Uwazi

The Court of Appeal has denied bail for anti-government protest leader Arnon Nampha, who is charged with sedition over the rally at Thammasat University’s Tha Prachan campaus and at Sanam Luang on Sept 19-20.

The court upheld the lower court's refusal to allow the temporary release of the human rights lawyer. The decison was read out at the Criminal Court on Wednesday, according to Thai media reports, but not made public until Friday.

Mr Arnon, 37, is charged with sedition under Section 116 of the Criminal Code in connection with the anti-government demonstration at Thammasat University's Tha Phrachan campus and Sanam Luang on Sept 19-20.

On Oct 27, Chana Songkram police took him to the Criminal Court and obtained permission to detain him. His lawyers applied for bail, but it was denied. They appealed.

The Court of Appeal denied bail on the grounds the alleged offences could lead to damage or disruption with a wider impact. In taking to the rally stage, the accused had persuaded people to destroy state property without respect for the law.

The court also took into consideration police investigators’ opposition to the suspect's release on bail because he also faced similar charges filed by other police stations.If he was released on bail, he might cause more damage or try to flee.

The court found the lower court's decision to refuse bail was justified.

Mr Arnon is being detained at Bangkok Remand Prison.

On Sept 20, pro-democracy protesters staged a ceremony to install a plaque at Sanam Luang declaring the people’s power and ownership of the country. It was removed by unknown people next morning.

The original plaque marked the 1932 Revolution, which overthrew the absolute monarchy and ushered in a constitutional monarchy, and was planted on the ground at the Royal Plaza.

It was removed without explanation in 2017, three years after the military took power in a coup, and no one in authority has ever said why or what happened to it.

A court in Ayutthaya on Saturday rejected a police request to detain three protest leaders currently in a Bangkok hospital after an eventful night that followed their temporary release from custody.

The court said the investigation was already done, so police could proceed with the case without having to detain them, and since they were in hospital they were not flight risks.

Doctors at Praram 9 Hospital said that the three — Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak, Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul and Panupong “Mike” Jadnok — would need two or three more days to recover from their recent experiences with law enforcement.

Police still have ample opportunity to make fresh arrests once the three are discharged. All told, there are 80 active warrants related to various offences connected with recent pro-democracy protests, according to Pol Maj Gen Piya Tawichai, deputy metropolitan police chief.

Pathumwan police, it turns out, were already on the case. Their officers were en route to the hospital around 6pm to charge Ms Panusaya, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (THLR). It said on Twitter that its lawyer, who represents Ms Panusaya, had been informed.

Six police oficers were standing guard near the three suspects' hospital rooms on Saturday.

Mr Parit and Ms Panusaya were taken to Praram 9 Hospital at around 4.45am on Saturday after they had been questioned by Ayutthaya police at the Pracha Chuen police station in Bangkok following their release from remand prison.

Mr Parit was injured with several glass fragments on his body and Ms Panusaya was exhausted. They joined Mr Panupong, who had been released at the same time and brought to the hospital earlier after fainting while in police custody.

At a briefing on Saturday, a team of doctors at the hospital said Mr Panupong suffered several minor cuts from glass fragments. He was very weak and physicians are checking what caused his blackout.

Mr Parit, who has asthma, also had cuts on his limbs and some glass fragments were found on his body. Ms Panusaya was suffering from severe dehydration and chronic sleep deprivation and was on a saline drip.

All three need at least two to three days to recover, the doctors said.

Pheu Thai MP Tossaporn Serirak and Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, a former MP of the now-defunct Future Forward Party and cofounder of the Progressive Movement, accompanied them to the hospital in the same van.

Their supporters who had been waiting at the police station left after the leaders told them to return home.

Ayutthaya police on Saturday morning visited Mr Panupong, who was suffering from a lack of oxygen, at the hospital, seeking to detain him. Mr Panupong refused to be held, saying the arrest began at the Bangkok Remand Prison, not at the hospital, and he had the right to be treated there, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).

Late Friday afternoon, the Criminal Court had granted bail to the three student activists and Patiwat Saraiyaem, another protester, after repeated appeals by their lawyers. They had been in jail for 16 days.

Mr Panupong, Mr Parit and Mr Patiwat were detained at Bangkok Remand Prison and Ms Panusaya was at the Central Women’s Correctional Institution nearby.

Mr Patiwat walked out of Bangkok Remand Prison around 8pm to cheers from supporters waiting to greet him outside.

He frantically told the waiting crowd that the other three had been taken from their cells by three men in civilian clothes while prison officials did nothing.

The men were later identified as plainclothes police officers who acted on arrest warrants for the activists’ roles during rallies in Nonthaburi, Ayutthaya and Ubon Ratchathani provinces.

However, their lawyers, citing Section 68 of the Criminal Procedures Code, argued the warrants were no longer valid since they had already acknowledged and denied the charges while at the Border Patrol Police Region 1 and the Bangkok Remand Prison.

Pol Col Ittichet Wonghomhuan, the Pracha Chuen police superintendent, said his team acted on the warrants of Nonthaburi, Ayutthaya and Ubon Ratchathani police, who had not revoked them yet.

While the lawyers were still talking to some policemen at the prison, the plainclothes officers took Mr Parit and Mr Panupong away through a secondary gate without anyone knowing, according to TLHR. Another van took Ms Panusaya from the women’s prison.

The van, with broken windows, took Mr Panupong and Mr Parit to the station at 9.30pm. Police did not allow them to get out at first since around 50 of their supporters were gathering there. Mr Parit shouted that Mr Panupong needed an ambulance immediately.

At 10pm, an ambulance took an unconscious Panupong to Kasemrad Pracha Chuen Hospital. He was later transferred to Praram 9 Hospital.

At the police station, Mr Parit said he and Mr Panupong resisted arrest because the people who took them did not wear uniforms and tried to illegally detain them. However, they were dragged by the neck to the van. Mr Panupong passed out later in the vehicle, Mr Parit claimed.

He said the supporters who were following them tried to ask the police to stop the van so Mr Panupong could get medical help but the officials refused to do so.

According to Internet Law Reform Dialogue (iLaw), some interviews and video clips showed what happened during the trip to the police station.

The van carrying Mr Parit and Mr Panupong stopped at a red light at the Pongpet intersection, followed by a few people on motorcycles believed to be their supporters.

Mr Panupong and Mr Parit shouted to them that they had been forcibly and illegally taken. Their supporters tried in vain to talk to the officials before attempting to break a window, allegedly to help the pair.

As the van driver tried to get away, the vehicle hit at least two other motorcycles nearby. One of the motorcycles fell in front of the van but the van driver ploughed on, dragging the smaller vehicle for around 200 metres. The owner of the damaged motorcycle, who was not a protester, later filed a complaint with police.

After their temporary release on Friday, four other protesters remained in jail as of Saturday.

At Bangkok Remand Prison, Ekkachai Hongkangwan has been imprisoned since Oct 12 on charges related to the royal motorcade, Arnon Nampha has been held since Oct 15 on sedition charges, and Somyot Prueksakasemsuk has been detained since Oct 16.

At Bang Kwang Prison, Suranart Panprasert has been held at since Oct 21 on charges in connection with a royal motorcade.

Police will summon at least five Free Youth protesters during the Germany embassy rally in Bangkok on Monday after a court on Thursday turned down their request for arrest warrants.

Thung Mahamek police on Wednesday sought to arrest five protesters on sedition and other charges for their roles during the demonstration at the embassy where the protesters submitted a letter to the ambassador.
The five are Patsaravalee Tanakitvibulpon, 25, Korakot Saengyenphan, 28, Chanin Wongsri, 20, Cholathit Chote-sawat, 21, and Benja Apan, 21.

The South Bangkok Criminal Court dismissed the request, citing a number of reasons — the suspects are students, the rally was short, there was no proof they would flee and they have permanent residences.

The court also instructed police to summon them for questioning first.

Later on Thursday, deputy police spokesperson Pol Col Kissana Phathanacharoen said the protesters did not inform police of their rally on that day.

“Unlike the gathering by yellow-clad demonstrators at the embassy earlier on that day, the Free Youth group did not inform the police about their rally first [as required by law],” he said.

He dismissed criticism of double standard since no action had been taken against the yellow group.

