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Facebook temporarily down across Thailand
Social media users across the country could not access the site since about 3pm. The site resumed 30 minutes later.
However, some internet users in Bangkok said their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Line and Tumblr accounts were up and available at the time.
According to telecommunications sources, about 30 million Facebook accounts in the country were suspended.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) permanent secretary Surachai Srisarakam said he had received an order from the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to temporarily deny access to Facebook, after anti-coup movements were spreading on social media.
Mr Surachai said the ICT Ministry would ask Facebook, Line, YouTube and other social network operators to cooperate with Thai authorities by deactivating some accounts with "illegal" content.
"We have blocked Facebook temporarily and tomorrow we will call a meeting with other social media, like Twitter and Instagram, to ask for cooperation from them," he told Reuters.
"Right now there's a campaign to ask for people to stage protests against the army so we need to ask for cooperation from social media to help us stop the spread of critical messages about the coup," he said.
However, NCPO deputy spokesman Nathawat Chancharoen denied that the council had given an order to block the social media giant.
"There's no need for the NCPO to block Facebook. And even if we wanted to, we would have to make an announcement first," Col Nathawat said.
Print and broadcast media have already been instructed to refrain from critical reporting of the military's May 22 takeover.
Since army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha staged a coup to oust the caretaker government of the Pheu Thai Party on May 22, the military junta has imposed censorship on the media, blocking access to foreign television news networks and restricting what Thai networks can broadcast. It blocked 219 websites as of May 26.
Read the original story here.
- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/facebo...cross-thailand-46529.php#sthash.y2fMdFws.dpuf
Social media users across the country could not access the site since about 3pm. The site resumed 30 minutes later.
However, some internet users in Bangkok said their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Line and Tumblr accounts were up and available at the time.
According to telecommunications sources, about 30 million Facebook accounts in the country were suspended.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) permanent secretary Surachai Srisarakam said he had received an order from the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to temporarily deny access to Facebook, after anti-coup movements were spreading on social media.
Mr Surachai said the ICT Ministry would ask Facebook, Line, YouTube and other social network operators to cooperate with Thai authorities by deactivating some accounts with "illegal" content.
"We have blocked Facebook temporarily and tomorrow we will call a meeting with other social media, like Twitter and Instagram, to ask for cooperation from them," he told Reuters.
"Right now there's a campaign to ask for people to stage protests against the army so we need to ask for cooperation from social media to help us stop the spread of critical messages about the coup," he said.
However, NCPO deputy spokesman Nathawat Chancharoen denied that the council had given an order to block the social media giant.
"There's no need for the NCPO to block Facebook. And even if we wanted to, we would have to make an announcement first," Col Nathawat said.
Print and broadcast media have already been instructed to refrain from critical reporting of the military's May 22 takeover.
Since army chief Prayuth Chan-ocha staged a coup to oust the caretaker government of the Pheu Thai Party on May 22, the military junta has imposed censorship on the media, blocking access to foreign television news networks and restricting what Thai networks can broadcast. It blocked 219 websites as of May 26.
Read the original story here.
- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/facebo...cross-thailand-46529.php#sthash.y2fMdFws.dpuf
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