The thievery happened in the monks’ cell area, when they were attending a service began at 6.30 p.m. in the main prayer hall. This opportunity used by the thief or thieves to pry open a window and gain access through this.

One of the monks, who returned to the location upon returning to his cell, noticed a collection box lying on the floor and 50,000 baht in it was missing. In the next room, numerous Buddha images were missing and those that remained were scattered on the floor. The temple abbot put the value of the heist at one million baht. Phuket City Police are investigating the thievery now and have already taken its fingerprints.

Thieves before have targeted the temple, but in the past they ran away when spotted by temple monks. It is not the first the thieves targeted temple in Phuket. In October last year a drunk was arrested at Nai Harn Temple after he attempted to steal a collection box there. The man later confessed to committing a string of similar thefts at other island temples.

He also led police to an employee at the Government Savings Bank who served as an accomplice in some of the heists. The pair used the proceeds to fund drinking sessions in karaoke bars, they said. In Thailand, temples are rarely targeted by thieves – and not only for ethical reasons. Most of Thai temples are home to large packs of stray dogs, many dumped there by their former owners. The dogs also serve as a potent security force for their Buddhist benefactors.

In another disturbing crime carried out at a temple on a holy day last year, well-known local businessman Chalermpol Pranweerapaiboon was left in a coma after he was shot in the back of the neck by an assailant at Wat Luangpoo Supha on Maka Bucha Day in February 2009. The attack took place in front of the victim’s family and just meters from the cell of Luangpoo Supha, a revered monk believed by his followers to be the world’s oldest living man at 116.

Although Phuket City Police initially said the investigation was going well, there have been no reports of any arrests so far.

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Pageant preparation has brought thirty contestants of Miss Thailand World 2010 to Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket for their four-day “training camp.” Their show will be air live from Bangkok on August 14. During that training camp, they would learn everything they need to know to succeed in the beauty competition, aside from it, the contestants also will do some charity painting work at Baan Laem Sai School.

They arrive on the island yesterday for a three-night stay. This year’s pageant promises to serve up some bombshells, as chief organizer Nawat Itsornkraisil has this year given a blanket green light for plastic surgery.

“In previous years,” he says, “the contestants were always dubious about it and kept asking, ‘Can I do this? Is this much okay?’ So we have made it clear now with a blanket decision that plastic surgery is okay for this competition.”

It make the organizer of this event inhaled their relieve since they no longer have to scrutinize applicant to make sure that their beauty is the real one, they also would free from criticism if in case their beauty are indeed comes from plastic surgery. This decision indeed would trigger objection, especially from purists, still, these days many of the world’s beauty queens – including those from Venezuela and India – have had tummy tucks, butt lifts and boob jobs, or at least a little facial rearrangement.

In fact, the only thing the surgeons are barred from adjusting on Miss Thailand World contestants is gender, so ladyboys (transsexuals) are still not eligible to compete.

Meanwhile, as is said every year in such pageants worldwide, the organizers claim they are strictly emphasis on the contestants’ skills and talents.

“We’d love to see someone who can sing different styles and speak 10 languages,” Mr Nawat says, only half-joking.

Miss Thailand World 2009 Pongchanok “View” Kunklub fit the bill with her taekwondo moves, but this year we can expect a multilingual, singing, dancing, football-playing, Nobel-winning, maternal-but-adventurous Beyond Perfect Ten.

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According to China Hospitality News, the fourth-largest carrier in China will operate three weekly flights – every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The flights will depart Beijing at 18:00 local time and arrive in Phuket at 22:50 local time. The return flight will leave at 23:50 local time and arrives in Beijing the following morning at 06:15 local time.

Boeing 737-800 aircraft will proceeds the route.

The non-stop flights will cut travel time by more than five hours, making it much more convenient for air passengers’ trip to the tropical island, to the “Pearl of Andaman.”

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Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) has confirmed that Phuket Aquarium renovation project that cost 2.2 million-baht scheduled to finish this month.

Bangkok-based Aquatic Company began repainting the facility on February 22, said one of PMBC officer, Surapong Banjongma-nee. It involved draining the large viewing tank with a glass walk-through viewing tunnel, as well as work on five smaller tanks.

“The paint on the back wall started to peel and wasn’t very beautiful. It needed to be fixed,” Mr Surapong said.

The smaller tanks have been repaired and are in the water-testing stage while work continues on the larger tank, where lights are now being installed, he said.