On Free Youth planned protests on Thursday, Pol Maj Gen Jirasan Kaewsaeng-ek, deputy chief of Metropolitan Police, traffic might be affected in two locations — Pathumwan intersection, Silom Road (near Wat Kaek) and near NationTV on Bang Na-Trat Highway.

A teenage Hong Kong activist was charged on Thursday with secession, the first public political figure to be prosecuted under a sweeping new national security law Beijing imposed on the city.

Tony Chung, 19, appeared in court charged with secession, money laundering and conspiring to publish seditious content, two days after he was arrested in a Hong Kong coffee shop opposite the US consulate.

Chung is a former member of Student Localism, a small group that advocated Hong Kong's independence from China.

The group disbanded its Hong Kong network shortly before Beijing blanketed the city in its new security law in late June but it has kept its international chapters going.

The legislation outlawed a host of new crimes, including expressing political views such as advocating independence or greater autonomy for Hong Kong.

Chung and three other members of Student Localism were first arrested by a newly created national security police unit in July on suspicion of inciting secession via social media posts.

However, Chung was arrested again on Tuesday morning by plainclothes police just metres away from the US consulate.

A little-known group calling itself Friends of Hong Kong put out a statement shortly afterwards saying it had been trying to arrange for Chung to enter the US consulate that day and apply for asylum.

Chung was held by police until his appearance in court on Thursday morning. He was denied bail.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) launched a major crackdown on terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir and conducted raids on NGOs and journalists across 10 locations in Kashmir and one in Bengaluru on Wednesday morning.

NIA sources have said terror operations were being funded by sourcing funds from foreign countries in the name of business, religious works and other social works by these organisations in Jammu and Kashmir.

The probe agency raided NGO Athrowt at Nawakadal, the Greater Kashmir office at Press Colony and the residence of activist Khurram Parvaiz, among other places.

Sources told India Today TV that the money came through hawala channels from different parts of the country and abroad and was being used to fund terror activities in Kashmir through NGOs.

"These NGOs were not registered. That means they did not have the FCRA license, yet they were getting funds from Pakistan and Europe, and even countries like Fiji and East Timor," the sources said.

The NIA sources said that the probe agency is looking at two aspects - terror funding and secessionist activities.

In a statement, NIA said, "This case was registered by NIA on 8/10/2020 u/s 120B, 124 A IPC and sections 17, 18, 22A, 22C, 38, 39 and 40 UA(P)A, 1967 on receipt of credible information that certain NGOs and Trusts are collecting funds domestically and abroad through so-called donations and business contributions, etc and are then utilizing these funds for secessionist and terrorist activities in J&K."

"Those whose premises have been searched include residence and office of Khurram Parvez (co-ordinator of J&K Coalition of Civil Society), his associates viz. Parvez Ahmad Bukhari, Parvez Ahmad Matta and Bengaluru-based associate viz. Swati Sheshadri; Ms. Parveena Ahanger, Chairperson of Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons ( APDPK) and offices of NGO Athrout and GK Trust," said the NIA.

The probe agency said that the raids were conducted after specific inputs and more NGOs are also under scanner. The documents and phones seized will be sent to the forensic lab, the sources said.

The NIA sources told India Today TV that the case was registered last week, but was not mentioned on the NIA website to maintain confidentiality. The NIA raids were led by the IG and DIG, who flew Srinagar specially for the raids.

Slamming the move, former J&K chief minister and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti has said, "NIA raids on human rights activist Khurram Parvez & Greater Kashmir office in Srinagar is yet another example of GOIs vicious crackdown on freedom of expression & dissent. Sadly, NIA has become BJPs pet agency to intimidate & browbeat those who refuse to fall in line."

On October 27, Lin Qilei, attorney for Li Yuhan, a female human rights lawyer in her 60’s, announced that the supreme people’s court has rescheduled Li’s case for November 30. Li, who has been detained for more than three years at Shengyang No. 1 Detention Center, suffers multiple health concerns, including hypothyroidism, ischemic heart disease, and stomach problems, requiring daily medications. After a fall in 2018 which led to spinal damages, Li now has to walk with a crutch.

Authorities initially indicted Li for provoking troubles and picking quarrels, but later, added fraud to her charges. As evidence regarding her case has not proved to be sufficient, however, the court has repeatedly delayed hearing her case, blocking her release. After authorities transferred Li’s case to Shengyang Municipal Heping People’s Court on April 8, 2018, the court decided to host the trial on June 8, 2019, now scheduled for November 30. With no verdict after more than three years, supporters suspect officials have targeted and repressed her “simple" case.

During Li’s detention, police have hired the female cell head and other prisoners to torture daily her. Tactics include:

    Forcing her to take cold showers.

    Rationing her food to half of portions other prisoners receive.

    Placing her vegetable/s and fruit on the restroom floor to prevent her from eating it.

    Giving her the previous day’s vegetable/s and fruit after other prisoners intentionally urinated on them;

    Prohibiting her family members from depositing money into her prison account. 

After his last meeting with Li, Attorney Lin also announced that court officials have not addressed his nor Li’s application for bail and compulsory change. Li believes that authorities fabricated charges against her to persecute and suppress her previous work safeguarding other people’s rights.

The judicial department asked Li to write the “confession and acceptance of penalty” letter in exchange for her release, but she refused to compromise her stance. Attorney Lin relayed greetings and concerns from others to Li Yuhan, hoping that she can remain upbeat and able to confront conceivable challenges.

Anon Nampa, a pro-democracy protest co-leader, has been detained in another case right after a court temporarily released him on bail in one.

The human rights lawyer was taken to Bangkok on Monday afternoon after the Chiang Mai Court approved a second round of his detention and released him on bail for a surety of 200,000 baht, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.

The money reportedly came from the fund raised by a network of academics.

Mr Anon was detained after the release by Chana Songkhram police for his involvement in the Free Youth rally on Sept 19 at Thammasat University and Sanam Luang.

He was brought to the capital in a van, accompanied by a lawyer. It remained unclear whether he would be held at the Chana Songkhram police station or at the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters in Pathum Thani province.

Mr Anon was arrested during the crackdown of a rally near Government House in Bangkok in the early hours of Oct 15, shortly after the serious state of emergency was declared in the capital.

Police acted on a warrant by Chiang Mai police for his role during a rally at Tha Pae in the northern province on Aug 9. He was charged with sedition under the Criminal Code, the penalty of which is up to seven years in jail.

Mr Anon was the first who publicly spoke about the need for the reform of the monarchy in decades. He advocated the changes in line with democracy with the King as head of state.

The Criminal Court on Monday denied bail for Panupong "Mike" Jadnok, Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak and Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul in a renewed attempt by their lawyers.

The court said there was no reason to change the previous order which denied the temporary releases of the trio due to concern they would repeat the alleged offences.

Mr Panupong and Mr Parit are detained at Bangkok Remand Prison and Miss Panusaya is at the Central Women's Correctional Institution nearby.

Mr Panupong was charged with inciting unrest or sedition under Section 116 of the Criminal Code. He also faces charges of violating the Act on Ancient Monuments, Antiques, Objects of Art and National Museums, and violating Sections 116 and 215 for his role in installing a new plaque to symbolise people’s power at Sanam Luang on Sept 19.

Mr Parit and Miss Panusaya — Thammasat University students — were also charged with sedition, as well as other charges for their roles in the Sept 19 rally at Sanam Luang.

Their lawyers tried to offer higher cash bond for their bail in the hopes of getting them out after the Court of Appeal on Saturday denied them bail.

In any case, their lawyers do not give up and will apply for bail again, starting from the lower court.

"Even though physically, I remain in jail, my heart goes wherever you are," the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights quoted Ms Panusaya as saying after the court decision.

Her statement is clearly directed at student-led protesters.

During a previous visit a few days ago, TLHR described the yong activist as "drastically changed", with her hair cut short and dyed black. The prison administration said later her hair was trimmed for hygiene reasons.

They called for the releases of all detained activists and resignation of the prime minister as a pre-condition for a proposal by Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha for all sides to take a step back.

Authorities arrested on Sunday, Oct. 25, an Igorot woman leader who has been consistent in defending their ancestral land in Lubuagan, Kalinga.

