confessing – both by police and an unsympathetic private investigator working for his defence attorney.

Business magnate Robert Durst was arrested three years ago in a New Orleans hotel room hours before the final episode of the six-part HBO investigative documentary The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.

The series delved into the disappearance of his wife in 1982 as well as the killing of his friend Susan Berman in 2000 and the 2001 death of a neighbour in Texas who was found dismembered.

Perhaps the greatest “real crime” hit of all, the “Serial” podcast from the team behind public radio show “This American Life”, raised doubts over Adnan Syed’s conviction for the 1999 murder of his exgirlfriend.

Journalist Sarah Koening’s investigation, one of the most downloaded podcasts in history, highlighted shortcomings in the police probe and the work of Syed’s lawyer.

In March, an appeals court ordered a new trial, finding that Syed, 37, had received ineffective counsel and ruled that his 2000 conviction can be vacated, subject to an appeal by the state.

AFP

Mexican factory churning out Messi, Neymar masks MEXICO A MEXICAN FACTORY IS churning out rubber Neymars, Messis and Ronaldos ahead of the World Cup, racing to meet demand for life-like masks of a dream team of football giants.

An eclectic line-up rounds out the roster of 12 famous football faces being immortalised in latex at the Grupo Rev factory in the city of Jiutepec, in central Mexico: retired legends Pele, Diego Maradona and Zinedine Zidane, current stars Luis Su-

arez, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Franck Ribery, and Mexican favourites Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, Hirving “Chucky” Lozano and Jorge Campos.

“A lot of people have been asking for our masks because they’re planning to go to the World Cup,” said Diego Es-

ponda, an executive at the company.

“Mexican fans always stand out for putting on the biggest party, and we think these masks are an accessory that’s going to get a lot of attention,” he said from the factory’s design studio.

To select the factory’s dream team, workers held a World Cup-style “qualifying round” to narrow down an initial field of 20 candidates, said Esponda.

They consulted family and friends to decide on the most recognised and popular players. “(Lionel) Messi and (Cristiano) Ronaldo are the most requested. In Mexico, Chicharito is also in high demand,” he said.

The masks retail for about $13 (B412.14) each.

The factory made an initial run of 1,000 each for Barcelona star Messi and Real Madrid’s Ronaldo – and they

A worker arranges latex masks of football players at a factory in Jiutepec, Morelos State, Mexico. Photo: Alfredo Estrella / AFP are almost sold out already.

The other footballers got runs of 200 to 500 masks each, for a total of about 6,000.

Workers mostly make the masks by hand. First they sculpt the faces in clay, then make a plaster mould, then cast the masks in latex and hand-paint them.

“There’s very little machinery involved – about 15% of the process,” said Esponda.

The masks are mostly aimed at the Mexican market, but the company has received orders from Spain, France, Sweden and the United States, he said.

The factory, which made more than a million masks last year, is also selling likenesses of Mexican politicians in the run-up to the country’s July 1 elections.

AFP thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

BUSINESS NEWS 11

Beating the trend Stable performance rules in keeping your money safe FINANCE The Phuket News editor@classactmedia.co.th

I

n 2011, at the age of 33, Andre Villas Boas became the youngest manager ever to win a European competition when he guided Porto to a UEFA Europa League title. Following a remarkable season, AVB, as he had become known, tendered his resignation and flew to London to take charge of Chelsea. He lasted just nine months before he felt the brunt of the billionaire Russian owner Roman Abramovich.

Since then he has won trophies, but in second-rate leagues such as Russia and China. The young bright hope that was AVB did not fulfil his potential.

There are numerous examples of fund managers with stellar track records who have moved to new investment houses and failed miserably similarly to that of AVB. To us there could be many reasons for this, ranging from changing the strategies that made them successful to just being one of the good coin flippers we discussed last week.

What AVB teaches us is that chasing performance is a dangerous and usually inefficient investment strategy.

While he was manager of Porto he was lucky enough to have the services of superstar striker Radamel Falcao and Brazilian star Hulk. To us this is similar to judging an investment manager in a strong bull market.

In my opinion, investors should be wary of funds that have anything less than a 10year track record. Moreover, special attention should be paid to the team that manages the portfolio beneath the fund. Very often you

‘Purpose before profit’ – Allan Gray, founder of Orbis Investment Management. Photo: Allan Gray Orbis Foundation can see a distinct difference between the performance of a fund when they change the management, sometimes for the better, often for the worse.

A lot of people nowadays are buying index funds because they are cheap and they tend to go upwards over the medium to long term. Index funds do have their place and I have used them in the past, but by nature they are just going to achieve a medium/ middle return as they do not allow for growth to beat the market.

Many people believe that it is actually impossible to beat the market and that Wall Street works on a pure random basis that makes it impossible to predict. I strongly disagree with this as I have seen may fund managers over the years continually beat the market year in, year out. Skill will always have its place in the world and although there are not many fund managers out there that constantly win, maybe 100 of them, they do

For deacdes, Obis has outperformed its competitiors in the fund-managment game. Graph: FE Trustnet @thephuketnews

exist. One such outstanding figure is Allan Gray of Orbis Investment Management.

Orbis was founded in 1990 by South African-born investor Allan Gray. They currently manage over US$15 billion (about B477.75bn) and have a track record that is the envy of many of their competitors in the industry.

Orbis is designed to remain fully invested in global equities at all times. It aims to provide better returns than world stock markets without greater risk of loss. Since its inception Orbis has provided clients with average annual returns that by far beat the returns of the FTSE World.

However, Orbis’ impressive returns have not come without negative periods.

Its strategy of always being invested in the market means there is no way for it not to lose when we see big market crashes like in 2008.

What has been impressive is Orbis’ commitment to its core philosophies and belief that its strategies perform.

After the crash of 2008/9 it only took until early 2011 for Orbis investors to be back at their pre-crash level.

For me Orbis represents the perfect equity investment vehicle. Firstly, its 100% focus on equities means it is extremely transparent and liquid. Secondly, their long track record of outperforming the FTSE World is too consistent to be chalked up to luck. Finally, Orbis has no outside ownership and its shareholders are in the low

double digits.

Principally, the fund is owned by its founder and his son, William Gray, who acts as the Chief Investment

Officer. For his part Allan Gray has the public profile of a mole, purposely shying away from any industry spotlight. For him and his

Bermuda-based team the focus is all about adhering to their core principles of achieving the best returns for their clients.

Of course, our analogy of football managers and fund managers is really just a bit of fun and we realise that there are distinct differences between the two professions.

That being said, we fully believe in the points that we have made.

Let’s not forget that fund managers charge a fee and as investors you should only pay people who are worth their salaries. Focusing on the past performance of a fund, the size of assets, the longevity of its managers and its organisational structure are all key metrics that will result in more successful investing.

For more information on how savings plans work, visit for Hampton-bridge.com or email wfrisby@hamptonbridge.com

12 BUSINESS NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

OJU GROUP LAUNCHES UNIQUE EXCHANGE PLATFORM AND MAJOR PARTNERSHIP STRATEGY TO KICKSTART GLOBAL EXPANSION

W

hile many people are slowly beginning to realize that our world is rapidly and irreversibly being transformed by new trust-less blockchain technologies, most still equate this movement merely with digital assets, such as Bitcoin. However, as the blockchain revolution gathers momentum, it will be the new, out-ofthe-box companies, such as Oju Group, that are aiming to be at the forefront of a global paradigm shift in the business world.

For those not yet familiar with the brand, Oju Group is a global parent company with subsidiaries within the spheres of hotel management, vacation property development, and blockchain technology. The company also manages a portfolio of luxury vacation property on Phuket, Thailand. Following the successful completion of their ICO (named OjuT - THE Travel Coin), they have recently announced further developments towards their global expansion goals.

Branded as ‘Oju X - Your Portal to Freedom’ the company claims that their new digital trading platform can revolutionise the current foreign exchange trading model by using unique mathematical algorithms for determining real free-market trading dynamics, thus help Oju X trading platform lead the world into a post-manipulative era.

Another original feature claimed by Oju X is that the price for OjuT (digital currency), will be calculated every 24 hours against USD, based on trading volume, actual circulation, etc., thus helping to mitigate the effects of extreme intra-day volatility and bringing a level of stability to digital transactions. This will enable retailers and businesses to protect their profit margins by giving them more time to transfer in and out of fiat currencies at a known rate.

Further features of the exchange are planned to include the first-ever ‘game-ified’ trading platform and the first-ever trading platform secured by IVN quantum encryption technology. Oju X say that the platform www. ojux.io is designed to be a future-proof, expandable, upgradable, interactive, and fun for users.

Further developments announced by Oju Group involve several partnership agreements aimed to strengthen and solidify its presence and help secure its future.

While the company is currently developing its own digital wallets, it has also made a considerable investment into AToken Ltd to help further expand its reach into the global digital wallet market. AToken developed China’s first ever digital wallet, featuring a fast, secure and easy-to-use, currency exchange, and its wallets already host over 60 digital currencies with more being added all the time.

AToken wallets are favored by many traders and investors and the company is positioned to benefit from explosive demand for digital wallets in the coming years.

The biggest news from Oju Group in recent weeks has been its collaboration project with cybersecurity specialists, IVN Security. Oju Group wanted to ensure that all their products and services were completely safe from all data thieves and hackers. IVN Security has

developed highly advanced encryption and decryption technologies that it claims cannot be broken, even with the latest quantum super computers. A spokesperson for IVN explained the current reality of the cybersecurity world. “Data security is the biggest challenge facing the world of digital information.

If we can’t protect our own data from hackers, corporations or government agencies, (these are inter-changeable entities), then we don’t have security at all, not for our assets, our data or for our personal freedoms. Data has become the new ‘Gold’ for Governments and Corporate bandits, and they’re all mining it.”

IVN Security is so confident of its claims, that it even issued a $300,000 reward for anyone capable of decrypting the sample test on its website www.ivnsecurity.com and after thousands of attempts, the prize remains unclaimed.

