Junta orders rights group to cancel press freedom briefing, 2 ex-ministers summoned

A German rights group said on Thursday that it has been ordered by Thailand’s junta to cancel a briefing on the health of the kingdom’s media landscape, in a growing clampdown on freedom of expression.

The ban came as two former ministers from the ousted government of former premier Yingluck Shinawatra were summoned by the military, which is escalating its campaign to crush dissent since seizing power last May.

The Friedrich Ebert Foundation said military officers had ordered them not to hold a briefing at a Bangkok hotel on Friday – part of a series of annual reports looking at the challenges journalists face in different Asian nations. “It’s true, sadly. We were initially told over the phone and then the military went to the hotel and told them that we weren’t allowed to hold the event,” an employee of the foundation, who asked to remain anonymous, told AFP. “We have released these reports every year for many years and have not had a problem until now.”

No junta officials were immediately available for comment.

Story: AFP



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