According to the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) and the Cordillera People’s Alliance (CPA), a composite team from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), Philippine National Police and Philippine Army came to the Western Uma and Lower Uma villages at 4:00 a.m. to search several houses, including that of Beatrice Belen, a leader of Innabuyog-Kalinga, the local chapter of Gabriela.

Belen, her husband and her two children were led outside of their home before the search was conducted. The police later claimed they found firearms and explosives, and proceeded to arrest and detain Belen at the Tabuk City Jail. The CHRA said Belen has been placed in a cell with male detainees.

In a statement, Cristina Palabay, secretary general of Karapatan, condemned the arrest of Belen. “Like other activists who were arrested on questionable legal bases, Belen has asserted that those allegedly seized in her home were not hers nor of any member of her family,” she said.

Palabay noted that before the incident, Belen was tagged as a communist by soldiers belonging to the Philippine Army’s 503rd Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army.

The arrest of Belen, Palabay said, is a “very clear example of the dangers of red-tagging, resulting in violations to the right to life, liberty and security of human rights defenders, including indigenous women human rights defenders who are fighting for their communities’ land, resources and rights.”

Staunch defender of ancestral land

In a statement, the CPA said that for decades, Belen has shown strong leadership in her community against destructive projects.

In 2012, the CPA said that Belen led the campaign against Chevron Energy company’s geothermal power project in Kalinga, “citing detrimental effects of the said project to lives and health of the community members, especially women and children.”

In 2018, Belen was awarded Gawad Bayani ng Kalikasan (Environmental Hero) for her sustained defense of their ancestral land from destruction by private companies.

The CPA further said that as Belen has continued to oppose the geothermal project and human rights violations in their village, harassment and threats against her also persisted.

Palabay called for the immediate release of Belen. She added that placing Belen in a cell with other male detainees is in direct violation of the Nelson Mandela Rules or the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.

Palabay said that the overcrowded and unsanitary prisons in the country are among the “most vulnerable places for women, where numerous forms of sexual violence are most likely to happen.”

Karapatan said Belen is the most most recent among Gabriela’s regional leaders who have been arrested on “fabricated charges.” Last July 7, Gabriela’s national vice chairperson, Jenelyn Nagrampa was also arrested in Camarines Sur.

Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Arlene Brosas also expressed strong condemnation of Belen’s arrest.

“Facing a stinging rebuke of their red-tagging spree, the military has resorted to the use of state terror and naked force in silencing women’s rights defenders with the arrest of Manang Betty [Belen],” Brosas said.

Brosas appealed to the public to “strongly denounce Belen’s arrest in the same way that we stand for celebrities who are red-tagged by the military.”

Brosas lambasted the police and military “for once again planting evidence to detain another woman leader,” citing the cases of Reina Mae Nasino and Cora Agovida.

Based on Karapatan’s documentation, there are 102 women political prisoners, most if not all are women human rights defenders, who are languishing in various jails and detention centers in the country.

On October 24, Kazakh police officers assaulted Toiken, correspondent for Radio Azattyq, the Kazakh service of the U.S. Congress-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, while she was reporting on a peaceful rally in Nur-Sultan, the capital, according to the journalist, who spoke with CPJ via messaging app, and news reports.

“Kazakh authorities must immediately investigate the assault on journalist Saniya Toiken and should hold those responsible to account,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “Toiken has been subject to many attacks for her work while doing an important job for the public. Law enforcement should be protecting her and other journalists, not attacking and harassing them.”

Toiken was covering a peaceful rally in support of political prisoners in Nur-Sultan where activists were also selling hand-made items to raise funds for prisoners’ families, according to news reports. Law enforcement officers arrived at the scene, announced that the rally was unsanctioned, and detained some participants, according to the reports. In a video interview with Current Time, a TV network affiliated with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Toiken said she was filming the event on her mobile phone when an officer pushed her to the ground, took her phone, and dragged her toward a police mini bus. She said that after she told the police officers she was a journalist, they released her.

After the assault, Toiken went to a hospital in Nur-Sultan, where doctors documented multiple injuries and bruises on her legs and arms, according to the medical report, a photo of which was posted on Facebook by Nazira Darimbet, the acting director of the Federation of Equal Journalists of Kazakhstan. Toiken told CPJ she filed a complaint against the police officers who attacked her.

In March 2019, police arrested Toiken after the journalist interviewed participants at a rally for better job opportunities in the southwestern city of Zhanaozen, as CPJ documented at the time. The journalist was held in detention overnight, found guilty of refusing to follow police orders, and fined 50,500 tenges (US$134). Toiken denied the charges, claiming that they were politically motivated and aimed at preventing her from reporting, CPJ documented.

CPJ emailed the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan for comment, but did not receive a response.

Mixed security forces violently broke up a protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh to mark the signing of the Paris Peace Agreement, with two former Cambodia National Rescue Party officials being detained on Thursday to prevent their attendance.

The protest was called by senior leadership of the dissolved Cambodia National Rescue Party to mark the 29th anniversary of the Peace Paris Agreement and to protest against China’s potential military presence in Cambodia.

About 30 protestors gathered outside the Chinese Embassy in the capital’s Chamkarmon district, where they were met by dozens of district security guards, uniformed police, and plainclothes security personnel.

“People who protest here with the banners, please leave this area in five minutes,” said an official on a loudspeaker. “If you don’t, we will use administrative measures.”

Protestors continued their protest and called for China to respect the peace agreement and refrain from having a military presence on Cambodian soil. Security personnel then started to drag and carry protestors away from outside the embassy, with these images and videos broadcast on social media platforms.

Three women were dragged onto the back of a flatbed truck used by district guards and another woman was carried away.

The Chinese Embassy did not respond to requests for comment.

Former CNRP members were also marking the peace agreement anniversary in different cities across the world, with Prime Minister Hun Sen warning Cambodians not to protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh.

The protestors were reacting to an increasing number of reports suggesting that Cambodia had allegedly signed a secret deal with China to allow a military presence at two likely locations: Ream Naval Base in Preah Sihanouk province and the Dara Sakor Resort in Koh Kong province.

Am Sam Ath, deputy director at rights group Licadho, said the government’s actions had effectively forbidden people from assembling and expressing their views.

“It has become involved with politics now. It affects the freedom of assembly and peaceful protests,” he said.

On Thursday, two former CNRP members were detained and prevented from participating in the protest outside the Chinese Embassy. Vann Sophat was detained by Tbong Khmum police officials at noon, without a warrant, and questioned till 5 p.m., he said. He was released only after signing an agreement promising to not partake in the protest.

“I just wanted to protest, and not start a coup to topple anyone,” he said. “We want people to understand about the Paris Peace Agreement on October 23.”

Vann Sophat was one of seven former opposition officials who was convicted by Tbong Khmum court last month and given a five-year suspended sentence. They were charged with “plotting” to overthrow the government and the case was linked to Sam Rainsy’s unsuccessful return to Cambodia in November 2019.

His former CNRP colleague, Sou Yean, was also detained by Tbong Khmum police on Thursday and remains in detention, according to his family.

Hong Kim Hoeun, Memot district police chief, said he was on a two-day mission to Preah Sihanouk province and refused to comment on the detention.

Pen Rath, Tbong Khmum provincial police head, and court spokespersons could not be reached for comment on Friday.

In a joint statement, journalists’ association CamboJA and the Cambodian Center for Independent Media, VOD’s parent organization, said at least six journalists had been “intimidated and threatened” at the rally.

They were told to give up their phones, stop shooting live video or had their camera taken away, the statement said.

Journalist Gerry Flynn said he was covering the protest for Thmey Thmey on Friday, and was being pushed back from observing the protesters when a walkie-talkie hit him in the face.

He turned around and an officer yelled at him, he said. A U.N. observer at the scene intervened, and told him that the guard had shouted, “Better watch out because you’re in the land of Cambodians,” Flynn said.

A freelance cameraman he was with also had his lens grabbed, and authorities tried to get into the cameraman’s bag, Flynn added.

Khan Leakhena, a VOD reporter, said she saw a protester fall on the sidewalk, and pulled out her phone to take pictures. A man in civilian clothes approached her, shouting and ordering her to stop shooting, and tried to grab the phone from her, Leakhena said.

Mech Dara, another VOD reporter, said he and several other reporters were repeatedly ordered to stop filming, including a journalist working for Reuters.