With Oju Group owning and managing over 100 properties in Phuket, the company was invited to discuss collaboration with Phuket’s leading provider of full service renewable energy solutions, Phuket Solar Co., Ltd, with a view to long-term co-operation in a mutually beneficial relationship. CEO Rosario Antonio Sanna has been following the progress of OjuT since first reading about the project in The Phuket News. Both companies are passionate about moving the world in the direction of Freedom. Both financial freedom, as well as energy independence, and both companies confirmed their commitment to making a long-term contribution to the future of the planet. Phuket Solar visited some of the Oju Blue rental villas, and after evaluating their energy consumption data, produced detailed reports and recommendations, including various options and savings over time.

Oju Group has now begun the process of installing Phuket Solar systems across a range of properties, and have also agreed to include

OjuT as a payment option. In addition, both companies have agreed to collaborate with some very exciting projects in the future.

KENNY ROGERS ROASTERS AND SKYE LAKE CLUB While building its own blockchain-based infrastructure in Phuket, Oju Group has been keen to reach out to local companies keen to learn about new digital merchant solutions and expanding into new markets and revenue streams. Kenny Rogers Roasters and Skye Lake Club are just two of the well-known local businesses who have already signed up for future collaboration with OjuT - The Travel Coin, which in the future will enable their customers the option of using OjuT as a payment method.

With all these new developments, and far more in the pipeline, Oju Group has been very active in the jobs market, looking for the best talent to fill its new roles. The current list of available employment opportunities includes: HR Manager, Customer Support, Online Marketing / Business Development Executive, App / Web Developer, Bookkeeper and Administrative Officer. More details can be searched on Jobs DB by typing in Oju Co. Ltd. The latest news on Oju Group can be found on www.ojugroup.com thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

A look at the secrets of Phuket’s best burgers

15

The devestating health effects of air pollution

16

CLASSIC ELEGANCE The Boathouse has been serving sunset drinks to the rich and famous on Kata Beach for decades The sensational sunset views from the dining tables of The Boathouse on Kata Beach has helped draw discerning dinners from across the globe for years.

SUNSET SEDUCTIONS

S

Baz Daniel

unset! It’s one of the most primal of our daily experiences and yet so often missed or taken for granted. In the hurly-burly of our modern time-stressed lives, how often do we take the time to calmly sit, stare and fully immerse ourselves in this most beautiful part of simply being alive?

When I moved to Phuket and made it my home some 12 years ago, I was immediately struck by the immense drama and power of the sunsets on the island. They were simply all-engrossing and impossible to ignore for their sheer glorious magnitude and power. I had been living, like the majority of us these days, in a frenetic big city while pursuing a corporate career and I had become detached and divorced from sunsets, as I had from so much of the glory of nature. Then one evening a Phuket local invited me along for “sundowners” at The Boathouse situated right on the glorious golden sands of Kata Beach.

Of course I had heard about The Boathouse’s fabulously romantic his@thephuketnews

The fine food and diverse drinks are reason enough. tory and heritage. How Thai Royal family member Mom Tri Devakul, Thailand’s foremost architect and designer, had originally opened it in 1987 as a beach-side restaurant for his circle of rich and famous friends. The cuisine and views were stunning and Mom Tri brought in the best chefs and international expertise from the Chateaux of France to embellish the faire and build a spectacular wine cellar.

Later on, Mom Tri added some lovely suites alongside the restaurant where replete dinner guests could collapse in grateful splendour… and so one of the world’s most famous boutique resorts was born.

Over the next three decades The Boathouse has become a magnet for a glittering cast of Thai and Western royalty as well as the simply rich, famous and discerning. Famous inter-

national names such as Peter Ustinov and Rudolph Nureyev, as well as Thai royalty such as Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn have graced the very same beautiful beachside terrace and the very same dining room in which you can sit today and witness one of the most fabulous sunsets in the Andaman region.

When I was first invited for a sundowner drink at The Boathouse I knew much of the history, but I was completely unprepared for the overwhelmingly romantic sensory impact of the experience. I met my host at 6pm as the sky above Kata Bay, with its dramatic headlands, was painted like a pyrotechnic canvas of purples, pinks, gold and fading blues. Jackson Pollock meets Claude Monet for an acid trip perhaps? Or Charlie Parker playing hot jazz in a swirling cauldron of rainbows.

So wonderful was that first Boathouse sunset that my host and I couldn’t resist segueing into a sensational supper in the resort’s restaurant, sampling a symphony of Western and Thai dishes and availing ourselves of an unforgettable liquid treasure form the Boathouse’s 600-plus label cellar.

Since that seductive day, I have become a Boathouse sunset addict and

have repeated the experience over a hundred times, but it has never lost its ability to engender pure romantic wonderment in me that anything on this good earth can be quite so quintessentially beautiful.

The Boathouse today, following its recent complete refurbishment, offers an exceptional blend of its original elegance and traditions with a distinctly contemporary style. Renowned international Executive Chef Jonathan Bruell and his team work their culinary magic every night, while the drinks and service are second to none.

It’s not surprising that The Boathouse beachside restaurant is muchawarded for the excellence of its cuisine and drinks selection by such experts as Wine Spectator and the Tatler Best Restaurant Guide, who year after year rate it as one of the absolute dining treasures in all of Thailand.

But the pure majesty of sunset in this very special place, is something that even my purple prose cannot do justice!

It is so overwhelming that the only way to truly appreciate it is to experience it in yourself and I urge you to do just that as soon as you are able.

For more information and bookings call 076 330 015 or visit the website: boathouse-phuket.com

14 ENVIRONMENT

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Tropical islands far from deserted Authorities are seeking to reduce the some 4,000 visitors a day to the tourist drawcard of Maya Bay. Photo: Diego Delso

Tourism surge lashes Southeast Asia’s beaches including Thailand’s Lillian Suwanrumpha With Joe Freeman

Once pristine beaches are reeling from decades of rampant tourism as governments scramble to confront trashfilled waters and environmental degradation

Photo: Mike Clegg Photography

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ordes of tourists clamber across the white sand with selfie sticks as Thai park rangers wade into turquoise waters to direct boats charging into the cliff-ringed cove.

Made famous by the 2000 movie The Beach starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Ley, just a short boat ride from Phuket, is now a case study in the ruinous costs of runaway tourism, swamped by up to 4,000 daily visitors.

“There is too many people here, it’s bad,” lamented Saad Lazrak, a 61-year-old from Morocco, as crowds around him swallowed the stretch of sand encircled by an amphitheatre of limestone cliffs.

Across the region, Southeast Asia’s once-pristine beaches are reeling from decades of unchecked tourism as governments scramble to confront trash-filled waters and environmental degradation without puncturing a key economic driver.

Thailand’s Maya Bay will be off limits for four months from June to September, officials announced last month, in a bid to save its ravaged coral reefs.

In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered last month the Boracay beach resort closed to tourists for up to six months from April 26, describing the destination as a “cesspool” tainted by sewage dumped directly into the sea.

Indonesian officials, meanwhile, declared a “garbage emergency” last year swamping a six-kilometre stretch of coast along the island of Bali. The island’s grim coastal pollution was highlighted in March by British diver Rich Horner’s viral video of swimming through a sea of trash swirling off shore.

“Plastic bags, more plastic bags, plastic, plastic, so much plastic!” Horner said in a Facebook post that has been viewed more than a million times.

BREATHING SPACE Conservationists and governments are worried about the health of coral reefs, which are in a dire state globally due to climate change and rising sea temperatures. When exposed to warmer waters, they shed the algae that dazzle the eye and are vital to marine eco-systems, leaving the corals diseased or bone-white in a process called bleaching.

Environmental stress, including pollution, human contact and exposure to plastics that comes with mass tourism are also major threats to reefs that are a major draw for snorkellers and scuba-divers.

“Tourism has a series of detrimental effects on coral health,” said Eike Schoenig, a Thailand-based marine biologist at the Centre for Oceanic Research and Education.

Countries in Southeast Asia are looking to stem the threats without cutting off the cash flow of a regional tourism boom, led by China, the top source market for travellers to the region. Thailand received 35 million tourists last year, of whom nearly 10 mil-

Tourists throng the beach at The Philippines island of Boracay, which was recently closed to tourism for six months. Photo: Joey Razon for Philippine News Agency lion hailed from China, according to official data. But what is good for business can be bad for beaches.

Songtam Suksawang, Thailand’s National Park Office Director, said he personally inspected the beach at Maya Bay and said it “must definitely be (temporarily) closed” in order to rehabilitate it.

He said authorities are discussing new rules once the shut-down is lifted, such as restrictions on the number of daily visitors, better regulation of boats and a higher entrance fee.

TOURISM COSTS Thailand is also conducting studies on six other marine parks, while the Philippines is weighing action on other top destinations buckling under mass tourism. But governments are wary of curtailing an industry that creates jobs and buoys economies.

Spending on travel and tourism contributed nearly $136 billion (B43 trillion) to the region’s GDP in 2017, a figure forecast to rise to $144bn (B45trn) this year, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council.

The cost of the closures is already being felt in the Philippines, where hundreds of Boracay hotels and tour companies are facing steep losses from cancelled rooms, flights and other bookings. But some countries are not taking such dramatic steps.

In Indonesia, the tourism ministry said there were no plans to close Bali or any other holiday destination in the archipelago, although it acknowledged

that pockets of the tropical paradise were under strain from heavy tourism.

“Shut down Bali? I don’t think we will need to do that yet,” said ministry spokesman Guntur Sakti. “Bali is the centre of Indonesian tourism.”

In fact, Indonesia has identified 10 other destinations where it is trying to boost visitors and replicate Bali’s success, including neighbouring island Lombok and Lake Toba in Sumatra.

Experts are also sceptical that short shut-downs will have lasting effects.

“Bottom line is that temporarily closing the beach is probably not the optimal solution to these problems. It only take a day for a bunch of incompetent snorkellers to trash a small reef,” said Andrew Baird from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies in Australia.

In Thailand, the government hopes to draw people to lesser known beaches.

“We are working very hard to spread people out, not to go to one condensed area,” said Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine expert working with the parks and tourism authorities. Travellers to Maya Bay might like the idea.

“It’s very touristy. There wasn’t a patch of sand that didn’t have people laying down on it, taking photos,” Oliver Black, a 22-year-old tourist, said of his afternoon at the destination.

As for his thoughts on the looming closure?

“It would not really upset me if I wasn’t able to go to (back to) Maya beach,” he said.

