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  4.    <title>Prachatai English</title>
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  6.    <description/>
  7.    <language>en</language>
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  9.    <item>
  10.  <title>National Environment Board appeals court order on air pollution </title>
  11.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10919</link>
  12.  <description>&lt;span&gt;National Environment Board appeals court order on air pollution &lt;/span&gt;
  13.  
  14.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Supreme Administrative Court has accepted an appeal filed by the National Environment Board (NEB) against a ruling made by the Chiang Mai Administrative Court ordering the NEB to complete an air pollution management plan.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Lawyers responsible for a&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/10301"&gt;class action lawsuit&lt;/a&gt; filed by academics, activists, medical professionals, and residents in Chiang Mai against the Prime Minister and other government agencies for lack of action on air pollution said they have been informed of the appeal in a letter dated 3 April and ordered to submit a defence statement within 30 days.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The lawsuit was filed in April 2023 against then-Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, the NEB, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Capital Market Supervisory Board (CMSB) for not taking action to solve air pollution in the north of Thailand.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In January 2024, the Chiang Mai Administrative Court ruled that the Prime Minister and the NEB were either negligent or did not act in a timely manner to address air pollution in the northern provinces. It ordered the Prime Minister and the NEB to prevent or relieve the damages caused by air pollution and complete an emergency plan within 90 days of the ruling.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;However, it dismissed the lawsuits against the SEC and the CMSB on the grounds that the two agencies were not responsible for air pollution, directly or through administrative negligence.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Since the lawsuit is filed against the Prime Minister and not Gen Prayut as an individual, anyone who becomes Prime Minister while the lawsuit is ongoing will be responsible for taking any action ordered by the Court.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Chiang Mai and other northern provinces routinely experience severe air pollution levels between December – April each year, with Chiang Mai often ranking as one of the most polluted cities in the world.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  15.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  16. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-05-03T20:13:17+07:00" title="Friday, 3 May, 2024 - 20:13"&gt;Fri, 2024-05-03 - 20:13&lt;/time&gt;
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  25.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/chiang-mai" hreflang="en"&gt;Chiang mai&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  26.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/chiang-mai-administrative-court" hreflang="en"&gt;Chiang Mai Administrative Court&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  27.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/right-to-clean-air" hreflang="en"&gt;Right to clean air&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  32.  <pubDate>Fri, 03 May 2024 13:13:17 +0000</pubDate>
  33.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  34.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10919 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  35.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10919#comments</comments>
  36.    </item>
  37. <item>
  38.  <title>Seasoned diplomat confirmed as Thailand’s new Foreign Minister </title>
  39.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10918</link>
  40.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Seasoned diplomat confirmed as Thailand’s new Foreign Minister &lt;/span&gt;
  41.  
  42.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;A 66-year-old experienced diplomat, Maris Sangiampongsa, has been endorsed as the new Foreign Minister following the unexpected resignation of the former Foreign Minister, Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Parnpree announced his resignation on Sunday, shortly after a cabinet reshuffle list was announced, in which he lost his position as a Deputy Prime Minister, which he previously held concurrently with the Foreign Minister position. He stated that the work he would undertake would be not as smooth and quick without the Deputy Prime Minister position, so he decided to step down to allow a suitable person to take over the position.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;The resignation of Parnpree, who is a member of the same Pheu Thai party as the Prime Minister, appears to have taken the PM and other Pheu Thai members by complete surprise. Questions have been asked how much the sudden change will derail Thai foreign policy, especially Parnpree’s recent initiatives regarding the conflict in Myanmar.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;The official announcement of a new minister came after&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/2783862/new-foreign-minister-selected-after-parnpree-quit"&gt;several&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://workpointtoday.com/government-srettha/"&gt;news&lt;/a&gt; outlets reported on Monday (29 April) that Srettha had appointed a new Foreign Minister and forwarded the appointment to the King for royal endorsement, citing reliable sources from the Government House.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;On the same day,&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.thaigov.go.th/news/contents/details/82295"&gt;Srettha&lt;/a&gt; revealed that he had selected as new Foreign Minister someone who has long moved in diplomatic and political circles and worked behind the scenes for the Pheu Thai Party. On the following day, the Royal Gazette officially announced that Maris had been endorsed by the King as the country’s new Foreign Minister.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Maris is a retired diplomat, who served as ambassador to Australia, Fiji, Nepal, and Canada, his last diplomatic position before retirement. During Parnpree’s tenure, Maris served as advisor for the Foreign Minister. The new Foreign Minister reportedly has enjoyed close ties with the Shinawatra family ever since former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was Foreign Minister during the Chuan Leekpai government in 1994.&amp;nbsp;Under the later Thaksin administration, Maris was transferred from the Ministry to Government House to oversee foreign affairs.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  43.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  44. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-05-02T11:07:38+07:00" title="Thursday, 2 May, 2024 - 11:07"&gt;Thu, 2024-05-02 - 11:07&lt;/time&gt;
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  53.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/minister-of-foreign-affairs" hreflang="en"&gt;Minister of Foreign Affairs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  54.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/ministry-of-foreign-affairs" hreflang="en"&gt;Ministry of Foreign Affairs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  57. </description>
  58.  <pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 04:07:38 +0000</pubDate>
  59.    <dc:creator>eng editor 3</dc:creator>
  60.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10918 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  61.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10918#comments</comments>
  62.    </item>
  63. <item>
  64.  <title>Voice TV to close after 15 years</title>
  65.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10917</link>
  66.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Voice TV to close after 15 years&lt;/span&gt;
  67.  