Later this week the project will proceed to the fulfillment of larger aquarium with water and let it sit in for a while before draining it again. It is important to do that a few times in order to flush out unwanted chemicals and odors.

“The construction will finish on July 21, but we have to make sure the quality of water is high. After that we can release the animals in the water, probably by the end of the month,” said Mr Surapong.

Whilst the project was still running, some sections of Phuket Aquarium remain open to visitors.

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Thai Hotels Association (THA) will launch a Buy-One Get-One-Free promotion this month to match the period of Amazing Thailand Grand Sale 2010, TTR Weekly reports. This Amazing Thailand Grand Sale will run until August 15. The Grand Sale includes discounts at more than 2.500 shops, department stores and retail outlets nationwide, including the Central Department Store and Jungceylon in Phuket.

Enliven the event, Phuket hotels are being encouraged to participate in the promotion. According to the THA, the association has written to all member hotels and resorts, urging them to participate in room discount promotion. Although Phuket has generally enjoyed better room rates and occupancies than most, still tourist destinations in Thailand to date this year, especially Bangkok has been severely damaged by the red shirt protest.

“This month, Bangkok Hotel has reached 40 percent occupancy, but July usually would rise up from 65 to 70 percent. We need to be proactive on rates and take into consideration that the city is still under an emergency verdict,” said THA president Prakit Chinamourpong.

In addition to Phuket, this Amazing Thailand Grand Sale also featured in seven other tourist destinations such as Bangkok Chiang Mai, Pattaya, Hat Yai, Hua Hin, Koh Samui and Udon Thani.

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Chaired by Deputy Interior Minister Thavorn Senniam, the opening ceremony was attended by Sheikhul Islam Aziz Phitakkhumphol, advisor to HM The King on Islamic affairs, as well as two representatives from Central Islamic Committee of Thailand and two representatives from each of the 39 provincial Islamic committees in the Kingdom.

Among the issues to be discussed and agreed upon is the exact fasting times each day over the one-month Ramadan celebrations. Determined by the position of the moon, these vary from locale to locale. This year’s Muslim Holy Month runs from August 11 to September 9.

That meeting agenda will also discussing about giving information to Islamic leaders about government policies that affect Muslim people and talking ways strengthening relations between the government and Muslim communities.

The decision to hold this year’s meeting in Phuket came at last year’s meeting, at which time it was also decided to conduct a survey of the Muslim people’s way of life here in Phuket.

During his opening speech, Deputy Minister Thavorn introduced a book named Mali to participants. Written by Mr Thavorn and his staff, Mali tells the story about Muslim culture and way of life in the southern region through the eyes of a little girl of the same name.

Mr Thavorn is responsible for security matters in the Muslim majority Deep South, which comprises Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces and a few districts in neighboring Songkhla province. The book aimed at breaking down misconceptions among Muslims and non-Muslims, both in the South and elsewhere in Thailand, he said. The book will freely distribute through schools and other organizations nationwide, he added.

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That was part of Phuket City Police effort to enforce a long-ignored traffic law requiring people, including passengers, on motorbikes wear safety helmet.

The crackdown, announced in April, was set to take effect from July 1, at which time police were to begin fining anyone caught ride a motorbike without a helmet.

However, faced with the enormity of the task before them, police have decided to extend the public awareness campaign a few months, during which time offenders will have their licenses seized.

Offenders will only have their licenses returned after they have viewed the locally-produce movie with graphic images showing in detail the scene of a fast-moving human skull is no match for asphalt.

There are 200 people crammed at the meeting room watching that movies from 10 a.m. in the morning. A second showing was set to take place immediately after the first, with 195 people waited to attend the one-hour viewing that included a safety talk and opening ceremony.

All of the reluctant audience members were caught at one of three ‘mobile’ police checkpoints operated in the district since Saturday.

Officers at the Phuket City Police Traffic Division say at least three checkpoints will be set up daily to seize the offenders, quite possibly making the documentary one of the most-watched movie productions on the island in upcoming months.

Police do not need to going far to rope in an audience; among the locations where checkpoints have been set up are at the Muang District Office intersection and on Thepkrasattri Road near Phuket Wittayalai School. Both are easy walking distance from the station.

Traffic Police Officer Phaisan Rodthieng said that the effort would also include shaming offenders and possibly setting them up for admonishment in the home or workplace.