AFP thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

DINING 15

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Deconstructing Phuket’s Best Burgers of 2018 The top three entries in this year’s Phuket’s Best Burger competion Anton Makrov life@novostiphuketa.com

It’s hard to argue that a simple, classic burger is a thing of beauty, but the contestants at Phuket’s Best Burger 2018 were out to impress with a whole array of remarkable burger creations

W

hat does it take to make a great hamburger? Basically, all you need is a fresh bun, a good meat patty, some crispy lettuce plus sauces and other additions to suit your liking. It sounds simple enough, but it seems you are spoiled for choice these days when ordering a humble burger. Beef, lamb or chicken? A classic bun, a wholegrain or a brioche? Ketchup or mayo or perhaps Massaman curry sauce? Fresh tomatoes, grilled bell peppers and…? The options seem endless and chefs are constantly coming up with new and exciting combinations to tease your tastebuds.

Jay Leshark, the man behind the Phuket’s Best Burger contest, reveals (or rather confesses) that he is somewhat of a purist preferring a classic beef burger.

“Everyone loves different things about burgers.

Personally, I am a yellow mustard kind of guy, a ketchup kind of guy. Just a plain, nice burger, that’s all I like,” Jay says.

It’s hard to argue that a simple, classic burger is a thing of beauty, but the contestants at Phuket’s Best Burger 2018 were out to impress with a whole array of remarkable burger creations, ranging from Balineseand Thai-inspired delights to veggie burgers and much more.

Below you’ll find the top three burgers that were chosen by judges out of more than a dozen and the good news is that you can try your hand making them at home – just get the ingredients and fire up the grill.

Cheese Lava Thavorn Beach Resort & Spa entered this year’s competition as the reigning champion of Phuket Best Burger and managed to become the first contestant to defend their title and returned again to win again for a back-to-back victory. What’s their secret? Cheese, cheese and more cheese. As simple as that.

With copious amount of melted cheddar and brie, Australian Wagyu beef, crispy bacon, cherry tomatoes, fresh rocket leaves and mushrooms all doused in house-made tomato sauce, Thavorn’s Cheese Lava burger kept to trues to the classic but with a very cheesy twist. Served in a Brioche bun, the burger clearly impressed the judges again and landed Thavorn their second title.

Coast Beach Club’s Swiss-inspired burger The Valaisan.

The Kuzu Burger from Xana Beach Club. @thephuketnews

The Valaisan Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland, a country know around the globe for its financial institutions, watches, chocolate and cheese fondue.

It must have been the latter that inspired Coast Beach Club to create The Valaisan, a Swiss-inspired burger with a semi-hard cow’s milk cheese known as Raclette.

To make a culinary voyage to the valley of the Rhône, you’ll need some 180 grams of Australian Wagyu beef, several strips of crispy bacon, Raclette cheese, fresh tomatoes, minced Iceberg lettuce and rocket leaves all topped with tartare and BBQ sauces. Coast Beach Club served their award-winning burger in a Brioche bun topped with pumpkin and poppy seeds. Again, this new take on

Thavorn Beach Resort & Spa’s Cheese Lava Burger. the classic beef burger impressed the judges and was good enough for Coast to be awarded second place at Phuket’s Best Burger 2018.

Kuzu Burger The inaugural Phuket’s Best Burger event was held in March of 2015 and saw Xana Beach Club crowned as the winner. Since then Xana has been trying to replicate their initial success and this year they came close enough to get the bronze.

At Phuket’s Best Burger 2018 Xana presented their Mediterranean-themed Kuzu Burger, which was a brilliant demonstration of what you can achieve if you have a nice brioche and enough bravery to experiment with some unconventional yet tasty ingredients.

The heart of the burger was a spicy smoked lamb patty topped with feta cheese and rosemary, green papaya and cucumber mint Tzatziki, bell peppers and mushrooms roasted in extra virgin olive oil and homemade smokey mint ketchup. Absolutely amazing – but not too challenging to attempt to cook at your next backyard BBQ. The judges of Phuket’s Best Burger 2018 certainly had their work cut out this year, trying to evaluate a total of 16 different burgers – all prepared by some of the island’s best chefs. If you are interested what was inside of them, head to The Phuket News TV channel on YouTube where a full, mouth-watering report from the event is available to watch.

16 HEALTH

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Nine out of 10 people breath polluted air

Mid- to low-income countries in Asia, Africa shoulder more of the burden

A recent World Health Organisation report was damning of the negative health effects of breathing polluted air. Photo: Pixabay Nina Larson

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ore than 90% of the global population is breathing in high levels of pollutants, the World Health Organisation said this week, blaming poor air quality for some seven million deaths annually. Fresh data from the UN health body showed that every corner of the globe is dealing with air pollution, although the problem is far worse in poorer countries, including Asian countries like Thailand.

“Air pollution threatens us all, but the poorest and most marginalised people bear the brunt of the burden,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement.

WHO’s study, which examined health-hazardous levels of both outdoor and household air pollution, found that “around seven million people die every year from exposure to fine particles in polluted air”. More than 90% of deaths linked to air pollution occur in low- or middle-income countries, mainly in Asia and Africa, it found.

“This is a very dramatic problem that we are facing,” Maria Neira, the head of the WHO’s department of public

health and environment, recently told reporters in a conference call.

The data focused on dangerous particulate matter with a diameter of between 2.5 and 10 micrometres (PM10), and particles with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres (PM2.5).

PM2.5 includes toxins like sulfate and black carbon, which pose the greatest health risks since they can penetrate deep into the lungs or cardiovascular system.

STROKES, CANCER, PNEUMONIA They can cause diseases like strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory infections such as pneumonia, WHO said. Particularly worrying, the agency added, was that more than 40% of the global population still does not have access to clean cooking fuels and technologies in their homes.

The use of dirty cooking fuel, like burning charcoal, is a major source of household air pollution, which is estimated to cause some 3.8mn premature deaths each year.

“It is unacceptable that over three billion people – most of them women and children – are still breathing deadly smoke every day from using polluting stoves and fuels in their homes,” Tedros said.

Wednesday’s report said access to clean fuels was increasing in every region, but warned “improvements are not even keeping pace with population growth in many parts of the world”, pointing especially to sub-Saharan Africa. Outdoor air pollution was meanwhile linked to 4.2mn fatalities annually. In around one million of those cases, a combination of indoor and outdoor pollution was to blame, WHO said. The report provides air quality data from more than 4,300 cities and towns in 108 countries, constituting the world’s biggest database of ambient, or outdoor, air pollution.

MONITORING KEY WHO hailed that more than 1,000 more cities had been added to its database since its last report two years ago, noting that monitoring can prompt action towards addressing the problem. The data shows that the highest ambient air pollution levels are found in what WHO dubs the Eastern Mediterranean region – which basically covers the Middle East and North Africa – and in Southeast Asia.

In these regions air pollutants are often found at levels more than five times higher than what WHO considers safe. In the city of Gwalior in India, for

Facemasks are now a common sight. Photo: D Veksler instance, the levels of both PM10 and PM2.5 measured in 2012 were around 17 times higher than what WHO recommends.

Several Middle Eastern cities count similar levels, including Al Jubail in Saudi Arabia, but WHO experts noted that particulate levels are often pushed higher by sand in cities and towns near deserts.

The report meanwhile stressed an unevenness in the information received, with a dire lack of data from Africa and parts of the Western Pacific region.

Only eight of the 47 countries in Africa have provided air quality information about one or more of their cities. And while the database lists information on 181 Indian cities, it provides data for only nine Chinese cities.

Antibiotics use soars, fuelling superbug fears Antoine Boyer

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lobal consumption of antibiotics has soared since the year 2000, stoking calls for new policies to rein in usage – and fuelling fears that the worldwide threat posed by drug-resistant superbugs will spiral out of control, researchers say.

A recent study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) – based on sales data for 76 countries – shows that consumption of antibiotics increased 65% from 2000 to 2015, driven by users in low and middle-income countries, including Thailand.

The research team headed by scientists from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and the Centre for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy in the US capital said countries needed to invest in alternative treatments, sanitation and vaccination.

“With antibiotic consumption increasing worldwide, the challenge posed by antibiotic resistance is likely to get worse,” said the authors of the study, which was published in a recent edition of PNAS. “Antibiotic resistance, driven by antibiotic consumption, is a growing global health threat,” it said.

“As with climate change, there may be an unknown tipping point, and this could herald a future without effective antibiotics,” it added.

In the 76 countries studied, the number of so-

Antibiotic use in 76 countries rose 65% from 2000 to 2015. Photo: Max Pixel called “defined daily doses” consumed rose from 21.2 billion in 2000 to 34.8bn in 2015.

Eili Klein, a researcher at the Centre for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy and one of the study’s authors, said the jump signifies “increased access to needed drugs in countries with lots of disease that can be effectively treated with antibiotics.”

But, Klein warned: “As more and more countries gain access to these drugs, these rates will only increase and that will drive resistance rates higher.”

One group of experts formed in the United Kingdom in 2014 estimates that in 2016, there were at least 700,000 deaths related to drug-resistant infections.

Stop overuse Over the 16-year period studied, the increase in antibiotics consumption was marginal in the three countries with the highest usage – the United States, France and Italy. But it was a different story elsewhere: in Asia, consumption of antibiotics more than doubled in India, skyrocketed 79% in China and rose 65% in Pakistan. The three countries are the biggest users of antibiotics among the countries deemed low and middle-income for the purposes of the study.

They are also countries that suffer in some areas from poor sanitation, irregular access to vaccines and a lack of cleaning drinking water – all conditions that allow infectious diseases and drugresistant infections to spread.

“Radical rethinking of policies to reduce consumption is necessary, including major investments in improved hygiene, sanitation, vaccination, and access to diagnostic tools both to prevent unnecessary antibiotic use, and to decrease the burden of infectious disease,” the study says.

For Klein, eliminating overuse of antibiotics should be “a first step and a priority for every country” especially given the alarming projection that by 2030, consumption may have increased by another 200%.

“Estimates are that 30% of use in high-income countries is inappropriate,” Klein said.

AFP thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

CULTURE 17

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Sri Thanonchai: Clever trickster The stories of this Thai folk hero’s exploits remain perenially popular SIRINYA’S WORLD Dr Sirinya Pakditawan pakditawan@googlemail.com

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ri Thanonchai is a clever trickster who appears in ancient Thai folktales and is popular to this today. The first printed version of these stories was published in around 1890. Sri Thanonchai is known throughout Thailand but also in other Southeast Asian countries, including Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. In Laos, this character is called Siengmieng (also Chieng Mieng), in Cambodia Thanon-Chai, although his Khmer name is Ah Thonchuy Prach.