  68.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;After 15 years of operation, Voice TV announced last Friday (26 April) that it will close down by 31 May.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;The outlet posted an&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=852912926866881&amp;amp;set=a.603207091837467&amp;amp;_rdc=1&amp;amp;_rdr"&gt;announcement&lt;/a&gt; on its Facebook page that its executive and shareholders decided to close down the company because of “market forces” and the recognition that its various social missions will be continued by a number of other media platforms.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;“For the past 15 years, we have been proud to play a part in producing works for society.&amp;nbsp;We are proud of our shareholders, board members, executives, employees, former employees, reporters, and show hosts. We are proud of the good that we have done for society, proud of what we have done and been all along,” said the statement.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;Voice TV said that it will provide every employee with unemployment compensation as legally required and will cease operating its online and television broadcast departments by the end of May.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;Founded in June 2009 and currently owned by Panthongtae Shinawatra, son of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Voice TV and its online branch Voice Online is known for its content on Thai politics, political commentary, and liberal and pro-Thaksin stance. After the May 2023 general election, when the Pheu Thai Party formed a government with pro-military parties, Voice TV also gained a reputation of being pro-government.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;The outlet faced severe repression following the May 2014 coup. When the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) allowed media outlets to resume broadcasting the day after the coup, Voice TV was not allowed to come back on air until it signed an MOU that it&amp;nbsp; would disseminate information provided by the NCPO and not broadcast content that violated its orders. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) subsequently brought actions against the outlet on at least 24 occasions, with penalties ranging from a warning to a temporary suspension.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;When a severe state of emergency was declared in Bangkok in October 2020, at the height of the student-led pro-democracy movement, the NBTC and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/8854"&gt;) threatened to suspend&lt;/a&gt; four online media outlets over protest coverage: Voice TV, Prachatai, The Reporters, and The Standard. MDES subsequently&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/8859"&gt;obtained a court order&lt;/a&gt; for the suspension of Voice TV’s online platforms, claiming that it has violated the Computer Crimes Act and the orders of the chief official under the severe state of emergency. However, the order was&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/8863"&gt;lifted&lt;/a&gt; a day after it was issued.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  69.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  70. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-30T21:07:06+07:00" title="Tuesday, 30 April, 2024 - 21:07"&gt;Tue, 2024-04-30 - 21:07&lt;/time&gt;
  71. &lt;/span&gt;
  72. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
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  74.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/news" hreflang="en"&gt;News&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  79.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/voice-tv" hreflang="en"&gt;Voice TV&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  80.      &lt;/ul&gt;
  81. &lt;/div&gt; &lt;!--/.node-taxonomy-container --&gt;
  82. </description>
  83.  <pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 14:07:06 +0000</pubDate>
  84.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  85.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10917 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  86.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10917#comments</comments>
  87.    </item>
  88. <item>
  89.  <title>Students call for explanation of admission exam blunders</title>
  90.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10915</link>
  91.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Students call for explanation of admission exam blunders&lt;/span&gt;
  92.  
