Better than Belarus...

"There is no freedom. There is no space for us to express ourselves even though we chose to fight peacefully"

The continuing attacks on freedom of the press and expression and the climate of fear that is deepening, twelve printing houses have turned down Red Shirt publications and Red Power News (http://www.redpowernews.com/) has taken to printing in Cambodia (http://www.nationmultimedia.com/home/2010/10/29/politics/Red-power-mag-stranded-on-Cambodian-border-30141089.html)

With Thailand one position below Azerbaijan and one above Belarus in the world press-freedom ranking (http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2010,1034.html), two and a half satang can truly look down on two.

Response suggests that "Better than Belarus" might be used to attract foreign investors to Thailand, or even tourists.

There is increasing light being shone on the UK Prime Minister David Cameron's trip to Siam over the festive period with well publicized calls for him to call off his trip (http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/2010/10/31/david-cameron-urged-to-axe-trip-to-thailand-115875-22676572/).

UK Government confirm Thai nationals received refugee status - evidence update

"by Andrew Spooner
I have finally obtained cast-iron proof that a Thai national was granted refugee status in the UK in 2009 after I made direct contact with the relevant UK Government ministry responsible for deciding who recieves refugee status in the UK.
The result was that a spokesperson from the UK's Home Office, the UK Government ministry that controls the Border Agency, confirmed that at least one Thai national was granted refugee status in the UK in 2009.
In addition to this I also contacted the Refugee Council, the largest independent body in the UK which deals with asylum seekers and refugees, to get their insight into whether the refugee documentation provided to me by my interview subject was, in their opinion, likely to be authentic. A spokesperson from the Refugee Council stated that the papers I was provided with do look like documents that would verify that a person has refugee status. However, they did say only the Home Office can confirm the status of a client and its authenticity.
Adding all this together, I am more than happy that my original story and interview was 100% accurate. What is now clear is that a precedent has been set and more Thai nationals seeking refuge from political violence and intimidation could emerge. One simple fact must be considered in all of this - that the present Thai regime does very little to control the extremist acts of intimidation, threats & violence perpetrated by the supporters and members of the PAD. The evidence of the present regime's collusion with the PAD is overwhelming and substantial, as is the same regime's refusal to uphold the rule of law vis a vis the actions of the PAD. One may even go so far to assume that the PAD acts as an agent of the regime, such is the legal and politcal cover it recieves. This has become one of the salient features of Thailand's present political predicament.
If anyone has any proof to refute the evidence I've produced so far as to the veracity of my interview subject's refugee status, please put it in the comments section. Just saying it isn't so or calling my "biased" doesn't count, I'm afraid.
Follow me on Twitter - @andrewspooner "

This is a follow up post by Mr Spooner after, aspersions were cast over his original account of an interview he conducted with a Thai national, claiming she had been granted asylum by the UK government. Please read the original interview.

Another of Thailand's Refugee Problems - an interview

"I applied for political asylum in the U.K. on the basis that if I returned to Thailand, I would be at risk of persecution from non-State and State actors due to my own political activities"

http://asiancorrespondent.com/siamvoices/thailand-s-real-refugee-problem-an-interview

Douglas Alexander: Responsibility to the poor: a matter of justice, not charity

http://lcid.org.uk/2010/10/07/douglas-alexander-responsibility-to-the-poor-a-matter-of-justice-not-charity/

"What some have called a “new geography of poverty” poses fundamental questions for the future of international aid and development.

These new times demand not old orthodoxies, but new responses, grounded in a fundamental belief in justice and universal human rights.

It is easy for politicians to say that, since India has a space programme, we should have no concern for the millions of Indians still living in abject poverty, or indeed those in any emerging middle income country. The reality is, of course, far more complex."