Thai Media Activist Fights Lawsuit

[Wolfie]

An outspoken activist has gone on trial in Thailand, accused of defaming a company owned by the family of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Shin Corporation told a criminal court in Bangkok that the activist's comments, published in a Thai newspaper, had affected its reputation.

The newspaper is also a defendant in the lawsuit.

The case has attracted attention from international media groups who say it is a blow to free speech in Thailand.

Supinya Klangnarong runs a tiny campaign group that lobbies for media reform in Thailand.

Two years ago, in an interview with a local newspaper, she accused Mr Thaksin of a conflict of interest over the fortunes of his family's company, Shin Corporation.

The article pointed to a huge increase in the company's profits since Mr Thaksin took power in 2001.

Shin Corporation responded with a criminal lawsuit against Miss Supinya and the Thai Post, the newspaper that published her comments.

If found guilty, the defendants could face up to two years in jail.

Mr Thaksin has not commented publicly on the case.

His critics, though, claim the lawsuit will stifle public debate at a time when the government is assuming special emergency powers to deal with a separatist insurgency in southern Thailand.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4695695.stm

[stumonster]

The article pointed to a huge increase in the company's profits since Mr Thaksin took power in 2001.

not that truth is entwined with justice - but it does baffle me that such a hugely successful skilled businessman has been unable to make thailand profitable.....

[darsie]

This is an exceptionally disgraceful lawsuit, against an earnest and diligent journalist who was only telling the truth. AND FURTHERMORE, I'M SURPRISED THAT THIS THREAD HAS RECEIVED, TO DATE, SO LITTLE INTEREST FROM OTHER MEMBERS OF THIS FORUM!

In July 2004, Shin Corp filed a civil libel suit worth US 10 million (Bt 420 million) against Supinya and Thai Post.

Supinya basically accused the Prime Minister, Thai Lak Thai and government ministers of benefitting greatly from government contracts to subcontractors, which, of course, as we all know from working in Thailand - in commerce and business - is the norm!

This Thai government and its cronies must be some of the most corrupt individuals in the world today - their greed and avariciousness knows no boundaries - self serving bxxxxxrds!

I truly hope this poor, unfortunate journalist wins her case against these bullies of media freedooom and justice.

Please don't close this thread - as appears to be the case with quite a few threads on this forum that are perceived as being UNCOMFORTABLE for the moderators.

Thanks.....

[Pattayaman]

Well said and agree 100% the man is a crook

[meom]

This Thai government and its cronies must be some of the most corrupt individuals in the world today - their greed and avariciousness knows no boundaries - self serving bxxxxxrds!

Previous governments weren't any better except maybe in hiding their greed.

[Camelot]

Not so. Neither the Prem Tinsulanonda nor the Anand Panyarachun governments were into rape and pillage. Nor were the Kukrit and Seni administrations. Even Uncle Chuan did his best to keep things in check, even if he didn't always succeed.

[haha]

my 2 cents...

thailand has been invaded by an outside force.

there is no way a thai would murder 900 of his own countrymen. it must be a foreign force.

and it must be more than a small group of people. ...we're talking about 900 murders.

these journalist are causing a lot of confusion for what taksin wants to do. the media is causing taksin to lose focus on what is happening down south.

..I wonder why?

for a country who prides itself on never having been conquered, the media sure looks like they are trying their best to help the invaders take their country.

..whose side are the media on? thailand, or the invaders?

get this. my guess is when those invaders come to bangkok, the media is going to put all the blame on taksin.

anybody want some odds?

when the invaders start to murder thai people in bangkok, what will the media say? that taksin didn't do enough?

in this time of invasion, the thai people need to unite to fight the common enemy.

stop fighting taksin, and work with him to get these murderers.

.....900 of your countrymen have already been murdered.

.....when will you comprehend what is happening?

[ray23]

Well said and agree 100% the man is a crook

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Just a thought wre any of you in the Philippines when Marcos was in charge, he definetly was a crook, but the palce was in a lot better condition when he was there.

