Thailand loses investments in Asia
Years of political conflict and last year's floods are starting to take their toll. Thailand only accounts for 6 percent of foreign investment in the region and has since been overtaken by Indonesia (21), Malaysia (12) and Vietnam (10). In the period 2004-2009, 17 percent of regional investments took place in Thailand. According to a study by the Economic Intelligence Unit.
News from Thailand – February 3
Thammasat University's ban on Nitirat activities on its own campus has driven a wedge between students, former students and teachers. The Thammasat University Student Union has called on the university to withdraw the ban. And yesterday, some 200 students and former students of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication demonstrated on the Tha Prachan campus in favor of the ban. A counter-demonstration will be held on the same campus on Sunday.
News from Thailand – February 2
A volunteer military ranger was shot dead in Pattani on Wednesday and a Buddhist temple was hit by two shells. The attacks are widely seen as revenge for Sunday night's shooting, in which rangers killed four Muslims and wounded four.
Travel advice to Thailand relaxed
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has relaxed travel advice for Thailand. Travelers to Thailand are no longer warned about terrorism.
French balloon pops up in Thailand
A balloon released in June during a prom in the French village of Limalonges has surfaced six months later on a beach in Thailand. The director of the school reported this to AFP news agency. The balloon traveled no less than 14.000 kilometers.
The sixty largest airlines in the world did not have a single fatal accident last year. Optimists then say that these companies comply with the safety rules. Pessimists say it's statistically high time for a crash. Every year, the German research agency Jet Airliner Crash Data Evaluation Center (JACDEC) lists the safest airlines.
Thai women in Friesland (video)
My good friend Doeke Bakker van Ameland visited me here in Thailand a few years ago and is therefore interested in everything that has to do with this country.
ArkeFly not to Thailand after all
Contrary to previously planned, ArkeFly will not fly to Thailand, the Maldives and Sri Lanka next summer. A spokeswoman for TUI Netherlands confirms this to Luchtvaartnieuws.nl.
Samantha Fox in Thailand
We've known for a while that it would happen and it has already happened. Khun Peter of the editors has settled in Thailand for about three months to – as he said himself – spend the winter. Not many people will lose any sleep over this fact and the (Dutch) media, including the gossip magazines, will pay little or no attention to his possible experiences in the Land of Smiles.