An Asia spokesperson for Reuters declined to comment. The Khmer Times has not responded to emailed questions. The U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights also did not respond to questions.

Chanyada, the deputy governor, on Saturday denied knowledge of the incidents and referred questions to the City Hall spokesperson.

City Hall spokesperson Met Measpheakdey said he did not know the details of what happened on Friday and did not answer questions about the deputy governor being personally involved in the harassment.

“Generally, I can say that journalists have the right and ability to take pictures if it doesn’t affect or block authorities from implementing their duties,” Measpheakdey said.

CCIM’s media director, Ith Sothoeuth, said the work of journalists was supposed to be guaranteed under law. “These threats will further pressure and restrict the freedom of journalists in Cambodia.”

Nop Vy, CamboJA’s executive director, said the authorities’ actions were “unacceptable.”

“This is a sign of unacceptable intimidation as journalists were fulfilling their professional work,” said Vy, who was CCIM’s previous media director. “Authorities likely consider journalists to be an important observer who make it difficult for them to crack down on protesters.”

According to the Criminal Code, extortion — the act or attempt to obtain any asset by violence, threat of violence or coercion — is punishable by two to five years in jail.

The Observatory has been informed by the Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) about the arbitrary and incommunicado detention of Mr. Chang Weiping, a prominent human rights lawyer known for taking on sensitive human rights cases and filling lawsuits against companies for discrimination in the workplace against women, LGBTQ+ persons, and individuals affected by HIV/AIDs.

According to the information received, on October 22, 2020, Mr. Chang Weiping was arrested at his home in Fengxiang County, Shaanxi Province, by police officers from Baoji City. Later the same day, Mr. Chang Weiping’s wife received a phone call from a police officer who informed her that her husband had been placed under “residential surveillance in a designated location” (RSDL), a form of enforced disappearance[1].

On October 26, 2020, the Baoji City Public Security Bureau denied two separate requests presented by Mr. Chang Weiping’s lawyers to meet with their client. Furthermore, one of the lawyers was informed that Mr. Chang Weiping was suspected of “subversion of State power” and that the case involved “State secrets”. At the time of publication of this Urgent Appeal, Mr. Chang Weiping had not been formally charged and his whereabouts remained unknown.

Six days before his arrest, on October 16, 2020, Mr. Chang Weiping published a video statement on social media denouncing the physical and psychological torture he had been subjected to while in detention in January 2020, including being tied to a “tiger chair”[2].

On January 12, 2020, Mr. Chang Weiping, was arbitrarily arrested by Shaanxi police and placed under RSDL in an unknown location on charges of “subversion of State power” (Article 105(1) of China’s Criminal Law), in connection to a private meeting organised by academics, human rights lawyers and activists in December 2019 in Xiamen, Fujian Province, to discuss the situation of the rule of law and human rights in China.

On January 13, Mr. Chang Weiping’s license to practice law was cancelled. Previously, in October 2018, the Baoji City Judicial Bureau had suspended his law license in retaliation for his human rights work.

On January 21, Mr. Chang Weiping was released on bail pending trial. Nonetheless, he was requested to leave his city of residence and was confined to his family home in Baoji, where he remained under strict police scrutiny, including daily phone calls and weekly meetings with the police. Furthermore, he was prevented from being reunited with his family.

The Observatory expresses its utmost concern over the arbitrary arrest and detention of Mr. Chang Weiping as it seems to be only aimed at punishing him for his legitimate human rights activities and urges the Chinese authorities to immediately disclose his whereabouts and unconditionally release him and all other human rights defenders, including labour rights defenders, arbitrarily detained in the country.

Pinaki Bhattacharya is an online human rights and political activist who writes critically about the current Bangladesh Awami League government. He was forced to leave Bangladesh in 2018 fearing detention by the military intelligence agency Directorate General Forces Intelligence and he now lives in France where he is a refugee. He has written an article for Netra News about the censorship of a book he wrote critical of the country’s independence leader.

Earlier today he wrote a Facebook status concerning harassment which his family is facing in Bangladesh

With Pinaki's permission, we are publishing his Facebook

Yesterday, a group of policemen went to my father's residence in Bogura and interrogated my old mother and uncle. In Dhaka, another group of police, who said that they were from Mirpur Model Police Station, landed in our residence. After they failed to find my wife at home, one police officer called her up on her mobile yesterday and interrogated her.

During the interrogation in Bogura, the policemen sought to know if I own any property there, what I do in France, how I earn my living, or support my life, among other queries. They also took the contact details of many of my relatives.

The police officer, who called up my wife, asked her in which clinics or hospitals she worked as a doctor and if and how she maintained communication with me. The officer also said to my wife that he wanted to get some more info about me from her. However, because of poor connectivity the mobile conversation was disconnected halfway. I am sure, police will get back in touch with my wife again very soon and attempt to harass her.

I understand that the Bangladesh Police is trying to catch hold of me. But, why would they interrogate or harass the members of my family for that? I would like to tell the authorities, including the police, that if they want to get info about me they indeed have ways to reach me while I am in France. You may send a message to my Facebook inbox. Your embassy in France can reach me if you want. You may even contact the French government.

If you feel troubled with my activism, you may act against me, if you want. But my family members are in no way connected to my activism? Why are you harassing them? Are the family members of any activist harassed anywhere in the world the way as you are doing in Bangladesh? During the armed struggle, just before Bangladesh was born, the barbaric Pakistani forces kept the family members of the main leader of the Liberation War Sheikh Mujib safe.

I am a political refugee in France. I felt unsafe in Bangladesh and I left my country being scared of my life. I indeed have the right to raise my voice against enforced disappearances, cross-fire killings and other human rights violations perpetrated by the Awami League-led government. I have the political right to speak against the authoritarian rule of Sheikh Hasina. My voting rights have been robbed in Bangladesh- I have the right to be vocal against this. You have no right to stifle my voice. All my activities are in the interest of human rights. You are putting pressure on my family members in a mischievous manner to force me away from activism. This is persecution. This is unethical.

I hope the international community, including the human rights groups, will intervene to help my family stay safe in Bangladesh.

Authorities in Vietnam’s southern province of Dong Nai have arrested local resident Nguyen Quang Khai on the allegation of “Deliberate disclosure of classified information; appropriation, trading, destruction of classified documents” under Article 337 of the Criminal Code with potential imprisonment of between two and ten years.

According to the notice sent to his family dated October 21, the Security Investigation Agency of the Dong Nai province’s Police Department detained Mr. Khai in an urgent case for the act of copying and disseminating state secrets on his Facebook account Khai Nguyen.

Mr. Khai’s family said that the Dong Nai police detained him to a police station in the morning of October 20 for interrogation and kept him overnight. The next day, police came to his private residence and handed over a notice of arrest to his family. Currently, the 51-year-old freelance worker is held in a temporary detention facility under the authority of the province’s Police Department.

Mr. Khai’s wife has a small food outlet and he helps her run the facility. He often shares and comments on the statuses of other Facebookers, mostly focusing on the corruption of state officials at different levels. He has also participated in charity events to support vulnerable people in their locality.

It is unclear what information he has shared can be classified as state secret information.

Dozens of Vietnamese Facebookers have been arrested or convicted with lengthy imprisonment for their online posts since the communist regime passed the Cyber Security in early 2018, according to Defend the Defenders’ observation.

A march to Government House on Wednesday night ended with an arrest of a pro-democracy activist, just hours after PM Prayut Chan-o-cha said on a live address that everyone should “take a step back” from the brinks.

Patsaravalee “Mind” Tanakitvibulpon, 25, was arrested at a cafe near Victory Monument while she was on the way from a protest close to PM’s office, fellow activists said. Police said there was an outstanding warrant for her arrest. Patsaravalee was released on Thursday morning.

“This arrest does not make me afraid. This is an unlawful arrest,” Patsaravalee said as she was being taken away by police. “I know this is the government’s game.”

The arrest was made by Police Lt. Col. Suriyasak Jirawat, who said Patsaravalee was wanted with 11 other suspects for leading a protest on Oct. 15 at the Ratchaprasong Intersection. She was charged with violating the emergency decree.

When reached for comment on Thursday, Lt. Col. Suriyasak said he does not know if the 11 others have been arrested yet.

Patsaravalee was released without having to post for bail, since the Pathumwan Circuit Court said she was a student studying for her finals and therefore is not considered a flight risk.

