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Published on February 16, 2008

Secretary-general Robert Menard accused the United Nations of "duplicity" and said public officials in countries in the West had failed to uphold the democratic values they espoused.

"The spinelessness of some Western countries and major international bodies is harming press freedom," he said in the group's annual report.

"The lack of determination by democratic countries in defending the values they supposedly stand for is alarming."

Menard accused Western countries of putting money ahead of human rights.

"They are all quick to condemn developing countries that have little strategic value, but things are different when it comes to Russian President Vladimir Putin or Chinese President Hu Jintao. Western heads of state put away their lawyers' robes and become salesmen," he said.

The report expressed concern for the safety of journalists in the coming months, with elections approaching in Pakistan, Russia, Iran and Zimbabwe. The Olympic Games in Beijing were also expected to cause problems for Chinese journalists.

"Nobody apart from the International Olympic Committee seems to believe the government will make a significant human rights concession before the Games start," the report said.

Thai journalists are expected to face difficulties following the election of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej, whom the report said "has a history of making attacks on the press".

But Chavarong Limpattamapanee, secretary-general of the Press Council, said things had improved since Thaksin Shinawatra's reign.

"The media has well and truly come out of the Thaksin era, when they were under constant pressure. Newspaper journalists are able to write in freedom, although it's less the case in television," he said.

 Last year Thailand was ranked 135th out of 169 countries in a World Press Freedom Index. Thailand's new cyber laws were recognised as a potential problem, as they allow authorities unrestricted access to individuals' web activities.

Lily Partland

The Nation