In June 2024, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar released a report accusing five of Thailand's biggest banks of facilitating the weapons trade of Myanmar's military junta. Thai companies were also allegedly linked to the trade of arms and aviation fuel with the junta. So far, the Thai authorities have not offered a public confirmation of these allegations. The question remains whether it will take the necessary step to avoid being a silent enabler of war crimes.

Like other big cities, Khon Kaen is facing a public transport problem. The increased dependence on private vehicles worsened the city's traffic, while its main transit terminal became harder to access following a move to the city's outskirts. Now, a pilot project is underway to research and design a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system aimed at modernizing the city’s transit network.

Khon Kaen has a problem shared by other large cities in Thailand: worsening traffic jams caused by increased dependence on private vehicles. A recent decision to move the city’s main transit terminal to the outskirts of town just made things worse as people without private transport can no longer easily access it.

After the Marriage Equality Act came into effect on 23 January, Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country, and the second in Asia after Taiwan, to legalize marriage registration regardless of gender. While marriage equality marks a positive development for Thailand, there is still a long road ahead, including making sure LGBT police and military officers can express their identities and be considered for career advancement.

Gasoline and diesel vehicles and factories are conspicuous sources of air pollution in Southeast Asia and elsewhere, but they're not the only ones. In South Sumatra, air pollution worsens during the dry season due to forest fires resulting from slash-and-burn and peatland drainings by companies and farmers looking to clear their land. In response, a group of South Sumatra residents filed a civil lawsuit against three pulpwood plantation companies last August for the chronic smoke haze produced by recurring fires on their concessions.

Thailand has cut off electricity supplies to five areas of Myanmar, which are known as hubs for the call centre scam industry, but has this had any real effect?

Following the closure of hospitals in refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border, which had received funds from the US government, due to the suspension of US foreign aid, hospitals along the border have committed to continuing humanitarian aid and preparing for an influx of patients from the camps.

Chaos has ensued over the last 24 hours among civil society organizations working with refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border after the US government under President Donald Trump implemented an executive order immediately halting foreign aid for 90 days, resulting in the closure of hospitals in refugee camps which receive funding from the US government.

"After retiring from the Myanmar army, I fled to Thailand because I saw that Thailand was the safest,” said Ot, a migrant worker from Myanmar who, like many others, came to Thailand seeking a better life. But just as his life began to settle, disaster struck. Ot fell from a six-story scaffold. The injuries to his spine meant that his chance of walking again was slim to none. Like Ot, many migrant workers in Thailand became disabled after a workplace accident, from falling from unsafe scaffolding to losing limbs to factory machines. In most cases, they are left without protection or welfare.

Doc Club&Pub is a small cinema with big dreams. The 50-seat cinema screens documentaries and indie films not often found in Thailand’s mainstream theatres. But last month, it was ordered to stop screening films because the building it is currently in does not meet the safety requirements for obtaining an entertainment venue permit. Doc Club&Pub’s suspension sheds light on legal obstacles for small cinemas in Thailand, which are subjected to the same building codes as large commercial cinemas, and sparked calls for existing legislation to be amended to make them more appropriate for smaller screening rooms.

On 1 February, most provinces across Thailand will hold elections for the presidents of Provincial Administrative Organizations (PAOs) and/or PAO council members, save for provinces where PAO presidents resigned before their terms expired and so already had an election. This round of local elections is drawing attention as political parties are openly endorsing candidates and fielding their most prominent figures—an unprecedented development. In Ubon Ratchathani, which had its PAO election on 22 December 2024, politicians must navigate a complex mix of ideological divides, local sentiments, and personal relationships in their quest for local administrative power.

Since Myanmar's 2021 coup, an increasing number of families fleeing armed conflict and forced conscription have sought refuge in Thailand. In the border province of Tak, migrant learning centres provide ongoing support to their children, despite facing limited resources.