Showing 1 - 10 of 3,341
Clean air reform stalls
Oped, Editorial, Published on 29/04/2026
» The government of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has yet to decide whether to keep the current Clean Air Bill for deliberation during the parliamentary session. Cabinet has to make a decision by May 13 on whether to put the current version of the Clean Air Bill into parliament's legislative reading process. If not, the current draft -- developed over years of effort by civic groups and political parties -- could be discarded.
'Paris of the East' turns 'Concrete Oven'
Oped, Drew B Mallory, Published on 29/04/2026
» If you stand on the banks of the Khlong Saen Saep today, near the glossy high-rises of Wireless Road, you are witnessing a battle for the soul of Bangkok. On one hand, you see the future: concrete embankments and new walkways, part of a government push to connect the city in the vein of European capitals or our neighbour, Singapore. On the other hand, you see the ghosts of the past: fresh stumps of rain trees that stood for decades, severed to make way for the very cement intended to "beautify" the city. It is a paradox that defines modern Bangkok. We are a city desperate to be green, yet addicted to grey.
A bridge too far
Oped, Postbag, Published on 29/04/2026
» Re: "Singapore eyes bridge potential", (BP, April 28) & Land Bridge plan due for cabinet", (BP, April 26). PM Anutin Charnvirakul says the proposed southern Land Bridge project is suddenly vital due to a temporary shift in global trade routes. Of course, such a quickly grabbed upon straw is put forth by politicians in their blind adoration of public–private partnerships, the mother of all graft mechanisms. What else have they got?
Thailand's need for AI sovereignty
Oped, Craig Warren Smith, Published on 29/04/2026
» Thailand is building a serious AI policy architecture. Last year, the National AI Committee, formed by then Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and Digital Economic Minister Prasert Jantararuangtong, initiated drafting a unified AI law, officially known as the Draft Principles of the Artificial Intelligence Law.
Land Bridge not viable
Oped, Editorial, Published on 28/04/2026
» The Southern Land Bridge project -- the Thai government's long-standing plan to build a logistics corridor linking the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman Sea -- is back on the agenda.
The deafening silence about offshore wealth
Oped, Frederik Obermaier & Bastian Obermayer, Published on 28/04/2026
» When John Doe, the anonymous whistleblower behind the Panama Papers, approached us, he handed us an opportunity. When the resulting investigation into the offshore finance industry was published on April 3, 2016, the world was handed a test. As investigative journalists, we seized the opportunity. Sadly, the world has failed the test.
The art of speaking English badly in Africa
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 28/04/2026
» It is a matter of chronic surprise that politicians, otherwise well-trained in saying just the right thing for the audience they are addressing, forget that whatever they say can be heard everywhere. Right away. By anybody who cares to listen, including journalists always hungry for the next story.
NACC must try harder
Oped, Editorial, Published on 24/04/2026
» The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), our national graft-busting body, tried and failed on Thursday to win public trust for its controversial ruling clearing Saksayam Chidchob, a former minister from the Bhumjaithai Party (BJT), of a false asset declaration.
Myanmar's robbery of a democracy
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 24/04/2026
» Five long years after Myanmar's military seized power on 1 Feb 2021, what has taken place in recent weeks amounts to a delayed fait accompli. Led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, then commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the coup diverged from its traditional playbook seen in 1962 and 1988, when tanks rolled and the military ruled by brute force. This time, the takeover nearly unravelled amid a nationwide uprising that evolved into a civil war, waged by an armed and determined resistance comprising the civilian-led National Unity Government (NUG), the People's Defence Forces (PDFs), and a constellation of Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs).
Bangkok gets better
Oped, Postbag, Published on 24/04/2026
» Re: "What's up, governor?", (Editorial, April 23). The editorial presents a cautious view of Chadchart Sittipunt's tenure, but risks overlooking the scale of everyday improvements across the city.