News
Dec 6, 2023
A 51-year-old man has recently been found detained in Bangkok Remand Prison since 2020 after being found guilty of royal defamation.
Dec 6, 2023
The evidence examination hearing for a class action lawsuit filed by Cambodian farmers against the sugar company Mitr Phol for the damages caused by its sugar plantation project has been postponed to March 2024 to allow both parties to collect and translate documents to be used in the trial.
Nov 29, 2023
COP28 opens tomorrow (30 November) in Dubai, and carbon credit is still on the agenda. Thailand, which has pledged to become a carbon-neutral country by 2050 and carbon-zero by 2065, is turning towards a carbon credit market while its major corporations explore low-carbon businesses. However, local communities are skeptical and have raised concerns that their land and natural resources would be exploited by private businesses selling carbon credits.
Highlight
12 Apr 2023
A series of photographs and essay by Real Frame photographer Yostorn Triyos explores life in communities on the banks of the Salween River after the Covid-19 pandemic and the February 2021 Myanmar coup, such as Sop Moei and Mae Sam Laep where people continues to live in uncertainty amidst the war. Meanwhile, the Thai and Myanmar government's project to build 6 dams across the Salween River has been put on hold due to the pandemic and the war.
11 Mar 2023
Following the February 2021 coup in Myanmar and subsequent violence against protesters, a large number of people from Myanmar came to Thailand seeking safety and are now living as refugees in urban areas. Some came with valid visas, while some are undocumented, but all are unrecognised as refugees and unprotected under Thai law.
11 Mar 2023
During the pandemic, Thai musicians and workers in the music industry faced unemployment as bars and entertainment venues were ordered to close. Many had to sell their instruments to keep themselves afloat, or make a living doing whatever else they could, while some left the industry altogether.
In "Unplugged: Music in Crisis," Thai musicians talk about their lives during and after the pandemic, and the future of creative economy in Thailand.
Feature
Nov 20, 2023
The Pattaya Beach Nourishment project has been underway for 6 years now in an attempt to solve the problem of beach erosion. Even though the approach is widely accepted internationally, there have been questions from the civil society sector about the project’s sustainability and inclusivity, once it was discovered that part of the beach was damaged by drainage water from the city. There are also concerns among local fishers about the disappearance of their source of income from the beach.
Nov 8, 2023
Lighthouse Reports and Prachatai investigate the dumping of plastic waste from Europe and North America in Myanmar – Thailand was found to be a ‘corridor.’ We invite readers to track the routes and roles that have been hidden.
Even though the Thai government announced a ban on plastic waste imports as of 2025, that does not include ‘transit.’ – So this means Thailand will continue to act as a route for sending plastic waste on to other countries.
Nov 4, 2023
In 2008, the Cambodian government granted Economic Land Concessions to three subsidiaries of the Thai company Mitr Phol, one of the largest sugar producers in the world. To make way for a sugarcane plantation, Cambodian farmers were forced off their land, police set fire to homes, and some residents were imprisoned. Now, over 700 families are seeking justice by filing against Mitr Phol what is said to be the first transboundary class action human rights lawsuit in Thailand.
Round Up
Dec 17, 2022
A monarchy supporter with a large online following was arrested on Saturday, hours after he claimed to have raised nearly 700,000 baht to cover the cost of what he described as a ritual to extend the life of King Vajiralongkorn’s eldest child.
Nov 17, 2022
Thailand is currently hosting the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week, taking place between 14 – 19 November at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC), with the 29th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting on 18-19 November. Meanwhile, activist groups and civil society organizations are planning series of protests over the week against what they see as an attempt by the government to boost its legitimacy and greenwash the country’s major polluters.
Oct 15, 2022
A week has passed since the Northeastern massacre that left 37 dead. In the wake of the heartbreaking carnage, authorities and the media have begun to reflect on past errors and look for a way forward.
Interview
Jun 28, 2023
Having spent a decade of her life promoting gender diversity. Natakamon “Priest” Siwasilp, an intersex person and a co-founder of Intersex Thailand, discovered that being intersex is a natural variation of being human. Now, she uses her voice to expand awareness about intersex people, striving for a future where intersex people are wholeheartedly accepted and granted the rights to live the lives they truly desire.
Nov 24, 2022
On the same day various leaders from Asia-Pacific nations mingled at a shiny convention center in Bangkok, photographer Chalinee Thirasupa was among a huddle of journalists taking photos of a phalanx of riot police close to Democracy Monument. A glass bottle was suddenly hurled toward her face.
Nov 16, 2022
The Thai office of Amnesty International over the past few months has increasingly turned to tackle more domestic human rights issues. An interview with the Country Director reveals that this decision has had a great impact, even threatening the organization’s existence, and including death threats against Amnesty personnel.
Opinion
Nov 24, 2023
The 20-year statute of limitations for the legal cases related to the Tak Bai incident will be running out in October 2024. The incident remains an obstacle to transitional justice in the Deep South, writes Hara Shintaro, as the culture of impunity in the region made it unlikely that justice will be delivered.
Oct 29, 2023
Since the latest crisis between Palestine and Israel started on 7 October 2023, questions have been raised about what impact the situation in the Middle East might have on Thailand's Deep South. Hara Shintaro writes about the reaction of the insurgent group BRN and other locals to the crisis, noting that it is unlikely the crisis in Palestine will affect the situation in Thailand's Deep South.
Oct 5, 2023
Following the sentencing of Myanmar Now photojournalist Sai Zaw Thaike to 20 years in prison for dissemination of false information and sedition for reporting on the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha, the Press Freedom Monitoring in Southeast Asia (PFMSea) calls for an immediate and unconditional release of all journalists who have been detained or imprisoned in Myanmar for doing their job.
Pick to Post
Nov 24, 2023
After the cabinet's approval of a marriage equality bill and decision to introduce it to parliament next month, the human rights organization Fortify Rights call on parliament to urgently pass it into law and ensure the right to marriage equality for couples of all genders in Thailand.
Nov 8, 2023
On 2 November, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, the Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association (CamboJA), along with 19 other civil society organizations, issued a statement calling for the Cambodian government to conduct independent and transparent investigations of all crimes committed against journalists and human rights defenders in Cambodia.
Nov 7, 2023
Yesterday (6 November), the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and Amnesty International (AI) jointly submitted an amicus curiae legal brief to the Bangkok South Civil Court calling on the court to apply international human rights standards in a class action lawsuit filed by Cambodian farmers against the Thai sugar company Mitr Phol for alleged human rights abuses by its apparent subsidiary in Cambodia.
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