Prior to her arrest, Patsaravalee was one of the activists who marched to Government House from the Victory Monument in a bid to demand PM Prayut’s resignation. The crowd dispersed without incidents after submitting an ultimatum that called upon Gen. Prayut to resign within three days, or face another round of protests.

In a speech broadcast live on TV Thursday night, Prayut said the government is willing to make a compromise, but added that the protests should stop and let the Parliament debate their grievances.

“The only way to a lasting solution for all sides that is fair for those on the streets as well as for the many millions who choose not to go on the streets is to discuss and resolve these differences through the parliamentary process,” he said.

But Pannika Wanich, a co-leader of the opposition group called Progresive Movement, said an arrest of a student activist just after Prayut’s speech showed the government was being insincere.

“I thought you said we should take a step back and discuss in the Parliament instead. The PM’s words are just empty mouth air,” Panniwa tweeted. “You are stepping into and infringing on citizens’ rights.”

Prominent land rights defenders from the Southern Peasant Federation of Thailand (SPFT), Surat Thani Province, have faced another attempted murder and series of threats to life from intense land disputes that pitched communal peasant communities against the multinational companies and State agencies.

The latest threat occurred in the early morning of 20 October 2020, at about 01.00 am. Members of the SPFT reported the incident that in Santi Pattana Community a man believed to be employed by the company, Mr. Sompon Chimruang, pointed a firearm at the head of Mr. Dam Onmuang member of Santi Pattana community and attempted to kill him. Mr. Dam however avoided the shot causing the bullet to miss. The gunman Sompon Chimruang escaped by driving away.

7:30 am on 20 October 2020, Mr. Dam Onmuang and members of the Santi Pattana Community travelled to Bang Sawan Police Station in Bang Sawan Sub District, Phra Sang District, Surat Thani Province, to file a complaint on the attempted murder.

The police have gone to the scene while Mr. Sompon traveled to surrender himself at Bang Sawan Police Station.The police are trying to mediate the case between both parties.

The Southern Peasants Federation of Thailand (SPFT) was officially formed in 2008. The SPFT is an umbrella organisation comprised of 5 communities that inhabit and cultivate public land while advocating for land reform and self-determination over natural resources. The SPFT has repeatedly faced serious human rights violations: members have been murdered, attacked, threatened and criminalized.

Over the past ten years, Women / Human Rights Defenders of the SPFT have encountered different types of violence, including assassination, forcible eviction, arbitrary arrest and detention, destruction of properties and crops, intimidation, and judicial harassment. All communities reported that they have been threatened by unidentified armed groups which the community members believe are connected to some extent to palm oil companies, local influential groups and other business sectors. Apart from intimidation such as random gunfire into communities at night, destruction of houses and crops, and trespass by local influential groups with soldiers, four members of Klong Sai Pattana Community have already been assassinated, two of whom were women.

On 20 October 2020, the Court of Appeal in Phnom Penh denied the bail motion against the detention of three human rights defenders from Mother Nature Cambodia; Thun Ratha, Long Kunthea and Phoung Keorasmey. They were charged with “incitement to commit a felony or social unrest” on 6 September 2020. The charge is based on information they shared on social media about their plans to organise a one-woman march to the Prime Minister’s house to raise environmental concerns over the filling in of the Boeung Tamoke lake in Phnom Penh. The defenders are currently under pre-trial detention at Phnom Penh's Correctional Centres 1 and 2.

Two key student activists were freed on bail last night only to be immediately detained again.

Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul and Parit “Penguin” Chiwarak were taken to the Border Police Bureau Region 1 in Pathum Thani province and, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, face another three to four charges each. The movement had demanded the release of all those detained last night, teasing a “big surprise” that turned out to be nothing more than a provocation to keep security forces on their toes.

At 10am this morning, protest organizer Free Youth was teasing the public again, this time that noon would bring an “important announcement.” The group also vowed “no tricks” this time.

While unprecedented displays of anger toward the monarchy have been displayed in the street, movement leaders maintain that they simply want reforms of the institution.

“The people’s demands are not to overthrow, but to offer a solution that brings Thailand back to a democracy where the kings are truly under the constitution,” Free Youth wrote this morning via Telegram.

One of their primary targets – Prime Minister Gen. Prayuth Chan-o-cha – said yesterday that the government’s primary responsibility is to “protect the monarchy.”

As to the controversial order for Voice TV to shut down, Prayuth asked the police to reconsider. However, he said any media agency found to spread “fake news” or have bad intentions should be censored.

Yesterday’s “big surprise” at 6pm was a fake out, but pro-democracy supporters at 6pm flashed three-finger salutes, sang the national anthem and denounced feudalism at BTS stations throughout the capital.

The country’s oldest hospital, Siriraj, announced that it would treat every patient equally and without discrimination “regardless of their political stance.” Its statement came days after police in full riot gear shot water cannons – believed to be mixed with a chemical irritant – to disperse the crowd on Friday.

With nearly 400 doctors nationwide signing in a joint statement demanding the authorities refrain from violence, at least one doctor was fired from Mongkutwattana General Hospital with the hospital’s director reasoning they he doesn’t tolerate employees “allied with the king’s enemies.”

The Criminal Court today ordered broadcaster Voice TV to halt all online operations after finding it guilty of computer crimes and violating the state of emergency.

The court made its ruling, which affects the independent broadcaster’s website and social media, based on evidence presented by the Digital Economy and Society Ministry, according to ministry official Putchapong Nodthaisong.

“Its Facebook page will be closed within 3 to 4 days. There is no specific date,” he said, citing a provision that service providers must page content that is deemed to instigate the public.

He said the ruling only applied to online because broadcast was the purview of state telecom regulators.

“Television is the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission’s responsibility, so they have authority to revoke the license.”

Voice TV at 1:30pm said it had yet to receive the order and defended its commitment to fairness and a free press.

“Throughout 11 years, Voice TV has been a media outlet that upholds democratic values,” the station said via Facebook. “We openly, transparently provide a space for the public, and we are responsible to report every fact from all sides … We demand the authorities involved exercise their power fairly.”

Voice TV, founded by a son of an ousted prime minister, is a frequent target of the military-backed regime and has been ordered to cease broadcasting in the past. On Monday, it was one of four agencies the police ordered investigated and shut down in the face of swelling protests across the nation against the government.

Putchapong weighed in with his opinion that the channel had violated the emergency decree, put in place over the capital Thursday, because its broadcast persuaded people to join the mass gatherings.

The government has refused to back down in the face of protests it has been unable to contain and has moved to muzzle coverage it does not deem favorable.

Yesterday, police ordered that four news agencies – Prachathai, The Reporters, The Standard and Voice TV – be investigated and shut down, as well as the page of main student activist group Free Youth. However, today’s court ruling only applies to Voice TV.

Yesterday, a number of media associations lodged formal protests against the move.

A group of slogan-raising men had assembled outside the residence of lawyer Deepika Singh Rajawat in Jammu late on Tuesday night, a day after a cartoon she posted on micro-blogging site Twitter stirred controversy.

Rajawat, who received limelight for representing the victim’s family in Kathua rape and murder case in 2018, told NewsClick that a mob gathered outside her accommodation, raised slogans and gave her death threat by chanting “Deepika teri kabar khudegi, Jammu Kashmir ki dharti pe (Deepika your grave will be dug in the land of Jammu and Kashmir).”

Narrating the sequence of events, Rajawat said that it was 12.30 am in the night when she heard few men shouting her name. “I was scared to death. I alerted my PSOs and phoned IG Jammu who responded immediately and sent police who later cleared the mob,” she said.

The cartoon posted by Rajawat, with a caption “Irony,” juxtaposed two paradoxical scenes: in one scene, a man touching feet of a female Hindu deity during the nine-day Hindu festival of Navratri; in the other scene, with the header “Other Days,” the same man is aggressively holding both legs of a woman, depicting sexual violence.

The cartoon was accused of hurting Hindu religious sentiments resulting in a section of social media users demanding Rajawat’s arrest. Since then, as per Rajawat, she and her family have been receiving calls threatening her to remove the cartoon and tender an apology.

“Don’t rapes happen? If they can prove that rapes don’t happen in India then I will tender a public apology. I have also not removed the cartoon as it was not meant to hurt religious sentiments but to highlight the hypocrisy of the society towards women,” Rajawat said.