  93.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;Led by activists from the Bad Students group, concerned students have filed a&amp;nbsp;petition with the Council of University Presidents of Thailand (CUPT), the organisation responsible for Thailand’s university placement&amp;nbsp;selection process, to explain errors that were found on the 2024&amp;nbsp;admission exam.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;The group submitted a petition with 6,455 signatures to the CUPT on Monday (29 April), demanding it disclose the answers to the exam questions within 7 days before exam scores are submitted to universities.&amp;nbsp; Complaints about the 2024 university admission exams went viral on social media as a result of mistakes found in 5 subjects. CUPT later admitted these mistakes.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;The&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://web.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=423726830246263&amp;amp;set=a.169356259016656&amp;amp;type=3&amp;amp;ref=embed_post&amp;amp;_rdc=1&amp;amp;_rdr"&gt;errors&lt;/a&gt; include ambiguous questions and choices, causing test takers to give unclear answers. The exam checking system also gave scores to some individuals who did not take the examination.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;Bad Student&amp;nbsp;spokesperson Anna Annanon asserted that some&amp;nbsp;exam questions&amp;nbsp;exceeded the scope of the high school curriculum, a claim CUPT denied,&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;The 6 errors in 5 subjects claimed by the Bad Students group were acknowledged by&amp;nbsp;CUPT, however.&amp;nbsp; The organisation was unwilling to provide correct answers due to contractual conditions with the examiner, however.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;The 6,455 test takers urged that:&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;1.&amp;nbsp;The CUPT&amp;nbsp;immediately publish exam answers in every subject before the universities start the selection process.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;2.&amp;nbsp; The Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research, and Innovation (MHESI) mediate negotiations between the TCDC and the parties who issued the exam to adjust the contract terms for exam publication.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body" style="text-align:justify;"&gt;3.&amp;nbsp; The MHESI and CUPT&amp;nbsp;ensure&amp;nbsp;the integrity and transparency of the exam-making and reviewing processes by allowing public participation.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  94.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  95. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-30T20:46:49+07:00" title="Tuesday, 30 April, 2024 - 20:46"&gt;Tue, 2024-04-30 - 20:46&lt;/time&gt;
  96. &lt;/span&gt;
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  99.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/news" hreflang="en"&gt;News&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  103.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  104.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/anna-annanon" hreflang="en"&gt;Anna Annanon&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  105.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/bad-students" hreflang="en"&gt;Bad Students&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  106.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/thai-education" hreflang="en"&gt;Thai education&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  109. </description>
  110.  <pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:46:49 +0000</pubDate>
  111.    <dc:creator>eng editor 3</dc:creator>
  112.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10915 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  113.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10915#comments</comments>
  114.    </item>
  115. <item>
  116.  <title>[Event] Media freedom in Thailand post-election amidst environmental crisis</title>
  117.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10916</link>
  118.  <description>&lt;span&gt;[Event] Media freedom in Thailand post-election amidst environmental crisis&lt;/span&gt;
  119.  
  120.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p&gt;For this year’s World Press Freedom Day, Prachatai and UNESCO invite you to attend a seminar on “Media freedom in Thailand post-election amidst environmental crisis and the path towards anti-SLAPP law”&amp;nbsp;at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT) on 3 May 2024, 13.00 – 16.00.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53688410822_e5088b48f8_b.jpg" width="819" height="1023" loading="lazy"&gt;&lt;p&gt;The panel will discuss the current situation of press freedom and threats against journalists, including the threat of legal prosecution. We believe that public participation is important for a sustainable development. However, an information ecosystem is required so that the public can make informed decisions. Journalists therefore, whether professional, independent, or citizen reporters, play an important role in providing the public with information.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Whether journalists can do their job depends on the right to access information without harassment and the ability to access enough&amp;nbsp;facts to communicate to the public for them to be informed before participating in decision-making about development projects, especially as Thailand is facing issues with inflation and the environment, like air pollution, which need urgent solutions.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Despite the massive voter turnout during the May 2023 general election, Thailand’s parliament still has 250 unelected senators, who make up 33% of parliament. With this large number of votes, the Senate has dominated decisions made by the executive branch, regarding both the economy and the environment, even though they do not represent the will of the people. This situation exacerbated existing problems and made it ever more important to ensure that rights and freedom are guaranteed.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;“Media freedom in Thailand post-election amidst environmental crisis and the path towards anti-SLAPP law” Seminar&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;3 May 2024&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT), Penthouse floor, Maneeya Center&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;13.00 – 16.00&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Register now:&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://forms.gle/xQkPHBmRcNuwzn7D6?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR1IPrzLjJR-65frxFq1Fc1fOZnpD7F3s7Wy5w7ZpOnADFyBPQPdM1pP1R8_aem_AeS-2ybhLB_VOZOAgBZ9OXYbRz1uYr-gruz04y1KRtFKqnxmaOIHAaCpkQhVmoFIsVt-Ps19cOVZuu4pnT4_nyLH" target="_blank"&gt;https://forms.gle/xQkPHBmRcNuwzn7D6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;No entry fee.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Thai-English interpretation available&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;The event will be live-streamed with simultaneous interpretation on Facebook at UNESCO Bangkok (in English) and ประชาไท prachatai.com (in Thai)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Programme&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;13.15 – 13.25 Opening remarks&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul style="list-style-type:disc;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Jo Hiranaka, Programme Coordinator, UNESCO Bangkok&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Georgina Lloyd, Regional Coordinator (Asia and the Pacific) of Environmental Law and Governance, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;13.25 – 13.45 Keynote speech&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul style="list-style-type:disc;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Aleksandra Bielakowska, Advocacy Officer, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Asia-Pacific Bureau&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;13.45 – 15.30 “Media freedom in Thailand post-election amidst environmental crisis and the path towards anti-SLAPP law” seminar&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul style="list-style-type:disc;"&gt;&lt;li&gt;Anna Lawattanatrakul, Editor, Prachatai English, Press Freedom Monitoring in Southeast Asia project (PFMSEA)&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Thitipan Pattanamongkol, Editor, the Public Dreams of Anti Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP)&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Sanhawan Srisod, International Commission of Jurists (ICJ)&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Pukkamon Nunarnan, Member of Parliament and House Standing Committee on Political Development, Mass Communications and Public Participation&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;Moderator: Nuttaphol Meksobhon, Prachatai Reporter&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;p&gt;15.30 – 16.00 Q&amp;amp;A and closing address&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  121.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  122. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-30T20:31:15+07:00" title="Tuesday, 30 April, 2024 - 20:31"&gt;Tue, 2024-04-30 - 20:31&lt;/time&gt;
