September 17-11 pp01 - Thaiger

April 28 - May 4, 2012Volume 19 Issue 17 Daily news at www.phuketgazette.net 25 BahtANDAMAN Edition

Failed tsunami warning towers spark full test

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Patong Hill Road torn asunder in October last year. Photo: Ulf Mikaelsson

Saving Mt MayhemBy Atchaa Khamlo

THE Highways Department hopesto begin shoring up one landslide-prone section of the road overPatong Hill in June, but work onanother section of the same roadwill have to wait until at least nextyear.

Sathaporn Sornchana, deputydirector of the Highways Depart-ment office in Phuket, told theGazette on Tuesday that the planto reinforce a section of PhraBarami Road, on the Patong sideof the hill, is still awaiting finalapproval from the Highways De-partment in Bangkok.

“We are following this projectclosely. We hope to gain final ap-proval and begin work as soon aspossible in this fiscal year,” he said.

Once approved, his officewould have one month to find acontractor to undertake the work,which would be scheduled forcompletion within 150 days, MrSathaporn said.

Under such a time frame, thework would take place during therainiest months of the year inPhuket and be completed at oraround the beginning of the nexthigh season for tourism.

The project site would be astretch of road on Phra BaramiRoad eastbound, the breakdown

lane of which dramatically slidaway during heavy rains last Oc-tober. It was subsequently patchedwith a temporary cover, but fearsof another landslip in the area area major concern, even more soafter the recent seismic activity inthe area.

Funding for repairs will be cov-ered under the government’sbudget for emergency repairs forflood damage, although the real

cause of the slide was hillside de-velopment in the area along SoiKuan Yang that exposed the baseof the road to erosion. Rubberplantation and zinc-roofed homesin a temporary workers camp stilloccupy downslope areas.

The site is well known toPhuket commuters as it runsalong the stretch of road about100 meters west of the San ChaoPhor Suea (Tiger God Chinese

Shrine) at the top of the hill, wherelocal commuters typically soundtheir horn to pay respects to thelocal spirits that are believed bysome to dwell there.

The project would cover a 200-meter stretch of road, extending60 meters downslope. Workerswill bore steel galvanized“soilnails” and install PVC drain-pipes into the ground beneath theroad to prevent further erosion.When completed, the exterior sur-face would be covered with“shotcrete” (sprayed concrete),with exposed areas furtherdownslope at lower gradients cov-ered with anchored erosion controlmesh.

During construction, the 200meters of road will be closed totraffic for about five months, MrSathaporn said.

His office is also waiting for anadditional 5 million baht in fund-ing approval to conduct“permanent” repairs to a sectionof Phra Barami Road further tothe west where a large sinkholeopened up in the middle of a lanein August, 2009, he added.

On the Kathu side of PhraBarami Road, where a landslidetoppled power poles and caused a100-meter section of road near thePatong City sign to slump in Oc-

Continued on page 3

By Orawin Narabal

AFTER two weeks of waiting for officialrequests to inspect tsunami warning tow-ers that failed to sound the alarm on April11, Chutichart Boonchuwit will bypass thebureaucratic hurdle and go ahead and havethe towers tested.

Mr Chutichart, who is the Informationand Communication Technology (ICT)Ministry representative tasked with ensur-ing that the tsunami warning towers inPhuket are operational, told the Gazette onTuesday that he was notified on April 18

that six warning towers failed to sound thealarm.

“The Phuket office of Department ofDisaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket) informed me that tsunami warningtowers at Kata Noi, Chalong, Nai Harn,Kamala, Patong and Ao Yon all failed tosound the alarm, or failed to function prop-erly,” he said.

“On April 19, I inspected the towers atPatong and at Ao Yon. The tower at Patongworked well, but the tower at Ao Yon didnot sound the alarm very loudly. I think itis because the tower is on a hill and might

be too high for people to hear clearly,” headded.

As for the warning towers at the remain-ing locales – Kata Noi, Nai Harn, Chalongand Kamala – Mr Chutichart said he will nolonger wait for confirmation from the localDDPM officers for those areas that the tow-ers need to be tested.

“I will go ahead and make plans for themto be checked anyway. Actually, right nowI am not sure exactly how many towersare working or not, so I will have all 19tsunami warning towers in Phuket checkedto make sure they are working,” he said.

DOOMSDAYSPECIAL

Officials race to repair Patong Hill road as heavy rains arrive

SINCE the massive earthquakestruck off Sumatra on April 11,prompting a tsunami warning,and the 4.3 Richter quake onApril 16 and the ensuingaftershocks, Phuket has beenengulfed by rumors that theisland will sink into the seatoday, April 28, 2012.

Governor Tri has dismissedthe rumors, and ordered a policeinvestigation into who startedthem (see page 3), and the keypeople at the center of therumors have denounced theclaims as outright bogus (seepages 4-5).

Meanwhile, the rumors havescared Thai tourists from visitingPhuket (see page 9), and airlineshave voiced their confidence inPhuket Airport evacuationprocedures (see page 10).

While enjoying suchengrossing reading, the Gazettewishes one and all a happy, safeweekend.

DEADLY SERIOUS: Mr Chutichart has askedfor all 19 tsunami warning towers in Phuketbe tested. Photo: Sampawat Wannasangkam

‘Phuket will sink’D-Day arrives

for rumors

Governor Tri Augkaradacha haspromised to resign if thepremonition comes true.

PHUKET NEWS2 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

Seized: B21mn of illegal diesel

Soi Bangla go-go barsvoid of lewd behavior

New Phuket Bus Terminal opens

OFFICERS from the Anti-HumanTrafficking Division (AHTD) ofthe Royal Thai Police and InternalSecurity Operations Command(ISOC) on April 20 inspected go-go bars in Soi Sea Dragon, off SoiBangla in Patong, but failed touncover any evidence of lewdbehavior.

Twelve officers from theAHTD Region 5 and ISOC, com-manded by AHTD Region 5Deputy Inspector Pol Lt AnanNitirangsan, raided seven go-gobars, including Exotica and theCandy Club a-Go-Go at about10pm.

The raid was to target clubsshowing “nude shows” and lewdacts such as “ping-pong shows”and to arrest any club operatorsallowing such activity.

Before the raid commenced,officers asked media in attendanceto wait at a restaurant on PhraBaramee Road, so that the targetedvenues remained unaware of theimpending operation.

Once the raids started it wasabout half an hour before officersallowed the media onto the sceneat Soi Sea Dragon.

At the scene police were ob-served questioning employeesoutside the bars. Inside, officersfound only dancing girls on stage,dressed respectably in bikinis.

It was evident to the media thatthe shows were all completely hid-den from outside view within thevarious establishments.

– Atchaa Khamlo

CUSTOMS officials seized47,000 liters of smuggled dieselhidden on board two Taiwaneseboats off the east coast of Phuketlast Sunday.

Officials estimated the totalvalue of the smuggled diesel seizedat 21 million baht.

The two boats, Ching ChunFa168 and Chi Tsai 16, were seizedone to two nautical miles northof Taphao Yai Island, on April 22,said Rakop Srisupa-at, director ofthe Royal Thai Customs Investi-gations and Suppression Bureau,who was in Phuket to announcethe haul.

He explained that the raid onSunday followed his office re-ceiving a tip-off that fishingboats near Phuket were sellingsmuggled diesel.

“There are about 100 legallyregistered tuna long-line fishingboats operating in Thai territorial

Rakop Srisupa-at symbolicallypours some of the smuggleddiesel. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

waters off the Andaman coast.“We learned that several boats

in the area had been modified tosmuggle diesel. It was very diffi-cult to spot these two boats in

particular, since they look likeregular fishing boats with all thenecessary fishing equipment,” hesaid.

Arrested in the raid were theChing ChunFa 168 captain WangYap Yu and his three Indonesiancrew members, as well as the ChiTsai 16 captain Huang Chiang-Hsieh and his three Taiwanesecrew and four Indonesian crew-men.

“Phuket Customs officials havetaken them into custody and theywill be prosecuted,” Mr Rakopsaid.

The raid was part of an ongo-ing anti-smuggling crackdownordered by Thai Customs Direc-tor General Somchai Pulsawas,Mr Rakop explained.

However, the number of smug-glers selling illegally importeddiesel is on the decline, he added.

– Kritsada Mueanhawong

The raid found nothing illegal in Phuket go-go bars. Photo: Atchaa Khamlo

THE Phuket Bus Terminal 2 finallywent into operation on April 21,more than 28 months aftercompletion of the structure.

“I think the first day has gonewell so far,” said Phuket LandTransport Office (PLTO) chiefTeerayut Prasertpol.

Mr Teerayut estimated thatabout 70 per cent of the public isalready aware that almost all in-ter-provincial buses will operateout of the new station, which islocated on Thepkrasattri Roadsouthbound in Rassada.

PLTO officers were posted atthe station to monitor operationsand give information for first-timeusers.

Passengers unaware of thechange who arrived at the old

Phuket Bus Terminal 1 on PhangNga Road in Phuket Town wereinstructed to take the PhuketProvincial Administration Organi-zation “Pink Bus” or pho thong,which connects the two stationsat a fare of 10 baht.

“The first outbound bus forTrang left at 5am. The first in-bound coach arrived fromBangkok early this morning,” MrTeerayut said.

He added that measures werein place to get arriving passengersto their final destinations by a va-riety of public transport options,all at fixed prices.

“All prices are clearly displayedon large board, so passengers willknow they are not being ripped offand overcharged,” he said.

NewsEnd of the world? Notaccording to theexperts. Page 4-5

BusinessThai customs puttingthe brakes on grayimports. Page 11

ExploreDiving adventures.Swimming with mantasoff Koh Bon. Page 16

SportBuakaw’s last fight?The champ takes on hispromoter. Page 45

PropertyDisaster Insurance.Averting the drama aftera crisis. 7

TechnologyLive Wire: Is the phonecompany loading thebill? Page 12

PHUKET NEWSApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 3

Patong Hill Road makeover

Home alone: Boy, 12, escapes as blaze engulfs slumA 12-year-old boy escaped from his house onTuesday morning, as fire broke out in the poorSoi Kingkaew community in Rassada, destroy-ing two homes.

Suriya Inkaew was home alone while hismother, Gaysorn Yungyeun, was out collect-ing recyclables from trash to make a living.

“I woke up to a strange sound, and when Iopened my eyes I saw the house was on fire,so I ran out as fast as I could and shouted forhelp,” said Suriya.

Soon after he ran out of the house, flamesconsumed the building and spread to the housenext door.

Officers at Rassada Municipality, notifiedof the fire at 7:55am, quickly responded,

arriving in numbers with firemen, who took20 minutes to extinguish the blaze.

However, ashes and rubble were all that re-mained of Suriya and Ms Gaysorn’s home.

Plueng Srisattabun, the 77-year-old ownerof the house next door that was also destroyedby the fire, said he was not home when thefire broke out.

“I went to temple early this morning, sothere was no one at my home when the firestarted,” he said.

Mr Plueng said he suspected an electricalshort started the fire.

However, police and fire investigators haveyet to determine what started the blaze.


By Atchaa Khamlo

A SECURITY guard at PhuketHealthy Nutriment and snakeshow in Chalong remains uncon-scious in hospital after beingknocked out by attackers and hisworkplace being set afire earlyMonday morning.

Anuchit Chaithongngarm, 25,was in a coma at Vachira HospitalPhuket after being hit on the backof the head with a heavy object,said Kongpol Phanuek, chief en-gineer at Phuket Healthy Nutrimenton Tuesday.

“The doctor said he has a bloodclot in the brain,” explained MrKongpol.

Mr Anuchit was knocked un-conscious at about 1:30am, butwoke up at about 4am and man-aged to use a pair of scissors tocut the tape that bound his handsand legs. He then called the po-lice, Mr Kongpol said.

Due to the dark windows, itwasn’t known that the PhuketHealthy Nutriment shop on theusually quiet Soi Ta-iad in Chalongwas set fire to until staff arrivedto open the building at 8:30am.

“Even though our property wasn’tseriously damaged, the shop willhave to close for a week, whichwill cost us about 10 million baht,”Mr Kongpol said.

The costs include expected in-come, damages, salaries and soon, explained Mr Kongpol.

The incident was investigatedon Monday afternoon by Chalong

The arsonist poured fuel down the hallway and set the shop aflame. Photos: Phuket Healthy Nutriment CCTV

Police, Tourist Police and offic-ers from Region 8 policeheadquarters in Surat Thani.

“They suspect that the arson wasmotivated by business conflicts,”Mr Kongpol said.

However, the company has beenin operation for 20 years and didnot have any problems with othercompanies, Mr Kongpol explained

Since the attack, four moreCCTV cameras were added to theeight already in use. Mr Kongpolalso said that there will now betwo guards on duty.

Though the security guard com-pany Mr Anuchit works for will payfor his treatment, Phuket HealthyNutriment gave some money to hisfamily, Kongpol added.

Ashes and rubble were all that remained of thehomes after the blaze. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

Snake show arson attackleaves guard comotose

From page 1

October last year, there seems tobe little hope that landslide preven-tion work will begin in fiscal 2012.

Mr Sathaporn said responsibil-ity for this section of the road wasconsigned to his office from KathuMunicipality only on April 2.

No project plan for landslideprevention work has yet beendrawn up by either Kathu Munici-pality or the Highways Departmentand the period to apply for fund-ing under the emergency floodrepair budget for fiscal 2012 hasalready closed.

Looking to the future, manyofficials see the long-term solu-tion as tunneling though Patong tocreate a new four-lane road. Anin-depth study was conducted byPatong Municipality and Cabinet

recently assigned the project toTransport Ministry’s ExpresswayAuthority of Thailand (EXAT).

Several groups of foreign in-vestors have shown interest inthe project, which EXAT Gover-nor Ayyanat said would takeabout six years and six billion bahtto complete.

IN THE face of widespread ru-mors of Phuket becoming the“Atlantis of the East”, Phuket Gov-ernor Tri Augkaradacha has jok-ingly declared that he would behappy to resign his position if theisland sinks into the Andaman Sea.

“Rumors are rumors,” Gov Trisaid. “I don’t think Phuket willsink. In fact, I’ll stake my positionas a guarantee. If it happens, I willbe happy to resign as governor.”

On a more serious note, GovTri’s office has filed a police com-plaint against any individuals foundto have created doomsday warn-ing leaflets or posting internetclaims that Phuket will be de-stroyed by a natural disaster onApril 28.

The complaint was filed atPhuket City Police Station by WirojSuwanwong, chief of the Depart-ment of Disaster Prevention andMitigation office in Phuket Town.

Any person convicted ofspreading rumors or dis-information that cause people topanic is in violation of Article 384of the Criminal Code and can faceup to one month in prison, a 1,000baht fine, or both.

Gov Tri said he was concernedthat the doomsday prediction haddamaged Phuket’s reputation.

“These rumors have causedpanic among the people who livein Phuket and it is bad for Phuket’simage,” he added.


‘Atlantis of theEast’? Not on

Gov Tri’s watch

Wiroj Suwanwong filed thecomplaint on the behalf of Gov Triat Phuket City Police Station.


Rumors

Srisoonthorn Mayor WorawutSongyot urged people to heed onlyinformation that is releasedthrough official channels.

A MAN in Khon Kaen was kicked to death by hisbest friend after making an indecent proposal re-garding his wife.

On the evening of March 27, Suraphon Rattalat,53, went to the home of 39-year-old Sathit Phonseein Nongko subdistrict. The pair, good friends forseven years, had planned a drinking session.

After becoming quite drunk, Mr Suraphon leanedover and asked Mr Sathit if he could have sex withhis 51-year-old wife, Chamnong Siribat, who wasalso present.

A WOMAN in Lampang provincehit the headlines after it emergedshe was breastfeeding her petpoodle.

Amphawan Bunyarak, 42, toldreporters she had breastfed hertwo-year-old dog “Makrood”,whose name means “Kaffir Lime”,every day since he was born.

The animal-crazy woman’shouse in Sala subdistrict is full ofcreatures, including chickens,geese, cats, dogs and birds.

She said she loved each and

Indecent proposal turns deadly

Pampered pup feedson woman’s breasts

every pet as if it were her ownchild. When one of her animalsdies, she gives it a full Buddhistfuneral ceremony.

But Makrood is her favorite.Every night before he sleeps, the

dog starts barking and howling.If Ms Amphwan refuses to

breastfeed him, the dog continuesto carry on – and eventually shegives in.

Ms Amphawan said that sheknows her breasts makeMakrood happy because he wagshis tail while suckling on them.The pampered poodle then fallsasleep in her lap.

A demonstration of the feedingwas shown on several Thai tele-vision channels.

Less than impressed with the proposal, Mr Sathitflew into a rage and started punching and kicking hisold friend, then stomped on his head.

When the police arrived, they found Mr Sathitwaiting to hand himself in beside Mr Suraphon’s body.

Mrs Chamnong was standing nearby, sobbing.Rescue workers rushed Mr Suraphon to Kranuan

Hospital. His injuries were so severe that he wastransferred to the better equipped Khon Kaen Hospi-tal, where he later died.

Mr Sathit confessed to an initial charge of assault.

RUMORS that the Pearl of the Andaman will bedestroyed in a cataclysmic natural disaster on April28 have spread like wildfire, and local officials haveresponded in classic Phuket style: by planning anumber of events and parties on that date.

The Gazette’s Chutharat Plerin and KritsadaMueanhawong report on how it all got this crazy.

FOLLOWING widespread reportsof Phuket’s imminent demise, themother of Thailand’s most famoustransgender celebrity held a pressconference last Wednesday (April18) to deny that she was possessedby spirits so that she can warnpeople that Phuket was destinedto sink into the sea on April 28.

Such rumorshave been mostwidespread inSrisoonthornsubdistrict, be-neath which a4.3 Richtere a r t h q u a k estruck on theafternoon ofApril 16. Theinitial jolt wasfollowed by aseries of low-i n t e n s i t ytremors thatstirred a senseof apprehen-sion amongmany residents of the area.

The source of the rumorappears to have been a posting onFacebook under the name “ChanyJane”, whose true identityremains unknown.

The information was quick tojump from the internet to a con-siderably less high-tech media:printed leaflets that were widelydistributed in coffee shops andother local businesses in theSrisoonthorn area, which geolo-gists have pinpointed as the centerof the tremors.

JANE’S WORLD

ACCORDING to initial postingsby Chany Jane, the spirits ofPhuket’s two famous HeroinesThao Thepkrasattri (Jan) and ThaoSrisoonthorn (Mook) channeledspirit mediums to implore the pub-lic to vacate Phuket before April28, at which time the island wouldbe destroyed by some form ofnatural disaster.

According to Ms Jane’sFacebook posting, Mrs SuwaphatPetcharat was one of two middle-aged women who began “actingstrangely” at a well-known privatehospital in Phuket on April 16, the

same day that the first and largestof the recent quakes to hit Phuketstruck.

Mrs Suwaphat was purportedlypossessed by the spirit of eitherMook or Jan, while the other un-named woman was possessed bythe spirit of the other. The crypticwarnings, which did not specify

which womenwas possessedby which spirit,referred to MrsSuwaphat onlyas “the motherof Nong Poy”.

Nong Poy isT r e e c h a d aPetcharat, afamous trans-gender actressand model whois widely cred-ited with havingchanged stereo-types aboutt r a n s g e n d e rpeople in Thai-

land. Born male, the native ofPhang Nga underwent gender re-assignment at age 17, then wenton two years later to win the MissInternational Queen pageant, thetransgender equivalent of MissUniverse, says Wikipedia.

Now 25 years old, Nong Poyhas since gone on to a success-ful show business career and isvirtually a household name inThailand.

Her mother, Mrs Suwaphat,who appeared at the press con-ference with her husbandAkachat Promsri, rejected out-right the information posted onFacebook by Chany Jane.

She was never possessed byspirits and wasn’t even at the hos-pital referenced on the day of heralleged possession, she told re-porters.

CREATIVE WRITING

“THIS is total falsehood. Pleasedo not be fooled by these ru-mors. On April 16, I was homein the morning, then I met a cli-ent at midday and went backhome right after that,” MrsSuwaphat explained to reporterson April 18.

As this edition goes to print, officials across the island were scramblingto prepare special activities on April 28, including one at PhuketInternational Airport to welcome the first planeload of passengersfrom Bangkok on that day.

Another large event is also being planned in Baan Bangmakham,Srisoonthorn Village 2, near the center of the seismic activity.

Not to be outdone, many bars and nightlife venues were gearing upfor a big weekend of partying. For the most up-to-date information,visit PhuketGazette.net

PHUKET NEWSApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 5

Suwaphat Petcharat (left) and her husband Akachat Promsri, parents of famed transgender celebrity Treechada‘Nong Poy’ Petcharat, set the record straight at the Phuket Reporters Club on Wednesday, April 18.

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“In the afternoon, my husbandand I joined some other friendsand went out to have somtam[spicy papaya salad] together. Itwas one of my friend’s birthday,”she said.

“After I heard about the internetrumor, I called a friend of minewho works at that hospital. No-body there had a clue about whathad been posted,” said MrsSuwaphat.

“We received many calls frompeople asking about it. Even ourrelatives were affected by the ru-mor because people kept callingthem to ask about it.

“I did not post anything online[that day] to stop the spread ofthe rumor because I was busy,”she explained.

“I never imagined it wouldspread so quickly and cause somany people to panic,” she said.

However, Mr Akachat said thefamily had no intention of tryingto take legal action against theposter. “We have not consideredfiling a criminal complaint or any-thing like that. We do not knowthe poster. She is just a girl. Shehad no way of knowing whatwould ensue after posting thosecomments,” he said.

Chany Jane is rumored to be astudent at a local university witha talent for “creative” writing.

Mrs Suwaphat and her husbandAkachat, Nong Poy’s father, saidthey feared the public might thinkthey were trying to draw attentionto themselves.

“We never tell anyone we arePoy’s parents. We have neversought fame in any way,” MrAkachat said.

“I would like to tell the posterthat she does not have to apolo-gize us. What she should do is toapologize to the people of Phuket

people for what she has done,”Mrs Suwaphat added.

OFFICIAL RESPONSE

AFTER officers of SrisoonthornMunicipality heard about the ru-mor, they checked coffee housesand other small businesses in theirjurisdiction and found the flyersdisseminating the doomsdayclaims.

The officials paid a visit to theBang Mad Coffee Shop in Village8, where they found many localvillagers engaged in animated dis-cussions about the leaflets. Somewere in a state of panic, othersdismissed the rumors out of hand– some people did not know whatto make of them.

One of the flyers appears tohave been based on Chany Jane’s

post. The other contained similarwarnings, allegedly sourced tothe bodhisattava Mae Guanyin,some time last year. The flyersdid not specify how Guanyin,venerated for her compassion,relayed her warning to the worldof the unenlightened.

“I have heard that there aremany warning leaflets at grocerystores and coffee shops, so I de-cided to go visit local residentswith my team. I found that manypeople were panicked by thesewarnings,” said SrisoonthornMayor Worawut Songyot.

The mention of the highly-revered Phuket heroines and thefact that the subterranean rum-blings had persisted were bothfactors ratcheting up tensionamong the locals, he said.

He tried to explain the situation

to local residents in a matter-of-fact way and encouraged them tofollow only information releasedthrough official channels. Many

people who heard the rumorswere not taken in by them, headded.

WORLD GONE MAD

SOMSAK Kapapana, owner of theBang Mad Coffee Shop and alsoassistant village headman ofSrisoonthorn Village 8, told theGazette, “A person came in andgave me the two leaflets, so I keptthem at my shop. Many peoplecame to read them. Some wereterrified by the information; oth-ers refused to believe it.

“Many elderly women panickedafter reading it, especially the ref-erences to Mook and Jan, the twoheroines worshiped by many vil-lagers,” he said, adding that hedidn’t believe the rumors.

Phuket Vice Governor Cham-roen Tipayapongtada also advisedpeople to check the source of anynews and to trust information re-leased by the government.

“No matter what happen, wecan guarantee that we will be thereto inform you if something goeswrong,” he said.


Adding Russian to the mix

More tremors worry locals

Mayor Worawut (right) inspectingdamage to a villager’s house.

“So, just what are we meant to be doing?” was a question on manypeople’s mind following the tsunami warning alert. Photo Atchaa Khamlo

By Orawin Narabal

PHUKET officials will ask theNational Disaster Warning Center(NDWC) to add Russian languageto the spoken messages played byits 19 warning towers alongPhuket’s coast.

Preedee Aengseng, Communi-cations Officer at the Phuketoffice of Department of DisasterPrevention and Mitigation(DDPM-Phuket), told the Gazettethat the request will be made onMay 16, when NDWC officerscome to Phuket to conduct atraining session for local DDPMofficers and members of otheremergency-response organiza-tions.

“This would enable more tour-ists to understand the tsunamiwarning message, aiding anyevacuation required and possiblysaving lives in the event of a tsu-nami,” Mr Preedee told theGazette.

The request is the result of theconfusion that reigned at Phuketbeaches during the tsunami scareon April 11, when the warningtowers along the Andaman sea-board sounded the alarm toevacuate.

In the aftermath of that evacu-ation, the Gazette received severalreports of large groups of Rus-sian tourists bewildered as manydid not speak English, Thai or anyof the three other languages thewarning messages were played in.

Tourism Authority of Thailand(TAT) Phuket office directorBangornrat Shinaprayoon voicedher support for adding Russian tothe recorded message.

“Adding Russian would begood because it would help Rus-sian tourists to understand whatis going on when the alarm

sounds,” she told the Gazette.Ms Bangornrat pointed out that

Russia was currently Phuket’ssecond-largest source for touristsvisiting Phuket, second only toChina.

“Last year we had 340,000tourists from China visit Phuket,and 270,000 tourists from Russia,”she said.

However the decision whetherto add Russian rested with theNDWC, she added.

However, NDWC Deputy Di-rector Thavorn Charoendee toldthe Gazette that he prefers not toadd any more language segmentsto the existing message, whichalready takes 3 minutes and 26seconds per cycle.

“It will be too long. I want thewarning message in Thai and En-glish only. If you miss hearing themessage in your language the first

time, you have to wait minutesuntil the message is replayed inyour language again,” he said.

