She has half a million followers on Instagram, leads a glamorous lifestyle and describes herself as the "little girl" of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra – one of the most influential and controversial figures in modern Thai history.The 35-year-old Paetongtarn Shinawatra, youngest of billionaire tycoon Thaksin's three children, is now launching herself into the country's deeply divided political scene ahead of a national election due by March 2023.The move brings the Shin

People in Thailand can now grow cannabis plants at home and sell the crop after the nation removed marijuana from its banned narcotics list.The nation is the first to advance such a move in Southeast Asia, a region known for its stringent drug laws.But recreational use is still banned, even though advocates say the easing effectively decriminalises marijuana.The government is hoping that developing a local cannabis trade will boost agriculture and tourism.It's even giving away one millio

A train bell rouses a Thai grandmother dozing in her fruit and flower stall, sending her rushing to fold in her awning before the locomotive slowly rumbles past, so close it almost touches her wares.Six times a day at the Mae Klong Railway Market, local customers and foreign tourists scramble into nooks and crannies while vendors calmly move their woven baskets of goods away from the tracks and close their umbrellas to make way.Hundreds of stallholders carve out a living along this 500-metre

Bangkok went to the polls Sunday in its first governor election in almost a decade, with the ballot viewed as an indicator for a national vote expected within a year.Around four million people are eligible to vote in the first major poll since Thailand's huge youth-led street protests in 2020 demanding political change and reform to the once-untouchable monarchy.But daily life rather than politics has dominated the candidates' campaigns, with the leading contenders promising to clea

At Railay Beach, an Instagrammers’ favourite known for its wide, warm sands bookended by limestone cliffs, 23-year-old Londoner Becca sips coffee and savours the return of Thai backpacking following a recent easing of entry requirements.“We saved our money, quit work and travelled here,” she said of her months-long trip with friends, which was impossible during the last two years lost to the pandemic.

Thailand's oil and gas conglomerate PTTEP and Malaysia's Petronas announced Friday they would withdraw from the Yetagun gas project in coup-hit Myanmar.There has been an exodus of global energy companies from Myanmar including Chevron and TotalEnergies following last year's military takeover and subsequent allegations of human rights abuses.More than 1,800 civilians have died during a military crackdown and more than 13,000 have been arrested, according to a local monitoring gr

Thailand on Friday announced the end of compulsory COVID-19 tests for vaccinated travellers, as the country steps up efforts to revive its pandemic-thumped tourism industry.Tight border restrictions helped the kingdom limit infections and deaths in 2020 but brought the tourism sector – which had accounted for about a fifth of the country's economy – to its knees.Thailand's COVID-19 taskforce said that from 1 May, fully vaccinated visitors would no longer have to take a test on arriv

An up-and-coming Thai politician is facing allegations he sexually abused more than a dozen women, in what is fast becoming the country's most high-profile #MeToo case.According to Thai police, 14 women formally filed complaints against former Democrat Party deputy Prinn Panitchpakdi, whose father was deputy prime minister and later director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO).The #MeToo movement – which originated in the United States (US) – swept the globe in 2017 but, until

Thousands of Russian tourists in Thailand are struggling to find a route home, Thai officials said Sunday, as international sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine hit holiday-makers.Russia's invasion in February provoked a host of international measures targeting businesses and banks, with some Russian carriers cancelling flights and global payment firms suspending services.Russian tourists have been among the largest group of visitors to return to Thailand's beachside resorts si

Hundreds of headbanging metalheads rock out to the roaring guitars and thundering drums of Thai band Defying Decay, chanting along to their latest politically charged tune.The group's single "The Law 112: Secrecy and Renegades" is a raucous, defiant anthem with a taboo-defying message – challenging Thailand's draconian lese majeste laws.Criticising the royal family is punishable by up to 15 years in jail, but calls for royal reform – once completely off-limits – spilled in