Showing 11 - 20 of 107
Stranger things happening in our strange land
Oped, Atiya Achakulwisut, Published on 05/04/2022
» Strange things are happening in Thailand. Who would believe we would be experiencing a bout of cold and rain in April? But here we are, wrapping ourselves up in thick clothes at the height of summer just a week before Songkran.
Act to end torture, disappearance
Oped, Published on 10/02/2022
» In 2004, Somchai Neelapaijit, a lawyer and human rights activist, disappeared. He was last seen being dragged out of his car by four men. His whereabouts are unknown to this day. Last year, Jiraphong Thanapat, a drug suspect, died after being tortured at Muang Nakhon Sawan police station. Video evidence showed police suffocating the man with plastic bags until he collapsed and stopped breathing.
Our bloated bureaucracy bodes only ill
Oped, Wasant Techawongtham, Published on 22/01/2022
» The government has grown ever larger over the past decade. The fact would be hailed as positive news if the affairs of governance were a private enterprise.
Time for weed to bloom
Oped, Editorial, Published on 14/01/2022
» Just glancing at the local cannabis laws can leave you feeling punch-drunk. According to new anti-drug law, effective from Dec 9, cannabis is no longer a narcotic substance. Yet, state authorities, police and anti-narcotics officers continue to arrest people who have cannabis plants, some with only a few, in their possession.
PM U-turns on tackling 'Ferrari' culture
Oped, Chairith Yonpiam, Published on 11/09/2021
» The outrageous cases of a rich cop linked to the torture and murder of a drug suspect and "Boss", the runaway lad from the Yoovidhya family, in the notorious hit-and-run saga attest to the fact that promises by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to revamp the police and justice system are nothing but a farce.
Time for cops to come clean
Oped, Editorial, Published on 28/08/2021
» The Royal Thai Police should have seen an image boost after so quickly rounding up seven policemen accused of killing a drug suspect in custody. Unfortunately, the post-arrest press conference on Thursday night only served to reinforce the negative stereotypes that haunt Thai law enforcement.
Cops need to clean up act
Oped, Editorial, Published on 26/08/2021
» Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and the Royal Thai Police (RTP) chief deserve praise for their fast reaction to the shocking case of a group of policemen accused of murdering a drug suspect with a plastic bag. Yet they need to do more than just arrest the culprits and put them on trial.
In Mekong region, drug trade thrives
Oped, Johanna Son, Published on 15/07/2021
» An example of a resilient business model in hard times? Indeed, except that this describes how the synthetic drug industry has been expanding in East and Southeast Asia, home to the Mekong region which is the manufacturing and trafficking hub that supplies illicit drugs that reach not just the wider Asia but the globe.
Violence hampers Unesco park quest
Oped, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 17/06/2021
» Thailand's effort to turn the Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex into a Unesco World Heritage Site has been made in vain for the past six years. Will it have succeeded by the time the annual World Heritage Convention convenes in July?
Forest dictatorship at Kaeng Krachan
Oped, Sanitsuda Ekachai, Published on 03/03/2021
» Enough is enough. When the meek indigenous forest dwellers fearlessly walked out of the meeting with the forest authorities in Kaeng Krachan National Park last week, their message was clear: Enough of your lies, cheating and violence. Enough of our hunger and loss of dignity from forced resettlement. Enough of threats and intimidation. We are going home for good.