The verdict comes six weeks after the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) took the controversial bill to the court over a provision banning people who don’t exercise their right to vote from holding political office, and providing assistance to disabled people inside the polling booth.

Critics had questioned whether the judicial exercise was an effort to prolong the ruling and delay the election through extending the legislation and amendment process. Legislators had red-flagged the two points in the MP election bill, saying they could bring problems in the future and might even lead to the annulment of the election results.

The court, however, voted unanimously that the bill was in line with the Constitution. The verdict means no amendments will be required and the road map to the election is unlikely to be delayed further.

Although some legislators had argued that prohibiting voters who failed to exercise their voting right from taking political office would be a deprivation of their right, the court said the Constitution actually allowed such a limitation unless the voters provided justifiable reason for why they had not voted.

Regarding NLA members’ fears that providing assistance to disabled voters in the polling centre might violate the confidentiality principle of voting, the court explained the facilitation remained within the limits set by the Constitution.

Last week, the Constitutional Court also gave the green light to the organic law governing the Upper House and the NLA can now send it to the prime minister to present for royal endorsement.

Currently, one more law relevant to the election is being considered by the court – the political parties law. It was passed late last year. However, the junta issued an order to amend it, setting a new timeframe for political parties’ arrangements in preparing for the election. That led political parties to complain that the new schedule was impractical and some resulting arrangements required violated their rights.

The court said yesterday it would deliver a verdict next week to determine the constitutionality of the amendment.

Buriram gave a grand reception to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha earlier this month, and the junta premier walked out on to the Buriram International Circuit to the cheers of about 30,000 people.

The scene was followed the next day by a mobile Cabinet meeting at which billions of baht worth of local development project proposals were considered.

According to a petition to Prayut from the Pheu Thai Party’s lawyer, Ruangkrai Leekitwattana, the Cabinet approved Bt100 million budget annually to support the Buriram United company to host the MotoGP World Championship from 2018 to 2020.

Buriram United denied that a single baht from this budget would go into its pockets.

“The MotoGP is held by the government with a company as a sponsor, not organiser,” the company said in a statement. “The approved budget would go to the Sports Authority to purchase the licence fee for the racing programme directly from the licence owner.”

Buriram United said that its support to the race would include providing the racing venue, staff and equipment, worth around Bt20 million per year.

THAILAND, after four years of junta rule, is at a historic crossroads. Opinion in the country is divided between those who want the military to retain its hold on power and those who want to send them back to the barracks.

While new political parties have spawned to back General Prayut Chan-o-cha becoming prime minister after the election, many people are adamant that the coup-maker and his military apparatus must now quit politics altogether.

The junta has exploited all means to lengthen its stay in power, but the popularity of its leaders, notably Prayut himself, is now in visible decline. Reform agendas have failed to yield positive results over the four years, either for desperately needed social reconciliation or for an ailing economy.

Reform has done nothing to alter the country’s lopsided distribution of wealth. Multiple polls have indicated that the government’s economic management has not delivered results, especially for medium- to low-income groups.

On the other hand, the rich appear to be getting richer, thanks to an uneven distribution of economic growth that has averaged nearly 4 percentage points per annum since 2014.

Big business, export-oriented industries, tourism and its related businesses were among the major beneficiaries of economic expansion during this period.

Farmers, in contrast, have been hurt by relatively low market prices for their produce over the past few years, leaving most unimpressed by government measures and economic management.

Economists see some improvement during the term of the junta-backed government but are disappointed at the paucity of its major economic reforms.

The government’s economic tsar Somkid Jatusripitak has defended his course, saying last week that GDP growth that rose to 4.8 per cent in the first quarter of this year has built added momentum for the country’s reform push. Deputy PM Somkid refrained from talking about inequality and failure of wealth distribution, instead blaming political movements for interrupting economic growth.

Reforms in education and health have suffered a similar fate, with few if any benefits felt by the people. Though there has been no drastic change to the health system under four years of National Council for Peace and Order rule, experts predict that universal coverage is set to be scrapped so that only the poorest people are covered.

Despite all this, Prayut has retained a level of support even in the Northeast, a red-shirt stronghold. Here, the military has been clever enough to recruit from among low-income rural families, winning their loyalty by providing livelihoods, says Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of political science at the region’s Ubon Ratchathani University.

“Except for the anti-coup hardcore, many people [in the region] don’t really hate Prayut although sentiment in the social media is very strong against him,” said Titipol, citing informal research he conducted in Ubon Ratchathani and neighbouring Yasothon and Amnat Charoen.

