NO ECONOMIST MAGAZINE, AGAIN
EXCLUSIVE: By The Bangkok Bugle (10.10am)
The Economist will not be appearing in Thailand this week, according to an email sent by the publisher to its subscribers today. It says: "This week our distributors in Thailand have decided not to deliver The Economist in light of our coverage relating to the Thai monarchy."
This is the second time in seven weeks that editions of the magazine have not been distributed in Thailand due to content regarding the Royal family. Online versions of those original stories remained blocked from access within Thailand.
This isn't totally unexpected. Having seen the story online yesterday I blogged: " ..there's a very real possibility that current print editions of some of the global and regional news magazines will face some kind of restrictions. The Economist, for example, has a story that could easily be deemed unacceptable."
It would seem this is a voluntary decision not to distribute, as opposed to a complete ban of The Economist print edition.
3 comments:
The censorship, no freedom of speech or press, and numerous other human rights violations are why I am finally leaving Thailand, taking my Thailand-earned money and going back to the US, where we may not be perfect, but at least we TRY to uphold basic human rights.
To the comment 1.. U just only earned money from this country. If U can not accept for the rule of law why did U come here? Because of greedy right.
Well, it doesn't mean while if U didn't studying for the King and Royal Family project. U never know that how much we love our King.
Thanks for both anonymous comments.
My view is that this issue is not about human rights or even freedom of speech. If you publish defemantory comments about someone anywhere in the world you can expect to bear the consequences.
I find it hard to believe that this is the ONLY reason the first commenter is leaving Thailand, but it's his or her choice to do so and I wish him or her good luck.
You will have gathered from my own comments on various posts that I am a firm believer in upholding the law, regardless of whether one agrees with it or not.
And even as a foreigner living in Thailand for a number of years it's hard to truly appreciate the love, respect and admiration the Thai people have for their King and for the entire Royal family.
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