<p>Working on the well-known principle that it is far more important to conceal a scandal than deal with it, Gen Prayut last week threatened to summon a Channel 3 reporter.&nbsp; This brave young woman had travelled to Indonesia to report on the plight of Thais who had escaped slavery on fishing boats.&nbsp; Some were languishing in prison on a remote island (that the Thai media call ‘Benjina’ although that is the name of a town on Kobroor Island). &nbsp;Others sadly had died and been buried there.</p>

<p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-38694e5c-6e15-12eb-2a2a-714f19558bbc">A Thai national media association urged the head of the military junta to understand the role of the media and not to act as a dictator when confronted with unpleasant news reports. &nbsp;&nbsp;</span></p>

<p>The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the National Union of Journalists, Thailand (NUJT) deplores the comments made by Thai military junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha against journalists on Wednesday, March 25. The IFJ and NUJT condemn the comments as a threat to press freedom in Thailand, noting that the comments illustrate the continued decline of press freedom in Thailand over the past 12 months.<br /><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p><a href="http://www.khaosodenglish.com/">Khaosod English</a>: Thailand's military leader has asked the media not to report on human trafficking without considering how the news will affect the country's seafood industry and reputation abroad.</p>