Some government policies, such as the rice price guarantee, had benefited the locals, he added.

Military withdrawal?

Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University, identifies three scenarios which could see the military withdraw from politics:

First, a counter-coup leading to new junta leaders who allow constitutional changes for more pluralistic democracy, along with an election sooner rather than later.

Second, a repeat of 1992’s Black May massacre of peaceful civilian demonstrators, which would tarnish the image of the junta and unite the public in favour of a return to genuine democracy.

Third, a traditional institution demanding immediate democratic reforms. Chambers did not elaborate on this point.

Concerning the possibility of a counter-coup, Wanwichit Boonprong, a political science lecturer at Rangsit University, said Prayut now enjoyed overwhelming support among the military after a decade of building up its strength. Crucially, that time has also been spent cementing a chain of command, beginning with General Anupong Paochinda’s three-year tenure as Army chief and followed by Prayut’s four years in the job and then another four as prime minister, he said. Since then all three Army chiefs – generals Udomdej Sitabutr, Teerachai Nakwanich and Chalermchai Sitthisart – have been subordinates of Prayut, he added.

“I believe Prayut has already scrutinised his successors’ records to check whether he can trust them,” Wanwichit said. “So Prayut now has complete control over the military.”

Prayut’s prospects also look strong on the political front, where many of the major political parties are ready to incorporate the junta’s strategy to consolidate military power. That leaves just a few newly launched parties, along with factions in the Pheu Thai and Democrat parties, plus a tiny group of pro-democracy activists, as the only challengers to a military seeking to extend its control over the country far into the future.

This is The Nation’s last article in a special series analysing the impact of the 2014 coup.

THE MILITARY’S return to power with the 2014 coup has also seen the reawakening of a political force that had lain dormant during more than a decade of colour-coded political conflict.

The previous coup in 2006 saw the launch of the pro-Shinawatra camp, whose red shirts have painted one half of the political spectrum over the past 12 years. With the yellow shirts occupying the other half, the result was a country apparently sharply divided into two camps. But the advent of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) triggered a seismic change in the political landscape.

The arrival of the junta unexpectedly poked the student movement, which had been shelved after “Black May” crackdown in 1992, back to life again.

In 2014, the coup-makers were quick to snuff dissent, summoning and detaining political activists from all sides under the pretext of keeping the peace and “returning happiness to the people”. But that suppression gave rise to a new group, who described themselves as the “innocent force” independent of a red-yellow divide that is anchored in established political factions.

The yellow shirts were viewed as representing the elite, middle-class establishment while the red shirts were mostly linked to the Shinawatra camp.

With both factions’ prominent leaders safely locked up in military barracks, the NCPO was instead faced with an unknown group: young people who gathered peacefully and in small numbers but were firm in their defiance of the non-democratic regime. They used public places such as large department stores, the Skytrain, and crowded skywalks to conduct symbolic activities such as reading banned books, wearing black, even eating sandwiches or merely standing in silent vigil.

The informal campaign was first led by students from the League of Liberal Thammasat for Democracy (LLTD) and the now prominent pro-democracy activist Sirawith Seritiwat (Ja New) who was studying political science at Thammasat University and a key member of its Sapha Na Dome (Dome Front Agora) student club. The name was borrowed from a student group involved in the 1973 uprising against dictatorship.

Ja New spread the call through social media, using his Facebook page to urge others to join peaceful activities to demonstrate opposition to the coup. The group have since dubbed themselves Resistant Citizen, whose leaders also include human rights lawyer Anon Nampa.

The latest student uprising has seen activists arrested and charged by order of the ruling junta, which enjoys a tight grip on power. The students quickly became familiar with offences ranging from computer crime to sedition – a felony punishable by up to seven years in prison.

But their spirit of dissent has spilled out beyond Bangkok, as more people emerge in solidarity with their pro-democracy message and against the NCPO.

Less than six months after the coup, junta chief General Prayut Chan-o-cha got his first taste of youthful opposition to military rule during his visit to Khon Kaen. A group of seven Khon Kaen University students calling themselves the Dao Din (Star and Earth) Group showed up at a reception for Prayut and flashed the three-finger salute made famous by Hollywood blockbuster “The Hunger Games”. The film’s protagonist uses the gesture to express defiance against tyrannical rule.

