The Thai authorities have dismissed an international NGO’s report on the deterioration of Thailand’s political rights, saying Thai people should not let ‘the outside world’ intervene in domestic affairs.
After Freedom House, an international NGO promoting media freedom and political rights, released a report that downgraded Thailand’s political freedom from ‘partially free’ to ‘not free’, Bilaibhan Sampatisiri, the Chair of the Senate Committee of Foreign Affairs, on Thursday told the media that the foreign organization misunderstood the facts.
“It is an issue that foreign [organizations] misunderstood, because now Thai people are happier and everybody continues to live normally. Therefore, it is up to the Thai people what to think and the Thai people should not let the ‘outside world’ interfere in the country.” said Bilaibhan.
According to Freedom House, however, Thailand’s political rights rating declined from 4 to 6, its civil liberties rating declined from 4 to 5, and its status declined from ‘partly free’ to ‘not free’ due to the military coup in May 2014, whose leaders abolished the 2007 constitution and imposed severe restrictions on speech and assembly.
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