  123. &lt;/span&gt;
  124. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  125.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  126.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/news" hreflang="en"&gt;News&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  127.      &lt;/ul&gt;
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  129. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  130.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  131.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/world-press-freedom-day" hreflang="en"&gt;World Press Freedom Day&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  132.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/press-freedom" hreflang="en"&gt;press freedom&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  133.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/strategic-litigation-against-public-participation-slapp" hreflang="en"&gt;Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation (SLAPP)&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  134.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/anti-slapp-law" hreflang="en"&gt;Anti-SLAPP law&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  135.      &lt;/ul&gt;
  136. &lt;/div&gt; &lt;!--/.node-taxonomy-container --&gt;
  137. </description>
  138.  <pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:31:15 +0000</pubDate>
  139.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  140.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10916 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  141.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10916#comments</comments>
  142.    </item>
  143. <item>
  144.  <title>Anon Nampa faces a decade of jail time after third royal defamation conviction</title>
  145.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10914</link>
  146.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Anon Nampa faces a decade of jail time after third royal defamation conviction&lt;/span&gt;
  147.  
  148.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p&gt;Human rights lawyer and activist Anon Nampa is now facing over 10 years in prison after the South Bangkok Criminal Court today (29 April) sentenced him to 2 years and 20 days in prison on another royal defamation charge.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51355744610_e4835d8604_b.jpg" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy"&gt;&lt;p class="picture-and-caption"&gt;Anon Nampa speaking at the 3 August 2021 protest.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Anon was charged with royal defamation, violation of the Emergency Decree and the Communicable Diseases Act, and using a sound amplifier without permission for speaking at a &lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/9383"&gt;protest&lt;/a&gt; in front of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Centre (BACC) on 3 August 2021.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="https://tlhr2014.com/archives/66541"&gt;Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR)&lt;/a&gt; said today (29 April) that the South Bangkok Criminal Court found him guilty of all charges and sentenced him to 3 years and 1 month in prison, along with a fine of 150 baht. Because he gave useful testimony, the court reduced his sentence to 2 years and 20 days and a fine of 100 baht. The prison sentence is to be served consecutively with two previous prison sentences Anon received. Equipment used during the protest, including an electric generator and sound equipment, were also seized by the court.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The 100-baht fine was covered by Anon’s supporters observing the trial, who put together 100 baht in small coins.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;TLHR noted that the Court found him guilty of royal defamation because he directly criticized King Vajiralongkorn in his speech, causing a misunderstanding that the King was greedy and trying to take public property for himself. The Court found the speech defamatory, and said that there is no reason to insult the monarchy, which is held in a place of respect. However, it did not take into consideration whether the content of Anon’s speech was factual.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class="more-story"&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/10779"&gt;Anon Nampa sentenced to jail for criticizing royal defamation law&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/10618"&gt;Human rights lawyer convicted of royal defamation&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This is the third time Anon, who faces a total of 14 counts of royal defamation, has been found guilty of this offence for his role in the 2020-2021 pro-democracy protests. He is now facing a total of 10 years and 20 days in prison for the three convictions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Anon has been detained pending appeal at the Bangkok Remand Prison since 26 September. He has been repeatedly &lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/10670"&gt;denied bail&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  149.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  150. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-30T12:33:55+07:00" title="Tuesday, 30 April, 2024 - 12:33"&gt;Tue, 2024-04-30 - 12:33&lt;/time&gt;
  151. &lt;/span&gt;
  152. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  153.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  154.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/news" hreflang="en"&gt;News&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  155.      &lt;/ul&gt;
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  157. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  158.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  159.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/anon-nampa" hreflang="en"&gt;Anon Nampa&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  160.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/section-112" hreflang="en"&gt;Section 112&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  161.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/royal-defamation" hreflang="en"&gt;Royal defamation&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  162.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/lese-majeste" hreflang="en"&gt;lese majeste&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  163.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/freedom-of-expression" hreflang="en"&gt;freedom of expression&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  164.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/monarchy-reform" hreflang="en"&gt;Monarchy reform&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  165.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/south-bangkok-criminal-court" hreflang="en"&gt;South Bangkok Criminal Court&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  166.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/pro-democracy-protest-2021" hreflang="en"&gt;pro-democracy protest 2021&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  167.      &lt;/ul&gt;
  168. &lt;/div&gt; &lt;!--/.node-taxonomy-container --&gt;
  169. </description>
  170.  <pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 05:33:55 +0000</pubDate>
  171.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  172.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10914 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  173.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10914#comments</comments>
  174.    </item>
  175. <item>
  176.  <title>Cartoon by Stephff: Magic cervical collar</title>
  177.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10913</link>
  178.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Cartoon by Stephff: Magic cervical collar&lt;/span&gt;
  179.  
