Although as many as two thirds of all countries worldwide have already abolished the death penalty, many countries in Asia still maintain it for serious criminal offenses. According to the UN’s International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the death penalty should only be permitted for serious cases involving loss of life. In Southeast Asia, however, most suspects sentenced to death have committed crimes related to drug trafficking.

A new documentary film on the life of a Mexican transgender and her journey to have sex reassignment surgery in Thailand is undoubtedly heart-warming to many; some, however, wonder if it is more of a PR piece to promote Thailand’s thriving plastic surgery industry.

In the final part of this series, Prachatai talks to Atiwich Patthamapornsirikul, aka Jimmy, a student activist from the Seri Kaset Group, a student activist group from Kasetsart University. In March, the Thai junta sent security officers to visit Atiwich’s family, urging them to restrict Atiwich’s political activities. However, Atiwich chooses to continue challenging the junta to call for a return to democracy.

In November 2014, a transgender student activist was arrested and briefly detained for flashing a three-fingered salute at the ‘Hunger Games 3’ movie premiere in central Bangkok as a symbolic protest against the junta. Since then, she has become one of the best-known figures in the political movement against the junta. Prachatai talked to her about why she chose to stand against the regime despite all the risks that this entailed.

On Thailand’s Children’s Day in January, Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Thai junta leader, said in a TV program that ‘knowledge and morality will lead us to the future’. Using the concept of morality as guidance, the junta is striving to make Buddhism a state religion and convincing children to follow the moral guidance of the King and love the nation, religion, and monarchy. The junta is looking to apply its definitions of morality to holders of political posts and civil servants. The junta’s Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) has now laid out plans to create a ‘National Virtue Assembly’, a supra-governmental body which could determine the moral or ethical standards of public officials.