“If this happens, people willwaste time standing around andlistening, trying to understandwhat the message is saying, in-stead of evacuating the area,” hetold the Gazette.

“In fact, I am thinking aboutmaking the siren sound [that startsthe warning] longer. Whatever lan-guage you speak, when you hearsirens you know something iswrong and that an evacuationmight be necessary, especially ifyou see other people leaving,” MrThavorn said.

The five languages chosenwhen the message was preparedin 2005 reflected the the mostcommon languages spoken bytourists visiting Phuket at the time,he said.

“At that time most Russiansvisiting Thailand chose to visitPattaya, not Phuket. That’s whyRussian is not one of the lan-guages,” he explained.

Phuket Tourist Association(PTA) President Somboon Jirayustold the Gazette that the PTA re-ceived many complaints thattourists were confused by thewarning message.

“What we need is for the sirento be louder and clearer. This ismuch more important than whichlanguages are used,” he said.

“Also, there are two recordedmessages: one announces theevacuation order and the otherrescinds it,” he said.

Currently, both messages arepreceded by similar siren sounds.

“The sirens [used in the warn-ing and the cancellation] need tobe different to avoid any confu-sion. When tourists hear the firstalarm, they move away. But whenthe second message is played toannounce that the evacuation or-der has been called off, they thinkit is the first message being playedagain,” he added.

The cancellation message lasts2 minutes 44 seconds. As with thewarning alarm, the cancellationmessage starts with a siren soundfollowed by spoken messages inThai, English, German, Chineseand Japanese, all repeated once,and ending with a repeat of thesiren.

The spoken message in Englishreads, “Attention, please! Attentionplease! The situation is back tonormal. Please continue to rescuethe victims”.

Although the duration and tonesused in the cancellation siren aredifferent from those used in thetsunami warning, overall soundsare very similar.

Russian language warning sought for Phuket tsunami sirens

LERTSIN Raksaskulwong, direc-tor of the Environmental Geologyand Geohazard Bureau under theDepartment of Mineral Resources,on April 23 called for the NationalDisaster Warning Center (NDWC)to revise its procedure for issuingtsunami warnings.

At a meeting to review Phuket’stsunami-response procedures, MrLertsin said, “The events of April11 were chaos. They asked peopleto evacuate tsunami-risk areas im-mediately after announcing theearthquake.

“With any earthquake morethan 7.5 Richter, they need toclearly announce that the earth-quake has happened before goingto the next step of announcing atsunami watch alert and [if nec-essary] an evacuation order,” headded.

Mr Lertsin said that he wasasked previously about the tsu-nami warning buoys. “Thetsunami warning buoys are stillworking, but people failed to acton them,” he said.

The geology expert dismissedrumors that an impending earth-quake, predicted to strike on April28, will “sink” Phuket.

“The base of the island is solidgranite from hardened lava. It’struly strong. So it is impossible foran earthquake to sink Phuket,” MrLertsin said.

– Atchaa Khamlo

Mr Lertsin: April 11 was total chaos.

Revised tsunamiwarning protocolneeded: Expert

THE fourth and largest tremor onApril 20 hit Phuket at 3:10pm; a3.3 magnitude tremor clearly feltacross the island with a largesonic boom clearly heard at theoffices of the Phuket Gazette,about eight kilometers southeastof the epicenter, near the munici-pal market in Thalang.

Three other tremors were re-corded by the Thai MeteorologicalDepartment (TMD) earthquakemonitoring station that day, how-ever they were all less powerful.

Srisoonthorn Municipality sentout a “confidence building” teamearly that morning to calm localvillagers following the 3.2 Rich-ter event at 2.43am.

Srisoonthorn Mayor WorawutSongyot said while the quakesscared many people, others werejust carrying on with normal life.

“The aftershock scared manypeople, especially the elderly.However, the earthquake monitor-ing center will watch the situationclosely. There is nothing to worry

about,” said Mayor Worawut.“Regardless, I will visit villagers

with my team to cheer them upand see if any damage occurred,”he added.

Thalang District ChiefNaruenart Supattaraprateep, theprevious day, called communityleaders and village headmen fromall subdistricts to a meeting atThalang District Office to discusshow best help to villagers affectedby the 4.3 Richter scale earth-quake on April 16, which had its

epicenter at Baan Lipon andBangkham Moo 2 Srisoonthorn,Thalang.

Chief Naruenart said the earth-quake on April 16 was not just feltin all six Thalang subdistricts. Itscared many people, but onlycaused minor damage, he said.

Thalang District Office is ac-cepting applications fromresidents whose houses weredamaged and want assistancefrom Phuket Province to helpcover the cost of repairs.

“So far residents from 104homes in the Srisoonthorn areaand 10 in Pa Khlok have registered.We are now inspecting other ar-eas of Thalang, including our ownoffice, which has developed quitea few cracks,” he said.

Chief Naruenart requestedcommunity leaders to inspectdamages in their areas ofresponsibility and submit reportsback to him for submission to thePhuket Governor.


NATIONAL NEWSApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 7

‘House of Porn’ shocks nation

MP Nat apologized after being caught viewing porn on his phone during a parliamentary debate. Photo: The Nation

Meat dogs found alive

Democrat in the red zoneTHE Democrat Party has woncontrol of a parliamentary seat inthe Central province of PathumThani for the first time in years ina by-election that saw votersdesert the ruling Pheu Thai Party.

Democrat candidate KiatisakSongsaeng defeated Pheu Thai’sSomchai Rangsiwattanasak inPathum Thani Constituency 5,Lam Luka District, on April 22.

Pheu Thai spokesmanPrompong Nopparit said his partywas beaten because only 30 percent of eligible voters voted andpublic sentiment had turnedagainst the government for its

handling of last year’s floods.The party also lost control of

the local Provincial AdministrationOrganization (OrBorJor) to an in-dependent candidate.

In a Facebook post, KornChatikavanij, the Democrat formertreasury minister, thanked votersfor supporting his party and saidthe results of the by-electionshould teach a valuable lesson tothe Pheu Thai Party.

“This should serve as a signalfor the Pheu Thai Party not to beobsessed with solving problemsfor Thaksin and ignore addressingthe plight of the people,” he said.

“On the contrary, Dr Kiatisakhas been very diligent in helpingpeople affected by floods eventhough he lost in the general elec-tion. If the Democrats want tobeat Pheu Thai, they have to sac-rifice as Kiatisak did.

“This victory of ours in a ‘red’stronghold is remarkable,” he said.

Democrat Party leader AbhisitVejjajiva thanked voters for thevictory, saying the party had nothad an MP in Pathum Thani for along time.

He cited the public being fed upwith politics as the reason for thelow voter turnout.

THOSE who say politics is a dirtybusiness may feel vindicated fol-lowing events in Thailand’s Houseof Representatives during a ses-sion earlier this month.

In the middle of a parliamen-tary debate, a pornographicimage suddenlyappeared on alarge screen inthe House of Rep-r e s e n t a t i v e s ,causing reactionsamong MPs rang-ing from shock toamusement.

The brouhahatook place on April18, while an MPwas making a speech during adebate on constitutional amend-ments.

Suddenly, an image of a youngwoman, naked from the waistdown and sitting in a provocative

pose, appeared on monitors.The session was stopped after

an MP complained about the lewdvisual.

The incident was initiallyblamed on hackers.

However, it turned out that theembarrassing image had appearedas a result of a technical glitch.Technicians accidentally switchedto the wrong screen, inadvertentlydisplaying the pornographic pic-ture to the assembled MPs.

But that wasn’t the only pornin Parliament that day. Later dur-

ing the samedebate, a pho-t o g r a p h e rsnapped a photoof young MP NatBantadtan look-ing at anotherrevealing imageon his mobilephone. The phototaken of thenaughty MP was

promptly circulated on Facebook.The politician, son of former

Democrat Party leader Banyat, hassince apologized for his conduct.

He claims a friend sent him thepicture as a prank and that he was

trying to delete it.The Pheu Thai Party has called

for Mr Nat to resign.Democrat Party leader Abhisit

Vejjajiva said the party would notinvestigate the young MP, sayingthat the House committee on eth-

ics should do so.Democrat Party MP Jeh-aming

Tohtayong said there should alsobe an investigation into the con-duct of Deputy Prime MinisterChalerm Yoobamrung, who hasbeen accused of being drunk dur-

THAI police have rescued almost900 dogs from the dinner table inthe latest seizure of canines beingsmuggled abroad to be eaten.

On April 21, officers rescued630 dogs from a warehouse inMukdahan’s Wan Yai District, laterfinding another 250 caged dogs ina wooded area of Muang District.

After receiving a tip-off thatdogs’ wails could be heard com-ing from the warehouse, locatedon the Mekong riverbank, policefound 42 cages, each containingat least 15 dogs.

They suspected dog smugglerswere keeping them there fortransport over the river into Laos.

Police also received word thatcaged dogs had been abandonedin a wooded area in Ban Soon Mai.

Along with Mukdahan veteri-narian Narong Rattanatraiwong,they went to investigate and found

11 cages, each containing at least10 dogs, scattered in the woods.

Police believe that after beingalerted to the warehouse seizures,dog smugglers changed their traf-

Dog seized by police in previous raids in Thailand. Photo: Soi Dog Foundation

ficking route, but ran into a dead-end and abandoned the cages.

Mukdahan officials, having nofacilities to support the dogs, sentthem to a center in Buri Ram.

Since Mr Chalermhad not been investi-gated... forcing theresignation of Mr Natwould constitute adouble standard.

– MP Jeh-aming ing a parliamentary session in lateFebruary.

Since Mr Chalerm had not beeninvestigated over that incident,forcing the resignation of Mr Natwould constitute a double stan-dard, said Mr Jeh-aming.

OPINION8 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

Where speculationmeets superstition

‘War zone’ blasts in Kamala

Do you have an opinion to voice?Email [email protected]

THERE never seems to be a dull moment covering the news inPhuket, and the rumor-mongering that followed the recent seis-mic activity has been particularly captivating.

A basic review of facts: an 8.6-magnitude earthquake off thecoast of Sumatra on April 11 promted the National Disaster Warn-ing Center (NDWC) to issue an evacuation of tsunami-risk areas.A total breakdown in mobile phone networks, coupled with asecond quake and the glaring failure of the state-run media toconvey timely information led to unnecessary confusion andfear.

Despite the chaos, there was only one casualty: a Dutch tour-ist who died of apparent blood loss in his hotel room after refusingto seek medical treatment for a head wound received in a motor-bike accident.

On April 16, the first and strongest earthquake struck inThalang with a magnitude of 4.3 on the Richter scale. Althoughno evacuation was ordered, this triggered a second “unofficial”evacuation in some areas that put many people at unnecessaryrisk once again. Still, no loss of life was reported and propertydamage was relatively minor, even near the epicenter.

The series of much smaller tremors that followed continued tokeep people on edge. This set the perfect atmosphere for rumorsof Phuket’s imminent destruction to spread virally across theinternet, eventually finding their way into print in the form ofleaflets distributed in Thalang (see pages 4-5).

The Phuket Gazette understands the human propensity to fearthe unknown and appreciates that the advent of seismic activ-ity where it has long been dormant is bound create someapprehension.

The reality, however, is that no person can accurately predictwhere and when an earthquake will strike – a fact that any seis-mologist would be quick to confirm.

Doomsayers have been part of the lunatic fringe from timeimmemorial. In this case we suspect their numbers may havebeen supplemented by real estate speculators seeking to cash inon ignorance-based fear. With skyrocketing land prices on theisland, and the superstitious nature of many of those who hold it,the recent tremors may have provided the perfect opportunityfor speculators to spread disinformation in order to snatch upvaluable real estate at “clearance” prices.

If this were indeed the real motivation, the Gazette finds itparticularly repugnant the bodhisattva Guanyin, venerated bymany Thai Buddhists as a source of compassion, was named bysome of the pamphleteers as the source of the warning.

One final word of caution for those heading out to enjoy any ofthe “end of days” parties taking place this weekend: never for-get that our roads are where the real danger lies.

Glorified tractors,threat on the road

Re: Gazette online, Phuket pickupcrash: Thalang trembles, April 22

The problem is that these glo-rified tractors (pickups) are beingmarketed as sports cars.

Every commercial featuringthese high cog, ancient spring/sus-pension jobs, shows them doingpower slides and uses words like“power” and “turbo”.

[This is done] so the local hill-billies think they can outrun anyother car, and that they have asharp handling vehicle.

ChristianGazette forum

Re: Phuket Gazette March 24issue, Issues & Answers Soundsof FantaSea, March 24

The music or bells [atFantaSea] are not the problem.

The problem is the very loudand dangerous fireworks almostevery day.

And the sounds are surely morethan 85 decibels. Otherwise, howcan they cause houses to shakeand car alarms to go off?

This is unbelievable.My children get scared and cry

because of it. It sounds like thereis a war in Kamala.

At this time, when people arescared about tremors and earth-quakes, I think it is not necessaryto use these loud and surely illegalfireworks.

Rainer VolzKamala U-can’t-turn there

Re: Gazette online, Buses roll outof Phuket Bus Terminal 2, April24

A lot of traffic now uses the U-turn opposite the bus station, eventhough it clearly states “No U-turn”, and the safe U-turn at thetraffic lights is only 50 meters fur-ther on.

I witnessed a very near missyesterday, and it’s only a matterof time before something moreserious happens.

StuartGazette forum

Didn’t Atlantisexplode?

Re: Gazette online, Phuket to be‘Atlantis of the East’? Not on GovTri’s watch, April 23

I am resident in Kamala and wefaced several aftershocks from the

Foldable fronds

I am completely taken aback atevery major festival in Thailand bywhat can be made of banana leavesand palm fronds. The creativityand elegance of the krathong lastyear stunned me, but even forSongkran there were hats wovenout of palm fronds, not to men-tion little two-dimensional animalsand toys.

It’s really an amazing feat. I’msure that the knack for foldingfronds is something passed down

Sumatra earthquake, which evendamaged floor and wall tiles at myhouse. I felt many tremors overseveral hours.

The Atlantis story is a bit faraway from reality though. Latestscience reports show that Atlantiswas built on a volcanic island inGreece and was destroyed whenthe volcano exploded and thewhole island sunk into the ocean.

AndyGazette forum

in a family, but I wouldn’t mindlearning myself – just can’t figureout where to do it.

Tina SwiftPatong

Phuket gaydar test

Re: Gazette online, Readers’ poll,April 19

Very interesting wording withthe Gazette poll “Overall, how tol-erant is Phuket society of LGBTlifestyles compared to other placesyou have lived in or visited?”

Asking for what you think oth-ers might think is a topic is a bitof cop out. However, in this po-litically-correct world anyonecould be forgiven for a similar ap-proach.

I suppose a few follow-onquestions might have been quiterevealing. Something like: will yoube attending “Phuket Pride”week? Or the “biggie”: how toler-ant would you rate yourself? Inan anonymous poll those answerscould be very revealing aboutPhuket residents. But, perhaps it’sbest not to incite homophobia.

Marianne AboyneKamala

Light doesn’t shineon ping-pong shows

Re: Gazette online, Phuket go-gobars in Soi Bangla pass the AHTDtest, April 23

I can’t admit that I visit ping-pong shows, but let’s be honest,it’s amazing what a body can hide.

Because the shows are circus-type endeavors, it doesn’t surpriseme that there was a disappearanceact when the police showed up.

However, I believe it’s naive tothink that these touts on SoiBangla, selling ping-pong, swampand fish shows is going to takeyou to a place without the slight-est bit of nudity.

Greg KilgorGazette forum

OPINIONApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 9

Somboon Jirayus, 49, is presi-dent of the Phuket Tourist Asso-ciation (PTA), a position he hasheld for two terms, totaling fouryears. A Phuket native, he is alsothe owner of Merlin Group, whichhas four hotels located in Phuketand Phang Nga. Here, he exam-ines the aftershocks being felt inthe tourism industry following therecent earthquake and currentrumors that Phuket will sink onApril 28.

Earthquake aftershockshakes up Thai tourists

Do you have an opinion to voice?Email [email protected]

By Steven Layne

Phuket’s golden rule

Phuket’s special – cringe. Image:Fred the Oyster

Hanging on the line

Cables along Dibuk Road, PhuketTown. Photo Chutharat Plerin

A GOOD friend of mine, a fellowAmerican who lives in Bangkok,came to visit me in Phuket overthe Songkran holiday. Even thoughhe had lived, studied and workedin Central Thailand for the betterpart of a decade, Phuket was newterritory to him.

Due to associations with expen-sive, overcrowded mass tourismand the infamous reputation of theso-called tuk-tuk mafia, my friendhad judged Phuket long beforeever coming here.

My friend, who has long beeningrained and cultured to the“Bangkok way”, was a prime can-didate for culture shock – one thatis specific to the island.

In this respect, most expats andThais coming from Bangkok orelsewhere in Thailand are vulner-able to this malady. Phuket cultureshock can be a miserable experi-ence, and will quickly ruin aperfectly good holiday if you don’tnip it in the butt early.

The most obvious symptom iswhen one insists on comparingPhuket with “normal Thailand”.Examples include: “But in Pattayathey...”; “In Bangkok, you can…”;“In Chiang Mai, this would onlycost…,” and “This would neverhappen in…” et cetera ad nauseum.

Comparing and contrasting isnot the problem; it is the impos-sible expectations and subsequentcringing forehead lines that arisefrom doing so. But it is possibleto avoid this misery if you remem-ber Phuket’s golden rule: Phuketis Phuket. It is not Bangkok,Chiang Mai or Pattaya.

Phuket residents, operators andofficers alike have their own wayof doing things here, and consid-ering the amount of money thatthe province generates for thecountry, we in Phuket feel entitledto being “special”, to say the least.

Once you accept this reality and

stop expecting Phuket to be likeany other place – in Thailand orelsewhere – you’ll quickly find alot of your “culture shock”troubles disappear.

But of course my friend had tolearn the hard way.

After his first day at Nai HarnBeach, he found himself in a sourmood after paying 500 baht for aride back into town. After all, heargued, the same trip in Bangkokwould only have cost… cringe.

On his second day, he only nar-rowly escaped by his reckoningbeing murdered by a Patong tuk-tuk driver after a dispute … cringeagain… if only he had remem-bered the golden rule.

I reminded my friend that –luckily for us Americans – moreKoreans prefer Phuket overBangkok.

The result is trans-Pacificflights back to the US via Seoulfrom Phuket can be up to 10,000baht cheaper than flying out ofBangkok, Singapore or anywhereelse in the region.

Indeed, Phuket is special.

Darn that discothequeI am a resident of Baan

Rungravee, a housing develop-ment just off Airport Road.

At the corner of the entranceto our neighborhood and AirportRoad are a few karaoke clubs. Theproblem is they are outdoors andplay their music very loud late intothe night.

I have even heard them as lateas 3:30am. Is there someway thesound can be turned down aftermidnight?

light sleeperSakoo

Saek Phummarin, Chief ofSakoo Patrol Office replies:

Tah Chat Chai Police Station,in corporation with Phuket Inter-national Airport, sends officers topatrol around the airport area at12:30am and 1:30am daily.

The police officers allowkaraoke bars and restaurants inthat area to stay open until 1am.

However, after midnight,those shops must turn down thevolume of the music and stop

selling alcohol. Although our of-ficers do carefully check thearea, some places stay under ourradar. We are sorry for any in-convenience.

Please contact us at 089 729-1045 and tell us the location andthe names of the disruptivekaraoke bars so we can investi-gate the matter.

Who is responsible when tele-phone lines are hanging so low thatcars get stuck and are ripping thelines down, as is happening in SoiSermsuk, Rawai all the time?

We been without a telephoneconnection and internet for fourdays – bad for our business!

Horst LakitsRawai

CAT Telecom Customer Ser-vice in Phuket, Cable Opera-tion Manager PeeraphanWisuthwatcharakul replies:

We have not had a report ofthis problem – thank you for in-forming us.

I will have our team inspect thelow cables in Soi Sermsuk, Rawai.If they are CAT cables we willhave them fixed.

If not, we will contact eitherTOT, DTAC or AIS, becausethese companies have their owncode written on the cables.

However, if it is a local TV cable

Night bar with a sideof extra loud music

Where do I file a complaintabout a karaoke bar along BaanDon Road, close to Cherng Talay

Police Station? The bar is openseven days a week with live mu-sic and terrible voices screamingevery day until 2am in the morn-ing.

TonicCherng Talay

Sumet Kitvej, Chief of PublicHealth Department, CherngTalay Municipality replies:

Since that area is so close toCherng Talay Police Station, of-ficers generally patrol it, so I dontbelieve it should be the cause oftoo much noise. However, if thereis an issue please call or come intothe Cherng Talay MunicipalityPublic Health Department and giveus the name of the karaoke barand its location.

Once a complaint has beenfiled, we will send staff to inves-tigate. If we find that the karaokeis causing too much noise, we willwarn them and ask the owner tofix the problem.

If the noise continues, we willhave to close the bar. You can callus at 084-8502459 or 076-324440.

we cannot check it because thiskind of cable does not have a codewritten on it.

If you have any problems relatedto CAT cable, please contact CATPhuket at 076-216 861 ext 4214.

THE earthquake and aftershocksin Phuket were fairly small. For-eign tourists didn’t seem to beworried about the situation. Theystill enjoyed their time here doingall the usual activities.

There were some hotel book-ing cancellations and earlycheck-outs, but only a few. At themoment we don’t really feel thatthere has been a negative impactin the foreign tourism market.

However, the earthquake seemsto have affected Thai tourists andlocal residents.

The earthquake terrified manylocal residents, as well as Thaitourists, since this is somethingnew for us. Phuket has never hadan earthquake before that I’maware of – and I was born here.

Officials need to disseminateinformation about earthquakes,and what to do when they occur,to both locals and tourists.

I want everyone to understandthat the earthquake on Phuketwas very small. Phuket is not lo-cated along the ring of fire or ina high-risk area like Sumatra orJapan.

It’s important to understandthat earthquakes happen all overthe world, not just in Phuket. Forinstance, Greece, Turkey and Italyhave been having earthquakes formany years, yet people there stilllive their lives normally.

I have heard that the rumors ofPhuket sinking on April 28 haveaffected tourism a little bit, espe-cially among Thai and other Asian

tourists. Those who had alreadybooked rooms have cancelledtheir reservations and there arealmost no new reservations fromThai or Asian tourists since therumor began to spread.

Normally, right after Songkranis the peak period for Thai andAsian tourists to come to Phuket.However, right now there are 20to 30 per cent less of them thanlast year because of the earth-quake and the rumors that theisland will sink.

This past weekend [April 20 to22] Phuket held a very big event,Phuket Bike Week 2012. However,I learned that some tourist hadcancelled their trip to Phuket. Forexample, a small hotel with 20rooms was fully booked for BikeWeek 2012, but because of theearthquake and the rumor 12 ofthe rooms were cancelled.

The rumors have scared someof our hotel employees. They re-signed and went back to theirhometowns. Most of them live in

different provinces and are stillunder the care and custody of theirparents or guardians. Their par-ents are scared that something badwill happen to their children, sothey asked them to come home,away from Phuket.

Many of the hotel employeeswho have been working in Phuketfor a while and are independentor married, did not resign. Theyunderstand the situation and havejust asked for a one-week holi-day at the end of the month, sothey can spend time with theirfamilies.

However, if the rumor gainsmore momentum there is a chancethat even these people will start toresign.

I would like the government tocome up with a good warningsystem in order to build tourists’confidence in the safety measuresbeing taken. Once the tourists feelconfident in our ability to keepthem safe, they will start to re-turn to Phuket.

BUSINESS10 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

STICKY SITUATION: The local priceof jellyfish is 6 to 7 baht per fish.

‘Sting operation’ feeds demand

p

B2bn approved forfarmers’ subsidies

Commerce ministry toimport tons of palm oil

WHITE jellyfish are the latest cashcatch being sought off Krabi’sshores as demand swells in the mar-ket for exotic seafood exports.

Thai media reported last weekthat local merchants had set up13 tents along the Nong Talayshore in Krabi to buy catches ofMaeng Gaproon Lot Chong(Lobonema smithii) a white va-riety of jellyfish in high demandin overseas markets.

Larmsak Chanchooklin a 36-year-old jellyfish merchant fromRanong said: “This type of jellyfish is found in the waters offthe six Andaman provinces.”

“A few days ago I heard theycaught a lot of jellyfish in the area.When I arrived about 10 merchanttents had already been set up.

“We pay about six or sevenbaht for each jellyfish and eachmerchant buys some 2,000 to6,000 jellyfish per day.

“That’s more than a millionbaht a day in circulation. We takethe jellyfish to sell at Mahachaimarket in Samut Sakhon prov-ince [in Central Thailand],” MrLarmsak explained.

“From there the jellyfish areexported to other Asian countrieswhere they are in demand

throughout the year, including inChina, Japan and Korea. Jelly-fish in Krabi are very big andhigh quality,” he added.

Fisherman Somsong Sawek, 29,said: “I used to catch fish at sea butthe income was not so good.

Since I started catching jelly-fish instead of fish I’m earning

a few thousand baht a day.”“You can only catch jellyfish

off the Krabi coast three monthsof the year from March throughto May and this year there arealmost 200 fisherman here. It’sa good income to support ourfamilies.” Mr Somsong said.


A TALE IN THE STING: Fishermen in Krabi seeking white jellyfish.

THE National Farmers Assis-tance Committee this week ap-proved more than 2 billion bahtin subsidies to shore up theprices of certain agriculturalgoods. The measures will ef-fect pineapples, shrimp, pigsand eggs.

The committee also sus-pended a project to subsidize thefalling price of red onions afterrotten stockpiles of the com-modity were discovered.

Boonsong Teriyaphirom,Commerce Minister, said thegovernment would set up a spe-cial panel to investigate thered-onion case, which resultedin more than 324 million baht inlosses for the country.

He said the governmentwould not approve a new bud-get to subsidize red onions, as itwants a clear explanation of whatwent wrong with the originalproject from the agencies con-cerned.

Of the 2bn baht, 1.59bn bahtwould be for purchasing 200,000tons of pineapples at 4 baht perkilogram. The pineapples wouldbe used for processing intocanned pineapple, feed meal andfertilizer.

