Thailand News
Street artists harassed, followed for highlighting abducted Thai activist
On the wall, a bird character paints a missing person poster for an abducted Thai exile. Painted on an abandoned Bangkok building, the mural only survived a few days before it was mysteriously destroyed.
The artist, Mue Bon, is among several artists and activists claiming they have been followed by security forces since they called attention to the abduction Wanchalerm Satsaksit earlier this month in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.
“Art must be so powerful. Whitewashing it is not enough. It better be smashed. So violent!” Mue Bon wrote online afterward, posting a collage of his work being destroyed.
A few days earlier, he wrote that undercover security forces had harassed him while he was painting the mural.
“Yesterday there were some plainclothes officers who helped take care of me while I was working, without setting an appointment with me,” Mue Bon wrote online Thursday. “They told me to whitewash my work, or else I would be charged with trespassing.”
Mue Bon had not replied to messages seeking comment as of publication time.
Last week, well-known street artist Headache Stencil said he had been followed by four men and shared images of them from his condo’s CCTV system. He said the four men told the security guard they were police officers.
That was one day after the artist marked the 88th anniversary of the 1932 revolution by projecting images of one of its leaders, democracy icon Pridi Banomyong, on a wall at the Grand Palace. The images also showed the revolutionaries’ proclamation demanding the end of absolute monarchy.
Earlier this month Headache Stencil’s mural depicting Wanchalerm’s face was painted over.
“You have guns. We have paints.
You have officers. We have friends.
You have power. We have pride.
You want to cover the sky with your hands.
We’ll open people’s eyes with art!” Headache Stencil wrote Monday.
It wasn’t the first time he’s been harassed by authorities. The artist rose to fame in February 2018 with a stenciled mural over Sukhumvit Road mocking then-junta deputy leader Prawit Wongsuwan for his watch scandal. The mural was painted over within hours and he temporarily went underground.
Thai dissident Wanchalerm Satsaksit was seen being forced into a black vehicle on June 4 outside his residence in Phnom Penh. The 37-year-old activist had been living in exile several years since the 2014 coup, when he refused to report to the National Council for Peace and Order. He was accused of defying a junta order and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
He remained politically active in exile, criticizing the government and political establishment. Government figures have denied having any knowledge of his disappearance and deferred to Cambodia to look into it.
Source: Street artists harassed, followed for highlighting abducted Thai activist
Photo: Headache Stencil / Facebook
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Thailand News
Police chain suspects doors and windows until next morning
On August 9, A man attacked an officer, took his gun, and fled to his house in Plang Yao District, Chachoengsao Province. The officer then tried to persuade him to surrender for more than 6 hours but still failed.
Later at 6:00 pm, Plangyao Police Station decided to send 50 officers from a special operations unit in Chachoengsao Province.
The standoff lasted until 11:00 p.m. and the villain still showed no signs of surrendering.
So, they decided to chain his doors and windows preventing him from escaping until the next day rather than risk any of the officers or even the suspect’s life.
Meanwhile, the Royal Thai Police in Chachoengsao Province started to process a search warrant for the next morning after leaving a couple of police officers to watch the house.
Later, Col. Sonthaya revealed that the perpetrator was named Mr. Anon, 45, at the house in Tha Bunmi Subdistrict, Koh Chan District, Chonburi Province, who went into a drunken methamphetamine rampage and destroyed his neighbor’s ricefields.
Police tried to intervene but Mr. Anont took a gun from Officer Or Sor and ran away. Mr. Anon’s daughter also reported his unusual behavior saying he was showing signs of aggressive behavior telling officers to exercise caution especially since he had a gun.
Police hope he will surrender after bringing a search warrant after the drugs wear off. To be continued……..
Later, it was reported that the suspect had escaped through the back of his house prior to officers boarding up his doors and windows. Police then conducted a search of the house and did not find the stolen gun. Police are still searching for the armed and dangerous suspect now.
Source and photos: https://www.khaosod.co.th/breaking-news/news_4678351
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Thailand News
2 Thai embassies hit by Covid-19 outbreaks
Thai embassies hit by Covid-19: Staff members of Thai embassies in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have contracted the novel coronavirus, according to the Foreign Ministry. The embassy in Manama reported that a foreign employee suffering mild symptoms tested positive for Covid-19, ministry spokesman Cherdkiat Atthakor said on Sunday.
Source: 2 Thai embassies hit by Covid-19 outbreaks
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Thailand News
‘Sick’ policeman jumps to his death from hospital
A policeman in Si Sa Ket province who suffered from mental illness reportedly killed himself on Saturday (August 8) by jumping out of the hospital building. The deceased, Suwaroj Khumthong, 53, was a police officer at Muang Chan Police Station who was admitted to Sisaket Hospital due to his mental condition.
Source: ‘Sick’ policeman jumps to his death from hospital
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