A journalist organisation in Thailand has said it it “dismayed” after a Hong Kong-based photo reporter was arrested and charged for carrying body armour and a helmet after covering the deadly bomb attack at a Bangkok shrine.
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His employer, Hong Kong news outlet Initium Media, said in a statement (in Chinese) that it has engaged a lawyer to help Mr Kwan.
Anthony Kwan, who was assigned by Initium Media Technology to cover the aftermath of the bombing in central Bangkok, was stopped at the Thai capital’s global airport Sunday when authorities found body armor and a helmet in his carry-on luggage before he boarded a flight to Hong Kong.
The ruling junta spokesman, Col. Winthai Suvaree, said Sunday that a student who posted a bomb threat on Facebook was arrested in Ayutthaya on Saturday and was charged with a computer crime that is punishable by up to five years in jail and a fine of 100,000 baht ($2,800). Thai police did not respond to requests for comment this morning.
He is banned from leaving the country.
Initium’s executive chief editor Annie Zhang was quoted as saying the company was “very concerned” about Kwan being detained, before adding that the outlet has hired an attorney in Bangkok to defend him.
The FCCT said in statement that the offence carries a prison sentence of up to five years, with Kwan set to be tried in a military court.
She said that, in cases involving foreigners, courts often imposed conditions preventing departure from the country.
The Bangkok bombing left 20 people dead and more than 120 injured. Use of protective gear is common among journalists on potentially risky assignments, and some media firms require their employees to do so.
Thailand’s 1987 Arms Control Act prohibits the possession of military equipment, including body armour, without a licence.
His work has been published by Minnesota Public Radio, American Public Media and the Associated Press.
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Journalists Hiro Muramoto and Fabio Polenghi were shot and killed while covering street protests in Bangkok in 2010. “Body armour and helmets used by journalists are not offensive weapons and should not be treated as such”, the group added.