The government will also pro-vide soft loans for pineapplefarmers worth 15mn baht.

– The Nation

TO HELP ease shortages ofpalm oil, 10,000 tons of thecommodity has been orderedfrom neighboring countries.

Boonsong TeriyapiromThailand’s Minister of Com-merce (MoC said that theshipment, set to arrive in May,would help keep the liter priceto be steady at 42 baht.

Thailand has 150,000 tonsof palm oil on reserve now,which cannot meet demand.The imported oil can last for 3weeks, after which more locallyproduced palm oil will continueto supply the market, he said.

Minister Boonsong assuredfarmers that prices will not dropto the point of causing prob-lems for local producers. If theinitial lot does not cause prob-lems for domestic suppliers,the MoC plans import an ad-ditional 30,000 tons.

Thailand is the world’s thirdlargest producer, followingIndonesia and Malaysia.

– ASTV Manager Online

HKT part of B4bn upgradeBy Atchaa Khamlo

AEROTHAI, the state enterprisethat operates air traffic control atairports throughout Thailand, in-cluding Suvarnabhumi and PhuketInternational Airport (HKT), willspend 4 billion baht on upgradingits computer and communicationsnetwork.

The upgrade to replace outdatedequipment will be privately funded,said Aphinun Vannangkura,Aerothai Vice President for AirTraffic Management.

“The upgrade will introducemore computer systems into theprocess to help guard against anyhuman error,” he said.

The project involves establish-ing a central communications

center in Tungmahamek,Bangkok, which will relay data toand from Aerothai’s major regionalcenters in Chiang Mai, Haad Yai,Phitsanulok, Hua Hin and Phuket.

“The most important aspect ofthe upgrade is training our offic-ers to use the high-technologyequipment. After the training,

which will be rolled out to differ-ent divisions over 15 months, weshould be able to switch to the newsystem by about October 2014,”Mr Aphinun said.

The comprehensive upgrade isexpected to allow officers at HKT,who control air traffic within a 48-kilometer (30-mile) radius, to

better manage air traffic safety.HKT’s sole runway can cur-

rently cope with 30 flights per hour,and on average sees about 200flights arrive or depart each day.However, the number of flights ar-riving and departing HKT hasgrown dramatically in recent years,from 31,170 in Fiscal 2006 to57,697 in Fiscal 2011.

“Many companies in Europe andAmerica are interested in the up-grade project, but it’s not easy forthem to meet our tough and com-plete requirements,” said PhuketAerothai engineer Wanlop Piromrit.

“Once we have the new com-puter system and our staff aretrained, our officers will go totrain other air traffic control of-ficers abroad,” Mr Wanlop added.

READY FOR TAKEOFF: Aerothai’s communications network upgrades willincrease air traffic safety at Phuket Airport. Photo: Atchaa Khamlo

Airlines confident inevacuation measuresFOLLOWING the 8.6-Richter earth-quake off Sumatra on April 11, sev-eral airlines have expressed satisfac-tion in how officials handled the sub-sequent emergency evacuation ofPhuket International Airport (HKT).

Thai Airways representativeJittrapong Narongwanich said thatall airlines that use Phuket Airport re-main confident in the evacuationprocedures that were initiated.

Thanaporn Taebunpakul, repre-senting the Association of EuropeanAirlines in Phuket, also confirmedthat no scheduled flights from Eu-rope had been canceled.

HKT Director PrathuangSornkham said that about 1,500 pas-sengers were evacuated to thePhuket Air Catering facility, located1,400 meters from the main termi-nal, which took about 45 minutes.

“No one was injured and all theirbelongings were safe. Our workimpressed the passengers a great

deal,” said Mr Prathuang.The Phuket Air Catering facility

sits 20 meters above sea level.The evacuation was not with-

out problems, however. Thebreakdown in mobile phone net-works was identified as the singlebiggest obstacle, as officials wereable to relay information only bytwo-way radio. The evacuation or-der set in motion an automaticthree-hour closure of the airport,causing a traffic jam at the entranceas vehicles were not allowed entry.

“We hold an evacuation drill ev-ery year. Every airline is confidentin our evacuation procedures andno scheduled flights have been can-celed,” Mr Prathuang said

He added that the main HKT ter-minal, built 30 years ago, canwithstand damage in the event ofan earthquake of up to 5.0 magni-tude centered under the airfield.


Boonsong Teriyapirom

BUSINESSApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 11

Imports face duty scrutiny

Looking for a place to stay?See more classified ads at

www.phuketgazette.net

BEYOND RECOVERY: Exports of Thai-manufactured automobiles plummeted during the massive floodingcatastrophe of late last year, but have since revived above and beyond expectations. IMAGE: Gazette graphic

Auto industry flourishes in Q1

IMPORTERS of luxury cars, wine, liquorand tobacco face heightened financial scru-tiny with the implementation of a new post-audit system, Thailand’s Customs director-general has warned.

As initially reported in The Nation lastweek, the Customs Department has steppedup its campaign to crack down on tax eva-sion of luxury and duty-heavy imports.

Director-General Somchai Poonsawatsaid that the department planned to auditimporters of luxury cars to investigatewhether they paid all due taxes.

His department has already audited ap-proximately 50 firms, he said.

Some car importers, particularly in thegray market (legal but unofficial channels),have declared prices much lower than theyactually are in order to evade taxes, accord-ing to the department.

Somchai said authorities had to obtainsubstantial evidence before they could col-

lect more taxfrom these im-porters, so thed e p a r t m e n tmight first letthem gain im-port clearance.

“We willthen implementa post-audit tofind irregulari-ties,” he said.

The movefollows the lastweek’s Cabinetapproval of aproposal by the Commerce Ministry to banthe imports of used car bodies and otherused spare parts.

The ban was slated as a measure to pre-vent grey-market imports in whichimporters import individual components of

a car into thecountry, and thenassemble the card o m e s t i c a l l y,avoiding heavyduties.

Excise tax onimports of com-plete luxury carsis between 180and 300%.

P r e v i o u s l yabout 800 to 900used-car bodieswere importedevery month, but

recently that number has dropped to about200 to 300 per month, Somchai said.

Somchai went on to point out that im-porters of other products such as wine,liquor and tobacco that are subject to highimport tariffs and excise taxes were also

suspected of evading tax by declaring un-derstated values.

In response, the department has investedin three new patrol boats as it steps up itscampaign.

Foreign government subsidies on oil andgas make them cheaper in those countries,which encourages smuggling, he said.

Earlier this week, two trawlers carrying47,000 liters of illegally imported diesel wereseized by Phuket Customs. The loot wasvalued at 21 million baht.

In light of recent crackdowns on a num-ber of bars and restaurants in Phuket offeringBaraku or Sheesha – flavored tobacco smokedin large water pipe – Phuket Governor TriAugkaradacha affirmed that the operators hadimported the tobacco products illegally.

These violators will be subject to themaximum penalties as prescribed in theTobacco Products Control Act (1992), hesaid. – The Nation / Phuket Gazette

SALES and production recordswere set by Thailand’s automobilesector in March, with productionoutput topping out at just under half-a-million vehicles, nearly 60% ofwhich were reported sold.

Surapong Paisitpatanapong,Spokesman for the Federation ofThai Industries’ (FTI) AutomotiveIndustry Club last week revealedsales and production figures for themonth and first quarter (Q1).

He said that 190,000 new carswere produced in March, making itthe sector’s highest output in asingle month since 1961, when thecountry first commenced commer-cial automobile production.

The figure equates to an 11%jump year on year (y-o-y), and 13%increase month on month (m-o-m).

All in, the sector output 499,000new cars in Q1, an increase of 6%from Q1, 2011. Of these, 279,000(56% of production) were sold, a17% increase on year.

Just in March, 110,000 (60% ofproduction) were sold, equating toa 21% increase m-o-m, and 19%jump y-o-y.

The sector also produced a total283,000 motorbikes or mopeds inMarch, and 823,000 in Q1, an in-crease of 5% y-o-y.

During March alone, 190,000(67% of production) of new mo-torcycles produced were sold,compared with the sale of 519,000(63% of production) total in Q1.

According to a report in TheNation, commercial vehicles whichinclude one-tonne pickups showeda 36.7 % increase on year to 70,168units.

One-tonne pickups alone showeda 40 % increase to 61,737 units.

Vudhigorn Suriyachantananont,vice president of Toyota MotorThailand, attributed the improve-ment to brisk demand andautomakers’ success in boostingproduction capacity.

The passenger car segmentshowed a decrease, as Honda Au-tomobile (Thailand), the biggest

player in the segment, has not yetresumed normal production. Itsflood-affected facility in Ayutthayawas just reopened late March.

So far this year, exports of auto-mobiles, parts and spare parts areon the up.

Mr Surapong said that in March,a total of 89,800 Completely Built-up (CBU) automobiles wereexported, equating to a combinedvalue of 42.1 billion baht.

He added that there were a totalof 220,000 CBU automobiles ex-ported in Q1, a drop of 5% y-o-y,which he attributed to delays causedby flooding at the end of last year.

The value of engine exports inMarch was 2.43bn baht, new partsat 14.6 bn baht, and spare parts at1.51bn baht.

Value of all automobile exports(excluding motorbikes and parts)for the month was 60.7bn baht, andabout 100bn baht in Q1.

Q1 engine exports were valuedat 6.8 billion baht, new parts at 38.4bn baht and spare parts at 4.6 bnbaht.

All in, Q1 automobile exportswere valued at 152bn baht, a 1% y-o-y increase

Of March’s exports, 68,200bikes were valued at 2.5bn baht,while outgoing new parts were val-ued at 996mn baht, and spare partsat 60mn baht.

Of Q1’s exports, 228,000 bikeswere valued at 7.76bn baht, withexports for new bike parts valuedat 3.1 bn baht and spare parts at171mn baht.

The total value of exports formotorbikes, parts and spare partsin Q1 was 11bn baht.

Thailand’s Automotive Industryclub predicts that there will be477,000 automobiles produced inthe second quarter.

This target would equate to a39% increase y-o-y, while thegroup’s target of producing653,000 motorbikes would equateto a 10% increase y-o-y.

– Phuket Gazette

HEAVY DUTY: Used spare parts will be a lot harderto come by with the new ban. Photo: TwoWings

TECHNOLOGY12 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

Don’t be evil, AIS

YOUR BALANCE IS GETTING LOW: It is a good idea to check your bill for any surprises. Photo: Gail

THIS week I have a bunch ofnews – and a warning or two –for computer users in Phuket.

Google’s new Country Managerfor Thailand, Ariya Banomyong,will speak at the next IBAP meet-ing, on May 11. Mr Ariyarepresents the new guard of IT pro-fessionals in Thailand. Eminentlyqualified, he speaks four languagesfluently, holds two master’s de-grees, one in math and IT from theUniversity of Marne-La-Vallée,France, and the other a master’sof science in man-agement from theLondon School ofEconomics. Healso knows hisway around a key-board.

Since takingthe job last July,Mr Ariya has pre-sided over some amazingGooglifications in Thailand. Iwrote about Google Street Viewin last month’s Live Wire. It’s aphenomenal tool for everyone inPhuket. The Google Crisis Re-sponse page for the floods lastyear came up quickly and stayedupdated accurately. In February,Google launched the “GoogleEngage” program, which bringslocal Google support, seminarsand consulting experts to Thaibusinesses struggling withAdWords and other Googleproducts. Last month we evenhad the first Thai interviewee –Bangkok music producer BoydKosiyabong – for a Google+Hangouts session known asThink Digital 2012.

Google Thailand, cooperatingwith the government’s Office ofSME Promotion and Kasikorn-bank, rolled out a “Thai BusinessGo Online” project last year, whichhelped 50,000 Thai businesses geton the internet – 40,000 of themwith their own, free, websites and3,000 baht of AdWords credit,free, as well. Google’s predicting100,000 participants by the end of

this year. There’s no doubt thatGoogle’s helping Thai businessesget their online act together.

All of this evolves against abackdrop of continuing problemsand controversy at “Don’t be evil”headquarters in Menlo Park, Cali-fornia. Between surreptitiousgathering of personal data and con-troversial privacy practices,Google’s come into a lot of firelately. (Full disclosure: I think atleast one of the major complaintsis completely overblown, seeinfoworld.com/t/internet-privacy/surprise-google-cookies-behave-themselves-unlike-facebooks-174101.)Of course, Larry and Sergey prob-ably don’t consult Mr Ariya before

implementingthe more contro-versial policies,so our speaker’sin the clear.

You’re all in-vited. This eventshould be one ofthe techy gather-ings of the year.

It’s on Friday, May 11, at A2 Re-sort. (From Central Festival, gonorth on Bypass Road and justbeyond Keehin make a U-turn. A2is about 250 meters ahead, on theleft. Or use Google Maps for driv-ing directions. I did.) Registrationis at 6:15, with the program start-ing at 7:10. There’s a donation atthe door: IBAP members are 200baht, non-members 400 baht, stu-dents (age 12-17) 100 baht, whichincludes a light buffet and bever-ages. Good idea to get there earlyif you want a seat.

Speaking of evil and AIS…A friend of mine – one of the

Sunday morning computer cliniccrowd – sends an interesting taleabout his pre-paid AIS account:

“I recently went through 300baht of phone service in 10 days.300 baht usually takes me over amonth. Couldn’t figure out why.

I routinely receive a “NewsPlus” SMS message, in Thai,from AIS. I delete it – I don’t readThai and even if I did, I’m notinterested in AIS promotions. Af-ter a visit to the AIS office inPhuket Town, I learned that I’m

being charged 9 baht per minutefor calls and 9 baht per receivedSMS, including the News Plus ad-vertisement.

At Telewiz in Big C, I was toldI could not get those News Pluscalls blocked. At AIS Phukettown, I was told I could get themblocked but it would take two tothree days.

While there, I was offered apromotional plan for pre-paid ac-cess of 1.5 baht per minute.Signing up for the plan costs 30baht. The only downside is thatcancellation dates for top-ups onthe plan are shorter: 300 baht ex-pires in 45 days, 500 baht in 75days, 1,000 baht in 150 days and1,500 baht in one year.

So for the princely fee of 30baht, I reduced my cost perminute by 7.5 baht.”

Mobile phone companies inThailand have promotions all thetime. Remarkably, some of thosepromotions apply to pre-paid ac-counts, as well – which meansyou qualify for the promotion evenif you don’t have a work permitor retirement visa.

Here’s another friend with a dif-ferent trick, for extendingcancellation dates:

“I just checked my pre-paid bal-ance at DTAC and had 117 bahtwith 208 days validity. With DTAC,you can buy time - that is, you canpay to increase the number of daysof validity, up to a maximum of 365days. I tried to buy 180 days for12 baht, but I couldn’t as thatwould take me over the maximumof one year of validity.

So I bought 90 days for 6 baht,then 30 days for 2 baht and fi-nally another 30 days for 2 baht.My balance now is now 107 baht,with 358 days validity.”

And one more:“My AIS account was charged

for MP3 music downloads from aThai website. I’m very sure I neverdownloaded any MP3 songs andabsolutely not from a Thai website.

I looked back at my bill and the firstmonth I was charged 500 baht, thesecond month 900 baht.

I contacted AIS and they im-mediately blocked the serviceand refunded the spent amounton my next bill. They said it wasa service mistake, but I wonderhow it could’ve happened. Cana third party justcharge myphone withsomething Inever ordered?There must’vebeen a securitybreach at AIS.

By the way,this happened immediately afterI switched my account to 3G. Andyes, I’ve had antimalware soft-ware installed on my phone sinceday one.”

A word to the wise: check yourphone bill!

4G coming to Thailand?The Nation reports that TOT

is upgrading its wireless systemfrom HSPA to HSPA+. That maysound like alphabet soup, but it’sa very good sign – and not be-cause of the claimed speedadvantages. “This upgrade willimprove mobile broadband ser-vices for the 7.2 million TOTcustomers and increase down-load speeds to even 42 megabitsper second (Mbps) compared tothe current 7.2 Mbps,” saysTOT.

Yeah, sure. HSPA+ is definitelybetter than HSPA, TOT’s old net-work technology, but the newnetwork won’t be six times faster,I guarantee.

If you’ve been following mycolumns on 3G, you know thatCAT already has an HSPA+ net-work. Since both TrueMove-Hand DTAC use the CAT network,they have HSPA+ too. So in somerespects TOT and AIS (AIS usesthe TOT network) are just play-ing technological catch-up.

Here’s why TOT’s move to

HSPA+ is a “Real Big Deal”.They’re using Nokia-Siemens toupgrade their towers to HSPA+,and the equipment Nokia-Siemens is installing can be up-graded in place to a technologycalled LTE. LTE is a Real BigDeal – it’s a legitimate “4G” prod-uct that could revolutionize the

way we getInternet inPhuket.

In the Statesthere are market-ing and BS warsabout 3G and 4G,with lawsuits fly-ing every which

way – but there’s an emergingwinner. PC World just performeda nationwide study that showedthat AT&T’s “4G” LTE service hasthe fastest wireless internet accessin the US, with average downloadspeeds of 9 Mbps. Yes, that’s theaverage. Yes, that’s three or fourtimes faster than our fastest inter-national download speeds inPhuket. Yes, that’s for a wirelessservice.

Several industry observers feelthat LTE is so fast it’s going to dis-place wired ADSL, just as mobilephones displaced land lines yearsago. Based on the numbers I’veseen, that could happen. Maybe.

Seth Bareiss holds computer ses-sions on every-other Wednesdayafternoon, from 1 to 3pm. If youhave a Windows problem thatneeds to be solved, drop by one ofSeth’s free afternoon sessions, orcome to one of our free Sundaymorning roundtables at SandwichShoppe Chalong. Details in theEvents Calendar. Sponsored by thePhuket Gazette and Khun Woody’sSandwich Shoppes.

‘For the princely feeof 30 baht, I reducedmy cost per minute

by 7.5 baht.’

‘The Thai Business GoOnline project

last year helped50,000 Thai businesses

get on the internet’

Live Wire is Phuket Gazette columnistWoody Leonhard’s weekly snapshot ofall things internet in Phuket. Shoot himmail at [email protected],follow him on Twitter@PhuketLiveWire,or “Like” his page at Facebook.com/SandwichShoppe.

BUSINESSApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 13

Anthony Lyman is a SeniorFinancial Consultant for theMontpelier Group. For moreinformation on the UK budget orUK pension plan reviews [email protected] orfollow him on twitter @AnthonyLyman.

Eurozone: bond yields tells the story

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ONCE again the woes of Europehave given the financial markets abit of a battering.

I can remember a time whenyou could wake up, turn on thenews and listen to happier bulle-tins. First Greece, Portugal, Ireland,Italy and now Spain. Where is allthis going to end? I fear this couldbe here for the long haul, so wepose the question of whether theEuro will survive at all.

Recently there has been more talkof, instead of bailing countries out,whether it would be more prudentif these countries were not mem-bers of the Euro at all. I mentionedseveral weeks ago that one of themain ways to observe a particulareconomy’s financial security is toview the country’s governmentbond yields.

A typical bond yield of around7% is deemed to be the dreaded“straw that breaks the camel’sback”. However anything nearthe 6% region means you are inserious trouble. So let us take aglance at some of the currentbond yields of the Euro Zonecompared to the rest of the worldat the time of writing.

Upon first view, the signs do notlook too promising for the Eurozonecountries as the yields keep edgingcloser and closer to the 7% level.

The same conclusions could bedrawn for Brazil and India. How-ever there could not be a largercontrast between the growing econo-mies of Brazil and India and thestruggling economies of theEurozone. Brazil remains an attrac-tive proposition moving forward asdoes India.

Back to Europe, the signs are notlooking too good for the foreseeablefuture and the problems Spain is nowfacing will no doubt have a dominoeffect and pull world markets downfurther. So why has this happened?The main factor behind this seemsto be the European Central Banks(ECB) version of Quantitative eas-ing, otherwise known as the LongTerm Refinancing Operation(LTRO).

This came in response to lastyear’s Eurozone panic when bondyields of Spain and Italy were climb-

ing once again. The idea was thatthe ECB would allow banks acrossEurope to borrow as much as theywanted over a three-year period ata knock-down rate of 1%.

The unspoken deal was thatthey would re-invest this moneyin the bonds of troubled coun-tries: Spain and Italy in particular.So if you are able to borrowmoney at 1% and re-invest it at5%, this would seem a good dealright?

What investors see is that theSpanish Banking and property sec-tor is in dire straits and that thesebanks must be sitting on hugeamounts of unrealized losses.

However, the Spanish Govern-ment will probably bail these banksout, should push comes to shove,so investors stop lending to theSpanish Government, meaning bondyields start to rise.

The ECB cannot be seen to beprinting money so they lend Span-ish banks money at rock-bottomprices so that they can buy Gov-ernment debt, which in turn bringsdown bond yields. Still with me?

What has recently happened,however, is that while it is allwell and good that Spanish banksare buying this debt, no-one elseis! If we take the recent Span-ish bond auction failure thisshows it put into action. Anotherproblem is that the ECB loans arenot free. Spanish banks have topledge assets to get this.

They do not have to hand theseover but the ECB has a claim overthe assets which doesn’t leave muchleft for creditors should a bank finditself in deep water. This means rais-ing money from other sourcesbecomes more expensive. It’s amerry go round which all points

towards bad news for Europe.Going forward, Europe will no

doubt continue in its currenttrend and the problems Spain isnow facing means that this wholesaga will continue for the next 12months at least.

The good news is that if welook at the broader picture, LatinAmerica and Asia remain an at-tractive investment propositionand with continuing reliance onoil and gas there are some growthareas that can still be identified ifyou have the stomach for mar-ket volatility.

No doubt many investmentfunds and pension funds will haverisk exposure in Europe and, as Ialways say, these need to be re-viewed as often as possible as youwould not want your portfoliopulled down with the Europeanfinancial woes.

A rebalancing act of existinginvestments could be needed andthere is no time like the presentto look at what you have. Finan-cial advice is readily available anda review of what you have couldprove to be very beneficial overthe long term.

14 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

April 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 15

CHINA, like elswhere in theworld these days, looms as a largeinfluence on Phuket’s futureaviation and tourism growth be-cause of increased wealth inChina, the island’s attractivenessand the explosion of China’s air-line industry in recent years.

Within five years Chinese tour-ists could be arriving on Chinesedesigned and built aircraft.

But first, the current situation.A recent Phuket Gazette poll

that asked the question: “Whichof the following inbound marketsholds the highest growth poten-tial for the Phuket tourismindustry?” tells the story. The re-sults showed 48per cent of re-s p o n d e n t sthought it wasChina, followedby Russia with24.9 per cent andASEAN coun-tries, India, Eastern Europe and theMiddle East making up the rest.

Of the 44 airlines servicingPhuket, four are from mainlandChina (China Eastern Airlines,Hainan Airlines, Shanghai Airlines,Sichuan Airlines) one is from Tai-wan, China Airlines and one fromHong Kong, Dragonair.

In 2011 Phuket had 227,431 ar-rivals from China, a 112 per centincrease. Counting the 40,438Hong Kong visitors (Hong Kongis, after all, part of China) the visi-tor arrivals from this area dwarfsthe next biggest groups by nation-ality, Australians (172,000) andRussians (160,000).

China has already appointed aconsul to Phuket to handle thesenumbers which begs the ques-tion: how will the Chinese airlineindustry meet increased demandsput on it, not only to populartourist destinations like Phuket,but world-wide?

If the past 30 years of year-on-year double digit growth (apartfrom two years) in China’s avia-tion industry is any indication theanswer is, easily.

This growth has been mainly

domestically driven, and there aresigns that it is slowing as the CivilAviation Administration of China[CAAC] is reviewing its forecastof 10 per cent growth in 2012.

China’s international travelmarket to places like Phuket is stillin its infancy, but growingquickly. One forecast, by re-spected Australian aviationanalyst Center for Asia PacificAviation (CAPA), said there couldbe 77 million international passen-gers by 2020, 32.3 million morethan in 2010.

That’s a lot of Chinese touristsheading our way over the nexteight years or so.

China’s commercial aircraftfleet continues to grow to meetthe demand. In 2011 there were1,745 commercial aircraft flyingin China, with 148 new aircraft

being added.Most of theseare single aisleand domesticallyfocused, but in-c r e a s i n g l y ,Chinese airlinesare being en-

couraged to purchase larger,double aisle aircraft such as thenew Boeing B787 “Dreamliner”and Airbus A380 double deckedJumbo, to meet the internationaltravel demands.

There is now also the distinctprospect of China producing itsown domestic commercial air-craft. The Comac C919 (picturedbelow) is a planned 168-190 seatnarrow- body airliner with its firstflight expected to take place in2014 and deliveries scheduled for2016. It is intended to competewith the Airbus A320 and Boeing’sB737 aircraft, as it could easily flydirect from Beijing to Phuket. Cur-rently, the B737-800, operated byHainan Airlines, flies to Phuket di-rectly from Beijing, and has amaximum range of 5,765 kilome-ters, whereas the distancesbetween the two destinations is3,996 kilometers.

So by 2016, the Year of theMonkey in the Chinese calendar,we could not only see a huge in-crease in Chinese visitors toPhuket, but they could well bearriving on a Chinese designedand built aircraft.

China leads the way

Air China hostesses primping for inspection at Beijing airport. Photo: Cory Doctorow

MADE IN CHINA: Analysts predict as many as 77 million international passengers by 2020. Pictured is a modelinterior of the Chinese built Comac 919. Photo: Stéphane De Wolf

‘Within five yearsChinese tourists couldalso be arriving onChinese designed andbuilt aircraft.’ Alastair Carthew


DIVE companies like Sea Bees canguarantee a lot of aspects of theirtrips. They can guarantee a high-quality breakfast, good equipmentand knowledgeable staff, but whatthey cannot guarantee are thoseprecious and glorious sightings ofroaming mega-fauna, like mantarays.

Every diver last week may havespotted the sweeping black wingsof a manta ray in the distance orthe iconic dorsal fin of a prowlingshark, but even that is no assur-ance that either would be spottedthe next day.

