Word: thai
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...stringent lèse-majesté laws on its books. Convictions can result in prison sentences of up to 15 years. On her first day of work last month, newly appointed Information and Communication Minister Ranongruk Suwanchawee told reporters that her main priority would be eradicating antimonarchy websites from Thai cyberspace. Earlier this month, she announced that the ministry was setting up a so-called war room to uncover such sites. Ranongruk says she would like to block 400 more sites but is awaiting court approval to do so. (See pictures of Thai protesters...
...Several Thais are currently being investigated after lèse-majesté complaints were lodged against them. (A private citizen can lodge such a complaint in Thailand.) Among those accused is a political ally of Thaksin Shinawatra, a self-exiled former Thai Prime Minister who was ousted in a 2006 army coup but who still commands support among the rural populace. Among other allegations, the generals accuse Thaksin of disrespecting the monarchy, a charge he denies...
...Foreigners have also run afoul of Thailand's lèse-majesté laws. Recently accused expatriates include an Australian teacher whose novel referenced a fictional wayward prince, and the BBC's Thailand-based correspondent whose online pieces described the role of the monarchy within Thai politics. Both cases have prompted an outcry from international human-rights organizations. "By trying to protect the King's image, the government is actually doing it harm, and in some cases the charge of lèse-majesté has been entirely inappropriate and unjustified," said media watchdog Reporters Without Borders...
...violence had claimed several lives. And should future polls bring back politicians linked with Thailand's ousted rulers? "The PAD will return," vowed alliance leader Sondhi Limthongkul, who earlier in the siege told his thousands of supporters to "shed your blood if it is necessary." (See pictures from the Thai protests...
...possible for a foreign male to visit Thailand without getting a) waylaid in a girlie bar, or b) arrested? This question struck me recently in Phuket, where the best-selling titles at the airport bookshop included a self-published novel about a murdered Thai prostitute, an exposé of the country's sex industry and two memoirs by foreigners who had served time in Thai jails - a genre already as overcrowded as the prisons themselves. That Singapore publisher Monsoon Books feels there is room for one more - Nightmare in Bangkok by Andy Botts - begs two more questions...