Early April started with the banning of the popular YouTube site in Thailand after a user posted videos mocking the Thai monarchy. YouTube insisted that its homepage was a global forum of freedom of expression. It was not until August 30 that the ban was lifted after the website agreed to block clips deemed to violate Thai law.
The Jatukam Rammathep amulet craze caused the fatal death of a woman in a stampede for the talismans in Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Muang district on April 9. The amulet boom later prompted the Revenue Department to consider taxing enterprises related to the soaring sales of Jatukham Rammathep amulets.
The Thai New Year brought tragedy as forest floods in Trang killed 38 people.
Ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra’s family members faced trials and fines, including indictment of his wife Pojaman for a land purchase scandal in the Ratchadaphisek area. On April 5, the couple’s defence lawyer called former finance minister and central bank chief MR Pridiyathorn Devakula as a witness for hearings in the case.
On April 5, Siriraj Hospital announced the successful separation of eight-month-old baby girls joined at the torso. The operation was believed to be the first on infants whose hearts and livers were connected.