The students were arrested on the spot. The junta, meanwhile, was making headlines around the world for locking up people for holding up three fingers and eating sandwiches.

Despite its absolute political and military power, the NCPO has faced a constant challenge from these minor and scattered student groups. Intolerant of criticism and dismissive of foreign concerns, the junta has done all it can to silence them, ranging from lawsuits to intimidation via visits to activists’ homes or offices by military officers.

But the NCPO has also suffered blowback from its actions against activists. What some called a game-changer came with the arrest of 14 students for demonstrating against the coup on its first anniversary in 2015.

The protesters were mostly “unknown” members of the Khon Kaen-based Dao Din Group and LLTD. But the imprisonment of Jatupat Boonpattararaksa, or Pai Dao Din, and Rangsiman Rome turned anonymous students into celebrity figureheads for the campaign against the military-led government.

The students went on to form the New Democracy Movement (NDM), which has spawned several other pro-democracy groups as the momentum against the coup-installed regime builds.

This network also includes independent activists such as Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal and Parit Chiwarak, political science students from Chulalongkorn and Thammasat University respectively.

Criminalised for their actions to restore democracy, the students |continue to receive strong media attention both at home and abroad. With them has come the rebirth of a movement now once again considered a significant challenge to the military junta.

JUNTA leaders yesterday warned the Future Forward Party to think twice about its plan to scrap the 2017 Constitution and said there would be consequences if it disobeyed the law.

National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) chief and Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said in his weekly press briefing that the government would monitor political parties to ensure they were all obeying the law.

“They should think twice about whatever they do. They shouldn’t consider laws as obstacles,” Prayut said. “Laws are there to create justice. It is not every party that comes out to complain.”

In a separate interview, Deputy PM and Defence Minister General Prawit Wongsuwan said that the Election Commission should study the party’s statement and see whether it violated the law.

Prawit insisted, however, that he was unconcerned about the Future Forward Party, saying that it was up to the people to choose who to support while refusing to say whether the NCPO was closely monitoring the party or whether he felt it had a chance of winning the next election.

The junta top brass were responding to Future Forward Party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit’s vow during the party’s first official meeting on Sunday to propose a law amendment to scrap the junta-written 2017 charter as well as grant amnesty to political prisoners under the NCPO ruling.

Future Forward is a new party perceived as liberal-leaning and opposed to the coup-installed regime and its legacy.

Political observers and the party’s supporters have expressed concern that the Future Forward’s ideology would make it a target for the junta and that it might not survive long enough even to contest the election planned for next February.

Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam added that Thanathorn’s vow was “harsh and could create problems”.

“[They] shouldn’t say anything that could spark conflicts – they should be responsible in what they say,” Wissanu said. “They have the right and freedom to say such things but whether they can act on them is another thing.”

Thanathorn has proposed that the NCPO-initiated meeting with parties next month should be broadcast live to ensure a transparent outcome, but Wissanu said that the NCPO “might have to think twice about it”.

“If they have so many conditions, we’ll have to rethink the whole idea of holding the meeting,” the deputy said.

The EC yesterday remained silent about the issue.

According to the Constitution, however, it has the power to scrutinise party’s policies to ensure they are not unrealistic, populist policies which could cause a financial burden to the country.

The BBC Thai website has quoted a close aide as saying that Yingluck is now free to travel in and out of the UK, although each visit can only be for a maximum of six months.

Yingluck is the youngest sister of Thaksin Shinawatra, who is also on the run from a jail term in Thailand on corruption-related charges.

Thailand’s first female prime minister, Yingluck disappeared a few days before the Supreme Court’s Criminal Division for Political Office Holders delivered a verdict in a case against her in the rice-pledging case in August last year.

The Court jailed her to five years in jail for negligence as the head of government and chair of the National Rice Policy Committee.

She was later spotted in many countries, including Japan and London, sometimes with her brother.

The BBC website said that the visa had been granted to Yingluck under a passport issued by a European country. Her Thai passports have been revoked following the court ruling and her escape from Thailand.

A close aide of Thaksin told BBC Thai that many countries had been willing to give his sister the travel documents she sought.

The scion of the Thai Summit Group won 473 votes with one abstention during the party’s first official meeting, attended by more than 700 founding members from all provinces nationwide and a couple of thousand people at Thammasat University’s gymnasium hall.

Voting members raised their hands to approve the party’s name, logo, policies as well its executive board. Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, another co-founder and a former campaigner to amend the lese majeste law, was elected secretary-general.

