Asia in Review (AiR)
Online panel discussion on law and politics in Southeast Asia - Thailand after the Lockdown III: The Impact on Thai Society
The poster of the event
HSF
On Thursday, 12th November 2020, 4.15 p.m. – 6.45 p.m. (Bangkok time), the German – Southeast Asian Center of Excellence for Public Policy and Good Governance (CPG), the Asian Governance Foundation (AGF) and the Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF), Thailand co-organized an online panel discussion via Facebook livestream on the topic “Thailand after the Lockdown III: The Impact on Thai Society.”
In this event, Thai and foreign experts from various fields discussed together and explored the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic towards Thai society after the lockdown. Those social impacts included but not limited to crimes, domestic violence, child abuse and Thai people’s mental health. The main discussion topics were, for example, the growth of suicidal rate in Thai people and the increase of domestic violence, especially towards women, during the lockdown period. Both panellists and participants exchanged their opinions about causes, consequences and resolutions of these problems in order to prepare for the coming future after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The panelists and the moderator
HSF
The panellists consisted of Pol. Capt. Khemmachart Prakyhongmanee, Deputy Director of the Bureau of Foreign Affairs and Transnational Crime, the Department of Special Investigation (DSI), the Ministry of Justice, Mr. Mohammad Naciri, Regional Director of the UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Pol. Lt. Col. Peabprom Mekhiyanont, Police Inspector of the Thailand Internet Crime Against Children, the Royal Thai Police, M.D. Dr. Benjamas Prukkanone, Director of the Bureau of Mental Health strategy, the Department of Mental Health, the Ministry of Public Health, and Dr. Nattakorn Jampathong, Director of Khon Kaen Rajanagarindra Psychiatric Hospital. Those are all experts who have both professional experience and knowledge about the subjects. Moreover, the moderator of this event was Mr. Patpon Sabpaitoon (Artie), the Senior Journalist and the Head of Content and Strategy of the Bangkok Post, who has been currently famous in social media as a democratic journalist.
This online event went successfully as many people both Thais and foreigners enthusiastically participated to the panel and joined the discussion because the issues are related to their every day life the most, especially about abuse and mental health which have been the issues widely raised among new generations.