Stories from and

Preserving Historic Thai Films

  31 July 2015

The Thai Film Archive has been uploading historic films and vintage news reports on YouTube. One of the films is Chok Song Chun (Double Luck), which is Thailand's first feature silent film produced in 1927. Only 55 seconds of the film have remained featuring a fight scene and car chase....

Sexual Abuse of Children in Tourism in Southeast Asia

  1 July 2014

The Project Childhood Prevention Pillar, an initiative of the Australian government, has released a study about the prevalence of sexual abuse of children in the Southeast Asian region. It cited social factors such as “poverty and marginalisation, as well as lack of family support, education, opportunity, and protective factors” for...

What the Thai Junta Should Learn from the Burmese Junta

  16 June 2014

Aung Zaw of The Irrawaddy compares and contrasts the Thai junta and the military-backed govenrment of Myanmar: The Thai army has carried out more than a dozen coups in past decades, but always relinquished power to a civilian government after a number of years. The Burma Army staged two coups,...

Roots of Conflict in Southern Thailand

  31 March 2014

Patrick Jory traces the history of the conflict in southern Thailand and probes the causes and impact of naming it as an Islamic insurgency: The answer can be found in the suppression of official references to the distinct ethnic Malay identity of the population of the border provinces, in favour...

Barbie Dolls in Thai Traditional Clothes

  11 March 2014

Barbie dolls dressed in traditional Thai clothes pic.twitter.com/8izclnezSS — Richard Barrow (@RichardBarrow) March 8, 2014 Richard Barrow posted a Twitter photo of Barbie dolls dressed in Thailand's traditional clothes

UNICEF Calls for “Child-Free” Protests in Thailand

  24 February 2014

After a grenade explosion killed three children in an anti-government protest site in Bangkok, the United Nations Children’s Fund urged government and protest leaders to protect children by keeping them away from protests. Bijaya Rajbhandari, the UNICEF Representative in Thailand, made this appeal: (The UNICEF) condemns the violence that resulted...

‘Bizarre’ Thailand Elections

  14 February 2014

Thai writer Aim Sinpeng describes the recent election in Thailand as one of the most bizarre in the country's history: The February 2 election in Thailand was not only one of the most bizarre, but also “pointless” elections in recent memory. “Missing” polling stations, locked up ballot boxes, an M16...

No Winners in Thailand Elections?

  8 February 2014

Chris Baker analyzed election statistics in Thailand and concluded that there are no clear winners in the elections: My overall impression is that nobody won. If full data are every released, Pheu Thai (ruling party) will probably have won a majority of the seats. But the party cannot have won...

Day 3 of ‘Bangkok Shutdown’ Campaign

  16 January 2014

Stickman Bangkok posted photos and crowd updates of day 3 of the ‘Bangkok Shutdown’ campaign. Forget what I said about dwindling numbers. Wednesday night saw at least as many supporters out as Monday. These are the sorts of scenes you can expect in downtown Bangkok if you are out and...

One Year in Asia

  5 January 2014

Antoine Lavenant, with his girlfriend spent a year in Asia – China, Laos, Cambodia, Thaïland, Malaysia, Philippines and Sri Lanka. The video is a brief record of their exciting journey.

Human Trafficking in Southeast Asia

  31 December 2013

The Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development has published a policy briefer that tackled the extent of human trafficking in Southeast Asia. Many Southeast Asian countries are at the bottom of a lot of the world's supply chains, including for food, garments, and technology. Yet few countries in...

Bangkok has the Most-Instagrammed Location of 2013

  16 December 2013

The Siam Paragon, a popular shopping complex in Bangkok, Thailand is the ‘most-Instagrammed’ location of 2013. Suvarnabhumi International Airport, also in Bangkok, was ranked ninth in the list. Not surprisingly, Bangkok is second ‘most-Instagrammed city’ in the world this year.

Causes of Bangkok Road Accidents

  7 December 2013

Interestingly, the Bangkok police in Thailand claims that 30 percent of road accidents is caused by ‘unroadworthy cars’ while speeding only accounts for 5 percent of accidents. Writer Thitipol Panyalimpanun notes that in most countries, traffic accidents are blamed on driver error and not on vehicles.

Insulting a Dead King is a Crime in Thailand

  17 November 2013

David Streckfuss cites a Thailand Supreme Court ruling about a Lese Majeste (anti-royal insult law) case which upheld the verdict against a citizen who reportedly defamed a dead king: Although the [defamatory] action was against a past king who had already passed on, it is still a violation….The defamation of...

Thailand Shark Conservation Project

  20 October 2013

The Thailand eShark Project was launched in light of the reported 95 percent drop in shark sightings in Thailand. The Thailand eShark Project results will be used to bring awareness to declining shark populations in Thailand. Additionally to help improve protected marine park enforcement and reinforce the importance of no...

Phuket-themed Stamps in Thailand

  30 September 2013

Mark Jochim features Thailand stamps that showcase the beauty and culture of Phuket, a popular island tourism destination. Interestingly, he notes that Phuket-themed stamps do not include the famous beaches of Phuket.

An Undeniably Racist Song, ‘Asian Girlz’ Sparks Controversy

  31 July 2013

Packed with Asian stereotypes and fetishes, song ‘Asian Girlz’ by ‘Day Above Ground’ has invited controversy and angry comments. Blogger Angry Asian Man typed down the entire lyrics to comment [if they have not] ‘run out of stereotypical Oriental stuff to list off, the song would have gone on for another ten minutes”. The...