Published on October 13, 2005

Libel season

Samak sues journalist Anchalee for referring to his attack on campaigner

Samak Sundaravej and Dusit Siriwan, co-hosts of a TV political talk show, have filed a libel suit against outspoken journalist Anchalee Paireerak for an article published in the Thai Post newspaper.

Anchalee, a former radio talk-show host, said yesterday that on Tuesday she received a Criminal Court writ, naming her as first defendant. “I’ve never thought we would be sued for our little column in the paper’s entertainment section,” she commented, referring to an article she wrote for the October 1 issue of Thai Post’s X-Cite section.

In her column, Anchalee quoted Than Chan, a member of the Santi Asoke Buddhist sect, lambasting the TV co-hosts for having criticised him for participating in a campaign against a beer company’s attempt to get listed on the stock market. - The Nation

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Press freedom

Thailand’s ranking ‘set to plunge’

Thailand’s ranking in a global survey of press freedom will likely suffer thanks to persistent interference and abuses of power by the Thaksin administration, a foreign freedom of speech advocate stressed yesterday.

Speaking at a seminar, Vincent Brossel, a member of Reporters Without Borders, said Thailand might well plunge from its current 80th place to below 100 in the organisation’s rankings next year. Such a ranking would place Thailand even beneath Indonesia, a country with a long history of oppression, Brossel added.

Laura Hook, a representative of the International Federation of Journalists, told participants she was impressed by the united front Thai media professionals had presented in opposition to a hostile takeover bid of the Matichon media group and The Bangkok Post by an entertainment giant. - The Nation

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