The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has declared a 30-day suspension of broadcasting of a TV station run by red-shirt leaders because it allegedly threatened national security and ‘good morals’.

 

On 9 August 2017, the Secretary-General of the NBTC, Takorn Tantasith, announced the Commission’s decision to revoke Peace TV’s broadcasting licence for 30 days as punishment for publishing seditious content and violating an agreement with the NBCT. The ban will be put into effect as soon as the NBCT has delivered an official order to the station.  

 

The punishment is related to two programmes, “Do You Understand?” aired on 4 July and “Weekend Newsroom” aired on 9 July 2017. The first programme is hosted by Nattawut Saikua, a key leader of the United Front Against Dictatorship for Democracy (UDD), also known as the red-shirt movement. 

 

The NBTC deemed that the content of the two programmes incited audiences against Thailand’s constitutional monarchy and threatened national security and good morals. But the Commission has not clarified the specific content that lead to the ban.

 

Peace TV is run by a group of UDD leaders including Nattawut, Jatuporn Prompan and Weng Tojirakarn. This is the third time that Peace TV has been suspended under the junta. The first ban lasted 7 days in April 2015 and the second ban lasted 30 days in July 2016. Both bans were related to seditious content and criticism of the ruling junta.