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YALA, Thailand (AFP) - - A Buddhist female teacher has been shot dead and two policemen have been killed by a bomb in Thailand’s south as suspected Muslim separatists step up an anti-government insurgency, police have said.

Gunmen opened fire on the 56-year-old elementary school teacher in troubled Yala province as she rode to work on her motorcycle, in the latest attack against the education establishment in the region, they said.

Shortly afterwards, a bomb hidden in a motorcycle exploded outside a police station in neighbouring Pattani province, killing one policeman immediately, while a second died from his injuries later in hospital, police said.

Two other policemen were wounded in the explosion, they said.

The attacks come amid a recent surge in violence in the Muslim-majority region bordering Malaysia, where more than 3,700 people have been killed during a bitter five-year insurgency.

The female victim was the 117th teacher shot dead since the unrest began in the volatile provinces of Yala, Narathiwat and Pattani in January 2004, said Boonsom Thongsriplai, head of a southern teachers’ confederation.

Schools and teachers are frequent targets of attacks in the south because militants see the education system as an effort by Bangkok to impose Buddhist Thai culture on the mainly ethnic Malay region.

The insurgents also target other civilians — Buddhist and Muslim alike — as well as security forces.

Thailand’s government is struggling to curb the recent spike in violence, which included a bloody attack on a mosque in which gunmen shot dead 11 people during evening prayers last week.

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva admitted he was concerned by the recent worsening of the unrest but said he was confident the right government policy was in place.

“I am worried over the ongoing violence,” Abhisit told reporters.

“It will take time to restore peace in the south and I don’t know how long… The government is going in the right direction and will not change its policy or resort to violent means,” he said.

On Sunday Abhisit raised the possibility of making the south a special administrative zone as a political solution to the unrest but he ruled out granting any form of autonomy.

The southern region was an autonomous Malay Muslim sultanate until Thailand annexed it in 1902, provoking decades of tension.

BANGKOK (AFP) - - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Sunday urged the country not to panic about swine flu, after the number of cases grew ninefold in four days and a cluster emerged in a key tourist hub.

Health authorities reported that confirmed cases of the A(H1N1) virus soared to 150 on Sunday, compared with just 16 on Wednesday, including a number of foreigners.

Officials last week said 21 of the new infections were found among nightclub workers in the coastal city of Pattaya, who were tested after two Taiwanese tourists said on returning home they had contracted the disease there.

A Hong Kong visitor may also have contracted the virus on the southern resort island of Phuket.

“People should not panic. The death ratio for the new flu is probably lower than normal flu,” Abhisit said in his weekly television programme.

He said the government was taking extra measures whenever cases were reported to confine the disease.

The public health ministry on Sunday advised people to wear masks if they are suffering from fever.

The government has begun a mass disinfection programme in hundreds of Bangkok’s schools, while two private schools near each other in the capital were closed for a week after a student at one of them contracted the virus.

Thailand had its first reported case of swine flu on May 12 and its first domestic case in early June but there have been no fatalities.

The World Health Organization raised its global alert to a maximum six on Thursday, saying swine flu had reached pandemic status because of its geographical spread.

Thailand animal lovers celebrate birth of a panda at Chiang Mai Zoo.

This has to be the Southeast Asia’s most famous zoo after global TV networks turned their lens on a remarkable new born baby; a female panda born at Chiang Mai Zoo, late May.

Mum and Dad, Lin Hui and Xuang Xuang, have lived at the northern Thailand zoo for the last six years, under a loan agreement with the Chinese Government that lasts just 10 years.

TV cameras from all major channels focused on the tiny tot made all the more famous because it was conceived by artificial insemination and marked a first for the Thai veterinarian team. Thailand joins the US and Japan as the only countries to breed pandas in captivity.
Born 27 May, after six years of almost comical efforts to get the female panda pregnant, the birth surprised even zoo officials. It turned out to be the month’s good new story rising above the usual negative news that swamps TV viewers.