In Myanmar, this figure is referred to as Saga Dausa. The Lao tales are similar to the Thai ones whereas the Cambodian versions differ somewhat from the commonly told Thai stories.

There are also mural paintings of Sri Thanonchai tales at Wat Phrathum Wanaram in Bangkok, Thailand.

He can be compared to the folkloric German figure of Till Eulenspiegel, who was also reputed to be a great deceiver. Most of the Sri Thanonchai stories are set in central Thailand and this is most likely where the tales of Sri Thanonchai originated from.

@thephuketnews

A poster and scene from ‘Sri Thanonchai 555+’ a movie about the folk figure. Photos: Aomtwo Entertainment According to the tales, Sri Thanonchai was born near Ayutthaya as the son of a peasant. His mother bore him relatively late in her life. As the story goes, it was only after she implored the god Indra that she fell pregnant and bore her first son, Sri Thanonchai.

However, a short while after the trickster’s birth, the mother gave birth to another son and as is so often the case the elder son Sri Thanonchai became very jealous of his younger brother.

Generally though, Sri Thanonchai was very witty, clever and delighted in playing tricks on people, some of which were often quite outrageous. Nevertheless, he was eventually appointed to the royal court where he before long he began to annoy and vex other courtiers with his incessant tricks and

deceptions. Despite these often risky transgression he had an uncanny ability to be able to save his hide from any severe punishment.

Finally, following his return to the house of his parents, it seems his karma finally caught up with him and soon after Sri Thanonchai was said to have died of a broken heart following the loss in a bet against a court official. Testifying to his longevity as a folkloric character, there have been several movie versions portraying Sri Thanonchai’s vexing exploits and eventual demise. The most recent version, titled Sri Thanonchai 555+, was released in 2014.

The most famous tale of Sri Thanonchai is one in which the trickster outwits the King. Summing up, the

story relates how the trickster persuades the King to go into a pond.

Both the Thai and Laos versions of this popular tale are almost identical.

Although several Laos version of his other exploits vary quite considerably from the popular Thai versions.

The story of Sri Thanonchai was for centuries passed down through oral storytelling traditions, but were later written down more definitively in verse and prose.

The longevity and continued popularity of the tales of Sri Thanonchai’s exploits highlight the intellectual and creative power involved in the art of telling jokes and their ability to stand the test of time. Such humorous tales, told in entertaining and insightful ways, often employing a deft understanding of linguistic and psychological nuances of an audience, remind us that people of all cultures revel in the joys of a well told story.

That these tales remain popular to this day goes to show that their universal themes still resonate with people, who continue to identify with the universal themes, characters and situations of these ancient folk tales.

Sirinya Pakditawan is half-Thai and holds a PhD from Hamburg University.

She enjoys writing about Thai culture Read her blog at: sirinyas-thailand.de

18 ISLAND SCENE

Jason and Lada.

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Artists, officials and organisers took to the stage to officially open the Phuket Unesco International Jazz Day 2018.

From left: Jazz fest organisers Marque and Jeffrey.

Scores of music lovers turned out to enjoy a fantastic night of live music.

PHUKET UNESCO INTERNATIONAL JAZZ DAY FESTIVAL IN PHUKET TOWN The Phuket Unesco International Jazz Day Festival 2018 took place on Monday evening (Apr 30) with a fantastic range of performances by local and international artists. It was a great turn out and festival-goers enjoyed a fabulous night of drinks, food and music. This event was proudly sponsored by The Phuket News.

Scores of aspiring young JW Marriott chefs took part in the day's activities.

The official opening ceremony led by guest of honour Governor Norraphat (centre).

YOUNG TALENTED CHEFS BATTLE AT JW MARRIOTT JUNIOR CHEFS COMP JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa in collaboration with six Marriott hotels and resorts hosted its “Marriott Junior Chefs Cooking Battle” for their interns and talented chefs to showcase their culinary skills at the cook-off event as part of the Marriott International’s Journey Week. The initiative event was held on May 4, at Marriott Café. It was a fun-filled culinary challenge where the young chefs brainstormed, prepared and cooked three dishes to present to the judges to sample.

TOP CHINESE MODEL JI LINGCHEN VISITS AMARI PHUKET ON HOLIDAY

Grenville Fordham (left) greets wellwishers from local government offices.

PHUKET GOVERNMENT STAFFERS VISIT MISSION HOSPITAL PATIENTS Led by Mrs Laor Klabcharoen, a joint team from the Phuket Social Security Office and the Labour Department dropped in on patients at Mission Hospital on Labour Day laden with gifts for patients, including Grenville Fordham, prominent Phuket expat sailor and publisher of Window on Phuket.

Amari Phuket’s representative, Pierre - Andre Pelletier – Regional Vice - President, Operations – Southern Thailand, Vietnam and the Maldives gave a warm welcome to popular Chinese actor and model Ji Lingchen during his stay at Amari Phuket on April 30.

Ji Lingchen is the celebrity actor and style maven selected by high-end fashion brands to be their ambassador on international runways.

Amari Phuket’s Pierre-Andre Pelletier welcomes popular Chinese actor and model Ji Lingchen during his stay at Amari Phuket in Patong. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

ISLAND SCENE 19

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Guests were invited to let their imagination run wild and dress in unique and sensual costumes.

Best costume honours went to a guest in authentic Venetian attire.

The exotic theme, attire and party ambience came together perfectly.

The evening was an elegant, yet sophisticated Venetian-inspired masked party.

KATA ROCKS’ COLLECTIVE SERIES 12 ‘VENETIAN MASQUERADE PARTY’ Kata Rocks’ Collective Series 12 (CS12) “Venetian Masquerade Party” delivered on its promise for a fun filled event with over 80 guests enjoying an evening of exceptional food, live DJ entertainment and acrobatic performances. The event’s exotic theme, attire and party ambiance came perfectly together for a magical evening filled with elegance, “aphrodisiac gastronomy” and mystique.

Hooters management, staff and guests pose for group photo outside the restaurant to mark the closing of the Charity Bike Wash for 2018.

Hooters Phuket Sales and Marketing Manager Wandee Deeraksa (black shirt) poses with the Hooters Girls.

HOOTERS PHUKET HOSTS ANNUAL CHARITY BIKE WASH EVENT FOR 2018 Hooters Phuket hosted it’s annual charity bike wash on Saturday May 5 in Patong. All proceeds from the event will be donated to Destination Kid project.

Guests enjoyed live jazz and tasty canapes at the launch of Mom Tri’s Jazz evenings.

Guests dressed in sleek black dresses to enjoy the sophisticated evening of live jazz.

SMOOTH SOUNDS AND DELICIOUS FOOD FOR LIVE JAZZ TRIO AT MOM TRI’S Guests enjoyed live Jazz at Mom Tri’s Kitchen during the launch party for the restaurant’s regular jazz and dining evening last Friday (May 5). The new event will be held every Wednesday and Sunday evening in the Sea Shell Bar throughout May. Each evening will feature great live music, gorgeous sunset views and Thai and international cuisine. @thephuketnews

20 EVENTS

FRI

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM seafood, generous selections of BBQ items, tempting desserts and delicious drinks. At The Nai Harn Phuket’s Cosmo Restaurant from 6:30-10pm. Price: B1,950 for adults and B975 for children under 12. For further information and reservations please contact: 076 380 200 or fbreservation@thenaiharn.com

11 MAY Singha Laguna Phuket Open 2018

Mussels night @ Shakers 1.2kg mussels served with French fries, your choice, your style: natural, marnière, Provençale, garlic and cream or Thai style. Reservations recommended B295 P/P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

ALL YOU CAN EAT BBQ RIBS Come join us for our WEEKLY BBQ EVERY FRIDAY served ALL DAY & ALL NIGHT at Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach and Patong. Indulge in All You Can Eat BBQ Pork Ribs, Chicken and Sides for ONLY 445 BAHT! Our BBQ is famous at Two Chefs!

Come try us out and enjoy our mouthwatering pork ribs, flavor-bursting chicken and more! Join us for Live Music from 8-Late Performed by Our Famous Two Chefs Band! Come for the FOOD - Stay for the Fun. www.twochefs.com

Phuket Province and Laguna Golf Phuket have again been selected as the premier venues to host All Thailand Golf Tour 2018’s “Singha Laguna Phuket Open” – a professional golf competition organised by Sports Management Group (SMG) with Singha Corporation as founding sponsor and Asia’s premier destination resort, Laguna Phuket, a title sponsor. Aiming to expand “All Thailand Golf Tour” to Thailand’s leading tourism destination and promote Phuket province as a sports tourism hub, Singha Laguna Phuket Open 2018 will be held during Thursday May 10 – Sunday May 13, 2018 at Laguna Golf Phuket as a co-sanctioned golf event with Asian Development Tour (ADT). It will see the top professional players vying for more than a B2 million prize fund. First tee time starts at 7am daily. Highlights will be broadcast on True Visions Sports Channel, with live broadcast shown on Saturday and Sunday. There will also be various hospitality and activities throughout the week including golf-related and lifestyle merchandise. Spectators welcome – entry is free! *The course and golf academy will be fully booked by the event during May 7 – 13, 2018.

SAT

12 MAY

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

All you can eat Sunday Roast Buffet Beef, Pork and Lamb – Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas, Carrots, fried mushrooms, grilled tomatoes – Yorkshire pudding – roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes – gravy, mushroom sauce, mint sauce. Reservations recommended. B350 P/P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

Jazz Night Jazz Night at Mom Tri’s Wok Pagoda Kitchen, Every Saturday night from 18:00 - 20:00 with Canape & Cocktail. For more infomation & reservation please contact 076-333-568 or fb@villaroyalephuket.com THB 850 per person. Mom Tri’s Wok Pagoda, fb@villaroyalephuket.com, 076-333-568.

SUN

13 MAY

Go Live Sunday Seafood Brunch The Banyan Tree Brunch experience offers a generous selection of live fresh, local and imported seafood with exceptional lobster dishes, Japanese 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 12pm 3:30pm, Prices start from B2,800 net per person. For reservations email: fb-phuket@banyantree.com or call 076 372 400.

