15-09-2017

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

thephuketnews thephuketnews1 thephuketnews.com Friday, September 15 – Thursday, September 21, 2017

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ON YER BIKE

LIFE

T

wo internationally recognised “bike sharing” operators together will have 2,000 bicycles available to use throughout Phuket Town this week as they launch a local initiative of the urban transport phenomenon to the island.

The one-month “free trial” will begin on Thursday (Sept 21) as the Phuket City Development Co Ltd

SPORT at Saphan Hin and at Suang Luang (Rama IX Park, or the King’s Park) on the south side of town.

Altogether, the six “bike ranks” provide coverage over 14 square kilometres.

“For the month-long trial, users will still have to download the right app [ofo or oBike] for the bike they want to use and pay just B99 as a fully refundable deposit in order to use the bike,” PKCD partner Phuket Thongsom explained to The Phuket

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

@thephuketnews

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The mindset of motivation

Nontarit Bejrananda of the PKCD takes one of the bikes for a test ride on Wednesday (Sept 13). Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

(PKCD) consortium brings Beijingbased “ofo” and Singaporean-nowinternational operator “oBike” to Phuket as part of the consortium’s efforts to reduce traffic and provide tourists with another transport option in the city centre.

The bikes will be available at six locales: on Thalang Rd, Dibuk Rd, Krabi Rd, in front of the old Standard Chartered Bank at the famous intersection of Phang Nga Rd and Phuket Town in the heart of Phuket Old Town,

NEWS

Tour boats drop anchors onto Phi Phi corals

2,000 BICYCLES DEPLOYED AS ‘BIKE SHARING’ OPERATORS LAUNCH IN PHUKET TOWN

Tanyaluk Sakoot reporter2@classactmedia.co.th

20 Baht

News this week.

“During the trial there will be no fees charged for using the bike, but after the trial has concluded we are looking at charging B5 per 30 minutes,” Mr Phuket said.

The deposit is also likely to be increased, he added. In comparison, the deposit required by oBike in Singapore, where the company was founded in January this year, is currently SG$49 (about B1,200).

“Also after the trial has concluded...

PAGE 30

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Experts turn to DNA tests for ‘Leypang’ THE DEPARTMENT OF National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation confirmed last Friday (Sept 8) that they had sent a blood sample from “Leypang” the crocodile, which was captured in the Bang Tao area earlier this month, for DNA testing.

It is hoped the test results will be returned in two weeks and will determine which species the crocodile belongs to. So far officials have had difficulty determining the species through physical examinations of the crocodile.

Deputy Director of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) Dr Pinsak Surasawadee said, “I have got the crocodile blood to test its DNA at a lab in the Faculty of Veterinary Science at Mahidol University in Bangkok. Once the testing is completed we will know with certainty which species of crocodile it is.

“If it is from the wild and not from farm, we will release it back into nature where it is safe for the crocodiles and away from humans. But if it is a non-native species of crocodile, we will have to find

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Royal Crematorium replicas to honour late King in funeral ceremony > page 5

Tour boats drop anchors on Phi Phi Island corals Shela Riva reporter1@classactmedia.co.th

T Officials took a blood sample from the crocodile for DNA testing. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub the right place to house it. So, we are waiting about one or two weeks for the result. Also, we implanted a microchip into the crocodile so we can identify it in the future.

Dr Thon Thamrongnawasawat, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Fisheries at Kasetsart University in Bangkok and official advisor to the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) said, “This crocodile has sparked much interest from Thais who are interested in learning more about marine animals. Also, we hope that the discovery will help increase the community’s efforts to conserve all wild animals.”

Eakkapop Thongtub

he national park chief responsible for Phi Phi Island has ordered officials to investigate footage showing tour boats dropping their anchors onto a coral reef off Laem Thong Beach, on the northeastern coast of the island.

“I have asked officials to investigate the boats shown in the video and track down those responsible. Thank you for sending us this evidence,” Worapot Lomlim, Chief of the Hat Noppharat Thara – Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, told The Phuket News on Monday (Sept 11).

The seven-minute clip, supplied to The Phuket News, shows several speedboats dropping their anchors onto coral reef from within the water near the boats. Some parts of the clip shows groups of tourists snorkelling beside the boats, and shows sections of badly damaged coral.

The clip is dated Sunday, Sept 3.

The names and registra-

National park officials are investigating footage of tour speedboats dropping anchors on a coral reef off Phi Phi Island. Image: Screengrab / Supplied tion numbers of the boats are plainly seen in the clip.

“Look at the damage to the reef! Sometimes as many as 50 speedboats are here at the same time,” said the maker of the video, who asked not to be named.

“I’ve known this reef for many years and the damage began only when the speedboats started to bring customers there, less than one year ago.

“This is unsustainable. I understand that people must make money from tourists, but there must be a better way

than destroying the reefs?

Destroying the reefs they have brought tourists to see,” he said.

“Why should the reefs be destroyed for the profit of only a few business owners?

What will be their business when there is no more reef?” he added.

Suchart Rattanareangsri, Director of the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) Phuket branch’s Conservation Department, gave words of encouragement for people supplying evidence of such incidents.

“There are so many boats dropping their anchors illegally. When people send evidence to us, we can investigate it. Thank you for helping to prevent the destruction of coral reefs,” he said.

“Please inform the responsible agency for the area, to take action,” Mr Suchart said.

“We can clearly see the names of the boats in this particular video. Officials will have information on the boats already, now it’s just a matter of finding the drivers and prosecuting them according to law,” he added.

International operators introduce bike-sharing to Phuket Town Continued from page 1 ...we will be able to evaluate what customers are looking for and adjust any plans necessary. We will also be able to look at launching the bikesharing service elsewhere on the island,” Mr Phuket added.

PKCD’s involvement has

only been to help with coordination, Mr Phuket stressed.

“Our members are already very experienced with business in Phuket and working with local officials – and so we are in the perfect position to just help introduce this service… We did this just

for the community,” he said, reinforcing PKCD’s rationale for forming in the first place.

“We have yet to see bike lanes dedicated for cyclists in Phuket Town, but we are still in talks with Phuket City Municipality in making this happen,” Mr Phuket said.

“We have spoken with the Phuket Governor, and he supports this idea,” he added.

After meeting with Mr Phuket and other representatives of the bike-sharing project, Governor Norraphat Plodthong on Wednesday (Sept 13) showered the initiative with praise.

“This is great project being coordinated by PKCD. It is good for government officers also. I think everyone – government and the private sector – should support this project together.

“This includes schools, police, the Phuket Environmental Office, the Phuket Bicycle Club, the TAT [Tourism Authority of Thailand] and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports Phuket office,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Phuket noted the operators were not worried about bike thefts.

“We can track these bikes and the user who takes the bike will continue to be

Users can unlock the bikes through an app and ride through the heart of Phuket Town. Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot charged until the bike is returned or until we are forced to take action to reclaim it, which might include pressing charges of theft,” Mr Phuket explained.

“The deposit also includes mandatory bike theft insurance and basic medical coverage in case of an accident,’ he added.

Of the two companies bringing the bike-sharing service to Phuket, oBike itself

is not new to Thailand, having already launched in areas of Bangkok earlier this year.

Meanwhile, the Singapore startup has enjoyed success in Malaysia and Australia, and this week was noted for the huge surge in use of its bikes throughout Munich, Germany, where it has grown from just 350 to 7,000 bikes stationed throughout the historic city in only a handful of months. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Roads keep killing

PHUKET NEWS

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Phuket on target to match last year’s toll Shela Riva reporter1@classactmedia.co.th

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total of 68 people died on Phuket’s roads from January through April this year, with more statistics to be tabled indicating that Phuket is on track to match – or even exceed – last year’s road death toll of 174.

Surangsri Seetamanotch of the Thalang Hospital public health strategies department revealed the statistic to The Phuket News last Thursday (Sept 7).

“We have information for Phuket from three different databases: the government, police, and public health department. From January to April there have been 68 deaths as a result of road accident, in Phuket,” Ms Surangsri said.

“We have not yet combined the statistics from April to September. However, for this year it is predicted to be slightly more than last year, if not around the same.

“Last year, there were 174 deaths as a result of road accidents in Phuket,” she said.

The news followed a road-

The first known turtle to hatch on Koh Racha Island, south of Phuket, in the past 10 years broke through its shell at about 2am last Friday (Sept 8). Photo: Healthy Reefs Club

First turtle in 10 years hatches on Koh Racha A pickup truck lies on its side after a five-vehicle wipeout in Phuket earlier this week, which amazingly, did not result in any fatalities.

Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub safety meeting led by Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong in Phuket Town last Wednesday (Sept 6).

“The number of road accidents in Thailand is increasing. Statistics from the Ministry of Public Health show that on average each year 21,429 people die in road accidents [in Thailand],” Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket office (DDPM-Phuket) Acting Chief Mongkol Temrat noted at the meeting.

“That is as average of 1,785

people per month, or 59 people every day,” he said.

“Most accidents are caused by drivers speeding, drunk driving and overtaking,” Mr Mongkol added.

Also at the meeting was Dr Wiwat Seetamanotch, Vice President of the Phuket office of the Road Safety Policy Foundation.

Dr Wiwat in 2015 revealed that Phuket was officially the worst province in the country for deaths and injuries resulting from road accidents.

Not even 24 hours after

Patong parasail operators step up PAT O N G M AYO R Chalermluck Kebsup is calling for health forms to be completed before allowing any persons to take parasail rides at Phuket’s most-popular tourist beach.

T he news c a me la s t Wednesday (Sept 6) after the Patong Parasail Club, representing all parasail operators on Patong Beach, submitted its version of self-imposed safety guidelines for all parasail operators in Patong to follow.

The operators agreed to draft a list of guidelines after the news of a Chinese tourist allowing his infant daughter to be lifted screaming into the sky on a parasail ride at Patong made international headlines on Aug 16.

“We don’t have the authority to force them to do this, but I have advised them that they must use health certificates [sic],” Mayor Chalermluck said.

“If the tourist refuses to complete the health form, then they should not be allowed on the parasail,” she added.

Some of the points on the guidelines are legal requirements (see below), but breaches of the “practices” can result in only self-imposed measures, Mayor Chalermluck noted. @thephuketnews

A tourist readies to take to the sky on a parasail ride at Patong Beach. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub “If they don’t follow the guidelines, all I can do is call them in to help bring about the right attitude. After all, this is Patong and we all live here together,” she said.

“However, we have to keep in mind that Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong ordered me to do something about parasail operators in the Patong area, and the Governor has mentioned this to parasail operators in other areas too,” Mayor Chalermluck said.

Among the guidelines presented were: • All parasail operators must be registered with the Marine Department, and the name of the operator and the boat registration number must be clearly shown for officers to check where the service is bring provided.

• All registrations must be renewed before the expired dates and operators must have both compulsory insurance and extra insurance.

• Parasail rides must be operated only in areas approved

by Patong Municipality.

• Parasail operators must provide every detail of all staff members for officers to check.

• Parasail operators must check the boat and equipment for safety.

• Every parasail operator must wear the team shirt clearly identifying which operator the staffer works for.

• No people involved in a parasail ride can be under the influence of alcohol or drugs • Children less than five years old are not allowed on parasail rides.

Tanyaluk Sakoot

the damning statistics were revealed Chinese tourist Zhang Si Ting, 32, was taken to hospital for injuries sustained when the rental car she and two friends were travelling in from Phuket International Airport to their hotel in Kamala slammed head-on into another car early last Thursday morning (Sept 7).

Then last Sunday (Sept 10), a five-vehicle wipeout on Thepkrasattri Rd in Thalang resulted in two people being injured, but amazingly, resulted in no fatalities.

THE FIRST KNOWN TURtle to hatch on Racha Island, south of Phuket, in 10 years broke through its shell at about 2am last Friday (Sept 8), raising hopes of a return of turtles to Phuket and the surrounding islands.

The breakthrough hatching was reported by “Nattawut” and “Thanya chit-aree” on the “Healthy Reefs” Line Group.

“The first turtle from the eggs arrived at 2am today – 57 days after the nest was found,” they posted.

The nest was discovered after resort staff on Racha Yai found large flipper tracks on the sand on July 14.

Officials from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) later moved the nest to safe location

on the island where it would not be disturbed by humans.

The nest contained 94 eggs in total, but seven were already broken when resort staff discovered it. “We moved the remaining 87 eggs to a safe place on the island,” Hirun Kanghae, Acting Chief of the Marine Endangered Species Unit (MESU) at the Phuket Marine Biological Centre (PMBC), explained at the time.

Mr Hirun last Friday confirmed to The Phuket News that the hatchling was a green turtle. “The rest of the turtles will hatch in the next three days. The DMCR will take them into care after they hatch, and after they have grown we will release them back into the ocean,” he added.

Eakkapop Thongtub

4

PHUKET NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

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Eyas Mohamed Alhassan Mahmoud Alammas from Sudan was taken into custody and charged.

All aboard with bullets in luggage A SUDANESE MAN WAS arrested at Phuket International Airport last Friday morning (Sept 8) after security scans discovered the man was carrying ammunition.

Eyas Mohamed Alhassan Mahmoud Alammas, 32, was charged with possession of a black ammunition magazine and nine 7.65-millimetre bullets after security personnel niticed the odd extras in his luggage as he passed through a security checkpoint and bag scanner at 7:50am.

The man was apparently attempting to travel on Air Asia domestic flight FD3030 to Don Muang International Airport in Bangkok.

Mr Eyas informed officials that he forgot that he had the bullets in his bag and that he never intended to bring them to Thailand. He admitted that they belonged to him. But, he refused to confirm and sign the police report documenting the incident.

At last report, police were continuing their investigation.

Eakkapop Thongtub

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Principal’s wayward ways sparks protest Eakkapop Thongtub editor@classactmedia.co.th

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bout 500 students, teachers and parents staged a protest at the Srinagarindra the Princess Mother School near Saphan Hin on Monday (Sept 11) against the school principal, who is accused of several counts of misconduct, including flirting, soliciting cash for failed projects and verbally abusing fellow teachers.

A leaflet handed out at the school listed a slew of accusations against Montri Pornphol, including using his position to benefit himself and his people financially, breaching teachers’ ethics, using his position to defame other teachers, using his position to do things that are not acceptable, and using inappropriate words in the school’s LINE group and directly at other teachers.

Mr Montri had initiated the “Q home school project”, which requested money from students, however after it failed risked the school paying a B2 million fine, according to the leaflet.

He had also misused the school’s budget other projects, such as renting eight printers at B1,000 each.

He was accused of flirting with others despite having a family, forcing teachers to do-

The protest accused School Director Montri Pornphol of flirting, being verbally abusive to other teachers and soliciting donations for failed projects. Photo: Narongsak Saengseedam nate B10,000 for a pole – size and use not established – and shaming the ones who didn’t make donations by publicly listing their names, and verbally abusing other teachers, calling them things such as a “buffalo eating grass”.

Signs at the protest read, “We do not want this director, he’s crazy about power. Go to use your power elsewhere,” and, “Get out of here, we do not need you.”

Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong ordered Phuket Provincial Defence Office Chief Sivach Rawangkul and officials from the Secondary Education Region 14 office to visit the school and hold a meeting.

Also present were Suthat Kaewpoon from the Phuket Provincial Education Area Office as well as the school’s associate director, soldiers and police.

Protests continued for over two hours. However, while officials and teachers attempted to talk to student representatives about the matter, they refused without an intermediary.

Officials eventually asked them to return to their normal classes.

The Phuket Provincial Education Area Office and the Secondary Education Office Region 14, which are responsible for all ensuring all schools in the Phuket and

surrounding provinces abide

by Ministry of Education regulations and requirements, acknowledged that the main issues addressed by the students were two issues: first is the general management of the school director, and second is his personal management behaviour toward his subordinates.

Officials agreed to monitor Mr Montri’s budget spending on school development and methods of management.

“We do not know how long this will take, because it is in the authority of the district office. However in the meantime Mr Montri will continue his position as usual,” said officials.

Stepfather accused of raping girl, 14, claims innocence T H E S T E P FA T H E R O F A 14-year-old girl who was allegedly gang-raped in Phang Nga province has denied accusations he was involved in the rape and claims he is innocent.

