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ANDAMAN Edition PHUKET’S LEADING NEWSPAPER... SINCE 1993 Now NATIONWIDE Pachyderm pandemonium Elephant raids return, officials deny illegal trafficking network INSIDE TODAY May 11 - 17, 2013 PhuketGazette.Net In partnership with The Nation 25 Baht ‘HIS CASE TOOK A MONTH… HE LOST HIS JOB BACK HOME’ Tour guide crackdown hits illegals THE demand for legal action against illegal tour guides was met with Tourist Court, results this week, as seven Thais and two Chinese nationals were put in cuffs. All arrested were catering to Phuket’s growing Chinese market. Full story on Page 2 holiday justice Rising tide of demands; Plan for tourist court lifeguard garners praise, promises budget holds THE Phuket Provincial expedient resolution for Administrative Organiza- tion has requested that visitors’ legal troubles five new lifeguard watchtowers be estab- lished on the west coast. By Chutharat Plerin However, the new contract for the Phuket THE move to establish a new series of Tourist Lifeguard Club offers no Courts in Phuket and at other key vacation destina- increase in budget to tions in Thailand – including Bangkok, Pattaya, compensate for the ex- Chiang Mai, Phang Nga and Krabi – has received tra manpower needed. much support on the island. Full story on Page 6 Chanchai Duangjit, director of the Tourism Au- thority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket office, gave his Burmese, 6, “absolute support” for the idea. “This is a very good thing for tourists. Most dies from tourists who come to Phuket are here only on a short holiday. They do not have much time to deal dengue fever with a court trial,” he said. THE death of a six-year- “This will allow tourists to have their cases heard old girl from dengue in court much more quickly than now,” Mr fever comes in the wake Chanchai added. of Governor Maitri Australian honorary consul to Phuket Larry Inthusut’s recently Cunningham praised the idea of a Tourist Court in launched campaign Phuket as a very positive development, one that… against the disease. Tourist Police Commander Roy Ingpairoj holds up a photo of a wrecked jet-ski. Disputes over insurance Continued on page 3 and cost of repairs that plague tourists would be quickly settled in the Tourist Court. Photo: Gazette file Full story on Page 3 2 PHUKET GAZETTE PHUKET NEWS May 11 - 17, 2013 Police tour de force Business New superyacht and scoops illegal guides yacht facilities ready to By Kritsada Mueanhawong serve region. Page 12 OFFICIALS continued their Property crackdown on illegal tour guides this week, arresting seven Thais Property guru Bill working illegally as guides for Barnett takes a trip to Chinese tourists in Phuket and Khao Lak. Page 14 two Chinese nationals illegally operating tours from the heart of Phuket Town. Event Of the seven illegal guides Fitness advice at the picked up by the Phuket Tourist Police on May 2, two were found Phuket Health Fitness in possession of ya ice (crystal Festival. Page 36 methamphetamine), said Phuket Tourist Police Inspector Urum- porn Koondejsumrit. Explore “The seven people arrested Baz Daniel tests out were Thai. They have all been Six of the seven Thais caught working illegally as tour guides are pictured the pedal power of charged with working as tour here seated at Phuket City Police Station. Two were held on drugs charges. guides without being properly cer- Tourism Business and Guide they will be deported, he added. pasta. Page 40 tified,” Maj Urumporn said. Registration Phuket office. “We are working together with “Two of the seven have also “We seized a list of tour pro- other police officers to crack Event been charged with possession of grams, a list of tourist customers down on illegal guides in Phuket a category one drug,” he added. and brochures of tourist attrac- because they give Phuket a bad Navy League confirms Tourist Police arrested the tions in Phuket, Krabi and Phang image,” Maj Urumporn said. airshow for the July 4 Chinese nationals in Phuket Town Nga that they organized tours to,” The arrests follow a mass pro- weekend. Page 44 on May 5. Maj Urumporn said. test by legitimate, registered tour Maj Urumporn named the two The men were promptly taken guides demanding the government men as Hung Jin Tia, also known to Phuket City Police Station and take action against their illegal Sport as “Mr Tawan”, 34, and Cao charged with working illegally as counterparts on April 29. Phuket Raceweek is Jiandong, 40. guides. By law, only Thai nationals cer- Accompanying Tourist Police “They each face a fine of up to tified by the Professional Guide only a couple of months in the raid on the men’s tour kiosk 100,000 baht or up to four years Association