All you can eat BBQ Ribs night Healthy Vegan Buffet at DiLite Restaurant

6PM – 11PM: All you can eat BBQ Ribs served with salad buffet, potato salad & choice of sauces. Reservation recommended. 295 baht P.P. shakersphuket@ gmail.com, 081 891 4381.

Come to Thanyapura’s DiLite Restaurant to enjoy a healthy vegan buffet every Monday to Saturday. Lunch: 12pm to 3pm Dinner: 6pm to 8:30pm. Price: Lunch B350 and Dinner B550. Information and bookings call 076 336 000 or visit: thanyapura.com/hotel/dining/

BBQ Seafood Buffet BBQ Seafood Buffet at Sala Bua Restaurant - Only 870 THB Net Per Person, Children (4-11 Years Old) THB 435 Nett. Reservations, 41 Taweewonges Road, Patong Beach, Phuket, info.irp@impiana.com, 076340-138.

World Cup League @ BISP Term 3 Dates: May 12, May 19, May 26, June 2, June 9 and June 16, 2018. Age / Time U9: 9:30-10:30; U11: 10:3011:30; U15: 11:30-12:30 *Girls may play down one age group. Package Includes – World Cup Team Kit, Participation Medal and Seven Saturdays of Matches.

Price: B3,000 if you register and pay before April 8, B3,500 if you register any time after April 8, 2018. To register for the World Cup League please contact: infobisp@cruzeirothailand.com

Sunday Roast All Day, All Night Come enjoy a Traditional Sunday Roast EVERY SUNDAY at Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach and Patong. Indulge in our Traditional Sunday Roast ALL DAY & ALL NIGHT for ONLY 445 Baht! Enjoy a Large ALL YOU CAN EAT selection of your favorites!

Featuring: Roast Aussie Beef, Pork Loin and Chicken.

Roasted or Mashed Potatoes. Roasted Mixed Vegetables Flavored with Thyme and Garlic. Yorkshire Pudding and Red Wine Gravy. Enjoy Live Music from 8-Late Performed by Our Famous Two Chefs Band!

Come for the FOOD - RESERVE Your Table Now Online at bit.ly/TwoChefsReservations Check out more details on our website at bit.ly/TwoChefsEvents Reservation, Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach and Patong. Kata Beach 076-333-370 Kata Center 076330-065 Karon 076-286-479 Patong 076-344-914.

Operas & Musicals Concert – TAKE OFF A live performance of Operas and Musicals from musical crossover group CHIARO EDITION featuring young talented Viktor Viktorsson from BISP will be held on Sunday, May 13 at Phuket Mining Museum in Kathu, 4-6pm under the title TAKE OFF. ADULT: B500 CHILD: Bt350 (< 15 yo) CALL: Khun Sirikhwan 081 -487 8087 INFO: www.facebook.com/chiaroedition or CHIAROEDITION@gmail.com

MON

14 MAY

Friday Lunch at The Boathouse Phuket

Traditional Sunday Roast at O’Tool’s

All you can eat BBQ night

Savor and enjoy a 3-course set menu with unlimited red and white at The Boathouse, Kata Beach, Phuket.

Best deal before your weekend starts. Only B1,000 net per person. Bookings: 076 330 015-7 or email Pinyo.T@boathouse-phuket.com

Served from 2pm. Your Choice of either Roast Beef, Chicken, Loin of Pork or Leg of Lamb Served with Roast & Boiled Potatoes, 3 Fresh Vegetables, Yorkshire Pudding & Gravy. Only 350 Baht. Includes a Free Glass of House Red or White. See: www.otools-phuket.com

6pm – 11pm: Beef, Pork, Chicken, Burgers, Sausages, Prawns and Squid, Salad buffet, Choice of potatoes and sauces, bread, buns and garlic bread. Reservation recommended. B395 P/P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

BBQ Buffet on Saturday Night Come and join us along the shores of the Andaman Sea for an unforgettable experience of freshest

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WED

EVENTS 21

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

16 MAY

FRI

18 MAY

for yourself and see why everyone is talking about us.

FFF Food For Foreigners all for free!!! For more info visit: facebook.com/FFFFoodForForeigners.

ple per team.Underwood Art Factory, ByPass road at 6:30pm. Raising money for PHBGTU, The Good Shepherd and Outrigger’s Share 4 Change programme. Book your spot donna.thethaiger@gmail. com

FRI

15 JUN

Meeting - Rotary Club Patong

Sala Wednesday nights ribs, beats, brews.

Devour our succulent pork rib set complete with sweet corn chowder, blue cheese salad, moist cornbread and finished it off with a bread and butter pudding.

DJQ will keep the soul flowing and your toes tapping as you wash down those tender ribs with a bucket of craft brews. Full Rack set B1,600, Half Rack set B1,200, bucket of craft brews B800. Reservations, SALA Phuket Resort and Spa. Email: events@sala phuket.com or call 076 338 888.

THU

17 MAY

The Rotary Club of Patong Beach cordially invites guests and prospective members to attend its regular meetings. The cost for non-members is B500 and includes lunch. The meeting begins at 12pm at the Millennium Resort in Patong. For additional information please visit: www.rotarypatong.org

Trash Fashion Show

24 MAY

RETRO NIGHT – BACK TO THE 70S & 80S

Live Organic Blues Rock Colin illy Hill Band, every Thursday from 9pm till midnight @ Expat Sports Bar. No cover charge, Car parking available. Visit: facebook.com/ExpatSportsBar

@thephuketnews

10am jumping, 11am-12pm pony ride for kids, 3pm Cowboy Xgames, 4-5pm pony ride for kids and 5pm horse show. Food truck. Drinks for a fun family event.

Phuket Andaman Horse Riding, Soi Bang Niow Dam 2, Sri Sunthorn, Thalang, Phuket, 082 806 1695.

MON

28 MAY

QSI Phuket’s annual Trash Fashion Show, were students create runway fashion from recycled materials.

All welcome. More info please contact: rob-peters@ qsi.org

THU Don’t miss out on our newest, exciting weekly event at Two Chefs. Come and join us for our special Flambé 300g Australian grass-fed rib eye steak served with a creamy peppercorn sauce, roasted vegetable medley and potato gratin for ONLY B495. Have a sweet tooth? Treat yourself to the Two Chefs banana flambé served with vanilla ice cream for ONLY B95. Sit back and enjoy one of our drink specials as you listen to the famous Two Chefs band performing all your favorite retro hits and more! Live music starts from 8pm and goes late at all of our Two Chefs locations. Reservations are highly recommended. You can book on our website at www.TwoChefs.com or find us on Facebook at Facebook/TwoChefsThailand. Come for the food, stay for the fun! Reservations: Call us directly at Two Chefs Kata Center 076 330 065, Kata Beach 076 333 370, Karon 076 286 479 or Patong 076 344 914.

Open House Jumping Xgames

Reboot and Maximize Your Energy Participants will learn new fitness & lifestyle facts and how they can reprogram their body with the practitioners including Hayden Rhodes, Kim White, Andrew Stannard and Susanna Eduini. THB 29,000 net per person. Day package and single class are available starting from THB 1,000 net per session. Bookings linda.overman@marriotthotels.com or +66 76 338 000 ext. 3750 - 3752. jwmarriottphuketresort.com - JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa

SUN

27 MAY

Quiz Night - Rotary Club Patong Our monthly Pub Quiz Night at the Aussie Pub Kamala has been a blast with over 60,000 THB raised so far!

Are you going to help us top 100,000 THB by the end of the year? Join us, it’s a great way to get to know your fellow Rotarians, bring your friends. All proceeds go to the charity “Rotary Club of Patong Beach” There is a lucky draw and a small participation fee so bring a little cash as well :-)

TUE

5 JUN

Dinner - Rotary Club Patong The Rotary Club of Patong Beach cordially invites guests and prospective members to enjoy dinner, drinks and a good time with the RCPB. The event starts at 6:30. Please visit www.rotarypatong.org for additional information.

FRI

8 JUN

FFF Food For Foreigners Free BBQ day

Ride 4 Kids Charity Quiz Night

From 1pm to 5pm, Bars, Restaurants, Hotels and Everyone is welcome to try our range of Manston products

Don’t miss out on this super cool fundraising event.

Spaces are limited. THB 250 per person up to 6 peo-

Hospitality Golf Challenge 2018 The Third Laguna Phuket Hospitality Challenge charity golf tournament will take place on the June 15, with an amazing day of gourmet golf at Laguna Golf Phuket Course all in aid of The Children First Fund.

Why not come and join the event with some great local hole sponsors treating all the golfers to some fun challenges and exciting Food and Beverage service. We are proud to have Live 89.5FM and Phuket News TV as our Media Partner and Sponsor. Visit www.aseanevents.com or email mark@asean-events.com Laguna Golf Phuket Course, golf@lagunaphuket.com, 076 324350.

DAILY EVENT UPDATES ON

22 TIME OUT

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Crossword by Myles Mellor & Sally York 1. Which city is the capital of California?

2. Which British Prime Minister is the only one to have been assassinated?

3. Which horse won this year’s Kentucky Derby?

4. The word dinosaur, from the Greek “deinos” and “sauros” literally translates as what in English?

5. Which actress recently became the first female to play Doctor Who? Answers below, centre

SUDOKU

Hard

Across 1. Lance 5. Refuse 10. Recipe amt.

