Facebook fan page of Thai independent news site blocked by government; two other websites shut down
The Facebook fan page of independent Thai online news site Prachatai.com was blocked today [28 April] by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT), along with two other websites in the aftermath of the clash between security forces and Red Shirt protesters on 27 April, according to Chiranuch Premchaiporn, Prachatai's executive director. The fan page has 5,798 fans.
Chiranuch said that the Thai-language news site can still be accessed through http://clicks.aweber.com/y/ct/?l=MM9YV&m=1b_1.ywxnDKXin&b=.uYSyu8KABMXeA... while its English-language version, www.prachatai.org requires a proxy server.
The original Prachatai website was ordered shut down by the government a day after Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva placed Bangkok and nearby provinces under a state of emergency on 7 April.
Chiranuch said that another news website, www.springnewstv.com,which also provides news content to several satellite TV channels, was also blocked after it reportedly ran a video clip of the 27 April violent confrontation between soldiers and policemen and Red Shirt protesters in Vibhavadi-Rangsit Highway in the capital's outskirts. One soldier was killed while eight protesters were injured.
A video-sharing website, www.vimeo.com, was also shut down, apparently for running video footages of the said clash.
Comments
In an odd and perhaps
In an odd and perhaps contrarian way, I think it is actually helpful that Abhisit and his imps have gone on a censorship spree and tried to stifle contrary opinion at all costs. But not helpful to Abhisit.
This is because of all the things that Abhisit has done and all the lies he has told, this action more than any other gives the lie to any talk he may care to make about democracy.
I suspect it is this action which has caused many foreign governments not to believe a word the man says about anything.
And I can quite understand why.
We are living behind the
We are living behind the "iron curtain" here in Thailand at present. Who'd have thought the country could deteriorate so quickly?
I certainly hope the parliament is dissolved and that a new election, with international monitors watching the entire process, can install a de jure government soon. Who knows... it might be the Democrats? I'd personally bet against them at this point.
If this de facto regime does bathe the capital in blood they will have forever disgraced and disbanded themselves.
"Anonymous" above echoes my
"Anonymous" above echoes my own thoughts. Add to the censorship the fact that he also put his name to that - what shall we best call it? - inventive anti-monarchy conspiracy chart and you wonder which among those foreign governments view him as having any credibility left.
Not to mention FM Kasit's condemnation of all and sundry from Interpol through named countries for them providing zero cooperation against Thaksin aka "that bloody terrorist". This week, Russia's FM even went so far as to summon Thailand's ambassador to receive a formal protest about Kasit's outburst.