On board Sea Bees’ futuristiclooking and custom built catama-ran, MV Stingray, I try not to thinkabout the mantas as we pull awayfrom the dock and head towardsKoh Bon.

Koh Bon, renown for its char-ismatic mega-fauna, is part of theSimilan Islands National Park, de-spite being almost 20 kilometersnorth of Island Nine.

After a 55-minute first dive,I’m unsure of the need for a sec-ond. We had spotted ornate BlueDragon nudibranches, a white-tipped reef shark and two mantarays. Admittedly, the mantas hadkept their distance, but the divehad been a text book checklist ofwhat to see.

We splash in for our seconddive, and follow the vertical wallto the step-down ridge of the is-land, searching for nudibranchesand other smalldelights.

It sails inout of the blue.Manta raysdon’t swim,they glidethrough wateron their mas-sive “wingspan”, averag-ing six meters.

It swoopsin below us, like the shadow of agiant bird. An entire school ofcorbia, groupies to the rock-starmanta, cluster and cling to thealien-looking life form and hide un-

der its ‘wings’ (pectoral fins).The manta makes one pass,

then elegantly turns back towardsus, this time

mov-

i n gup, closer tous. After sev-eral passes itdisappears.

Stunned bythe close en-counter andd e s p e r a t e l ywanting more,we swim on.

Suddenly, there are two man-tas, one following the other. Theyturn together chasing each other,like children playing tag.

All the divers floating there are

awestruck. We’re like a school oflame corbia, too slow to do any-thing but fantasize aboutbeing on the massive wings of themantas.

They are playing.

Theysweep, belowour fins, their great wingsoutstretched. I spin as it passesjust five meters below me.

I turn and one of the mantarays flies out of the abysse at me.

I can see between its gentlycurled cephalic lobes to its mouth,where imperceptibly small teethare hidden. There is no fear, notonly because this harmless crea-

tures mostly feeds on plankton,but because of its eyes.

There is an intelligence in itseyes, a playfulness as itcomes within three

m e t e r sof me andthen turnsaway.

It’s time to go. Themantas are still putting on a showas we ascend for our safety-stop.

CLOSE ENCOUNTER: A school of corbia follow in the wake of a large manta ray in the waters off Koh Bon, Similan National Park. Photo: Andrea Filippozzi

Making a manta-stic dive

For the better partof forty minutes themantas stayed with

us.Now, floating in the

open blue, away from thestep-down ridge we wait to

surface, the whole time peek-ing down, still searching forthem.

“The best dive of the sea-son!” exclaimed AndreaFilippozzi, our instructor, aswe hit the surface.

On the dive boat, evenaway from the customers, I

can see the instructors’ smilesglowing, as they publicly and pri-vately gloat about having justpartaken in the best dive of the sea-son – something that’s neverguaranteed.

Sea Bees’ custom built catamaran,MV Stingray. Photo: Sea Bees

Photo: AndreaFilippozzi

Manta facts:• There are two typesof

manta rays: Reef Manta Rayand Giant Oceanic Manta Ray.

• Largest recorded manta was7.6 meters across.

• They feed on plankton andfish larvae.

• They have the largest brain-to-body ratio of their closestrelatives: sharks, rays and skates.

• They frequent “cleaning sta-tions”, where small fish cleanaway parasites and dead tissue.

• Mantas are known to occa-sionally jump completely out ofthe water, possibly as a way ofcommunicating or playing.


ALTHOUGH Thailand has some ofthe best curries in the world, thereis another land of fiery curries thatis guarenteed to bring a tear to theeye and water to the mouth – thegreat subcontinent of India.

Words like Masala, Tandoori,Dal and Gosht conjure up imagesof steaming bowls of saffroncolored, aromatic, spicy curries,smothering generous chunks ofpotatoes and meat, which can bepoured over rice or mopped upwith warm Naan bread. You seewhat I mean about making themouth water?

This is a suprisingly delicatecuisine and is almost impossibleto recreate at home, unless youare native to these lands. The onlyway to fully appreciate the foodis either to visit an Indian restau-rant or home, or book a flight toIndia.

Even then, once you’re there,you will only be able to order a fewof the main dishes and end up won-dering if the lamb would have beena better idea than the chicken –unless of course it’s a buffet.

Friday nightis curry night

There are some things about anIndian buffet that other buffets justcan’t match when it comes to fla-vors, variety and – let’s face it – thesheer quantity of delicious foodavailable.

Phuket is now fortunate to havesuch a buffet every Fridayevening, at a very reasonable 449baht per person.

The buffet in question takes placeat “Les Anges” at the Royal PhuketMarina, which has already estab-lished itself as one of the finest diningestablishments on the island, with itsspectacular location right in the cen-ter of a fleet of gorgeous yachts.

Les Anges has featured CurryEvenings before, but now has twonew chefs and a new menu, whichwill be launched on May 4.

Chef Paddam and Chef Ron areof Indian and Nepalese descent andthe authenticity of the cuisine is ap-parent with the first mouthful,which happened to be a soup ofsorts when we visited. The dish,which goes by the name Aaj KiDal (fresh lentils of the day), wasnot too spicy, not too salty, not toothick but bursting with flavor.

Next up we tried the BhunaGosht (braised lamb), which is apersonal favorite. Bhuna is not arecipe but a process similar to

braising where the meat is slowlysimmered with saffron, cinnamonand other spices, giving it a com-plex flavor and rich texture. Thisis slow-cooked but quickly eaten.

As this was a buffet, my plate alsocontained a large dollop of Murghmakhani (butter chicken) which isnot to be confused with ChickenTikka masala, which looks similarbut is a totally different dish hailingfrom the UK.

This dish has Punjabi origins,and, of all the spices added to thedish, it is the dried fenugreekleaves that give the characteristicflavor. Also on the long table wereappetizers such as Onion Bhajia,Vegetable Pakora, Saffron PullaoRice, Aloo Gobhi, Aloo Masala,Papadams, Cucumber Raita andMixed Pickles.

For dessert we had a few ballsof Gulab Jamu (an Indian dessertof solid milk balls soaked in rosewater syrup). Sweet!

As all dyed-in-the-wool expatsknow, the best beverage with a curryis ice-cold beer, and Les Anges hasextended its Happy Hour from 5pmto 9pm for diners who take part inthe Indian Buffet. This means two-for-one, or fifty per cent off, drinks –yet another reason to make Friday nightCurry night!

Les Anges Curry Nights are from7pm to 10 pm every Friday at RPM.Call Murat on 081-797 3364 or visitroyalphuketmarina.com. Note thatspecial discounts are available forlarge groups.

NAMASTE: Chef Paddam and Murat with their all-you-can-eat Indian buffet.

DAL-IGHTFUL: A rich and creamy lentil soup.

To make your own butter chicken you’d need all these spices.


‘In light of somany reports of

exams riddled withrepeated

ambiguities,grammatically

incorrect questionsand duplicate

answers, it doesn’ttake an Einstein tounderstand why somany test takers

fail.’

FOR the first time, the renownedStenden Rangsit University has in-troduced a unique scholarship pro-gram to Thailand.

The full or partial academicscholarships are open to outstand-ing Thai students to help reducethe financial burden and give stu-dents a chance to join theInternational Hotel Managementprogram in Bangkok with a DoubleBachelor’s degree upon gradua-tion (Thai and Dutch Bachelor ofBusiness Administration).

Students who meet all criteriacan apply for the scholarship pro-gram starting in September 2012.

To be eligible for the scholar-ship, applicants should bestudents in their last year of highschool with exceptional study re-sults and a strong motivation tostudy International Hotel Man-agement. The scholarship can lastfor the entire period of school-ing, depending on the studyresults. “With this initiative

Stenden strives to make high-quality, international educationmore accessible to Thai stu-dents,” General ManagerMaureen van der Meché ex-plained.

With all subjects being taughtin English and professors fromaround the world, Stenden offersan international standard of edu-cation. Students come from allover the world to study Interna-tional Hotel Management inBangkok.

Stenden Rangsit University ispart of a global network withcampus sites in The Netherlands,South Africa, Qatar and Bali. Withidentical curricula of InternationalHotel Management at any of thesecampus sites, Stenden studentsare can conveniently study abroadand gain even broader internationalexperience.

With global industrial net-works, students can also do theirinternship abroad and achieve a

ANYONE who intends to teachin Thailand’s primary and sec-ondary schools long-term bet-ter be aware of the Teachers’Council of Thailand (TCT) andtheir requirements for obtain-ing a teaching licence.

While it’s possible to teach fora few years on a temporaryteahing permit to teach, don’t ex-pect to teach legally for muchlonger while relying only on yourTESOL certificate and yourWestern looks.

In 2006, theT e a c h e r s ’Council ofT h a i l a n d(Khurusapah)passed theirlatest set of re-quirements forobtaining ateaching li-cense.

The decreestates thatteachers mustbe at least 20years old, holda degree in edu-cation or inother relatedfields accred-ited by theTCT, not possess any of the pro-hibited characteristics pursuantto section 44 of the Teachers andEducational Personnel CouncilAct B.E. 2003 and possess pro-fessional standards of knowledgeand experience.

The first requirement is straightforward and the fourth require-ment pertains to the ThaiLanguage, Culture and Ethics

Course, as well as having at leastone year of teaching experience.

The third requirement is am-biguous because the ‘prohibitedcharacteristics’ are defined as,having improper behavior or im-morality, being an incompetent orquasi-incompetent person, orhaving been sentenced to impris-onment which may bringdishonor upon the profession.Clear as mud?

Without defining what consti-tutes improper behavior,immorality, incompetence anddishonor, teachers are left hop-ing that common notions

regarding theseissues overlapthose held bythe TCT.

A m b i g u i t yaside, it’s thesecond require-ment thatdeserves themost attentionand can beviewed as an is-sue of the havesand the have-nots.

In order toautomaticallyqualify for theteaching license,an applicantmust fit into oneof the following

categories, hold an accredited de-gree in education or a related field,hold any accredited degree and apost-graduate diploma in educa-tion with at least one year ofstudy, or hold a degree and ateaching license from abroad,hold a teaching licence fromabroad without a degree but sub-mit proof of teaching experience.

If the applicant fits one of these

requirements they are exemptfrom taking the TCT’s Profes-sional Knowledge Tests (PKT).However, if the applicant simplyholds an accredited degree, lifeis not so simple and will requirethe teacher to take the PKTs.

The tests are comprised of ninedisciplines, which are spread outover four distinct sections. Eachsection, taken separately, contains150 multiple-choice questionswith five possible answers andmust be passed with a mark of50 per cent or higher. Tests havetypically been held twice a yearacross Thailand.

While 50 per cent seems a lowbenchmark, one must considerthe ambiguity of the questionsasked. Here’s a question fromSection 4 of the PKT: Who is re-sponsible for ensuring thatchildren attend school? (a) mother

Teachers too tested to teach

New Uni Scholarships

(b) father (c) parents (d) both aand b (e) the village head.

Surely answer (c) should read“guardian”, otherwise answers(c) and (d) are exactly the same.This is but one example of a testtaker’s pain when decipheringwhat the TCT deems a “correct”answer.

In light of so many reports ofexams riddled with repeated am-biguities, grammatically incorrectquestions and duplicate answers,it doesn’t take Einstein to under-stand why so many takers fail.

The TCT recently publishedthe results of their ninth roundof testing and the numbers arefairly alarming, none more sothan only three of 127 personspassing Test II. These numbersare similar to previous pass ratesfor this test. One would thinkthat after having repeatedly seen

such poor results, test writerswould consider the necessity ofrevision, yet no indication ofsuch action has ever been noted.

Of course the tests aren’t freeand sitting each section costs1,030 baht. Total revenue fromthe last tests administered wasnearly 500,000 baht (nearly 1 mil-lion annually). With more andmore schools coming into com-pliance with licensing for foreignteachers, TCT’s revenue fromthese tests is bound to rise.

Hubris, ineptitude, greed, whatever, the reasons for the tests’ dif-ficulty matter not.

What does matter is a timelyrevision of the tests so thatwell-meaning, hard-workingteachers spend less time wor-rying about their PKT scoresand more time educating theirstudents.

double degree with a study abroadat Stenden campus in the Neth-erlands.

“As the industry expands,graduates are working in a widerspectrum of positions than ever be-fore. Not only hotels, resorts orconvention centers, but also retail,banks or consultancy agenciesawait the skills from graduates ofHotel Management studies,” saidMaureen van der Meché.

Stenden Rangsit University’sInternational Hotel Managementprogram offers four intakes peryear. The scholarship program isopen for the September admis-sion only. The applicationdeadline for the scholarship pro-gram is July 1, 2012.

For more information contact:Jorrit van der Woude [email protected]: +66 (0)863 580 694www.stendenrangsit.com

– Phuket Gazette

OUTCLASSED: Foreign teachers are finding it difficult to remain in Thailand after a few years because of theTeachers’ Council of Thailand’s ambiguous testing procedure. Photo: Vistare Foundation


THE Phuket Health & Fitness Fes-tival, from May 11-13, is certainlyin good shape with even morespeakers confirmed for presenta-tions in the last week.

The festival program includesthree concurrent seminars, Satur-day morning, Saturday afternoonand Sunday morning, as well thekeynote presentation by Dr JohnHinwood on Sunday afternoon. Be-tween seminarpresentations, anumber of healthand fitness re-lated activitiesand displays willbe hosted atSerenity TerracesResort & Spa,M a n g o s t e e nResort &Ayurvedic Spa,and AtmanjaiWellness Center.

“Most Phuketresidents are notaware of the im-pressive array of world-classhealth and fitness practitioners thatare right on their doorstep,”Michael Massey, the spokesmanfor event organizers, the RawaiNaiHarn group, told the PhuketGazette. “We are very happy thatPhuket-based experts, Tim Rob-ins, Sylvie Yaffe, Ocean Bloom andTobi Warzineck, have committedto this festival.”

Tim Robins, who lives inPhuket, is Thailand's onlycertified Neuro LinguisticProgramming (NLP) andEmotional Freedom Technique(EFT) therapist. He has beenusing NLP and EFT for over 9years, working with members ofroyal families, celebrities andbusiness leaders from around theworld. Mr Robins believes thatNLP and EFT differ fromcounseling and psychotherapy,which he says focus on judgingand analyzing the past, becausethey focus on making real-timechanges within each session.

“By working with the uncon-scious mind and with the body’smeridian energy system it is pos-sible to let go of dysfunctionaland unsupportive thoughts andfeelings in a very short period oftime, in a pain-free and ‘effort-less’ way. So, for example, ifyou know you need to exerciseand you want to start to exer-cise, but you don’t, then asession of EFT can cut throughthe underlying beliefs andthoughts that are preventing youfrom making the changes youwish to make.’

Raw food consultant, SylvieYaffe, has lived in Phuket for thelast 11 years and is a consultantat Good Karma Thailand HealthFood Store. Passionate abouthealthy eating, she is a graduateof the Matthew Kenney Acad-

emy in the USA, the only classi-cally structured raw and livingfoods educational centre in theworld. Her aim is to educatepeople about the importance ofmaking healthier food choices,and paying attention to ingredi-ents.

“Because of my own relation-ship with food, I’ve always beeninterested in health and nutrition.

I eat an 80 percent vegetariandiet, and about50 per cent rawfood, which is aplant-based dietconsisting ofnuts, seeds,fruit and veg-etables, withnothing cookedover 42 degreesCelsius. It isguilt-free andevery ingredienthas nutritionalvalue.”

In 2010 she hosted a standingroom only workshop with celeb-rity raw food chef, Ani Phyo, inPhuket. It was so popular, sherecognized the need for an eas-ily accessible health food storein Thailand and so opened theGood Karma All Natural onlinestore.

It is generally believed thatThailand does not have the sametypes of products as those foundat health food shops overseas.Local products are often labeledas healthy and nutritious, but stillcontain sugar, high levels of so-dium or worse still, MSG, shesays.

Ms Yaffe discovered that thereare, in fact, a lot of great prod-ucts here in Thailand. They arejust spread out and not central-ized, including such specialtiesas organic soy sauce, sugar freedried fruit, petroleum freeshower gel, trendy new grainsand raw nuts and seeds. GoodKarma All Natural has unifiedthem into one location and addedthe convenience of online shop-ping.

Canadian born athlete OceanBloom will lead morning groupyoga sessions at the festival, onboth Saturday and Sunday. Shebrings a refreshingly sensible,holistic and personalized ap-proach to total health and fitness.Her programs have producedmany athletic champions andsupported countless individualsin accomplishing their personalhealth and fitness goals.

After winning several worldchampionship fitness competi-tions, Ms Bloom traveled to Asiato study Yoga, Ayurveda, Mar-tial Arts, Meditation and ThaiYoga Massage in order to designher signature “boot camps.” Shehas over 25 years of experiencein theater, film, dance, yoga,gymnastics, martial arts, andover 14 years as a fitness com-petitor, fitness model, nutritionalconsultant and internationalspeaker.

In addition to the morningyoga classes she will alsopresent a seminar on Hard CoreTraining during the festival.

Tobi Warzineck is a spiritualconsultant and counselor and isthe founder of the Phuket Medi-

tation and Retreat Center. He hastaught meditation in Phuket on adaily basis since August 2009.He also works as a spiritual con-sultant and life coach for spasand detox centers, such as theEvason Six Senses Spa and theAtmanjai Wellness Center.

He began his spiritual path in2002, when he entered the Cen-ter of Higher Tibetan Studies inSwitzerland. He spent nearly 7years in and close to an authen-tic monastic environmentstudying Tibetan Meditation,Language, Philosophy and de-bate as well as Rituals. Duringthis time he also undertook sev-eral meditation retreats under theguidance of some of the great-

Local gurus get inon the Fitness Fest

est contemporary masters of Ti-betan Buddhism. He continueshis studies under them today.

During the festival MrWarzineck will present a class dis-cussing the Theory of Meditation.

Tickets for the festival are availablefrom the following local businesses;91.5FM, Serenity Terraces, VijittResort, Mangosteen Resort,Friendship Beach Resort. Theregular ticket price is 2,200 baht foradmission to presentations andseminars and the festival party atSerenity Terraces on Saturdayevening. The early bird ticket price is1,900 baht. For more information,contact Michael Massey on 08 14125652, or visit rawainaiharn.com.

Tim Robins is Thailand's only certified Neuro Linguistic Programming(NLP) and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) therapist.

‘Most Phuketresidents are not

aware of theimpressive array

of world-class healthand fitness

practitioners thatare right on their

doorstep.’– Michael Massey


Murder amongthe witless oafsAMBER Dermont’s The Star-board Sea (St Martin’s Press,New York, 2012, 308pp) is proofpositive that you can cobble to-gether a first novel about a hand-some, rich, brooding teenagehero and his glamorous friendsin a posh WASP boarding schooland throw in a suicide, a mur-der, sailboat races and a hurri-cane and still be boring.

The year is 1986, the boardingschool isB e l l i n g h a mAcademy on theMassachusettscoast and thenarrator is JasonProsper, scion ofold wealth. Hehas beenexpelled from theelite KensingtonSchool and con-signed in his senior year toBellingham.

“Most of us who found our-selves in Bellingham had beenkicked out of better schools forstealing, or having sex, or smok-ing weed. Rich kids who’d gottencaught, had been given a secondchance, only to be caught againthen finally expelled... Becausethe school catered to thieves,sluts, and dope fiends, it was un-derstood that additionaltransgressions would be over-looked. If you could pay, youcould stay.”

Prosper’s ostensible crime atKensington was breaking thehonor code by cheating on a cal-

ALL A’BORED: Amber Dermont’s witless WASPs fail to ethuse, despitemurder, suicide and a spot of iffy weather.

culus exam. The real reason wasa scandal, which Prosper spends40 pages coyly brooding about be-fore letting the reader in on hissecret. His roommate Cal hadcommitted suicide by hanginghimself. Cal was his best friend

since the age offour. The two ofthem were fur-ther linked by apassion for sail-ing.

The problemwas their friend-ship turnedphysical and theywere in bed to-gether in their

room, when who should walk inbut Prosper’s father. After that,Prosper gives Cal the mean and si-lent treatment. After that, Calcommits suicide.

At Bellingham, Prosper’s newset of rich friends - Race, Taze,Kriffo, Stuyvie - are witless oafs.Race, the son of marina owners,has the saving grace of beingkeen about sailing. The sole brightpoint about Bellingham is thatfour years ago the academyturned co-ed and Prosper soonencounters the novel’s sole in-triguing character: Aidan.

Her Californian mother had beenan “orange grove heiress” and Hol-lywood insider. In Aidan’s room

hangs a pair of Fred Astaire’sdancing shoes and one of her threeprospective fathers was the actorRobert Mitchum. She, too, hastransferred from a more presti-gious school and Prosper’sfriends warn him that she is “dam-aged goods” after the violentconclusion to a lesbian romancewith her married art teacher. Sheis tall and thin, sharp-featured,with a mop of curly red hair, aneccentric dress sense, a mordantwit and a secretive air.

The two find a sanctuaryfrom the rest of the school in alocked reading room whereProsper plays the piano for Aidanand she teaches him aboutpoetry. Slowly they reveal moreand more about themselves, cul-minating in their confessions onenight aboard a yacht that hasbeen hauled ashore before a fore-casted hurricane.

There is supposed to be a hur-ricane party the next night atRace’s beachfront mansion butProsper sleeps through thestorm. Four days later, he is onthe beach watching Sikorskyhelicopters winch away threestranded yachts. Pinned beneathone is Aidan’s crushedbody. The official cause ofdeath is ruled suicide.

The dean and headmaster pro-duce a suicide note for Aidan’smother who arrives from Califor-nia. Prosper falls into morebrooding again.

“I couldn’t help but compareCal’s and Aidan’s deaths. Together

they were like a pair of binarystars, two lights so close and sobright they blended into one.”

But it slowly dawns on Pros-per, through clumsy clues thathis friends drop, that Aidan hadmet her death at the hurricaneparty at Race’s house. Prosperresigns himself to the fact thatthe rich never pay and ends histale with more sloppy senti-mentality about stars:

“I wanted to sail under our

‘Because the schoolcatered to thieves,

sluts, and dope fiends,it was understood

that additionaltransgressions would

be overlooked.’

shattered constellation. Aidanand Cal, my fellow privateers.The two of them giving off morelight, more warmth than I de-served.”

In her Acknowledgements atthe end of the book, AmberDermont thanks all the writer’sworkshops she’s attended, alongwith 56 individuals. This is theequivalent of a playwright tak-ing multiple curtain callsafter a lousy play.

The Avengers

SUPERHERO origin stories tendto tread a ponderous path, espe-cially when the hero or heroinein question has a vast and de-voted following. Should the di-rector dare to step an inch awayfrom the well-trodden canon, hecan be assured the sufferance often thousand sharpened blogsprodding at his posterity.

Joss Whedon may have actu-ally found the formula to avoidsuch a painful ride: let a bunch ofother directors do the origin sto-ries then pick up the baton oncethe heroes reach team-up time.

Whedon, who also took thescriptwriting lead on The Aveng-ers, has a fairly hefty followingof his own, built on such suc-cesses and Buffy the VampireSlayer and Firefly. It seemed un-likely he would be able to screwup something as by-the-num-bers as The Avengers.

But as wham-bam andwonderous as the movie’s setpieces are, Whedon takes oneeasy path too many by resurrect-ing Loki – Thor’s nemesis – asthis outing’s principal baddie.

Didn’t Thor dispatch thatnaughty fellow last year withouteven breaking a sweat? Why onearth would it take a whole bunchof the world’s top heroes to dealwith him this time around?

Only Jeremy Renner, in an un-derstated performance as themarksman, Hawkeye, brings any-thing new to the ensemble cast.But, really, do “understated” and“Marvel superhero” belong in asentence together, let alone amulti-million dollar movie?

Note to Mr. Whedon: We goback to watch the repeated ex-

cursions of Messrs Bat, Spider,Iron, and their ilk, not only be-cause we enjoy our heroes, butto see how they are challengedby a new panoply of baddieswith a fresh range of nefariousabilities.

The Avengers is fun andDowney jr gets all the best lines,but isn’t that what we have cometo expect? No surprises here.

Director: Joss WhedonStarring: Robert Downey, Jr.,Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo,Chris Hemsworth, ScarlettJohansson, Jeremy Renner,Samuel L. JacksonGenre: ActionPhuket Release Date: May 1


Saksri Kerdphol

About Thai GalleryThe individuals profiled in “Thai Gallery” are chosen on the basis oftheir contributions to Phuket as an international community, and, of-ten, for having made those contributions through successful social and/or working relationships with foreigners. This implies some foreignlanguage skills and an interest in interacting with different cultures. Theyare people who in our experience help make the lives of expats far moreenjoyable here than might be the case without them.

YOU may have seen her photos inthe society and lifestyle pages oflocal papers and magazines, andshe is indeed known for her senseof style and fashion.

Having had a long and estab-lished career in the hospitalitybusiness, Saksri Kerdphol nowbrings her expertise and grace tobear on the island’s new automo-bile enterprise. As general managerof Autoexpress Dot Com, Saksriexplains that her role includes run-ning PR events, taking care ofpublicity and heading what she re-fers to as a “formidable sales team”.

Therefore it comes as no surpriseto learn that since its opening, inDecember last year, this dealer andimporter of top-of-the-range Euro-pean cars, has already sold 170 cars.

When asked if the sales spikeswere due to her flamboyant andmagnetic personality, she answers:“I don’t think so, but I do makepeople feel at home and treat cus-tomers as friends. Apart from thatI know very little about the tech-nical specifications of a car!”

Saksri, who was born inAyudhya, hails from an illustriousfamily of renowned professionalmusicians and entertainers, andstatesmen. Her father heads a mu-sical ensemble patronized by HRHPrincess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn,who occasionally plays with theband. An uncle was bestowed a title

of ‘national artist’ for his servicesto the music tradition and is aniconic folk singer, well-knownthroughout the country. Her grand-father, Gen Saiyud Kerdphol, wasthe Supreme Commander of theRoyal Thai Army in the early 1980s.

Part of Saksri’s childhood wasspent in Ayudhya where she grewup with the tunes of traditional mu-sic being played and rehearsed mostof the day. The annual family cel-ebrations would be graced by folkopera (likae) and Thai musical en-semble (pipat) competitions. In thisatmosphere, Saksri learned to danceand fostered a love for music.