may be employed as away. Page 49 on Phun Pol Road was Jakrit in prison,” Maj Urumporn said. tour guides in Thailand. Janjit, Registrar of the Bureau of After justice has been served, Shotgun blast ends beach party Russians arrested in wakeboard park raid A MAN enjoying shotgun at my Following the arrest of 35 Rus- During the raids two Russian a laid-back beach head. I pushed sians found allegedly working nationals, 27-year-old reception- party with friends the barrel away illegally in Patong nightclubs last ist Julie Solovyeva and 29-year-old at Kalim, north of just before it went week, three more Russians have cashier Elena Bonkarenko, were Patong Beach, on off,” Mr Khata- been arrested at the tourist-popu- arrested alongside marketing of- Monday night wut said. lar Phuket Wake Park in Kathu. ficer Dmitry Lee, who is originally managed to push “Then the man Cherdsak Wisutthikul, from the from Kurdistan. away a shotgun turned the gun Department of Employment in All three confessed to working that was pointed around and used Bangkok, led a team of 20 offic- without work permits. They each at his head just the stock to hit me ers to raid the wakeboard park at face a fine of between 2,000 baht before it went off. Police question Mr Khutawat at in the face. When about 5:30pm on May 2. and 100,000 baht, up to five years Khatawut Patong Hospital. people started to Following a chaotic scene, al- in prison, or both. Sangngam, 23, was with friends gather, the men left,” he added. legedly including foreigners All four suspects were taken to when three men rode by on mo- Police questioned Mr Khatawut leaving the premises in a rush, the Thung Thong Police Station for torbikes, looked them over, and at the hospital, where he was be- officers arrested and charged Rus- Russian nationals Julie Solovyeva, further investigation. rode on. ing treated for a broken nose. sian national Oleg Lysinov, 47, 27, and Elena Bonkarenko, 29, were Mr Cherdsak, who is the direc- “Five minutes later, they came “We will continue questioning with illegally hiring foreign arrested in the raid. tor of the “Inspection and Job back,” Mr Khatawut told police. the witnesses. We suspect there workers. liable to a fine of not more than Seekers Protection Division”, re- “They said ‘Who hurt my nong is a dispute between the two Section 54 of the Alien Workers 10,000 baht, in addition to a fine turned to Bangkok after the raid [younger brother/sister]?’ groups,” Lt Pattapee said. Act stipulates that any person found between 10,000 baht and 100,000 had concluded. “Then one of them pointed a – Thawit Bilabdullar illegally hiring foreign workers is baht per illegal worker. – Kritsada Mueanhawong May 11 - 17, 2013 PHUKET NEWS PHUKET GAZETTE 3 Island goes on dengue alert after Burmese girl, 6, dies By Chutharat Plerin American Brett Bean spent six IN THE wake of a six-year-old months of the year surfing in Burmese girl dying from dengue Phuket. Photo: US embassy handout fever after arriving on the island in April, the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) is urging Brett Bean everyone to bolster efforts to remove breeding grounds of disease-carrying mosquitoes. calls home The young girl was in Phuket for less than two weeks before she BRETT Bean, the American expat was admitted to Vachira Phuket whose disappearance last Novem- Hospital on April 16, explained ber gained extensive press PPHO Deputy Chief Krit coverage, has contacted his fam- Sakulpat. ily after 155 days of silence. “She had been suffering from “It was a very brief call,” his a fever for four days before she mother, Lynne Bean, told the Ga- was admitted. She was kept in the zette this week. Intensive Care Unit for two days “We still do not know where he before she died,” Dr Krit said. is, but it was very good to hear “The girl was living with her his voice,” she added. parents on the rubber plantation “At least we know he is alive. where they worked in Chalong,” There is still hope after 155 days,” he added. his father, Wayne Bean, said. Dr Krit asked the press to help His parents reported Brett miss- inform the public of dengue-pre- Local officials and volunteers inspect a village in Thalang to ensure no local residents are suffering from symptoms of dengue and no pools of water are left standing to become breeding grounds for mosquitoes. ing after he failed to make a flight vention measures, such as the home, leading to an island-wide “333” dengue awareness cam- check on residents who are show- The PPHO is also cooperating across the island. manhunt. paign Governor Maitri Inthusut ing symptoms of dengue fever, with other government offices to “With students returning to Karon Police inspector Chana launched in Phuket last month.