Prayut


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
How neglecting migrant workers has exacerbated Thailand’s COVID crisis
Posted On July 6, 2021
The Thai government had to have seen the data. The United Nations put together a socio-economic impact assessment of Covid-19 in Thailand back in October of last year. It warned of glaring threats to the most at-risk populations – migrant workers, the elderly, the urban poor, informal workers and more. Just one of many vulnerability assessments, it was prepared in partnership with the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC). Officials should have been prepared for the worst and responded early, but sadly they didn’t.
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Southeast Asia  / Thailand
In Thailand, May is the month for coups, crackdowns, and villains
May 21, 2021

Historically, May is a turbulent month for Thailand. It’s the season for coups and crackdowns, usually headed by the military. May 1992 and May 2014 are extraordinary periods in contemporary Thai history – one far more insidious than the other. Chronologically speaking, 1992 was a chaotic year. It would see two major elections, several prime ministers and governments, mass protests and public demonstrations on the streets of Bangkok.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Shrinking space for Thai human rights defenders is beyond the point of crisis
May 7, 2021

The treatment of Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak—and up until yesterday, Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul—along with five others in pre-trial detention for violating Thailand’s draconian lèse majesté law, has raised alarms among human rights groups, partially because Penguin is in deteriorating health due to an ongoing hunger strike. As their applications for bail have been repeatedly denied by the Court, it has become clear that the lives of activists have become secondary to the social norm of remaining completely silent on the sensitive topic of monarchical reform.


Myanmar  / Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Can Thailand still impact the ASEAN Summit on Myanmar?
April 22, 2021

When Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha decided to opt out of the ASEAN Summit on Myanmar in Jakarta, perhaps the writing was on the wall. By sending Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Don Pramudwinai in place of Prayut, Thailand appeared to have forfeited the chance to steer any of the potential outcomes of the gathering, which seeks to find diplomatic and political solutions to the crisis in Myanmar, which has claimed more than 730 lives since the Tatmadaw launched a coup d’état on February 1.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Are some things better left unsaid? Media self-censorship in Thailand
April 1, 2021

Self-censorship among journalists normally refers to acts of censorship that aren’t compelled or coerced, but aim to avoid offending those that hold power, such as publishers, advertisers, the government or major business interests. However in Thailand, like other parts of Southeast Asia, seismic political and social changes have contributed to a rise in self-censorship based on coercion.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Hand sanitiser and banana peels: Normalising Prayut’s bizarre behaviour
March 16, 2021

This time last week, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, after feeling frustrated by a question about a list of potential candidates for vacant Cabinet posts, abruptly ended his own news conference, grabbed a bottle of alcohol-based sanitiser and walked toward the assembled journalists. Holding a surgical mask in front of his face, he proceeded to spray reporters.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
After violence consumes a peaceful movement, serious questions must now be addressed
March 5, 2021

February 28 represented a notable turn of events for pro-democracy protesters. Thousands of demonstrators gathered at Victory Monument for a rally organized by the Free Youth group, now rebranded as “Restart Democracy” or “REDEM.” The event, cloaked in the banners and flags of the Milk Tea Alliance, targeted Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s residence at the 1st Infantry Regiment.


Myanmar  / Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Thailand and Myanmar’s militaries get cozy, but at what cost?
March 4, 2021

After Myanmar Senior General and now-Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing seized power on February 1, one of his earliest acts was to compose a letter to Thai Prime Minis­ter Prayut Chan-o-cha explaining why the military had taken control and asked for help to support democracy. More than a month since the Tatmadaw took power and detained Aung San Suu Kyi, democracy appears to have been suppressed, while ties between Thailand and neighbouring Myanmar are drawing closer.


China  / Myanmar  / Southeast Asia  / Thailand
Thailand’s rising tension between public and state relations with China
February 22, 2021

Historically, there has been both animosity and brotherhood between China and Thailand. Famously quoted from a song written by Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn, the relationship has been characterised as that of “brothers, which will last thousands of years and beyond”.


Southeast Asia  / Thailand
As lèse majesté cases soar, what does this tell us about the Thai state?
January 29, 2021

The number of recent lèse majesté cases in Thailand have soared to near 60, as prominent former Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit and a retired former civil servant made headlines over the past week. Thanathorn’s lèse majesté case came after the 42-year-old auto parts billionaire ran a live broadcast that questioned the capacity of the King Maha Vajiralongkorn-owned Siam BioScience in producing coronavirus vaccines in Thailand.