In contrast to this background,steeped in tradition and heritage,Saksri was sent to a Christianschool in Bangkok at a time whenWestern culture, notably of the USkind brought over by the presenceof the American soldiers duringthe Vietnam War, was making apresence in Thailand. Saksri’ssense of style and fashion seemsto have stemmed from that period.

“In my teens I loved clothes andin some way I was a fashion vic-

tim. I would sport anything from aTwiggy to an Afro hairstyle andlearned to rock ‘n’ roll and got awaywith dressing up wildly. I was defi-nitely part of the swinging Bangkokscene then,” recalls Saksri.

Her marriage to a Dutch hote-lier brought her to Phuket whereshe raised four children and entereda hospitality career working for tophotels on the island. Being a peopleperson, Saksri enjoyed relating toclients and the glitz and glamor thatcomes with the hotel business. Itsuits her personality, she says.

After a period of following herex-husband on his work assign-ments to various parts of the world,she came back to Phuket to start awine dealership. Today, apart frombeing GM at Autoexpress, sheheads California Wine, a companydealing in international labels, andis, according to Saksri, the largestdistributor in the region.

Yet, she refutes loudly the sug-gestion of being a Phuket socialite.“I got where I am today becauseof honesty and modesty. To quotemy friend, what you see is whatyou get with me. I am very downto earth and just an ordinaryworking mum.”

Today, Saksri still practices herlifelong passion of dancing andmusic to relax and unwind. She livesin Rawai with three of her children,is single, but ‘in a relationship.’


April 23 - 29, 6:30-10pm:Phuket Fish Market at DiVineRestaurant ThanyapuraThanyapura’s DiVine Restaurantgets adventurous by setting upthe first indoor fresh fish mar-ket. This month Chef Moo fea-tures the best fresh fish from thePhuket sea. Choose your favor-ite fish and have our experiencedchefs prepare them as you wish;grilled, steamed or fried to yourdelight with your favoritesauces. Available for dinner from6.30-10pm daily.For reservations, please call DiVineRestaurant at 076 336000, ext 5070.Email: [email protected] orvisit www.thanyapura.com.

April 28 to June 9, 7-8pm: NewExhibits by Somrak ManeemaiMom Tri’s Villa Royale GalleryNew work from famed Thai art-ist Somrak Maneemai. Somrak’slatest work “Lost in the Clouds”will be exhibited at the gallery.Somrak, who has a Masters inFine Art from Silpakorn Univer-sity, has had his work displayedin Australia, Thailand and in pri-vate collections worldwide. Hisprevious work “Red Gallery” waspraised by the New York Times,which also commended his RawaiArt Village’s work for its original-ity. Somrak also runs frequent art

May 1, Labor DayPublic Holiday

Is Windows driving you nuts? Looking for a good internet connection? Need to knowhow and where to get your PC repaired, or your confounding questions answered? Dropby the new Afternoon Computer Clinics, hosted by Woody Leonhard and Seth Bareiss.Bring your computer. Bring your questions. Bring your sense of humor and let’s see ifwe can solve your PC problems. Second and fourth Wednesday of every month, 1-3pm,at the Sandwich Shoppe Chalong. Sponsored by Woody’s Sandwich Shoppes and thePhuket Gazette.

Contact at 076-282403, [email protected] or visit KhunWoody.com

Free Computer Clinics atSandwich Shoppe Chalong - May 9, 16, 1-3pm

Sandwich Shoppe Patong - May 2, 1-3pam

Phuket Afternoon Computer ClinicPhuket Afternoon Computer Clinic

workshops for school childrenaround Phuket and teaches adultsand children privately.

April 28, 5-10:30pm: SeafoodChill and Grill at RE KÁ TASeafood Beachfront RestaurantEvery Saturday a seafood chill andgrill. Enjoy a succulent seafoodBBQ while listening to DJs spin-ning cracker tunes. 1,500++ bahtper person for food only and1,800++ baht per person includ-ing one bottle of wine for two.

April 28, 8:30pm: Salsa Nightat Royal Phuket MarinaAfter the overwhelming successof our Salsa Evening and bypopular demand, we are de-lighted to invite you to our nextSalsa Event at the Royal PhuketMarina. Dance the Cha-cha,Bachata, Samba & Rumba withthe sound of DJ live on theboardwalk outside “Les Anges”.Entrance is free and the dress iscolorful. For all reservations andinquiries please contact Anna &Didier on 084 051 7455 or MrMurat (Events & Group Man-ager) on 081 797 3364.

April 28 - 29, 5-9pm: WeekendMarket Phuket Boat LagoonMarina, Koh KaewBuy, sell and barter on an ever

expanding extensive variety ofgoods, food, etc. Or simply re-lax and enjoy the vast assortmentof other fun stuff we are puttingtogether for all ages. Nobody hasmore fun than at the soon to benumber one Weekend Market &Meeting Place in Phuket! Locatedwithin the conveniently situatedBoat Lagoon, with easy access,Toilet facilities and lots of freeparking. Individual cover boot(2x2m) with power facility avail-able for rent in dedicated zoneareas, 100 baht per day introduc-tion rate. Contact 088-7680471

April 29, 10am-3pm:Beachfront Brunch at RE KÁTA Seafood Beachfront Restau-rantEvery Sunday a BeachfrontBrunch. Enjoy a decadentbeachfront brunch buffet while

listening to the tunes from our in-house DJ and relaxing over a glassof sparkling wine. 1,200++ bahtper person for food only, and1,500++ baht per person with abottle of wine for two. Come with4-7 diners and pay 1 less; comewith 8-10 diners and pay 2 lessand so on.

May 1, Labor DayPublic holiday.

May 2, 6pm-1am: Tex-Mex atTwo Chefs KaronNow we start with our verypopular weekly Tex-Mex again.Every Wednesday we present foryou the biggest Tex-Mex buffeton this island. This year we alsohave a free flow option for you.As every night, our Two Chefshouse band will be there to enter-tain us. All this for only 495 baht,and for 795 baht you can drinkas much as you want from ourfree flow options. For more info,please visit us on the web.

May 4, 7-10pm: Indian Night at

Les Anges Royal Phuket MarinaPhuket’s best Indian buffet isback with a new chef and a newmenu. Every Friday, starting onMay 4. Special promotion at just449 baht net with a 10 per centdiscount on drinks! Reservationsare recommended. Call Mr Muratat 081-797 3364.

May 5, Coronation Day Public Holiday

May 5, 12-3pm: Saturday Brunchat Two Chefs Kata CenterEvery Saturday we are setting upour brunch buffet, filled to the limitswith home made delights. In oursmoke house, we smoke all of ourfish and meats by ourselves, andin the bakery we we bake all ourbread. With very well trained chefsand a Swedish head chef, we canpromise you that you won’t leavehungry or thirsty. All this for only395 baht, and if you add an extra300 baht you can choose to drinkwhat you want from our free flowalternatives. For more informationplease visit TwoChefs.com.

Columbia Trail Masters PhuketThis event marks a new sports experience for Phuket – trail running. The Columbia TrailMasters Phuket is the second episode of the 2012 Columbia Trail Masters ThailandChampionships. The first occurred in January in Kao Mai Keaw forest in Chonburi, andthe third will take place in July in Kao Kieaw, Phitsanoulok. The Phuket event, based atthe magnificent new Thanyapura Sports & Leisure Club, will comprise of a 21 km halfmarathon, a 10km run and a 3km fun run for children and adults who would just like to bewith them for the enjoyment of it. A post-race lunch will follow the trophy presentationceremony at about 10:30am. If taking in the stunning green scenery off-road on soft-earthen trails and making new friends appeals, then this is an event you should not miss.

Thanyapura Sports & Leisure ClubMay 6, 6:30am-12:30pm

Organized by AMA Events and hosted at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club, thisevent is proudly sponsored by the Phuket Gazette, The Nation, and PGTV.


GREEN DAY: The Imperial Adamas Beach Resort, Phuket organized a green event on April 22 called “The Imperial Serve the Earth” General Manager Mr Elyes Ben Brahim and his Managementteam organized the beach cleaning day together with hotel guests.

IT’S IN THE BAG: Actress ‘Bowie’ Atthama Chiwanichphum was in town to help launch TescoLotus’s cloth bags. From left: Actress ‘Bowie’ Atthama Chiwanichphum; Charkrit Direkwattanachai,Head of Public Affairs Tesco Lotus; Deputy gov Boonchai Cheepanarai; and the Operations Director.

SIXES MIXES: Phuket Sixes after party at St George’s River included Mark Dowsing, Matthew Devlin, AnthonySinclair, Jacquii Breen, Rebecca Gray, Daniel Brightwell and Emily Arthur all from Sidney.

HOSPITAL TRENDS: The International Conference on Trends in Emergency, Trauma, andDisaster Nursing was held at Bangkok Phuket Hospital on April 25.


Phuket Big Bike Week 2012 roars


Crossword answers on page 41

Provided by BestCrosswords.comUsed with permission.

Across1. Colleen5. Playwright Henley9. Melts together14. Baseball family name15. Mogul capital until 165816. Beethoven dedicatee17. Diamond cover18. Fly19. Book of maps20. URL starter21. Ill-omened23. Authenticating mark24. CIA forerunner25. Code-breaking org26. Blue books?29. Overlay with wood33. Pollen producer36. Pull laboriously37. Opposite of ecto-38. British buddy39. Cheer for Manolete40. Computer key41. Atop42. Bearded beast43. Boards44. Bloke45. Climbing rose47. Big brute49. Acknowledgment of debt50. Res ___ loquitur54. Luminiferous58. Stupid person59. Russian revolutionary leader60. Le Roi d’Ys composer61. Forearm bone62. Ready ___…63. French summers64. Jokes65. Honeybee66. Nothing more than67. Formerly, formerly

Down1. Wood strips2. Having wings3. A bit, colloquially4. Adding vitamins, say

B A

A Gazette staff member completed thismaze in 17 seconds. Can you can beat their

time? Make your way out of the maze.

Provided by Puzzlemaker.comUsed with permission.

TAURUS (April 21-May 21):A productive end to themonth is forecast forthose born under the

end of Taurus. The stars indicatethat a burst of fresh energy willmake it possible to accomplish allthat you set out to do this week.Those celebrating a birthday dur-ing the coming days will becomemore grounded in the year ahead.Sunday is a glowing day for ro-mance. Your lucky number thisweek is three.

GEMINI (May 22-June 21):Geminis should find iteasier to see what is re-ally going on in their

lives this week. Your tendency tosweep the truth under the carpethas been preventing progress, butthe month of May will bring a re-ality check. A power struggle witha fire sign midweek will leave youboth with better understanding inthe world of work. Number eightcan bring good fortune forGeminis at the end of April.

CANCER (June 22-July 23):This is an auspiciousweek for Cancerians toshow what they know

where work is concerned. An-other water sign is forecast tosuggest a scheme that could floatyour boat, but a quick answer will

be called for. May will be a monthto take some calculated risks,and the stars promise to backyour moves. Hot days for ro-mance are Wednesday andThursday. The number two lookspromising this week.

LEO (July 24-August 22):The stars suggest thatyour initial reaction tonews received this

week may be the wrong one.Another person’s loss shouldprove to be your gain by the middleof May. Leos who have recentlyfallen in love with an earth signare advised not to make commit-ments too quickly, as infatuationcan get in the way of seeing whatis really happening. Number sevenis special for Leos this week.

VIRGO (August 23-September 23):Virgoans are likely tomake a promise theywon’t be able to keep

this week. If this is concernedwith work, the stars show thatyou will find it difficult to wriggleout of the situation without los-ing face. Fortunate days formoney matters are Sunday andMonday. In the realm of ro-mance, playing it cool may notbe the best approach with a wa-ter sign. Your lucky number thisweek is nine.

LIBRA (September 24-October 23):Where finances are con-cerned, a wake-up callis forecast for those

born under the sign of Libra at theend of April. A quick responseshould ensure that you keep yourhead above water – Tuesday is themost auspicious day to take careof business. A romantic relationshipwith another air sign needs yourattention this weekend. The starsshow that number one can be im-portant for Librans.

SCORPIO (October 24-November22): Those Scorpioswho have been preoc-cupied with a health is-

sue will be glad of advice from afire sign this week. The stars ad-vise that May is an ideal time tomake changes to your lifestyle,with focus on more exercise. Yourluck in love remains high –expect to be showered withcompliments from another watersign this weekend. Scorpios areforecast to see that number fouris fortunate this week.

SAGITTARIUS (November 23-De-cember 21): Thingsaren’t quite what theyseem for Sagittarians

this week. Where work is con-cerned, this is not the right timeto stray from a trusted path. Thestars also advise that financialtransactions are subject to mis-takes being made midweek. Falseflattery from a water sign shouldbe simple to spot and will makeyou wary of this person. Numberthree is lucky at the end of April.

CAPRICORN (December 22-Janu-ary 20): The area offinances stays well-starred until the middle

of May, but hard work could betaking its toll, both mentally andphysically. Capricorns who havebeen feeling out of sorts could plana getaway after an invitation comesfrom another earth sign. Whereaffairs of the heart are concerned,a fire sign starts to give you a warmfeeling. The number six can bringgood fortune this week.

AQUARIUS (January 21-February19): Personal relation-ships fall under thespotlight as April gives

way to May. Allowing sour grapesto disturb a friendship with a firesign will be cause for regret. Inthe realm of romance, the stars

advise that heightened emotionsmay cloud your judgment wherean earth sign is concerned. Wearthe color charcoal gray to encour-age a more down to earth outlook.Aquarians lucky number thisweek is five.

PISCES (February 20-March 20):The wind of change isforecast to blow yourway during the month

of May – Pisceans should culti-vate a more open-minded attitudeto take advantage of opportunitiesthat will be available. Sizzling daysfor romance are Monday andTuesday when your way withwords leaves an air sign keen tohear more. Wear the color scarletto encourage prosperity. Numberfour has good luck written on itthis week.

ARIES (March 21-April 20):The stars suggest thattoo many irons in the firecould cramp your style.

It would be sensible to streamlinework projects and concentrate onthose showing most promise. Col-laboration with an earth sign can leadto success, but you will have toadjust your pace. Where affairs ofthe heart are concerned, an earthsign falls under your spell thisweekend. Number nine shines forArians this week.

5. Large woodwind instrument6. Self-centered person7. Cause light to pass through8. Last name in spydom9. Exploits10. High-speed separator11. Farm structure12. Biblical birthright seller13. Cong. meeting22. Glitch27. Actor Fernando28. Billiards rod30. Tolkien tree creatures

31. Logical beginning?32. Bereft33. Complacent34. Record with a VCR35. Lots and lots39. ___ roll40. Extra-wide shoe size42. Diver Louganis43. Sugar46. Hot water tank48. Florence’s ___ Vecchio51. Like some bears and icecaps52. Pop pieces53. As ___ resort54. Trudge55. German Mister56. ___ account (never)57. K-6


Disaster insurance

IN ORDER to make disaster insurancepolicies available, the Thai governmenthas created the National CatastropheInsurance Fund (NCIF), underwrittenwith 5 billion baht.

For an NCIF policy holder to makea claim, the damaged property mustbe in an area declared a disaster by theDepartment of Disaster Prevention andMitigation (DDPM). If the DDPM doesnot declare a disaster where your homeor business is, no claim can be made.

Different properties have differentpremiums, calculated as a percentage ofthe total coverage (sum insured),increasing from the lowest (forhomeowners) at 0.5 per cent, to the high-est (large scale industry) at 1.5 per cent.

NCIF policies are purchasedthrough private insurers.

Private homes have no deductible,but businesses may have a deductibleof up to 5 per cent depending on theplan and insurance company involved.A deductible is the amount the policyholder is required to pay before an in-surer validates a claim. All NCIFpolicies cover earthquakes, wind-storms and floods.

If not otherwise declared a disas-ter, to be covered an earthquake has to

INSPECTION: Officials survey a house in Thalang following the recent earthquake. Photo: Kritsada Mueanwong

be of a magnitude of at least 7on the Richter scale. In the caseof a windstorm, the wind speedhas to be 120 kilometers per houror greater.

If you own a home or have amortgage, you are eligible for anNCIF policy as an addition toyour primary insurance.

The minimum amount in-sured for all home-owners,regardless of home value, is100,000 baht, with a premiumof 500 baht per year. Althoughinexpensive, this is not likely tocover all the damage to a homefollowing a major flood.

Earthquake and windstormdamage can be claimed based onactual damages not exceeding100,000 baht. That means, if youhave damage as the result of anearthquake or windstorm youwould have to produce an item-ized list with the estimated valueof all damages.

You would be reimbursedbased on an insurance adjuster’sassessment of that damage.Flood damage is calculatedseparately for homeowners anddepends on the high-water markin a flooded home. The break-

down is as follows:All flooding below 50 centime-

ters will pay 30 per cent of theamount covered, so 30,000 baht.Reimbursement for flooding to awater level of 50 cm and above canbe calculated by simply adding theterm ‘per cent’ to the water levelmeasurement.

Therefore if the water level in yourhome is 87.5cm, you would be en-titled to 87.5 per cent of the 100,000baht policy limit, 87,500 baht.

As a general rule, NCIF policies

for business claims are based onactual damage as reported by aninsurance surveyor.

Depending on the insurancecompany involved, small to me-dium-sized enterprises (SMEs) cantake out multiple packages of upto 50 million baht but will not bepaid more than 30 per cent of thesum insured.

SMEs will have a premiumequal to 1 per cent of the sum in-sured up to 50mn baht.

Therefore, if you insure an

SME to the sub-limit, your yearlypremium would be 500,000 baht.

There is no cap on the amountof insurance that can be taken outby industry but premiums rise withthe total amount of insurance.

To qualify for purchasing the Ca-tastrophe Insurance Policy,businesses must first possess a fireinsurance policy or an industrial-all-risk insurance policy.

By Chris Hudon

A list of insurance providers that offerNCIF policies can be found here:www.ncif.or.th/en/ceding.html

PROPERTY28 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

What do you do when aproperty deal goes bad?WE DO not live in a perfectworld. If we did, I would notbother writing this column, andwould endlessly shuttle betweenmy vineyard in the South ofFrance and a ranch in the highplains of New Zealand.

But I would stop off in Phuketfor breaks at my villa on the beachin Natai, when time allowed, andpick up a box full of mangoes forthe road.

But there is no such perfection.For many property buyers whocome to this island’s shores whatwas expected to be their own per-sonal heaven, turns out into ajourney into hell. No ordinaryflaming down under for thesefolks – and yes, it’s worse thanbeing jumped by a gang of tuk-tuk drivers hopped-up on M150with a very bad attitudes.

Over the past three or fouryears, rarely does a month passesby without an email, call or some-one dropping into the office witha woeful tale about a tragic prop-erty transaction. Lately, there havebeen more than I can remember.

Failed launches, errant develop-

ers, contracts broken, moneyunreturned and often little to showfor paid up property, except forsome rusting metal rebars in de-caying concrete.

As I sit and listen, my mind flicksover to what we can term the firstdeadly sin.

My mouth lets out the words:“So who was your lawyer whohandled the due diligence and ne-gotiated the contract?”

Often times the silence is so stillI can hear my dog barking at homewhich is about three kilometersaway.

Buzz, wrong answer.Still an amazing number did

have some sort of legal advice, butin the wacky world of Phuketproperty, where for a decade for-eign buyers ruled the market,some deals have come unhinged.

In the boom days, condos werefew and far between, and the grayshroud of foreign ownership aswell as the relatively unrestrictedleasehold structures created aplethora of ownership hybrids.

Many developers did the bestthey could under the legal limita-tions, and there remains for themost part many satisfied buyers.But this article is meant to addressthe other side, those who have beenripped off or taken advantage of,

and left with little but a bad tasteof Phuket’s brand of paradise.

For some who contact me (andafter hearing their stories and see-ing the documents) I can’t helpbut feel a certain amount of loath-ing for the failure of some tosimply stand and deliver what waspromised. Goods in return formoney paid.

I spoke to the legal advisorDesmond Hughes about how buy-ers could address defaults. Hecited the Office of Consumer Pro-tection Board (OCPB) in Bangkokwhich covers consumers andnon-commercial investments incases such as condos, leaseholdapartments and villas.

Bangkok only covers the Met-ropolitan area, so in Phuket thereis a local office at the ProvincialHall. Complaints can be filed byindividuals whether legal advicehas been obtained or not.

In the case of properties thathave guaranteed returns, it re-mains subject to interpretationwhether these are property own-ership or investment issues and ifthe latter, then in many cases theseare referred to civil action.

Another legal eagle, JerroldKippen, suggests a practical solu-tion for new buyers; that contractsshould include a binding arbitra-tion clause. This allows forunbiased resolution. Having per-sonally attended cases in Bangkokat the Thai Arbitration Institute I’vebeen suitably impressed that thevenue provides an equitable forumfor buyer and developer disputes.

Kippen adds that both the Con-dominium Juristic Act (revised in2008) and the Consumer Case Pro-tection Act and Product Liability

Standing in the corrected line This week finds me at the front of the “stand cor-

rected line”. In last week’s Property Watch Column“Just Another 48 Hours” I referred to last year’ssummer camp shooting in Sweden. Of course, aswe know this was Norway. My apologies go out toany aggrieved Swedish readers. It’s a country I like,and I even used to own the world’s safest car – aVolvo. There was a reader’s comment about a ref-erence to a careless Greek cruise-ship captain, whichwas assumed to have been the Italian master of di-saster of the Costa Concordia. My point of referencewas actually in 1991, with the Greek liner YiannisAvranas. He was condemned around the world forleaving his passengers behind in a sinking ship. Yes,despite the Swedish gaff, Greece and Italy are notbedfellows in this turn of events. My number hasjust been called, so pardon me, I must be going…

Act (both from 2008) have techni-cally provided a clearer solution forproperty buyers. But in actual fact,as in many cases with governmentregulations, implementation on theground has been spotty.

Many things in Thailand areneither black nor white but fallssomewhere in between.

Long time legal personality SamFauma said that in many cases hisclients had seen little action by theConsumer Board, but suggestedthat the most effective course wasoften to file a civil court case cit-ing the Act itself. This seemingly

has met with more success.The bottom line at present is that

the aggrieved property buyersbest obtain competent legal coun-cil because the method of doing ityourself with the consumermechanism is not overly compe-tent at present. That given, thingsare changing and consumer rightsare moving ahead in the countryat a certain pace.

As for the search for a perfectworld, if things don’t work outthe way you expected, the nextbest step is to get the best legaladvice possible.

TOO LATE: Hindsight is a good thing, but it is best to get lawyer to handle the paperwork. Photo: Marko Marila

PROPERTYApril 28 - May 4, 2012 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E 29

Quakes did not shake the market

SHAKEN: Some house escaped with only minor damage and others had cracks.

By Orawin Narabal

THE Phuket-centered earthquakeon April 16 and its associated af-tershocks will not have a negativeimpact on real estate investment inPhuket, the head of Phuket RealEstate Association (P-REA) hasaffirmed.

P-REA President TananTanphaibul told the Phuket Ga-zette that the 4.3 Richterearthquake on April 16 and thenumerous aftershocks that shookparts of the island for the weekafter, did not cause any signifi-cant property damage.

“The quakes were minor andbased on small fault lines, so thedamage was minimal.

“According to information fromthe Phuket Tourist Association, theearthquake has not had negativeimpacts on foreign [sourced] tour-ism,” Mr Tanan said.

“They will continue to visitPhuket since they understand thatthe earthquake is a natural disasterthat can occur anywhere,” he added.

The thing they are more con-cerned about is the earthquakereadiness-plan of various organiza-tions in the province, such as

evacuation plans, traffic systemcoordination, and so on.

“I personally believe that theearthquake situation will not affectreal estate investment in Phuket,”he said.

“However, raising standards ofconstruction in order to be moreprepared for future earthquakes isan important thing that propertyowners need to take into consider-ation,” Mr Thanun added.

Thanusak Puengdetch, a com-mittee member of the PhuketChamber of Commerce said thatthe number of foreign investorsdeciding to start businesses inPhuket is constant, despite thedisaster scare.

The quake doesn’t play an im-portant role in their decisionmaking, he said.

“However, we can only see the[lack of]impacts in the short term.But if quakes keep occurring anddon’t seem to be stop, the invest-ment trends might change,” he said.

Speaking with the Gazette,Rachen Chokprasert, Officer ofPhuket Land Department echoedother officials: “The earthquakehasn’t affected selling or buyingproperty in Phuket.”

NOVOTEL, a leading internationalhotel operator in Thailand and theAsia-Pacific region, has announcedthe opening of Novotel Phuket Vin-tage Park, a newly built resort lo-cated in the heart of Patong Beach,just three minutes walk from theAndaman Sea.

In one of Phuket’s premier lo-cations, Novotel Phuket VintagePark is not far from the island’smajor shopping centers as wellas the lively nightlife of BanglaRoad in Patong.

Hervé Duprat, General Man-ager (GM) of Novotel PhuketVintage Park said: “Featuringcontemporary Southeast Asianarchitecture and modern design,this resort will appeal to guestswho seek comfort and serene re-laxation while just steps awayfrom the lively activities of thePatong area, making it a perfectchoice for leisure travellers”.

The newly built 303-room re-sort has a spacious, modern,colourful design, while maintain-ing relaxation and comfortthrough services and facilities.

All rooms are fully equippedwith a flat screen TV and freeWi-Fi internet access for guestswho plan to work in their rooms.

Leisure guests can enjoy the2,000-square-meter swimmingpool, or indulge in a well-beingbreak for massages, face andbody treatments, or the steamroom at Novotel’s signature spaand fitness centre “In Balance”.

Guests can enjoy the simplepleasures of all-day international

Novotel’s newesthotel is now open

and Thai cuisine at The SquareRestaurant, cocktails and snacksat The Lobby Lounge or freshfruit juices and light refresh-ments while dipping their feet atthe Velvet Pool Bar.

To accommodate meetingsNovotel Phuket Vintage Parkprovides three meeting roomsand a pillar-less ballroom, whichcan cater up to over 300 del-egates and is equipped withstate-of-the-art audio-visual sys-tems. Other hotel servicesinclude: a Kids Club, babysittingservices and an iMac internetcorner.