The four party deputies were Lt-General Pongsakorn Rodchompoo, who was removed as deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council by an Article 44 order in 2015, the former chairman of Amnesty International Thailand, Chamnan Chanruang, education advocate Kunthida Rungruengkiat and IT expert Ronnawit Lorlertsoonthorn.

The board also includes representatives from the labour sector, young generation from the IT sector as well as representatives from all regions of Thailand.

The hashtag #futureforwardparty showed that social media users appeared to be pleased with the choice of party officials.

“I just feel that [the party] is a hotspot of leftist, front-row intellectuals,” tweeted a Twitter user @mizzphor.

The party aims to raise Bt350 million to fund its campaigning ahead of the election and will start accepting new members in August, when it is expected to be fully endorsed by the Election Commission.

After the voting, the party meeting made a presentation on how Thailand had been locked up in a decade of political conflicts with a rap singer moaning about the junta government.

Thanathorn reiterated that while the party was still barred from spelling out its national policies under current law, it would stick to its goal of dumping the current charter, which he said only “stuck Thai politics in the same, old loop”.

“We all know that fixing this charter is hardly possible, topped by the fact that any amendment has to be approved by junta-appointed senators,” Piyabutr told a press conference.

“We have to campaign for a nationwide consensus that the 2017 charter cannot go any further. We will also have to revoke its Article 279 that empowers the current junta to overrule all laws,” the law expert continued.

He was referring to how PM General Prayut Chan-o-cha has been granted absolute power by Article 44 of the defunct, interim 2014 charter. Article 279 still empowers the Prayut-headed National Council for Peace and Order with such a power until the NCPO becomes defunct.

The party’s agenda is also to call for the NCPO to revoke all its orders that obstruct the movements of political parties to “ensure freedom of expression and a free and fair election”, he said.

This will also ultimately include an amnesty for all political prisoners under the NCPO era once the party gains power, Thanathorn added.

“The sooner the election is held, the better it would be for the country and for the NCPO itself,” Thanathorn said. “Because the NCPO will only see its ratings decline continuously the longer it stays in power.”

He added that he would attend the NCPO’s planned meeting with political parties next month but only on the condition that the meeting is broadcast live.

YOUR SAY

The Nation’s Rachanon Charoonsak talks to supporters who attended the Future Forward Party convention yesterday on why they are supporting the new party of autoparts billionaire Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit.

Prasop Choke, 40, from Nan province, a former supporter of the Democrat Party

“I like the “Unlock, Reconstruct, and Open an Opportunity” concept of the party.

“I want the party to succeed, as it wants to ensure that future generations don’t face what we had to face.

“I want the party to help everyone have access to all resources equally.”

Mana Waitip, a business owner from Nakhon Ratchasima province

“I like the fact that this political party engages people from the new generation, does not support dictatorship, and wants to create a society where everyone is equal. At least this party will show the world that most Thai people do not like the National Council for Peace and Order.”

Pantip Sombatpiam, a teacher from Pathum Thani province, a former supporter of the Pheu Thai Party

“I like the party’s policy for disabled people and how the party has brought all types of people together.”

Chanathip Eunjongdee, 23 yearold Thammasat University student, from Bangkok. He has never voted for any party.

“I’m interested in seeing reforms in Thailand’s education system and the equal distribution of power. I’m not sure if this party can solve the current problems but at least we get to choose ourselves. So if it doesn’t work, we just have to choose a new party.”

Chisanupong Aumsri, a 20yearold student from Bangkok. He has never voted for any party.

“I like this party because it is a new type of political party where citizens are fully involved and engaged in its activities. I also like its policy to annul Article 112 [the lese majeste law].”

“I expect the party to restructure the way things are currently and distribute power equally.”

PRIME MINISTER Prayut Chan-o-cha wants to use his planned trip to Europe next month to raise his international profile as the junta inner circle has seen a softening in the stance of western countries on democratisation to enhance economic engagement with Thailand.

Prayut is planning a high-profile visit to France, Germany and the United Kingdom, diplomatic sources told The Nation. The mission has become possible since last December when the EU decided to resume political engagement with Thailand at all levels, after distancing itself from the junta government following the 2014 coup.

The EU is desperate to improve its relations with military-ruled Thailand, as it is losing economic opportunities to other competitors such as China, which never makes ideological choices, a senior diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

The EU trip, packed with business deals, would be a strong confidence boost for the PM amid the changing international political landscape.

