Thai journalists quit regional group<\/p>\n
BANGKOK (AP): Thailand's professional journalists association
\nhas suspended its membership in a regional press association,
\nsaying the organization does not operate in an open manner.<\/p>\n
In a statement on Wednesday, the Confederation of Thai
\nJournalists said it had \"suspended its relations and activities\"
\nwith the Jakarta, Indonesia-based Confederation of Asean
\nJournalists after 25 years.<\/p>\n
The regional confederation comprises journalists' groups from
\nthe 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -
\nASEAN.<\/p>\n
Among ASEAN members, Thailand and the Philippines are
\nconsidered to exercise greatest freedom of the press, while no
\nsuch freedom exists in single-party states such as Vietnam, Laos
\nand Myanmar. Other countries, such as Malaysia and Singapore,
\nexercise a high amount of informal influence over their national
\npress.<\/p>\n
The Confederation of Thai Journalists' statement said the
\nseven-member Thai delegation attending the confederation's
\ngeneral assembly in Singapore walked out on Monday \"to protest
\nagainst the lack of transparency and accountability among the
\nexecutive members of CAJ.\"<\/p>\n
It did not elaborate.<\/p>\n
The president of the Thai group, Kavi Chongkittavorn, said in
\na letter on Tuesday to the assembly's delegates that the rule of
\nprocedures was not followed and requests by the Thai group to
\namend the agenda were repeatedly denied, according to the
\nstatement.<\/p>\n
It added a call for the regional confederation to practice
\n\"good governance, without cronyism,\" without detailing what it
\nbelieved were the problems.<\/p>\n
The statement called for a restructuring of the group's
\nsecretariat in Jakarta and the role of its secretary general.<\/p>\n
Ivan Lim of the Singapore National Union of Journalists, host
\nof the three-day assembly, said in Singapore that the regional
\ngroup would issue a statement on the matter on Thursday. He said
\nthe groups operates by consensus so he could not comment on the
\nThai action.<\/p>\n
The general assembly in Singapore, which ended on Tuesday, was
\nattended by representatives from Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia,
\nMalaysia, the Philippines and Thailand as well as observers from
\nJapan, China, Nepal, Cambodia and Germany.<\/p>\n
The Thai statement said that excepting the Philippines,
\nIndonesia and Thailand, \"most members were representatives of the
\ngovernment-controlled press from the region.<\/p>\n
Kavi said the board members of the Thai group will hold a
\nmeeting in the near future to determine the status of its
\nmembership with the regional confederation.<\/p>",
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