<p>Thailand’s Ministry of Culture has banned a horror film centring on the life of a teenage monk after the movie caused a stir among Buddhist hardliners who alleged that the film insults Buddhism.</p> <p>On Monday, 12 October 2015, Sahamongkol Film International, a Thai film production company,&nbsp;sent out a <a href="https://twitter.com/Sahamongkolfilm/status/653521351135723520">tweet </a>to inform the public that it has to postpone screening the film ‘Abat’ (‘offense’ in the Pali language, the sacred language of Theravada Buddhism).</p>

<div> <div>A prominent insurgent group in Thailand's restive Deep South has denounced MARA Patani, the umbrella organization of separatist movements, and on-going peace talks between them and Bangkok. </div></div>

<p>An embattled transgender activist has filed charges against one of Thailand’s most famous universities for not hiring her as a full-time lecturer because of ‘unjust’ reasons despite her faculty’s approval. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Kath Khangpiboon, a well-known LGBTI activist from the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.thaitga.com/">Thai Transgender Alliance (Thai TGA)</a>, at 11 am, on Monday 12 October 2015, filed lawsuits against Thammasat University, the second oldest university in Thailand, and the university committee at the Administrative Court of Bangkok.</p>

<div>A man jailed for selling CDs containing an allegedly lèse majesté documentary by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) will be released from jail next month after the Supreme Court reduced his jail term.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The Supreme Court on Friday morning affirmed the guilty verdict of the Appeal Court which found Ekkachai Hongkangwan guilty of lèse majesté for selling the CDs.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The Supreme Court however disagreed with the Appeal Court on the jail term, saying that the sentence by the Appeal Court was too severe. </div>

<p>Four embattled anti-coup activists charged with violating the junta’s ban on political gatherings have refused to testify before a military court, saying the court does not have jurisdiction over their case.</p>

<p>Military officers summoned university students in northern Thailand for a discussion after they commemorated the 1976 student massacre, saying that the event was political incitement.</p> <p>According to&nbsp;<a href="https://tlhr2014.wordpress.com/2015/10/07/chiangrai_ratchabhat/">Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR)</a>, military officers from the 37th Army Division in the northern province of Chiang Rai on Tuesday, 6 October 2015, contacted Chiang Rai Rajabhat University, requesting to have words with all the students who commemorated the 1976 student massacre.</p>

<p>An environment conservation group in Isan, Northern Thailand, has requested the court to halt petroleum drilling. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>About 30 village activists opposing drilling in a potential petroleum field called Dongmoon located in Kranuan District of the northeastern province of Khon Kaen at the border with Kalasin Province on Tuesday, 6 October 2015, requested Khon Kaen Provincial Administrative Court to hold an emergency hearing to halt the drilling operation.</p>

<p>An anti-graft agency has submitted a report recommending criminal charges against 10 soldiers in Thailand’s restive Deep South for their role four years ago in torturing an army recruit to death.</p>

<p>Pro-democracy activists rallied in front of the parliament to protest against the new batch of constitutional drafters hand-picked by the junta.</p> <p>At around 1:30 pm on Tuesday, 6 October 2015, political activists from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/newdemocracymovement?fref=ts">New Democracy Movement (NDM)</a>, an anti-junta activist group, held a symbolic political activity to protest against the 21 new members of the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) recently appointed by the junta yesterday.</p>

<p>Thailand’s civil society groups are urging the government not to evict poor farmers and urban communities as mega development projects forge ahead.</p> <p>The Four Regions Slum Network (FRSN) and People’s Movement for Just Society (P-Move), advocacy groups for marginalised communities in Thailand, along with hundreds of supporters, submitted a joint statement to ML Panadda Diskul, Minister of the Prime Minister’s Office and to the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security on Monday morning, 5 October 2015, World Habitat Day.</p>

<div> <div> <div>Prachatai journalist Mutita Chuachang has won the 2015 AFP prize for Asian journalists for her “powerful and persistent” reporting of cases under the lèse majesté law, AFP reported on Tuesday.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>While most of the Thai mainstream media shy away from touching the monarchy-related issues, Mutita has persistently followed and reported cases under Article 112, or the lèse majesté law, punishable with up to 15 years in jail. </div></div></div>

<p>The Criminal Court has postponed to next year the trial of key members of the People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), an anti-election election group, charged with sedition and preventing the 2014 election. &nbsp;</p>