The junta’s lawmakers has proposed a new version of the controversial Computer Crimes Bill which will allow the authorities to block online content directly and pressure service providers to censor themselves.
Article 14(1) is usually filed as online defamation charges although its purpose is to prevent forgeries and online frauds.
The drafters said they realized this problem, but the problem still exists in the current bill
The are concerns that the added clauses may allow Article 14(2) to be filed against those who criticize public policies and reveal corruption cases.
Article 15 states that service providers, which include internet service providers (ISPs), web admins and wifi providers, will face half sentence of those who breach Article 14.
Although blocking reported content can nullify charge, the interpretation of the law is still too broad since anybody can report and the content must be blocked within three days, leading to high chance of self-censorship.
Article 16/2 states that anyone who possesses content which courts ruled that it violates Article 14 (importation of illegal information) and Article 16 (doctored image and image of dead bodies) must destroy those content. Or else, they will face half the sentence of original publishers.
Question remains -- How can one know which content violates Article 14 and 16?
Do people have to search for court verdicts themselves?
Will it affect those who have to work with data such as media, researchers and librarians? Will historical evidence be removed?
