<p>During the Covid-19 pandemic, Thai monks are returning the favor to the communities&nbsp;around their temples by setting up food donation spots, a concept which has also moved online. Mutita Chuachang investigates.&nbsp;</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>Students at Mahasarakham University are demanding a 50% reduction in tuition fees, saying that the University must help every student without having to prove need, because every student is affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.</p>

<p>During the Covid-19 pandemic, most sex workers have no income and no social security but are able to apply for the government aid scheme, says the Empower Foundation in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/296033753854158/photos/a.308609862596547/1668104156647104/?type=3&amp;theater&amp;ifg=1">statement</a> on Tuesday (12 May), which also called for the legalization of sex work and for sex workers to be able to join the social security scheme.</p>

<p>Starting with only five, Pantries of Sharing (ตู้ปันสุข) have reached all 77 provinces across Thailand with over 600 locations providing food and other necessities for those hit by COVID-19 pandemic.</p>

<p>The court has accepted a case under the Computer Crime Act against a 42-year-old artist from Phuket who posted that he underwent no Covid-19 screening process on arrival from Spain. The state prosecutor has called for a heavy sentence.</p>

<p>The Cambodian government&rsquo;s three-year long &ldquo;war on drugs&rdquo; campaign has fuelled a rising tide of human rights abuses, dangerously overfilled detention facilities and led to an alarming public health situation &ndash; even more so as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolds &ndash; while failing in its stated objective of curbing drug use, a new investigative report by Amnesty International published today reveals.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.hrw.org/asia/bangladesh" target="_blank">Bangladesh</a>&nbsp;authorities have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/news/29-rohingyas-sheltered-bhashan-char-1899223" target="_blank">quarantined 29 Rohingya refugees</a>&nbsp;without adequate access to aid on an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-myanmar-rohingya-island/floating-island-new-home-for-rohingya-refugees-emerges-in-bay-of-bengal-idUSKCN1G603T" target="_blank">unstable silt island</a>&nbsp;in the Bay of Bengal, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/05/bangladesh-rohingya-refugees-risky-covid-19-quarantine">Human Rights Watch</a> said today (5 May). The authorities&nbsp;<a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/rohingya-refugees-relocated-to-controversial-bangladesh-island-after-weeks-at-sea/1822838" target="_blank">said that they are holding the refugees</a>, including 15 women and 5 children, who had been adrift at sea for over two months, on Bhasan Char to prevent a Covid-19 outbreak in the camps.</p>

<p>An academic team has published a second statement about Covid-19 related suicide attempts after the first became controversial. It underscores its call for the government and society to find more inclusive policies to control the outbreak.</p>

<p>The Emergency Decree will remain in effect through May, and measures including flight bans, the night time curfew, the ban on social gatherings, and travel restrictions between provinces will continue to be enforced, announced Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) spokesperson Taweesin Visanuyothin on Monday (27 April.)</p>