BANGKOK — The ultra-nationalist Thai newspaper Manager ASTV has published a "mock column" describing in graphic detail of how prisoners will gang-rape a fugitive anti-coup LGBT activist when she is finally arrested.

Published under the newspaper’s parody section, known as"Phujadkuan," the mock article describes how the the military junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) will arrest and send LGBT activist Aum Neko to a prison in Bangkok to "return happiness" to the male inmates who have been deprived of sex for years.

The article also says that Jakrapob Penkair, a former politician and leader of an anti-coup organisation in exile, will be arrested and sent to  prison alongside Ms. Aum, whose real name is Saran Chuichai. 

"[Mr. Jakrapob and Ms. Aum]  will be bestowed to the inmates so they can provide intimate, wet happiness, with thrusts reaching up to their intestines," the article wrote. "We expect that the pair will tour the entire prison and offer their bodily happiness to every prison section, from the first section to the death row section."

The article then quoted a fictitious inmate as saying he is longing to be the first prisoner to have sex with Ms. Aum. 

"Whenever I see nong [sister] Saran, or Aum Neko, I always feel aroused. Judging from her behaviour, I think she has a lot of weird and difficult sex positions. I will try to be the first in the line to have sex with her," the fictitious inmate said as he masturbated, according to the parody piece.

Other parts in the article contain threats of gang-raping Mr. Jakrapob, who Manager ASTV has previously not-jokingly accused of being gay.

Ms. Aum, who is enrolled at Thammasat University, is a well-known transgender activist who has campaigned for more freedom of expression on campus. She is known for undertaking controversial actions to promote her cause, such as striking a provocative pose in a photo with the statue of Thammasat founder, Pridi Banomyong.

Ms. Aum has also spoken out against Thailand’s harsh lese majeste (insult of monarchy) laws, as well as the 22 May military coup. The military junta summoned her to report shortly after the coup, but she has refused to turn herself in. Her whereabouts are currently unknown although she continues to criticise the junta on social media.

"I strongly condemn this kind of news not because it is about me but because everyone who has a different opinion in this society should not be treated like this," Ms. Aum told Khaosod English. "They [Manager ASTV] live with hatred, not the duty to report the truth. Will we call this action an acceptable thing in the world of so called democracy and humanity?"

The "Phujadkuan" section of Manager ASTV newspaper has a history of publishing "mock articles" which include false and libelous remarks about individuals who belong to the political faction that supported the former government.

For example, the paper published a fake interview in March quoting a progressive actress as saying she changed her surname to "Shinawatra" in support of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the de facto leader of the political camp that supported the former government deposed in the 22 May coup. The piece also “quoted” the actress, Intira Charoenpura, as urging Mr. Thaksin to form a new country by leading a secession movement in the North. 

The piece became popular among pro-monarchy Thais, many of whom failed to realise that it was a satire. 

In 2009 Mr. Thaksin's lawyer pressed charges against Manager ASTV on behalf of his client, accusing the newspaper of defaming Mr. Thaksin by publishing a photo that was doctored to depict the former Prime Minister revealing his testicles. 

BANGKOK — Anti-coup activists staged a brief protest in front of the US Embassy in Bangkok today to test the reaction of police who permitted an anti-American demonstration to take place at the same site on Sunday.

Six members of the student activist group Centre of Students for Democracy of Thailand (CSDT) ate sandwiches and read George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-four in front of the embassy's gate this morning.

Over the past month, those two seemingly innocuous acts have become symbols of anti-coup resistance as activists have sought to circumvent the junta’s ban on political demonstrations. Last week, an anti-junta activist wasarrested and detained for eating a sandwich and reading Nineteen Eighty-four in front of a major shopping mall in central Bangkok.

The leader of today's demonstration said they were there to enjoy the same privilege enjoyed by the anti-America protester who showed up at the US Embassy over the weekend. Sunday's lone pro-coup demonstrator, Thep Vetchavisit, said he was there to voice his anger towards the US government for downgrading its military relations with Thailand in response to last month's military coup d'etat.

Although the military junta has strictly banned all forms of political protest, a senior police commander said on Sunday that the anti-America protester was exempted from the ban because he was merely voicing his anger with the US government.

"This man's actions do not count as a violation of the legal ban on political protests, because it was merely an expression of anger," Pol.Maj.Gen. Amnuay Nimmano, deputy commander of the Bangkok Metropolitan Police, said on Sunday.

Today’s anti-coup protesters decided to see if they would receive the same treatment.

"We thought, if we stage activities in front of the US Embassy, we won’t be breaking the law,” said the leader of today’s anti-coup demonstration.  “We came here to eat sandwiches and read books."

