Hong Kong photographer to face Thai trial over flak jacket

[speedtripler]

What's next? Hardhats and safety shoes with a steel nose? Where I consider the safety shoes to be far more dangerous than a flak jacket.

I always wear safety boots on the plane because they are too heavy for hand luggage and never got any grief at any airport...a glass bottle of whisky from the duty free is a more dangerous weapon imo and half the plane brings those on

[dominique355]

"Flak" jacket? FLAK stands for Flieger Abwehr Kanone or Anti Aircraft Artillery. Must be quite a heavy jacket

[bangon04]

OK Thailand - the region's press (and social media) is watching and the videos are running. Hold the gun.... take careful aim at your foot...... and Fire!

Great job....

Edited October 12, 2015 by bangon04

[connda]

Absolutely ludicrous.

[Don Mega]

Insisting that everyone who visits Thailand know all its ridiculous laws is outrageous, especially if no one was likely to be harmed nor was any harm intended. And five years is absolute insanity.

Who, in their right mind, would ever suspect a country would classify a flak jacket and helmet as a weapon. I guess only insane people would.

This "ridiculous" law is not one that is isolated to Thailand. Many countries have similar ones.

Edited October 12, 2015 by Don Mega

[farangmick]

"Flak" jacket? FLAK stands for Flieger Abwehr Kanone or Anti Aircraft Artillery. Must be quite a heavy jacket

Think they mean bullet proof vest, but "flack jacket" sounds a lot more exciting..

Never knew what FLAK stood for. This kit should be reserved for senior officials in N. Korea.

[farangmick]

So that's why the cricket playing countries never have an exhibition match in Thailand. "What's this then?" It's a box, to protect my nuts." "No it's a weapon according to Thai law. You're all nicked."

[BestBitterPhuket]

Thailand is a third world country. That's it. Their leaders are incompetent and thwir political system disfunctional. If they were smart and competent, Thailand would not be a third world country.

Edited October 12, 2015 by BestBitterPhuket

[ozyjon]

Yes, great publicity for Thailand, i think, many beurocrats

with nothing to do.

[off road pat]

10,000,000 known guns in Thailand. And they worry about a flak jacket!

Yes,...Exactly.....they really excel in the art of ridiculing themselves.....

[Torrens54]

While the Photographer cops Flak over his Flak Jacket, certain people need to learn a very important lesson.

DON'T MESS WITH THE MEDIA !

[optad]

They have a choice to charge or not to charge right?

If not, you would think that the prosecutors would see that there is no case to answer and organize an outcome that respects the law on the books and lets this guy go back to HK and get on with things. Seems childish to get this far, almost a punitive abuse of power.

Mind that is what those Al jeerzhra journalists thought in Egypt ...18 month latter released. Tin pot regimes can do some crazy.

[OnTheRun]

10,000,000 known guns in Thailand. And they worry about a flak jacket!

Crazy.... I don't think the authorities realise how stupid they make themselves look when they pursue cases like this. Another one I can recall from several years ago was the Aussie woman who spent a couple of days in jail for stealing a beermat.

[anotheruser]

He knowingly broke a law in a foreign country. I hope they hang him twice!!

[chuang]

He will be given a suspended sentence

[Oziex1]

Will he show up for the trial?

[speedtripler]

Will he show up for the trial?

I think they still have his passport...

[webfact]

Thailand to try HK journalist for possessing flak jacket

BANGKOK (AP) — A Thai court on Monday decided to put a Hong Kong photojournalist on trial for possession of a bulletproof vest and a helmet, which are considered weapons in Thailand.

Hok Chun Anthony Kwan, 30, was detained when he was about to board a plane on Aug. 23 after covering the aftermath of a deadly bomb explosion at a shrine in Bangkok. Kwan, a Hong Kong and Canadian citizen, works for the Hong Kong-based Initium media group. He earlier worked on the Minnesota Daily newspaper while attending the University of Minnesota.

His lawyer, Pawinee Chumsri, said he pleaded not guilty to the charge of weapons possession after being indicted by the court, which set a pre-trial hearing for Nov. 16. The trial will be held sometime in 2016, she said.