The man’s claims, made public last Friday (Sept 8), come after villagers on Raet Island said they suspected him of involvement in the rape of the 14-year-old girl.

The accused stepfather’s lawyer has filed a defamation suit against his accusers and the man filed a formal complaint to Sakoo Police Chief Col Jirasak Siemsak and Lt Bandasak Srilert at 5pm that day.

Police did not reveal the man’s name, and referred to him only as “Mr Sor”.

Mr Sor told police that he wants

Mr Sor told police and the press that he wants justice to prevail in the case and urged people to be careful in making accusations. justice to prevail in the case and urged people to be careful in throwing accusations about without having the facts.

He also said that he loved his daughter in law as his own daughter and had taken care of her since she was two years old and was very close

to her. He added that his step-daughter is a good girl and she had helped the family by working all the time. He also offered to undergo a lie-detector test in order to prove his innocence.

Mr Sor’s protestations follows a 17-year-old girl who was also said to have been gang-raped along with the 14-year-old girl, denying she was assaulted.

The 14-year-old girl caught media attention earlier this month by revealing she was sexually abused by an estimated 40 men in Phuket’s neighbouring province Phang Nga. The older teen, known as “C”, was taken for questioning on Sept 5 after the younger girl, known as “B”, told police that C was raped in a shack along with her in an attack

said to have been carried out in Koh Raet village in Tambon Lo-yung, in Takua Thung District, in December.

B told police 11 men took part in the rapes. However, upon police questioning, C said she had never been raped as claimed by B, adding she did not believe B was gang-raped, reported the Bangkok Post.

C said B’s family members always kept to themselves and B was not permitted to play with other friends in the village. She said B “appears to be repressed” and does not socialise with others.

“This story was fabricated by ill-intentioned people who want to damage the village’s reputation,” C said in the Bangkok Post report.

Eakkapop Thongtub thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Local family dodges the full force of Irma Chris Husted execeditor@classactmedia.co.th

W

ell-known Phuket expats Mu zza Nordstrand and Chantal Fernandes and their children are safe and sound after narrowly avoiding the brunt of Hurricane Irma at their temporary “home away from home” in the Dominican Republic.

Hurricane Irma left a trail of devastation across the Dominican Republic last Thursday (Sept 7) as the then-Category 5 storm and its 175kmh winds ripped through the Caribbean as it made its way to its current location on the Florida coast.

Mr Nordstrand, who for 16 years has been a central figure in Phuket’s sailing industry, and Ms Fernandes, who spent nine years with the Amanpuri resort on Phuket’s west coast – where the two were married 16 years ago – had temporary relocated for seven months to the Dominican Republic from their home at Baan Manik in Thalang.

ALL SAFE: Muzza Nordstrand and Chantal Fernandes with their children Chiara and Kyle. Photo: Muzza Nordstrand Weeks after the family’s arrival on the Caribbean island, to a home about three kilometres east of Rio San Juan on the northeast side of Dominican Republic, Irma reared her ferocious head and pummelled the island’s northern coast.

“We’re all okay here. What we went through really wasn’t major compared to others,” Mr Nordstrand told The Phuket News.

“The house we’re in was bullet-poof. We had a generator, so power stayed on, even

the WiFi stayed connected.

“As we were on the shoreline it was pretty spectacular, but I can’t say we were traumatised at all,” Mr Nordstrand added.

However, in the hours leading up to Irma’s arrival, the family were not overly confident of escaping the devastating winds.

“We were holding our breaths the night before as it wasn’t 100 per cent sure which way it was heading, so yes, that was a little stressful,” Mr Nordstrand explained.

Vachira praised for ‘care’ treatment

THE GERMAN HELP ASsociation (DHV) presented a cheque for B100,000 to Vachira Phuket Hospital last Friday afternoon (Sept 8) as a show of appreciation for the hospital’s support and care of German tourists who have been unable to pay their hospital fees over the years.

“This is to show our appreciation for the work Vachira Hospital has done and the help they give us with Germans who have problems with insurance and need to go home, and who end up here in hospital,” said DHV member and German honorary consul for Phuket Anette Jimenez Höchstetter.

DHV assists primarily persons of German nationality who face problems while staying in Thailand, it aim to help individuals solve their problems and prevent the recurrence of similar problems.

DHV members at the meeting also explained that in the last three years, there have been 22 German nationals who have encountered problems with medical fees and insurance. The combined total of their unpaid fees stands at B5 million.

“And if it wasn’t for Vachira Hospital’s International Department Head Mettavee @thephuketnews

Vachira Hospital’s Mettavee Maneesri (centre) speaks with Olaf Tänzer (right) as German honorary consul for Phuket Anette Jimenez Höchstetter (left) looks on.

Maneesri and the many assistants at the Vachira Hospital, the DHV would not be able to do its job the way that we can do it, because we work together,” said Ms Höchstetter.

DHV Chairman Dr Chumpol Thiengtham led the donation presentation event together with Ms Höchstetter, fellow DHV member Olaf Tänzer and Ms Mettavee.

Accepting the donation were Hospital Director Dr Chalermpong Sukontapol and Medical Department Deputy Director Dr Weerasak Lawtongkum.

“We have previously given a donation to Vachira Hospital three years ago, in 2013, to show our gratitude for Vachira’s help for foreigners and German nationals alike,” Ms Höchstetter explained.

DHV operates in close cooperation with the German Embassy, the offices of the Honorary German Consuls in Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Phuket, as well as with other institutions, such as two German church communities and the German-Thai Chamber of Commerce. The DHV currently has 36 members and more than 30 network participants countrywide.

Mr Tänzer also emphasised the importance of obtaining adequate insurance when planning and overseas trip.

“An important piece of advice for tourists is to not forget to organise travel health insurance in their home country to avoid any financial problems in case of accident or illness while travelling,” he said.

Shela Riva

“We only boarded up our place the afternoon before.

Luckily we did as we took a bit of a pasting. Also luckily, the worse part of the storm was in daytime. The breeze started building from 4am and continued through till 1pm the next afternoon (Sept 7).

“The direction changed, built and subsided as the eye went past, I reckon 50 to 80km away,” Mr Nordstrand explained.

With the worst past them, local residents and emergency services have begun a massive island-wide clean-up operation.

“The trees around our property took a hammering.

Every 10 minutes another branch would tear off or whole tree toppled over. It’s quite a mess to clean up in the following days,” Mr Nordstrand pointed out.

Mr Nordstrand fully appreciates how luck has played its part in his family’s escape from harm.

“Like I said, others fared worse. Miami is not having fun at all,” he said.

PHUKET NEWS

5

Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong led the special blessing ceremony last Thursday to inaugurate construction of the replica Royal Crematorium. Photo: PR Dept

Replicas to honour late King’s funeral A SPECI A L BLESSI NG ceremony was held at Saphan Hin last Thursday (Sept 7) to inaugurate the construction of an exact replica of the Royal Crematorium in Bangkok being built for the state funeral of King Bhumibol Adulyadej on Oct 26.

Phuket Governor Norraphat Plodthong led the ceremony, starting at the auspicious time of 9:09am, joined

by Phuket Vice Governors Snith Sriwihok and Siwaporn Chuasawad, and Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansuppana among other high-ranking officials on the island.

The miniature crematorium at Saphan Hin will be one of three exact replicas – scaled to detail from the original plans from Bangkok – built on the island.

The other two will be built in Kathu and Thalang Districts: one at Wat Ketho in Kathu and the other at Wat Manik in Srisoonthorn, Thalang.

The three replicas are being built so people unable to travel to Bangkok for the royal Funeral can pay their respects at one of the auspicious pyres in Phuket.

The plans for the replicas are being provided by the Fine Arts Department and the construction will be carried out by the Phuket Provincial Office of Public Works and Town & Country Planning.

Once the replica crematoriums are completed, Dok Mai Jan will be placed at each site in Phuket ahead of the Royal Funeral on Oct 26.

The Phuket News

Opinion 6

OPINION

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

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CHRIS HUSTED

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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.

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

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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.

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EDITORIAL

Time to send a message

H

elmets, helmets, helmets – or the lack of people wearing them – is an issue which has been touched on so many times in the past and of which has been the focus of many a campaign.

Yes, there are far more people wearing a crash helmet than before, but it is still nowhere near the 99% that has been campaigned for as long as most of us can remember.

As with any subject of this nature, the one thing that can change people’s thinking is education, but sadly there are some people out there who are happy to remain uneducated and will not change their habits or thinking on wearing a helmet.

But there is one group of people that should be educated to wear helmets, one who can really make a difference when it comes to changing habits and thinking – school children.

We have seen campaigns run at schools, often where free helmets have also been distributed, but it is clear that these campaigns have not had the intended impact. How can we say this? Just go to any school at the start or finish of the school day and see for yourself how many students arrive or leave on a motorcycle not wearing a helmet. It really is astonishing.

But who can blame these kids when firstly there is a lack of consistent law enforcement for helmet wearing. Secondly they have parents who, for reasons known only to them, are happy for themselves and their kids to ride without helmets. And finally, that when they arrive or leave school not wearing a helmet they do so knowing that no school official gives two hoots about them doing so.

We can blame the police

until we are blue in the face when it comes to this issue, but does the buck truly lie with them alone? Surely responsibility should also lie with the school officials who seem to have absolutely no concern for their student’s health and safety.

These schools should be making a point of educating their students to wear helmets, and if they really want to get serious about the matter, should even contemplate introducing a system where those students caught riding without a helmet, even with their parents, are fined for doing so.

It’s often too late to educate the older generation, but it’s never too late to educate the younger generation.

If this is done from a young enough age, who knows, maybe these kids might also be able to change their parent’s habits and way of thinking.

TOP 10 STORIES ON thephuketnews.com

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Novotel Phuket Karon Beach Resort up for sale Two Brazilian men nabbed in cocaine bust Two injured in Phuket five-vehicle accident Phuket Opinion: Time to send a message Phuket road deaths keep on rolling Silent Nights: Phuket Police ordered to tackle noisy motorbikes Police give military information on Yingluck’s flight Sudanese man arrested at Phuket Airport with illegal ammunition Patong Mayor calls for health forms for parasail rides Two Thai men arrested in Patong for drug possession

Visit thephuketnews.com for all the latest news

HAVE YOUR SAY Easier for everyone Is there a way of taking out all of the stress, anxiety and downright hostility of specifically extending one’s retirement visa? In this day of modern technology, it should be possible to turn this annual ritual from an ordeal to one of pleasure.

A well maintained website setting out all of the detailed, exact requirements, should give nobody an excuse to arrive without all of their papers in order. Sure this will take time to initially produce, and even more time to maintain.

But look at the alternative and just look at the current results.

The immigration volunteers are like finding water in the desert, indispensable, they should rename their web site as Phuket Immigration Saints.

A detailed web site that informs the expat community would be just as, if not more, indispensable than the volunteers themselves.

David Kirk ....................................................

Efficient cleaning

Re: Phuket Hotels Association Beach clean-up A “human hands” pick and

hunt to clean up the masses of debris on Phuket beaches organised by multi-national hotels is nothing more than a temporary and ineffective solution. It would be far more effective for these hotels to band together to purchase, maintain and run two tractors, one fitted with a sand rake/ sand sifter and the second with a trailer running in tandem to collect the debris as is done on many Australian beaches.

These could be used on a daily rotational basis on all of Phuket’s beaches, also creating employment for a few Thais. This would eventually result in cleaner beaches in perpetuity and probably improve tourist numbers when holiday makers know the beaches are of a better standard than they are now.

Would this shared outlay be beyond the means of these multi-nationals or would they consider the damage to their profits excessive?

It would seem reasonable to expect that those making the big money from the attraction which is Phuket should be more financially pro-active in maintaining it.

Barbara

The lights go out

Re: Phuket underpass traffic lights go live tomorrow Like most other new traffic lights, assume they will be switched off at mid-day, never to be seen again.

Discover Thainess ....................................................

Police priorities

Re: Phuket Town gambling den raided, 27 arrested Great Job Thai Army and police! Get those 27 heinous criminals off the streets for “playing a gambling game without permission”. Forget every vehicle in the public transport mob carrying weapons and willing to use them at the drop of a hat… these people “having fun” as referenced in the article... must be a top law enforcement priority. My oh my.

Ben Pendejo

Col Tassanai has recommended.

The system is bigger than one man… as it should be. Give Col Tassanai time and he will clean up Patong.

J Cunningham Thank you, Patong Police!

Today I parked my car in Patong and was not challenged by a Tuk-tuk driver to move!

MJJA ...................................................

Beach bullies

Re: Patong Mayor calls for health forms for parasail rides

A team effort

Get them all off the beach.

They act like the own hundreds of square metres of beach to launch their customers telling everyone else on the beach they can’t walk near them and threaten people if they do not comply. The beaches are public not for private businesses.

Csabo

Col Tassanai did his job. The tuk-tuk driver was arrested. It is the prosecutor’s office that must assess additional charges and agree to press the charges

I invite the police to spend a night in Nanai Road, Patong.

Fritz Penguin

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

Re: Phuket Opinion: Time to send a message

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

Re: Silent Nights: Phuket Police ordered to tackle noisy motorbikes

Have an opinion? Comment on stories at thephuketnews.com thephuketnews

THAILAND NEWS

8

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Yingluck ‘swapped cars’

Deputy police chief says former PM used two cars in getaway BANGKOK Bangkok Post

T

wo vehicles were involved in transporting ex-premier Yingluck Shinawatra to the border province of Sa Kaeo, national deputy police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said on Tuesday (Sept 12).

Citing a police investigation, Gen Srivara said one vehicle left the former premier’s house in Bung Kum district on Aug 23, two days before the Supreme Court was due to rule on Yingluck’s criminal negligence case over her administration’s failed rice-pledging scheme.

She is then believed to have switched vehicles in Min Buri district about 10pm before the second car drove her to Sa Kaeo on the Cambodian border, he noted.

CCTV footage shows a woman was inside the vehicle but it cannot be confirmed whether this was Yingluck, Gen Srivara said, adding experts are in the process of

Deputy national police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul believes ex-prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra pulled off a car-switching dash for the Cambodian border on Aug 23, two days before her scheduled appearance at the Supreme Court. Photo: Post Today examining the footage.

Efforts are being made to find out who helped Yingluck escape, he noted.

If they helped arrange her transport inside the country before Aug 25, when a warrant for her arrest was issued, they

would not be charged, he said.

But if they helped Yingluck f lee Thailand, they would be found guilty of breaching the Immigration Act, he added.

Gen Srivara said he could not confirm whether Yingluck

has fled overseas as is widely believed.

Meanwhile, the Defence Ministry denied a visit by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon to the United Kingdom this week was aimed at seeking cooperation in

hunting her down.

Gen Prawit, who is also the defence minister, is leading a team of officers from the armed forces on a four-day visit that kicked off Tuesday, according to defence permanent secretary Chaichan Changmongkol.

The deputy premier will hold talks with his British counterpart about a joint military exercise, codenamed “Panther Gold 2017”, he noted.

The drill, which will be conducted at Infantry Division 9 in Kanchanaburi, involves joint infantry exercises.

Gen Chaichan said the visit is aimed at boosting ties as well as security and military cooperation.

It was not organised to seek cooperation from Britain to track down the fugitive former premier, who has reportedly sought refuge in the UK, he said.

According to a military source, Panther Gold is the first step of a joint military exercise following in the footsteps of Cobra Gold, the biggest annual multilateral

military exercise in AsiaPacific, led by Thailand and the United States.

Panther Gold is a combat exercise, not a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operation, the source said.

Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai said there is nothing to suggest Yingluck has sought refugee status with any country.

National Security Council secretary-general Thawip Netniyom said security officers are still trying to determine the whereabouts of Yingluck. A press briefing will be conducted when new details emerge, he noted.

Responding to reports the ousted former premier slipped out of the country via Sa Kaeo, Gen Thawip said it will take time to comb such a large area to discover her exact route.

Gen Prawit said last week a Mercedes-Benz believed to have been used in her escape was captured on CCTV footage passing a military camp in Sa Kaeo on Aug 23.

Brazilians nabbed with cocaine BANGKOK TWO BRAZILIAN NAtionals were arrested last week for alleged involvement in an attempt to smuggle and distribute 1.3 kilograms of cocaine, worth B6.5 million, authorities said last Sunday (Sept 10).

