bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

A British journalist may face jail time after he was arrested at Thailand’s main airport with a gas mask and plates for a bulletproof vest, which police said on Tuesday breached a law that classifies the protective gear as weapons of war.
Anthony Cheng, who works for the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, was detained at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport on Monday night on his way to report in the war-torn Iraqi city of Mosul where troops are battling the Islamic State group.
Thai court drops case against Hong Kong photojournalist over bulletproof vest
Gas masks and ballistic vests, which are frequently used by reporters around the world, are classified as war weapons in Thailand and require a licence.
Violating the legislation is punishable by up to five years in jail.
“A British national was arrested and charged with illegal possession of war weapons last night at the airport,” airport policeman Somchart Maneerat said.
His German colleague was also detained, the officer said.
Media groups have repeatedly criticised the Thai law and say journalists should not be punished for carrying body armour and protective gear in and out of dangerous zones.
Cheng posted a photo on Facebook of the airport detention cell where he was held overnight late on Monday.
The plates and gas mask were “for use in Mosul where ISIS are well documented to be using gas”, he wrote. “I was unaware either of those things were classified as ‘war weapons’”.
Attempts over the years to amend the legislation have fallen on deaf ears, despite Thailand’s own history of deadly street protests and a festering Muslim insurgency in the far south.
“Journalists who feel they need to carry this stuff need to inform or contact the concerned authorities prior to travelling,” junta spokesman Major General Werachon Sukhonhapatipak said.
Thai junta defends buying ‘cheap’ US$393 million Chinese sub
The Hong Kong photographer Anthony Kwan Hok-chun was charged two years ago with violating the law for carrying a bulletproof vest and helmet while covering a deadly bombing in Bangkok. A Thai court later dropped the case.
During Thailand’s regular bouts of often violent street protests, both demonstrators and journalists have donned ballistic vests and helmets, largely without falling foul of police.
Two foreign reporters were killed by gunfire while covering the worst round of political unrest in 2010.


Thailand’s Thaksin Shinawatra ordered to serve 1 year in jail by Supreme Court

How Thailand’s political dynasty shaped the country for the last 25 years

Make or break time for Thailand’s Shinawatra clan as Paetongtarn faces removal from office

Thai ex-PM Thaksin cleared of royal insult charges, but political dynasty’s future uncertain

Thailand's Junta

Chinese state media journalist arrested in Thailand for carrying gas mask

A file picture of demonstrator wearing a gas mask during a protest in New York. Photo: Reuters

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2015, file photo, Hong Kong photojournalist Hok Chun Anthony Kwan speaks to reporters after leaving Samut Prakan provincial court after he was released on bail following his arrest at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, for carrying body armor and a helmet onto a flight bound for Hong Kong. The Thai government has dropped a case against Kwan for possessing a bulletproof vest and a helmet, which are considered weapons in Thailand, two court officials said Tuesday, March 8, 2016. (AP Photo/Karly Domb Sadof, File)

News

China

Diplomacy

CCTV journalist latest to fall foul of Thai law that deems a gas mask or body armour ‘weapons’. A similar case against a Hong Kong photographer was dropped last year
