The recent "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" released March 6, 2007 by the US Department of State paints a worrisome picture here in the glorious "Land 'O Thais".

The report is available here;

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/78792.htm

The report pulls no punches. There is no telling how long it will remain an active link before the long arm of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology aka the ICT Cyber Inspection Team and their lackeys block it so as "to prohibit publication and distribution of news and information that may cause the people to panic or with an intention to distort information."

The truths according to the United States versus the truth according to the munchkins here in the glorious “Land ‘O Thais” are evidently horses of two very different colors.

It is certainly worth a read to anyone; especially US citizens staying long term in the Kingdom. I think it gives a good representation on what is and has been going on..

I know the non-US crowd will spin it as my governments take on things, but somebody has to step up and be "Keepers of the Free World".

They also have reports available on most countries in the world located here;

http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/

The Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia & China reports are worth a read as well.

I am not sure that the good old US of A is in any position to lecture the world on human rights.

I believe the US State Department Reports are a requirements under US law against which the US decides policies on things like military/technological/commercial/educational exchanges and business.

Its the US measuring overseas states against criteria set in the US.

It has a meaning in terms of US policy and I would argue is as valuable, if not more so because it does effect policy, than reports by groups like Amnesty, who afterall represent nobody and are accountable to nobody.

I believe the US State Department Reports are a requirements under US law against which the US decides policies on things like military/technological/commercial/educational exchanges and business.

Its the US measuring overseas states against criteria set in the US.

It has a meaning in terms of US policy and I would argue is as valuable, if not more so because it does effect policy, than reports by groups like Amnesty, who afterall represent nobody and are accountable to nobody.

quite possibily one of the main reasons the current view of the US is less than favourable

I don't see anything in the report that is inaccurate. My guess is that the current regime will cherry pick those items from the report (such as systemic police misconduct) and use it as rhetoric to bolster their initiatives to be carried out in the coming months. As for abuses of the current regime, I would guess they'll re-iterate the timeline till elections. I doubt they will dismiss it out of hand, as Thaksin did.