Rajawat personally identified the mob as related to right-wing Hindu groups and said that it was an attempt to silence her. “At that time, I felt like Gauri Lankesh. Her image kept crossing my mind. I was shivering,” the lawyer said. Gauri Lankesh, a journalist known to be critical of the right-wing and accused of “outraging the sentiments of Hindus”, was shot dead by bike-borne assailant outsider her residence on September 5, 2017.

Much solidarity with Rajawat has also poured in from several sections including Bollywood actors, directors, lawyers, and opposition leaders who are tweeting using the hashtag #IStandWithDeepikaRajawat.

In 2018, Rajaswat faced a similar backlash when she took up the case of a minor Bakarwal girl who was raped and murdered in Kathua. She was then accused of being “anti-Hindu.” Later, the victim’s family had removed her from the case by accusing her of “not attending the court proceedings.”

Rajawat believes that she has been targeted for being vocal against policies of the present government. “They wanted to threaten to silence me as I am vocal against the Modi government and its policies.”

In Jammu, which has a prominent presence of right wing politics, it has become risky to voice dissent, especially after the abrogation of Article 370 last year. Last month, a young man popular as the Mask Man was taken away by the police and was released after being questioned for hours after he silently held a placard questioning the government and its promises.

Police have opened a case against four students who were arrested on October 19 after staging a protest against the government and military in the Arakan State capital Sittwe.

“Police have opened a case against them under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code for committing sedition and causing public disturbances,” said lawyer U Kyaw Nyint Maung.

Section 505(b) criminalises statements “likely to cause fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public, whereby any person may be induced to commit an offence against the State or against the public tranquility.” It carries with it a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Police Major Zaw Naing of the Sittwe Township Police filed a complaint against them on Tuesday and a court hearing is scheduled for November 3.

Dozens of people joined Monday’s protest, which was organised by the Arakan Students’ Union.

Prosecuting student protesters is no way to address their grievances, said the chairman of the Sittwe University Students Union, Ko Toe Toe Aung.

“Those who are doing the prosecuting should be aware that people have voiced criticisms because they [the targets of protest] are doing wrong. If they were not doing anything wrong, we wouldn’t need to stage protests and end up in police stations and prisons,” he said.

Two of the four detained students are also facing lawsuits under the Peaceful Assembly and Procession Law for staging a demonstration against alleged human rights violations in Arakan State in early September.

Recently, two students from the All Burma Federation of Student Unions who staged an anti-war protest in Mandalay were each sentenced to a total of five years in prison and have another court hearing scheduled for October 21.

Beginning in September, more than a dozen people have seen charges brought against them under the Peaceful Assembly Law, the Natural Disaster Management Law and the Penal Code for staging demonstrations against armed conflict, human rights abuses and internet restrictions in Arakan State.

The 17 October protests: 8 people were arrested. 6 were charged in Bangkok and taken for questioning at the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters in Pathum Thani. 1 was charged over his participation in a 22 August protest in Ubon Ratchathani, and another was charged and questioned at Pattaya Police Station for violating the Computer Crimes Act.

A journalist working with The Caravan magazine was on Friday allegedly assaulted by a senior police officer in North Delhi and detained for nearly four hours while he was reporting on protests against the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl in the area.

“Today [Friday] afternoon, the Delhi Police assaulted The Caravan India’s staffer Ahan Penkar while he was reporting,” the magazine tweeted. “ACP [Assistant Commissioner of Police] Ajay Kumar kicked and slapped Penkar inside the Model Town station premises. Penkar repeatedly told the police that he was a journalist and prominently displayed his press ID.”

However, the deputy commissioner of police, North West Delhi, on Saturday said that Penkar was seen protesting and was detained, after which he had said he was a journalist. The police have sent him a notice on the matter.

Penkar was reporting on a protest concerning the alleged rape and murder of a teenager in North Delhi, the magazine added. “Students and activists had gathered outside the Model Town police station to demand the registration of an FIR in the case,” it said. Caravan also shared a photo of the injuries on Penkar’s back.

Penkar later submitted a complaint to Delhi Commissioner of Police SN Srivastava. The journalist said that he saw a group of people gathered around the police station, demanding that the police file an FIR in the rape case.

Penkar said he was speaking to the 14-year-old girl’s aunt when the police began taking the protestors inside the station. He held up his press card and kept repeating that he was reporting the news, but the police took him inside too.

The journalist said that the police forcibly took his phone from him and deleted all the videos that he had recorded while reporting. “The police was abusing us the whole time and threatening us,” Penkar said in his complaint. “After a little time, the ACP Ajay Kumar came into the room holding a steel rod and threatened to beat us with the rod.”

Penkar added that Kumar kicked him in the face, back and shoulders. He also said that the police officer stamped on his ankle and threatened to register a case against him and others. The journalist added that he also saw the police beat up a Muslim man and a Sikh boy. He demanded an FIR against the police officers who assaulted him.

In August, three journalists from magazine were attacked by a mob in North East Delhi’s Subhash Mohalla neighbourhood while they were reporting on a story.

Journalists Prabhjit Singh, Shahid Tantray and their colleague were covering communal tensions that broke out in the area on the night of August 5, following the foundation-laying ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. In his complaint to the police, Singh said that had he not intervened, Tantray would have been beaten to death by the mob since he was a Muslim.

At a meeting organised by the Press Club of India on August 13, the journalists said that the Delhi Police had been helpless and scared of the mob.

Several journalists’ organisations had expressed outrage over the attack on Singh, Tantray and their colleague and demanded a first information report against the accused. The Editors Guild of India called the attack on the journalists “reprehensible” and demanded that the police take quick action against the guilty.

Police in full riot gear have used water cannons to crackdown on thousands of protesters gathering at the Pathumwan Intersection, defying the ban on mass gatherings imposed during the severe state of emergency.

The protest, which was scheduled to begin at 17.00 on 16 October, was originally planned to take place at the Ratchaprasong Intersection, where a mass protest also took place yesterday (15 October) following the crackdown on the protest at the Government House in the early morning of 15 October.

However, by 15.00, police officers have already set up barriers at the Ratchaprasong Intersection and the Pratunam Intersection, blocking off the area. They also blocked smaller streets and stopped pedestrians and vehicles from going into the area.

Police officers also raided the offices of the Progressive Movement, a group formed by banned members of the now-dissolved Future Forward Party, during Piyabutr Saengkanokkul’s press conference.

At 16.30, police in full riot gear were seen lining up at the Ratchaprasong Intersection, blocking off traffic. Officers carrying batons were also seen near the police headquarters.

The student activist group Free Youth then announced that the protest will be moving to the Pathumwan Intersection.

By 17.00, protesters have already occupied half of the intersection, and Phayathai Road was closed from the MBK shopping centre towards the Ratchatewi BTS Station.

Prior to the protest, the BTS Sky Train announced that the Ratchatewi Station and Ratchadamri Station have been closed. After the location change, the Siam Station and the National Stadium Station were also closed. The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority also announced that all public bus and van will not be traveling close to the protest area and will not stop at any stop within the 5-kilometre radius of the Ratchaprasong Intersection. The Samyan MRT Station was also later closed.

At 18.50, as it began to rain heavily, police officers in full riot gears moved into the area near the Siam BTS Station and fired water cannons at the protesters, as well as pushing into them with their shields. There were reports that the water contained chemical irritants and was stained blue with long-lasting paint, as well as reports of the police using a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD).

On Phayathai Road, a large crowd of protesters, many of whom were high school students in uniforms, ran out from the Pathumwan Intersection and into the nearby Chulalongkorn University, where the student group Nisit Chula Party have designated a safe zone and have been on standby in case of a crackdown. Student representatives stood by the gates with megaphones telling protesters to come inside the campus.

People gathered at the Faculty of Political Science, where student volunteers and several lecturers were handing out bottles of water and organizing people into groups so they can leave through the nearest gate to the closest BTS and MRT stations. They also provided ammonia and water for people who got sprayed with the blue paint to clean themselves, as well as handing out shirts for them to change.

At 18.57, police officers were ordered to drop their shield and arrest the protesters. There were also reports of officers preparing use tear gas on the protesters.

