<p>Thailand has been ranked 137th in Reporters Without Borders (RSF)&rsquo;s <a href="https://rsf.org/en/2021-world-press-freedom-index-journalism-vaccine-against-disinformation-blocked-more-130-countries">2021 World Press Freedom Index</a>, three places above its <a href="https://rsf.org/en/2020-world-press-freedom-index-entering-decisive-decade-journalism-exacerbated-coronavirus">2020 ranking</a> at 140th, while the Covid-19 pandemic has been used to obstruct press freedom in many countries</p>

<p>Journalists and media workers face an increasingly repressive legal landscape amidst the Covid-19 pandemic in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, as outlined by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) in a submission to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).</p>

<p>A panel discussion preceding a press screening of the Romanian documentary Collective highlights the obstacles facing investigative journalists in Thailand.</p>

<p>The Foreign Correspondents&#39; Club of Thailand (FCCT) issued a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/FCCThailand/posts/3852291768189078">statement</a> following the protest on Saturday (20 March), during which several journalists were shot with rubber bullets, calling for the authorities to review their crowd control procedures and to take care not to use force on working journalists.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Isaan Record, an online media organization based in Khon Kaen Province, is under surveillance by police officers. This is not the first time, and it occurs after they report on monarchy reform and anti-dictatorship activities which other media find distasteful.</p>

<p>Reporters Without Borders and Committee to Protect Journalists expressed concerns over the threats journalists met from the authorities amidst the soaring crackdown in Myanmar. They demand the Myanmar government to release them unconditionally and to drop the charges against them.</p>

<p>According to Khaosod English (KE) News Chief Teeranai Charuvastra, the Charoen Pokphand (CP) group urged the outlet to delete its coverage of the cancellation of a marketing discount campaign on 12-15 February, claiming it was a sensitive issue.</p>

<p>The foreign correspondents&#39; clubs and associations of Thailand, Japan, Jakarta, the Philippines, South Asia and Taiwan are deeply concerned by the convictions and harsh prison sentences handed down by a Vietnamese court on January 5 to three Vietnamese journalists.</p>

<p>387 journalists worldwide are currently detained in connection their work, while 54 are held hostage and 4 are missing, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF)&rsquo;s <a href="https://rsf.org/en/news/rsfs-2020-round-35-rise-number-women-journalists-held-arbitrarily?fbclid=IwAR3DA3pSiOX-qwElarOdMww3170CN_eUxkucb-8hmCCYyW8cPeh2OymKaW0">2020 round-up report</a> on abusive treatment of journalists.</p>

<p>The global press freedom groups and civil society organizations collective #HoldTheLine Coalition calls for the new criminal cyber libel charge against Filipino-American editor and journalist Maria Ressa to be dropped.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Foreign Correspondents&#39; Club of Thailand (FCCT) issued a statement following the crackdown on the protest at the parliament compound on 17 November urging journalists to take precautions when covering protests and for the authorities to legalise the use of body armour for journalists and paramedics working in conflict areas.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On 2 November 2020, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes Against Journalists, the Coalition for Women In Journalism issued a statement calling for justice for&nbsp;murdered, threatened, attacked, and harassed women journalists and for an end to impunity in crimes against them.&nbsp;</p>