I wonder with the system as it exist's if a straight up goverment could function?

I agree that freedom of the press is important, but one must never forget that along with freedom comes responsibilty. If the sources are good and they are verified, then go after the bad guys. If not wait until you have the facts in. I didn't read the article but I get the impression that the reporter simple reported what was told her (assuming it was her I don't know), if that is the case I doubt there is much to worry about.

As to the South yes I think things are going to get even more violent, these things are now being reported in detail internationally. I doubt that Thaksin has much choice anymore, trying to pacify in the area has not worked. I just hope it is stopped before it spreads.

Oh well thats enough thought for one day

[darsie]

thailand has been invaded by an outside force.

there is no way a thai would murder 900 of his own countrymen. it must be a foreign force.

haha: The troubles in the south are all about Thaksin, and only Thaksin, although I will admit that in the ten or so years previous to that, there were isolated incidents....but absolutely... and I mean absolutely nothing... on the scale of today!

The"insurgents" aren't outside invaders, although they see themselves as foreigners living in a country that is not their own. (The southernmost provinces were anexed by Thailand in 1902).

These "insurgents" speak a different language to Thais, dress differently, worship a different God....and are altogether quite different from ordinary Thais. They are not foreign invaders.

This is an internal - domestic problem that is fast escalating out of control for the government.

Things are sure to get a whole lot worse before they get better....particularly as nothing appears to be able remove Thaksin from his power base at this moment in time.

haha: no offence, but your posting is seriously out of touch with reality....it reads more like a sci-fi synopsis than a prognosis of a country's internal problems!

[haha]

thailand has been invaded by an outside force.

there is no way a thai would murder 900 of his own countrymen. it must be a foreign force.

haha: The troubles in the south are all about Thaksin, and only Thaksin, although I will admit that in the ten or so years previous to that, there were isolated incidents....but absolutely... and I mean absolutely nothing... on the scale of today!

The"insurgents" aren't outside invaders, although they see themselves as foreigners living in a country that is not their own. (The southernmost provinces were anexed by Thailand in 1902).

These "insurgents" speak a different language to Thais, dress differently, worship a different God....and are altogether quite different from ordinary Thais. They are not foreign invaders.

This is an internal - domestic problem that is fast escalating out of control for the government.

Things are sure to get a whole lot worse before they get better....particularly as nothing appears to be able remove Thaksin from his power base at this moment in time.

haha: no offence, but your posting is seriously out of touch with reality....it reads more like a sci-fi synopsis than a prognosis of a country's internal problems!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

out of reality? I got an open mind. so, you tell me what the reality is?

as I see it, the reality is that there is a large group of people who are murdering thai people. and they need to be stopped.

whether or not they have any legitimate claim to the land or not, they don't have the right to murder these people.

the reality is - they have to be stopped.

.wouldn't you agree?

[Sphere]

As to the South yes I think things are going to get even more violent, these things are now being reported in detail internationally.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You are absolutely correct. Their cousins from other rife torn places shall move in when the international spotlight is on this place, because it would attract more funding from the radicals. This has the potential to develop in to a full blown insurgency.

[Boatabike]

[

out of reality?  I got an open mind.  so, you tell me what the reality is?

as I see it, the reality is that there is a large group of people who are murdering thai people.  and they need to be stopped.

whether or not they have any legitimate claim to the land or not, they don't have the right to murder these people.

the reality is - they have to be stopped.

.wouldn't you agree?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes it needs to be stopped, but it should never have been allowed to start. If these areas had not been starved of funds for education, health etc. the people in these areas would not have started getting angry in the first place. Treat a part of your countrymen like second class citizens and don't be surprised when they get pissed off at you. When it started to gather a larger amount of support towards protesting it should have been addressed then, quickly and decisively, not with guns and boots, but with proper funding and a little respect to fellow humans who are a part of Thailand whether you or they like it or not. Now outside forces have assumed control and it is a complete mess, this was as mismanaged as many other situations around the world imho.