Novotel Phuket Vintage Parkis the 11th Novotel hotel in Thai-land and the second Novotelhotel in Phuket.

The Novotel brand has estab-lished itself as the leading 4-starbrand in Thailand, offering theperfect combination of relax-ation, modernity and efficiency.

For more information visit thewebsite novotel.com.

PROPERTY30 P H U K E T G A Z E T T E April 28 - May 4, 2012

Tip of the week

Plumeria detective work

TRACKING down a plant cansometimes take you on a wild-goose chase. Plants may lack theaerial acrobatics of a goose inflight, but they have their ownways of proving elusive.

Take one species of plumeria.This particular variety has been inmy garden for some time, not onlysafely grounded, but displaying itsplumage. But what was elusiveabout this shrub wasits correct name.None of my books,and nothing on theweb, definitivelyidentified it. Buttoday, I finally gotthere. At least I think so…

I had known for some time thatthe local name was leelawadeelook-sorn. Look-sorn means ar-row, and certainly the foliage isarrow-like, with bright green,wavy edged leaves, very narrowat the stem joint (axil), whichbroadens out to resemble an ar-

row flight at the end. It is quitedifferent from the normal plumeria(or frangipani), which has muchlarger oval-shaped leaves, but to-day, I discovered that it does havea botanical name as well –plumeria pudica.

Pudica is unique in other ways.Young plants have an erect habit:the leaves grow in alternate spi-rals up straight, green stemswhich bear no resemblance to theopen, grey-branched form ofplumeria obtusa or rubra, the twomost common species.

However, what does mark theshrub as a member ofthe family is the inflo-rescence, a largecluster of white flow-ers with creamycenters, which ap-pears at the top of the

main stems.There is another similarity.

Break off one of the leaves (theshrub exhibits the same brittlenessas its relatives), and it will exudea toxic, milky sap, characteristicof the genus.

Is it worth growing? Certainly.It is deservedly popular with Thai

gardeners, and does well in a con-tainer. I am currently growingtwo new acquisitions, one installedin a pot and the other in openground. It will be interesting to seewhich fares better.

Scarce in plant centers, thereis a plentiful supply of healthyspecimens in a small nursery nearthe end of Soi Samakee Two – ifyou happen to live in the Chalongor Rawai area. Pudica is, more-over, easy to grow, the blooms lasta long time and the leaves are ev-ergreen. There is even a new pinkcultivar on the market – or so mysecret informant tells me...

It seems I am unable to takeflight from plumerias today. Karsrecently wrote to me to describea disease which is currently af-flicting his own frangipanis. Hesays that the undersides of theleaves are discoloring and turningbrown before dropping off.

The problem, I’m afraid, is aworld-wide one, and seems to af-flict plumeria rubra more severelythan plumeria obtusa. Red, pink andmulti-colored cultivars are derivedfrom this latter species, so I imag-ine these are what Kars has in hisgarden. Rubra is also more proneto leaf-drop than obtusa, which hasmore rounded leaves and normallyproduces only white flowers.

Plants are like people, in thattheir immune systems workmore effectively when they arehealthy. Indeed, prevention, notcure, is always a maxim worthobserving.

Try feeding your plants with aphosphate rich fertilizer – say 10-20-10 – which can be obtainedfrom the only retail outlet I know

SINCE we are considering smallornamental trees, it seemsappropriate to review the topic ofpruning.

With trees or shrubs, the pro-cess will generally help to maintainplant health (removal of diseasedor dead branches), to direct growth(pruning out wayward branches),

to increase flowers or fruit or tocreate hedges or topiary.

Always cut back to a part thatwill continue to grow – in thecase of a tree, normally to a mainbranch. In the case of plants thatsend up stems from the roots(cannas, heliconias,), cut rightback to the root stock after

PICK A FLOWER: Plumeria or Frangipani come in many hues and some are more fragrant than others. Photos: Forest and Kim Starr, Atamari, Craig.photog and Yimhafiz.

that specializes in such products,situated on the old airport road afew hundred meters south of Su-per-Cheap. The proprietor mayhave in stock a liquid with a cop-per sulphate base, which can beapplied immediately. But remem-

‘But what waselusive about thisshrub was itscorrect name...’

A little more on pruning your bush

ber that plumerias do lose theirleaves and cease blooming duringperiods of dormancy, and thatrubra is especially prone to goquiet for a while.

It has not taken flight, it’smerely taking a break.

SHOOTING STRAIGHT UP: A young leelawadee look-sorn also known asPlumeria pudica which has finally been identified. Photo: Webbaliah

flowering.With shrubs or trees that fea-

ture alternate buds, make adiagonal cut with secateurs 1 to 2centimeters above a single bud.But if there are pairs of shoots orbuds on either side of the stems,make a straight cut across andabove the two buds.


PropertiesFor Sale

Looking for land to buy?See more classified ads

at www.phuketgazette.net

MODERN POOLVILLA

Stunning 3-bedroom poolvilla, 5 mins from Laguna.600sqm plot in peaceful lo-cation. Finished to a veryhigh specification. Mustsee. Selling price: 12.9million baht. Tel: 084-9949303. Email: [email protected]

CONDO ATROYAL PLACE

Condo at Royal PlaceProject, bypass road, oppo-site Tesco Lotus. 37sqm, 2fl,1 bedroom, 1 bathroom,kitchen, fully furnished (2aircons, washing machine,refrigerator, TV, microwave,cable TV, 24 security withkey card etc). Pls contactfor more details. Tel: 089-469 1813, 086-476 9612.

CONDO INSUPALAI PARK

for sale. Near Seng HoBookstore in PhuketTown. Studio 30sqm,floor 15,seaview, aircon,furnished. Price: 1.9 mil-lion baht. Ready to movein July 2012. Tel: 089-472 9118.

TOP SEAVIEWNAI HARN

Fully developed, 1,250sqm,40m above sea level,Chanote, additional avail-able, construction permits.Private more information. Tel:087-298 0200. Email: rwberger00@hotmai l .comWebsite: www.phuket-seaview-land.com

HOUSE IN PATONG

Newly built 40sqwah, nearSea Pearl project, Patong.2 stories, 3 beds, 2 bath-rooms, fully furnished, 2aircons, kitchen with hood,refrigerator, dining room, liv-ing room, hot water, cableTV and internet. Tel: 089-469 1813.

TOWNHOUSEIN KOH KAEW

Corner unit, 3 bedrooms, 3bathrooms, fully furnished.3.5 million baht. Tel: 089-472 9118.

NAI HARN LUXURYCONDO

2 bedrooms, 2 bath-rooms, 111sqm. From 4.5million baht. Must see.For further details, pleasesee our website at www.amphaiseabreeze.comTel: 084-993 7308.

ONE-BEDROOMSEAVIEW CONDO

Unity 2 on the hill, 500m frombeach, 4.35 million baht, 1.1million baht down, take overconstruction progress pay-ments. Email: [email protected]

LAND NEARMISSION HILLS

Pa Khlok. 2 rai 32sq wah,60m wide. Chanote. Locatedon Tha Ruea-Pa Khlok-Muang Mai Rd. 11 km fromHeroines' Monument. Price:7.8 million baht. Tel: 089-4729118. Email: [email protected]

3 RAI LAND IN TRANG

For sale. 3 rai in Baan Po,Muang, Trang. Very good lo-cation for business, suitablefor house projects. Electricity,access road. Sale by owner.With Chanote. Price: 9 mil-lion baht ono. No agentsplease! Tel: 075-210646,087-270 9093.

PHUKET VILLACONDO PATONG

New condo. 1km to beach,near Bangla Rd and Jung-ceylon, 1 bed, 1 bath, fullyfurnished. 3.9 million baht for42sqm and 3.8 million bahtfor 44.5sqm Tel:081-5412025. Email: [email protected]

MODERN HOUSE 3 OR4 BR IN KATA

Good location with seaview andgood Feng Shui. Private house,big swimming pool, near fruitmarket, supermarket, restaurant,club bar and 7 minute drive to Kataand Karon Beach. Tel: 086-7837873 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

UNIQUE OPPORTUNITYA 2-bed villa in Royal Estate offer-ing the security of a small, private,gated community complete withclub house and swimming pool allbeautifully maintained and wellmanaged. Tel: 076-288560, 085-021 9536 (English). Email: [email protected]

LAND ATCHERNG TALAY

390sq wah, nice flat land, quietarea, Chanote. In Pasak Soi 5near Laguna Home. Price: 6 mil-lion baht. Tel: 089-472 9118, 086-709 2933.

ROOM FOR SALE620,000 baht. Fully fur-nished, ready to move in,Chao Fa Road, only 15minute to Central Festival,10 minutes to Chalong andRawai. Tel: 086-329 0705.Email: [email protected]

HOUSE & FURNITURESingle house, 60sqm. 2 floors,3 bedrooms and 3 toilets. InChaiyapruek Village at Land &Houses Park, Chalong. Goodlocation and entrance from by-pass road. Built 2 years ago. Tel:084-627 7001.

KAMALA HOUSELEASEHOLD

18 years left, 300sqm, 3 bed-rooms, 3 bathrooms, aircon,furnished, sundeck, carport,photos available. Price: 3.75million baht. Rent 32,000 bahtper month for 6 months rent.Tel: 084-716 0502.

LAND NEAR KATACENTER

Great location, road access, 5mins to Kata Beach and mainroad, 1,450sqm with title deed.Contact Lychee. Tel: 081-8913048 (Eng & German).

LAND FOR SALENear the main road to BaanDon-Cherng Talay. 68sq wah.1.1 million baht. Tel: 089-4729118. Email: [email protected]

30 RAI IN TOWNFlat land near DowroongSchool in Phuket Town. Tel:081-691 2526.

HOUSE FOR SALE INBAAN PROMPHAN

2.5 floors, 5 mins to town, 2bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, Goodfor stay! 2.85 million baht. Tel:083-506 9155. Email: [email protected]

PRIVATE SALE OFHALF A RAI

At Ao Makham. Land is locatedopposite Port of Phuket andnext to Bel Air Cape PanwaResort. Price 4.2 million. Tel:081-891 5932, 089-035 6702.

VILLA PATONGSuper seaview villa in Patongwith 4 bedrooms and 4 bath-rooms. Freehold. Comes withChanote title. 23.5 million bahtor rent US$500 per night. Tel:086-982 2888 (English & Thai).Fax: 076-374882. Email: [email protected] Website:www.youtube.com/watch?v=RS1z9EB7ii0

RAWAI POOL VILLA3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3aircons, 8x4m pool, 400sqmland, furnished. Price: 5.5 mil-lion baht. Contact Hockey(owner). Tel: 084-852 4091.

PHUKET VILLASUAN LUANG

Urgent sale. 65/474, 67.5sqwah, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms,living room, kitchen, car park.Price: 4.9 million baht. Tel: 081-536 5755, 089-729 6244.

LAND FOR QUICK SALEYamu 0.75 rai (x2) Mission Hills1 Rai. Offers invited. Tel: 081-087 9237 (English & Thai), 086-270 8727 (English). Email:[email protected] For moreinfo visit http://phuketlandforsale.net

HOUSE FOR SALEAT CHERNG TALAY

Permsap Villa, 4 bedrooms and3 bathrooms. Fully furnishedwith big lawn and sports club.Price 8.9 million baht. Tel: 02-5855086, 085-515 6714 (English &Thai), 082-457 4051 (English &Thai). Email: [email protected]

OCEAN VIEW LANDBANG TAO

Over 1,000sqm, road, utilities,river, waterfall. 4.9 million baht.Tel: +1-509-561-0055. Email:[email protected]

MAGNIFICENT THAIRESORT

property for sale on KohMaphrao, Phuket. Stunning,rarely-found plot of land for salelocated on Maphrao Island,Phuket, from where you, inclear weather, can see thelovely islands of Koh Yao Yaiand Koh Phi Phi. Fantasticpiece of real estate for sale inPhuket. Thailand. Ideal prop-erty for investment or a secretretirement plan. The land prop-erty for sale has a total area of90,000sqm with TorBor 5 andmain services (road, waterand electricity). Stunning Thaibeach property in Phuket forsale at 5 million baht per rai.Tel: 080-691 9094. Email:[email protected]

2-BUNGALOWCOMPLEX

2 bedrooms to each bungalowand all bedrooms ensuite,Pool, fully secured electrifiedwall. Viewing strictly by ap-pointment. Tel: 076-315216,081-187 6940 (English). Email:[email protected]

GREAT YAMU HILLSSea view land, Chanote, 1.35rai. Price: 4.5 million baht per rai.Reply to [email protected]

KATA BEACH HOUSE3 level, 4 or more bedroomsmust sell, quick moving. 3.3million baht. Tel: 081-303 2202.

LAYAN 4 BEDROOMPOOL VILLA

Furnished, modern style villa on900m2 plot, available April, longterm only. Tel: 076-391445, 084-305 4333 (English), 087-386 3388(English & Thai). Fax: 076-391445. Email: [email protected] For further details,please see our website at www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.137135652995390.12164.137133126328976&type=1


Classified ads are charged per line. Each line is 120 baht,

with a minimum of 4 lines (heading included) per ad.

All advertising must be paid for in advance.

Deadline for Property Gazette page: Friday 3 pm.

Deadline for all other ads: Saturday 12 noon.

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Classified Advertisements

Please use this form to write your classified advertisement.

Then hand it to any of our agents.

Looking for land to buy?See more classified ads


MODERN-STYLEVILLA

Nai Harn. 3 bedrooms, 4bathrooms. Quick sale,we are moving July 1.Priced for quick sale, only8.5 million baht. Tel: 089-811 5017, 086-691 9047.

EXCEPTIONALVALUE IN BKK

Large house in SukhumvitSoi 54. 24 million baht. 104sq wah, 6 bedrooms, 5 bath-rooms, 2 kitchens, 2 livingareas, office, conferenceroom, fitness room, largestoreroom, laundry room.Quality fixtures & fittings.Space: 600sqm. Parking for5 cars. Flood free. Email:[email protected]

HOUSE IN KAMALA

For sale. 2 houses on land.1 ngan 89sq wah. Chanotetitle, near mountain, peace-ful and safe, 10 minutesfrom the beach. 7.5 millionbaht direct from owner. Tel:083-180 2143. Email: [email protected]

SEAVIEW LANDIN AO MAKHAM

For sale. Chanote title, easyaccess in and out with con-crete road. Price: 12 millionbaht per rai. No agents! Tel:087-270 9093.

NICE ANDSPACIOUS HOUSE

In Heritage project, Kathu.2 floors, fully furnished, 3bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 1maid room. 234sq wah. 18million baht. Tel: 081-8920190 (Warit), 089-6464823 (Rattana). Email:[email protected]

2-STOREY HOUSEIN PATONG

Sea view. 50 Pi Road, 49sqwah. 4 bedrooms with bal-conies, 2 bathroom, aircon,fully furnished. Chanote.Price: 17 million baht ono.Tel: 087-270 9093. Email:[email protected]

SINGLE HOUSEFOR SALE

In Thanapa Park View vil-lage in Koh Kaew. 57sqwah, with 2 bedrooms, 2bathrooms, a kitchen, acarpark and a garden.Price: 2.4 million baht. Con-tact owner. Tel: 083-1802143. Email: [email protected]

TOWNHOUSEIN PATONG

On Nanai Road. 2 storeys,112.5sqm, 2 bedrooms, 2bathrooms, bathtub, built-incabinets, kitchen, aircon andcar park. 1km to Patongbeach, near Bangla Roadand Jungceylon. Price 5.5million baht or nearest offer.No agents! Tel: 087-2709093.

HOUSE IN PHUKETVILLA 5 FOR SALE

46sq wah, furnished, 3 bed-rooms, 2 bathrooms, 3aircons, carpark. Only 3.5million baht. Tel: 081-7877675.

PA KHLOK HOUSEFOR SALE

59sq wah, 3 bedrooms, 1bathroom, European kit-chen. Fully furnished, withcommon pool. Price: 2.9million baht. Tel: 081-7191041. Email: [email protected]

NICE HOUSE88SQ WAH

4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms,3 aircons, sofa, cable TV.Near Jomthong Village onKhwang Rd. 6.5 million baht.Tel: 086-774 2034. Email:[email protected]

CHEAPLANDFORSALEClose to Phuket Interna-tional Airport. 4 rai, Chanotetitle. 3.8 million baht per rai.Tel: 081-868 7676. Email:phuketann @gmail.com

PRIVATE POOL VILLAS6.5MB

Limited offer from developer - 4plots for sale 6.5 million and7.5 million. 3 bedrooms, privatepool, 500m to Rawai Beach,gated project. Tel: 085-5753300, 086-574 2815. Email:[email protected] For further de-tails, please see our websiteat http://phuket9.com

HOUSE FOR SALENear British International School.5-bedroom pool villa, 600/1,000sqm. 22 million baht ono.Tel: 084-185 4746.

HOUSE SALEIN KATHU

3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms,290sqm. Good locationnear Lotus and Patong.Fixed price: 4.9 million baht.Tel: 086-037 0751.

4.9 MILLION POOLHOUSE

with 2 bedrooms, located Rawai.Land 272sqm, 2 storey, modernstyle, 3 bathrooms, fully fur-nished, high wall camera. Email:[email protected]

BEACHFRONTFOR SALE

3 bedrooms, 2 living rooms,private pool, big sala on thebeach. Great price. Tel: 088-1685032.

SOI SANSABAI2-BED CONDO

Outstanding location, G/F,Foreign freehold, 80sqm. 4.25million baht. Tel: 086-075 6715.Email: [email protected] further details, please seeour website at http://bjparkcondo.weebly.com/

VIEW POINT29 rai, Chanote, view point landon Lone Island, Phuket for sale.Seaview to Chalong, AoMakham, Nai Thon, Phi Phi,Coral and Racha Islands. Tel.090-493 8719.

SPACIOUS AND INGREAT LOCATION

Lovely, 4 beds, 4 baths, with pooland sala, located in Baan SuanLoch Palm, 5 mins to golfcourses, 10 mins to Interna-tional schools and 15 mins toPatong & Central. Asking price15.9 million baht. Contact Jen.Tel: +61-8-6161 2691, +61-4-592 2900 (English), +61-46-831 5377 (English & Thai).Email: [email protected]

KOH YAO NOI11rai 78sq wah, waterfront, un-obstructed seaview, Chanote.Tel: 080-144 7801. Email:[email protected]

KRABI LANDAND HOUSE

1 rai, 2 bedrooms good locationfor 3.2 million baht. Tel: 084-0566067.

BARGAIN LAND RAWAIWalled level, plot 620sqm. 4.3million baht. 100m from NaiHarn Rd. Tel: 085-782 7551.

APARTMENT WITH CARAND MOTORBIKES

2 bedrooms, fully furnished,hot shower, aircon, satellite TV,internet, car park. For sale: furni-ture and car (Daihatsu Mira) & 2motorbikes (Honda) 100,000baht. Tel: 087-265 0652 (En-glish). Email: [email protected]

SEAVIEW HOUSESWITH POOL

Luxurious 600sqm build, 250internal, 3 storeys with lift. From12.5 million baht. Tel: 081-9684230 (English & Thai), 081-9684807 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected] further details, please seeour website at www.chalongresidences.com

CHARMING HOMEAND POOL

Private hillside, 15m pool, lushgarden, 3 bedrooms, 4 bath-room, office, full kitchen. Newcondition with quality furniture.Freehold, secure and nice. Tel:076-388 236, 089-727 5407(English). Email: [email protected] For furtherdetails, please see our websiteat www.villa-sale-phuket.com

PATONG CONDOFurnished living room, 1 bed-room, kitchen, pool, fitness.50 sqm x 70,000 baht = 3.5million baht. Tel: 081-8177886 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

BEACHFRONTFOR SALE

3 bedrooms, 2 living rooms,private pool, big sala on thebeach. Great price. Tel: 088-1685032.

OCEAN VIEW LANDBANG TAO

Over 1,000sqm, road, utilities,river, waterfall. 4.9 million baht.Tel: +1-509-561-0055. Email:[email protected]

CHALONG NEW HOUSESale 2.2 million baht or rent12,000 baht/month. ContactJai on 089-817 4864.


PropertiesFor Rent

KAMALA APARTMENT

Fully furnished with kitchen,ready to move in. Starts at18,000 baht/month. Con-tact Mr Joke. 088-751 3066.Email: [email protected]

FULLY FURNISHEDHOUSE

2-storey house 3 bed, 3 bathnear Ao Makham. Tel: 081-8924311. 20,000 baht/month. Forfurther details, please see ourwebsite at http://panwagreen.weebly.com

CONDO ATROYAL PLACE

Condo at Royal PlaceProject, Bypass Road, op-posite Tesco Lotus. 37sqm,2fl, 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom,kitchen, fully furnished (2aircons, washing machine,refrigerator, TV, microwave,cable TV, 24 security withkey card etc). Pls contactfor more details. Tel: 089-469 1813, 086-476 9612.

2-BEDROOMHOUSE, BANG TAO

2 bedrooms, 2 bath-rooms, kitchen, terrace,living room, parking, fullyfurnished, cable TV,internet, aircons, hot wa-ter. Only 5 mins to SurinBeach, Bang Tao Beachand Lotus Cherng Talay.Tel: 089-470 7488. Email:[email protected]

HOUSE AT PRIMEPLACE VILLAGE

near Heroine Monument. fur-nished, cable TV, kitchen.Tel. 086-607 7493.

HOUSE IN PATONG

Newly built 40sq wah, nearSea Pearl project, Patong.2 stories, 3 beds, 2 bath-rooms, fully furnished, 2aircons, kitchen with hood,refrigerator, dining room, liv-ing room, hot water, cableTV and internet. Tel: 089-469 1813.

TOWNHOUSEIN KOH KAEW

Corner unit, 3 bedrooms, 3bathrooms, fully furnished.3.5 million baht. Tel: 089-472 9118.

HOUSE FOR RENTIN CHALONG

Longterm 6,000 baht permonth. 1 beroom, 1bath-room, kitchen, carpark.Contact Nina. Tel: 089-7296244. Email: [email protected]

HOUSE FOR RENTIN CHALONG

Longterm 10,000 baht permonth. 1 beroom, 1bath-room, kitchen, carpark.Contact Nina. Tel: 089-7296244. Email: [email protected]

HOUSE PHUKETTOWN

Dowroong Villa, Chao FaEast Rd. 2 bedrooms, 2 bath-rooms, living room, West-ern-style kitchen, air condi-tioning, furnished, internet,sala, parking. Clubhouse withpool and tennis, garden forchildren. Security guard.12,500 baht per month. 1year minimum rental. 2months deposit required. Tel:086-271 0557. Email: [email protected]

PA KHLOKBUNGALOWS

2 bathrooms, fully furnished,com pool. Please call formore informations. Tel: 081-079 7121, 086-268 8926.

CONDO PATONGStudios and one-bedroomapartments for rent at PhuketPlace and Patong Tower. Tel:081-892 1621.

POOL VILLA CHALONGFully furnished, private pool, 3beds/baths. Tel: 089-729 1968,081-970 5940 (English). Email:[email protected] For furtherdetails, please see our websiteat www.villaprana.com

PATONG CONDO58sqm, fully furnished, aircon,internet, cable TV. 16,000 baht/month. Tel: 081-891 3740.

LUXURY CONDOPATONG

2-bedrooms, 2-bathrooms, fullyfurnished condo, overlooksswimming pool. Prefer longterm tenant. Available now.Tel:084-523 1714 (English). Email:[email protected]

KATHU CONDO58sqm, fully furnished, aircon,internet, cable TV. 9,000 baht/month. Tel: 081-891 3740.

KATA SEAFRONTLUXURY APT

1 bedroom, 5-star, spa, gym,ADSL, quiet with views. Greatprice! Email: [email protected] For further details, pleasesee our website at www.katasala.com

LONG-TERM RENT1-2 bedroom, furnishedhouses, beautiful garden,Chalong area 10,000 baht permonth. Tel: 081-892 4311.

B.L. APARTMENTNew in Kathu. Big rooms, 1 bed-room, 1 living room, aircon, cableTV, ADSL, hot shower, garden,and car park. Rent: 7,000 bahtper month. Tel: 081-692 3163.

ONE UNIT PATONGOne bedroom unit Patong.Fully furnished, aircon, cableTV, WiFi and power topviewand quite 20,000 baht permonth. Contact Phtam 082-271 4487.

PATONG1+2 BEDROOM APTS

Luxury apartments with freeWiFi, maid, big pool, security,cable TV. Close to town. 22,000baht per month and up. Tel: 080-052 8082 (English). Email:[email protected]

BUNGALOW, RAWAI9,000 baht, fully furnished,kitchen, WiFi, TV. Tel: 086-2790837. Email: [email protected]

KATA HILL HOUSEFOR RENT

Fully-furnished 2 bedrooms, 2bathrooms, aircon, living, din-ing, kitchen, car park, internetand cable TV. Price16,000baht per month. Tel: 081-6062827 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

CHEAP KAMALA3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms,kitchen, terrace, fully furnished,free cable TV and internet, 2aircons. Long-term rent: 15,000baht/month. Email: [email protected]

PATONG CONDOPRIVATE RENTAL

1 and 2 bed available, 800mto beach, fully furnished,swimming pool, gym, park-ing, WiFi, cable TV, parking.Tel: 085-069 0938. Email:[email protected]

ROYAL PLACE CONDO1 bedroom, fully furnished, park-ing, swimming pool, 2nd floor,peaceful. Tel: 085-069 0938.Email: [email protected]

KATA PHUKET

Apts & pool penthouses.1, 2, 3-bedrooms, few minswalk to 2 beaches, freeWiFi. Email: [email protected]

APARTMENT FORRENT

Patong Condotel, 1-year con-tract, 14,000 baht per month. 1bedroon, 1 living room, diningroom with kitchen, fully fur-nished. Tel: 081-536 7985.

ROOM FOR RENT20,000 baht monthly long-term.basis, fully furnished, TV, aircon,fridge, toilet. Other facilities:swimming pool, pool table, bar,restaurant. Patong, Phuket. CallCarla. Tel: 081-968 5963.