At 19.20, the police reportedly used tear gas in the Siam BTS Station area, according to a nearby Prachatai reporter and an observer from iLaw, who said they were hit with some kind of chemical irritant. A reporter from PPTV who was doing a live broadcast nearby also said that they felt some irritation on their face and in their eyes, and that the water the police fired at the protesters may have some chemical mixed in.

At 21.05, the police ordered all protesters and reporters to leave the Pathumwan Intersection area or be arrested. Five minutes later, they were firing water cannon at protesters on the Rama 1 side of the intersection and moving towards the National Stadium BTS Station.

At 22.25, shield-carrying officers marched to the Hua Chang bridge, near the Ratchatewi BTS Station, where a group of people are still gathering and announced that everyone must leave in 20 minutes. However, at 22.30, police officers fired water cannon at the group. Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) also reported there was an announcement for the protesters, who were pushed back to the Ratchatewi Intersection, to be arrested.

TLHR also said that officers were running after protesters who ran into Soi Phaya Nak and arresting them, and that they also arrested a number of protesters closest to the police line.

At 23.15, traffic resumed at the Pathumwan Intersection.

TLHR said that at least 12 protesters were arrested during the 16 October crackdown and were brought to the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters in Pathum Thani, including student activist Tattep Ruangprapaikitseree, a leading member of Free Youth, activist Anurak “Ford” Jentawanich, and Prachatai reporter Kitti Pantapak.

One of those arrested was an employee at a restaurant near Hua Chang Bridge. He was arrested at around 22.00 and also taken to the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters.

Under the severe state of emergency, the government imposed a ban on gatherings of more than five people, allows state officials to arrest people and detain them for 30 days without informing them of the charges against them, and banned the publication of information that “could create fear,” affect national security, or damage public morale.

The protest organisers issued a statement condemning the use of force against the protesters, and announced that there will be another demonstration on Saturday (17 October) at 16.00 at a location that is still unspecified.

The Thai authorities have issued an order under the Emergency Decree for the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) to investigate and possibly suspend four online media outlets: Voice TV, Prachatai, The Reporters, and The Standard, as well as the Facebook page of the student activist group Free Youth, for their coverage of the recent protests in Thailand.

The order, dated 16 October 2020, was issued by police chief Pol Gen Suwat Chaengyodsuk, who was appointed the chief official in the severe state of emergency, and states that “it appears that there was a broadcasting of content that affects state security, peace and order, or the good morals of the people”, and that the NBTC and the DES have been ordered to investigate and to stop the broadcasting or order the removal of such content.

However, as of 9.50 on 19 October, the order had yet to be published on the Royal Gazette website.

The Reporters reported at 10.40 today (19 October) that DES Minister Puttipong Punnakanta confirmed that there was an order for the Ministry to investigate the four media outlets and the Free Youth Facebook page.

Puttipong also said that he has tasked the DES Permanent Secretary with pressing charges against social media users who have broken the law between 14 – 18 October 2020, and that the DES is investigating at least 300,000 URLs.

At 12.36, The Reporters reported again that DES Deputy Permanent Secretary Putchapong Nodthaisong said that the Ministry has already requested a court warrant and is ready to shut down any media outlet that violates the Emergency Decree if it receives an order. He also said that the Ministry may request to check an outlet’s equipment, suspend it, or confiscate its equipment, but whether a journalist reporting the content in question would also face charges has to be decided based on the journalist’s intention.

However, assistant national police chief Pol Lt Gen Jaruwat Waisaya told the Reporters that the order to investigate the media outlets mentioned above is not currently enforced, but that the police have asked the NBTC and the DES to investigate some of the content published by Voice TV, Prachatai, The Reporters, The Standard, and Free Youth’s Facebook page, as there was a complaint that these outlets published content that affected national security, peace and order, or the good morals of the people. He claimed that the authorities are not trying to obstruct press freedom or shutting down media outlets, but are only notifying relevant agencies to investigate information that could violate the Emergency Decree.

The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT) issued a statement this morning (19 October) expressing concern about the order to investigate the media outlets and the threat to suspend these outlets.

“A free media is an essential element in any democratic society, and bona fide journalists should be allowed to report important developments without the threat of bans, suspensions, censorship or prosecution hanging over them,” says the statement, which also criticized the use of national security as a justification for such threat as “overly broad, and can easily be abused to silence reporting that is accurate but makes the government uncomfortable.”

The statement also says that such move is “likely to be ineffective and counterproductive in an age of social media” and that “it makes the government appear heavy-handed and unresponsive to criticism, and could stir up even more public anger.

“The professional membership of the FCCT urges the Thai authorities to reconsider censorship of media reporting, and drop the threats made against these particular media organisations,” concludes the statement.

The editorial board of Thai Enquirer, another Thai online media outlet, also issued a statement saying that “instead of dialogue, opening up discussion and press, the government has chosen to embrace its authoritarian roots and censor, shutdown, and intimidate journalists working to present the news” and called on the authorities to “rescind the gag order immediately and to engage in dialogue with the press, the opposition and the people.”

By 18 October, 81 protestors, activists, guards, students and truck drivers have been arrested in connection with pro-democracy protests, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR).

TLHR records that as of 12.00 on 18 Oct, 80 people had been arrested and 1 more was added to the count after a voice amplifier truck driver was arrested later that night as he returned from the protest at Victory Monument. He was charged the next morning and his voice amplifier equipment and truck were seized.

76 have been charged, 27 are currently in temporary detention and 8 are still in police custody.

The 16 October protest at Pathum Wan intersection where the police dispersed protesters using riot control and high-pressure water cannon: 12 were officially arrested including a Prachatai reporter, Kitti Pantapak, whose Facebook live report was interrupted as police grabbed his device. Kitti was released with 300 baht fine for defying a police order.

Another 3 were arrested and/or charged on 16 October for an incident on 14 October. Boonkueanoon Paothong and Ekkachai Hongkangwan were charged with harming Her Majesty the Queen's liberty under Section 110 of the Criminal Code. They were accused of blocking the Queen’s royal procession. Another was Somyot Prueksakasemsuk for his participation in the 19 September protest.

Somyot and Ekkachai, former lèse majesté prisoners, were denied bail and remanded at the Bangkok Remand Prison. Boonkueanoon was allow bail.

After police dispersed the protest at Government House earlier this morning (15 October), over 20 protesters, including several protest leaders, have been arrested.

According to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), at least 27 known protesters have now been arrested after police invaded the protest site outside Government House and a severe state of emergency was declared this morning.

This includes protest leaders Anon Nampa, Prasit Karutarote, Parit Chiwarak, Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul, and Nutchanon Pairoj, along with 22 others.

As of 14.50, 4 people have already been released, including photographer Karnt Thassanaphak, who was taken to the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters, and 3 civilians who were taken to Chanasongkhram Police Station.

Karnt was arrested alongside Parit at around 04.30 while he and Parit were in his car with two other students at the Nang Loeng Intersection. He said that a group of officers surrounded the car and, after presenting the arrest warrant, took Parit and the two students away in a van. The officers then searched Karnt and his car, and escorted him to the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters in his own car.

Anon and Prasit, who were arrested on charges relating to an earlier demonstration in Chiang Mai, were reportedly taken by police aircraft without their lawyer and were expected to be brought to Chiang Mai. TLHR said that onboard were 5 officers from Provincial Police Region 5, 2 pilots, 2 mechanics, and officers from the Crime Suppression Division.

At 15.00, they arrived at the Wing 41 air force base in Chiang Mai, but it is not clear where they will be taken next.

Parit, Panusaya, and Nutchanon were arrested on charges relating to a demonstration at Thammasat University and are still in custody.

Panusaya and Nutchanon were arrested at 08.45 at their accommodation in Khao San Road, after Panusaya read out the People’s Party statement on the crackdown at 07.00.

After being presented with an arrest warrant, Panusaya tore the warrant and she and Nutchanon sat down on the floor in an act of resistance. The officers then put them into wheelchairs and took them to the Border Patrol Police Region 1 headquarters.

18 other civilians are also still being detained at the same headquarters.

There are reports that many protesters were arrested at the protest site at the Misakawan intersection they had left and were on their way to their accommodation near the area.

Contrary to reports from earlier in the day, student activist Panupong Jadnok has not been arrested.

