Prachatai English

Independent, non-profit, daily web newspaper established in June 2004 FCEM has 6 board members to look after the projects under FCEM, including Prachatai.

Prachatai (prachatai.com or prachatai.org) is an alternative, non-profit, daily web newspaper established in June 2004 to provide reliable and relevant news and information to the Thai public during an era of serious curbs on the freedom and independence of Thai news media. Prachatai was established by a group of concerned Thais who included a senior member of the Press Council of Thailand, a well

-known lecturer in Journalism, two members of the Thai Senate, a number of senior journalists, and a number of Thai NGO leaders. Prachatai Objectives

- To provide the Thai public with access to reliable news and information relevant to developing and strengthening the democratic functions of Thai civil society.
- To focus news coverage on the problems, concerns, activities and accomplishments of local communities and civil society movements and organisations.
- To strive for freedom and independence of Thai news media.
- To promote active public participation in Thai news media. Since January 2006 Prachatai has been registered as a Thai non-profit foundation, named The Foundation for Community educational Media(FCEM). Prachatai has a management team consisting of 4 senior staff, the management team is in charge for the operations of Prachatai. On September 6th 2004, Prachatai began its daily publication on the web with a staff of one editor and five reporters. At present Prachathai has a staff of 17: a Director, Manager, Editor in Chief, News Editor, 7 Bangkok office reporters, 2 regional reporters, a web administrator, a multi-media officer, a graphic designer and a finance officer. The first achievement of Prachatai was the investigative report on the Tak Bai massacre in October 2004. After that the readership gradually increased until the coup d’etat happened on September 19th 2006. After the Coup the readership Prachatai grew drastically readership but Prachatai was also faced with some levels of state interference and censorship. On 6th March 2009 the Prachatai office was raided by over 10 policemen and the Director of Prachatai got arrested with charges under the Articles 14 & 15 from the Computer Crime Act 2007 because of contents posted by users in the webboard (web-forum). On 24th September 2010 the Director of Prachatai got a second arrest at Bangkok Airport after returning from an international conference and was transported to Khon Kaen province where an arrest warrant was issued. She faced similar charges plus Article 112 (Lese Majesté) and Article 116 (Sedition) from the Penal Code. Prachatai website was first officially blocked once the government declared the Emergency Decree on 7th April 2010, Prachatai also filed the lawsuit against the shutting down ordered. Although Prachatai lost in first stance it decided to appeal and now the case is under the Appeal Court. Any inquiries, please email us at [email protected]

05/06/2026

On the 6th anniversary of the disappearance of Thai activist Wanchalearm Satsaksit, World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), and the Cross Cultural Foundation (CrCF) call on the Cambodian and Thai authorities to establish his fate and whereabouts, ensure thorough and effective investigations, and deliver justice to him and his family.

Wanchalearm went missing on 6 June 2020, while living in exile in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. According to eyewitness testimonies, Wanchalearm was kidnapped in front of his condominium in Phnom Penh by a group of unidentified men and taken away in a dark blue/black Toyota Highlander SUV. No progress has so far been made in the investigation into his disappearance and no culprit has been identified.

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05/06/2026

The decision to terminate the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU 2001) by the Thai Cabinet on 5 May 2026 signals a transformative shift toward militarized unilateralism, while rising nationalism has stalled military reform in Thailand.

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02/06/2026

Bangkok’s central business district was adorned with rainbow on Sunday (31 May) as the city marked Pride month with the annual Bangkok Pride Parade, held now for the fifth year in a row.

After some disruption due to heavy rain in Silom and Pathumwan districts and flooding on the route, six processions marched a 4.8-kilometre route through Silom Road, a street known to be Bangkok’s most famous LGBTQ destination. The march ended at Thephasadin Stadium for a concert.

The parade was the culmination of a 5-day festival featuring forums and the award ceremony for the annual Bangkok Pride Awards, which honors those who contribute to LGBTQ rights in Thailand.

(Photos: Ginger Cat)

02/06/2026

Formal peace talks between the Thai government and the Barisan Revolusi Nasional Melayu Patani (BRN) will resume in June 2026. This comes despite a recent spike in violence in the far South, which the insurgents are using to demand deeper political discussions to address their demands for “self-government”.

A growing number of observers question Bangkok’s sincerity. The prevailing assessment is that Thailand’s overriding objective is not resolution but containment — suppressing violence to a tolerable level while avoiding the political concessions a durable peace would require. Whether a framework for genuine coexistence between the far South and the Thai state can ever be built on those terms remains deeply uncertain.

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02/06/2026

The s*x worker rights group Empower Foundation has formally proposed a bill to parliament repealing the 1996 anti-s*x work law and outlining protection for s*x workers.

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01/06/2026

📍 The attendance of 9 Privy Councillors at a National Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Command meeting on 19 May has sparked online debate as concerns were raised that it could seem like they are interfering in government affairs.

📍The main opposition People's Party issued a statement raising concerns about the propriety of their attendance. As the King’s advisors, Privy Councillors should also be neutral and must not take any political action that could be seen as interfering with the government. It also question how the Councillors can be held accountable, and said that allowing such practice to continue would only cause confusion about who is actually governing the country.

📍 The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) said in two Facebook posts that the meeting was to discuss preparations for drought, and that Privy Councillors have been attending these routine meetings since 2017.

📍Many argue that, as the King’s advisors, Privy Councillors should keep a distance from the government. Some raised concerns that, although the Councillors were at the meeting to provide “support and advice,” there is a fine line between advice and orders when coming from a group of people appointed by the King to be his advisors.

📍Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, academic and former Secretary-General of the now-dissolved Future Forward Party, proposed that the Privy Council should be abolished entirely to prevent criticisms of Privy Councillors’ actions or opinions from damaging the monarchy and prevent conflict if the Privy Council and the Cabinet disagree with each other.

📍 In response to the statement, complaints have been filed seeking the dissolution of the People's Party as conservative activists and serial complainants accuse it of treason. One petition was also filed with the Supreme Court seeking the suspension of party leader Natthaphong Ruangpanyawut, claiming he violated the gag order made by the Supreme Court when it accepted an ethics breach case against 44 former Move Forward Party MPs for proposing amendments to the royal defamation law.

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01/06/2026

Military conscription law in Cambodia has once again come under global media attention after Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet stated that the Cabinet had approved a new conscription law which would require all Cambodian citizens aged 18-25 to serve in the military, while women may be recruited on a voluntary basis.

Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, a Thai former education activist who has now become a conscientious objector, sees it as a threat to democracy, arguing that the new conscription law shows a lean towards authoritarianism.

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01/06/2026

Thailand’s decision to terminate the 2001 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Cambodia on maritime claims in the Gulf of Thailand may satisfy long-standing domestic political demands, but the harder challenge lies ahead. The legal, diplomatic, and political consequences that follow, writes Supalak Ganjanakhundee, could prove significantly more complex than the act of cancellation itself.

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29/05/2026

A royal defamation case against Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the Progressive Movement, has been dismissed. The case stems from Thanathorn’s criticism of the government's COVID-16 vaccine procurement programme and its strong relationship with a private company owned by King Vajiralongkorn.

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28/05/2026

BREAKING

The Criminal Court today (28 May) dismissed a royal defamation charge against Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, former leader of the now-dissolved Future Forward Party.

Thanathorn was charged for speaking in a livestream criticising the government’s Covid-19 vaccination programme that relied heavily on Siam Bioscience, a private company in which, according to media reports, King Vajiralongkorn is the main shareholder.

The court found Thanathorn not guilty on the grounds that it was not royal defamation to criticise the government’s vaccination programme.