  180.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Cartoon by Stephff: Magic cervical collar&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53686853045_4f85de2e5d_b.jpg" width="1024" height="725" loading="lazy"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  181.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  182. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-29T16:29:47+07:00" title="Monday, 29 April, 2024 - 16:29"&gt;Mon, 2024-04-29 - 16:29&lt;/time&gt;
  183. &lt;/span&gt;
  184. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  185.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  186.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/multimedia-0" hreflang="en"&gt;Multimedia&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  187.      &lt;/ul&gt;
  188. &lt;/div&gt; &lt;!--/.node-taxonomy-container --&gt;
  189. </description>
  190.  <pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2024 09:29:47 +0000</pubDate>
  191.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  192.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10913 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  193.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10913#comments</comments>
  194.    </item>
  195. <item>
  196.  <title>Tak Bai Massacre victims’ families file lawsuit against involved officials</title>
  197.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10912</link>
  198.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Tak Bai Massacre victims’ families file lawsuit against involved officials&lt;/span&gt;
  199.  
  200.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;With the statute of limitations set to expire in October 2024, families of those killed in the Tak Bai Massacre have filed a criminal lawsuit against 9 military, police, and civil officials involved in the incident.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53681054717_7a63822c9d_b.jpg" width="1024" height="768" loading="lazy"&gt;&lt;p class="Body picture-and-caption"&gt;Representatives of Tak Bai Massacre victims' families at the Narathiwat Provincial Court on 25 April. (Photo by Muhammad Dueramae)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;The&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=915768523680158&amp;amp;set=a.733019715288374"&gt;Cross-Cultural Foundation (CrCF)&lt;/a&gt; reported that, on 25 April, family representatives and their lawyers file charges with the Narathiwat Provincial Court against 9 officials for their alleged involvement in the massacre, which resulted in the death of 85 people.&amp;nbsp; The charges included murder by torture or acts of cruelty, coercion, unlawful detention, and malfeasance.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;On 25 October 2004, a demonstration took place in front of the Tak Bai Provincial Police Station in Narathiwat.&amp;nbsp; The protest was in response to the detention of 6 members of a village security team accused of providing arms to insurgents. The detainees claimed that their weapons had been stolen. After the crowd grew to around 2000 people, police attempted to disperse the protest with tear gas and water cannons. When protesters responded by throwing rocks, police shot them, killing 7 people.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;Over 1300 people were detained at the scene. They were stripped to the waist and had their hands tied behind their backs. Some were beaten with gunstocks. They were then stacked on top of each other in trucks and transported to Fort Ingkhayutthaborihan, a military base in Pattani, 150 kilometres from the original location of the protest. 78 more people died from suffocation or organ failure during the 5-hour drive.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;Busra, whose older brother was killed in the massacre,&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://prachatai.com/journal/2024/04/109009"&gt;said&lt;/a&gt; that she initially thought that legal proceedings were over, since victims’ families received compensation from the government. However, she later learned that although a Songkhla Provincial Court inquest had been closed, the prosecutor had yet to indict the officers involved. She explained that the families decided to file charges against the officials because they felt that the men responsible should be held to account.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;According to CrCF, several families told their lawyers they were harassed in March 2024 by men claiming to be police officers. The men were not wearing uniforms and did not present ID cards. They tried to force family members to visit a police station to discuss compensation for victims of the Tak Bai Massacre, telling them that their travel expenses would be covered. The families suspect that they were being harassed so that they would not file the lawsuit.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;On 10 March 2024, family representatives filed a petition with parliament’s ad-hoc committee on promoting peace in the Deep South to ask for an investigation into the alleged harassment.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;Busra said that victim’s families still feel they have not received justice. She also express concern about a rumour that the case file on Tak Bai had gone missing and wondered if it had been intentionally destroyed. She added that despite the warnings they had received and the police harassment, the families were not afraid and would continue to work to win the case. She hopes the Tak Bai case could set a precedence so that other victims of state violence can file charges against responsible parties.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;‘If we win this case, at least we can let the world see that there is still justice in Thailand,” she said.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;CrCF director Pornpen Khongkachonkiet noted that although the Tak Bai Massacre inquest found evidence that victims had been tortured, the results only stated that they died from suffocation and did not say what caused them to suffocate. She feels that in so much as the result of the inquest was not in line with public expectations and the testimony of other detainees and family members, it has led to conflict. As families of the dead and those injured during the massacre have had to live with trauma, Pornpen is not surprised that they are filing the lawsuit.