Parit, Anon, Prasit, and Panusaya were charged with sedition, among other charges, while the other 18 people were charged with violating the Emergency Decree.

Under the severe state of emergency, gatherings of five or more people are banned and state officials may arrest people without first informing them of their charges. The order also bans the publication of information that “could create fear,” affect national security, or damage public morale.

The government claimed that the protesters “invited and incited illegal public assemblies in Bangkok” and that they intercepted a royal motorcade and committed actions that affect national security, and therefore “an urgent measure” is necessary to control the situation and “maintain peace and order.”

Tattep Ruangprapaikitseree, a leading member of the student activist group Free Youth and one of the few protest leaders still free, said that the situation is almost no different from a coup and called for people to join the protest at 16.00 at the Ratchaprasong intersection.

Ming Yu Hah, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Campaigns, also issued a statement saying that the “vague, drastic order” will lead to more unfair arrests, detentions, and prosecutions, and that the scale of the morning’s arrests “seems completely unjustified” as yesterday’s protest was “overwhelmingly peaceful.”

The statement also noted that the order was “clearly designed to stamp out dissent and sow fear in anyone who sympathizes with the protesters’ views,” and called for the immediate and unconditional release of the arrested protesters and for those arrested to have access to legal counsel.

“These arrests and sudden emergency measures, announced in the middle of the night, are just the latest escalation in Thailand’s current onslaught on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” said the statement.

“Instead of ruling by decree and mass arrests, the Thai authorities must reverse course. They must comply with their international obligations to respect the rights of anyone who simply wishes to peacefully speak their mind, on social media or in the streets.”

Charles Santiago, Malaysian MP and Chair of the ASEAN Parliamentarian for Human Rights (APHR), also said “This emergency decree issued by Thai authorities is nothing but an excuse to shut down the peaceful protests that have swept across the country in recent months. The thousands that have taken to the streets in Bangkok, and nationwide, have done so peacefully, and are fully entitled to raise concerns about the current state of democracy in Thailand.

“Instead of introducing measures to end the protests, and arresting its leaders, Thai authorities should listen to the concerns those demonstrating are raising. They might find that their suggestions could benefit the entire country, and not merely a select few, as Thailand’s politics has done for so long.”

Political activist Jatupat "Pai Daodin" Boonpatararaksa who was detained along with 20 others during Tuesday's anti-government protest at Democracy Monument will remain in police custody after the Criminal Court yesterday approved a police request to detain him for 12 more days while investigating his alleged "wrongdoing".

He was yesterday brought from the Border Patrol Police Region 1's headquarters in Pathum Thani, where he was detained the previous night, to the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road.

He was arrested on Tuesday when he and other protesters set up tents in front of a McDonald's restaurant close to Democracy Monument on Ratchadamnoen Avenue and Satriwithaya School, where His Majesty the King was to pass by in a royal motorcade heading to the Grand Palace, where royal ceremonies were to be held to mark the fourth anniversary of the passing of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej The Great.

Mr Jatupat and his group's refusal to make way for the motorcade prompted police to arrest him and other protest co-leaders.

Mr Jatupat faces 12 charges in connection with Tuesday's protest, while 19 other co-leaders and protesters are facing 10 charges, said Kritsadang Nutcharat, a lawyer from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.

The two additional charges Mr Jatupat faces are leading or ordering a gathering of more than 10 people causing public unrest, and jointly organising a public gathering without securing permission from authorities as required under the public gathering law, said the lawyer.

Mr Jatupat and the 19 other protesters are facing 10 other charges as well, including resisting orders by security authorities, using loudspeakers without permission, colluding to obstruct traffic, and violating public cleanliness.

Political activist Jatupat “Pai Dao Din” Boonpatararaksa was detained along with 20 others during Tuesday’s anti-government protest at the Democracy Monument. The veteran dissident will continue to be held in custody after the Criminal Court on Wednesday approved a police request to further detain him for 12 days while investigating his alleged misconduct.

Mr Jatupat is facing 12 charges in connection with Tuesday’s protest, while 19 others are facing 10 charges, said Kritsadang Nutcharat, a lawyer from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.

The activist was brought from the headquarters of the Border Patrol Police Region 1 in Pathum Thani, where he was detained the previous night, to the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road on Wednesday.

One protester is yet to be charged because police first need to complete a process required under the Youth Act in dealing with an underaged criminal suspect, said the lawyer.

The two additional charges Mr Jatupat is facing are leading or ordering a gathering of more than 10 people that caused public unrest, and jointly organising a public gathering without securing permission from authorities as required under the public gathering law, said the lawyer.

The other ten charges levelled at Mr Jatupat and the other 19 protesters are: colluding to gather in a group of more than 10 people, colluding to cause public unrest, colluding to organise an activity that risks spreading a communicable disease, colluding to obstruct public thoroughfares, colluding to obstruct traffic, violating the law on public cleanliness, colluding to physically assault others, colluding to damage property, resisting orders by security authorities, and using loudspeakers without permission.

Anti-government protesters settled into their new camp on Phitsanulok Road, outside Government House, on Wednesday night after police gave up trying to stop their march.

Thousands of anti-government protesters walked to Government House from the Democracy Monument in the afternoon, to press their demands for the departure of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and a new constitution.

They were briefly halted by police barricades, but when they insisted on moving forward, police finally backed off.

"Down with dictatorship. Long live democracy," the marchers chanted as they moved off from Democracy Monument, where they had assembled face to face with thousands of yellow clad royalist supporters.

The protesters walked from the Democracy Monument on Ratchdamneon Avenue to Government House via Nakhon Sawan Road as police blocked them from marching on Ratchadamnoen Nok Avenue.

Human rights lawyer Anon Nampha and other protest leaders promised there would be no violence during the rally.

Yellow-clad people had gathered along Ratchadamnoen Avenue, waiting for the motorcade of His Majesty the King, who was to go to the Grand Palace in the afternoon for a religious ceremony.

The protesters were blocked by four police buses at the end of Nakhon Sawan Road, in front of the Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives office. The demonstrators in the front line started trying to push one of the buses out of the way, so they could continue. Their leaders told them to stop and to show restraint.

They then sat down along Nakhon Sawan Road waiting for the next move from their leaders.

Police later allowed them to move forward, and then set up a new barrier on Phitsanulok Road, closer to Government House.

The protesters insisted on moving forward and police eventually decided to let them go, by moving backwards.

A march leader said they planned to camp out on Phitsanulok Road, outside Government House.

The protest was organised by the "Khana Ratsadorn” (the People's Group), formerly known as the Free People movement.

Because the protesters moved off from Ratchadamneon Avenue, police cleared away traffic, and yellow-shirted people had a chance to glimpse the royal motorcade of HM the King as it went from Ambara Villa in Dusit Palace to the Grand Palace for a religious function.

City Hall workers restored plants at the Democracy Monument that had been moved by the protesters during their gathering there before the march.

The demonstration is the latest in three months of action that have put the greatest pressure in years on the establishment, long dominated by the army and the palace.

Reporters Chitra Mijar, Anish Tiwari and Niroj Chaulagain were misbehaved while reporting in Sindhupalchowk on October 13. Sidhupalchowk lies in Bagmati Province.

Mijar and Tiwari are affiliated to Gorkhapatra and Kantipur National dailies respecively, while Chaulagain is associated with AP1 television.

Talking to Freedom Forum's monitoring desk, reporter Tiwari shared,"We were talking to the families who were forcefully displaced after a hydropower project started road construction without their consent. Meanwhile, a group of youth approached and shouted at us saying - Is this what you called journalism! Don't you have to listen to us?"

The reporters then talked to the youth and collected the voice of both sides.

"But again the youths in a group of 20-25 encircled us for at least two hours while we were heading towards the project site. Thereafter, we returned without reporting at the hydropower project site", said Tiwari. The youths had also threatened the driver for carrying journalists and vandalized their vehicle.

Further, claiming that people threatened and obstructed them while doing their job, Tiwari wondered, "Do we even have the right to report freely?"

They have also filed a complaint at the local police station. The case is under investigation.

Freedom Forum condemns the misbehavior meted out to the reporters. Reporting on the issues of public concern is the right of journalists guaranteed by the constitution. Hence, FF strongly urges the concerned authority to apologize for the misbehavior and respect journalists' rights.