Showing 1 - 9 of 9
Real barriers to temple reform
Editorial, Published on 01/02/2026
» After a year of temple scandals, Thailand's top monks have promised a great clean-up. The orders sound bold. The question is whether a feudal system built on censorship, obedience and patronage can truly reform itself.
Charter bill still afloat
Oped, Editorial, Published on 04/12/2025
» The month of December commences amid considerable political uncertainty. As parliament is set to convene its extraordinary session on Dec 10-11 to deliberate the proposed changes to the charter, to be followed by a regular session the day after, speculation mounts that Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul may attempt to dissolve the House early -- in a bid to counter the Pheu Thai Party's threatened no-confidence motion.
Clergy in need of control, not reform
Editorial, Published on 20/07/2025
» After a long silence during Thailand's biggest sex scandal in the clergy, the Ecclesiastical Council and the National Office of Buddhism (NOB) have finally spoken out. Their big idea? A new law to imprison the offending monks and women involved in the scandal.
Bitter pill for Thailand
Oped, Editorial, Published on 21/08/2024
» The recent decision by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) to cancel Thailand's hosting of the 6th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (Aimag) is a blow to the country's international reputation.
Quarantine quandary
Oped, Editorial, Published on 19/01/2022
» The government should adopt a precautionary approach before reactivating the quarantine-free Test & Go programme.
Nature wins in virus crisis
News, Editorial, Published on 18/05/2020
» The Covid-19 pandemic has brought severe losses to the economy and been a serious threat to human health. However, the lockdown is a blessing in disguise for nature and ecology in Thailand.
Learn from Phu Kradueng fire
News, Editorial, Published on 23/02/2020
» A recent bushfire that destroyed vast forest area in Phu Kradueng National Park in the northeastern province of Loei is a wake-up call for better forest management in the park, one of the country's best known destinations.
Duties of Asean chair
News, Editorial, Published on 13/11/2018
» Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will be abroad for much of the next week at the annual Asean summit taking place in Singapore. The main meeting is scheduled for Thursday, but there will also be the usual flurry of official meetings with major partners, as well as unscheduled but vital one-on-one discussions on the sidelines. Then, on Saturday and Sunday, most of the Asean leaders plus many others will meet at the Apec Summit at Port Moresby.
UN tramples its own ideals
News, Editorial, Published on 16/10/2018
» The UN General Assembly has once again openly mocked some of the major principles it purports to champion. It has elected several of the world's worst human rights violators as full members of its Human Rights Commission. In the process, it employed a questionable procedure in which there was no competition. Member countries of the UNGA were presented with 18 candidate-nations for 18 pending vacancies on the UNHRC. In the event, as usual in such UN processes, none of the candidates failed to gain a majority vote, so the 48-member UNHRC will at least have all its seats filled when it meets in Geneva next year.