14. It’s often hard to live up to 15. Sound 16. Sea World attraction 17. Middle Eastern ruler 18. Boiled breakfast dish 19. Cultivate 20. Marinara, for one 23. Anklebones 24. Mont Blanc part 25. Fraternity party staple 27. None’s opposite 28. Be skittish 32. Veneer 34. Garam ___ (Indian spice mixture) 36. Old Soviet Union 37. Middle-eastern appetizer, with many spellings 40. Wrapped garment 42. Organized protests 43. Coral islands 46. Kosher-style store 47. In the style of 50. Jabber 51. Body part 53. Gun, of a kind 55. Lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, cucumbers

22. Court group 26. Needlefish 29. Red-white-andblue inits.

30. Periodical publications 31. Checkered 33. Disorder 34. Armor 35. ____ chamber 37. Not in a flowing manner 38. Olive or castor Down 1. Mount in the 39. Individual items Cascades 40. Articulate 2. Percussion 41. Throwback instrument 44. Florida county 3. Bee colony 45. Lampoon 4. Frozen floaters 47. Not even 5. Zoo structure 6. Distress 48. Goes off 7. Underground 49. Passionate passage 52. Cockpit device 8. Naturally belong 54. Sorkin of “The 9. Paleontologist’s West Wing” find 10. Vegetarian staple 56. Clarified butter of 11. Neither freshwater India nor marine 57. Rabbi’s rostrum 12. Shields 58. Pool exercise 13. Nonstick spray 59. Ultimatum ender brand 21. Muslim woman’s 60. Your mother’s daughter veil and peppers, perhaps 60. Maths term 61. Letter-perfect 62. Drift 63. ___ of Man 64. On and off items 65. Willing to consider new ideas 66. Ophthalmologic concern 67. Eliminate 68. Snug retreat

Solutions to last week’s puzzles:

Answers to this week’s Pop Quiz: 1) Sacramento; 2) Spencer Perceval; 3) Justify; 4) Terrible lizard; 5) Jodie Whittaker

GOT YOUR NUMBER

ISLAND VIEW

1

cremation of a human body requires the same amount of energy as the monthly domestic demands of a single person.

20.1

percent of American workers belonged to a union in 1983.

Today, only 11.1% do.

258

fewer hours a year the average European works compared with the average American.

700,000 microplastic fibres pass into wastewater and, eventually, into the environment with each use of a washing machine.

6.24 billion

US dollars is how much Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos made in just five minutes on October 10, 2017, after Amazon share prices spiked.

Source: Uberfacts

Balcony view at Cape Panwa. Photo by John Pond Got an unusual or particularly beautiful picture of Phuket? Email it to execeditor@classactmedia.co.th

This week in history May 11, 1949 Siam officially changes its name to Thailand for the second time.

The name had been in use since 1939 but was reverted in 1945.

May 12, 1926 The Italian-built airship Norge becomes the first vessel to fly over the North Pole. .

May 13, 1787 Capt Arthur Phillip leaves Portsmouth, England, with 11 ships

full of convicts (the “First Fleet”) to establish a penal colony in Australia. (Image: E. Le Bihan)

Koop officially reports that the addictive properties of nicotine are similar to those of heroin and cocaine.

May 14, 1955 Eight Communist bloc countries, including the Soviet Union, sign the Warsaw Pact defense treaty.

May 15, 1905 The City of Las Vegas, Spanish for “The Meadows”, in Nevada is founded when 110 acres (0.4km 2), in what later would become

downtown, are auctioned off.

May 16, 1988 US Surgeon General C. Everett

May 17, 1992 Three days of protests against Thai Prime Minister Suchinda Kraprayoon begin in Bangkok, leading to a military crackdown that results in 52 confirmed deaths, hundreds of injuries, many disappearances, and more than 3,500 arrests. Source: Wikipedia thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Jobs

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Jobs

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FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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CLASSIFIEDS 25

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Trades & Services

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

ADVERTISING SERVICES

CLEANING SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

EDUCATION

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

MARINE SERVICES

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

MARINE SERVICES

MARINE SERVICES

@thephuketnews

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Trades & Services

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

classifieds@thephuketnews.com

MOVING SERVICES

POOL SERVICES

PROPERTY SERVICES

OTHER

OTHER

ADVERTISE HERE

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CLASSIFIEDS 27

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Buy & Sell

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

JOBS NT Live-in housekeeper wanted GE R ULive-in housekeep wanted for house in Kata. Must understand English and love dogs. Excellent conditions. 31/3 Soi Plukjae Kata Phuket. Contact: Lillian Dinic: lil@ladolcevitare. com.au or call 080 690 5248.

GE UR

NT

Bar staff wanted

Blondie Bar 2 at Otop Market Patong requires Bar Staff. Thai nationals only. Good salary and room provided.

Phone Mick: 081 087 6114.

BOATS, YACHTS FOR SALE N GE

TS

AL

E

FOR SALE SILVERCRAFT 31

ALMOST NEW 35 HOURS ONLY, STILL UR UNDER WARRANTY EXTRAS GRAB RAILS COVERS. AVAILABLE NOW THAI REGISTERED AND TAX PAID SEA TRIAL AT SHORT NOTICE OK, new price inc reg & extras B4,863,000 offers over B4.6 million considered. Please contact William at: wfphelps@me.com or call 00 44 11 89 841 627.

6.2m Hypalon Stingray RIB

“Ready to go” w 175hp 4str Suzuki w 130hrs, 8hp aux, dble axle trailer, Garmin 521S, 160L fuel, & full set of gear.

Top condition.Harry, 081 273 1740.

N GE

TS

AL

E

Boat For Sale

72' (22m) Thai Trawler partially-converted as Tour Boat Business. Rebuilt from top to bottom three years ago (spent just over 1MB) including engine as was planned to use for a tour business, owner had to return to the UK unable to return (very ill son). Some weather damage and need some repairs. Engine has only done only 6 hours, has new 12 kua generator. Currently in Hua Hin. Viewing can be arrange. Must sell within the next few months. Open to all reasonable cash offers. Contact Shayne on 093 418 9529 or shayne.inbox@gmail.com

UR

BUSINESSES FOR SALE MINI RESORT - Near Laguna

Luxury Villas, 4- and 3-bedroom, pool, office/Apt, 1/2 Rai, well furnished – tropical garden setting. Now on vacation rentals, a money maker. Only B13.5mn - 089 594 4067.

SURIN: LUXURIOUS BAR-RESTAURANT SALE

Totally renovated, Italian design and furniture, all-new imported kitchen and bar equipment, ready to operate. Large Bar, DJ booth, garden lounge, rooftop. Seats 50 indoors, 50 in garden and 40 rooftop. Pablo: 080 143 5541.

CARS, TRUCKS FOR SALE G UR

EN

TS

E AL

2012 Ford Ranger 2.2 Open Cab

78,000km. Six-gear manual transmission.

Looks and feels like a new car, treated like a baby by its single owner. Engine clean as. Full set of new tyres. B500,000. Call 081 427 5168.

CARS, TRUCKS FOR RENT GE

N

E TR

NT

CARS FOR RENT

We offer car rental at affordable prices.

Monthly from B10,000. Daily from B400.

Call us and find out what we offer. B10,000 monthly. Stig Johansson, 110/78 Moo 2, T Paklok, A Thalang, 83110 Phuket. Contact: stigisaan@gmail.com, 084 847 4377.

UR

@thephuketnews

FURNITURE HOUSEHOLD ITEMS FOR SALE

Very nice furniture, different office materials, flowerpots and much more for sale. For an appointment please contact EVELYN DEGEN. Located at 119/17, Ban Suan Youcharoen 5, Moo 8, T. Pa Khlok, A. Thalang, Phuket. Contact: evelyndegen@yahoo.de or call 084 851 7950.

HOME IMPROVEMENT Flat roof waterproofing

We do flat roof waterproofing with a 20year warranty by installing quality four layer slate spotted bitumen torch foil + crack repair! Andreas Ruthe, 22/5 Moo1 Kamala, Kathu. Contact: office@tcm-asia.com, 086 943 9834 or 076 385 081.

MISCELLANEOUS FOR SALE For Sale

New set of Kasco G7 golf clubs RH R FLEX. Driver 10.5°, 3 Wood 15°, U4 Hybrid 19°, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, P, S irons.

Milled head putter. 11 clubs, 4 head covers, graphite shafts except putter. B25,000. Bob Mather, Kathu.

Contact: bobmather_4@hotmail.com, 095 549 2748.

POOL TABLES Rasson Victory 2 Pro Tounament

Style is forever! The Victory Tournament 9 ft. pool table is a tournament-style, highquality pool table designed with commercial and private use in mind, slate bed. B228,000.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES CHATTHA Property and Rental Management Service in Phuket

Our services: Housekeeping, Garden, Swimming Pool, Maintenance and Repair. www.chatthamanagement. com office: 076 636 244 or mobile: 090 179 6635.

Chattha Management.

PROPERTY FOR SALE Surin 2 BR & 3 BR for Sale

400m from beach. Duplex and pool access apartments in lowdensity, high-quality area. Fully furnished. Great rental yields.

Also for rent. B1.99mn to B5.5mn. Email for more info: jgstryker@gmail.com or call 083 645 0097.

Penthouse for Sale

432.44sqm penthouse for sale: 320 degree view of Patong Bay and city. Private pool. Top floor at Andaman Beach Condominium, Patong, Phuket, Thailand.

Condo Facilities: Two tennis courts, 10 x 24 metre swimming pool, fitness and game room, restaurant, parking.

NO BROKERS PLEASE! B60 million O.N.O. Contact Songpan: songpanpirom@hotmail.com, 081 737 8662.

OFFERED FOR SALE

OFFERED FOR SALE A profitable and intimate 20room garden resort situated on Koh Lanta, Krabi at the end of Long Beach just a 2-minute stroll to the sea. Set in lush gardens, the bungalows are tastefully finished each with their own full-length verandas. Ideally located in Phra Ae village, with many amenities in the immediate area. The resort benefits from: • A delightful swimming pool (guest use only) • Car-park • Free-WIFI throughout the resort • Room-service • A combined restaurant & bar adjacent to the pool with state of the art Western kitchen • A beautiful tropical garden • Private manager’s accommodation (screened from the resort) • staff quarters • Private electricity supply • Ample water supply & storage For further information, please Email gardenisland.pp@ gmail.com For the attention of Ms. Chorladda CHUANCHOM with the following details: 1. Full name of potential Buyer 2. Full contact details, i.e. , Mobile phone number 3. Brief explanation of experience (if any) in the service industry The Vendor is genuine & the price is opportunistic. Genuine inquiries only please.

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Buy & Sell

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

PROPERTY FOR SALE Nicklas Klodner

Two-storey villa in a gated community @ Pruksa The Plant, Kathu. Corner land plot 170 sqm, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. Indoors 140 sqm. With furniture ready to move in B8,100,000, Nicklas Klodner, The Plant 144/15. Email: nicklas.klodner@gmail.com or call +66 80 519 7719.

