Thailand Passes Historic Bill Recognising Marriage Equality

THE GUARDIAN: Country on track to become third in Asia – after Taiwan and Nepal – to legalise same-sex marriage

Thailand’s senate has passed the final reading of a historic marriage equality bill, paving the way for the country to become the first in south-east Asia to recognise same-sex marriage.

The bill gained the support of nearly all upper-house lawmakers and will be sent to the palace for the pro-forma endorsement by King Maha Vajiralongkorn. The law will come into force 120 days after it is published in the royal gazette.

“We’re all just really excited,” said Plaifah Kyoka Shodladd, an 18-year-old activist, before the law was approved. “I can feel the whole world is cheering us on.”

The bill passed its final reading on Tuesday with the approval of 130 of the 152 members of the Senate in attendance, with four voting against it and 18 abstaining. » | Rebecca Ratcliffe in Bangkok | Tuesday, June 18, 2024

DW VIDEO:

Thailand is set to legalize same-sex marriage after senators approve bill: Thailand set to legalize same-sex marriage. Senators voted overwhelmingly in favor of a marriage equality bill. The law still needs approval from Thailand's king before it can come into force. »

Russia’s New Threats to Exiles: Seized Assets and Forced Returns

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The Kremlin is sending a chilly message to antiwar Russians abroad: A new law will allow their property back home to be seized, and other countries are being pressured to crack down on them.

In Bangkok this week, members of an antiwar Russian-language rock group were fighting deportation to Russia, detained in what supporters described as a cramped, hot, 80-person immigration holding cell.

On Wednesday in Moscow, the lower house of Parliament passed a law that will allow the Russian government to seize the property of Russians living abroad who, in the words of the legislature’s chairman, “besmirch our country.”

The two developments, though thousands of miles apart, reflected the same grim calculus by the Kremlin: Using new legislation and apparent diplomatic pressure on other countries, it is turning the screws on Russia’s sprawling antiwar diaspora.

“Historic Russia has risen up,” President Vladimir V. Putin said at a meeting with backers of his presidential campaign on Wednesday, reprising his contention that the time has come to cleanse Russian society of pro-Western elements. “All this scum that’s always present in any society is being slowly, slowly washed away.”

Under the law, any Russian, even those in exile, found to be engaged in “crimes against national security” — including criticizing the invasion of Ukraine — could have their assets confiscated. Mr. Putin is expected to sign the law, though it is not yet clear how widely or aggressively the Kremlin plans to use it. » | Anton Troianovski | Thursday, February 1, 2024

Three People Killed and Teenager Held over Bangkok Mall Shooting - BBC News

Oct 3, 2023 | Three people have been killed in a shooting at a luxury shopping mall in the centre of Thailand's capital, Bangkok, medics say. Four other people were injured in the incident, including a foreign national.

A suspect - a 14-year-old boy - has been arrested after surrendering. He had been using a handgun, police said.

The prime minister said the situation had been brought under control and police were clearing the scene, according to the AFP news agency.

Woman’s Leg Amputated at Bangkok Airport after Getting Stuck in Moving Walkway

THE GUARDIAN: Airport expresses ‘deepest condolences’ after 57-year-old gets caught and has left leg removed from above the knee

A woman’s leg has been amputated in a Thai airport after it became trapped by a movable walkway on Thursday, officials said.

The 57-year-old Thai passenger was due to board a morning flight from Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport to Nakhon Si Thammarat province when she was caught by the walkway in Terminal 2. A medical team there eventually had to remove her left leg from above the knee, according to the airport’s officials. » | Associated Press | Friday, June 30, 2023

Thailand Pride Celebrations Kick Off in Bangkok - BBC News

Jun 4, 2023 | Pride celebrations have begun in Thailand. Thailand is open to LGBTQ+ communities but has never passed the same-sex marriage law. However, the winner of the recent election, the Move Forward party, has said that adopting this law is part of its main agenda.

A Singapour, un homme a été pendu pour le trafic d’un kilo de cannabis

LE MONDE : La cité-Etat assume sa politique de tolérance zéro face aux affaires de drogue et le recours à la peine capitale, dans un contexte régional d’assouplissement des sanctions.