Pawinee said Kwan did not intend to violate Thai law. "Kwan believes he is not guilty. He only brought the jacket to protect himself," she said.

Under the Arms Control Act, a license is needed to possess body armor, which is considered a weapon. Violations are punishable by up to five years in jail. The law has rarely if ever been enforced for journalists covering the country's sometimes-violent political turmoil over the past nine years. Many large news organizations require their staff to wear protective gear in dangerous situations.

The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand expressed disappointment over the filing of formal charges against Kwan.

"Instead of charging Mr. Kwan, the Thai authorities should consult with the media community in Thailand ... to explore a way around the 1987 law, which was surely not intended to prosecute journalists carrying out their normal duties," it said in a statement.

Pawinee said Kwan is free on bail and will travel back to Hong Kong on Tuesday.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-10-13

[Chang_paarp]

Smart move to take on the foreign journalists for having appropriate Personal Protective Equipment for their workplace.

They WILL report without fear or favour.

[Chongalulu]

Insisting that everyone who visits Thailand know all its ridiculous laws is outrageous, especially if no one was likely to be harmed nor was any harm intended. And five years is absolute insanity.

Who, in their right mind, would ever suspect a country would classify a flak jacket and helmet as a weapon. I guess only insane people would.

This "ridiculous" law is not one that is isolated to Thailand. Many countries have similar ones.

I was about to ask whether there were any other countries thick enough to classify what is in practice the exact opposite of a weapon as a weapon. Who are they?

[bermannor]

Ridiculous action by law enforcing bureaucrats not only happen in Thailand, often titled a third world country.

In Germany, recently, a prosecutor wanted to charge a medical doctor on an emergency trip for recless driving after 2 brain dead Germans went to the police.

Only after an public outcry, a higher institution threw a spammer in the bureaucratic mill.

[steveyinasia]

Will he show up for the trial?

I think they still have his passport...

"Pawinee said Kwan is free on bail and will travel back to Hong Kong on Tuesday.".....obviously they do not have his passport.

[flyingspike]

In Queensland you need a weapons licence for body armour. The logic being that we don't want our criminals bullet resistant. That said, my son is in the Army and carries his in the boot of his car just in case.

[wabothai]

Just some cops crawling up the behind of their boss to secure a promotion.

Stupid, ignorant and ruthless.

[sgtsabai]

When I finished work as a certified/commissioned law enforcement office I took my body armor with me. Once used/worn it should not be passed down. Is someone suggesting I was a criminal for possessing body armor that I had worn for years? Maybe here, although I don't see the cops wearing body armor here anyway, but not in the states. Damn, I didn't rob any banks either. Reporters should not be arrested, perhaps he offended "somebody" with his reports.

[Srikcir]

"Manop Thiposod, vice president and spokesman of the Thai Journalists Association, said police and the military are willing to allow the use of flak jackets by journalists during violent situations. He said Thai journalists did not consider it necessary to use body armor in covering the aftermath of the Aug. 17 bombing."

Journalists were not allowed body armor during the 2010 protests either. There never has been a case in 27 years where journalists have been granted a license in Thailand to possess body armor.

Col. Benjaporn with the Materials Control Division of the Thailand Defence Energy Department, a branch of the Royal Thai Army, has said that there was “no system in place for journalists to possess such items” and “no journalists have ever applied for a license before” (April 17, 2014).

Yet, armed anti-government protesters in 2010 and 2014 were able to readily access bullet-proof vests and other ballistic and protective wear in addition to guns. One can purchase bullet-proof vests and gas masks from shops behind the Ministry of Defence. So it must be okay to sell, just not to buy.

[Rimmer]

Inflammatory troll post removed also one reply it

[springheeled jack]

the problem in Thailand is they keep bringing up these antiquated laws which nobody has heard about I am sure this gentleman didn't know he was breaking the law and I am quite sure the people of Thailand don't know about this law either .

[djayz]

But it's perfectly acceptable for other people to take handguns with them to/from Japan...

[newnative]

Brainless