My following article appears in today’s Guardian Australia: Politicians and journalists ignore public opinion at their peril. Less than two weeks after the explosive revelations by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden on the creation of a privatised,… American surveillance apparatus, a TIME poll finds a majority of… Americans support the leak, and… Snowden receives a…
Showing all posts tagged Thailand
Think before you travel to “paradise”
Ethical tourism is an issue that rarely permeates the mainstream media (hello New York Times). Congrats to Reporters Without Borders for launching “Censorship Paradise” about three nations regularly visited, Thailand, Mexico and Vietnam. More here: Reporters Without Borders is launching a new awareness campaign today, one aimed at drawing the attention of holidaymakers to free…
The hammer approach
Wikileaks has released the secret internet censorship lists of Thailand’s Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (MICT). The list was obtained by advisory board member CJ Hinke, director of Freedom Against Censorship Thailand. The 1,203 newly blocked websites are located in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy,…
Slam God and pay a price
Internet censorship is an insidious practice, better suited to dictatorships. Welcome Thailand: Reporters Without Borders condemns the Thai information ministry’s decision at the start of the month to spend up to 12 million euros on creating an Internet firewall to filter out websites deemed guilty of lese-majeste. “The Thai government’s desire to control online content…
The authoritarian impulse
When will quasi-democratic governments learn that blocking websites isn’t a way to please the people (or increase their rule?) Thailand’s Information and Communications Technology Ministry sought court orders yesterday to shut down about 400 websites and advised internet service providers to block 1,200 sites it considers a danger to national security or disturbing social order.
Welcome to a dictatorial democracy
Blocking internet freedom of speech in Thailand (yet another friendly US ally in the Asia.)
How not to rule a country
Wikileaks reveals the reality of web life under Thailand’s former military rulers: The January 11, 2007 official blocklist contains 13,435 websites, an increase of more than 500% over the 2,475 sites blocked by MICT’s 13 October 2006 list, compiled following Thailand’s military coup d’etat on 19 September. In addition to this figure, the Royal Thai…
How may we help your despotic tendencies?
Yet more evidence that Google’s YouTube is happily censoring videos to keep authoritarian governments happy. Thailand, welcome to your new reality.