Though it maintains its crucial role at the regional level, the Thai government is starting to have more visibility in the international arena through its commitment to modern values, security issues and economic partnerships.

The junta has maintained its out-reach programme, occasionally inviting ambassadors in Bangkok to witness key events of the national agenda – from human rights to the Thailand 4.0 initiative – mainly focusing on the role of modern technologies in driving the economy.

The ideas have also been sold during Prayut’s overseas trips since he took the premiership in 2014.

From 2015 to 2017, to soften his reputation for shackling democracy, Prayut made at least three promises to different international figures on the so-called road map to democracy.

The promise, each time, has been different. While the uncertainty over the return of democracy remains a concern for human rights organisations, the promises have helped buy time and legitimacy in the eyes of the international community.

The EU softened its stance when Prayut last year promised to hold elections by this November, a promise he has gone back on.

The ambassador of the European Union to Thailand, Pirkka Tapiola, said he would not speculate whether the election organised under the junta government would lead to a democratic outcome for Thailand.

“I will be sticking to [the road map] and would not predict too far,” Tapiola said in a recent group interview. “Pointing fingers [at other countries] would be just arrogant. Lecturing others is not EU style.”

With Thailand set to chair Asean next year, internal preparations have already started.

While Thailand is not a party to prominent regional security issues like the Korean Peninsula or the South China Sea, it has chosen to stay neutral and adhere to international consensus. Thailand has also been silent on the Rohingya issue in Myanmar, a country that has a long border with Thailand. Though Thailand has participated in humanitarian assistance to troubled areas in Myanmar, it has not directly attributed the root cause of the problem to Myanmar’s ruling authorities in its own interests.

The tough previous US stance against the Thai junta changed when billionaire businessman Donald Trump took office in 2017. After a hundred days in the White House, Trump made direct phone calls to several leaders, including Prayut. With less focus on traditional Western-style values, Trump invited Prayut for bilateral talks, a rare chance for the Thai premier to enter the Oval Office. The talks ended with initial trade agreements with the US, which had earlier singled out Thailand among others as countries with whom the US has a large trade deficit.

Security cooperation between Thailand and the US also seem to be going smoothly as far as military deals go.

Deputy PM and Defence Minister General Prawit Wognsuwan recently visited the US Department of Defence. Democratisation was not on the agenda. Secretary James Mattis expressed confidence that the future for the Thai people would be positive as they regain their democratic footing.

The Brexit referendum that took place in 2016, reflecting a growing trend of protectionism, was also viewed as a global phenomenon that could influence Thailand’s referendum on the junta-written charter draft. The charter secured majority support in a referendum held two months later.

Since the coup, Thailand has been seen as tilting towards China – from making controversial submarine deals to economic reliance, notably for development of the Eastern Economic Corridor. China is among the few countries that have refrained from commenting on Thailand’s domestic political developments, joined in recent months by many other western countries.

Rather than acting as the regulator, the junta is now a political actor competing with political parties in the field, she said. “While the authority restricts political parties’ activities, government leaders are spending the national budget for their own political campaign without accountability,” Sudarat said in an interview with The Nation.

Sudarat has been widely regarded as the Pheu Thai Party’s leader-in-waiting, but she herself has never expressed any intention to take the reins of the party. She is not a member of any political party since being banned from politics after the dissolution of the Thai Rak Thai in 2007.

Speaking in her personal capacity, Sudarat said the Pheu Thai, whose government was toppled by the military in the 2014 coup, would be a prime target for the junta to prevent its victory in the next election.

The junta had not only prohibited the party’s political activities, but also disturbed the normal lives of many key members, barring them from events where they could express their opinions against the junta, she said.

Like many other parties, the Pheu Thai would face a lot of obstacles in the election, if held next February, she said. With the changes in the election law and the Election Commission, it would be an uphill task for any party to win a majority in the election next time, she said. The electoral system is very complicated and difficult for voters to understand, and this would result in no single party getting a clear majority. Only parties or individual politicians who openly support the junta leaders in the election would benefit, Sudarat said. The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), the official name of the junta, is enforcing its grand strategy to weaken other political parties and peoples’ participation in politics. The NCPO has already mapped out a 20-year national strategy and development plan and made it binding on the next government, she said.

“The problem is I see nothing in the so-called 20-year strategic plan that is useful for the people and the country’s development,” Sudarat said. “The politicians and the people have no alternative.”