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;“This case will be a test for the Thai justice system, especially the capability of the judges in solving conflict by revealing the truth in court. Accepting this case is very important for the peace process, for resolving a long-standing conflict by adhering to the rule of law,” she said.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class="Body"&gt;In a related matter, Move Forward Party MP Romadon Panjor posted a letter on his&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.facebook.com/romadonity/posts/pfbid02ergq6h95A6mqLYDPz6WzBkjk2CLv2GEsaKdMZXtzatW5FrZkmcDcwPAAiHxg6sPAl"&gt;Facebook account&lt;/a&gt; from police headquarters to the Office of the Attorney General. Dated 25 April, the letter states that the Commissioner of Provincial Police Region 9 does not want the 8 officials involved in the Tak Bai Massacre to be indicted. The letter states that the officials’ action were appropriate for the circumstances and that the deaths were beyond their control, as they did not intend to kill the detainees during transportation and did not anticipate that they would die.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  201.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  202. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-29T14:26:04+07:00" title="Monday, 29 April, 2024 - 14:26"&gt;Mon, 2024-04-29 - 14:26&lt;/time&gt;
  203. &lt;/span&gt;
  204. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  205.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  206.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/news" hreflang="en"&gt;News&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  207.      &lt;/ul&gt;
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  209. &lt;div class="node-taxonomy-container"&gt;
  210.    &lt;ul class="taxonomy-terms"&gt;
  211.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/tak-bai" hreflang="en"&gt;Tak Bai&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  212.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/cross-cultural-foundation-0" hreflang="en"&gt;Cross-Cultural Foundation&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  213.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/deep-south" hreflang="en"&gt;Deep South&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  214.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/narathiwat-provincial-court" hreflang="en"&gt;Narathiwat Provincial Court&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  215.      &lt;/ul&gt;
  216. &lt;/div&gt; &lt;!--/.node-taxonomy-container --&gt;
  217. </description>
  218.  <pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2024 07:26:04 +0000</pubDate>
  219.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  220.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10912 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  221.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10912#comments</comments>
  222.    </item>
  223. <item>
  224.  <title>Cabinet to set triple-referendum process for constitutional amendment </title>
  225.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10911</link>
  226.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Cabinet to set triple-referendum process for constitutional amendment &lt;/span&gt;
  227.  
  228.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;After the cabinet announced on Tuesday (23 April) that it will require three referendums on amending the constitution, concerns have been raised that a provision prohibiting amendments on monarchy-related chapters in the Constitution will lead to a dead end and raise questions about the role of the monarchy.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;img src="https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53152722414_4af0aae2ff_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" loading="lazy"&gt;&lt;p class="picture-and-caption"&gt;Members of the People's Constitutional Drafting Group submitting their petition, signed by over 200,000 people, to the Election Commission on 30 August 2023 to call for a referendum on constitutional amendments.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The Cabinet voted on Tuesday (23 April) to approve a recommendation made by the Constitutional Amendment Committee to conduct three referendums. The first is to take place between July-August 2024 and will ask one question: “Do you agree with having a new Constitution without amendments to Chapter 1, General Provisions, and Chapter 2, The Monarchy.”&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Of the 5 Sections in Chapter 1, ‘General Provisions’, of the current 2017 Constitution, Sections 2, 3 and 4 make reference to ‘the King as Head of State’. Chapter 2, ‘The King’, has 19 Sections dealing with the position and authority of the monarch.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;If a majority votes in favour of amending the Constitution without amendments to these two chapters, a second referendum will follow asking for approval of an amendment to Section 256 of the current Constitution to allow the formation a Constituent Assembly. If this passes, a third referendum will ask whether people approve a new Constitution drafted by the Constituent Assembly.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The 2021 Referendum Act requires a double majority for a vote in favour: voter turnout must be more than half of all eligible voters, and more than half of the turnout must vote in favour.&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.bbc.com/thai/articles/cqvn34l5d87o"&gt;BBC Thai&lt;/a&gt; reported that, according to Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, the Cabinet is also planning to amend the Referendum Act.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The People’s Constitution Drafting Group, a network of civil society organizations and activist groups campaigning for a new constitution, issued a&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.ilaw.or.th/articles/30081"&gt;statement&lt;/a&gt; on Wednesday (25 April) that the government had wasted over 200 days studying approaches to constitutional amendments and filing petitions with the Constitutional Court only to circle back to the beginning. It had also ignored questions proposed by civil society and opposition parties, including a question proposed by the People’s Constitutional Drafting Group, which was&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://prachataienglish.com/node/10563"&gt;backed by over 200,000 voters&lt;/a&gt;. The network had also requested meetings with the Prime Minister, but their requests were never answered. The statement also noted that the government has not mentioned how the Constituent Assembly will be formed.