The arrests of Paulo Henrique Pires Do Nascimento, 27, and his alleged accomplice, Elsonias Coleta Da Silva, 35, were announced after police said one of the suspects expelled dozens of capsules of cocaine he had swallowed.

Pires was nabbed at Suvarnabhumi airport on Sept 6 while Mr Coleta was arrested at a hotel when he turned up to collect the drugs.

According to authorities, Pires was detained when he was about to collect his luggage after arriving at the airport from Ethiopia on ET617 flight.

The officials received a tip-off that a Brazilian man on board the f light would attempt to smuggle in narcotics.

Paulo Henrique Pires Do Nascimento and Elsonias Coleta Da Silva were detained after anti-narcotics agents spotted and recovered 1.3kg of cocaine (left) in Mr Pires’ stomach. Photos: Narcotics Suppression Bureau He was suspected of swallowing packages of cocaine and a following body X-ray revealed dozens of lumps in his stomach.

While being interrogated, he admitted to swallowing cocaine before boarding the flight from Ethiopia and said he was supposed to deliver the drugs to a contact at a hotel in the Sukhumvit area.

Police staged a sting operation where they had Pires check in at the hotel as he had planned, while they kept an eye on people

he came into contact with.

At one point, Coleta knocked on his hotel room door and handed him some milk.

Police followed Coleta and found he was staying at the hotel. They planned his arrest by setting up the drug hand-over at Pires’ room.

Coleta was arrested when he showed up to collect the drugs. However, police say he refused to cooperate in the investigation to arrest other alleged accomplices.

Bangkok Post thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

ASIA NEWS

9

Fighting to stay afloat

Traders at Cai Rang floating market get pushed back to land VIETNAM Jenny Vaughan

F

ixing weighing scales used to be good business on Vietnam’s floating Cai Rang market, but the last repairman on the river now makes just a few dollars a month as modernity pushes traders to land.

Surrounded by dusty old scales on his cluttered houseboat, Nguyen Van Ut says vendors are giving up their boats for better lives on terra firma where supermarkets draw the traders who once thronged the waterway.

“I don’t have many customers now. In the past, it was alright, but now many boats have left the floating market... people on vessels have switched to vehicles,” the 71-year-old said.

He got into the repairs business 30 years ago on the Can Tho river to support his surviving children after his wife and two of his sons drowned in an accident.

For a time life was good, but now he relies on handouts from his children – three of them work in nearby Can Tho city.

Once reportedly two kilometres long, the Cai Rang

A vendor selling vegetables in a canal off the Song Hau river in the floating Cai Rang market in Can Tho. Photo: AFP market is a shadow of its former self. There are about 300 boats on the water now, down from 550 in 2005, according to the local tourism office.

It has fallen victim to the economic rise of the Mekong Delta, which has rapidly developed over the last decade.

Industrial and construction sectors have created nearly 570,000 jobs, hauling many from poverty.

But people like Ut have been left behind, unable to

afford a life on shore.

Even vendors making a decent wage from the tourists who flock to the market yearn for the perks of living on land: better housing, better jobs and modern amenities.

Nguyen Thi Hong Tuoi started working on the water when she was a child, just like her mother and grandmother before her.

Though she earns decent money, she doesn’t expect her daughter to carry on the

family tradition.

“In the future, I will let my daughter live on land so she can study and have a proper job,” the 34-year-old said, as her elderly mother rested in a hammock surrounded by sacks of tapioca on their boat.

It’s a common aspiration for young people in Vietnam, where more than half the country’s 93 million people are under the age of 30 and eager to move to fast-growing cities for work.

The origins of Cai Rang market reach back to when Vietnam and neighbouring Cambodia and Laos were occupied by the French, who readily exploited the natural resources of the colony previously called Indochina.

The Mekong Delta’s web of canals – both natural and man-made – were used to transport goods and people in the absence of a reliable road network.

There are about a dozen

surviving markets in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta today, though like Cai Rang, many have shrivelled.

“The local government is trying to keep the floating markets alive to (preserve) the culture and attract more tourists,” said Nguyen Thi Huynh Phuong, a lecturer at nearby Can Tho University who has researched the market’s history.

It still functions as a wholesale market, with vendors waking each day before dawn to load boats with watermelons or radishes and advertising their products by spearing them to a bamboo pole on the bow of the ship.

But its charm also draws millions of visitors each year who buy noodles, fruit and coffee from water traders, making it a well-established pit-stop on the Mekong tourist trail.

Recognising the market as a tourism hotspot, the government designated Cai Rang as a national heritage site last year.

For vendors like Ly Hung, who has lived on the water for 26 years, visitors have helped to maintain a traditional way of life.

“Without tourism this floating market would disappear,” he said.

AFP

Heavenly mooncakes: Hong Kong’s obsession HONG KONG IT IS ON E OF HONG Kong’s most treasured food traditions: the buying, giving and eating of “mooncakes” to mark mid-autumn festival, celebrated in Chinese communities around the world next month.

Bakeries and supermarkets are already packed with boxes of the dense pastries, traditionally filled with a heavy sweet concoction of lotus seed and egg yolks.

But not all mooncakes are made equal.

Picky customers will queue outside the most popular stores to ensure they bag their favourite brand.

Mooncakes by chef Yip Wing-wah of Hong Kong’s famous colonial era Peninsula Hotel are among the most in demand – and the priciest.

Boxes of eight of his Spring Moon mini egg custard mooncakes cost HK$520 (B2,186) and are only available in a three-day pre-order sale online, @thephuketnews

to avoid previous unseemly queues at the hotel.

This year’s sale took place in August and sold out, weeks ahead of the festival.

Now 65, Yip invented what has become his signature mooncake 30 years ago when he worked as a dim sum chef at the hotel’s Spring Moon restaurant.

It was inspired by gooey egg custard buns, a classic dim sum dish, and is smaller and lighter than traditional mooncakes, although it still packs a sugary buttery punch.

“I have an emotional attachment to it, really I do – because I would never have guessed that it would grow more popular every year,” says Yip, who started to work in Hong Kong restaurant kitchens aged 13.

Deep in the Peninsula’s basement, Yip kneads elastic golden dough to show how he and his team will make this year’s new lychee-flavoured spin on his original classic.

Rolling it out into lengths he plucks small pieces off and

flattens them between his hands before using them to encase sweet filling.

Each dough ball is then pressed individually into a mooncake-shaped hole in a heavy wooden holder, which Yip bangs three times on a worktop to pop out a perfect pastry.

Those who get hold of a box will share them with friends, family and business associates as part of the festival, which is the second largest in Hong Kong after lunar new year.

The legend behind it revolves around a beautiful woman called Chang E, who drank an elixir of immortal life to keep it out of the hands of a rival of her husband.

It caused her to ascend to the moon, leaving her distraught husband on earth. He took her favourite foods to an altar and offered them as a sacrifice to her, a ritual then adopted by local people.

“Mid-autumn festival is about coming together as a family to eat mooncakes and fruit and to admire the moon,”

says Lam Mei Yu, 40, biting into one on Hong Kong’s harbour front during a visit from her home in the southern mainland Chinese province of Guangdong.

For his part, Yip vows to continue to bake them as long as he is able.

“As I make more I become happier,” he said.

AFP

Mooncakes by chef Yip Wing-wah of Hong Kong’s famous colonial era Peninsula Hotel are among the most in demand – and the priciest. Photo: Anthony Wallace / AFP

10 WORLD NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

‘Puppy mills’ brought to heel Activists target illegal large-scale commercial dog breeding sites CZECH REPUBLIC Jan Marchal

C

rammed mercilessly into vans and car boots, tens of thousands of illegally bred dogs, many ill or still puppies, are smuggled each year out of the Czech Republic for sale on western Europe’s lucrative black market.

“Try to live at least one day the way these puppies do, in an unhealthy, isolated place with little food and water, in your own excrement,” says Prague vet Martina Naceradska.

She is one of a growing number of Czech activists targeting so-called puppy mills, or illegal large-scale commercial dog breeding sites, which, they say, ship an estimated 50,000 dogs without identification chips or passports annually to EU nations further west.

Animal rights activists say 100 to 150 puppy mills are thought to be operating in the Czech Republic, many of them on the German and Austrian borders which is a key factor in the illicit trade.

“Dogs are bred illegally in the Czech Republic and other eastern European countries, often in alarming conditions, and then transported to western Europe, where they are handed over to middlemen,” Naceradska said.

Profit margins are hefty.

An ill female French bulldog who has entered the animal shelter of Alena Smidkova after being taken from illegal dog breeders in Prague. Photo: Alena Smidkova / Handout / AFP Legally-bred dogs in western EU countries are at least 75% more expensive than those illegally bred in their eastern counterparts, according to campaigners.

In the Czech Republic, a boom in illegal breeding in the last few years has driven annual turnover up to around an estimated 1.5 billion koruna (B2.25bn).

Websites offering popular breeds from Czech puppy mills such as French bulldogs, Chihuahuas, Yorkshire terriers, Jack Russells or the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, are easy to find online.

Geographical reasons have helped drive the smuggling and aided its success, say animal rights groups.

The Czech Republic has the advantage over Poland, Hungary and Slovakia – where illegal breeding and smuggling to the west also goes on – for example, of sharing large borders with both Austria and wealthy parts of Germany where campaigners highlight a demand.

Buyers often pick up the puppy mill pets from handlers in shady places such as car parks or motorway service areas.

“Demand creates supply,” Naceradska says of the practice, which is relatively recent in the Czech Republic and has even spawned a new Czech word, “mnozirna”, or “breeding factory”.

The booming illegal busi-

ness has prompted top-selling broadsheet Dnes to dub the EU country of 10.5 million people a puppy mill “superpower”.

The 1992 Animal Welfare Act lays out rules for breeding both farm animals and pets in the Czech Republic, but animal rights activists argue that poor enforcement and weak penalties have created fertile ground for puppy mills.

Being caught transporting an animal or neglecting the rules can entail a fine of up to 768 euros (B30,407), says Zbynek Semerad, head of the Czech State Veterinary Administration.

But the fine does little to deter illegal breeders, who can earn up to 1,000 euros (B39,593) per puppy for an

animal costing around 50 euros (B1,979) to breed.

Illegal breeders can also ensure a steady supply of pups by plying female dogs with hormones and then having them impregnated up to three times a year, according to activists.

“Four out of five puppies die during the transport, for instance to Spain, yet the business still pays off,” says Naceradska, highlighting the high profit margin even after paying the middleman.

Public outcry at home and fierce criticism by animal rights organisations, notably neighbouring Austria’s Vier Pfoten (Four Paws), have forced Czech politicians to act.

In June, parliament amended the veterinary law on rabies vaccination, introducing measures that require all dogs to have electronic ID chips injected under their fur as of 2020.

The amendment also brings in the mandatory registration of any breeding establishment with more than five adult females.

“It’s designed to boost control over dog breeding,” says lawmaker Herbert Pavera, adding that it would soon be necessary to set up a central dog registry too.

“I am convinced it’s possible to eliminate these ‘mnozirnas’, but further legislation will be required,” he added.

But dismissing the le-

gal changes as “better than nothing”, Naceradska argues that more serious legislation, specifically targeting illegal breeders, is needed to stamp them out.

“We must clearly define by law the conditions under which it is forbidden to breed animals, in order to facilitate the prosecution of those breeders,” she said.

Unwilling to wait for lawmakers to take more decisive action, activists like Alena Smidkova are joining forces online via social media to bring illegal puppy mill owners to heel.

The feisty 50-year-old and several friends have become adept at picking out online classified ads that lead them straight to illegal breeders.

“I go with a couple of guys and threaten to call the cops if the boss doesn’t give me his dogs. In most cases, they don’t put up much of a fight,” Smidkova said, as some 20 rescued puppies, including French bulldogs, golden retrievers and Chihuahuas, happily chase each other around her sprawling backyard in the eastern Czech town of Omice.

With the help of friendly vets she cares for pups until they are ready to go to “carefully chosen families” for a symbolic fee of 19 euros (B752), helping to cover some of her costs.

AFP

Fake Brazilian warzone ‘photographer’ duped BBC and others BRAZIL HE WENT BY THE NAME Eduardo Martins and portrayed himself as a Brazilian war photographer working for the UN and who had a fondness for surfing.

He developed a following of 120,000 or so fans on Instagram each subscribed to his updates ostensibly posted from the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere.

But Martins the war photographer never existed – the photos and videos he posted

were doctored ones stolen from real photographers.

Now the Instagram account has gone, leaving in its place myriad question marks over who was behind the scam, which saw photos attributed to Martins published by news outlets including the BBC and

Getty Images.

The bogus images escaped detection because they were edited and inverted to fool software designed to detect plagiarism.

Doubts over the photographer’s true identity emerged after he or she contacted Natasha Ribeiro, a BBC Brazil contributor who lives in the Middle East, the British broadcaster said last week.

Ribeiro said alarm bells rang when it emerged that none of the Brazilian journalists working in Iraq had ever heard of Eduardo Martins – and nor had the UN or any of the organisations he claimed to have worked with, said the BBC. A photographer who asked not to be named said that Martins contacted him out of the blue and offered to help get his work published in major media.

Fernando Costa Netto, a journalist who interviewed Martins for a surfing magazine, said the con artist described

A phantom war photographer who sold his work to some of the world’s biggest media organsiations has vanished after being challenged over his story. Photo: Jason Reed / AFP himself as a Sao Paulo native aged 32 with blond hair and blue eyes.

Martins sold pictures from war zones but also found time to teach children in Gaza to surf, said Costa Netto, who said he has received many messages from people who had also fallen for the fake photographer’s shtick.

He claimed to have survived leukaemia at 18, but avoided personal contact and always seemed to be somewhere

with bad communications.

The last time Costa Netto contacted Martins was the day after another reporter told him it might all be a scam.

“Hey bro. I’m in Australia.

I made the decision of spending a year travelling around the world in a van. I will cut off everything, including the internet… I want to be in peace. We’ll speak again when I’m back,” the person wrote, according to Costa Netto.

AFP thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

BUSINESS NEWS 11

Tourism target ramped up

Govt sets sights on B3 trillion in revenues from tourism for 2018 TOURISM Bangkok Post

T

he government aims to achieve 10% growth in tourism income, or roughly B3 trillion, next year, by rolling out various tourism promotion packages to attract both Thai and foreign tourists to explore new destinations and promote longer stays in Thailand.

The country’s tourism income has grown 8% already this year, compared to average annual growth of 3% to 5% per year, according to figures cited by the government and the Thai Tourism Promotion Association (TTPA).

However, the government believes it can better that, and is hatching an ambitious campaign drawing various agencies together to push growth.

Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha said the government would focus mainly on quality tourism and long-stay tourists, government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said last week.

Supported by results from

Tourists arrive at Phuket International Airport. The government has set its sights on ramping up tourism revenue by 10% for 2018. Photo: Airport of Thailand international surveys in which Thailand, particularly Bangkok, is seen as a destination worth a longer stay, this direction of tourism promotion is likely to become successful, Gen Sansern said.

“Next year we will emphasise tourism which delves into the Thai way of life, in a campaign called Amazing Thailand Tourism Year 2018,” Lt Gen Sansern said.

The promotion will start on Nov 1, 2017 and run until Jan 1, 2019, and will include

international tourism-related events. They include an international ship parade on Nov 18 in Pattaya city in Chonburi and the Air Race1 Thailand at U-tapao airport in November, he said.

“The PM urges every province to think of its distinctive features in terms of history, local wisdom, culture and so on and present them as selling points for tourists to choose from when deciding where to visit,” Gen Sansern explained.

The PM is also encouraging

TAT app taps behind China firewall TOURISM THE TOURISM AUTHORity of Thailand (TAT) has launched an official WeChat “Visit Thailand” application for Chinese tourists, adding the popular Mandarin Chinese language social-media platform to existing Thailand visitor information services available to mainland visitors.

The TAT’s information support network also includes its Call Centre 1672 and the online TAT Contact Centre, both already available in Mandarin Chinese, offering instant information and assistance to Chinese travellers in Thailand.