It was all the more fascinating in the context of past efforts by zoo officials to get the two Chinese pandas to mate naturally. Zoo keepers arranged a mock wedding and even showed them porn movies of other pandas mating. It was a dismal failure, until medical science came to the rescue.

Overnight, the baby was a world celebrity and the only sad note was news that within two years the baby panda would have to return to its homeland.

The panda family is the biggest draw at Chiang Mai Zoo, earning a treasure chest in gate fees that have reached an astronomical figure. You would have to be a football star to attract a fan club of the size the panda family has drawn to the zoo.

Tourists and residents flock to this northern zoo to watch these rare creatures in their posh quarters.

Leading the family’s admirers, Thailand’s Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjaijiva, says he will check out if China might be prepared to relax regulations and allow the baby to stay beyond the two years stated in the loan contract.
If successful, the baby could possibly remain with mum and dad until their stay in Thailand concludes in another four years.
While sensitive talks between PMs unfold the zoo is planning to celebrate the panda’s birth in style.
Thousands of visitors are expected to visit the zoo just to see this tiny tot a rare site for travellers interested in these cute and iconic creatures.
Since the grown-up pandas arrived, the zoo’s gate rose to around 3,000 visitors on a weekend. But there is a good deal more to see at this zoo. It is credited with being probably the best in the country and even has a night safari zoo.

There are various activities arranged by the zoo to attract visitors. This month, 12 to 21 June the zoo hosts the World Animal Art and Photo Gallery, that encourages visitors and residents to enter their favourite animal photos in a contest. They have to depict animals smiling, not an easy task if the subject is a crocodile. In addition, the zoo features a water colour painting workshop; rare animal photo auction, finger paint, photo fair and gallery. Check out www.a-plusgroup.com

PATTAYA, Thailand (AFP) - - Resplendent in a figure-hugging grey and black dress, Sorrawee Nattee wept tears of joy after being crowned Thailand’s most beautiful transsexual at a unique pageant.

Sorrawee took the top prize at Miss Tiffany’s Universe 2009 in the beach resort of Pattaya, beating off 29 other transsexuals and receiving a small Honda car, and 100,000 baht (2,860 dollars) in cash on Friday night.

“I’m very excited,” the willowy 20-year-old from Thailand’s southern Songkhla province said, touching the glimmering winner’s crown with disbelieving fingers.

She appeared overwhelmed by hordes of photographers, camera crews and well-wishers, the scene played out before a live television audience of 15 million people.

In a nation obsessed with beauty pageants and famous for its sexual tolerance, this elaborate contest is taken every bit as seriously as the more traditional competitions.

Against a soundtrack of thumping music, the pageant featured an Italian Casanova-themed number involving gondolas and masked dancers. And a pirate ship drifted across the stage swirled in thick “fog.”

There were categories for Best Costume, Miss Photogenic and even Miss Unlimited Sexy Star.

The packed theatre was a mix of transsexuals, gay and straight couples, and Western tourists who appeared to have wandered in off the main Pattaya drag.

Dresses ranged from flowing white ensembles to shimmering red numbers and pink miniskirts. High heels were a must.

The evening was put on by Tiffany’s Show Pattaya, which owners say is the world’s largest transsexual cabaret.

All contestants were born men, and organisers said they hoped to raise public awareness of transgendered issues.

“She had smart answers and is very beautiful,” Marut Sarowat, a well-known television and stage director who was one of the judges, said of Sorrawee.

He added that Thailand is generally accepting of transsexuals.

“I think our country is open for all kinds of genders,” he said. “Because everyone should do their best for themselves and for society. Thai people can accept transsexuals. All people must be good people.”

When asked to name her hero, winner Sorrawee earned loud applause by naming her mother and father, and as the evening progressed, cheers for her grew louder and louder as the audience urged their favourite to victory.

“Kathoeys,” also known as “ladyboys,” are highly visible in Buddhist-majority Thailand, and have achieved prominence in popular culture such as on television and in musical acts.