RPM owner direct

Unique luxury condo 2 bed, 2 bath, 155sqm. Foreign FREEHOLD. Architect remodel. New Jacuzzi. Views to lake, mountain, marina, pool, etc. Completely furnished to a high standard, toothbrush only required.

Owner leaving Thailand. Priced at 16MB for quick sale. Contact Brian (Owner): 089 054 4354, 076 360 943. bggvirgo@gmail.com RoyalPhuketMarina Condos.com

Amazing 1-bedroom house in great area

Brand-new one bedroom house with full kitchen and car parking and ready to move in, right in the heart of Rawai. Perfectly priced home on the most desirable street of Rawai, so donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t miss out! B2.9M for quick sale. Contact Benni by email at: b_gholami@ hotmail.com or call 088 168 5032.

Building for Sale

One-unit building for sale in business area Boat Avenue near Villa Market Laguna. Three and a halfstorey, 24 square wah. Khun Mhee (owner), 49/23, Cherng Talay. Email: anmehee@hotmail.com or call 095 545 0017 or 086 346 2622.

Freehold studio at low price

Freehold 36m2 studio, opposite the Lotus Tesco hypermarket of Phuket Town, freehold condominium; perfect for long stay or for investment B1.9 million. Email: mguillien@ gmail.com or call 097 920 2339.

80m2 freehold condo in Patong

Freehold 80m2, 2-bedroom apartment in quiet condo with swimming pool in Patong. Ideal investment in most active tourist area in Phuket. B5.9 million. Contact Michel GUILLIEN, Andaman Beach Suites, Unit 1604, Patong, Phuket. Email: mguillien@gmail.com or call 097 920 2339.

Unique Investment Opportunity

Unique investment opportunity Not to be missed: 5 pool villas, big land, large entertaiment areas, parking garages and private gates.

More info www.thegardenkptphuket.com www.thegardenkptphuket.com

PROPERTY FOR SALE Single house for sale

Located the way to Yamu Pa Khlok, from the main road 500m, 55 SQW, 3 bedrooms, 2 restrooms, with modern kitchen, 2 cars parking, free space 140 SQM. 3.5 Million Baht, K. Suwit: suwitlap5@gmail.com, 081 895 6969.

New Modern Villa â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 5 Mins to Ao Po Grand Marina

200 sqm, land 500 sqm, 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, swimming pool, close to UWCT school. Including: pool/garden/wifi/TV.SAT/services. Google map: tiny.cc/deltaho. Contact owner (Alain): mrdupouy@yahoo.fr. 65,000/ month, Alain, 57/3 Moo 3 Soi Ban Bang Pae, T. Pa Khlok, T. Thalang, Phuket 83110. Email: mrdupouy@yahoo.fr or call 081 893 5270.

PROPERTY FOR RENT New Rawai Villa Rent & Sale

PuriAnda Villa: 2 Bed, Furnished, Kitchen, Private Pool, Sala, Land 350m2, House 165m2, 2km to Nai Harn. Short or Long Term Rent Only B60,000, Sale: 8.9m. info@purimasproperty.com, 0815384588

COMMUNITY

PROPERTY FOR RENT

5-bed pool villa, 1.2 Rai

3 detached buildings, L-shaped open plan living, Western kitchen, guest suite, pool 11mx5m, quiet residential area. 1.2 rai plot. THB19,750,000. Contact Mrs Simpson by email: thaivillaonline@gmail.com or call 084 447 7248. More info at: thaivillaonline.com

Chalong Office, Workshop/Store

300sqm office on 2 floors with all services incl.3 phone lines + 300sqm undercover workshop/store with 4m ht & 3 phase. Chanote 0.5rai.

B12,000,000, Simon Jupe, 29/4 Soi Nayai, Chalong, Phuket 83130. Email: simonj@cscoms.com or call +66 (0)87 883 2542

Property 5 Mins to Ao Po Grand Marina

Very big house 750sqm, Land 4,000sqm, available 15 June, 5 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, swimming pool, jacuzzi, close to UWCT school, including pool, garden, service, wifi-tv/sat.

Google map: tiny.cc/deltaho, Contact owner (Alain): mrdupouy@yahoo.fr. Long term 145,000/Month, Email Alain: mrdupouy@yahoo.fr or call 081 893 5270.

PROPERTY FOR RENT 3-Bedroom Western Villa

Near Laguna, has all, full kitchen, quality furniture.

Live in tropical garden, good security, secluded.

6/M lease: B20,000/M. Call 089 594 4067.

For Rent Kata Beach

Nice one-bedroom apartment, modern furnished, 68sqm first floor close to indoor pool-sauna-elevator. B25,000 per month. Exclusive electric, minimum rental period 6 months. Tel: English 064 532 3637, Thai 094 803 5944. Email English: villaonroof@ gmail.com or Thai: maliwan_kaewmeesri@yahoo.com thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

SPORT 29

‘MV Thai 2 On’ returns Great reports come back after boat’s annual trip to Burma Banks FISHING

CAST AWAY Jimmy Stewart info@fishinginphuket.com

T

he beginning of the month saw the return of MV Thai 2 On from her annual trip up north to the world renowned Burma Banks where once again they saw plenty of action, with our old shipmate Ian “Tubsy” Tubbs admitting with a “red face” that he just missed the Grand Slam record, (a Black Marlin, Blue Marlin and Sailfish in one day’s fishing) by failing to land the “easy” one, the Sail.

But the overall count was still impressive with Ian’s catch report for his two backto-back trips reading as follows: Nine Marlins raised - five strikes - three caught with the biggest being a 560lb Blue. GTs up to 50lb – Dog Tooth Tuna and Snapper.

Fish Eagle also submitted a catch report stating the

@thephuketnews

bottom fishing around Racha Noi, mid-month, was excellent as they pulled in some nice Grouper and Snapper.

The Burma Banks An easy, but full day’s cruise from Phuket, fishing most of the way, Phuket boats arrive at the Thai / Myanmar border, which for the first and last bookings of the season is a “free day” to T2On’s lucky passengers.

During the rest of the season the normal procedure is for the crews to pick up their passengers on the Thai side of the border “Ranong” for the short trip across to Myanmar’s “Victoria” to welcome aboard their compulsory Myanmar guide and pay the US$100 entry fee which then allows her access to very possibly the best Bill Fish fishing anywhere.

For those unacquainted with the Burma Banks this is a huge plateau covering some 1,500 square kilometres. The waters surrounding the banks are 300/350 metres deep rising in an easy gradient to around

Ian ‘Tubsy’ Tubbs with just one of his great catches from the Burma Banks. Photo: Supplied 15m from the surface, making this vast area inaccessible to the commercial trawlers who in the past few years have severely impacted our sports

trolling elsewhere in the region. (Notice the difference in spelling – the difference between net and line – sports and commercial fishing.)

The Banks are 180km northwest of the Similan Islands and 90-180km west of Ranong (Thailand) and Kawthaung (Myanmar), nearly halfway to the Andaman Islands (India). Although the Banks are in international waters, the economic rights are claimed by Myanmar, hence the entry fee and compulsory guide who so far has always acted as a useful and welcome member of the crew.

Because of strong currents and no place to “run” for protection from foul weather, the “banks” can only be visited during our “high” season, mid-February to April, for obvious safety reasons.

Understandably there is nothing to see but sea, then again – let’s face it guys, you’re here for the fishing and this is one of the best fishing areas anywhere, with Marlin and Sailfish in abundance, great “jigging” and bottom fishing.

This month’s humour, although not fishing related, typifies the trials and tribulations of living in Thailand.

A friend who got his Thai driving licence five years ago, at the same time as myself, phoned to say we needed to renew, so I got my paperwork together and went to Phuket Town only to be told, “Can’t do – ting tong farang, you’re a year early.”

On meeting my pal we find out his expires in April 2018 and mine in 2019 even though we received our licences only minutes apart. TIT. Comment of the month A rather famous boxing pal, John “Boy” Hutchinson, a regular visitor to Phuket, came out fishing with us, his first time on a small boat.

He asked me where the toilet was and on his return, much to everybody’s amusement, stated in his broad Irish accent, “Bloody hell, it’s like trying to pee into a whiskey glass standing on a bouncy castle.”

Us old pirates know better – “Never spit into the wind.”

As usual tight lines to all!!

Jimmy – fishinginphuket.com

30 SPORT

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

Fun but also competitive Hospitality pros to battle it out at Laguna Phuket Hospitality Challenge GOLF The Phuket News editor3@thephuketnews.com

T

he Third annual Laguna Phuket Hospitality Challenge Charity Golf Tournament will take place at Laguna Golf Phuket on Friday, June 15. The event sees hospitality professionals

from Phuket and surrounding areas come together at the award-winning golf course.

The atmosphere will be fun yet competitive, with teams battling for bragging rights as the best hospitality golfers in the region.

Being the only event of its kind, it is the ideal networking opportunity for local hoteliers, restaurateurs, landlords, club

HASH HOUSE HARRIERS Run #1684: Saturday May 12 Run Start Time: 4pm Hares: Murkury, Rampant Rabbit Location: Baan Pak Plee, 4.4km northwest of Thalang Directions: Coming from the Thalang crossroads traffic lights drive north for 4.4 kilometres and then turn left just before the overhead footbridge. Continue on for 400 metres and then turn right. Continue on for another 400m and then turn right again and continue on for 400m to laager site under power lines.

Bus pick-up: Patong @ Expat Hotel: 2:30pm Kamala @ Black Cat’s Bar: 3pm More info: phuket-hhh.com

owners and others involved in the hospitality industry to come together in a relaxed environment.

Event organiser Mark Cameron of Asean Events said, “Last year’s event was a huge success and we attracted a field of 80+ very competitive hospitality leaders. The rivalry between hoteliers was incredible to watch, with endless amounts of friendly on-course banter!

“These professionals are always competing for business, so why not a fun game of golf, networking with like-minded professionals. As an end product of the event experience, we also raise funds for local children’s charities.”

The Charity being supported is the Laguna Children’s First Fund.

Host sponsor Laguna Golf Phuket will once again provide the perfect venue to stage the hospitality golf event.

The unique “Gourmet Golf” concept event will see Laguna Phuket hotel establishments such as Banyan Tree, Angsana, Cassia, Dusit Thani and Outrigger provide on-course food and drinks for golfers.

