Thailand

2013

  

Journalists charged with criminal defamation in Thailand

Bangkok, December 20, 2013–The Royal Thai Navy should immediately drop the criminal defamation charges lodged on Wednesday against two journalists in connection with a report on alleged military abuses of ethnic Rohingya people, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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A photographer wears a gas mask to cover the anti-government protest in Bangkok. (AFP/Nicolas Asfouri)

Press stuck in crosshairs of Thai protests

Bangkok, December 9, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on both Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government and opposition groups to respect the role of the press in the lead-up to elections scheduled for February 2. Both sides have failed to uphold basic press freedoms as anti-government protests have intensified in recent weeks, CPJ said today.

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Five journalists injured in bomb attack in Thailand

Bangkok, October 22, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the recent roadside bomb attack that injured five reporters in southern Thailand and calls on both sides of the region’s insurgent conflict to refrain from attacks that imperil journalists.

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Thai journalist harassed over Facebook postings

Bangkok, August 9, 2013–A Thai journalist has been harassed and questioned today in connection with comments he posted to his personal Facebook page in early August that speculated about a possible military coup, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Thai authorities to drop the criminal investigation against Sermsuk Kasitpradit and to refrain…

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Chinese diplomats harass France 24 reporter

Diplomats are charged with promoting cordial and constructive ties between nations. But Chinese embassy officials in France and Thailand appear bent on fostering fear and disgust with recent efforts to harass and intimidate France 24 reporter Cyril Payen.

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A memorial to Polenghi (Reuters)

First step to justice in Fabio Polenghi’s killing

EDITOR’S NOTE: A court in Thailand ruled today that Italian photojournalist Fabio Polenghi was shot and killed by a bullet fired by a soldier during a government crackdown on street protesters on May 19, 2010.  The inquest ruling established the circumstances surrounding his death but failed to apportion blame to any individual military commanders or…

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A Red Shirt protester holds a portrait of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra at a rally in Bangkok on May 8. (Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha)

Small attack on Thai newspaper has large implications

To head off rising tensions between supporters of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and cartoonist Somchai Katanyutanan, who faces possible criminal defamation charges for critical comments he posted on his personal Facebook page, Thailand’s government has to make sure police fully investigate this weekend’s attack on Thai Rath, the country’s largest circulation daily newspaper. The government’s…

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CPJ welcomes reversal of Thai documentary ban

Bangkok, April 26, 2013–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the decision by Thailand’s Ministry of Culture to reverse its earlier imposed ban on the locally produced documentary Fah Tam Pan Din Soon (Boundary). “The ministry’s reversal of its censorship order against director Nontawat Numbchapol’s documentary is a step in the right direction,” said Shawn Crispin, CPJ’s senior…

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Censors ban political documentary in Thailand

Bangkok, April 25, 2013–Thailand’s Ministry of Culture has banned the locally produced documentary Fah Tam Pan Din Soon (Boundary) on grounds that it could “mislead and disrupt public order,” according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the censorship order and calls on ministry officials to reverse the arbitrary decision.

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Attacks on the Press: Internet Opening Is Shrinking

Thailand, Malaysia, and Vietnam had vibrant blogospheres–until the crackdowns. By Shawn W. Crispin

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2013