And many kathoeys work in salons, clothing shops, and travel agencies.

But the nation’s relaxed attitudes toward what it views as the “third sex” does not mean that all obstacles to acceptance have been eliminated.

Many transsexuals live their lives as women, but cannot change their national ID cards from male to female.

Napatsawan Cholakorn, 21, who won third place, said she was not disappointed at missing out on the top prize.

“It’s very hard to win because the transgendered people in Thailand are the best in the world,” she said. “Transgendered people here are not much different than women — and Thailand has a lot of competition.”

BANGKOK (AFP) - - Thai police have arrested two Swedish men and one Briton in the coastal resort of Pattaya on charges of sexually abusing underage boys, an officer said Wednesday.

Karl Erik Berglund, 60, Lars Anders Elleman, 65, and Briton George Stanley Gibbs, 67, were paraded in front of the media after being arrested in the southeastern city.

“They were arrested Tuesday morning at their rented houses in Pattaya. They are retirees and have been coming in and out of Thailand,” said deputy police commander Colonel Suwichpol Imjairach.

Thai authorities said they were tipped off by Scandinavian police who said that the men had entered Thailand to buy sex and that they had abused seven boys under the age of 15.

Police had confiscated computers from the men, which allegedly contained several pictures of minors, they added.

“They have been producing material for their own use, not for commercial use,” Suwichpol said.

He said that the men were part of a gang of seven people for which a court had issued arrest warrants.

Two other foreign members of the gang had already left Thailand while police are hunting for another foreign suspect and one Thai man, they said.

Britain’s Princess Eugenie, daughter of the Duke & Duchess of York and granddaughter of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, was the latest in a line-up of high profile guests visiting Thailand’s premier ‘luxury lifestyle resort community’ the Royal Phuket Marina over the recent Easter holiday weekend.

Pictured (second from left), the young princess was accompanied by four friends for lunch and a boat trip around Phuket’s famous Phang Nga Bay which is renowned for its iconic James Bond Island which featured in the ‘Man with the Golden Gun’ with Roger Moore, as well as Phi Phi Island which appeared in the film The Beach, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Princess Eugenie and her friends were guests of marina developer Gulu Lalvani, a close friend of the British royal family. The tycoon founder of Binatone, the world’s second largest manufacturer of digital cordless phones, is partly based in London and features regularly on the Financial Times’ annual Rich List.

Princess Eugenie, 19, is the second daughter of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah, Duchess of York. She is on a gap year before university, having completed her A-levels at Britain’s prestigious Marlborough College.

Royal Phuket Marina is becoming a magnet for the world’s celebrities and socialites looking to escape the limelight and enjoy the idyllic lifestyle of Phuket. Gulu Lalvani recently welcomed tennis star Martin Navratilova while his Christmas guest list included Hong Kong entrepreneur and Shanghai Tang founder Sir David Tang, model Kate Moss, British heiress and fashion icon Daphne Guinness, London property tycoon Nick Candy, Louis Vuitton CEO Yves Carcelle and Japanese designer Kenzo.

Located on Phuket’s eastern seaboard overlooking scenic Phang Na Bay, Royal Phuket Marina is Thailand’s first world-class luxury lifestyle community rivaling top marina resort communities in Europe and the Caribbean.

It was developed by tycoon Gulu Lalvani, founder of Binatone, the world’s second largest manufacturer of digital cordless phones, whose vision is to promote Phuket as a world class yachting hub in one of the world’s most scenic and assessable locations.

Royal Phuket Marina has become a popular entertainment and lifestyle hub with open air restaurants and bars overlooking mega yachts moored in the Mediterranean-style marina.

Following the successful completion and sale of Phase I with its luxury condominiums and penthouses, Royal Phuket Marina has just completed its unique ‘Aquaminium’ penthouse apartments which come complete with their own integral boat berth as well as a series of ultra luxury private villas, also with private berths, which complete Phase II of the complex.

