<p dir="ltr">The Thai military in the northern province of Chiang Mai summoned a pro-democracy academic and activists into a military camp.</p>

<p>Originally published on the Facebook page of Poonsuk Poonsukcharoen, lawyer for Amphon (Ah Kong); Republished on Prachatai: <a href="http://prachatai.com/journal/2012/08/42182">สถิตย์ ไพเราะ ความเห็นต่อคดีอากง (ถอดความคำบรรยายเนติบัณฑิตยสภา)<br /> </a></p>

<p>29 February 2012: Worajet Pakirat, lecturer in Public Law at Thammasat University and founding member of the Nitirat Group, which demands reform of the repressive l&egrave;se majest&eacute; law in Thailand, was punched in his face by two men at the Tha Phra Chan Campus of Thammasat University in Bangkok today. </p>

<p>Another victim of state violence in 2010, Mr. Thanuthat Assawasirimankong, aka &ldquo;Uncle Kim&rdquo;, passed away yesterday after almost two years of pains and immovability. He died of the excessive use of force by the Abhisit government that has led to many unnecessary deaths. He had just recovered from cancer and was celebrating this good news with his family when the shooting happened.</p>

<p>Six years ago, a taxi driver, Nuamthong Praiwan, slammed his taxi into a military tank near a military headquarters in Bangkok. The seriously injured driver told the press he wanted to protest against the coup committed on 19 September that year. Then, the Deputy Spokesperson of the coupmakers, the misnomer, &ldquo;Council for Democratic Reform (CDR)&rdquo;, lashed out against the driver claiming that in thiscountry &ldquo;no one dares to die for democracy.&rdquo; In protest of the slanderous remark, on 31 October, Uncle Nuamthong hung himself to a flyover on Vipavadi Rd.</p>

<p>Here is the gist of the Constitutional Court&rsquo;s ruling on the constitutionality of Section 177 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Previously, Da Torpedo&rsquo;s attorney challenged in the Lower Court (Criminal Court) that the holding of her trial on l&egrave;se majest&eacute; charges in closed doors is in breach of Section 29 and Section 40(2) of the 2007 Constitution (concerning the rights to fair trial).</p>

<p>On Wednesday, May 11, 2011, throngs of supporters of the right to speak, including many so-called &ldquo;Red Shirts&rdquo;, will again lay siege to the Nag Lerng Police Station in downtown Bangkok. Another reminder of the packed room of the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University in late April, when a press conference was held by the Nitirat Group (http://www.enlightened-jurists.com/) and a lecturer who was facing intimidation and imminent legal actions for his exercise of the right to freedom expression.</p>

<p>According to Mr. Sarayuth Ampan who was shot by firearm into his arm while hiding himself in the rear part of the white medic van with clear signs, some demonstrators who had started to gather around Bon Kai area on Rama IV Road were running away into Soi Ngam Du Plee, off Rama IV Road. The army officials were chasing after them. As the demonstrators had gone into other smaller lanes, the army officials approached the Pinnacle Hotel&rsquo;s parking lot where the medic van was parked with its head facing the road.</p>

<p>1. In brief, since 13 May, the government has launched the so called &ldquo;Operation Ratchaprasong&rdquo;. Basically, all utilities feeding the area (electricity, tap water and even mobile phone signal have already been cut or jammed). Checkpoints have been set up in the perimeter around the area for about five square kilometers to exclusively block any group/individual from entering the protesting site and even to prevent the transportation of food and water inside the rally site.</p>

<p>Readers have sent e-mails to <a href="http://smbuyer.consumerthai.org/">Smart Buy magazine</a>, criticizing a column written by a dentist who talks of Da Torpedo&rsquo;s molar abscess as bad karma resulting from speaking ill of the monarchy.</p>