Thailand’s Prime Minister and Junta chairman Prayuth Chanocha has exploded at reporters when pushed about the controversial cyber-security spying bill.
“There is no why. The only why is that the law will pass. So what! Why would I be a Prime Minister [otherwise]?” he said before angrily storming out of the press conference in a clip that has been widely shared on social media networks.
The draft cyber security law was approved by the cabinet on 6 January and is now making its way to the junta-picked legislature to be rubber-stamped into law.
The draft law removes judicial checks and balances in authorising surveillance and allows officers to infiltrate computer networks and systems to read instant messages and email messages.
It also allows the Prime Minister to directly order communication companies to act or refrain from acting and to summon executives for testimony.
The draft cyber security law has been strongly opposed by an unlikely civil society coalition including the Thai Netizen Network, the Thailand Association of the Blind, the Green World Foundation, FTA Watch, the Foundation for Community Education Media, and the Civil Media Development Institute.
The group calls for the ten digital economy laws to be scrapped and re-written. This also includes the new frequency act that effectively places the telecoms regulator under the control of the Digital Economy Commission chaired by the Prime Minister.