More than half of the Royal Phuket Marina development is devoted to leisure, shopping, recreation, and dining set amidst landscaped gardens overlooking the 350-berth marina.

For more information about Royal Phuket Marina, visit http://www.royalphuketmarina.com

Source: http://www.luxurytravelmagazine.com

SIEM REAP, Cambodia (AFP) - - Cambodian and Thai defence ministers on Wednesday concluded border talks but said they could not agree to pull back troops from a tense territorial dispute near an ancient temple.

At least seven Thai and Cambodian troops have been killed in recent months in sporadic clashes between the neighbouring countries on disputed land around the 11th-century Preah Vihear temple.

Cambodian defence minister Tea Banh and his Thai counterpart Prawit Wongsuwan began this week’s talks by playing a round of golf in the northwestern tourist hub of Siem Reap on Tuesday.

The pair hailed progress by border negotiators from both countries, but Thailand’s Prawit told reporters after talks finished Wednesday that troops would remain in place until the border was demarcated.

“The issue of troop pullback… from the area near Preah Vihear temple depends on the negotiation related to border demarcation that has not been agreed yet,” Prawit told reporters in a joint press conference.

Tea Banh added that both countries were using all means possible to resolve the border dispute.

Troops from the two countries have been in a border standoff since tensions flared last July, when the cliff-top temple was awarded United Nations World Heritage status.

Ownership of the temple was awarded to Cambodia in 1962 but the two countries are in dispute over five square kilometres (two square miles) of land around it that has yet to be officially demarcated.

BANGKOK (AFP) - - Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has lifted a state of emergency in Bangkok, saying that he wanted to foster reconciliation after violent street protests against his government.

Abhisit imposed emergency rule in the capital and five surrounding provinces on April 12 after protesters disrupted a summit of Asian leaders in the coastal city of Pattaya before the demonstrations spread to the capital.

Two people were killed and 123 injured as protesters clashed with troops despite the state of emergency.

The latest political demonstrations to hit the kingdom and its fractured politics ended on April 14 when the protesters abandoned a three-week sit-in outside Abhisit’s offices fearing a military crackdown.

“Today I intend to lift the state of emergency. At first I wanted to announce it in the morning (of Thursday) but as it is already past midnight it is considered a new day,” Abhisit earlier told a special sitting of parliament.

“Lifting the state of emergency is part of measures to find a solution for the country. The government wants to show its sincerity, that the government wants reconciliation and to make the country move forwards,” he added.

Government spokesman Panitan Wattanayagorn later confirmed that the emergency regulations had been lifted.

“It’s effective since 1:00am (1800 GMT Thursday) this morning,” Panitan told AFP. “Today the government will repeatedly announce it on television and radio.”

The parliamentary sitting was held to find ways of healing the bitter political divide between Abhisit and his opponents, the so-called “Red Shirt” movement largely loyal to ousted former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

Authorities have issued warrants for the arrest of Thaksin — who was toppled in a coup in 2006 and lives in exile — and 12 other allies for allegedly inciting the protests in Pattaya.

“After the lifting of the state of emergency all the suspects that have been detained under (emergency) law will be released, but those held under criminal cases would have to go before the law,” Abhisit said.

A government minister had earlier this week said that a fresh Red Shirt rally planned outside the emergency zone on Saturday would mean that the state of emergency would be prolonged.

The protest is due to take place in Samut Sakhon province, 36 kilometres (22 miles) outside Bangkok.

On Monday, Jakrapob Penkair, a senior Red Shirt leader, told AFP from an unknown foreign location that the group would continue their campaign against Abhisit.

The Red Shirts want Abhisit to quit and call elections, saying that he came to power unfairly in December after a court toppled Thaksin’s allies from power.

Police are meanwhile still hunting the gunmen behind an assassination attempt on Sondhi Limthongkul, the founder of the rival “Yellow Shirts” movement which led a blockade of Bangkok’s airports last year.

