Thread: 'Thailand to block 47,000 websites'

Originally Posted by Mid

The Thai government has taken steps to block 47,000 websites which operated in Thailand for various reasons this year

Thailand bans 47,000 websites, not sure which kind or why.

Originally Posted by Mid

He said the People's Republic of China has prevented the operation of a single website opposed to China and its progress.

China bans ALL websites opposed to its 'progress' - this has no meaning.

I'm sorry, maybe I'm being thick, but I still don't understand what these figures mean or why they are related to SL. It just looks like a half hearted attempted by some SL official to say something like "we banned a few, Thailand banned tens of thousands and China banned even more."

So, if this is some half-hearted propaganda/excuses put out by SL to defend their regime against claims of blocking freedom of speech, then it's so vague with regard to the 47,000 sites banned by Thailand that it doesn't seem relevant.

But again, I don't understand it...

Originally Posted by Scaramanga

These censorship laws take time to change and PT are doing their best in combating these laws like rejecting the amendments to the 2007 Print Registration Act which hit them recently.

More could be done and needs to be done and as soon.

As this flood crisis is over then PT need to address these ugly laws that the last government introduced.

What? is there something seriously wrong with your ability to remember events accurately? The extremely dangerous amendament to the printing act was proposed by the ministry of culture and approved by the cabinet. This governments cabinet. You do know that, right?

And you know who the chief of police is, right? This should give you a clue...

https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...t=chief+police (Thaksin's brother in law-Stage set for Priewpan to become police chief)

And you do know that this amendment (that has been put on the backburner) .....

"The proposed amendment to the Printing Act of 2007 by the Cabinet sends signals in the opposite direction. If passed by Parliament into law, it will give the national police chief the power to censor, close down and threaten the constitutional rights of any newspaper with impunity."

And once again....this was proposed by the culture ministry and approved by the Yingluck cabinet.

Originally Posted by StrontiumDog

Council of State rejects proposed amendments to Print Registration Act as unconstitutional | Prachatai English


Council of State rejects proposed amendments to Print Registration Act as unconstitutional

Wed, 02/11/2011 - 12:08 | by prachatai

On 1 Nov, Deputy Spokesperson of the PM’s Office Chalitrat Chantarubeksa told reporters that the Office of the Council of State had rejected amendments to the 2007 Print Registration Act as proposed by the Ministry of Culture and approved by the Cabinet on 18 Oct.

The agency, which is the government’s advisory body on legal matters, told the government that certain parts of the proposed amendments might go against Section 45 of the Constitution which guarantees the people’s rights to freedom of expression.

The Cabinet then asked the Ministry of Culture to reconsider the amendments, he said.

You need to read the last 2 pages of this thread....

https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...state+meddling (Journos decry state meddling)

And then there's Chalerm and his "war room".....(you know about this, right? And that arrests have continued...and that website blockings are at the same level as under the Democrats)

It appears you are incredibly poorly informed GJ. No wonder you have the opinions you do.

2Bangkok has a couple of interesting posts today, as it is a kind of anniversary. Well worth reading in their entirety. Also worth noting that Mr Suranand is very much back in government and all over TV....

Note press freedom under Thaksin....

Lest we forget.

Thaksin meets the press – in court | 2Bangkok.com

Thaksin meets the press – in court

Posted on November 2, 2005 by admin

Thaksin meets the press - in court - Asia Times Online, November 2, 2005

Once upon a time, Thailand was known to have a free and open press. Not anymore. In the 2005 Worldwide Press Freedom Index, released last month by Paris-based Reporters Without Borders and ranking 167 countries, Thailand shows up at a far from flattering 107th place, behind post-Khmer Rouge Cambodia and post-Suharto Indonesia.

As far as the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) is concerned, the issue is clear-cut. "More than anything, or anybody else, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra should take the blame for this dismaying portrayal of Thailand as a country where the press is suddenly under a dark cloud," says SEAPA executive director Roby Alampay. Whenever billionaire tycoon Thaksin, his government, or his family's and friends' companies don't like what the Thai press has to say about them, they tend to sue. Big time...

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Thaksin admires the Chinese press | 2Bangkok.com

Thaksin admires the Chinese press

Posted on November 1, 2005 by admin

The real harm to country's image - Bangkok Post, November 1, 2005

[This is the kind of tough editorial that used to only be in The Nation.]

...Proof of that, if any were needed, was supplied by the minister himself in a report by the government's official mouthpiece, Radio Thailand. Mr Suranand, just back from a trip to China, told the radio service he praised the Chinese system of media control extensively, and apparently had not a word to say about the official protection of press freedom in Thailand. Mr Suranand said he was strongly impressed with China's ``state-of-art technology system'' which is used to monitor citizens, control the media and block access to thousands of internet websites which the Chinese find inconveniently democratic, including several in Thailand.

According to Mr Suranand, some media ``make problems for society'' and he signed an agreement with China to cooperate on this issue. Mr Suranand made no attempt to defend his country's democratic system and constitutional protection of free speech and press. Instead, he publicly agreed with the statements of his hosts, who represent a dictatorship with no pretence of press freedom. He agreed with the Chinese that the government should ``play a more important role in examining the members of the press who trigger problems to the society''. That seems a good reason to downgrade Thailand's press freedom and harm Thailand's image yet again.

The climate of harassment is well known. Last year, police in the South invited reporters to a news conference on the Tak Bai homicides, then locked them in the room and demanded notes, photos and video footage. Mr Thaksin has claimed several times that the press is hurting the image of the country by certain news coverage or commentary. On the contrary, it is clear the government is harming the country's image abroad by creating an environment of badgering that has caused a huge loss of respect for Thai media independence. And it is using state agencies, including security forces, to help...