Speaking at the launch on Sept 5, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said, “The Chinese travel market is cut off and very different. It is vital, as the country’s whole online ecosystem is effectively the largest closed ‘intranet’ in the world… WeChat ‘Visit Thailand’ levels the playing field, giving Chinese tourists a preferred communication tool they trust in their native Mandarin dialect.”

The launch of the app enables the TAT to effectively provide Thailand’s tourism news and assistance to pro@thephuketnews

TAT D e p u t y G o v e r n o r Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya (left) and Emporium and EmQuartier malls Deputy MD Manatase Annanwat. spective Chinese tourists online in addition to images, voice and video-sharing options. The application also offers real-time updates on attractions, accommodation, dining venues as well as local Thai experiences from other important TAT campaigns, reported Class Act Media’s Chinese-language Puji Dao Xinwen last week.

The app – the development of the WeChat app is in response to current trend analysis into the important FIT (free independent traveller) market – is available both in Thailand and in China, where tourists can ask for tourist information and assistance 24 hours by sending a simple text message to the application help desk.

China is Thailand’s largest tourist source market with the country welcoming 8.8 million Chinese visitors generating B430mn in revenue in 2016, the TAT reported.

The number of visitors arriving from China is expected to grow to nine million tourists this year and generate over B480mn in revenue – up 8% and representing 26.6% of the overall tourism revenue for the country.

From Januar y to July this year Thailand received 20.41mn visitors (+4.47%) who generated B1.03 trillion (+6.07%) for the economy. Of those, 5.65mn were Chinese tourists generating B290mn, representing Thailand’s top inbound market for both total arrivals and total revenue from a single source market.

WeChat is currently China’s most popular social media application with 889mn active users. The figure looks set to grow as according to the China Internet Network Information Centre there were 731mn internet users in 2016, or 53.1% of the total population. The number of internet users on mobile devices in China increased from 620mn in 2015 to 695mn in 2016.

The Phuket News

provinces to form a cluster of tourist destinations that should also be linked to destinations in neighbouring countries, he said.

Deputy Prime Minister Gen Tanasak Patimapragorn, in his capacity as a member of the national committee on tourism policy, said Amazing Thailand Tourism Year 2018 has been created as a tool for driving economic growth.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has projected the so-called gross

domestic product of Thailand’s tourism sector will in the next 10 years will reach that of the world’s top 10, he said.

Starting on Nov 15, the promotion will be implemented in cooperation with various tourism-related businesses including the country’s leading department stores and airlines.

They will adopt the same tourism promotional logo in their campaigns to help raise awareness about Amazing Thailand Tourism Year 2018, he said.

In a year-on-year comparison, the number of tourists this year has grown 5%, while revenue from tourism is up 8%, or roughly B2.5trn, he said.

As for Thai tourists, he said, the tourism policy committee plans to propose the Finance Ministry offer a tax deduction privilege of up to B20,000 per person to attract taxpayers to spend more on domestic tourism from next month until December. However, he is not confident the scheme could be put in place in time. It might be postponed to next year.

To achieve the 10% growth

target, seven main areas of tourism will be boosted, namely sports tourism, food tourism, marine tourism, wedding and honeymoon tourism, medical and health tourism, community-based tourism and leisure tourism, he said.

Main airlines including Thai Airways International (THAI), Thai AirAsia and Nok Air will join the campaign by offering special air fares for air travellers who travel in a family group, said Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). THAI plans to offer a group of passengers consisting of one child and two adults a special discount on their air fares, while AirAsia has raised the maximum age of child passengers to 15 to allow more passengers to enjoy a discount normally offered to its young passengers, Mr Yuthasak said.

Phuriwat Limthawornrat, president of the Association of Domestic Travel (ADT), said the TTPA plans to offer a 50% discount on package tour services for customers who agree to wear Thai traditional outfits during their tours.

12 BUSINESS NEWS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Standing together?

Phuket hotels and marine industry may unite on common goals MARINE Chris Husted execeditor@classactmedia.co.th

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ill the Thai Marine Business Association (TMBA) and the Phuket Hotels Association (PHA) join forces on key issues facing the key industries on the island? That was the clear question after the Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce (AustCham) Sundowners networking event at Phuket Boat Lagoon last Friday (Sept 8).

The event, organised in collaboration with the American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham) and the British Chamber of Commerce in Thailand (BCCT), included a panel discussion titled “Outlook for the Phuket Marine and Hospitality Industries”, where leading figures in both industries raised key concerns for the future of both industries.

On the hospitality front, panel speaker Michael Cowan, Executive Director at Beacon Sky Hospitality, predicted that mid-range hotels were to boom in trade in the ongoing demographic shift in tourist arrivals to the island, and that independent hotel operators were likely to face a tougher time as more branded hotel operations moved in to take

AustCham Thailand President Brenton Mauriello (right) suggested the TMBA and the PHA both reserve an ‘honorary chair’ for each other on their main committees. advantage of that shift.

Yet even international operators will face the same greater challenges affecting the entire tourism industry, the kingpin of which is the management of natural resources in the region, which are the key catalyst in attracting tourists to Phuket, he noted.

To this, Mr Cowan pointed out how the PHA was also facing similar issues and how the association was tackling them.

Fellow panel speakers Wicky Sundram CMP, Executive Director at Phuket Boat Lagoon, and Scott Bradley,

CEO at East Marine, both noted how the marine industry in Phuket had grown over the years and needed support in more marina facilities and services, even though Phuket is leading the region in both.

“The place has changed.

The number of mid-range boats continues to grow – the marinas are filling up – but bigger boats are coming,” Mr Sundram said.

Mr Sundram also highlighted how the Aseanarean Bluewater Alliance was working towards closer integration in attracting pleasure boating cruise arrivals to arrive in the region with the confidence

of international-standard marinas and their services as they moved from one marina to another throughout Asean.

Challenged on marina prices, Mr Sundram pointed out that Phuket was more expensive than Malaysia but cheaper than Singapore – and that Phuket had the quality of services and facilities that saw boats arriving from throughout the region to take advantage of that fact.

Scott Bradley, CEO at East Marine, with nigh on 30 years in Phuket as a shipwright providing boat engineering services, supported that point, noting how Phuket

had already cemented its position as the port of call in the region for professional marine services.

“Phuket is already known throughout the region for the range and professionalism of marine services available.

It is a great hub for refit and repairs, and that is why everyone is coming here,” he said.

However, Mr Bradley noted that the boats are getting bigger, “and we need facilities to serve them” he said.

To that he pointed out that the Premier Boatyard at the northern end of Phuket was working on getting an 800-ton lift to haul out larger yachts operational, likely to be in service next year.

Boon Yongsakul, Chairman of Boat Pattana Co Ltd and the key figure in the operation of Boat Lagoon Marina, also noted from the audience that the 120-ton lift at Boat Lagoon was on its way, hopefully ready for use by the end of the year.

Closing panel speaker Andrew de Bruin, General Manager at Multihull Solutions Asia, also highlighted the long-term sustained growth Phuket’s marine industry has enjoyed over the past two decades.

“The region has grown significantly. Phuket had only two marinas in the 1990s, now there are five and more in the region, including Port Takola in Krabi Boat Lagoon,” he said.

The industry had grown to now see 8,000 to 10,000 people on the water every day, Mr De Bruin noted.

“The government is realising the benefits of this, and slowly taking steps to help support it,” he said.

But the industry does need more assistance, Mr De Bruin pointed out.

“The industry needs the supporting infrastructure for marinas and boat services, more support in skills development for people working in the industry – and very importantly the industry needs better regulation and education in protecting the natural resources that bring the tourists,” he explained.

Mr De Bruin noted the symbiotic relationship between the marine and hospitality industries. “When one does well, the other does well,” he said pointedly.

The two-way relationship extends to even crossover

in skills – hospitality skills, service skills right down to catering and mechanical services – and that in both sectors Phuket has developed ahead of the curve compared with other locales in the region. “This crossover has supported both industries,” he said.

Panel moderator Harry Usher, AustCham Phuket Coordinator and co-owner with his wife Susan of Phuket’s well-known Lady Pie bakery business, moved to questions to the floor, with the ensuing discourse covering a gamut of issues, including the unlikely viability of a west coast marina or a water-taxi service along the west coast without heavy investment due to the pounding seas brought on by the southwest monsoon six months every year.

Yet the key issue raised was encapsulated by Andy Dowden, co-founder of the Phuket International Boat Show (PIMEX) now known as the Phuket Rendezvous, with the words: “Management of the natural resources is the single greatest threat to the future of the marine industry.”

T he p oi nt r e s on at e d throughout the audience, all in support with a common understanding that the bare fact was truth.

PHA President Anthony Lark, present in the audience, noted the similarity in all the issues facing both the hotel and the marine industries, and remarked on how both the PHA and the TMBA could easily work together in tackling all the similar issues with a greater vision of ensuring the equitable future of both industries.

AustCham Thailand President Brenton Mauriello after the event told The Phuket News that the idea of the TMBA and the PHA aligning their efforts on common interests “made absolute sense”.

“They could each offer one honorary chair on each association’s committee. That way the information can flow between the two associations and an issue one association is facing can be brought to the attention of the other,” he said.

“That would work well for both,” Mr Mauriello said.

The Phuket News was a proud sponsor of the AustCham Sundowners event at the Boat Lagoon. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Seeing life’s obstacles as opportunities

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

16

What happens in Pattaya stays in Pattaya

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Traversing Mongolia’s Gobi Desert on foot, through driving snow and blinding sandstorms, was a true test of mental and physical endurance for Phuket expat couple Luke Richmond and Elise Hoefsmit and their friend Matthew Bennett.

CROSSING THE GOBI Walking the entire Gobi Desert the ‘challenge of a lifetime’

JP Mestanza tv@classactmedia.co.th

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or someone who’s climbed the biggest mountains in the world, parachuted from hot air balloons and travelled from Europe to South America on a row boat, you wouldn’t think Phuket training instructor Luke Richmond would find crossing the Gobi Desert one of the most physically demanding challenges he’s ever attempted.

“In reality, nothing could prepare us for the Gobi,” he says.

Earlier this year Luke, together with his wife Elise and fellow adventurer Matthew Bennett, set out to tick off yet another item on their collective bucket list. Amazingly, the 1,800kilometre trek through Mongolia’s unforgiving Gobi Desert was actually a fall-back plan. The trio had originally planned to cross Antarctica. Though as it turned out, Genghis Khan’s old stomping ground more than quenched their thirst for a challenge.

A few years ago Luke and Elise were living a normal “cookie cutter” life running a gym in Sydney but it “just didn’t sit right with them”. So two years ago they upped stakes, moved to Phuket and began chasing @thephuketnews

opportunities for crazy adventures all around the globe.

“We sold everything to hit the road and started doing what people have a bucket list for, or what they do in retirement. We said ‘let’s just do it all now and see where we end up in 10 or 20 years’,” says Luke.

“That’s why we love living here in Phuket, so we can stay fit and healthy, and at the drop of a hat, if someone asks you to row an ocean, you can row an ocean. That’s what it’s about for us, not saying no to any opportunity that comes up – you just want to be ready,” adds Elise.

It took 57 days for the team to cross the entire length of the desert, all with the aim of raising money for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), an organisation campaigning to end child abuse in the United Kingdom.

They had raised a little over £28,800 (about B1.23 million) at last count.

Team Essence, as they’re called, dragged their supplies on custombuilt trailers through the harsh landscape of one of the biggest deserts in the world. Luke, an instructor at Phuket’s Unit 27 fitness centre and an Australian military veteran has been through tough journeys, treks and adventures before – but he says

the Gobi was something else entirely.

“The desert was more of a mental battle. By the end of the day we were shattered and after sleeping for 10 hours we would recover just enough to go again for another day. It was a brutal Groundhog Day cycle,” he says.

Luke kept everyone updated through blog posts on his Facebook page, it’s a worthwhile read that touches on everything from the curious and friendly locals they came across to daily injuries, the tech failures, showering once in 57 days and the weather… oh, the weather.

“The weather was the toughest.

The wind blew for 55 of the 57 days and it was unrelenting. If it was a headwind we couldn’t go anywhere.

In the beginning we had cold, snow, rain, hail and by the end we had heat and sandstorms. It was crazy,” Luke says.

Just last year, Luke took part in Row2Rio, a journey from Portugal to Brazil on a row boat to honour the legacy of the Olympics, which were held in Rio de Janeiro. He lost 15 kilograms during the 55-day crossing, but also managed to set a new world record. While that was a challenge, the Gobi presented many more obstacles that the team say they just couldn’t foresee.

“There were no free metres,” he says, “If you stopped, you would go nowhere. At least on Row2Rio the wind and current gave you some assistance.

“The whole trip felt like we were pulling up hill or going down. When we finally had flat surface, it was like a dream and we could crack 40km for the day,” he says.

Very few things could prepare you for the scorching heat and the intense endurance needed to finish, said Luke.

“When we finally finished. I took off my harness, threw it on the ground and swore I’d never pick it up again,” he said.

“The relief was euphoric, we had done it, and even though no one was there to cheer us on, it was an incredible feeling shared between the three of us,” he says.

Luke’s next big adventure will be to kayak the length of the Amazon River.

But even his wife Elise, who is certainly no stranger to adventure (they were married in Las Vegas during a skydiving jump from a hot air balloon), has decided to sit this one out.

“I’ve uninvited myself to that one,” she says with a laugh.

For more about the trio’s adventures visit: www.olocadventures.com

14 CULTURE

To be or not to be?

ALL ABOUT BUDDHISM

Jason A. Jellison mitnoy@live.com

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avvy tourists in Thailand may eventually ask why it is that they see countless Thai monks, but no Thai nuns. The answer is: it’s a deeply sensitive and at times explosive issue. In order for us to understand why there are few Thai nuns, we have to go all the way back to the beginning of Buddhism.

Twenty-five centuries ago, Buddha was being raised to be a king. His father did not intend for him to become a religious leader. One day, Buddha fled from his castle and began a six-year journey that would eventually lead him to enlightenment. He took on five disciples and they taught others. Eventually, there were more Buddhist monks than you could count.

One morning, a woman approached Buddha and asked to be ordained as a Buddhist nun. Buddha was actually opposed to this idea, but he eventually changed his mind. The woman, who Buddha originally declined, was none other than the royal princess Gotami – Buddha’s half-sister and adoptive mother. She had raised Buddha after his maternal mother passed away early in Buddha’s life.

He cautiously ordained Princess Gotami as the first Buddhist nun. However, the nuns were required to observe certain restrictions that their male counterparts did not have to follow. We have all the rules on record, and while these rules may seem rather restrictive to us today, there are two things modern readers need to understand.

Firstly, allowing women to become Buddhist nuns was a profound act of women’s liberation at the time.

Thanks to Buddha, women could now leave an abusive home. They also could find enlightenment, just like men. By the standards of 2,500 years ago, that was truly radical.

Secondly, while the additional restrictions placed on the nuns might seem backwards and restrictive to us today, they were not intended to discriminate against women. They were actually designed to protect them.

It is important to note that, even today, there are particularly acute problems with sexual assault in India. (Buddhism came to ancient Siam through India.) The rules were installed to prevent outbursts of male anger and violence, as well as to protect the religion from falling into any sexual misconduct.

Thai Buddhism was passed down from Buddha’s hands, through the hands of Buddhist monks and nuns, and then through roughly 24 generations of Thais. Traditional Buddhism teaches that the religion stays alive through ordination, forming an ordination-to-ordination chain reaching back to Buddha himself.

This chain is sacred to traditionalists, as are concerns regarding sexual misconduct.

Sadly, about 1,000 years after Buddha died, war broke out and many women changed religions.

The female chain of ordination was broken by these events; but the male chain survived in exile.

Thus, many Thai Buddhists adamantly believe that it is not theologically legitimate to re-establish the once-flourishing but now extinct Buddhist order of nuns.

This has caused a great many problems. For instance, many Thai boys still ordain as monks for a period of time in their youth. Their families often believe that this instils merit on the entire family.

There are some Thai families with daughters who wish that they also could have the same opportunities. However, local attempts to create these opportunities have been met with hateful venom and religious fundamentalism.

Additionally, foreign influences have been trying to restart the order of nuns. Foreign Buddhists often claim that a monk should be able to ordain a nun and restart the chain of ordination. But Thai Buddhism objects to this for three reasons.

