EngageMedia, in partnership with Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Political Science and the Social Technology Institute, will hold a two-day digital rights forum in Thailand to discuss key issues and recent developments in the country’s digital rights landscape.
The event is part of the four digital rights country forums to be held throughout 2022, leading up to the Asia-Pacific Digital Rights Festival to be held in May 2023.
According to Freedom House’s 2021 report, Thailand’s digital space is considered ‘not free’. The country faces various threats: authorities actively deny access to content it deems critical, and vaguely-worded laws – especially the Penal Code and the controversial Computer Crime Act – are weaponised to criminalise free speech. On top of this, security forces have used state-of-the-art surveillance technology to keep tabs on human rights defenders and those opposing the government.
The two-day digital rights forum aims to explore the way forward and respond to these challenges. The event aims to catalyse conversations on key issues, raise awareness of rights violations in the online space, and support advocacy for freer and safer digital spaces. It will utilise an open space technology approach to allow participants to share ideas and connect with each other in an informal setting.
The forum will be held on October 29 and 30, 9:30AM to 3PM Bangkok time (UTC+7), at Chulalongkorn University. The event is free and open to the public; however, a maximum of 45 participants will be invited to attend.
Interested participants can sign up through the form below. EngageMedia will contact confirmed attendees via email. For more information, contact EngageMedia Digital Rights Manager for Mekong Yawee Butrkrawee.