L’exécution à Singapour, mercredi 26 avril, de Tangaraju Suppiah, un Singapourien d’origine tamoule de 46 ans, pour trafic d’un peu plus d’un kilogramme de cannabis, confirme que la cité-Etat de 5,5 millions d’habitants n’a aucune intention de réformer sa justice, particulièrement sévère face au trafic de drogue. Onze personnes ont été pendues en 2022 – toutes pour des affaires liées aux stupéfiants – après deux ans sans exécution. » | Par Brice Pedroletti (Bangkok, correspondant en Asie du Sud-Est) | jeudi 27 avril 2023

Article réservé aux abonnés

LIRE AUSSI À PROPOS DE SINGAPOUR :

Singapour révoque une loi pénalisant l’homosexualité : Le texte, qui n’était toutefois plus appliqué, prévoyait une peine maximale de deux ans d’emprisonnement. Son abrogation « met la législation en accord avec l’évolution des mentalités », avait estimé le premier ministre, Lee Hsien Loong, fin août. »

Thailand Attack: 22 Children among 34 Killed in Nursery Mass Shooting

THE GUARDIAN: North-east region preschool centre attacked by gunman who also killed himself and his family

Thirty-four people have been killed, including 22 children, in a mass shooting at a preschool centre in a north-eastern province of Thailand, police have said.

The attacker, a former policeman, also killed his wife and child before shooting himself dead.

About 30 children were at the centre when the gunman entered the building at 12.30pm (0530 GMT), during the children’s nap time, police and local officials said. The victims were as young as two years old. With video » | Rebecca Ratcliffe and Navaon Siradapuvadoli in Bangkok and agencies | Thursday, October 6, 2022

En Thaïlande, le cannabis dépénalisé

LE MONDE : Cette mesure était une promesse de campagne du partenaire de coalition des généraux thaïlandais qui dirigent le gouvernement qui a succédé à la junte militaire en 2019.

Une vendeuse de produits à base de cannabis à l’occasion du salon « Thailand : 420 Legalaew ! », organisé par Highland dans la province de Nakhon Pathom, en Thaïlande, le 11 juin 2022. LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA / AFP
A quelques encablures du quartier des temples et du palais royal, Khao San Road, la Mecque du touriste étranger à Bangkok, avec ses bars, ses guest houses et ses boutiques de souvenirs, a vu apparaître ces dernières semaines un nouveau type de commerce : celui du cannabis, connu sous le terme de ganja en Thaïlande, sous toutes ses formes et variétés, ou presque.

Frame, 31 ans, sa sœur Fen et un troisième frère, qui n’ont pas donné leur nom, ont investi 400 000 baths (12 000 euros) de leurs économies dans un weed truck, camion à herbe baptisé Good Gets (les bons plans), dont l’étal réfrigéré expose une demi-douzaine de variétés de fleurs rangées dans des bocaux. Ils en font pousser chez eux et en achètent à un fournisseur dans leur province natale, à Surat Thani, dans le sud du pays. Moyennant une obole journalière versée à la police, ils occupent depuis le 20 juin cet emplacement un peu à l’écart de la rue principale, celle où les bars rivalisent de puissance sonore pour attirer le chaland : « On n’a pas osé se mettre là-bas, on ne parle pas assez bien anglais », dit l’un des frères. » | Par Brice Pedroletti (Bangkok, correspondant en Asie du Sud-Est) | lundi 11 juillet 2022

Article réservé aux abonnés

A Feared Law to Protect the Monarchy Returns Amid Thailand’s Protests

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The country’s lèse-majesté law, which makes insulting the king punishable by years in prison, is being used against the protesters’ leadership for the first time.

BANGKOK — The number 112 strikes fear in Thailand. It refers to Section 112 of the country’s criminal code, which makes insulting or defaming the king and his close kin an offense punishable by three to 15 years in prison.

On Tuesday night, a leader of the protest movement that is calling for changes to Thailand’s monarchy and political system received a summons to face multiple charges of lèse-majesté, as the crime is known. It was the first time that Section 112 had been applied during the protests, which have brought thousands of people onto the streets since July.

The protest leader, Parit Chiwarak, commonly known as Penguin, must report to a police station by Dec. 1 to face the charges, which stem from speeches he gave in September and this month. In those speeches, Mr. Parit and others called for the monarchy to come under the Thai Constitution and for the public to be allowed to scrutinize its considerable wealth. » Hannah Beech and Muktita Suhartono | Wednesday, November 25, 2020

Thailand: Anti-Government Protest in Bangkok Draws Massive Crowd | DW News

Thousands of pro-democracy protesters are rallying in the streets of Thailand's capital Bangkok to demand democratic reforms. The student-led demonstrations are calling for the prime minister's resignation and changes in tough laws against criticizing the monarchy. Organizers say tens of thousands have turned out. That would make it the biggest protest since a 2014 coup when now-prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha took power. Authorities have warned against holding demonstrations amid fears that the coronavirus could spread rapidly among participants.

Rahaf al-Qunun: Saudi Teen Granted Asylum in Canada

BBC: A Saudi woman who fled her family and became stranded at Bangkok's main airport is flying to Canada after being granted asylum status.

Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, 18, had been trying to reach Australia via Bangkok, but was initially told to return to Kuwait, where her family were waiting.

She refused to fly back and barricaded herself into her airport hotel room, attracting international attention.

She said she had renounced Islam, which is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia. » | BBC | Friday, January 11, 2019

Thailand's Lèse-majesté Law ‘Stifling Dissent’

Thailand’s former King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest-serving monarch, will be cremated on Thursday, over a year after he died.

While millions of people are mourning the revered monarch, who ruled for 70 years, Thailand's military government is ramping up its crackdown on people insulting or criticizing the royal family.

Over the past three years, more than 100 people have been charged or convicted for violating the country’s strict draconian lèse-majesté law (violating the dignity of a ruler), which forbids insult of the monarchy.

The military leadership says some sort of democracy will return next year, but there is no indication that will mean freedom of speech when it comes to the monarchy.

Al Jazeera's Wayne Hay reports from the capital, Bangkok.

Thousands Line Streets to Mourn Thai King | DW News

Mourners have gathered on the streets of the Thai capital, Bangkok to catch a glimpse of the hearse carrying King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s body from the hospital to the grand palace. Many people are overcome with grief at the 88-year-old monarch’s death.

Islamic State Terror Squad 'In Thailand' Planning To Kill Russians, Warns Moscow

THE TELEGRAPH: Ten-person terrorist squad entered the Kingdom in October on a mission to target Russians, Moscow warns

Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) has dispatched a ten-person squad to kill Russian tourists in Thailand, Russian security services have warned.

Thai police confirmed on Friday that they had received intelligence from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor agency to the KGB, about 10 terrorists from Syria who reportedly entered Thailand in October.

The warning came to light in a leaked letter, marked “secret” and “urgent”, that began circulating on Thai social media on Thursday.

Thailand is a popular holiday destination for Russians, especially in the peak Christmas and New Year periods.

Phuket, Pattaya and Bangkok are all also popular with British visitors, meaning there is a high chance any terrorist attack there could also target Britons. » | Roland Oliphant, Moscow and Philip Sherwell, Bangkok | Friday, December 4, 2015

Thai Printers Refuse to Publish New York Times Edition over Article about King

King Bhumibol celebrating his 84th birthday in 2011. In
April, a Thai man was jailed for 30 years for insulting
the monarchy on Facebook.

THE GUARDIAN: Front-page story in International New York Times on declining health of King Bhumibol, 87, considered too sensitive, with strict lèse-majesté laws in place

The Thai printers of the International New York Times have refused to publish the paper’s Tuesday edition because a front-page article on the country’s ailing king was deemed too sensitive.

Strict lèse-majesté laws in Thailand make it a crime to criticise, defame or insult members of the royal family, and can land people in jail for up to 15 years on each count.

The article, headlined “As Thai king ails, crown’s future unclear”, focused on the declining health of 87-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej and discussed concerns surrounding the succession.

“Today’s edition of the International New York Times was not printed in Thailand because it includes an article that our locally contracted printer deemed too sensitive too print,” the paper told subscribers in an email.

“This decision was made solely by the printer and is not endorsed by the International New York Times,” it said. » | Oliver Holmes in Bangkok | Tuesday, September 22, 2015

New Dark Age Alert! Brunei a Throwback to an Age of Absolute Monarchy

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: For the 400,000 inhabitants of Brunei, life is a throwback to the age when monarchs wielded absolute power and their word went unquestioned.

With a swing of his powerful arm, a prison guard landed a wicked-looking cane on the back of a dummy dressed in the white uniform of convicts in Brunei.

“It doesn’t hurt as much as you think,” he said.

Earlier this month, the International Convention Centre in Brunei’s capital, Bandar Seri Begawan, was hosting a regional summit with the likes of John Kerry, the US secretary of state, and President Xi Jinping of China.

Last week, however, it was the venue for a three-day event designed to showcase the Sultan of Brunei’s decision to adopt Sharia for his country's Muslim population. Robes worn by judges were put on display and Islamic scholars gave speeches.

But the caning demonstration brought home the harsh reality of a penal code which punishes adultery with death by stoning, theft with amputation by sword - and drunkeness with 40 lashes from a rattan cane.

From next April, the Muslims who are 70 per cent of Brunei’s 400,000-strong population will risk all these punishments. And despite the guard’s assertion, just three or four strokes of his cane will break the skin and leave most victims scarred for life.

The impending adoption of Sharia has led to calls for Britain, Brunei’s closest ally, to re-assess its relationship with a former Protectorate which won independence as recently as 1984.