[sriracha john]

Update on the David versus Goliath story and it's looking good for "David":

Supinya’s claims fair, not damaging

Published on August 31, 2005

The director of the Thailand Development Research Institute yesterday testified at the Criminal Court in support of media reform campaigner Supinya Klangnarong, who is fighting a libel suit filed by Shin Corp.

Somkiat Tangkitvanich submitted research papers that he claimed gave details of Shin Corp’s business empire and how the group benefited from certain government policies.

He pointed out that Supinya’s article published in the Thai Post newspaper did not adversely affect Shin Corp’s businesses or its credibility.

Somkiat claimed that Advanced Info Service (AIS), the country’s largest mobile-phone operator and a Shin Corp subsidiary, continued to achieve an “AA” credit rating after Supinya’s article. Shin Corp also holds an “AA” rating.

Supinya enjoys freedom of expression and her article was aimed at criticising Thai Rak Thai policies seen as favouring Shin Corp, he added.

Somkiat provided details of how six Shin Corporation subsidiaries, which are all state concessionaires, benefited from state policies at the expense of their competitors.

He named the six companies as AIS, mobile-phone system operator ETC, Shin Satellite Co, Teleinfo Service Co Ltd, iTV Plc, and Advance Paging Co Ltd.

[george]

Press freedom 'wanes under Thaksin govt'

BANGKOK: -- An international media watchdog has told the Criminal Court that press freedom in Thailand has declined since Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra took office.

Testifying yesterday in support of media reform campaigner Supinya Klangnarong, Shawn Crispin, an Asia-based consultant to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), said more pressure had been exerted on the media by the Thaksin government, including several civil defamation cases filed against media organisations by the government or companies with close links to the government.

Mr Crispin said many international media organisations, including the CPJ and the International Federation of Journalists, had expressed concern over the lawsuits which were deemed inappropriate because freedom of the press was guaranteed by the Thai constitution.

Mr Crispin claimed that Shin Corp, a telecom giant owned by Mr Thaksin's family, had set an example for other companies to file defamation lawsuits seeking massive damages from the media.

These included Picnic Corp's 10-billion-baht complaints against Matichon and Prachachart Turakit daily newspapers, and Krisdanakorn Plc's 4.8-million-baht lawsuit against Khao Hoon newspaper.

Shin Corp has filed a defamation lawsuit against Ms Supinya and Thai Post, demanding 400 million baht in damages for comments made by Ms Supinya in an article run by the newspaper in July 2003.

Ms Supinya was quoted as saying in the article that Shin Corp's profits soared after Mr Thaksin rose to power.

Mr Crispin was the first foreign witness to testify in the case following the defence legal team's failed attempt two weeks ago to present two foreign expert witnesses.

The plaintiff's legal team objected to that, reasoning that it did not trust the defence's interpreter.

Mr Crispin was a journalist formerly with the Far Eastern Economic Review weekly magazine, which changed its format last November. He was based in Thailand from 1999-2004 and told the court the Review had published a similar comment that the Thaksin government's policy was beneficial to Shin Corp, but no lawsuit was filed against the magazine.

He gave the court a number of examples he perceived as conflicts of interest in the government policies which, he said, were beneficial to Shin Corp.

These included the iTV concession modification which saved Shin Corp, the television station's major shareholder, a great deal of money to be paid to the government, as well as the Board of Investment's eight-year tax holiday for Shin Satellite Plc's iPSTAR revenues earned abroad, he said.

Mr Crispin said Ms Supinya as well as other journalists enjoyed freedom of expression, as guaranteed in the Thai constitution and the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights, and therefore had the right to write articles on conflicts of interest in government policies, and on Shin Corp as the firm was listed on the Thai stock market and since Mr Thaksin was a public figure.

Shin Corp's lawyer Somporn Pongsuwan argued that the constitution allowed freedom of expression only to the extent that it did not violate other people's rights. The constitution did not state that public figures and public firms were exceptions that could be violated against in the name of freedom of expression, the lawyer said.

--Bangkok Post 2005-09-01