The first is that the female ordination-to-ordination chain cannot technically be restored by a male monk. The gap is still there, at

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Many other countries, including Vietnam, are more accepting of Buddhist nuns. least in the most technical sense.

In the eyes of a traditionalist, a monk is not the Lord Buddha.

Next, traditionalists staunchly maintain that it is a violation of the Buddhist monastic code for a monk to ordain a woman. Monks are not allowed to ordain nuns, only a nun can ordain a nun, and there were no ordained nuns who escaped the wars and religious conversions of history.

Finally, it’s not recognised by Thai law. In 1928, the Thai Buddhist Sangha Supreme Council formally forbade the ordination of women and much of Southeast Asia still follows the traditionalist method. However, we are globalising. New problems have sprung up.

Foreign nuns have resettled from other denominations of Buddhism and their arrival has been received with anything other than glee.

There have been arson attacks upon the buildings where the nuns live. Alleged kidnapping attempts and gangs of drunken villagers have also allegedly harassed some rural nuns. That is the current reality of it all. Yet, the questions that confront Thais and foreigners are actually the same. Is this really fair to women?

Isn’t this male chauvinism? Is Thai Buddhism treating women as second class citizens, or do we not understand the issue without actually being Thai?

To be or not to be? Will Thailand really be able to stop the tide of Chinese and Australian Buddhist nuns who measure in the thousands? That is the question. We cannot hope to solve this raging theological debate in one newspaper column. Nor should we side with either progressive or traditional Thai culture. But, we can become aware of this controversy and seek more information.

We also can be kind to these nuns regardless of where we stand on the debate. These women are taking a vow of poverty. It is important that we don’t fall into the age-old trap of placing our theology ahead of our humanity.

Thailand’s attitude to Buhhdists nuns is at odds with the modern women’s rights movement.

As savvy tourists notice, Thailand does not have a vibrant order of Buddhist nuns anymore. It would also be fair to say that Thailand is undergoing a conservative shift, at least right now.

Thailand is currently engaged in a fight for its culture. There has been a lot of change since the arrival of modern tourism and many Thai people resent the changes.

Thailand has an ancient culture that very few outsiders will ever fully understand. It is tempting for us to want to wade in and help solve this Thai drama. Women’s liberation is still a hot topic in the West. Yet, before we think that the West has all of the answers on women’s issues, we should remember that America just failed to elect its’ first female President for the sixth time since 1984. France also just turned down a female candidate. Are we really as progressive as we think?

To be or not to be? That is the question. While the jury is still out, one thing is for certain: Despite our Western morals and passions, the verdict on Buddhist nuns can only be rendered by the people of Thailand.

All About Buddhism is a monthly column in The Phuket News where I take readers on my exotic journey into Thai Buddhism and debunk a number of myths about Buddhism.

If you have any specific queries, or ideas for articles, please let us know. Email editor1@classactmedia.co.th, and I will do my best to accommodate your interests. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

EDUCATION 15

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Finding your future university

BISP provides big opportunities for students seeking a top-level institution university to admit even fewer students each year. A higher rejection rate increases the university’s “prestige” factor.

Dale Ford

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t’s the travel season for university admission officers. Established international schools with robust university counselling programs continue to welcome admission officers who are travelling to schools to find great students and encourage them to consider their universities. The BISP counsellors, who have relationships with hundreds of university and college programs, have been encouraging admission officers to come to Phuket and BISP. That encouragement continues to pay off for our students as more representatives make their way here. It is an exciting time at the British International School, Phuket.

On September 7, BISP welcomed six highly selective US universities: Columbia, Duke, Georgetown, Northwestern, Princeton and Vanderbilt. By the end of the school year over half of the US Ivy League universities will have visited BISP. On September 25, BISP will host the largest university fair ever held in Phuket. Over 100 admission officers from 18 different countries will be at BISP for a fair from 11:45am until 1:45pm. Students from other international schools on the island will also come to meet with the representatives.

Local English-speaking students in

@thephuketnews

BISP will host the largest university fair ever held in Phuket on September 25. their final three years of high school are also invited. Please register by clicking Events on the BISP website: www.bisphuket.ac.th/events.

On November 16, BISP will host another fair. We anticipate this fair will have between 20 and 40 mostly British universities. Details about that event will be available later.

Perhaps you’re wondering why universities – especially those who already receive more quality applications than they can possibly accept – would come to Phuket to meet with students?

There are several reasons: • High school visits allow admission officers to learn about the quality of the

school and to see if its students are a good fit for their campus. They also connect with the school’s university counsellors, who will be advocating for students.

• No matter how many applications a university receives, they continue to search for the next great student who might be a future Nobel prize winner.

• Some universities use visits to assess “demonstrated interest”, in which an admission officer tries to assess a student’s interest in attending. Some universities admit applicants partially on that basis.

• Encouraging applications allows a

Of course these visits can also be extremely valuable to students. Faceto-face meetings allow students to ask questions, not just about courses, but about the culture or feel of the campus.

Since these officers are often the same ones who review applications and make admission decisions, making a positive impression can pay dividends.

Visits also provide students an opportunity to compare different universities, including those they may not have previously considered. The more you learn, the more you can identify the types of institutions that will provide the best university experience.

Younger high school students can also gain from these visits by learning about the application process before their final year. The sooner students know what it takes to be admitted, the better they can understand which classes they might want to take, the grades they should strive to earn, and how they should organise their past, current and future activities.

It is exciting to have so many universities discover Phuket and BISP. Dale Ford is one of two dedicated University Counsellors at BISP.

16 EVENTS

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

Fairy tale thinking

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Owning your fear and allowing yourself to fail can put you on the path to success Darren Scherbain

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e have all been there; we start off with a massive amount of intensity, passion and conviction at the start of a new perfect plan for the “New Me”. This time it will be different, this time we will get it right and we will be on our way to the enchanted land of “Happily Ever After”.

But what usually happens is that the electricity fizzles out and once again we are left standing, clutching our uncertainty and wondering… how did this happen again? How could it happen again?

Why is it that we can be filled with so much conviction, passion, courage and heroism at the start and then fizzle out when we get deflated by our own thinking? It’s not them or that. Think about it, what has been the one constant variable in all your equations?

In my early years of recovery from drug addiction and alcoholism I was franticly trying to avoid my triggers.

Plot twist… I am the trigger! That can be a very tough pill to swallow for our delicate sense of self, but it’s okay, we

can learn how to colour outside the lines.

We are not immune to speed bumps, road blocks and brick walls. By their very nature, these obstacles are designed to ask us one very important question. The obstacles are not there to keep us out, they are there to ask us how bad do we want it.

Do you see an obstacle or an opportunity? When you feel yourself fizzling out and deflated remember this one very important powerful question: “Why is this happening for me?” as opposed to the reactive disempowering “Why is this happening to me?”

Thinking and doing are not the same “ing”, and it’s the gap in between that collects so many bystanders. What do you think stops most people from taking action? It has nothing to do with lack of hope, talent,creativity, drive, ambition or that magical trump card – purpose. The fear of failure, making mistakes and self-doubt can stop most people dead in their tracks.

A lot of us interpret this lack of control and self doubt to mean we are doing something wrong, slipping backwards and spiralling further and further, deeper and deeper into the gap of uncertainty. We get so afraid

because we are afraid.

Have you ever stopped to think that failures and mistakes are a necessary part of the process?

It took me four “Rock Bottoms” before sobriety finally stuck.

Each rock bottom would cast me deeper and deeper into a pit of helplessness and hopelessness. The issue Darren Scherbain is a triathalete, podcaster, fitness coach and motivational had nothing to do with speaker based in Phuket. Photo: Adriano Trapani sobriety’s stickiness, but had everything to do with how I viewed success and failspeaker based in Phuket. His story ure. Success isn’t something you get but of addiction and recovery stands tesrather something you bring. tament to the amazing power and The real success isn’t reaching “Hap- healing energy of sport, exercise and pily Ever After” or chasing that elusive an altered mindset. Contact Darren at pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. darrenscherbain@gmail.com and visit Success is something you bring when secretsofbetterliving.com you are grounded in a nurturing, accepting and loving relationship with Darren will be giving a talk entitled yourself. It can start with letting go of ‘Standing in our Strength’ at Inspired these disempowering fairy tales.

Phuketians on Sunday, September 24.

Inspired Phuketians is a series of talks Darren Scherbain is an Ironman triahosted by Skye Lake Club in Cherng thalete, recovered addict, podcaster, Talay. This event is proudly sponsored reconditioning coach and motivational

by The Phuket News and Live 89.5.

Darren Sanders live in Phuket

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ith over 20 years in the stand-up comedy circuit Darren Sanders is known for his relaxed, confident, conversational style that has audiences at complete ease and in hysterics. Now he is bringing his comedic skills to Phuket at Underwood Arts Factory for one night only on September 17.

Darren has performed on TV shows (The Punchliner Comedy Club, Stand Up Australia, Rove and In Melbourne Tonight) and headlined all over the world at comedy clubs and corporate events.

In 2012, The Darren Sanders Show, a late night chat show, aired nationally on free-to-air and cable television in both Australia and New Zealand to favourable reviews from critics. Darren has also produced award-winning TV comedy programs such as Talking Comics with Dazz and Gazz in 2009.

Darren has been a part of panel discussion shows on Studio 10, The B Team with Peter Berner on Sky News and also on radio station 2UE’s Lunchtime Lowdown. He has appeared in A Place to Call Home, Underbelly 3 and the feature film by Working Dog Any Questions for Ben?, where he had the honour of having the last line in the film. He can also be seen playing himself in the movie Shooting Goldman.

In 2006, The Dazz and Gazz Radio Show on TV beamed out in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. In 2009 Darren Sanders and Garry Who joined forces again to produce Talking Comics with Dazz and Gazz, which took out Best Comedy Program at the

Stand-up comic Darren Sanders is coming to Phuket.

2009 Antenna Awards in Melbourne.

Between May 2001 and September 2013 Darren operated and ran The Laugh Garage Comedy Club in Sydney and in 2017 he opened the Sydney Comedy Club located at Luna Park.

Darren can be heard along side fellow comedians Garry Who and Mick Meredith on the podcast Grumpy Old Comedians.

See Darren perform live stand-up comedy in Phuket at Underwood Art Factory. Advance tickets: B600, tickets on the door B800. For more information visit: comedyclubbangkok.com and underwood-phuket.com.

This event is proudly sponsored by The Phuket News and Live 89.5. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

ENVIRONMENT 17

Cyclones and climate change Marlowe Hood

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cientists freely acknowledge they don’t know everything about how global warming affects hurricanes like Irma and Harvey that proved devastating. The amplifying impact of sea level rise, warming oceans, and hotter air – all incontrovertible consequences of climate change – is basic physics, they say. Likewise accelerated shifts in intensity, such as the sudden strengthening that turned Harvey from a Category 2 to a Category 4 hurricane – on a scale of 5 – just as it made landfall.

What’s missing is a detailed track record of hurricanes past, the kind of decades-long log of measurements that climate scientists need to discern the fingerprint of human influence.

“It is awfully difficult to see climate change in historical data so far because hurricanes are fairly rare,” Kerry Emmanuel, a professor of atmospheric science at MIT in Boston, said.

Experts, in other words, do not disagree on the potential of man-made global warming to magnify the destructive power of the tropical storms known variously around the world as cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons. Rather, they are confounded – for now – by a lack of information.

“Just because the data don’t allow for unambiguous detection yet, doesn’t

Recent hurricanes have devastated parts of the US.

Scientists fear that as the effects of climate change become ever more apparent, storms will rapidly gain strength just before hitting land, with ever more devastating consequences. Photo: AFP mean that the changes haven’t been occurring,” noted James Kossin, a scientist at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Kossin figured out that cyclones have drifted poleward in their respective hemispheres over the last three decades, a finding hailed by other hurricane gurus as the most unambiguous evidence so far that global warming has already had a direct impact. When it comes to cyclones and climate change, there are many points of near “universal agreement,” said Emanuel.

One is the consequence of rising seas.

“The most lethal aspect of hurricanes – wherever they occur in the world – is storm surge,” he said in an interview.

If Hurricane Sandy – which caused US$50 billion (B1.6 trillion) in dam-

Pacific corals in ‘worrying’ state

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survey of Pacific corals has found many severely bleached, some near-dead, according to marine researchers who warned that global warming threatened the precious ecosystem’s very survival. An in-depth probe along a 50,000-kilometre stretch of the Pacific found that up to 90% of some coral colonies around the Samoan islands had been bleached.

Around the Tuamotu archipelago, up to half of the colonies are bleached, according to researchers on board the French research schooner Tara. Even in more temperate waters to the north up to 70% of corals were damaged around Okinawa, Japan.

“All along Tara’s Pacific route, we observed coral deaths and very serious bleaching,” Tara scientific director Serge Planes said in Paris, where the report was released.

Corals make up less than 1% of the Earth’s marine environment, but are home to an estimated 25% of marine life. They act as nurseries for many species of fish. Corals are tiny, invertebrate marine creatures that live in colonies and require algae to survive. The algae live on the corals, providing them with food and the bold colours that reefs are known for. Corals “bleach” when they are stressed by environmental changes – due to ocean warming or pollution.

They expel the algae and turn bonewhite.

If the harm is not too severe, reefs can recover from a bleaching event, although this can take many years. Tara departed on its mission from the port of Lorient in northwest France in May @thephuketnews

This picture shows coral reefs in the lagoon of the Toau atoll, about 400 kilometres from Tahiti in the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia, on October 18, 2015. Photo: AFP last year. It is about halfway through its mission, having visited 15 countries from east to west.

Last week’s report was based on analysis of some 15,000 coral samples collected in 2,000 dives, and concluded that global warming is the main culprit. The data revealed that bleaching events happen much more frequently than in the past, giving reefs less time to recover between bouts, said Planes.

“Clearly, these events are no longer associated with exceptional climate events. Also, in sparsely populated areas like Polynesia, with comparatively little ocean pollution, warming is the only explanation for the coral damage,” the team said.

Adding that the data “throws into question the future of these coral reefs.”

AFP

age – had happened a century earlier, it probably would not have flooded lower Manhattan because sea level was about 30 centimetres lower, he pointed out.

Global warming is likely to add roughly a metre to the global watermark by century’s end, according to recently revised estimates.

“The surge from these storms will be more devastating – higher and more penetrating,” said James Elsner, an atmospheric scientists and hurricane expert at Florida State University.

A second point of consensus is that hurricanes will hold more water, raising the threat of lethal and destructive flooding.

“We calculate that 1º Celsius of warming translates into a 7% increase in humidity in the atmosphere,” said

French scientist Valerie Masson-Delmotte, co-chair of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

“The irony is that hurricanes are known for wind, yet wind is third on the list of lethal aspects,” after storm surges and flooding caused by rain.

Earlier this year, Emanuel published a study pointing to yet another worrying climate “signal” emerging from the noise of raw data. Scientists have made great progress in anticipating the path a storm will follow, extending their predictive powers from a day or two to about a week. At the same time they have made scant headway in forecasting hurricane strength.

“The thing that keeps forecasters up at night is the prospect that a storm will rapidly gain strength just before it hits land,” Emanuel said, citing Harvey as an example.

“Global warming can accentuate that sudden acceleration in intensity,” Emanuel said.

AFP

18 ISLAND SCENE

From left: Andrew, Scott, Harry, Michael and Wicky.

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

From left: Anthony, Boon and Craig.

AUSTCHAM HOSTS DISCUSSION ON FUTURE OF MARINE AND HOSPITALITY The Australian Chamber of Commerce hosted a panel discussion on the topic of “Outlook for the Phuket Marine and Hospitality Industries” at Phuket Boat Lagoon on Sept 8. Following the discussion guests enjoyed drinks and tasty Aussie treats at the “Sundowners” networking event.

Many prominent members of Phuket’s marine and hospitality industries attended the event.

BISP Headmaster Neil Richards MBE (left) and Secondary Principal Simon Meredith (right) with Admissions Counsellors from Columbia, Duke, Georgetown, Northwestern, Princeton and Vanderbilt Universities.

