Two journalists, including an Australian editor, went on trial in Thailand yesterday over a report they published implicating the navy in human trafficking, as the UN urged Bangkok to drop the case.
The trial comes after the region’s grim people-smuggling trade was dramatically highlighted in May, when thousands of migrants were abandoned at sea and in fetid jungle camps by traffickers following a Thai crackdown, a crisis that eventually forced a Southeast Asia-wide response.
The charges against Alan Morison and his Thai colleague, Chutima Sidasathian, of the Phuketwan news Web site, relate to a July 2013 article quoting an investigation by the Reuters news agency that said some Thai navy members were involved in trafficking Rohingya Muslims fleeing Myanmar.
Photo: AP
The pair could face up to two years in jail for criminal defamation and five years for breaching the Computer Crimes Act if they are found guilty. The trial at Phuket Provincial Court on the southern island began with a testimony from R.N. Pallop Komlotok, a navy captain, who confirmed he filed the defamation case on behalf of the navy, said Siriwan Vongkietpaisan, a lawyer for the accused.
“He also confirmed that the Phuketwan quotes were lifted from [a] Reuters article,” she said.
Reuters has not been charged over its reporting — part of a series honored with a Pulitzer Prize last year — and rights groups have accused the navy of trying to muzzle the smaller Phuket-based English-language media outlet.
The court is due to hear testimony from another three witnesses called by prosecutors this afternoon with a verdict expected within 30 days.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the trial, Morison said: “We do not understand why the military government has not withdrawn the case. The initial pursuits against Reuters were dropped. We quote exactly the same paragraph... [They are pursuing us] for only one paragraph reproduced word-to-word from Reuters.”
The UN Human Rights Office yesterday urged Thailand to drop the charges against the two journalists.
“Freedom of the press, including freedom for journalists to operate without fear of reprisals, is essential in promoting transparency and accountability on issues of public interest,” it said in a statement.
Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch called the trial a “scathing indictment of the Thai government’s unwillingness to respect media freedom.”
“Prime Minister General Prayut should have ordered the Navy to stand down and withdraw the charges — but instead he effectively endorsed their effort to gag media critics, and in doing so, administered another body blow to what little remains of Thailand’s international rights reputation,” he added in a statement.
A humanoid robot that won a half-marathon race for robots in Beijing on Sunday ran faster than the human world record in a show of China’s technological leaps. The winner from Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, completed the 21km race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, said a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race began. That was faster than the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in about 57 minutes in March at the Lisbon road race. The performance by the robot marked a significant step forward
Four contenders are squaring up to succeed Antonio Guterres as secretary-general of the UN, which faces unprecedented global instability, wars and its own crushing budget crisis. Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are each to face grillings by 193 member states and non-governmental organizations for three hours today and tomorrow. It is only the second time the UN has held a public question-and-answer, a format created in 2016 to boost transparency. Ultimately the five permanent members of the UN’s top body, the Security Council, hold the power, wielding vetoes over who leads the
South Korea’s air force yesterday apologized for a 2021 midair collision involving two fighter jets, a day after auditors said the pilots were taking selfies and filming during the flight and held them responsible for the accident. “We sincerely apologize to the public for the concern caused by the accident that occurred in 2021,” an air force spokesman told a news conference, adding that one of the pilots involved had been suspended from flying duties, received severe disciplinary action and has since left the military. The apology followed a report released on Wednesday by the South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection,
An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. Officials said the advisory was not a quake prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives. Prime
RSS