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August 2008
- 2,000 Cops Surround Thai Protesters
  
  Reuters | Aug 27, 08 6:04 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - As anti-government protests continued outside the Thai prime minister's office, 2,000 police officers surrounded demonstrators and a court issued arrest warrants for nine of the protest's leaders, Reuters reports. The People's Alliance for Democracy—a monarchist movement—is seeking to bring down the government of Samak Sundaravej. But the prime minister said calls for his resignation were "unreasonable." More »
- Thai Protesters Storm PM's Office, TV Station
  
  BBC | Aug 26, 08 5:37 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Thousands of protesters have spread out across Bangkok, storming the prime minister's office and forcing Thai state television off the air, reports the BBC. The mass protest movement seeks to force out the government of Samak Sundaravej, whom they see as a stooge for ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, now on the lam. "We are now controlling most of the key government offices to prevent them from coming to work," said one protest leader. More »
- Former Thai PM Skips Bail, Flees to UK
  
  AFP | Aug 11, 08 6:26 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Thaksin Shinawatra, the deposed Thai prime minister, has fled with his family to Britain after skipping a hearing on corruption charges, reports the AFP. Thaksin and his wife, who was recently convicted of tax evasion, were both free on bail and had received special permission to travel to China for the Olympics. A judge has issued arrest warrants for the former first couple. More »
- New Youth Castration Law Divides Thailand
  
  Bloomberg | Aug 5, 08 9:45 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Until recently in Thailand, boys who wanted to change gender could have their testicles removed for just $150, no questions asked. But as Bloomberg reports, a new law pushed by gay rights activists will force Thais to wait until they turn 18 before undergoing a sex-change operation. Many doctors, though, are opposed to the legislation, insisting that castration qualifies as essential surgery. More »
- Distributor Pulls Grand Theft After Murder
  
  Reuters | Aug 4, 08 4:16 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A video-game distributor is pulling Grand Theft Auto IV from shelves in Thailand after a teenager robbed and murdered a cab driver while attempting to re-create his experiences in the game, Reuters reports. The 18-year-old, currently in custody, has shown no signs of mental illness. He faces death by lethal injection if convicted. More »
July 2008
- Transsexual Thai Students Get Own Toilets
  
  BBC | Jul 30, 08 4:59 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A high school in rural Thailand has given its many transgender students their own restroom, the BBC reports. Situated between the boys' and girls' rooms, the room has a half male/half female figure painted on the door. Inside, effeminate teenage boys preen. As many as 20% of the school's male students would rather be girls, the headmaster estimates. More »
- Cambodia, Thailand on Brink of War
  
  Daily Telegraph (UK) | Jul 23, 08 5:17 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Cambodia has appealed to the UN to help defuse an "imminent state of war" with Thailand, the Daily Telegraph reports. Some 1,500 troops armed with heavy artillery are in a standoff at an ancient temple in a disputed frontier area. Cambodian officials are accusing Thailand of aggression and say thousands of Thai troops are massing at the border. More »
June 2008
- 1,000 Thai Protesters Clash With Cops
  
  Associated Press | Jun 20, 08 6:21 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - An anti-government protest in Bangkok turned violent today as more than 1,000 protesters broke through a police barrier outside government offices. The demonstrators demanded the resignation of Samak Sundaravej, the Thai prime minister whom opponents call a proxy for ousted predecessor Thaksin Shinawatra. Protesters have been in the streets of Bangkok for the past three weeks, reports AP. More »
May 2008
- Thailand Plans OPEC-Style 'Rice Cartel'
  
  Bangkok Post (Thailand) | May 1, 08 9:54 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The prime minister of Thailand is exploring the idea of setting up a rice price-fixing cartel with four other governments in southeast Asia, including the military dictatorship of Burma. The Bangkok Post reports that Samak Sundaravej wants to establish an OPEC-style collective of producers that will influence the market for rice, whose rapidly rising price has resulted in protests and hunger riots. More »
April 2008
- Crisis Looms as Rice Prices Soar
  
  Guardian (UK) | Apr 6, 08 2:21 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Rice feeds half the world's population, but this year there isn't enough to go around and prices have risen by 50% over the last two weeks alone. Population growth is outpacing production, and stocks are at a 30-year low after droughts decimated harvests in China and Australia. Countries are banning rice exports and punishing hoarders to prevent looming food riots, the Guardian reports. More »
March 2008
- Deposed Thai PM Pleads Not Guilty to Graft
  
