By Thaweeporn Kummetha and Kongpob Areerat |
<p>The conflict over the mine in Loei is the first test of the junta’s policy to create reconciliation. The villagers say they have lost trust after the military intervened.</p>
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By Asian Human Rights Commission |
<div style="text-align: right;">August 26, 2014</div>
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<div>On 24 August 2014, Pornpen Khongkachonkiet, a long-time human rights defender and director of the Cross Cultural Foundation (CrCF), received a warrant summoning her to report to the Yala police station by 25 August 2014. She has postponed her reporting to the Yala police station until later in September. The warrant was in relation to an investigation carried out pursuant to a legal complaint of libel and defamation filed against her by Army Task Force 41.
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<p><a href="http://en.khaosod.co.th/detail.php?newsid=1408955527&typecate=06&section=">Khaosod English</a>: Thailand’s military junta has repealed an order that shut down fourteen satellite TV channels shortly after the army declared nationwide martial law in May.</p>
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<div> A man has been arrested and charged with lèse majesté under Article 112 for sending an email with a link to content deemed to defame the monarchy to the now-defunct Stop Lèse Majesté blog. This is the third case involving the blog, according to iLaw. </div>
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<div><a href="http://freedom.ilaw.or.th/en/case/614">Tanet</a> (last name withheld due to privacy concerns) was accused of sending an email to Emilio Esteban, whom the police identified as an Englishman residing in Spain.
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<div>After the<a href="http://www.thecrimson.com/"> Harvard Crimson</a> an article which talked about the pro-coup Thai elite trying to influence the Thai Studies programme at Harvard for the “personal safety of its author,” the paper on Thursday reposted the article on its website saying it was now safe because the author had left Thailand. </div>
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<div>The Thai junta has ordered the Amnesty International Thailand to stop its activities in Bangkok and Chiang Mai calling for peace in the Gaza Strip, citing martial law. </div>
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<div>In a letter to AI members, issued Friday, AI Thailand said military officers in northern Chiang Mai Province called them and “asked” AI to call off the planned gathering and seminar at a bookstore in the province on 17 August on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and human rights.
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<div>After ASTV-Manager Weekly last week was reprimanded by the junta, the publisher of Matichon Weekly on Friday decided to halt distribution of its latest issue due to fear of a lèse majesté prosecution.</div>
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<div>ASTV-Manager Online on Friday reported that it has been confirmed by the distributer of the weekly news magazine that Matichon has asked the distributer to stop distributing issue 1774 of the magazine for 15-21 August, but did not call in the ones which had been sold, adding that Matichon told the distributor that it “doesn’t want the publishi
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<div>The police on Friday morning arrested and charged Pornthip M. with lèse majesté for her involvement with a political play about a fictional monarch, which has deemed lèse majesté by the police.</div>
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<div>The police on Thursday arrested a student activist from northeastern Khon Kaen University and charged him with lèse majesté. He was accused of taking part in a political play about a fictional monarch, deemed lèse majesté by the police.</div>
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<div>On Friday, the court rejected his bail request. He is now detained at Bangkok Remand Prison.</div>
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<div>The police arrested Patiwat S., 23, on campus on Thursday at 3 pm.
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<div>The board of the Thailand Journalists Association (TJA) on Thursday resolved to nominate four current and former members for appointment to the junta’s National Reform Council (NRC), Matichon Online reported.</div>
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<div>The four are Pradit Ruangdit, president, Manit Suksomjit, advisor, Sommai Parichat, former president and Surasak Jirawatmongkol, vice president.
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<div>A military court in Northern Chiang Rai Province on Thursday sentenced an anti-coup protester to three months in jail and fine of 5,000 baht, with the jail term suspended for one year.
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By Pravit Rojanaphruk |
<div>Junta Cheif General Prayuth Chan-ocha mentioned at least twice during his hour-long speech to launch the national reform process on Saturday that what the country needs is "Thai-style democracy".</div>
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<div>This leads to two questions: What is Thai-style democracy - and what is so Thai and democratic about it?</div>
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<div>While Prayuth did not elaborate on the differences between Thai-style democracy and the so-called Western democracies, the fact that he used the words "Thai-style democracy", and even added at one point that Asean needed its own form of dem
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