BISP WELCOMES ADMISSION OFFICERS FROM US UNIVERSITIES On Thursday Sept 7, The British International School Phuket (BISP) was delighted to welcome admissions counsellors from Columbia, Duke, Georgetown, Northwestern, Princeton and Vanderbilt Universities. During the presentation the counsellors discussed their respective programs, application procedures and financial aid support. BISP’s huge University Fair will be held on Nov 16 and is open to everyone in the Phuket community.

From left: Andrew, Boon, Brenton, Scott, Michael and Harry.

From left: Daniel Feng, Pierre-Andre Pelletier and Penprapa Chooklin.

AMARI’S LA GRITTA RESTAURANT WINS AWARD FOR BEST RESTAURANT On Sept 6, Amari Phuket’s representatives, Pierre-Andre Pelletier – Regional VicePresident, Operations – Southern Thailand, Vietnam and the Maldives and Penprapa Chooklin – Associate Director, Marketing Communications (right), were presented with a Ctrip award from Daniel Feng – Thailand’s Chief Representative of Shanghai Ctrip Business Company. The award is the result of Chinese travellers voting Amari’s La Gritta Restaurant as one of the top restaurants on the Ctrip Gourmet List.

BANGKOK HOSPITAL PHUKET HOSTS THIRD INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON COLORECTAL DISEASE 2017

Delegates at the Third International Symposium on Colorectal Disease at Bangkok Hospital Phuket.

Bangkok Hospital Phuket has marked yet another academic milestone by hosting the Third International Symposium on Colorectal Disease for 2017. Held under the auspices of Professor Dr Art Hiranyakas, Director of the Bangkok-Phuket Colorectal Disease Institute, the Symposium involved strong academic collaboration with local and international institutions. The symposium was honoured by worldrenowned speakers on colorectal treatment and surgery techniques. thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Mac Rosen (left) gives a thumbs-up to the event.

From left: Dave, Noth and Pink.

ISLAND SCENE 19

From left: Jamie, Chad and Russell.

The Phuket Spartans Team.

PHUKET ATHLETES GO TO PATTAYA TO TAKE PART IN THE EPIC SPARTAN RACE Former pro-wakeboarder Mac Rosen teamed up with Coconut Tennis Academy and RPM Health Club who sponsored, supported and helped him race in the “Spartan Race” in Pattaya on Sept 9. Mac, who has one prosthetic lower leg, raced over the six-kilometre course with some pretty challenging obstacles to overcome. Spartan Race is the world’s best obstacle course race, with over 240 races in 25 countries around the world this year.

Guests enjoyed fabulous views of Patong.

Ceasars Palace General Manager Michael with Chef Anders and his business partner.

CAESARS PALACE RESTAURANT AND BAR IN PATONG HOSTS GRAND OPENING The new Caesars Palace restaurant in Patong hosted its Grand Opening party on Sept 8. The three-level venue offers incredible views of Patong and sunsets over the bay. Their fine-dining menu is mercifully short yet sophisticated with delicious steaks, seafood dishes and luscious desserts.

It was smiles all round at the finishing line.

Many members of Phuket’s Thai media community took part in the event.

HUNDREDS OF COMPETITORS TURN OUT FOR BANGWAD MINI MARATHON #1 Hundreds of Phuket runners turned out for the Bangwad Mini Marathon #1 on Sept 10 at Bangwad Dam in Kathu. The evetn was organised by Kathu Municipality and saw competitors enjoy the fabulous scenery as they traversed the course around the beautiful Bangwad Reservoir. @thephuketnews

20 EVENTS

FRI

15 SEP

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

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM with all-girl performers for one of a kind acoustic experience, From 8 until late. And all you can eat, Sunday Roast Dinner, 395 baht!!! All day and night from 1pm. Lots of food & fun, games & prices. Make your reservation: www.facebook.com/TwoChefsThailand/ www.twochefs.com Karon 076-286-479 COME FOR THE FOOD | STAY FOR THE FUN!!

Khao Kad, Panwa Cape. Proudly sponsored by The Phuket News and Khao Phuket.

Darren Sanders

- September - New Zealand Black Shell Mussel. 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 services, Live Jazz and tranquil surroundings, The Banyan Tree Brunch has something for everyone! Prices start from THB 2,800 net per person. Reservations, Banyan Tree Phuket, fb-phuket@banyantree.com, 076 372 400.

MON

Mussels night @ Shakers 1.2kg mussels served with French fries, your choice, your style: natural, marnière, Provençale, garlic & cream or Thai style. Reservations recommended 295 baht P.P., shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

SAT

16 SEP

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

SUN

17 SEP

18 SEP

All you can eat BBQ night 6pm – 11pm: Beef, Pork, Chicken, Burgers, Sausages, Prawns & Squid, Salad buffet, Choice of potatoes and sauces, bread, buns and garlic bread. Reservation recommended. 395 baht P.P. shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

WED

20 SEP

Beef, Pork & Lamb – Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas, Carrots, fried mushrooms, grilled tomatoes – Yorkshire pudding – roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes – gravy, mushroom sauce, mint sauce. Reservation recommended 350 baht P.P., shakersphuket@gmail.com 081 891 4381.

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

SURF & TURF NIGHT EVERY WEDNESDAY @ TWO CHEFS All you can eat! Grilled Australian rib-eye steak, teriyaki-marinated chicken and grilled tiger prawns with BBQ sauce, red wine sauce and Bearnaise sauce, Caesar salad and herb-sautéed potatoes.

Only 495 baht. Two Chefs Live Band on stage from 8 pm until late. www.twochefs.com Karon 076-286479, Patong 076-344-914, Kata Beach 076-333370, Kata Center 076-330-065 COME FOR THE FOOD | STAY FOR THE FUN!

3rd ACCOR HOTELS Heartbreak Hill Mini Marathon 2017

CHILL OUT SUNDAY!!

Two Chefs UNFORGETTABLE Backyard Sessions, Sunday 17th September Only in Two Chefs Karon

Chalong Bay Experience by Marriott Resort Phuket Merlin 1,950 THB net price per person. 3pm - 5pm, leaving at 2pm. Including transportation, distillery tour, cocktail class and Thai pantry dinner with Chalong Bay. Reservation at 076 335 300.

SAT

23 SEP

Every Saturday from Sep 23, Sausage sizzle & BBQ. FREE entry. Beach volleyball, football on grass area, face painting, finger painting, sand castle building, kids menu and more. 12noon - 7pm. For more details visit bluesiambeachclub.com or call 093 565 6542.

SUN

24 SEP

Run to Give 2017

Traditional Sunday Roast Angus O’Tool’s Karon Beach All you can eat Sunday Roast Buffet

21 SEP

Sports & Family Day

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 395 Baht! Enjoy a Large ALL YOU CAN EAT selection of your favourites! Featuring: Roast Aussie Beef, Pork Loin and Chicken. Roasted or Mashed Potatoes. Roasted Mixed Vegetables Flavoured with Thyme and Garlic. Yorkshire Pudding and Red Wine Gravy. Enjoy live music from 8pm-late performed by our famous Two Chefs Band! Come for the FOOD - Stay for the FUN! RESERVE Your Table Now Online at bit.ly/TwoChefsReservations Check out more details on our website at bit.ly/ TwoChefsEvents Reservations, Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach and Patong. Kata Beach 076-333-370; Kata Center 076-330-065; Karon 076-286-479; Patong 076-344-914.

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

THU Go Live Sunday Seafood Brunch

Veteran comic and TV chat show host Darren Sanders. Live stand-up comedy in Phuket at Underwood Art Factory. Advance: B600. On the door: B800. At comedyclubbangkok.com and Underwood Art Factory. Chris, Underwood Art Factory, Chris@comedyclubbangkok.com, 095 721 9563.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

To create an annual fundraising event which supports the improving education and well-being of underprivileged children within the community we live and work. Our priority is to raise funds for local schools in Phuket and nearby provinces and support to Accor Yim Kids Project, which is a part of ACCOR HOTEL’s Corporate Social Responsibility.

More info: tel. 076602544 (Thai) 076 602 541 (English) or Facebook: HeartBreakHillPhuket. Venue:

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

Marriott hotels in Andaman area will hold the 7th Run to Give charity event on September 24, 2017 at Bang Wad Dam Kathu. The event aims to raise funds for Pun Fun Pun Yim and HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Children’s Foundation. There will be 21km, 10km and 3km runs. Check their Facebook official page, Run to Give 2017, Phuket.

INSPIRED PHUKETIANS - Darren Scherbain Speech title - Standing in our Strength. Held monthly, and open to the public, this event gives an opportunity for well-lived people to share their life experiences. Inspired by the famous TED Talks, it’s a great way for people to really connect with authentic ideas that will benefit their well-being and happiness in general. All of the speakers are chosen because of their ability to share an idea that connects with and inspires people.

Limited to 55 seats only and priced at B350/pax/net including one drink and pass around canapé. Register now by email to sales@skyelakeclub.com. Skye Lake Club, Cherng Talay.

thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

EVENTS 21

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

MON

25 SEP

SUN

1 OCT

FRI

8 DEC

10th Anniversary Millennium Charity Run University Fair - Hosted by BISP British International School, Phuket is hosting the largest ever University Fair in Phuket with over 100 visiting Universities from 17 different countries this September, on Monday the 25th at 11.45am to 1.30pm.

BISP looks forward to welcoming students from other schools in Phuket and Phuketians in general who are interested in the event. Contact: BISP Media, British International School, Phuket, counsellor@bisphuket. ac.th or 076 335 555.

FRI

In aid of Phuket Panyanukul School – Engaging with Autism – The 10th Anniversary Millennium Resort Patong Phuket Charity Run 2017 is a run-for-charity organised by Millennium Resort Patong Phuket (MRPP) in conjunction with its 10th year celebrations. “Engaging with Autism” has been chosen as the theme for this marathon. More info at gotorace. com/event/millennium-charity-run/. Proudly sponsored by The Phuket News and Khao Phuket.

29 SEP

Phukethon 2017 Mark your calendar for the Phukethon 2017 weekend. Asia’s major international marathon festival for the first time ever in Phuket, the running paradise island and pearl of the Andaman. Registration is now open. Go to phukethon.com. Get running with the Super Early Bird rate! Limited spaces. Experience the 3-day festival December 08-10, 2017. See you at Phukethon 2017! Register NOW! Phukethon, Saphan Hin, Phuket, 080 214 6950 or 080 287 6515.

TUE

9 DEC Cooking Classes Every Day

2nd FALDO Series Thailand Championship - South Welcome all junior golfers aged 12 - 21 years old.

Entry fee THB 5,000 per junior golfer, includes - 2 rounds of green and caddie fees (Sep 30 and Oct 1), Unlimited practice range usage, Practice workshop with PGA Pro’s, Lunch voucher (Sep 30) and prize giving ceremony lunch (Oct 01). Hosted by Laguna Golf Phuket and supported by The Phuket News & Live 89.5. 076 324 350 - golf@lagunaphuket.com

SAT

30 SEP

Do an afternoon cooking class with Nan and discover why the Halfway Inn has been rated in the Top 10 Thai restaurants in Patong on TripAdvisor for the last 4 years running. Classes can be booked any time between 2pm till 6pm any day of the week. Google Halfway Inn, Patong’ for more details or call Nan to arrange a very fun and unique Thai culinary experience. Line:+66(0)852533278. Khun Nan, Halfway Inn Patong, halfwayinnpatong@hotmail. co.uk, 085-2533278.

XANA’s Sunday Fun Brunch

Thanyapura’s Colour Fun Run

Starting from October 1, spend quality time with friends and family enjoying a one of a kind Sunday brunch on a perfect day of sunshine by the sea at XANA Beach Club. Every Sunday from 12pm to 3:30pm. Prices from 1,850++THB. Reservations: XANA Beach Club, info@xanabeachclub.com or 076 358 500.

Thanyapura’s Colour Fun Run returns to Phuket! Gather your friends or gear up solo for the race through the jungle. We’ll see you “Colour Runners” all coloured up at the finish line! The race is open to all age groups and limited to 1,000 participants. Medals and complimentary meals are awarded to all finishers. For more details facebook.com/Thanyapura.

TUE

7 NOV

EVERY DAY

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

7 Nights 7 Themed Dinners at Rim Talay 1st Annual Surin Surf Contest 2017 Surin Surfer Club presents the SURF 1st annual contest 2017. Divisions: Open Short Board, Open Long Boards and Grom 14 and under. Surin Beach, Phuket. For more info and entry forms: facebook. com/surinsurferclub or surinsurferclub@gmail.com or call Sayan 094 593 2017.

@thephuketnews

Melbourne Cup 2017 in Phuket

Mana Smokehouse

Watch the race that stops a nation! The Good Shepherd and Phuket Has Been Good To Us are hosting the Melbourne Cup 2017 here on the island, from 9am till 2pm. Enjoy 5 hours free flow food and beverages, Fashions on the Field and win amazing prizes! For more information, please contact info@ phukethasbeengoodtous.org

Traditional American BBQ/smoked and slow roasted, along with TEX MEX tacos, Burritos, Quesadillas etc etc. Open 7 days a week, all day dining. Best ribs in town. At the front of BEST WESTERN Patong Beach.

Promotion everyday i.e 399B all you can eat A La Carte, Mondays come 4 pay 3, Live music. Heart of Patong. Free parking. Reservation, 076-360-220.

Make each night unique! Enjoy our themed dinners with the cool sea breeze. Phuket Night Market @690 THB++, Thai & International buffet @790 THB++, Seafood Night @980 THB++, Ribs, Wings & Rings @770 THB++, Butchers Night @market price, Surf & Turf @950 THB++, Thai Seafood Gala @980 THB++ The terms and conditions are subject to change without prior notice. Reservations, rimtalay@amari.com, 076 340106-14 #8027.

22 TIME OUT

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Crossword by Myles Mellor & Sally York 1. How many islands does Indonesia have?

2. Who wrote the book The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde?

3. Where was Elvis born?

4. What is the more common name for the patella?

5. American mathematician, anarchist and domestic terrorist Ted Kaczynski is also known as the what?

Answers below, centre

SUDOKU

Hard

Across 1. Brillo rival 4. “Million Dollar Baby” Oscar winner 9. Mill output 14. College major 15. “The Queen” star Mirren 16. Loose rock 17. Long SOS cry 20. Elderly 21. Computer list 22. Where contacts used to be found 26. Pistol, for example 31. “___ questions?”

32. It’s got “Double Stuff” 34. Pooch, to a tot 35. On the surface 37. Burst of wind 38. Long and fearful sound 42. Arrange 43. Neck wear 44. Always part of a home buy 47. Fitness centers 48. Blockbuster rental, perhaps 51. Iran’s capital 53. Villain, at times 55. Computer symbol 57. Departed 58. Long running

comics hit 65. Fish 66. A rechargeable battery 67. Fraternity letter 68. Pear-shaped tropical fruit 69. Send, in a way 70. Appetite Down 1. “The English Patient” setting 2. Where to find Eugene 3. Hard 4. “Ain’t ___ Sweet” 5. Itsy-bitsy 6. Bass, for one 7. Margosa 8. Catcher’s point of stress 9. False start?

10. Big club 11. Earlier suffix 12. Aquatic shocker 13. Good name, for short 18. Tokyo, once 19. “National Velvet” author Bagnold 23. Welfare, with “the” 24. Buffalo’s county 25. Levantine three-

master 27. Halloween vandal, perhaps 28. Malaria symptom 29. Hazard 30. Bumped into 33. Bread spreads 35. Category 36. Pound sounds 38. “Anything ___?”

39. A pop 40. Exuberance 41. Convenience 42. Darling 45. Brooks Robinson, e.g.

46. Brazo river city 48. Dejected 49. Showing lines on the skin 50. Attracted 52. Everybody’s opposite 54. Bigheadedness 56. Short cotton fiber 58. “Every child. One voice.” org.

59. Mythical monster 60. Durable wood 61. Be in arrears 62. Plant served like potato 63. Cereal grain 64. “___ to Billie Joe”

Solutions to last week’s puzzles:

Answers to this week’s Pop Quiz: 1) Not known, anywhere from 17,508 to 18,307 islands; 2) Robert Louis Stevenson; 3) Tupelo, Mississippi; 4) the kneecap; 5) the Unabomber.

