<div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Despite the censorship and surveillance already imposed on the press and Internet users after the coup d’état in May, the junta is now exacerbating an environment of fear by further tightening its control over social media. </div>

<p dir="ltr">&nbsp;</p> <p dir="ltr">Gen Prayuth Chan-Ocha, the Thai junta leader and Prime Minister, tried to please Burmese citizen over Koh Tao murder case by urging the media not to call them Burmese, but to call them merely migrant workers.</p> <p>On Wednesday, one day before the official visit to Myanmar, Prayuth told the press the following: &nbsp;</p>

<div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Since the coup d’état on 22 May, the junta has threatened and detained academics and students in many tertiary educational institutions. It even sent soldiers to storm on-going academic seminars and force them to stop. Despite the climate of fear, Thai academics are now protesting against the junta and the suppression of free speech by using a metal box. Yes, a metal box -- or ‘<em>Peep</em>’ in Thai.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <p dir="ltr">&nbsp;</p>

<div>The military and police on Thursday evening detained four academics and three student activists for organizing and participating in a seminar about the end of dictatorial regimes in foreign countries after forcing the seminar to be stopped. They were released about 9.30pm.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The seminar was a part of the political seminar series “Democracy Classroom”, organized by League of Liberal Thammasat for Democracy (LLTD), a progressive Thammasat student group. </div>

<p><a href="http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1410445125&amp;typecate=06&amp;section=">Khaosod English</a> - &nbsp;Thailand's junta leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said that suppression of a suspected anti-monarchy network will be a top priority of his administration, adding that the government will use all means, including&nbsp;telecommunications and information technology to crack down on lèse majesté.</p>

<div>Two months after the coup d’état in May, the Thai junta vowed to reform the Thai education system, which is one of the worst in the region. But instead of paying attention to structural problems, the junta’s policy for the Ministry of Education aims to focus on indefinable ‘merit’ and more nationalistic history classes. </div>

<p><img alt="" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3863/15069178745_a6b67e7a16_c.jpg" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3920/15028280236_349167e55c_c.jpg" /></p>

<div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <div>HM the King on Tuesday granted an audience to Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha, the leader of the junta’ s National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), and endorsed the interim constitution, presented by the NCPO leader, according to Thailand’s Public Relations Department.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The interim charter’s Article 48 grants an amnesty for the coup makers and their subordinates.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Today (Tuesday) is the two-month anniversary of the military coup.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> </div> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Dear General Prayuth,</p>

<div> <p>Thailand’s new military dictator, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, gave a <a href="http://phuketwan.com/tourism/future-thailand-under-army-general-prayuths-full-speech-20367/">long, rambling, televised address</a> today which is worth reviewing to see how it relates to <a href="http://thediplomat.com/2014/06/thailands-deja-coup/">my analysis</a> of the recent coup and its prospects.</p> </div>

<p>At last, an international survey result that the nation can take some comfort from.</p> <p>Every time you see a survey comparing various national attributes, the score for Thailand is often disappointing.&nbsp; Corruption? – persistently high, no matter whose government is in power.&nbsp; Press and media freedom? – disappearing without trace.&nbsp; Economic inequality? – a regional embarrassment.&nbsp; English language proficiency? – don’t ask.</p>