The airport siege ended after the court ruling that helped bring Abhisit to power.

Thai army chief Anupong Paojinda admitted Thursday that three bullets used in the attack came from a military unit.

NEW YORK - Thailand will be able to overcome the civil unrest that has paralyzed and embarrassed the Southeast Asian country, Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya said on Tuesday.

“I am confident, yes, that we can overcome it,” he said in remarks to the Asia Society in New York.

But he said a summit of Asian leaders that has been cancelled twice because of the instability will have to wait until the country has returned to normal.

Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva suffered a huge embarrassment when anti-government protesters invaded the Thai venue for the East Asia Summit 10 days ago, forcing its cancellation. Two people died and more than 100 were injured in the protests.

Bangkok remains under emergency rule as the government tries to contain political violence that has seen troops clash with protesters and an assassination attempt on the leader of a royalist pro-government movement.

Kasit said Bangkok would consult with ambassadors from the other 15 invited nations before deciding when to reschedule the summit of the 10 member nations of the Association of South East Asian Nations plus China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.

“Without a political settlement there is no point in having a summit meeting in Phuket while the streets of Bangkok are still full of the red shirts and the yellow shirts,” Kasit said, referring to protesters. “Let’s settle the political thing first and then we can determine the dates later.

Foreign Ministry officials said earlier on Tuesday the summit may be held in June on the southern resort island of Phuket, more than 530 miles from the capital.

The political instability has been a concern of foreign investors, whose confidence was hit by efforts by the previous military-installed government to tighten the Foreign Business Act to restrict foreign ownership of local companies.

Kasit said his government would keep the Foreign Business Act “the way it is” and protect intellectual property rights.

“We will maintain Thailand as an open market economy, friendly to the international community,” he said.

He also praised the restraint of the security forces, saying, “If there were to have been one death caused by the security forces Thailand would have turned into civil war.”

MANAGUA (AFP) - - Nicaragua said it had given a diplomatic passport to Thailand’s fugitive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, whose Thai passport was revoked on charges of inciting violence.

The billionaire Thaksin, deposed in a 2006 coup and living in exile to avoid a jail term for corruption, has made a series of speeches in recent weeks calling for “revolution” as his supporters have taken to the streets.

Thailand revoked his passport after his supporters forced the cancellation of an Asian summit at the weekend, and Nicaragua said Thaksin was to be accredited as an ambassador with a “special mission” to help bring investment to the country.

He was given the passport earlier this year, the government said in a statement.

Pro-Thaksin demonstrators say his allies were unlawfully pushed from power by a court ruling last year, and have been calling for current premier Abhisit Vejjajiva to step down and hold fresh elections.

“Thaksin Shinawatra was democratically elected by the majority of Thai people, and was then forced to abandon his duty by a coup in 2006,” said Rosario Murillo, Nicaragua’s first lady and a government spokeswoman.

Thailand said it had no extradition treaty with Nicaragua and otherwise had little to say about the announcement.

Foreign ministry spokesman Tharit Charungvat said Thailand had “not yet” made a formal protest to authorities in Managua.

“Nicaragua can give whatever they want to,” Tharit told AFP.

Thailand issued an arrest warrant for Thaksin and 12 supporters following demonstrations in the capital Bangkok Monday which left two dead and scores injured.

Demonstrators loyal to Thaksin, known as “Red Shirts” because of their trademark attire, surrounded Abhisit’s offices three weeks ago to demand his resignation before moving to the resort of Pattaya to disrupt the Asian summit.

They accuse British-born Abhisit of being a stooge of Thailand’s military and of coming to power illegally after Thaksin’s allies were removed from government by a court in December.

The protesters returned to Bangkok on Monday where they fought street battles with armed troops in which two local residents who challenged the demonstrators were killed.

The Bangkok Post accused the protest leaders and Thaksin of “heinous crimes” while another newspaper, The Nation, said the peaceful end to the riots had strengthened Abhisit.