Showing 1 - 10 of 10
Uighurs' plight a lesson for govt
News, Editorial, Published on 09/04/2023
» The case of 63 members of the Shenzhen Holy Reformed Church who were arrested for overstaying visas in Pattaya last week brings back memories of the notorious repatriation of another group of Uighur refugees back to China in 2014.
Raw deal for Covid patients
Oped, Editorial, Published on 17/03/2022
» Two weeks after the Health Ministry and the National Health Security Office (NHSO) rolled out a scheme for coronavirus patients with mild symptoms, its implementation remains a mess, riddled with too many loopholes.
Threats have run course
News, Editorial, Published on 10/01/2020
» Running events have gained popularity in Thailand recently and the authorities have always supported them. However, once they started carrying a political message against the prime minister, the authorities have done what they should not do. Over the past week, reports have emerged about alleged intimidation by the police and other officials against organisers of the Run Against Dictatorship events, also known as Wing Lai Lung, to be held this Sunday in Bangkok and various provinces.
End military interrogation
News, Editorial, Published on 27/09/2018
» In a court ruling on Tuesday on what has been dubbed the "budu bomb" case, the legitimacy and transparency of the military's unusual role in the justice process has again been questioned.
Time to lift rights bans
News, Editorial, Published on 17/09/2018
» The best thing that can be said about last week's action by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) is that the all-male group understands it has created a problem. It has returned to the public a tiny bit of the civil and human rights it removed 52 months ago. On Friday, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha used his extraordinary powers under Section 44 to give some small but important freedoms to political parties. While the order restores the right to organise party affairs, it falls lamentably short of restoring basic and constitutional rights to all Thais.
Lack of unity in drug sweep
News, Editorial, Published on 28/02/2018
» The government has launched yet another series of anti-drugs sweep aimed at taming the North. They are part of the decades-old campaign to wipe out trafficking in illicit drugs. Authorities came up with reports to the public that had a very tired look and feel. A one-month "massive" suppression campaign resulted in the arrests of 63 suspects, the seizure of many kilogrammes of drugs and the unsurprising discovery of some 241 million baht of "assets" -- cash, gold, cars and motorcycles, up-scale homes, land and condominiums.
Keep a lid on Songkran
News, Editorial, Published on 13/04/2017
» The Songkran Festival officially begins today. Unlike previous years, the water splashing activities especially in Bangkok will take place in regulated calmness thanks to a series of state orders that are driven by the need to promote road safety and curb traffic-related fatalities.
Support fort community
News, Editorial, Published on 23/12/2016
» In a bid to prove that its existence can be part of city conservation and development, the Mahakan Fort community, a group of people faced with an eviction order by the state, is set to launch its conservation plan to the public tomorrow.
Burkini ban is ridiculous
News, Editorial, Published on 05/09/2016
» The French government's decision to create an uproar over women who cover up on the country's beaches was always going to be trouble. In a way, the ban on the so-called "burkini" bathing wear is reminiscent of the equally misguided attempt by our own government to ban Islamic head wear in schools. Such state interference is not just unnecessary but divisive. The Paris government would be wise to consider the lessons learned in Thailand, accept they were wrong and abandon this poorly conceived law.
PM must act on lawsuits
News, Editorial, Published on 02/08/2016
» Authorities moved ahead on lawsuits last week that never should have been accepted. Three of the country's leading human and civil rights defenders have been charged with criminally defaming the armed forces, specifically the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc). Coincidentally, a similar case saw the formal arrest of a determined young woman protesting against the brutal killing of her uncle during army training.