David Cameron was already facing criticism for agreeing to attend next month’s Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka, where human rights abuses are common. The Prime Minister is now being pressed to condemn Brunei’s embrace of laws widely regarded as barbaric and draconian. » | David Eimer, Bandar Seri Begawan | Sunday, October 27, 2013

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Brunei introduces death by stoning under new Islamic laws: Brunei is to introduce a raft of tough sharia punishments including amputation and death by stoning for adulterers » | David Eimer, in Bangkok and Colin Freeman | Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Blair Force One: Former Prime Minister Rents £30million Private Jet for Globe-trotting at a Cost of £7,000 An Hour

MAIL ON SUNDAY: The 581mph Bombardier Global Express can seat up to 19 people / It is owned by a mystery businessman who rents it out / Blair has a long history of jet travel including in aircraft owned by Gaddafi

Tony Blair has been spotted globe-trotting in a black and gold jet complete with a state room, lounge and even a kitchen.

The plane is thought to be a top-of-the-range Bombardier Global Express owned by a private businessman which can fly for 13 hours non-stop at 581mph.

It can be rented at a rate of £7,000 an hour, meaning the plane could fly from London to Bangkok - where Mr Blair recently gave a speech - without stopping at a cost of £90,000.

Blair was greeted in Bangkok with protests when it was alleged that the Thai government had paid him £400,000 at attend. The claims have since been denied.

Blair, now multi-millionaire consultant, has also been spotted attending conferences and business engagements in the jet as fair afield as Sardinia and New York state.

Internet plane spotters have also tracked the aircraft to Ukraine, Israel and Switzerland on dates that Blair was due to visit.

Owning a jet has been a longstanding ambition of the former Labour leader who attempted to purchase one at the taxpayer's expense in 2005, until outcry at the £80million costs forced the plan to be shelved.

His high-flying ambitions have since gotten him into trouble when he caught using planes owned by ex-Middle Eastern dictator Colonel Gadaffi between 2008 and 2009. » | Chris Pleasance | Sunday, September 29, 2013

Vietnam Offers Free Courses in Marxism and Ho Chi Minh Studies

BBC: Vietnam is to waive university fees for philosophy students who agree to take courses in Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh ideology, in a bid to boost the uptake of unpopular courses.

PM Nguyen Tan Dung has signed a decree stipulating the fee exemption.

It will also apply to medical students who want to focus on TB, leprosy, mental illnesses and surgical sciences.

In addition traditional Vietnamese drama and opera students will get a reduction in their fees.

In recent years, the number of students who want to study "communist sciences" has dwindled sharply even though Vietnam takes pride in its Marxist heritage.

Pham Tan Ha, head of admission and training at the Social and Human Sciences University in Ho Chi Minh City, told local media that his university had been struggling to attract new students to study philosophy, including Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh ideology. » | Nga Pham, BBC News, Bangkok | Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Malaysia Muslims Call for 'Immoral' Elton John to Be Banned
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: A Malaysian Muslim political party is demanding that Elton John be barred from performing in the country later this week because he is homosexual.

Nasruding [sic] Hassan Tantawi, head of the youth wing of the opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic party (PAS), said the concert "must be cancelled".

"Artists who are involved in gay and lesbian activities must not be allowed to perform in Malaysia as they will promote the wrong values," he said.

Homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia, where almost two-thirds of the 28 million population are Muslim, and is punishable by caning and up to 20 years in prison.

Mr Nasrudin said that the PAS "will demand that the authorities cancel this immoral performance to protect our society from social degradation." » | David Eimer, Bangkok | Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Thai Woman Awaits Verdict in Royal-insult Trial
A Thai woman is facing 20 years in jail for comments posted online criticising the Thai king, who is revered as God in the Southeast Asian country. Chiranuch Premchaiporn, a web master, was initially arrested in 2009, charged with being too slow to remove 10 comments from a forum on her website. The postings were made by other people, but under tough computer crime laws enacted after the military coup in 2006, the website's host can also be prosecuted. Chiranuch's verdict was delayed by a month because the judge needed more time. The Thai royal family is, by law, above criticism. Anyone who is caught breaking the rules is more often than not, thrown in jail. Earlier this month, an elderly man died less than six months into a 20-year prison sentence for sending four text messages that were deemed insulting to the monarchy. The death of Amphon Tangnoppakul, also known as Uncle SMS, has shone a light on the country's strict lèse-majesté laws, legal stipulations which criminalise the violation of the royal family and which were designed to prevent criticism of them. Family members of prisoners, also a growing portion of the public, are trying to push for changes to the lèse-majesté laws. Yingluck Shinawtra, the Thai prime minister, admitted to Al Jazeera in a recent interview that the law is sometimes misused. Al Jazeera's Wayne Hay says from Bangkok.