CHEAP KAMALA3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms,kitchen, terrace, fully furnished,free cable TV and internet, 2aircons. Long-term rent: 15,000baht/month. Email: [email protected]

THAI VILLA AND POOLNai Harn, low season. 40,000baht per month. Tel: 081-2705126. Email: [email protected]

LUXURY POOL VILLADesigned for comfort, has ev-erything. Near Laguna. Lease22,000 baht/month. Tel: 089-594 4067.

APARTMENTON THE BEACH

Paradise location ,1-bedroom,ground floor,Thai style with modcons, just south of airport. Evenhas a real tree in the livingroom.Can be yours from 11 April toend December. Think sunrisewalks/sunset strolls/swimming/seafood restaurants with yourfeet in the sand. All for 20,000baht per month. Call now 087-267 5376 (English). Email:[email protected]

LAYAN 4-BEDROOMPOOL VILLA

Furnished, modern-style villa on900sqm plot, available April,long term only. Tel: 076-391445,084-305 4333 (English), 087-386 3388 (English & Thai). Fax:076-391445. Email: [email protected] For furtherdetails, please see our websiteat www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.137135652995390.12164.137133126328976&type=1

BEAUTIFUL RAWAIVILLA

Luxury two bedroom, two bath-room pool villa in quiet inland retreatnear Rawai and Nai Harn. Dis-counted from 9.5 million to 8.25million baht for quick sale. Avail-able for rent at 55,000 per monthincludes hi-speed internet. Tel:084-837 9403. Email: [email protected]


Classified ads are charged per line. Each line is 120 baht,

with a minimum of 4 lines (heading included) per ad.


Deadline for Property Gazette page: Friday 3 pm.

Deadline for all other ads: Saturday 12 noon.

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Classified Advertisements


Then hand it to any of our agents.

Looking for land to buy?See more classified ads at www.phuketgazette.net

PropertyServices

HouseholdItems

HolidayHomes & Villa

Rentals

HouseholdServices

AccommodationWanted

AccommodationAvailable

PropertyWanted

RENOVATION &HOUSE REPAIRS

Renovations. House re-pairs. Construction. Molddecontamination. English,Swedish, German and Thai-speaking personnel. We al-ways offer free quotationsand warranty on work per-formed. Tel: 083-394 8337(English), 080-141 4577(English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

PRO SERVICEAND RENOVATE

- Water leaks- Sanitation- Sinks- Grease Tanks- Water Heaters- Sprinkler Systems- Pressure pumps- Water Treatment- Piping-Deep wellsData Water Work Ltd., Part.Tel: 081-396 5050.

KATA BEACH CENTERLuxury service apartments forrent. Short or long term. Suitesand two bedrooms from 60-130sqm. Fully furnished, 10minutes walk from Kata beach.Special rates. Tel: 081-828 0972.For more information email:[email protected]

LONG-TERMNANAI, PATONG

Brand new rooms. Nanai/Patong. Aircon/TV. FreeWiFi. Long/short-term. Tel:085-667 2658 (Thai), 081-415 1245 (English). Email:[email protected]

RENTALS WANTEDWe have a large number of cli-ents looking for rental proper-ties in the Rawai, Nai Harn area.If you have a property for rent,please contact us today on087-620 8420. PI Rentals.

NICE STUDIOAPARTMENT

I am interested in buying a studiounit around Kata or Karon beacharea. The unit should be relativelynew or less than 10 yearsold. Email: [email protected]

LAGUNALooking to buy a property withinLaguna, minimum 3 bedrooms.Cash buyer ready to buy now.Email: [email protected]

LOOKING TO BUYLooking to buy beachfronthouse with Chanote. Email:[email protected]

BEAUTIFULPOOL VILLAS

Great selection of stunningholiday villas. Tel: 087-8237371 (English). Email: [email protected] Forfurther details, please see ourwebsite at www.phuket-beachvillas.com

RENOVATION &HOUSE REPAIRS

Renovations. House re-pairs. Construction. Molddecontamination. English,Swedish, German and Thai-speaking personnel. We al-ways offer free quotationsand warranty on work per-formed. Tel: 083-394 8337(English), 080-141 4577(English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

PHUKET HOMEMAINTENANCE

Renovations, house re-pairs, painters, tilers, elec-tricians, plumbers, car-penters, construction.Fluent English-speakingboss. Free quotes given.Contact Rin. Tel: 084-1935124. Email: [email protected]

LG WASHING MACHINELG WF-T655LTD washingmachine. Just 4 months old.For sale due to moving abroad.Price new: 5,990 baht. Now3,500 baht or best offer. CallErik in English or Scandinavian.Tel: 089-291 2782. Email:[email protected]

TUMBLE DRYER17KG LOAD

Excellent condition. Ideal for largefamily, guesthouse or laundry.Price: 25,000 baht ono. Email:[email protected]

LG 9.5 KGSTop loader, 8 months old, motorwarranty 9 years and 4 months.Price new: 14,999 baht, best of-fer near 10,000 baht. Frontloader wanted. Tel: 086-2733095 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

NEW SAMSUNGFRIDGE

Never used. Model RT45TSRS2.Sells for 18,000 baht at Home-Works. Will sell for 15,000. Doesnot fit built-in cabinetry space inkitchen. Email: [email protected]

VILLA FOR RENT

Long-term rental of a 5-bedroom, 5-bathroom,Mediterranean-style, 2-storey villa set on 1,920sqm. Living area 472sqm with saltwater pool.Location: Cherng Talay.90,000 baht per month for1 year. Tel: 076-651739,081-597 6911 (English &Thai). Fax: 076-238493.Email: [email protected]

THE POINT CONDODaily/monthly, loft, 2 bedrooms,2 bathrooms, fully furnished,pool, fitness. Rent: 30,000 baht/month. Tel: 089-795 6363.

KAMALA BEACHHOUSE OR APARTMENTPrivate, quiet, guesthouse. 2-bedroom apartment, 2,600 bahtper night. 1-bedroom house.1,800 baht per night. Kitchen, Eu-ropean bathroom, aircon, TV,DVD, ADSL, parking, swimmingpool. Tel: 076-385909, 087-2775216. Email: [email protected]

SEAVIEW NEWAPARTMENTS

1 and 2-bedroom new apart-ments. Long and short term.Sea view, huge balcony, TVpanels, WiFi, free parking. Afew with pools, gym and ex-pensive furniture. The bestchoice for living. Tel: 082-8074944. Email: [email protected]

CONDO FOR SALEOR RENT

1-bedroom condo at TheTrees Residence Kamala. 2years old, modern furniture,excellent facilities. Rent longterm: 18,000 baht per month.For short term and holidayrental contact owner. Forsale: 4 million baht. Tel: 076-529082, 086-280 3118 (Thai).Email: [email protected]

HOUSE FOR RENTPATONG, PHUKET

2 bedrooms with quiet loca-tion. Tel: 089-650 5135 (En-glish & Thai). Email: [email protected]

KATHU GOLF COURSECONDO

62sqm, bedroom, bathroom,kitchen, balcony, quiet andgreen, long term. Tel: 081-8241385 (English). Email: [email protected]

EASTER AT MARRIOTTVILLA

For rent: Easter week startingfor 7 days at US$120 per day.2-bedroom villa in 5-star resortat Marriott Beach Club MaiKhao. Try after Saturday for re-maining time as due to late ad,it might not be taken. Tel: +852-96-670611. Email: [email protected]

APARTMENT FORSALE/RENT

Patong, new condo, pool,24hr security, 7.46sqm, fur-nished. Special price. Tel:089-7284005. Email: [email protected]

2-BEDROOM HOUSEAircon, fully furnished, TV,internet. June to end of August.Chalong. 10,000 baht permonth. Tel: 087-280 1721.

PATONG BEACHSEAVIEW CONDO

125sqm, 2 beds, 2 bathrooms,big living room,fully furnished, 3LCD TVs, laundry, terrace,11thfloor, pool, car park. Long-termrental at 35-50,000 baht. Tel: 081-824 1385 (English). Email:[email protected]

SEAVIEW/MOUNTAINCONDOS FOR RENT

1/2 bed/bath, furnished, West-ern kitchen, com pool, short orlong term. Tel: 087-998 2590,087-393 5462 (English & Thai).Email: [email protected]

KATHU GOLF COURSECONDO

62sqm, bedroom, bathroom,kitchen, balcony, quiet andgreen, long term. Tel: 081-8241385 (English). Email: [email protected]

ROOM TO RENTLONG TERM

Pra Baramee, close to school,large room, kids bedroom,bath, toilet, hot water, kitchen.6,000 baht per month incl elec,water, gas, cable TV. Tel: 087-265 4565 (English), 084-8413153 (Thai). Email: [email protected]


Looking for a job?Looking for a better candidate?

Find more Recruitment Classifieds at www.PhuketGazette.Net!

SALES OFFICERRequired: bachlor's degree, fe-male, good written and spo-ken English. Computer liter-ate. Tel. 076-244491. Email:don1719@hotmai l .comWebsite: www.layantara.com

FEMALE AND MALECREW WANTED

on live-aboard 60ft yachtbased at Phi Phi. Tel: 081-891 9726 (Thai), 082-8397701 (Eng).

ACCOUNTANTElite Yachting in Boat LagoonMarina Phuket is looking for aThai accountant with a bach-elor degree and min 3-5 yearsexperience. Good knowledgeof Quickbooks, well organizedand fluent in spoken & writtenEnglish. Responsible for in-voicing, payments, VAT, w/t,salaries, income/expensestatements for yacht ac-counts etc. Interested. Tel:081-978 6086 (English).Please send your CV to [email protected]

MOUNTAIN BIKETOUR LEADER

Seeking more bike guides tojoin our growing team. Mustspeak good English, be pas-sionate about biking, and bea Thai national. Tel: 087-2632031. Email: [email protected]

THAI STAFF WANTEDWork on shifting schedule, canspeak English, customer ser-vice. Good salary with bonus.Patong. Contact Carla. Tel: 081-968 5963.

RECEPTION STAFFResponsible Thai femaleneeded for reception at Patonghotel. Monthly salary: 12,000baht. Tel: 081-892 1621.

REAL-ESTATESTAFF WANTED

Looking for full-time youngThai staff, fluent in spokenand written English withreal estate business expe-rience. Tel: 084-060 7050.Please send an email witha photo to [email protected] For furtherdetails, please see ourwebsite at http://molokophuket.com


Gazette Online Classif ieds – 10,000 readers every day!

SALES MANAGERProperty Sales Consultant. Thainational, 3-5 years experience.Good Thai and English, proactiveand organized. Computer liter-ate, have own car and laptop. TheCharm residence. Tel: 076-344499. Email: [email protected]

SUCCESSFULSALES&MARKETING

Company requires enthusias-tic, motivated individuals to joinour well-established and suc-cessful team. English speak-ing. Full training, great commis-sions & startup / entry pack-ages available. Email: [email protected]

NATIVE ENGLISHTEACHERS

Brainy House is a private En-glish-language school. We arelooking for native Englishteachers to start ASAP. Forchildren 6-8 years old. We offeran excellent compensation.Please send a cover letterand CV to:[email protected] Tel: 080-907 7466(contact Sasi).

JOBS FOR HOTELWORKERS

Hiring reception & housekeep-ing positions now. Experiencepreferred. Tel: 085-159 7400(English), 086-902 8566 (En-glish & Thai). Email: [email protected]

RECEPTIONIST KATAHotel needs reliable Thai fe-male. Salary: 12,000 baht permonth. 2 days off a week. Tel:081-892 1621.

SENIOR ACCOUNTANTKAMALA

For trading company in Kamala.We seek an experienced SeniorAccountant. Must know Ex-press software, English, andunderstand the import busi-ness. Salary starts at 25,000baht + transportation+ accom-modation+ BUPA health insur-ance. Work 6 days a week. Tel:076-322663, 086-773 4538 (En-glish). Fax: 076-322664. Email:skgf@skgf. asia KINDERGARTEN

TEACHER WANTEDWe are looking for a native En-glish kindergarten teacher tojoin our team to teach 10 -12children aged 3-6 years. Musthave a minimum Bachelor’sDegree or equivalent. Tel: 076-383150, 084-520 4978. Fax:076-383150. Email: [email protected]


ArticlesFor Sale

FREEZER, FUGE TABLESanden freezer, excl cond,8,500 baht. Fugeball soccertable, as new, 10 baht pergame, 35,000 baht. Tel. 086-283 9100.

FURNITURE AND MOREFurniture, sofa, TV and book-case, chairs, lamps and more.All in good condition. Pleasecall or email for photos. KhunArno. Tel: 087-827 4991 (En-glish). Email: [email protected]

NEW INVICTAWATCH

FOR SALEVery large Invicta Men's6913 Corduba Collection In-terceptor Chronograph BluePolyurethane watch, comeswith box and guarantee. Tel:076-319699. Email: [email protected]

COFFEE TABLEBamboo coffee table for sale.Excellent condition. 110cmsquare with inset in center (forflower decoration, etc). 10,000baht ono. Email: [email protected]

FURNITURE ANDOTHER ITEMS

Wooden frame "L" sofa withmustard color upholstery.16k. Modern glass chandelier5k. Huge silver candelabra5k. All in excellent condition.Standard Lamp 1,500. All re-duced for quick sale. Email forphotos at [email protected]

7KW. 3-PHASEWATER PUMP

Barely used (10 hours).Have 2 units for sale. Price:15,000 baht each. ContactMargy on 089-908 7486.

HIX HEAT PRESSDUAL PADS

I am selling my Heat PressMade in USA, very little used(about 60 t-shirts), like new. Ibought it in Bangkok. Paid125,000 baht, selling 60,000baht. Tel: 076-283004, 086-742 3437. Email: [email protected]

CHINESE TEAQuality Chinese tea for sale.Contact Peter to arrange a freetea tasting. Tel: 082-278 1575.

ArticlesWanted

FULL-SIZED USEDBATH WANTED

Looking to find an old plastic orstone full-sized bath to use in apet washing parlor - somethinglarge enough to put big dogs inthe wash them. Please [email protected] photo

EXTENSION LADDERWANTED

Used 20 to 24 foot (6 to 7 meter)ladder wanted to either rent orpurchase. Tel: 081-797 2110.Email: [email protected]

Audio/VideoEquipment

GERMAN STEREOSYSTEM

Soken AMP & 5 SpeakerSurround Sound, SolidBass. Cost 16, sell 8000.Tel: 082-283 8902. Email:[email protected]

SOKEN SURROUNDSYSTEM

Amp + 5 powerful speakers,crisp treble & solid bass. Paid15,000 baht, sell 7,500 baht.Tel: 082-283 8902. Email:[email protected]

HI-DEFINITIONMEDIA PLAYER

Digital home entertain-ment just took a giant leapforward. Internet, Androidand a Media Streamer onyour TV. Bursting withfeatures that allow you toengage with social me-dia, Android apps, onlinestreaming, and casualgames, movies and mu-sic. Tel: 076-248698,081-895 7097 (English &Thai). Email: [email protected]

STAGE-SOUND / LIVEMUSIC

Stage-Sound system (Live Mu-sic) for sale Incl. All audio com-ponents, made by Behringer.Please contact for more infor-mation. Tel: 076-486118, 086-942 5244. Fax: 076-443137.Email: [email protected]: www.siam-interact.com/soundsystem/

Bulletins

SPONSOR A CHILDThe Phuket International

Women’s Club is avolunteer organizationraising funds for educa-tional scholarships. Werely on the goodwill of

donors and sponsors –small and large. If youwould like to put some-

thing back into thecommunity in which you

live, contact us to findout more about giving aprize or being a sponsor.Please contact K. Carol(Tel: 087-417 8860) or K.Sue (Tel: 087-277 6948).

Email:[email protected]

BusinessOpportunities

PRIME LOCATIONIN RAWAI

Refurbished for 170,000 baht.Nice bar and 5 bedrooms onthree floors. Includes a lot offurniture and music systems.Please contact for more infor-mation. Tel: 087-474 0169.Email: [email protected]

Bar &RestaurantEquipment

CO LTD, 2 WP, TAT,FOR SALE

Company for sale with 2 wpand TAT. 50,000 baht + costs ofchanging. Tel: 087-980 7570(English). Email: [email protected]

FOR QUICK SALEBar lounge & restaurant withattached house. 8 years onlease. Very cheap rent. InRawai. 1 million baht. Pleasecontact for more information.Tel: 086-084 9793. Email:[email protected]

PATONG BARFOR SALE

Popular bar, open air. Beer barin busy tourist area, fully fur-nished. Urgent sale: 1.8 millionbaht. Tel: 081-550 7379.

PATONG GUESTHOUSE8 rooms apartment internetcafe sale 1.2 million baht. Tel:085-794 6530.

SUPER BUSINESSDEAL

Prime real estate liquidationKata beach center. Super busi-ness deal for sale. Penthouseof 300sqm on 7th floor includesbuilding, 1 Luxury, fully fur-nished, 2 bedroom apartment130sqm; plus 2 luxury suiteseach 60sqm. Also has pool,parking, restaurant andchanote title. 10 minute walkfrom Kata beach. Total pack-age price 29.5 million baht(720,000 Euro). Legal Liquida-tor. Tel: 081-828 0972. Email:[email protected]

PRIME LOCATIONIN RAWAI

Refurbished for 170,000 baht.Nice bar and 5 bedrooms onthree floors. Includes a lot offurniture and music systems.Tel: 087-474 0169. Email:[email protected]

COMMERCIALBUILDINGS RENT

Chalong Pier Road. Tel:081-891 6143 (English),081-894 4343.

OFFICE, BUSINESSSPACE

for rent on 5th floor of PatongTower. Please contact formore information. Tel: 076-341370. Email: [email protected]

BAR FOR SALE OTOPBrand-new bar for sale inOTOP market. Fully furnishedto very high standard, 2 40"TV's, fridge, freeezers, stock,sound system, etc. Great lo-cation with huge potential.Genuine reason for sale. Tel:084-445 2042. Email: [email protected]

OWNER PLANS FORRETIREMENT

Well established tourist maga-zines for sale. Owner planningfor retirement. Interested? Tel:081-806 2946.

RESTAURANT FORSALE, CHALONG AREAon Chao Fa Road, 700m northof Chalong Circle. Low price forquick sale. Tel: 080-711 5265.

GOLF BUSINESS-PARTNER

Unique opp, 15 yearstrade, repeat customers,unlimited potential in Asia.Looking for partner. Tel:087-078 9707.

BAR/RESTAURANT INPATONG

for sale. Nanai Rd 231, fullyfurnished. Price: 180,000 bahtor rent 13,000 baht/month. Tel:085-477 5935.


BEACHRESTAURANT

BUSINESSDue to owner's ill healthwe reluctantly have forsale a successful beachrestaurant located onone of Phuket's mostscenic beaches. ServingThai & Euro cuisine wehave seating for 100 per-sons (inside 50,outdside50). Plenty of scope forchef/owner to exploit thisunique location nestledamongst some of the best5-star resorts on the Is-land. Own website andgood TripAdvisor com-ments. Although thebeach is seasonal, webelieve with the rightowner (Chef Owner) all-year-round business canbe generated. Good turn-over and well equipped.Lease and restaurant fur-nishings and fittings in-cluded in the package.Extendable lease periodby negotiation. Priced tosell. For further detailssend your initial inquiry to:[email protected] ImmediateResponse/Reply

RESORT FOR SALE

Well-established resortbetween Nai Harn andRawai, 2 rai in a presti-gaious area among villas.Priced upwards of 50 mil-lion baht. Two 2-story, 3-bedroom villas, 21 bunga-lows, sauna, extra largepool, office, 2 bars, restau-rant, laundry room, fully fur-nished band stand with in-struments. Annual incomeis 6.5 million baht and up.Price: 27.5 million baht. Aportion can be financed.Please contact for moreinformation. Tel: 087-2751700 (English).

Business Products & Services

WEBSITE FOR SALEHighly professional propertywebsite for sale. Launch ready.Multi-lingual (UK, RU, DE). Canbe used as real-estate-agent siteor as (Phuket/Samui) portal site.Only 180,000 baht. Tel: 081-0773548. Email: [email protected]

GM CURTAINSells curtains, upholstery,and accessories domesti-cally and internationally. Weoffer design and an outdoorservice installation in all prov-inces around the country.We also give advice on the se-lection of material, equipmentand all types of installationwork by a well-experiencedand capable team. Curtains,sofa clothes, roller blinds,wallpapers, accessories.

Address: 128/124Topland (Radsada)

Prachautid Rd.,Muang Phuket. Tel:

076-610072, 081-891 8148.

BUDS NURSERYPhuket's oldest bi-lingualinternational child care

facility. High-quality, time-proven schedule and

curriculum. Now in brand-new purpose-built school.

Experienced nativeEnglish teachers to teach

ages 1½ - 8. Mon-Fri8am-5pm. Bus serviceavailable from Patong,Karon, Kata, Phuket,

Rawai and Chalong. Tel:076-384638, 080-624

7060. Website:www.buds-phuket.com

ClubMemberships

Available

LOCH PALM GOLFMEMBERSHIP

585,000 baht. Tel: 081-2705609.

PCC GOLFMEMBERSHIP

550,000 baht, not includingtransfer fee. Tel: 081-2702045. Email: [email protected]

BLUE CANYONGOLF SHARE

Blue Canyon FamilyGolf Share. 900,000

baht. Please contact formore information. Tel:

+46-7063-28320. Email:[email protected]

Computers

ENGLISHCOMPUTERMAN

Sales, service, repairs, up-grades & accessories inChalong. Tel: 076-384259,084-625 7744 (English). Fax:076-384259. Email: [email protected]

FitnessEquipment

USED COMPUTERFOR SALE

Second hand desktopcomputer for sale. It's ingood condition like new.CPU AMD Brisbane4000+ 2.1GHZ (DualCore), RAM: DDR2 2GHDD: 160GB, ODD: DVD-RW, O/S: Windows XPand Microsoft office pack-age installed. Good for of-fice and internet user.5,800 baht. Tel: 080-5335674 (English). Email:[email protected]

ELLIPTICAL CROSSTRAINER

New with LCD display oftime, distance, speed,RPM and energy con-sumption. Handle withpulse meter. 12,000 baht.Tel: 089-729 1113. Email:[email protected]

Golf Stuff

GOLF CLUBSFull set, Ping rapture, very goodcondition. 30,000 baht ono. Tel:084-838 8878.

TelevisionSets

SATELLITE TVTHAILAND

Satellite TV Thailand provideall sorts of Satellite TV ac-cessories including HDsystems. We ship allgoods cash on delivery any-where in Thailand. Tel: 080-694 0663 (English & Thai),089-821 3772 (English).Email: [email protected] For furtherdetails, please see ourwebsite at www.satellitetvthailand.net


WWWWWheelsheelsheelsheelsheels & MMMMMotorsotorsotorsotorsotors


Classified ads are charged per line. Each line is 120 baht,with a minimum of 4 lines (heading included) per ad.


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Saloon Cars

Motorbikes

4 x 4s RentalsTOYOTA MRSCONVERTIBLE-05

82,000km. Perfect condi-tion 1.3 million baht. Tel:089-932 5175. Email: [email protected]

2011 FORD FIESTA1.6L

170,000 baht with car in-surance. Paid 16 monthsof installments, buyer topay the balance to fi-nance. Car used only27,600km. Perfect condi-tion. Tel: 080-520 2989.

VW VENTO 1.8 -133,000 BAHT

Volkwagen Vento 1997,verygood condition.Pics/infosplease call. Tel: 076-388478,084-065 8036 (English & Thai).Email: [email protected]

TOYOTA WISH 2.0 QVSC LTD

2007 Full option, 21,000km, fullToyota service history. AnyToyota inspection welcomed.Tel: 086-032 0263. Email:[email protected]

BMW R1200GSExcl cond. 2007. Cost new:1.1mn baht. Now: 645,000 baht.Also BMW F650GS Excl cond.3 years old. Cost new: 700,000baht. Now: 345,000 baht. CallMike at 081-787 1752. Email:[email protected]

MERCEDES 2009 OCTC kompressor, 1 owner.6,000km. Sunroof. 2 millionbaht. Tel: 087-840 8163.

TOYOTA FORTUNER2007 V 3.0

for sale. 77,000km. Auto,4x4. In excellent condi-tion. Serviced by ToyotaPearl. Price: 920,000baht. Tel: 086-942 2007.

HONDA STEEDFOR SALE

Honda Steed 400cc, 23,000kmfrom new, good condition, regu-larly serviced, 145,000 baht ornearest offer. Tel: 081-294 9232(English). Email: [email protected]

YAMAHA FINOFOR SALE

2008. Lady owner, riddenonly in Phuket Town, withgreen book. Asking price23,000 baht. Tel: 084-8892676.

CAR RENTNew model Honda Jazz forrent. 12,000 baht/month. Koiscar rent. Tel: 080-891 7899.

NEW JAZZFOR RENT

Short- or long-term with in-surance and delivery ser-vice. Tel: 081-607 8567.Email: [email protected] For further details,please see our website atwww.phuketcarsrent.com

HONDA ACC3.0 VTEC 0

Jubilee model, 1 owner.820,000 baht. Reply to [email protected]

HONDA JAZZFOR SALE

Low mileage, like new, car.550,000 baht. Must sell quickly.Offers. Tel: 081-303 2202.

2009 FORD FOCUS2.0 TDCI

36,000km, 2 years of warrantyleft. excellent in & out. Manual.Leather, 18" org Ford alloys.Price: 680,000 baht. Tel: 089-866 3756 (English & Thai).Email: [email protected]

1993 MAZDA MX5FOR SALE

Convertible, hard top. Goodcondition. Tel: 076-222856,089-866 4023. Email: [email protected]

TOYOTA VIGO 20084 wheel drive, automatic, die-sel, 4 door, 4x4,ETCi VSC &cruise control, clear blue me-tallic, excellent condition, onecareful owner. 65,000km.720,000 baht. Tel: 089-4740543, 081-271 9050.

MITSUBISHI LANCER75,000 BAHT

5-speed, mint condition, runsgreat, tax and insurancepaid. For further details,please contact Sunny on083-252 5509.