GOT YOUR NUMBER

ISLAND VIEW

This week in history

2.65

Sept 15, 1440 Gilles de Rais, one of the earliest known serial killers, is taken into custody upon an accusation brought against him by Jean de Malestroit, Bishop of Nantes.

15

Sept 16, 1959 The first successful photocopier, the Xerox 914, is introduced in a demonstration on live television from New York City.

was the high school GPA achieved by Steve Jobs.

US dollars is how much Robert Frost was paid for his first published poem in 1894 — the equivalent of $422 today.

900

US dollars was sent by a group of women in Kampala, Uganda, who earn $1.20 a day breaking rocks into gravel, to help Hurricane Katrina victims in 2005.

Sept 17, 1908 The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lt Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes, killing Selfridge, who becomes the first airplane fatality.

10,000

Sept 18, 1988 End of pro-democracy uprisings in Myanmar after a bloody military coup by the State Law and Order Restoration Council. Thousands, mostly monks and civilians (primarily students), are killed by the Tatmadaw.

cases of muscle spasms and 1,700 sprains were treated by paramedics at a 2016 marathon in Qingyuan, China.

40 million

years ago, giant penguins roamed Antarctica. They would have been taller than the average man.

Source: Uberfacts

Sept 19, 1970 The first Glastonbury Festival is held, at a farm belonging to Michael Eavis.

Mother and child. Photo by Hugues Gervais Got an unusual or particularly beautiful picture of Phuket?

Email it to execeditor@classactmedia.co.th

Sept 20, 2001 In an address to a joint session of Congress and the American people, US President George W. Bush declares a “War on Terror”.

Sept 21, 1937 JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit is published.

Source: Wikipedia thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Jobs

@thephuketnews

CLASSIFIEDS 23 The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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Jobs

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Trades & Services ADVERTISING SERVICES

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

CLEANING SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

MARINE SERVICES

MOVING SERVICES

@thephuketnews

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Trades & Services

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

classifieds@thephuketnews.com

MARINE SERVICES

PERSONAL SERVICES

STORAGE Reserve Your Storage Space

Call 076 29 29 09

or visit mystorageasia.com

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

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

TRAVEL DEALS & TOUR

HOME DECORATION

ADVERTISE HERE

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Buy & Sell

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

BUSINESSES FOR SALE Real Estate company for sale

Established Phuket Real Estate company for sale with over 400 listings and 1000’s of contacts and a very sophisticated website. Thai company included. All ready to go. Call +66 (0) 833 908 549.

Restaurant for sale

Located in central Khao Lak. Full equipment and furniture. Price including 1 year payment with 3 years contract, can continue contract. 1.2 Million THB, Mali, Central Khao Lak. Jack.arms@hotmail.com, 087-465-6531 Jack, 081-483-3966 Klaus (German).

BOATS, YACHTS FOR SALE Long Tail Boat For Sale

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

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

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

New wiring throughout, power outlets, transformer and voltage meters. New upholstery throughout bar and entertainment area. Engines & generator fully reconditioned & serviced. All maintained to European standards. Ideal boat for quality day trip business. beachsando1@gmail.com 080 695 3933.

CAR FOR SALE 2014 Nissan Juke For Sale

2014 Nissan Juke, one owner, full history, leather interior, rear sensors, climate control. Perfect Phuket runabout, only 82000km. 530,000, soiana56030@gmail.com, 0950 924 729

HOME IMPROVEMENT TechWorX Projects

TechWorX Projects now offer a full Electrical Contractor service. This complements our existing offerings of AV, IT, Home Automation, Home Cinema and Security systems. If you are planning a new build or renovation please contact us for a free consultation. Daragh, 393/8 moo 1 Srisoonthorn road, Cherngtalay, Thalang, Phuket 83110, daragh@techworx.asia, 084 443 9863.

MEMBERSHIPS Life Time Family Membership

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

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

Tanita, 094 695 3536 / 063 992 3226.

Phuket Country Club Golf Membership

Phuket Country Club Family Golf Lifetime membership for Sale. 2 courses, 9 & 18 hole course, Seller will pay 60,000 baht transfer fee, the buyer pays 380,000 Thai baht. Contact Chris - 087-884-8972

Loch Palm Golf Membership

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

MOVING SERVICES Looking for a Moving Company?

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

PETS, BOARDING Dear Pet Seekers

I have two great dogs looking for a home.

According to a Vet, 7.5 years old. I’ll update their shots. Please see pictures, both are great dogs. I’m leaving the country. Contact Chris 087-884-8972.

PUBLIC NOTICES Relocation of Major Office

Phuket Plus Co.,Ltd, Corporate Registration Number 0105549008784 has relocated its head office, originally located at 580/123, Moo 2, Saimai Sub-district, Saimai District, Bangkok, Thailand. The company’s head office is now located at 45/11, Moo 4, Kamala Sub-district, Kathu District, Phuket, Thailand. This announcement is on behalf of Mr Manusanan of Phuket Plus Co., Ltd. 45/11 Moo 4 Kamala, Kathu, Phuket 83120. Contact: rattana65992@gmail.com, 076-525-848, 076-525-715.

PERSONAL SERVICES Rawai Custom Tailor store

Rawai Tailor – Ladies and Gents custom Tailor Store. Serving local and international clients for the past 10 years, get a free shirt for each suit ordered, fully air conditioned, clean environment, friendly staff, parking space, quality materials, good workmanship and money back guarantee. Located within walking distance from major hotels in Rawai, opposite Sea Shell Museum on Viset road in Rawai. Visit us for free consultation, no obligation to buy. www.RawaiTailor.com Thomas Ghimiray, 158/2, Moo 2, Viset Road, Rawai, Phuket. info@RawaiTailor.com, +6681-415-4883. @thephuketnews

REAL ESTATE SERVICES Property in Phuket!

Looking to buy property in Phuket?

International Property Advisory (IPA) can help! Give us a call today on 076 604 260/ 098 064 4408/ 080 886 9660 Email : info@ipa. black , utopia@ipa.black Website : www.ipaphuket.com.

Chatta Real Estate

REAL ESTATE & PROPERTY MANAGEMENT Chattha Real Estate and Professional Rental Management in Phuket. SELL-BUY-RENT-MANAGEMENT-MAINTENACE-GAURANTEED RENTAL. Inquire NOW! www.chattha.asia, 076-636-244, 090-179-6635.

Chanapa, Chattha Real Estate Co., Ltd., info@chattha.asia

PROPERTY FOR SALE Apartment for sale or rent

60 Sqm. 1 bedroom + 1 bathroom and kitchen/living room. Rooftop pool and restaurant. See website Absolute Bangla Suite for photos. Absolutely quiet. Terje Hoff, Absolute Bangla Suite, sfrkata37@gmail.com

Condo for sale or rent

Close to Jungceylon Shopping Center.

30 Sqm. Swimming pool and gym. Quiet and cool. Fully equipped. See website The Art Patong for pictures. B3mn. Terje Hoff, The Art Patong. sfrkata37@gmail.com. 081 894 8446.

Condo for sale

Nice Condo for sale in Rawai 27m2, 2nd Floor renovated. Fully furnished. Ready to move in.

300m from the beach. 750,000 THB, Duverne Jacques, Rawai, Eng-061-0686696, Thai-065-0714228.

'New' foreign freehold condo

Totally renovated in 2016, located in centre of Patong. Size of 65 sqm with a common fitness, sauna and large swimming pool. Perfect for living or investment! B5,600,000, guy@sunny-property.com, 0831 052 707.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

The Phuket News @thephuketnews

PROPERTY FOR SALE 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. 9,750,000, Mrs Simpson, thaivillaonline@gmail. com, 0844477248.

Land: 3 Rai close to Monument

Land for sale in Phuket. 3 Rai close to Monument Thepkrasattri Thalang.

Perfect for apartments. Contact Thai/English 093 619 2323.

12,000,000, supaku1013@hotmail.com, 093 619 2323.

House for Sale in Karon

House for sale the price is negotiable.

3 bedroom, 3 bathroom house in Karon with a salt water pool. Great opportunity to buy in a good location where houses rarely come up for sale.

Good as an investment or a place to call home. 16,000,000 Baht, ณริศรา โคทส์, g-a-coatesy@outlook.com, 063-541-5642.

Royal Place Condo For Sell

Royal Place Condo is located at the center of Phuket Town, opposite the Tesco Lotus, close to international school, 3 minutes to Big C and Phuket International Hospital, 4 Minutes to Central Festival. 45SQM, 5th floor, Corner Room, 2 balconies, 1 bedroom, 1 living room. Before price 2,800,000 Now Available for 2,250,000. Harry: h.jabary@ gmail.com, 084 249 0526.

1 BRM UNITS FOR SALE

Spacious, modern 90sqm luxury European style apartments in a Golf Resort for sale.

For further information please contact 062-019-1421. 4.9 Million THB, Bruno, Golf Resort, brunohaag@yahoo.com, 062-019-1421.

PROPERTY FOR SALE 4 bedroom house in Chalong

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

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

COMMUNITY

PROPERTY FOR RENT Kata Beach Apartment for rent

For rent long term (min 1 year). Kata beach nice-clean Apartment 68sqm.

One bedroom close to the indoor pool. B20.000 per month (exclusive electric). For visit tel/sms: 064 532 3637 or email villaonroof@gmail.com

Rawai Naiharn with spa pool

Unique Thai style home, open plan, close to beach and shops, AC, 3-bedroom 2-bathroom with spa pool, must see! Eng: 090 867 4849 Thai: 081 081 9875.

House for Sale/Rent

Locate Baan Saun Loch Palm Kathu. Fully furniture with swimming pool, 3 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms + maid room, 2 living rooms. Large entertainment area. Very convenient location. Close to BIS, Headstart School, shopping centre, Central, Tesco Lotus, 10 min to Patong beach. Easy access to the Airport. Long term lease 65,000/month including pool + garden service. Sale 13.5 millions baht (negotiable). Khun Bea, Loch Palm Kathu, I.thumwong@gmail.com 098 194 9351.

To rent: 1800 m2

To rent: 1800 m2 of concrete slab with 5m high walls + 500 m2 of parking. Heroines Monument area. Roofing may be arranged, long term and serious interest only. Open to ideas, Leo: 081 821 4064. thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

SPORT 29

Get set for Phukethon 2017

Phuket to hit world’s sporting stage with marathon festival MARATHON The Phuket News editor3@thephuketnews.com

P

huket province, in cooperation with Move Asia and Yoshimoto Entertainment (Thailand), is set to enhance its newlygained reputation as one of Asia’s emerging sporting cities by holding the inaugural “Phukethon 2017”, a marathon festival where some 10,000 runners from across the world are expected to challenge their limits over three historical routes.

The event, to be held from December 8-10 at Saphan Hin Park, will also incorporate a Running Expo, Food & Music Festival and fun activities.

Saphan Hin Park will be the start and finish point of Phukethon and there are three routes for runners to choose from: The Cape (full marathon 42.195km), The Bay (half marathon 21.1km) and The Old Town (mini marathon 10km).

In addition to the marathon events, as this is a running

From left: Virat Patee, Director of Sports Authority of Thailand, Phuket Office; Siwaporn Chuasawat, Phuket Vice Governor; Anchalee “A” Husadeevijit; Yossavadee “Yo” Hassadeevichit; Norraphat Plodthong, Phuket governor; Khemmanit “Pancake” Jamikorn; Lt Col Ruj Saeng-udom, Sports Authority of Thailand Deputy Governor; Kawee Tunsukatanun, Deputy Mayor Rawai Municipality; and Arun Sorot, Mayor of the Rawai Municipality. festival, there will be many more special activities for participants to enjoy such as a “Colour Fun Run” (5/2/1km)

to be staged by Thanyapura, and “Jelly Fish Beach Run” in which runners can enjoy running on Nai Harn Beach.

Surin Surfers Club to bring first ever surf contest to Surin Beach SURFING ON SATURDAY SEPTEMber 30 and Sunday October 1, the Surin Surfers Club will be bringing the first ever Surin Beach Surfing Contest to the lifeguard base located in the middle of Surin Beach.

The team behind organising this event are an united group of surfers from all over Phuket who have already worked together to bring many other surf contests to the island.

However, the team decided to stage a contest at Surin Beach as it offers consistent big waves which will not only mean that competitors will be greatly challenged, but spectators will be provided with great entertainment as competitors fly high and perform many tricky manoeuvres.

There are a growing number of young Thais now embracing the sport and surfing lifestyle which hasn’t gone unnoticed by the local community. In fact the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor), which is also backing the event, see the benefit and positive influence @thephuketnews

A growing number of young Thais are now embracing the sport and surfing lifestyle. Photo: Canon Camera Thailand surfing can have on people as it promotes athleticism and a healthy active lifestyle.

For those wishing to compete, the fee is B500 and includes event T-shirt, wrist band and lunch.

Registration is open now and can be done by contacting the Facebook page: Surin Surfers Club or emailing: surinsurferclub@gmail.com.

The first heat will get underway at 8am on September 30 and the competition will run all day on both days.

There will plenty of food and drink stalls and shade

along the beach so invite your family and friends for an epic day surfing, relaxing and supporting the talented surfers.

A huge thank you to the many local and big industry sponsors supporting this event including our valued major sponsors The Phuket News, Twinpalms Resort, Quicksilver, Coffee Lab. For more information on the event call: 0945932107.

The Phuket News is a proud media sponsor of the Surin Beach Surfing Contest.

There will also be more than 100 booths at the Running Expo to be held between December 8-10 and

led by REV Runners – the distributors of top running brands including Asics, Under Amour, Altera, On, HOKA,

Saucony, La Sportiva, Vibram and other apparel makers.

The Musical & Food Festival will also be held under the “Fisherman Village” concept, where runners can carb load amid energizing music prior to the race.

With the cooperation of Yoshimoto Entertainment (Thailand) Co Ltd, Phukethon 2017 will be broadcast via many famous Japanese TV channels such as Fuji TV, NHK and many other leading channels.

Registration can be made from now until November 10 via: http://event.runlah.com/ events/c/pkt17 or gotorace. com/event/phukethon-2017.

Apply in person at the Phukethon office (situated behind the Sports Authority of Thailand’s Phuket Office) call: 080-214-6950, 080-287-6515 or Khaimook Andaman Association: 086-689-8082. For more information, please visit website: phukethon.com and Facebook page: www.facebook.com/Phukethon.

Khao Phuket is a proud sponsor of Phukethon 2017.

30 SPORT

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Phuket FC seal 2nd place Dragon to face Chiang Rai City in Champions League play-off FOOTBALL Team

Matt Pond editor3@thephuketnews.com

P

huket FC sealed 2nd spot in the Euro Cake Thai League 4 last Saturday (Sept 9) and will now have to take on Chiang Rai City FC in a play-off tomorrow (Sept 16), a game which will see either team secure their place in the “Champions League”, where 12 teams will vie for four promotion places to Thai League 3.

Phuket beat Phatthalung FC 0-2 last Saturday at the Phatthalung Provincial Stadium with around 30 Phuket fans making the six-hour journey south to get behind the Andaman Dragon.

The win meant Phuket secured 2nd place, but only on goal difference. Pattani FC finished equal on points with the Dragon (48) after beating league champions 2-1 also

Phuket FC’s Apichat Denman (10) secured the win for the Andaman Dragon with a super strike in the 89th minute of play. Photo: Phuket FC / Facebook last Saturday, but Phuket’s goal difference outpaced their southern rivals: Phuket +20, Pattani +13.

It was a goal in each half that secured Phuket their win in Phatthalung. The first coming just three minutes into the game, the second with one minute remaining in normal time.

Phuket’s Peerapat Hanee (17) scored the opener. Cap-

tain Jhanawat Arewansuk (24) took a free kick from the right just inside Phatthalung’s half. The ball fell to a Phatthalung player whose attempted header to clear the ball away fell straight to the feet of Peerapat who smacked the ball into the bottom right of the goal from just inside Phatthalung’s penalty box.

