“Shooting violence scene?”, “misunderstanding?” and the right to report.

05, December 2012
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“Shooting violence scene?”, “misunderstanding?” and the right to report.“Shooting violence scene?”, “misunderstanding?” and the right to report.“Shooting violence scene?”, “misunderstanding?” and the right to report.
“Shooting violence scene?”, “misunderstanding?” and the right to report.

On Saturday 24th of November 2012 during the clash between protester and police in Bangkok some reporters, cameraman and photographers were arrested by police, urged that they were abused public right by “Shooting violence scene”, according to police spokesman. While arrested reporters and photographer were injured and badly treat.¦ Luckily their reporter friends managed to get them out in time.

Santi Tehpia a photographer from Manager, and Thai PBS cameraman Pattanasak Woradet, are those who were arrested and beaten on the clash. They tried to identify themselves as journalist but there was no response. Beaten and injured they were lock inside police transports for couple of hours until their friends could get them out. Media reported that according to Pol Maj Gen Piya Uthayo those who arrested were charged with “shooting violent incidence that violates people’s rights” (He strongly denied this later and said that it was “misunderstanding”). Later on, they were released without charges after their journalist friends could identified them as registered media.

 To response with the incidence, two major journalist associations, Thai Journalist Association and Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, had announced official statement, requesting police to respect the media’s right to report. They considered that police’s action was excessive and they also concerned that media’s right to report was abused. The police again denied all accusations and said that it was just a misunderstanding.

There was similar case of media’s right abuse by police. Two years ago in UK there was the section 44, stop and search on terrorist suspect. Police and security services try to stop, ask and sometime threat or lock up people, often someone with camera on their necks. Many journalists, include BBC and the Guardian, were stopped with no reasonable excuses during their story coverage. As a result, they began the mass photographer protest against the section 44, to regain their rightful freedom of public photography.

The result of protest was fruitful. The section 44 was reconsidered. In 2010, even the European court of Human Right also ruled that it was unlawful for police to stop and search people, often photographer, without any evidences of suspicion.

Two incidences may have different aspects and contexts but they do share the same fact, photographers or journalists are under threat by legal force and it needs more than action to change this. While people ask journalist and photographer for nonbiased truth, journalist and photographer also ask for right to report, to be treated reasonably and to be protected. False charge or “misunderstanding” should not occur and shouldn’t be taken lightly. What done is done but there must be consequence and responsibility.

Something like this shouldn’t happen ever again.

(Last picture is in courtesy of THE NATION, Thailand)

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