JEEP WRANGLER 4.0 L(REAL ONE)

Jeep Wrangler, 4L automatic.Original import from Japan.Black label, full registration,firstclass insurance. Soft topand hard top. Tel: 086-7837873, 086-316 6976 (English &Thai). Email: [email protected]

TOYOTA VIOS 1.5 G A/TBlack, perfect condition,10,000km only, 13 months old610,000 baht neg. Please con-tact for more information. Tel:084-144 3756, 084-041 1884(English & Thai). Email: [email protected]

2005TOYOTA FORTUNER

Metallic blue . Good conditionand well maintained by onecareful owner. 580,000 baht.Tel: 089-474 0543 (English &Thai), 081-271 9050 (English).Email: [email protected]

TOYOTA VIOS J AT07-2010,new, many extras,32,000km, insurance. Lastprice: 475,000 baht. Tel: 083-645 3317 (English).

1985 JEEP CJ7 USAExtremely rare rebuilt 4WD V8.Tel: 089-999 7597. Email:[email protected] For furtherdetails, please see our website:classif ieds.russbo.com/index.php

YAMAHAMAJESTY 400

2008 model, only 23,000km, green book, excellentcondition. Price: 190,000baht. Tel: 087-893 1753.

VESPA LXI25I 2012

As new, only 2,300km,white. Cost new: 98,000,must sell - now only 78,000baht. Tel: 087-893 1753.

SUZUKI GSXR600

2007, excellent condition.23,000km. Price: 270,000baht. Tel: 086-476 7856(Thai), 086-639 7984, 085-975 8960 (English).

HONDA PHANTOM48,000km, good condition, 2-stroke, runs good, greenbook. Price: 19,000 baht.Please contact for more infor-mation. Tel: 080-320 0426.

WHITE TOYOTA YARISFor rent. 2 years old, 14,500baht per month. For rent 3month to 6 month maximum.Tel: 076-328218,K. Jens 085-472 1506 (German),K. Bow084-445 4654 (Eng & Thai).

BRAND-NEWMAZDA 2 FOR RENT

Short & long term with fullinsurance cover and de-livery service. Tel: 076-289576 (Thai), 087-8044014 (Eng), 087-8855765 (Thai & DK). Email:info@kb-realestate. com

CAR FOR RENTShort or long-term rent. Goodcondition, discount rate. Tel:086-690 6007, 080-521 7370.

YAMAHA NOUVO135CC

7 months old, 5,500km, re-cently serviced, green book,excellent condition. Price:39,000 baht. Email: [email protected]

HONDA CLICK9 months old, 9,201km, ser-viced regularly. Automatic,white, alloy wheels. 38,000baht or near offer. Tel: 082-8123610 (English). Email: [email protected]

KAWASAKI BOSS 1759 years old, used daily, in-cludes solid sidecar (now de-tached). Good condition.Price: 29,000 baht. Tel: 082-283 8902. Email: [email protected]

CITROEN AND AUDI 80FOR SALE

Audi 80, automatic, silver.Citroen Xantia automatic.Cheap cars, all papers. Tel:076-281196, 086-637 5003,086-045 3139. Email: [email protected]

PROTON EXORA

October 2011 (6 months)only 6,000km. 7/8 seats,automatic, many options(GPS, spoilers, wheels).Price new: 920,000 baht.Now: 750,000 baht. Tel:081-788 8280.


Looking for boat & marine?See more classified ads


REDUCED PRICE

Pegasus 8.2m. Built late2006, Suzuki 140hp 4-stroke. Approx 350 hours.Fully equipped mooring atBoat Lagoon. Price:550,000 baht. Contact:Martin 086-2687901 orPelle 081-8932575. Email:[email protected],[email protected]

SPEEDBOAT21ft speedboat with 85HpYamaha uutboard. Ideal for fish-ing, diving, skiing etc. Includesfishfinder & Plotter. Excellentcondition throughout. 280,000baht. Tel: 087-274 2601 (En-glish & Thai). Email: [email protected]

SPEEDBOAT FORSALE

11m custom-built diving/snorkeling speedboat.2x200cc Yamaha en-gines. Radio, GPS, all-inclusive. 900,000 baht.Also available; Bauercompressor, 40 tanks,nitrox filling station,BCDs and regulators.Contact Khun Joe. Tel:087- 891 8912. Email:[email protected]

9.4M LONGTAIL BOATRecently painted, overhauled atboatyard in Chalong. Sale due toowner moving north. Offers over45,000 baht. Tel: 083-726 6951.

URGENT SALE5.6m Hypalon Rib (neverused) with new galvanizedtrailer. Must sell. 400,000baht. Tel: 080-595 4247 (En-glish). Email: [email protected]

LIFTING KEEL YACHT1983 French steel sailing yacht,completely equipped and in thewater at Langkawi, Malaysia. Atthe giveaway price of €28,000 or1.2 million baht as our sabbaticalsailing year comes to its end.Email: [email protected]

LAST CHANCEAbsolute bargain. 36-foot powercatamaran. Flybridge, fiberglass.New and available now. Genuineinterest only. No time wasters.Email: [email protected]

43-FOOT CATAMARAN4 double cabins, not finished, incomposite. Must sell! Price:550,000 baht. Tel: 087-461 8089.

2ND HAND SOLARPANEL

New and secondhand solarPV panels for sale. Siemens50W made in USA andSolarex 53W made in Austra-lia. Tel: 084-711 2744 (English& Thai). Email: [email protected]

JOTUN SEAFORCE 30New 20 liter pail bought inSingapore @ S$23/ltr. Offersinvited. Please contact for moreinformation. Tel: +65-9-781 7508(English). Email: [email protected]

85FT FASTCRUISING SLOOP

Unfinished project. Fa-mous designer. US$4mnyacht for US$2.4mn fin-ished. Tel: 081-865 0610(English). Email: [email protected]

RUBBER BOAT3.8 METER

Yamaha, 30hp. 10 drivinghours. Price: 240,000 baht.Please contact for more infor-mation. Tel: 087-270 0941(Thai). Email: tiinapaa [email protected]

SOLUTIONS TOTHIS WEEK’S

PUZZLESCrossword puzzle:


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Classified ads are charged per line. Each line is 120 baht,with a minimum of 4 lines (heading included) per ad.


GGGGGeneraleneraleneraleneraleneral AAAAAviationviationviationviationviation

• Aircraft for Sale • Aircraft Sharing• Aircraft Wanted • Aircraft Charter• Aviation Services • Flying Lessons

Aircraft

For Sale

AIRPLAY ALTISMICROLIGHT

Superb trike with Konig radial en-gine. Great economical fun. Littleused. Tel: 089-111 6457, 081-3977598 (English & Thai). Email:[email protected]

YOUR HELICOPTERFlying and owning yourown helicopter has justbecome possible. Free

complete flight instructioncourse with yourpurchase.Please

contactvia by email:[email protected]

HAVE A PASSIONFOR AVIATION?

If you have an aircraft for sale oran interest in aviation and wishto learn how to fly or buy an air-craft or arrange a private flight,etc. Please see our website:www.aeropromgr.com/newslet-ter

TECNAM P-92-Price: 1.5 million baht-Registration: U-B08-Year of Manufacturie: 2002-Equipment: Full standardequipment-Engine: Rotax 912-80HP350hrs.Please contact for more infor-mation. Aircraft is based atKlong 15. Tel: 081-840 8418.

ROCKWELLCOMMANDER 114

HS-AWS. Year: 1976. Operatedin Thailand for 6 years. Engine:Lycoming IO-540T4B5D.1,300hrs and 700hrs until TBO.Garmin and King radios. Autopi-lot and Stormscope. Price: 3.75million baht. Located at Thai Fly-ing Club, Bang Phra. ContactTony Scragg at mobile 081-9063250.

CESSNA 172PWith full IFR for 3 million baht.Everything on the aircraft isnew, including Garmin Aera500. Interior and exterior wasredone in 2010. The engine has700hours with TBO at 2,000.Cost: 2.8 million baht. Email :[email protected]


STRANGE SPORTS: Paul Robertstook “extreme ironing” to a newlevel recently by completing theMarathon des Sables, held in theMoroccan Sahara, with an iron-board strapped to his back.

Roberts completed the 155-milerace over six days in searing tem-peratures, finishing in a respectable364th place out of 860 runners.

The venture, which raised£5,000 in aid of a hospice char-ity, was inspired by friends whosaw the ExtremeIroning.comwebsite, showing people ironingclothes in remote places.

OLYMPICS: Mashable, the so-cial media news website, has re-ported athletes and spectatorsvisiting the London Games mayviolate legislation passed to pro-tect the event’s branding, shouldthey post ther own photos online.

A legal expert said this wouldcover athletes posting media ofthemselves with products that arenot Olympics sponsors, fans up-loading their own photos or videoof the games, and businesses at-tracting customers with officialOlympics nomenclature, like“2012 Games”.

The business end of the season

TENNIS: Rafael Nadal took theMonte Carlo Masters title for the 8th

year in a row 6-3 6-1, finally break-ing Novak Djokovic’s winning streak.

Nadal’s display of precision tim-ing left Djokovic being pushedaround the court, though the deathof his grandfather earlier in theweek had taken its toll.

“I definitely don’t want to takeaway anything from Rafa’s win. Hewas a better player,” Djokovic said.“But it’s a fact that I just didn’t haveany emotional energy left in me.

Nadal completed the victory inone hour 19 minutes, with an ace.

By The Digby

THIS season seems to be a battleof the pit-lanes, with McLarenleading the pit-boo-boo stakes, butseveral other teams are trying hardfor this inglorious title.However, McLaren keptahead in Bahrain.

The wear on tyres wasanticipated, though someteams, and in particularMercedes, did better thanexpected. That is some-thing to watch during therest of the season.

Bahrain was a nightmarefor McLaren. LewisHamilton suffered two hor-rible pit stops, which costhim thirteen seconds andeight places, and robbedhim of his podium pointscoming home in 8th place.

Jensen Button had an exhaustfailure, a puncture before finally adifferential failure caused him toretire. So McLaren slumped, noton the track, but in the garage.Their pits have squandered their

All change again in Bahrainearly season advantage, as everyteam now has the chance, withinthe FIA rules, to test an upgradebefore the next race.

Bahrain was dreadful for Will-iams too. Pastor Maldonaldo spunoff with a blow-out, and teammate

Bruno Senna finally parked his carwith severe vibrations, though hewas never in the points.

Mercedes faded back from thelimelight. Nico Rosberg came 5th

and was lucky to avoid the cen-sure of the stewards over his

defending tactics.Michael Schumacher looked un-

impressive and came in 10th for thelast point. He would not have gotthat, but Sauber messed-up Perez’spit stop and lost them the place.

Ferrari was mediocre as ex-pected, with FernandoAlonso getting 7th place.

At least Felipe Massagot 9th place, his firstpoints of the season andenough to keep his seat,at least for now.

Red Bull became thefourth team in four racesto win. Sebastian Vettelwon and Mark Webbercame in 4th. It was almosta perfect day.

Vettel was firmly in-structed by his engineerto park immediately after

the chequered flag, and walk backto the paddock, so clearly the carhad given everything it could. Sev-eral cars were in similar condition.

Lotus had a dream day too, tak-ing both 2nd and 3rd places. KimiRäikkönen took second place and

might even have challenged for thewin if he had not lost so muchtime fighting team-mate RomainGrosjean, who came in third. Kimibenefited from not making Q3, andthereby saving an extra set oftyres for the race.

Paul di Resta two-stopped tocome 6th for Force India, managingto hold off the attentions of Alonso.

The leading drivers of the sea-

VERY BUNNY: Vettel celebrates win in classic style. Photo: AFP

MANCHESTER is the place to be Mondaynight as City and United go head to head todecide the Premiership title.

Roberto Mancini was right in his pre-diction, though anything less than a win forthe Blues will leave them still without thetop tier’s honors since 1968.

Alex Ferguson still cannot believe thatEverton managed to gain a draw 4-a-piecein a thriller at Old Trafford last Sunday, de-spite Wayne Rooney surpassing George Bestin United’s all-time scoring list.

The Red Devils will travel to the Ethihadas favorites, though a resurgent City willcertainly fancy their chances on the backof recent results.

City’s two-nil away win droppedWolverhampton Wanderers to the Champi-onship next season, who should never havesacked manager Mick McCarthy mid-season.

Tottenham have a chance to go aboveNewcastle if they beat Blackburn Rovers athome, and pressure on Arsenal, though Spurs’challenge for a top four finish has not justhad brakes applied, it has slipped into reverse.

Rovers need to take advantage of thesituation, else relegation will be a certaintywith only Wigan and Chelsea left on their

fixture list after.The Gunners play against a “Premiership

safe” Stoke. Arsene Wenger knows it’s amust-win match, having played more gamesthan their rivals, to keep up their impres-sive drive for that precious ChampionsLeague football next season.

Newcastle can relax this weekend and

son are now Vettel, Hamilton,Webber, Button and Alonso. Butfour or five others are snappingat their heels.

In the Constructors Champi-onship Red Bull and McLaren arewell clear of the others, for now.

We now have six teams in therunning, and a chance to test newequipment before the CatalunyaGrand Prix on May 13.

see what will be required of themselves lateron in the week against Chelsea.

Congratulations to Chelsea, and in par-ticular Fernando Torres, after securing aplace in the Champion League’s final witha brilliant 3-2 aggregate win against argu-ably the best team in the World, Barcelona .

– Dean Noble

PAYBACK: Torres scores to send Chelsea into the Champions League final. Photo: AFP


Putting on PowerPlay

BEST BUDDIES: Seemant Raju, General Manager of the Karon SeaSands Resort & Spa donned his whites with friends Kishore, RichardFolds and Anthony De Blerk to provide entertainment for the crowdat last weekend’s ACST Cricket 6’s competition. While they failed totake home the spoon, their cup did run over. Photos: Dean Noble

Phuket cricket sixes

SMASHING TIME: Southern Star batsman has his furniture rearranged.

THE PowerPlay Golf format is the brain-child of two Britons; Peter McEvoy andDavid Piggins. Piggins is an entrepreneur,while McEvoy’s name will be recognized bymany readers who are fans of amateur golf.

McEvoy was a 5-time member of theGreat Britain & Ireland Walker Cup teamand a 2-time winner of the British

Amateur Championship.How do you play

PowerPlay Golf?First, start by re-

member ingthat you’re stillplaying golf:

tee off from theteeing ground,

play down the fair-way, reach the puttinggreen, sink the ball into

the hole.A round of

PowerPlay Golf isplayed over nine

holes, rather than 18;with scoring kept under

the Stableford pointssystem, each green hav-ing two flagsticks rather

than one.The goal of

PowerPlay Golf isto provide a faster

way to play golf, andto introduce a more risk-reward strategy(which the game’s creators feel bumps upthe excitement level).

The biggest difference is the fact that thereare two flagsticks on each green. One holelocation on the green is “easy” (marked witha white flag), and the other is “hard” (markedwith a black flag).

Here’s the crux of PowerPlay Golf:Three times in the first eight holes, thegolfer must choose to play the more dif-ficult hole location. The decision has tobe announced by the golfer on the teeingground before striking the ball towardsany given hole. Doing so is called “mak-ing a power play,” hence the name of thegame.

If the golfer scores a birdie or better on a“power play” hole, his Stableford points aredoubled. (Stableford points remain the samefor pars or worse on those three “power

I SURRENDER: A player targets the easier“white flag” in a round of PowerPlay Golf.

play” holes, but the harder hole locationspresumably make higher stroke totals morelikely.)

So that’s the first eight holes, but whatabout the ninth and final hole of a PowerPlayGolf round?

On the ninth hole, all golfers havethe option to attempt another “power play”.

Making birdie or better again doubles thegolfer’s Stableford points, but makingbogey or worse on a ninth-hole “powerplay” will lead to a points deduction.

So the optional ninth-hole power play isriskier than the mandatory power plays overthe first eight holes, but it presents the possibil-ity of a major leap forward by a trailing golfer.

The renowned Laguna Phuket Golf Club isthe host of the June 17 PowerPlay Golf Quali-

fying Event. The top ten golfers, after twodemanding rounds of PowerPlay golf, will earnthe right to compete in the Thailand Finals inHua Hin, on October 6.

There, if victorious, golfers will havea chance to represent Thailand at thePowerPlay Golf World Championship.

Even if you are not one of the lucky tenwho wil progress, there are further op-portunities to win prizes in the “nearestthe pin” and “longest drive”competitions,and goody bags ensure that nobody goeshome empty-handed.

This Phuket Gazette and PGTV are thesponsors of this event.

To register, visit asiangolfevents.com. Or call081-988 0600 for more information.

POWER PLAY: This dynamic new form of golf will hit the island on June 17 at the Laguna GolfClub with a chance to qualify for the National Finals being held in Hua Hin on October 6.


NINE gold medals were con-tested in a Phuket bowlingshowdown on April 19 as partof Wilailak University’s annualsports games.

The 31st edition of the WilailakGames was held from April 18to 25 in Nakhon Sri Thammaratand Phuket.

About 5,000 students frommore than 45 educational insti-tutions competed in the games,which features 17 categories ofsport, awarding a total 393 goldmedals.

The nine gold medals werecontested at CS Bowl, Phuket,the bowling alley on the top floorof Big C Supercenter shoppingcomplex along the Bypass Roadin Phuket Town.

Assistant Professor EkapongJulasenee, Dean of Architecture

Banned champion gets restartBy Chris Hudon

SOMBAT ‘Buakaw’ Banchamek,Thai Fight Tournament winner andtwo-time former K-1 World MaxChampion (70kg), has broken hiscontract with Por Pramuk gym andfaces legal action after returninghome to Surin province in earlyMarch.

Known to most by his fight name‘Buakaw Por Pramuk’ (in Thailand,its common practice for fightersto take on the name of the gymthey train for), the aging legendturns 30 years old next month witha record of 204 wins; 52 KOs, 21losses and 12 draws.

Under Thai law, because of thecontract breach, Buakaw (whosename means white lotus in Thai,ironic given his dark skin color) isno longer legally allowed to fightin Thailand, despite fighting inPattaya on April 17.

At the latest Thai Fight eventBuakaw knocked out RussianRustem Zaripov with quick handand elbow work, two minutes andfifty seconds into the secondround, in his first matchup repre-senting newly created BanchamekGym.

Since that fight, according to aninterview with Thai Media, PorPramuk camp plans to take legalaction against Thai Fight organiz-ers and the Sports Authority ofThailand (SAT) for not stoppingBuakaw from entering the ring.

As of March 30 Buakaw hasbeen officially banned from fight-ing until he files a complaint withthe SAT and is proven correctabout his claims of being “unfairlytreated” by Por Pramuk gym.

Buakaw alleges that Por Pramukrepeatedly mistreated him duringtraining, saying in an interviewwith Thai Media in mid-March that,

“I can stand tough training, but notpoor treatment. It is about mind,not the body.”

Given the attention surrounding‘Thai Fight’ and its bouts that pitthe champ against almost any for-eign competitor, one thing’s forcertain – a lot of money is at stake.Some have speculated that Thai lawwon’t be enforced abroad, leavingpromoters in the West looking tobill Buakaw for international fights.

Buakaw started his fighting ca-reer at the age of eight in his homeprovince of Surin, in northeasternThailand, where he has returned toconstruct the Banchamek Gym,made possible through his longtimesponsor Yokkao.

and Design at Walailak Univer-sity presided over the openingceremony for the Bowling com-petition.

Competing were more than100 students from 17 institu-tions.

Nutthannop Sooksai, bowlingcompetition board secretarysaid, “Bowling is a very impor-tant sport, as it can strengthenand improve health...this activ-ity can can bring unity and help[athletes] become more familiarwith each other.

Assistant Prof EkapongJunsenee said, “In the past 31years, Walailak University hashad the chance to organize thisactivity [bowling] twice. Thefirst time was in 2006, and thisis the 2nd time.

THE WINNERS PODIUM: From left, student representatives of ChiangMai, Mahidol and Songkhla Nakkarin Universities. Photo: Walailak U

– Siangthai

For more info on Buakaw and to seehis new gym visit: www.facebook.com/yokkaoboxing and click on ‘BuakawBanhamek training @ BanchamekGym’ photo album.

Walailak Gamesstrike back

HOMETOWN HERO: Buakaw started the Banchamek Gym for the children of his home village in Surin Province.FIGHT ON: Buakaw signs autographs for fans. Photos: Yokkao Boxing


Phuket repel cavalry charge

DEAD END: Phuket’s Poramat Krongborisut is brought to his knees in achallenge for posession in Saturday’s match. Photo: Pimwara Choksakulpan

By S Fein and S Layne

FC PHUKET held Suphanburi FCto a scoreless draw on a water-logged pitch at Surakul StadiumApril 21.

Just over 1,700 paying spec-tators turned up for the match,including a bus load of orange-clad “Suphanburi Blood”supporters who made the 12-hour trip to Phuket to cheer ontheir beloved “Elephant Cavalry”.

Considering the superior attack-ing game and dominance ofpossession throughout the bulk ofthe match, most of “The Hulk”,Phuket’s main supporters group,were content with the goalless re-sult and its point awarded.

After all, Suphanburi boaststhe highest budget of all 18 teamsin the Yamaha 1 league, reportedto have as much as 50 millionbaht to spend this season.

Much of this is tied into itsdeadly arsenal which includes twoBrits, two Japanese, an Ivorian, aKorean and a Cameroonian.

In contrast, Phuket’s pro-jected budget is only 20mn baht,mostly to cover the salaries ofits three Ivorians, two Braziliansand two Koreans.

According to Thai PremierLeague regulations, each team isallowed to field only three non-

Asian players in addition to onenon-Thai Asian (the “3+1 rule”)on the pitch at the same time,while the rest must be Thai.

Phuket’s Brazilian goalkeeperAlonso Jose Carvalho da Silvawas kept on his toes for a ma-jority of the contest asSuphanburi tried in vain to breakthe ice with dozens of charges.

The visitors’ well-coordinatedlines allowed for few counter at-tacks by Phuket, whose bestchance of the match came at 13minutes.

An on-target free kick from 22yards out by the home side’sNiran Phanthong was narrowlydenied by a diving punch fromSuphanburi keeper PrasitNuamsala.

There were seven yellowcards handed out in the scrappy,defensive struggle, withPhuket’s Nene Bi, SuwitNajamroern, Marcio Santos andWithipong Sittitanyakit amongthe recipients.

The even result of the sixthfixture for the 2012 seasondrops Phuket into 11th place ofthe 18-team Thai Yamaha 1league with a win, four drawsand a loss.

Meanwhile Suphanburi re-main in 9th place from twowins, three draws and a loss.

Phuket’s next match will be anaway fixture on April 29 againstSriracha Suzuki FC at Suzuki Sta-dium in Chonburi province.

Their opponents, the “Blue Mar-lin”, were relegated from the ThaiPremier League and are currentlyin 5th place with three wins, adraw and two losses.

Phuket are then set to returnhome to play a special friendlymatch against Myanmar leagueleaders Yadarbon FC on May 2. See the Gazette online for updates.


IronKids can do it all

By Chaiyot Yongcharoenchai

THE Thanyapura Sports & Leisure Club(TSLC) IronKids Phuket 2012 series waslaunched last weekend with 79 children fromkindergarten to high school seniors takingpart. They gave their all to make it to thefinish line, as the sport continues to gofrom strength to strength.

Sakda “Ben” Kammungkan andAnnalis Johnsonwere the Seniorwinners (13-17years old).

The intermediateage group (9-11 years)was the largest field, with 37 par-ticipants seeing Chris Thomson, a regularIronKids Phuket first-placer, taking a stronglead to win the age group overall. Maximeand Chloe Schrijnemaekers led the girls,finishing just a minute apart in first and sec-ond place respectively.

Claire Ratcliffe, Race Director of IronKids

Phuket, explained how the sport was growingquickly and had captured the imagination of chil-dren and parents alike.

“We had several adults join the seniorsdivision which is a great way for beginneradult triathletes to join in the fun of racing

and get a taste for it. The kids love it –and we have fantastic facilities for theraces, thanks to the help of TSLC.

“After the race we will have littlemini kids events so they can try riding

around the track on the bikes and do alittle bit of the run. It is one of my pas-

sions to get kids to be part of theraces to keep them healthy withcycling, running, and swimming,”

she added.“It is going to grow bigger every

year. Last year, the April race wasour first and we had over 100 chil-

dren attend, and for the December racewe had more than 200 children. I hope thisyear the December meet we will have morethan 300 children,” she said.

Paradorn Mohr was the fastest of thejuniors to complete the 50 meter swim legof the race, and, combined with his 3kmbike and 500m run, he crossed the finishline in 12min, 51sec.

“I am very happy to be the first tocross the finish-line,” said Paradorn.

“This is the second time for me; lasttime I came in 6th place. I kept practic-ing and improving, and I finally made itto first place today,” he said.

“The hardest part of the race wasthe 500m run. I slowed down a little bitbecause I couldn't catch my breath, but Ikept telling myself ‘I can do this’, and Idid,” he explained.

Winning the Juniors’ female category witha time of 14min, 25sec was Nanako McIn-tosh in her strongest finish since her first racelast December.

The Juniors’ course (6-8 years old) iscomprised of a 50m swim and a 3km bike,followed by a 500m run.

The intermediate distances are a 150m

swim, 6km bike and a 1.5km run; and theseniors distances are a 300m swim, 12kmbike, and a 3km run.

Ms Ratcliffe said children fromAnuban Phuket were sponsored byAdvanced Info Service PLC, withtraining sessions prior to the race tohelp them become familiar with thecourse and the skills required forsuccessful triathlon racing.

“This is a good way for us toencourage the Thai children to par-ticipate. Normally, they prefer todo it in a team, so one can do theswim, another can do the run, andso on. This time we have five thatdid the race individually,” said MsRatcliffe.

TSLC’s partnership withIronKids will include training campsthroughout the year.

The IronKids races in Phuket aresponsored by the Phuket GazetteThe Nation and PGTV.

FUTURE STARS: IronKids cut through the water before getting on their bikes in last weekend’s trial race held at the Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club. Photo: Chaiyot Yongcharoenchai

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