When, cat's, away,, editorials, get, published

Somehow this editorial (Kavi? Supalak?) passed through the editorial boffins at The Nation. It's about the recently issued RSF report on press freedom (see blog post about the report here). Key excerpt:

Thailand, at number 130, has regretfully joined the ranks of Singapore (133) and Malaysia (131), which are traditionally known for their control of the press.

The Kingdom was ranked at number 66 only seven years ago. It has fallen so spectacularly because of the curbing of press freedom by ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his supporters, then by the military junta which ousted Thaksin, and now by the Democrat-led government of Abhisit Vejjajiva, which cracked down mightily on the so-called "red" media in the aftermath of the April riots this year.

Then there is the lese majeste law, used with increased frequency as His Majesty advances in age. As RSF notes: "The Thai media has been buffeted by repeated political crises. Several journalists have been assaulted by demonstrators, and scores of media have been censored for openly supporting the "red shirts".

But it has been the crackdown on Internet users and intellectuals - for alleged crimes of lese-majeste - that poses the greatest threat to free expression in the country: "Most Thai journalists voice the same reverence for King Bhumibol as the vast majority of the population. The others are forced into self-censorship."

BP: Need a drink now. Am in shock. Thaksin didn't get blamed for it all? Thanong, at The Nation, can't be too happy given his previous op-ed stance - see BP's commentary on his previous op-eds on lese majeste here and here.

btw, the complete idiom, when the cat's away, the mice will play is the same in Thai.