Media bodies and police agree on safety measures for personnel covering political protests
Six key Thai media organisations on Wednesday met with Deputy Metropolitan Police chief Pol Maj-General Piya Tawichai to discuss measures to reduce the risk for media while reporting political protests in Bangkok.
The organisations included the National Press Council, News Broadcasting Council, Thai Journalists Association, Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, Society for Online News Provider Association and National Union of Journalists Thailand.
At the two-hour meeting, it was agreed that the Thai Journalists Association would be the central agency in charge of issuing new armbands to members of the press to show their status while working at rally sites. Other organisations, including the police, would no longer issue other armbands to avoid confusion.
The meeting initially agreed to use light green colour for new media armbands, but would later issue other colours based on the type of media, provided the new colours were not the same as armbands of other organisations, such as medics.
The new armbands will replace all existing armbands used by the media, while the sewing materials will be more durable and the colour more visible in the dark.
Members of the press wearing the armbands must also be equipped with a press identification card while working to ensure that they have an original affiliation that is responsible for their actions.
The press and police agreed to meet again next month when the new armbands are ready.