Thai Government Continues Pressure On Media

[george]

Thai Government Continues Pressure on Media

BANGKOK - Thailand's media has been under intense pressure to tone down criticism of the government since Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra took power three years ago. Analysts and editors expect the pressure to be sustained in the run-up to a general election due in 2005.

Thailand's newspapers and magazines have accused the government of trying to stifle debate and criticism of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's policies. Both the Thai and English language media have been under continuous pressure from commercial and other business supporters of Mr. Thaksin, a communications and satellite business tycoon, to halt attacks on the government.

Mr. Thaksin, whose Thai Rak Thai Party dominates parliament, acknowledges what he calls his strong leadership but has denied his administration is authoritarian. "When leading change you have to make it clear on the direction they are moving toward. In doing that you have to make it clear, you have to make it strong and push it," he says. "This does not mean that its authoritarian. Under [a] democratic system how can I be authoritarian?"

Thailand's print media is among the freest in Southeast Asia and many neighboring countries exert tight control over the press.

Mr. Thaksin recently accused the media of bias and failing to accurately report on his actions. He said the Thai media should give priority to national concerns and avoid critical reporting on Thailand. But editors and reporters have a different view. The latest friction between the media and the government came with the removal of the editor of the oldest English language newspaper in Thailand, The Bangkok Post in late February.

Veera Prateepchaikul, who remains with the The Bangkok Post in another position, described the level of political meddling in the media as the most shocking he had experienced over three decades of journalism.

The Bangkok Post editor in chief, Pichai Chuensuksawadi, says commercial pressures were applied on the paper to withdraw Mr. Veera as editor. Mr. Pichai says the climate currently faced by the media is similar to that during times when the military was in control in the country. "We've gone through periods before when we've had military dictatorships and the press has had to take a step back and still try to report as best it could and it has its ups and downs," he says. "This is again one of those periods."

Thailand's print media has regularly had to weather tough times during periods of military rule, and even past elected governments have taken a hostile stance to critical reporting.

But Vilasinee Pipithakul, lecturer in communications at Chulalongkorn University, says the current political climate has stifled debate and left many social critics unwilling to comment on public issues. "Right now I think the general media people don't want to talk or don't want to oppose government or even governmental policy, especially those economic policy or popular policy," he says.

The Nation newspaper, another leading Thai daily, has also come under pressure from advertisers and commercial interests to stem its frank reporting of government policy.

The Nation’s Group Editor, Thepchai Yong, says the pressure placed on the The Bangkok Post is a warning to the media in general. "I think the incident at the The Bangkok Post is a rude awakening to the media as a whole," he says. "If this can happen to Thailand's oldest English language paper it can happen to any paper in Thailand."

But the The Bangkok Post’s Mr. Pichai adds while the climate may be a difficult one to report in, journalists need to recognize their responsibilities to the wider society. "The important thing is this that the journalists feel they have a duty to serve society and they continue to do that. If they give up the fight then its all over and I don't think that's the case at all," he says. "And as long as that spirit is there they don't give up the fight then press freedom is still alive."

For Thailand's media, especially magazines and newspapers, the challenge is expected to continue as the government gears up for a general election due in early 2005. Mr. Pichai said the media can only report the stories as they see them knowing the pressures will remain.

--VOA 2004-03-09

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PM denies claim

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra denied he reshuffled the cabinet in a bid to escape a no-confidence debate as alleged by the Democrats.

Mr Thaksin said he changed the cabinet line-up for improved efficiency, not to avoid a censure debate as his government had faced all no-confidence debates since it was formed.

It was common for his government to seek to improve itself.

``The allegations about attempts to escape a censure debate mean nothing because I was grilled in every censure debate though I was not involved, and despite the fact that a debate against the prime minister could not be opened with less than 200 votes under the constitution,'' Mr Thaksin said.

--Bangkok Post 2004-03-14