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The network also said that it found the question written by the government problematic, since voters who wish to amend the entire Constitution will be left with no choice of how to vote in the referendum. It would also prevent a completely new Constitution from being written, since any resulting draft would retain Chapters 1 and 2. A draft of the current constitution was put to a referendum in 2016 and passed, but Chapters 1 and 2 were then changed before the constitution was promulgated. Meanwhile, limitations on amendments to chapters relating to the monarchy raise questions, since the monarchy will be used as a condition for constitutional amendments.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Noting that it previously proposed a referendum question and a call for the Constituent Assembly to be entirely elected in a campaign backed by over 200,000 voters, the network said that it cannot vote in favour in the referendum when the government rejected its proposals and decided on a question that is contrary to its principles.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;A ‘no’ vote in the first referendum, says the statement, does not mean that the voter wants to retain the 2017 Constitution, as many who vote ‘no’ may do so because they want to amend the entire Constitution without any limitation. The network believes that, since the referendum question asks about two issues at once, whether people wants amendments to the 2017 Constitution and also whether they agree with the condition included in the referendum question, it is impossible to interpret the result.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;“We have always been trying to warn the government of what kind of question risks the referendum not passing, but the government keeps using a question that creates conditions, creates conflict, and more than that, creates unnecessary arguments about Chapter 1, General Provisions, and Chapter 2, The King. The government has sparked questions among society about what Chapters 1 and 2 are about, what the problem is, and why they have to ban amendments, and it is using this issue as a deciding factor in the future for writing a new constitution. So a question that ‘locks in a condition’ like this is a question from the government, by the government, for the government,” said the statement.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;“Since the government is the owner of this question, it must also own the consequences. If the result of this referendum blocks the path to a people’s constitution, it will be the government’s loss for not being able to follow through on a policy they announced. The government must take responsibility by resigning, because it means that they are no longer trusted by the people.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The network said that it wants a people’s constitution, and that the process of drafting a new constitution must be fair and open to public participation. Setting a condition at the very beginning of the process could mean that there will always be conditions along the way and the Constitution would always cater to anyone in power at the time. The network invites people to apply to run for the Senate, since constitutional amendments need to be approved by a third of the Senate to pass.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Meanwhile, the&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.facebook.com/MoveForwardPartyThailand/posts/pfbid02DZSxp9MezXP4iA3Mc9dTbv4hM9iA45WgEnekPHg5XhbVkH84u2w8jZVqEPLWvu2cl"&gt;Move Forward Party&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp;(MFP) has called on the government to rethink the question it will use. People who agree with one part of the question but disagree with the other, like those who wish to amend the Constitution but disagree with prohibiting amendments to Chapters 1 and 2, might not be sure how to respond. Such a question could mean that the constitutional amendment process fails at the first referendum and lead to uncertainty about how the result of the referendum is to be interpreted as it would be unclear whether those who vote against or abstain from voting do not want to amend the Constitution or if they disagree with the limitation on amending Chapters 1 and 2.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;MFP also raises concerns that the constitutional amendments process could run into further problems, since Sections are inter-related and any amendment to other chapters may necessitate amendments to Chapters 1 and 2 so that the entire Constitution is internally consistent. The use of this question could also mean that the new Constitution will not be able to reconcile different opinions in the society or reflect the new consensus.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The party noted that amending Chapters 1 and 2 is normal and that both have been amended every time a new Constitution is written. Section 255 of the Constitution already prohibits any amendment that would change the regime type or form of government. It could also make political reconciliation more challenging if discussions around amendments to Chapters 1 and 2 are prohibited in a safe space like a Constituent Assembly.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  229.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 1&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  230. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-29T14:11:50+07:00" title="Monday, 29 April, 2024 - 14:11"&gt;Mon, 2024-04-29 - 14:11&lt;/time&gt;
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  239.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/constitutional-amendment" hreflang="en"&gt;Constitutional amendment&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
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  245. </description>
  246.  <pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2024 07:11:50 +0000</pubDate>
  247.    <dc:creator>eng editor 1</dc:creator>
  248.    <guid isPermaLink="false">10911 at http://prachataienglish.com</guid>
  249.    <comments>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10911#comments</comments>
  250.    </item>
  251. <item>
  252.  <title>Thailand to hold its first-ever Senate election since the last coup</title>
  253.  <link>http://prachataienglish.com/node/10910</link>
  254.  <description>&lt;span&gt;Thailand to hold its first-ever Senate election since the last coup&lt;/span&gt;
  255.  