The reforms, as claimed by the junta, over the past four years have only moved the country backward in every aspect when compared with other Asean countries, she said. “We used to be the frontrunner in Asean, now we are in the same boat as other backward countries – economically and politically,” she said.

Thailand is now facing economic disruption due to advances in technology but the authority has not prepared the country for such a change, she said. Disruptive information technology is now posing a threat to many sectors, notably banking, she said. “Our banks have to lay off thousands of skilled workers as financial technology has more capacity to run banks.”

“How is the government going to tackle unemployment when robots are replacing human workers in industry?” she asked. “Politicians should be thinking about these kinds of developments but we are not allowed to have any policy about this.”

THOUGH there are no longer military personnel posted at media outlets, unlike during the period following the military coup on May 22, 2014, a tight grip on media has been maintained more surreptitiously via junta laws and orders.

Journalists and media groups have complained about restrictions on press freedom under the junta, which has been in power for four years. Media groups contend that freedom has been curbed by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) through its orders and announcements.

Even a junta plan to reform the media, as part of national reforms, is viewed as an attempt to control free flow of information. The plan calls for the issuance of a new law that aims to regulate the media through “promoting ethics and standards for the profession”, rather than protecting freedom of the media against many existing restrictive laws such as the Computer Crime Act.

On World Press Freedom Day on May 3, media associations called on the NCPO to revoke its orders and announcements deemed to restrict freedom of the press. Among some 800 orders issued by the junta over the past years it has been in power, several have restricted media freedom.

In many instances, those orders and announcements were used to close – temporarily or permanently – TV stations critical of the NCPO and its government. Among those targeted were Voice TV, Peace TV, TV24, DMC and Fah Hai TV. Most of them are linked to the red shirts and are satellite-based, except Voice TV, which is a digital channel run by former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s son Panthongtae.

In addition to media outlets, authorities have also censored news websites by blocking access to them. Critical journalists have been summoned by the junta for “attitude adjustment” sessions at military barracks, among them former senior Nation reporter Pravit Rojanaphruk.

The junta’s tough actions have caused the mainstream media to turn to self-censorship.

The restrictive orders will also affect the media and journalists after the junta has left power, since they will be inherited by the post-coup government. Orders issued by the coup-makers are regarded as laws and could prove difficult to rescind.

For example, it took a 14-year campaign by media groups before an elected government in 1990 rescinded the restrictive National Reform Council Order No 42 (“Por Ror Sisib Song”). The order, issued after a military coup in October 1976, prohibited newspapers from publishing any content deemed threatening to national security or damaging to the government, the country or the Thai people as a whole. It also empowered authorities to withdraw the licence for publishers, editors and owners involved, which led to newspapers being closed down.

Media associations also campaigned against moves perceived as attempts to control the media through legislation passed under the guise of “media reform”. They protested against a bill proposed by the National Reform Steering Assembly that would require licensing of media professionals and a regulatory committee that would include top bureaucrats. Media cried foul and pointed to the possibility of state interference.

The bill later was discarded, but a similar law is in the making after the formation of the National Reform Committee on Media and Information Technology, which includes some prominent media personalities. The junta’s master plan for reforming the country in 11 areas, including the media and IT, has been in effect since April 6. Promoting media ethics and standards are some of the aspects in the reform plan.

The new legislation, on the Promotion of Media Ethics and Professional Standard, is being drafted and is expected to be enacted within this year. Called the “media control law”, this bill has been strongly opposed by the Thai Journalists Association and other media professional groups.

Over the past four years, the junta has managed to control community radio stations that were often used to spread political views and mobilise political support before the coup. As a result, many “red shirt” radio hosts moved online, setting up news channels on YouTube. But they have to run their programmes from outside the country.

In the meantime, Thailand has seen the birth of new media outlets since the coup, including BBC Thai, Standard and The Matter, whose online articles have been critical of the junta.

On the international front, Thailand’s image over the past four years has taken a beating with freedom of the press on the decline. Reporters Without Borders called junta leader General Prayut Chan-o-cha a “press freedom predator” and accused the NCPO of keeping journalists and web bloggers under permanent surveillance.

The NCPO “often summons them for questioning and detains them arbitrarily”, it said.

The international media watchdog’s 2018 World Press Freedom Index ranks Thailand at 140 out of 180 countries, slightly better than last year when the Kingdom was at 142. Thailand was ranked 136 in 2016, 134 in 2015, and 130 in 2014.