Last year’s event was a huge success attracting a field of 80+ very competitive hospitality leaders. Photo: Supplied lagunaphuket.com for more information.

Registered teams this year include Accor Group of Hotels, Outrigger Resorts, Tai Pan, Irish Times, and a team all the way from Oman and The Phuket News team.

Organisers already have all 18 holes sponsored with some refreshments and food and a very special hole where the

In addition, other leading entertainment venues from around Phuket will be involved, including new editions like Tile It Whisky Hole, Luna Walk International Cigar Hole, Captain Hook’s Smokehouse and Two Chefs.

To register your team and/or interest in becoming a sponsor, please visit www.lagunagolf. com/phuket or email golf@

Banyan Tree Spa will give golfers a refreshing neck massage.

On the par 3 holes there will be a “Beat-The-Pro” event, where a PGA Professional from Laguna Golf Academy will challenge each golfer to Beat him.

The Phuket News is proud media sponsor of the Phuket Hospitality Challenge.

Cruzeiro SS World Cup is on!

FOOTBALL

MOR E T H A N 110 K I DS FROM 7-15 years old from many different nationalities turned out at BISP on April 28 for the Cruzeiro Soccer Schools World Cup League.

They were split into four teams, representing Brazil, England, Argentina and Germany, and played unofficial matches so they could meet all their teammates.

“It was the first of seven football weekends of a lot of fun and competitive games. The next match day is this Saturday (May 12), when the players will receive their new national team kits and play their first games,” explained Jonathas

More than 110 kids turned out for the Cruzeiro Soccer Schools World Cup League.

Candido, BISP Cruzeiro Football Academy Head Coach. “The World Cup league is a fantastic opportunity for young football players to play in a friendly and competitive environment.

Come along to support the kids!” he added.

What’s on at the ACG

Date

Fri May 11 Sat May 12 Sun May 13

Tue May 15 Wed May 16

Time

All Day 4.30pm 3.30pm 10am 2pm All Day 4.30pm

Activity

FOBISIA T-ball Tournament Thalang Tigers – Kids’ cricket coaching Touch Rugby (adults-100 thb/kids-50 thb) C & C Marine 8 by 20 cricket league Kashmiri CC v Patong Blues Patong Whites v Easy Living FOBISIA T-ball Tournament Thalang Tigers - Kids’ cricket coaching

The Thalang Tigers Kids’ cricket coaching takes place every Wednesday and Friday. Photo: Michael Way thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

SPORT 31

PREMIER PREDICTIONS: ENTER NOW AT THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

McLaren hoping for Spanish succour BOX OF NEUTRALS

The overall competition winner will receive a 3 day/2 night stay in a Sri Panwa one bedroom luxury private pool villa including daily breakfast plus a 120 minute spa treatment for two persons. Total prize value: B123,000 The monthly competition winner for May 2018 will receive a B3,000 voucher to spend at Angus O'Tool's, Karon Beach.

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EPL PREDICTIONS

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cLaren has not had the start of the season it expected. Its messy divorce with Honda last year after three seasons of underperformance by the Japanese company was supposed to herald a new optimistic chapter in the team’s history.

McLaren forwent Honda’s sizeable financial contribution to put in its lot with Renault.

The French manufacturer was and continues to make the third-best engine on the grid, but as Red Bull Racing had proven three times in 2017, it was capable of winning races.

Indeed McLaren racing director Eric Boullier had made exactly this point last season when he proclaimed that his chassis was amongst the best on the field and would by rights be competing with Red Bull Racing for podiums and wins if it were mated to a more competitive power unit.

Boullier’s prophecy turned 2018 into a test. With equal engine power McLaren would be compared directly with Red Bull Racing. The results have been underwhelming.

Though McLaren is just 19 points behind Red Bull Racing in the constructors standings, its haul has been flattered by a messy start to the year by its rival. In Bahrain and Azerbaijan RBR failed to get either car to the chequered flag, whereas McLaren drivers Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne have a 100% finishing record.

Qualifying, a clearer illustration of pure pace, paints a

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McLaren’s Spanish driver Fernando Alonso is pushed back into his pit garage during a practice session for the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 14.

Photo: Greg Baker / AFP more painful picture: McLaren has been slower than both Red Bull Racing and Renault’s own works team at every race this year and is yet to make it into the top 10.

The cracks are starting to show. In Azerbaijan news broke that the team’s chassis director, Tim Goss, had been stood down from his role after almost 30 years at Woking, though McLaren refused to confirm anything more than “ongoing restructuring”.

It’s not difficult to deduce the reasoning behind the axing, with Boullier himself declaring in China that the team’s performance targets had been set far too low in 2018, leading to the development of a car far off the pace of what should be its natural rivals.

But Boullier has put his team’s chips on an upgrade package due at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix (Sunday,

May 13), where the start of the European leg tends to coincide with significant car updates derived from learnings at the first four rounds.

“From that point we will see, performance-wise, where we are,” the Frenchman said last month, but even this comes with some serious caveats.

“In Barcelona there is a new aero package coming, but I think 95% of the paddock is bringing a new aero package to Barcelona,” Alonso tempered.

“So maybe the gap will remain as it is or we will recover it a little bit or just lose a little bit of ground.

“I think it is up to us to make the package work and deliver to expectations, and hopefully some others do not deliver. That is our hope.”

In the space of just a few months McLaren’s competitive outlook has plummeted

from title contender to hoping other teams err in their own development programs to steal positions on the grid.

This is the new reality at Woking, so it’s unsurprising that both Boullier and CEO Zak Brown – the latter having had his role redefined to make him more responsible for the race team’s performance – have found themselves under immense pressure at the helm.

The Spanish Grand Prix has the potential to revive the team’s fortunes along with those of its leaders. But getting it wrong in Barcelona will only confirm McLaren is stuck on a path that must inevitably end in internal revolution as the once great McLaren seeks a return to championship contention.

Don’t forget to listen to Live89.5 each and every Saturday at 9am and 5pm for the Box of Neutrals radio show.

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Super XV AFL 1st Test Match, Day 1

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editor3@classactmedia.co.th

FRIDAY, MAY 11, 2018

McLaren set sights on Spain, leave Baku behind > p31

NOT JUST WINNING BISP Cruzeiro Academy players gain wealth of experience, knowledge on Brazil trip

The Cruzeiro Football Academy tour to Brazil took football education to whole new level. Photo: Supplied

FOOTBALL Matt Pond editor3@classactmedia.co.th

O

f course, for the players and coaching staff of British International School, Phuket’s (BISP) Cruzeiro Football Academy winning a game or tournament is as important to them as any other football club from around the world.

However, a recent trip to Brazil, where the Academy’s U13s and U16s took part in the inaugural Cruzeiro Academy International Cup 2018, with both teams reaching the semi-finals, taught them that there is a whole different side to football than just winning.

And a side that they may never had the chance to experience had they not been invited to take part in that tournament.

BISP Cruzeiro Football Academy Head Coach Jonathas Candido explained in a recent interview with The Phuket News that the BISP academy teams were the only

international teams out of 10 per age group that had been invited to play the tournament, the others all hailing from Brazil.

But Candido also explained that although he was proud and happy that his sides managed to reach the semifinals of the tournament, it was the experience and knowledge his players gained during the trip which was just as, if not more, beneficial as taking part.

“The level of football our teams were up against in this tournament and the challenge they faced will definitely put them at a different stage as a footballer and all of the players have returned to Phuket different players to when they left.

“Our main aim was to give our guys some exposure to playing in a serious competition, and that certainly worked as they have come back to Phuket with a different idea to playing football.

“They have now also seen the level that they need to reach to become a professional footballer, and I saw in the

first training session we held back in Phuket the difference in their mentality from before and after the tournament,” Candido said.

“This change for me was phenomenal, and I have already seen the positives come out in training,” he added.

But in addition to the football, another aspect where the players gained experience and knowledge was general life skills.

“Being in Brazil the boys got to see and learn about a different country and culture.

They learnt about Brazilian food, got to speak to Brazilian people and saw how they lived. This cultural experience is something that will stay with them forever and it was a very big and strong point of this trip.”

But another major part of the trip was that the players got to experience living a football player’s life.

Candido explained, “Players from the Cruzeiro Esporte Clube academy in Brazil are trained and housed at Cruzeiro’s Toca da Raposa

1 Training Center, one of the best youth training centres in Brazil. Basically this means this centre is their home for the entire time they are involved with the academy and our players stayed in a hotel within this complex.

“During their time at the complex our players lived exactly the same way as those who are in the main academy.

They ate together, they all ate the same food, they all went to bed at the same time, they trained at regular times and rested at regular times, this is the life of a footballer and our boys got to experience this.

“And it should be pointed out that bar training and playing games, which obviously differs between the academy and club, this mirrors the life of a professional Cruzeiro Esporte Clube player.”

As is the case with almost all professional football clubs, Cruzeiro have their own inhouse nutritionists and food is another aspect of the trip which the players have brought back home with them.

“One of the main fac-

tors when it comes to being a professional footballer is the nutrition and our players also got to experience that on the trip. And to be honest they really liked it,” Candido explained.

“They liked the idea of times being set for when they should eat, the amount of food they should eat and that no rubbish food is allowed. When you are playing at that level there is no food allowed from outside, you are only able to eat what food is on offer within the complex, you cannot order food from outside.

“What people have to realise is that these clubs invest a lot of money in these young players and they need to see the results, and much of those results come from nutrition,” he said.

“I think our boys now understand more that they need to take care of themselves and their diets. We obviously don’t expect that to make that dramatic change at this stage, but we believe that if they start to change small points they

will see the benefits of that.”

But these are not the only positive aspects to come out of the trip, there was an even bigger surprise, and Candido explained that two players from the BISP Cruzeiro Football Academy were invited to represent the Cruzeiro Esporte Clube U14s in an international competition in China.

“It delights me that we had two players – Jonah Duchowny and Siam Yapp – invited to play for the main academy club at the Codion Cup, which was played in Haimen, China, from April 29-May 5.

“This is the first time that Cruzeiro Esporte Clube has allowed players from outside of the main academy to join them to play in a tournament.

So for these two players it is already something huge that they have been invited to join the main academy and play with them,” he said.

“But this just goes to show that the players we are developing here have quality to be up there with the best,” he added. thephuketnews