Connect with us

EU

#Thailand: Free speech 'muzzled' ahead of upcoming Thai referendum

SHARE:

Published

on

We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. You can unsubscribe at any time.

thai-army-martial-law-20140520-1The military junta in Thailand has been condemned for attempting to “muzzle” public debate ahead of this summer’s referendum on the country’s new constitution, writes Martin Banks. 

The attack comes in the wake of fresh criticism about a lack of press freedom in Thailand.  On Tuesday, Thai journalist Pravit Rojanaphruk should have been in Helsinki at the invitation of Finland's government for World Press Freedom Day.

But the Thai military junta, which seized power in a bloodless coup two years ago this month, barred the veteran reporter from leaving Thailand to attend the event, co-hosted by the United Nations' cultural arm, UNESCO.

“It couldn't be more ironic,” said Pravit who was told his trip was blocked because he still keeps posting what the Thai junta describes as attacks on the work of the National Council for Peace Order. Finland's ambassador to Thailand, Kristi Westphalen, condemned the decision as “very regrettable”  Pravit was invited because he is “a well-known defender of liberty of expression and press freedom,” according to Finnish government officials.

In a separate incident, an abducted critic of the junta charged with lѐse majesté has warned that private Facebook chat is no longer safe under the military regime.  It comes after the Facebook page of a “citizen journalist” published an interview from jail with Harit Mahaton, one of the eight junta critics abducted by the military on 27 April. Harit said that the authorities showed him a capture of his Facebook chat and asked him who he was communicating with. He later warned that chatting via the Facebook inbox is “no longer safe and private”.

These two cases highlight serious issues with freedom of the press in Thailand, according to Maria Laura Franciosi, the founding chairperson of Brussels Press Club.  Franciosi, a member of the board of directors and head of communications, told this website, “Muzzling the press is not an option anywhere in the world. The press will keep shouting, even with their mouth tightly closed.”

The veteran Italian journalist added, “This is their power and this power nobody can take away from them.”  Her comments come after it was recently revealed that Thailand's ranking in the World Press Freedom Index dropped two places from last year.  From the 134th place in 2015, Thailand is ranked 136th in 2016 out of 180 countries, according to  Reporters Without Borders, a Paris-based press freedom-advocating organisation.

Advertisement

Its spokesman told EU Reporter: "Ubiquitous and all-powerful, the NCPO summons them (journalists) for questioning and detains them arbitrarily. Its leader, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, is given to frequent verbal attacks and even death threats against journalists. He is a new predator of information.”

Ambassadors of EU member states recently called on the junta to allow Thais to have freedom of movement and expression and Prayut  has told representatives of the Thai Journalists Association that he would consider its proposal for the revocation of certain laws affecting the media.  The group, led by TJA president Wanchai Wongmeechai, met Prayut and handed over a statement to mark World Press Freedom Day on Tuesday.   The junta, however, has blocked several events to discuss press freedom at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand from proceeding and many Thais are chafing under strict new regulations governing discussion ahead of an August 7 referendum on a military-backed constitution.

The junta that seized power in a May 2014 coup has already threatened to jail anyone campaigning for or against the constitution, which critics say entrenches the military’s political influence. New rules, which were issued by the Election Commission and formally became law on Monday, make even well-meaning discussion risky, say academics and experts.  Under the regulations, Thais must express their opinions with “polite words... without distorting the facts.  “Rude, aggressive, or intimidating” interviews with the media are banned. So is organizing a panel discussion “with intent to incite political unrest”. Also forbidden are “T-shirts, pins and ribbons” that encourage others to campaign.

Meanwhile, a former Law Reform Commissioner in Thailand says that a fair referendum on the draft constitution is only a dream under the “repressive political environment.”  Pairoj Polpetch, a human-rights activist and former member of the Law Reform Commission of Thailand (LRTC), urged the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) and Election Commission of Thailand (ECT) to “think of the people” as the referendum on the draft constitution approaches.

Pairoj said that the current political environment is not conducive for a public referendum on the draft as the authorities only permit campaigns to promote the draft while limiting the rights and liberties of its critics.  Branding the draft unfair, he said that people should be allowed to criticise it freely as long “as it does not lead to violence and chaos.”  If people are not allowed space to voice their opinions on the draft  even after the referendum, “there is no guarantee that political conflict will not arise”.

Earlier this week, former Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra called on Prayut to be open to different opinions in the lead up to the referendum.

Share this article:

EU Reporter publishes articles from a variety of outside sources which express a wide range of viewpoints. The positions taken in these articles are not necessarily those of EU Reporter.

Trending