“We will record all of them and inform their schools or the companies they work for. The schools will cut their student’s behavior grades, while companies will issue warnings to their employees”.

“For example Bangkok Hospital Phuket will give staff warnings each time they are reported and will terminate their employment altogether if they are reported three times,” he said.

Police have asked many large organizations to take part in this event and so far, they cooperated well, he said.

The public awareness phase will probably continue for two months until everyone knows about the law. Thereafter, the police will begin fining offenders, he said.

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The Bangkok Post reports that tourist arrivals and hotel occupancy plummeted, particularly in the Central and Northern provinces of the Kingdom.

According to the Bank of Thailand, arrivals declined 12% year-on-year in May, after a record number of foreigners came to the country in the first quarter. Still, here that helped shore up the economy was no other than international trade and investment with their strong external demand.

Despite the violent protests in May, the overall economy expanded moderately from the previous month, says Mathee Supapongse, director of the central bank’s Domestic Economy Department.

Although we can consider that tourism was a disaster here with hotel occupancies falling to 35% in May compared with an average of 50% for the past five years.

Bangkok and the North were hardest hit, but some southern destinations, particularly Phuket, enjoyed a slight increase from the same period last year.

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Infringement toward this regulation would make the violator will be fined. Fined charge for driver and passenger without helmets is up to 500 baht. A driver transporting a passenger not wearing a helmet is subject to an additional fine of up to 1,000 baht.

Superintendent Wanchai Ekpornpit said that stepped-up enforcement of the law could save about 30 lives annually in Phuket City Police District, which covers Rassada, Wichit and Koh Kaew as well as Phuket Town.

A random review by police of closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage taken in the district in February and March this year revealed that about 60% of motorbike riders wore crash helmets, compared to just 4% of passengers.
Furthermore, the survey found that when fewer traffic police are on duty, helmet user plummeted is merely 25.4 % after dark.

Another disturbing trend revealed by the CCTV images was the correlation between helmet use and age. Adult is in a higher percentage of those who did not use any protective headgear rather than teenager and what most shocking one is that kind of head protector never does used by children and infants, just like it never exist in the first place.

Government statistics regarding helmet use among motorcycle riders in the USA revealed that helmets were 35% effective in preventing death and 67% effective in preventing brain injuries according to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Statistics released by the injury surveillance unit at Vachira Phuket Hospital for June 2008 to November 2009 period, revealed that 70% of motorbike riders involved in accidents requiring hospital treatment in Phuket were not wearing helmets. And, the highest risk of this young riders group are those ages 15 to 30. Young riders were also 2.9 times more likely to be involved in motorbike accidents requiring hospital treatment and 2.6 times more likely to die in motorbike accidents, the researchers found.

Muang District is where 66.3% of all accidents in Phuket take place, followed by Thalang (18.6%) and Kathu (15.1%). The vast majority of road accidents in Phuket, 87.6% overall, involve motorbikes.

Research by the US-based Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety shows that per vehicle miles traveled, motorcyclists are about 21 times more likely die in traffic accidents than people in cars.

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“We believe that the Phuket Music Festival will be unforgettable; Thailand’s largest beach dance floor under the moonlight,” he said.

Entertainment will include nine popular Thai artists and five international DJs: DJ Yoji from Japan, DJ B from Singapore, Northern Irish DJ duo Agnelli & Nelson and DJ Activa from the UK. Thai acts include singers Sobchai Kraiyoonsen, Thanatorn Palakawong Na Ayuthaya, Dear Acappella 7, members of the Fourgusm Band, ska band Tamone and Buddha Bless.

Sponsors Boonrawd Brewery will also bring together members of the Silly Fools and Zeal rock bands to form the hybrid super-act called ‘Silly Zeal’.

Phuket Music Festival is a renowned name from Roy Fest. The change takes place since lots foreigners misinterpret it with male name ‘Roy’ instead of the fact that it was ‘great’ in Thai. Thus make they form new name familiar with foreign and musician.

This event itself intended to promote low-season tourism as well as attaint the same popularity level with Pattaya Music Festival or Hua Hin Jazz Festival. The difference is that the Phuket event will have more of a dance music atmosphere, suitable to the fun character of Phuket.

The event kicks off at 6pm tonight and stage entertainment scheduled to end at 2am on both nights.

The Meteorological Department’s forecast for the 24-hour period starting at noon today calls for cloudy conditions and widely scattered thundershowers over 30% of the island.

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