Several police officers observed the anti-coup protest but did not intervene. The student activists peacefully dispersed after spending about 10 minutes talking to reporters in front of the Embassy.

Scores of anti-coup protesters have been arrested over the past month for displaying opposition to the junta's National Council for Peace and Order, which seized power in a coup d'etat on 22 May. Many activists have been detained for merely displaying what have become anti-coup symbols, such as flashing the three-finger salute, eating sandwiches, and reading Nineteen Eighty-four in public. 

Pol.Maj.Gen. Amnuay has not publicly responded to the CSDT's rally in front of the US Embassy today.

BANGKOK — Several thousand Cambodian migrant workers have returned to Thailand following their massive exodus back to Cambodia several weeks ago.

Fearing a harsh crackdowns on migrant workers in the wake of 22 May military coup, over 200,000 Cambodians fled back to their homecountry in June, despite the military junta's insistence that it had no plan to persecute documented workers.

However, officials say the trend has started to reverse in recent days, with a number of Cambodians returning to find work in Thailand again. 

Yesterday, more than 400 Cambodians lined up for legal registration outside a "One Stop Service" centre set up in the border province of Sa Kaeo, with Thai employers arriving throughout the day to hire the newly-registered workers.

Police in Trat province also provided pick-up trucks to transport migrant workers from the border checkpoint to the registration centre in Sa Kaeo.

Pol.Maj.Gen. Teerachai Dedkhat, an immigration police commander in Sa Kaeo, said approximately 4,000 Cambodians have registered at the "One Stop Service" centre since 26 June.

"There are no more rumours," Pol.Maj.Gen. Teerachai said, referring to the NCPO’s claims that false rumors of a crackdown drove the mass exodus of Cambodian migrants earlier this month. "Most of the workers don't believe in it anymore."

Som Jen, a 31-year-old Cambodian immigrant, told our correspondent that he also believes the news about the imminent crackdown was only a rumour.

However, many Cambodians have still not returned to Thailand because they are helping their families farm rice during the rainy season, said Mr. Som shortly after he crossed the border to Thailand at Thai-Cambodian Friendship Bridge. 

Renewed effort to document workers

Another larger "One Stop Service" centre was opened yesterday in Samut Sakhon province, where a large number of Burmese immigrants work in factories in the seafood industry.

Officials say the centre is hoping to register at least 100,000 migrant workers in the province who are currently undocumented.

Around 1,000 Burmese, Cambodians, and Laotians showed up this morning for the registration —  a much higher number than what officials expected. Some delays were also caused by computer failures, incomplete documents, and communication problems between Burmese workers and Thai officials.

After undergoing registration procedures at the centre, which included a health check-up and a 1,305 baht fee for documentation, applicants will recieve a license that permits them to stay in Thailand for 60 days, after which they must return to their homecountry to verify their nationality.

Once their citizenship in their respective countries is verified, they will be allowed to reenter Thailand and receive a year-long work permit. 

The military junta's National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) will announce a measure for foreign workers who are unable to verify their citizenship at a later time, said Gen. Sirichai Dittakul, a member of the military panel which was appointed by the NCPO to oversee matters related to migrant workers.

The NCPO will also establish residential zones for migrant workers in Samut Sakhon after their registration is completed, Gen. Sirichai added.

"These measures and procedures are urgent actions by the head of the NCPO to solve problems about migrant workers. They allow the state to regulate the alien workers in appropriate way and in accordance with principles of human rights," said Gen. Sirichai, who was visited the One Stop Service centre in Samut Sakhon today.

The registration of migrant workers "will prevent illegal actions, human trafficking, illegal entry to the country, narcotics problem, and criminal acts," Gen. Sirichai said. "Furthermore, we will urgently register fishing labourers in the 22 coastline provinces, and we will extend [the service] to the rest of the provinces."

Gen. Sirichai also advised all Thai employers bring their foreign workers for registration at the centre in Samut Sakhon, which opens from 08.30 am – 4.30 pm everyday. The process for each applicant takes around 30 minutes, he said.

Thailand has recently come under harsh criticism from rights groups and the United States government for its weak record of combatting human trafficking. Migrant workers, many of whom arrive in Thailand illegally through "brokers," are often victims of human trafficking and various forms of labour abuse.

Several weeks ago, the US downgraded Thailand to the lowest level of Tier 3 in its annual report on human trafficking. In the 2014 TIP Report, Thailand was reprimanded for harbouring "corruption at all levels" and failing to protect foreign workers from abuse at the hands of human traffickers, employers, and complicit officials.

Meanwhile, a recent investigative report by the Guardian newspaper exposed how many Burmese migrants are subject to forced labor and physical abuse by Thai employers on fishing boats. The report named the country's biggest food retailer, CP Food, as the primary buyer of seafood products supplied by these "slave vessels."