  256.            &lt;div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field-item"&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Thailand is scheduled to hold its first ever Senate election under the current constitution next month to replace the outgoing 250 Senators appointed by the military junta. Nevertheless, this unprecedented election process is viewed as the most complicated yet.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;When the current military-backed Senate’s term ends in May 2024, the 200 new Senators will be elected through a new and complex process. According to the cabinet, the application process is set for 13 May while the election will be held in 3 rounds on 9,16, and 29 June and the results are expected on 2 July 2024. During this time, the current Senate will remain in power until the new Senators are elected.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;The outgoing Senate has played a crucial role in determining the outcome of the past 2 general elections as it was empowered to vote for the PM, thanks to the 2017 constitution drawn up by the then-ruling military. In 2019 this enabled Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha to continue in office with 249 votes from the Senate. In the latest election, the same Senate voted to block the election as PM of &amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailands-pita-says-enough-support-senate-become-pm-2023-06-27/"&gt;Pita Limjaroenrat&lt;/a&gt;, leader of the winning Move Forward Party. Unlike the current Senate, the new one will not be allowed to vote for a PM.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Even though the new Senate will not vote for the PM, it still retains substantial power on legislative matters, especially on&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.ilaw.or.th/articles/3939"&gt;amendments&lt;/a&gt; to the constitution that was drafted by the military junta. Any amendment requires the support of at least one-third of the Senate in the first and third readings.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Candidates must be at least 40 years old with at least 10 years of&amp;nbsp;experience and expertise. Importantly, they must not be civil servants or hold any political positions. The Senate will be chosen from 20 professional groups, including legal, justice, agriculture, tourism, and ethnic minorities.&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/DATA/PDF/2561/A/068/1.PDF"&gt;The process&lt;/a&gt; involves both intra- and inter-group elections through a multi-level voting system, which is divided into district, provincial, and national levels.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;The candidates cast votes within their professional bloc at the district level. The top 5 candidates from each bloc will be randomly arranged into cross-professional groups. They then cast votes for candidates from different professions in the same group and shortlist the top 3 candidates from each group to compete at the provincial level, where the process is repeated. The top 2 candidates will proceed to the next level. At the national level, the top 40 candidates from each bloc will participate in an inter-group election. The top 10 candidates from each 20 professional blocs will become senators.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;While many critics have commented this Senate election is the most complicated in the world,&amp;nbsp;&lt;a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&amp;amp;source=web&amp;amp;rct=j&amp;amp;opi=89978449&amp;amp;url=https://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DlTEncM67GwQ&amp;amp;ved=2ahUKEwjEmsW8pduFAxXPa_UHHRz8DCkQtwJ6BAgNEAI&amp;amp;usg=AOvVaw2lIYtgMvFE4ppIANBf0lSZ"&gt;Sawang Boonmee&lt;/a&gt;, Secretary-General of the Election Commission (EC), agreed with the complaints that the Senate election process is complicated, but said that the EC must comply with the law and also try to involve the general public in this election.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;&lt;a href="https://prachatai.com/journal/2024/03/108602"&gt;Pannika Wanich&lt;/a&gt;, the Progressive Movement’s spokesperson, noted that selecting the Senate from these 20 professional groups is not practical as not every district, such as those in Bangkok, has representatives from farming or fisheries professional groups.&amp;nbsp;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style="text-align:justify;text-justify:inter-cluster;"&gt;Meanwhile, a former Election Commissioner, Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, said that it is not only the election process that is problematic, but also the procedure on the election dates, when the general public is not eligible to vote nor observe the election. Only officials and candidates can enter the venues.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  257.      &lt;span&gt;&lt;span&gt;eng editor 3&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;
  258. &lt;span&gt;&lt;time datetime="2024-04-26T12:59:35+07:00" title="Friday, 26 April, 2024 - 12:59"&gt;Fri, 2024-04-26 - 12:59&lt;/time&gt;
  259. &lt;/span&gt;
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  268.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/somchai-srisuthiyakorn" hreflang="en"&gt;Somchai Srisuthiyakorn&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  269.          &lt;li class="taxonomy-term"&gt;&lt;a href="http://prachataienglish.com/category/pannika-wanich" hreflang="en"&gt;Pannika Wanich&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  270.      &lt;/ul&gt;
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  272. </description>
  273.  <pubDate>Fri, 26 Apr 2024 05:59:35 +0000</pubDate>
  274.    <dc:creator>eng editor 3</dc:creator>
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