But it was a wonder strike from Apichat Denman (10)

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Satun United

24

17

4

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26

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24

14

6

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48

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Pattani FC

24

15

3

6

13

48

4

Chumphon FC

24

11

5

8

5

38

5

Hat Yai FC

24

8

6

10

-5

30

6

Phatthalung FC

24

7

8

9

-5

29

7

Yala United

24

8

4

12

-3

28

8

Surat Thani City FC

24

4

3

17

-23

15

9

Sungaipadee FC

24

2

5

17

-28

11

that sealed the win for Phuket.

Apichart picked up the ball just outside of Phatthalung’s penalty area, he twisted and turned to out-do three Phatthalung defenders, then took a shot from just outside the box and curled the ball into the right of the goal.

If that goal wasn’t the league’s goal of the season, it was certainly Phuket’s goal of the season.

So Phuket now have to face Chiang Rai City FC in a final showdown to reach the Champions League stage of the league. This game will be played on neutral ground – at Nonthaburi Province Stadium on the outskirts of Bangkok – at 6pm tomorrow.

The winner of this game will gain a place in the Champions League and will have to face Sisaket United in

the Champions League first round.

The Champions League will be a two-round affair with 12 teams placed in two groups – upper region and lower region.

In the Champions League first round, each team will be paired against a single opponent in the same group who they will play home and away.

In each pairing, the teams that score the most goals – including the away-goal rule – in their respective home-away matches will then gain a place in the Champions League second round.

The second round again will be broken down to upper and lower regions, with three teams in each region.

The three teams in each region will then play roundrobin matches with the winner and runner-up of each region gaining promotion to Thai League 3.

Laguna Golf Phuket primed for 2nd Faldo Series GOLF

Last year’s winner of the Faldo Series Thailand Championship – South: Napat ‘Toy’ Paramacharoenroj.

NEW GROUND WILL BE broken this month when the Faldo Series Thailand Championship – South returns to Laguna Golf Phuket.

A staunch supporter of the Faldo Series Asia since its in-

ception in 2006, Thailand has been hosting two qualifiers and now the attention focuses on the biggest island of the Kingdom where a selection of promising young golfers will aim to earn their places in the 12th Faldo Series Asia Grand Final, to be hosted

by Sir Nick Faldo at Laguna

Lăng Cô in Danang, Vietnam, in March 2018.

Taking place Sept 29-Oct 1, the 2nd Faldo Series Thailand Championship – South welcomes juniors aged 12-21 from around the region to explore and develop their unique golfing skills and capabilities. All participants will be divided into five age groups, with hands-on training workshops available by on-site PGA professionals during the 36-hole tournament.

As part of the Banyan Tree Group, Laguna Golf shares a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility.

Working with like-minded partners and Sir Nick Faldo – Laguna Golf Ambassador, Laguna Golf Phuket develops aspiring youths, gives back to the game and elevates golf to another level through the tournaments, alongside its award-winning course, world-class facilities including PGA-branded golf academy and newly launched fitness studio, set within the fully integrated resort complex.

Paul Wilson, AVP/Group Golf Director, said, “Laguna Golf Phuket can look back on last year’s inaugural Faldo Series Thailand Championship – South with an immense sense of pride. The stand out story was of course Khun Toy (Napat Paramacharoenroj), winning our event and going

on to win the overall Faldo Series Asia at Laguna Golf Lăng Cô. Furthermore, we were able to help the other young players gain valuable golf and life experience which will benefit them in the future.

“This year we hope to again create opportunities for young golfers in Southern Thailand, and look forward to another year of wonderful performance by the juniors, including Khun Egg (Phaiboon Phumkliang), winner of U21-boy’s division in last year’s tournament; and BISP player Khun Mark (Vanchai Luangnikkul), winner of Singha Thailand Amateur Matchplay Championship this year – a major achievement aged just 15.”

Aimed at providing opportunity to a younger audience through grass-root golf initiatives to help identify and nurture the next generation of champions, the Faldo Series has helped more than 7,000 young talented golfers each year through a unique combination of tournament experience and expert advice, including support and advice from Sir Nick Faldo himself.

The Phuket News is proud media sponsor of this event.

To learn more information about the tournament or to sign up, contact 076 324 350 or golf@lagunaphuket.com thephuketnews

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

SPORT 31

PREMIER PREDICTIONS: ENTER NOW AT THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

Palace sack De Boer, replaced by Hodgson FOOTBALL

MAIN SPONSOR

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 September 2017 will receive a B3,000 voucher to spend at Angus O'Tool's Karon Beach.

EPL PREDICTIONS

AFP

MONTHLY STANDINGS

R

oy Hodgson has been appointed the new manager of Crystal Palace, the English Premier League club announced on Tuesday (Sept 12).

The 70-year-old former England manager has replaced Frank de Boer after the Dutchman was sacked following just four league games in charge of the south London club.

“Former England manager Roy Hodgson has been appointed as the new manager of Crystal Palace FC, on a two-year contract,” said a club statement.

For Hodgson, born in the south London suburb of Croydon, managing Palace means the Englishman is now in charge of his boyhood side after a managerial career spanning five decades and 15 clubs in eight countries, as well as spells in charge of four national teams.

“This is very much the club of my boyhood and I remember in my youth watching the club from the terraces at the Holmesdale Rd end which gave me such fond memories,” he told Palace’s website.

“It is very rewarding to find myself here now, in different times, as the Palace manager at a club that I have always loved and admired with a huge potential.”

Dutchman De Boer was sacked after last Sunday’s (Sept 10) 1-0 loss away to

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English Premier League 2017 - 2018 Team

Frank de Boer gestures as he walks off the pitch at half-time during Crystal palace’s match against Burnley last Sunday (Sept 10). Photo: Paul Ellis / AFP Burnley meant Palace were the first team in England’s top flight to lose their opening four games without scoring a goal since Preston North End 93 years ago.

But Hodgson, the oldest manager appointed to a Premier League position, insisted the Eagles could bounce back from their woeful start to the season and remain in the Premier League.

“I don’t honestly believe that there is necessarily a lot that needs to be done,” he told Palace TV. “You can always get off to a bad start, (but) what we’ve got to remember is our fate will be decided after 38 games, not four.

“We’ve got to work hard to get back on track but I know that my attitude is shared by the players and it is my job to let them know what I want from them.”

Ray Lewington, Hodgson’s

HASH HOUSE HARRIERS Run #1650: Saturday Sept 16 Run Start Time: 4PM Hares: No Hope, Singha Location: Thalang Showgrounds Directions: Head north from Heroines Monument towards Thalang. At the main traffic lights in Thalang turn left back towards Cherng Talay (NO HHH sign). After approximately 600 metres turn right on the sharp bend (HHH sign), follow the road towards the airport for approximately 900m and turn left into the Showgrounds (HHH sign). Follow the road around to the laager. HHH truck will be marked.

From Cherng Talay turn left at the police station traffic lights and head towards Thalang. Turn left at the sharp bend marked as the airport shortcut just before entering Thalang (HHH sign).

Follow the road as above. Dog washing facilities available.

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

@thephuketnews

MONTHLY SPONSOR

deputy with England, will also be his assistant at Selhurst Park having had two spells as the club’s caretaker manager.

Hodgson’s managerial honours include seven Swedish league titles, two Swedish Cup wins, one Swiss title and one Danish title, while he has also been in charge of four Premier League clubs – Blackburn Rovers, Fulham, Liverpool and West Bromwich Albion.

But his time in charge of England ended with a shock defeat by outsiders Iceland that saw the team knocked out of Euro 2016.

This is his first coaching post since that humiliating loss but, speaking to Sky Sports earlier on Tuesday, Hodgson said there were no scars from his time with England.

“I didn’t want to end it (my career) on a bad result but I think the 56 (England) games and the seven defeats is not so bad,” he explained.

“I think we changed the (England) team around and the young, exciting team you see today is the team I was putting together.

“We lost a knockout game and I was very sad about that.

I can’t put that right but I’m very pleased to be back at the highest level with a good football club.”

De Boer, 47, whose four games in charge are the fewest ever for a Premier League manager, said in a brief post on his Instagram account that he regretted the decision.

“Very disappointed about the decision but never the less I want to thank the players, staff and the fans for their support. Good luck for the future,” he said.

Hodgson was set to lead training on Wednesday (Sept 13) and will be in charge for Palace’s league match against Southampton at Selhurst Park tomorrow (Sept 16).

Live Sports TV Schedule Rugby League 16:30 18:30 Rugby Union 21:55 00:00 00:10 02:00 Aussie Rules 16:30 19:30 Saturday September 16 Rugby Union 11:30 13:30 Rugby League 16:30 18:30 Rugby Union 14:30 16:30 16:55 19:00 Rugby Union 22:10 00:00 Aussie Rules 14:30 17:30 Soccer 18:30 20:30 21:00 23:00 21:00 23:00 23:30 01:30 Motor Racing 19:45 21:30 Sunday September 17 Rugby League 11:00 13:00 Rugby Union 20:55 22:50 Soccer 19:30 21:30 22:00 00:00 Cricket 14:00 21:00 Motor Racing 18:00 18:45 18:45 21:30

EVENT

TEAMS / INFO

NRL - SF 1 Currie Cup Currie Cup AFL - SF 1

Broncos v. Panthers Griquas v. Sharks Pumas v. Western Province Geelong Cats v. Sydney Swans

Mitre 10 Cup NRL – SF 2 Rugby Championship Rugby Championship Currie Cup AFL - SF 2 EPL EPL EPL EPL Formula 1

Otago v. Tasman Eels v. Cowboys New Zealand v. South Africa Australia v. Argentina Golden Lions v. Blue Bulls GWS Giants v. West Coast Eagles Crystal Palace v. Southampton Liverpool v. Burnley Watford v. Man City Tottenham v. Swansea Qualifying, Singapore

NRL Aviva Premiership EPL EPL ODI1 - Chennai Formula 1 Formula 1

Sharks v. Cowboys Wasps v. Harlequins Chelsea v. Arsenal Man United v. Everton India v. Australia Qualifying, Singapore Singapore Grand Prix

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4

3

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1

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10

3

Chelsea

4

3

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1

8

5

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9

4

Watford

4

2

2

0

7

3

+4

8

5

Tottenham Hotspur

4

2

1

1

7

3

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7

6

Huddersfield Town

4

2

1

1

4

2

+2

7

7

Burnley

4

2

1

1

5

4

+1

7

8

Liverpool

4

2

1

1

8

8

0

7

9

West Bromwich

4

2

1

1

4

4

0

7

10

Newcastle United

4

2

0

2

4

3

+1

6

11

Arsenal

4

2

0

2

7

8

-1

6

12

Stoke City

4

1

2

1

4

4

0

5

13

Southampton

4

1

2

1

3

4

-1

5

14

Brighton and Hove

4

1

1

2

3

5

-2

4

15

Swansea City

4

1

1

2

2

5

-3

4

16

Everton

4

1

1

2

2

6

-4

4

17

Leicester City

4

1

0

3

6

8

-2

3

18

West Ham United

4

1

0

3

4

10

-6

3

19

Bournemouth

4

0

0

4

1

8

-7

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20

Crystal Palace

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4

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7

-7

0

Premier League fixtures (Week 4) Saturday September 16 Match

Time in Thailand

Bournemouth

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Southampton

Huddersfield

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9pm

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Newcastle

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Watford

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Man City

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West Brom

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Spurs

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*Times may be subject to change

SPORT START STOP Friday September 15

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2am 6:30pm

Sunday September 17 Match

Time in Thailand

Chelsea

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Arsenal

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Man Utd

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Everton

10pm

Sport ENGINE DIVORCE THEPHUKETNEWS.COM

editor3@classactmedia.co.th

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Island gears up for inuagural Phukethon festival > p29

McLaren to can Honda contract in Fernando Alonso gamble

For McLaren, its abandonment of Honda in favour of Renault represents a multi-million-dollar gamble, primarily at the behest of star driver Fernando Alonso. Photo: Andrej Isakovic / AFP

BOX OF NEUTRALS Michael Lamonato michael@boxofneutrals.com

M

cLaren is poised to announce its divorce from troubled Formula One engine supplier Honda at the Singapore Grand Prix after three difficult years partnered with the Japanese company.

The decision, foreshadowed

by McLaren executive director Zak Brown in June after months of internal tension, comes just three years into the 10-year supply agreement.

The split follows Toro Rosso’s agreement to partner with Honda for 2018, which frees its

current Renault engine supply to power McLaren next season.

Negotiations to ensure McLaren a new engine have been fraught, with a temporary breakdown in talks between Toro Rosso and Honda in August putting the deal in jeopardy.

When discussion resumed several weeks later, Renault presented a further obstacle by demanding Toro Rosso release Carlos Sainz in exchange for its agreement to end its engine contract with the Red Bullowned team early.

Renault is understood to have signed a contract with Carlos Sainz on the weekend after the Italian Grand Prix, with the Spaniard set to replace Jolyon Palmer at the French

team next season and perhaps as early as the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Pierre Gasly, 2016 GP2 champion, will replace Sainz in either scenario.

With the stars aligned, McLaren, Honda, Renault and Toro Rosso are expected to make their respective announcements ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday (Sept 17).

For the Red Bull, Toro Rosso’s owner, the deal represents Red Bull Racing with an opportunity to become a works team with Honda should the Japanese manufacturer come good in the low-pressure environment of its junior team.

Renault’s switch to supplying McLaren wins it a high-

profile customer and Carlos Sainz, who it has long sought to pry from Toro Rosso, as a bonus.

For McLaren, however, its abandonment of Honda in favour of Renault represents a multi-million-dollar gamble, primarily at the behest of star driver Fernando Alonso.

Honda’s involvement with McLaren, comprising sponsorship, free engines and driver salary contributions, can be calculated at in excess of US$100 million (B3.31 billion). Compounding that figure further is the team’s loss of sponsorship revenue after five years of competitive decline, three of which have been in partnership with Honda, and the corresponding loss of prize

money due to poor results.

With McLaren now set to foot the bill for Renault engines – on 2017 form the least competitive and most unreliable after Honda – and cover the expense of re-signing the out-of-contract Alonso, its competitive target for 2018 must be set no lower than podiums and race victories.

After all, with Alonso playing chief motivator in the team’s quest for an alternative power unit as he searches for a third world title in the twilight of his career, anything less could see the mercurial Spaniard walk from Woking for more competitive pastures anyway, leaving McLaren having upended its entire sporting framework at enormous cost for nothing.

Worse, with its chief rivals now fellow Renault customer Red Bull Racing and the Renault works team itself, its performances – and any slipups – will be judged harshly, further battering its reputation.

If McLaren has forged a path back to the front of the grid, it is a narrow one. The championship-winning future it ordained for itself and Alonso could yet be realised, but the stakes in attaining it have been multiplied exponentially.

This week could prove a defining one in the history of Formula One’s second most successful team.

Don’t forget to tune in to Live89.5 every Saturday from 9am for Box of Neutrals.

Phuket fishing tournament returns under new banner FISHING DEAR ANGLERS, WHEREVER in the world you may be, or be from. Having had to cancel last year’s P.I.S.T. fishing tournament due to unforeseen circumstances, the organisers are pleased to announce that the tournament is to return this year albeit under the new P.S.T. (Phuket Sportfishing Tournament) banner.

Yes, you read it correct, the

P.I.S.T. is no more, but they’re turning a new page and from Nov 22-25 they are to return as the P.S.T. and with a new simplified rules.

Some of those simplified rules are that all Billfish are to be released and a new high-scoring points structure has been put in place for all non-Billfish caught.

The rest of the tournament will remain more or less the same.

But the main message the organiser of the P.S.T. want to get across at this time is that “Early

Bird” registrations are now open and they will continue to be until October 31.

Early Bird registrations will allow a team of four anglers to enter the P.S.T. For a bargain price of B10,000. Once the Early Bird registration closes that price will increase to B13,000 per team.

In addition, junior anglers (aged under 15 years) can join the competition for free and there are unlimited places available to them.

However, junior anglers but must

be registered as part of a team on the night of registration.

So take your chance and take the “Early Bird” as this will also help the organisation know more about anglers interested in taking part in the event.

For more information please contact Walter Dreier at w3er@me.com The Phuket News is proud media sponsor of the Phuket Sportfishing Tournament.

The Phuket Sportfishing Tournament returns in 2017 after being cancelled last year. Photo: Phuket Sportsfishing Club/Facebook thephuketnews