  AFP | Mar 12, 08 9:47 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra pleaded not guilty to graft charges today in a Supreme Court packed with hundreds of his supporters, AFP reports. Thaksin will not have to attend every hearing in his trial; he has already obtained permission to return to Britain, where he owns a soccer team. Outside the courthouse, many Thaksin loyalists carried roses for the former leader, and several broke down in tears. More »
February 2008
- Deposed Thai PM Returns Home
  
  BBC | Feb 28, 08 6:33 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Ousted Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra flew home today after 17 months in exile to cheering supporters and police, who quickly escorted him to court to face corruption charges. Thaksin, the billionaire owner of the Manchester City soccer team who was forced from power by a military coup, knelt and touched his native soil with his forehead when he landed in Bangkok. More »
January 2008
- Thailand Axes Anti-Monarchy Website
  
  Associated Press | Jan 6, 08 6:32 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - A Thai ministry has shut down a website critical of the country's monarchy, the AP reports. Postings on Sameskybooks.com questioned news accounts that all citizens mourned the king's sister, who died Wednesday, and criticized officials. "I think we're one of the few sites posting remarks against the monarchy," Thanapol Eiwsakul, who ran the site, told a Thai newspaper. "This is the price we are paying." More »
December 2007
- Thais Will Bust Exiled PM if He Returns
  
  AFP | Dec 27, 07 7:50 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - As his allies get set to wrest the reins of government from the military, Thailand's exiled prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been warned that he will face arrest if he returns home. Arrest warrants for Thaksin and his wife on charges of fraud and corruption are still outstanding, according to the office of Thailand's attorney general. Thaksin has said he'll return in April. More »
- Tsunami Survivors Look Ahead
  
  Christian Science Monitor | Dec 26, 07 11:55 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - As candles are lit today in memory of the 230,000 victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the Christian Science Monitor reports on the results of the $13.6 billion effort to help survivors. The aid has largely been used effectively, but now officials worry about the recovering economies after the rebuilding boom peaks and the aid dries up. More »
- Party of Exiled Thai PM Ready to Govern
  
  Associated Press | Dec 24, 07 5:47 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Samak Sundaravej is set to become Thailand's next prime minister after his party announced today that it had recruited at least one other party to form a coalition government, the AP reports. The People's Power Party, the bloc allied with deposed PM Thaksin Shinawatra, won yesterday's elections but fell short of an absolute majority. More »
- Party of Ousted Prime Minister Wins Thai Races
  
  Reuters | Dec 23, 07 6:15 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Deposed former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is poised to return from exile now that the party supporting him won the most seats in parliament in today's elections, according to exit polls. It was unclear, however, whether the pro-Thaksin People Power party gained an absolute majority. If not, opposition parties still have a chance to cobble together a coalition government. More »
- Thailand Gets Second Chance at Democracy
  
  Bloomberg | Dec 21, 07 6:23 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Thailand goes to the polls on Sunday to vote in the first government since the coup d'état of September 2006. Two men are vying to become prime minister: Samak Sundaravej, 72, a political veteran and ally of the ousted leadership; and Abhisit Vejjajiva, nearly 30 years his junior, who stresses human rights and environmental concerns. Whoever wins, says Bloomberg, the next PM's restoration of democratic rule should kickstart a lagging economy. More »
November 2007
- In Thailand, Everyone Wants to Be in the Pink
  
  BBC | Nov 30, 07 6:26 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - On the advice of royal astrologers, the ailing Thai king has added pink to his wardrobe, sparking a national fashion trend. The chromatic rush had one clothing chain selling 40,000 pink shirts this month, BBC reports. A woman camping out in a line to buy one said, “Wearing pink brings the king luck. I don't want him to be sick.” More »
October 2007
- Bank Gives Shy Thais Condoms
  
  Reuters | Oct 2, 07 11:10 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Some unusual withdrawals will be taking place later this month as Thailand's Kasikorn Bank begins giving away free condoms, branded with the bank's logo, at its 600 branches. Called "Condoms for Confidence," the campaign to combat the spread of AIDS seeks to alleviate embarrassment felt by many in conservative Thailand. “Women who buy condoms from convenience stores always get a strange look,” a health official told Reuters. More »