<p>Prachatai, with support from the Canadian Embassy&#39;s Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI), presents &quot;Decent Work,&quot; the story of sex workers in Thailand and the problems they face as a result of their job being criminalised under Thailand&#39;s Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The new abortion law, in which abortion after the 12th week of pregnancy is still a criminal offence, does not respect international human rights principles, says a network of activists and civil society organisations who gathered in front of parliament on 25 January, when the bill was passed by the Senate.</p>

<p>The Thai parliament on 20 January passed a new bill allowing abortion up to the 12th week of pregnancy. However, the bill does not decriminalize abortion,&nbsp;as abortion after the 12th week of pregnancy is still a criminal offense.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On Wednesday (23 December), the Thai parliament voted to accept the first reading of two bills which amend Sections 301 &ndash; 305 of the Criminal Code, which currently criminalize abortion.</p>

<p>On 5 November, a group of activists who have formerly been detained at the Central Women Correctional Institution gathered to protest against human rights violations inside the women&rsquo;s prison.</p>

<p>The student activist group Bad Student on Friday (2 October) organized a series of protests at various high schools in Bangkok to protest against abuse and mistreatment of students in schools, before going to the Ministry of Education to call for Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan to resign.</p>

<p>A network of civil society organisations have submitted an open letter to the Office of the Council of State, calling for the abolition of the law criminalizing abortion and an extension of the public consultation period for the amendment draft after a technical issue prevented citizens from participating in the survey.</p>

<p>The Women for Freedom and Democracy group has set up a station at today&#39;s protest at the Democracy Monument for people to sign their petition calling for the decriminalization of abortion.</p>

<p>Students have criticized schools&rsquo; haircut rules by holding demonstrations, submitting online petitions and sending out tweets as schools have not changed their rules in line with the Education Ministry&rsquo;s latest policy.</p>

<p>On Wednesday (10 June), representatives from Choices Network Thailand and the Tamtang Group went to parliament to submit a petition to the Standing Committee on Children, Young People, Women, the Elderly, Persons With Disabilities, Ethnic Groups, and LGBT People calling for the repeal of Article 301 of the Thai Criminal Code, which criminalises abortion.</p>

<p>Choices Network Thailand, along with a network of civil society organizations, went to the Department of Health (DOH) on 15 May to submit an <a href="https://www.safeabortionwomensright.org/thailand-petition-to-the-department-of-health-to-ensure-that-women-can-access-safe-abortion-services-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/">open letter</a> to the DOH Director-General calling for the DOH to ensure that women can access safe abortion services during the Covid-19 pandemic.</p>

<p>On Wednesday (19 February), the Constitutional Court of Thailand ruled that Section 301 of the Thai Criminal Code which criminalizes abortion, violates the current Constitution and must be amended.&nbsp;</p>