The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) has partnered with Cofact, Thailand’s first collaborative fact-checking platform, to train Thai fact-checkers, journalists and academics.
“Fact-checking has never been more important than it is now given that we see misinformation continue to spread regarding the Covid-19 pandemic, and our organisation can provide the tools to our Thai friends to ensure they shine a light on the truth,” said IFCN director Baybars Örsek.
The IFCN is the fact-checking organisation of choice for several major media corporations, including Google and Facebook.Orsek was speaking on Thursday at a Cofact summit held in Bangkok to mark International Fact-Checking Day (April 2).
Cofact brought together a wide range of journalists, civil society organisations, academics, and corporate representatives, including Sure and Share, AFP Fact-Check Thailand, and the Society for Online News Providers (SONP).
Cofact announced that 2022 will be “The Year of Fact Checking” in Thailand, a concerted effort aimed at strengthening Thailand’s ability to counter disinformation and misinformation.
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ภาคีเครือข่าย 39 องค์กร ร่วมจัดเวทีสัมนาไฮบริดเนื่องในวาระ “วันตรวจสอบข่าวลวงโลก” (International Fact-Checking Day 2021) “ความท้าทายในการตรวจสอบข้อเท็จจริงร่วมกัน”
เมื่อวันที่ 2 เม.ย. 2564 ที่โรงแรมศิวาเทล ภาคีร่วมจัดเวทีสัมนาโฮบริดเนื่องในวาระ “วันตรวจสอบข่าวลวงโลก” (International Fact-Checking Day 2021) “ความท้าทายในการตรวจสอบข้อเท็จจริงร่วมกัน”
Hybrid conference to celebrate International Fact-Checking Day 2021 in Thailand: Challenges towards Collaborative Action on Fact-Checking.
2nd April 2021 at 9.00 AM. – 5.00 PM.
Live on Fb: @ThaiPBSFAN @CofactThailand
MORNING SESSION
9.00 – 9.30 AM.Opening Ceremony
Opening remarks by Pairoj Saonuam, MD PhD, Assistant Chief Executive Officer, Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth)Associate Professor Dr. Preeda Akarachantachote, Dean of Faculty of Communications Arts, Chulalongkorn University,Jeerapong Prasertpolkrung, Secretary-General, Thai Journalists Association (TJA),Frederic Spohr, Head of FNF Thailand & Myanmar, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF)
9.30 – 10.30 AM.Keynote + Q&A
Keynote speeches: Fact-Checking Challenges across the globe in time of crisis. Baybars Orsek, Director of International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN)
10.30 – 11.30 AM.Panel 1
Fact-Checking Recap in Thailand: Prospects and Pain Points bySupinya Klangnarong, Co-Founder, COFACT Thailand,Peerapon Anutarasoat, Head of Sure and Share Center, Thai News Agency, MCOT,Nattakorn Ploddee, Fact-Check Editor, AFP Thailand,Rawee Tawantharong, President of Online News Providers Association (SONP),Santiphap Phoemmongkhonsap, Deputy Director of Anti-Fake News CenterModerated by Saijai Liangpansakul, Phandeeyar
11.30 AM. Press Conference
Press Conference on Collaborative Action on Fact-Checking Year in Thailand:April 2, 2021 – April 2, 2022
Lunch
AFTERNOON SESSION
1.00–1.15 PM. 1.15 – 2.30PM. Panel 2
Afternoon-session Opening remark by Associate Professor Dr. Nitida Saengsingkeaw, Deputy dean for academic affairs, Faculty of Journalism and Communication, Thammasart UniversityAcademic Overview on Mis/Disinformation in Thailand by Dr. Isara Anantavarasilp, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang (KMITL) & advisor to Wisesights’ research project. Dr. Jirawate Rugchat, Faculty of Mass Communication, Chiang Mai University, Assistant Professor Phirakan Kai-Nunna, Faculty of Communication Sciences, Prince of Songkla University & advisor to Deep South COFACT. Moderated by Dr.Jessada Salathong, Faculty of Communication Arts, Chulalongkorn University
2.30 – 3.30 PM.Panel 3
Lessons-learned from COFACT Communities:Maruf Chebueraheng Director of Digital4Peace & Deep South COFACTKamol Homklin, Coordinator, Esan COFACTAssistant Professor Dr.Napat Raungnapakul, Consumers Network in Northern Thailand Associate Professor Nuntiya Doungphummes, Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia, Mahidol UniversityModerated by Dr.Uajit Virojtrirat, Advisor to COFACT Thailand & Media Alert
3.30 – 4.30 PM.Panel 4
Global Insights from Social Media Platforms. (TBC)Facebook, Google, Youtube Twitter
4.30PM.–.5.00PM. Closing remarks ‘From Truth seeking to Peace building’ by Ven Napan Santibhaddo, Chairpersonof the Board, Institute of Buddhist Management for Happiness and Peace Foundation (IBHAP Foundation) Theerada Suphaphong, Thailand representative, Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD)
Online campaign – ‘Everyone is a fact-checker.’
9.00 PM. – 11 PM. Reflection
Reflection on Clubhouse ‘From April Fool’s to Fact-Checking Day.’’Hosted by Sure and Share Center, Thai News Agency, MCOT.
ปาฐกถาเรื่อง “การตรวจสอบข่าวลวงในภาวะวิกฤติรอบโลก” โดย Baybars Orsek ผู้อำนวยการเครือข่ายองค์กรตรวจสอบข่าวสากล Director of International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN)
Challenges of digital citizens during the New Normal
By COFACT Thailand
What will the future look like if everything in life is fitted with sensors? It will certainly track misplaced objects more easily. The comfort, on the other hand, can put one’s personal data at risk because technology has positive and negative effects on daily lives.
During the opening remarks of the 14th Year-end Digital Thinkers Forum co-organized by COFACT, Thai Health Promotion Foundation, Thailand Institute of Justice and Friedrich Naumann Foundation on 26 November 2020, Ms. Supinya Klangnarong, co-founder of COFACT-Thailand welcomed academics and experts from different fields to a brainstorming meeting under the theme: “Promoting Digital intelligence to deal with cybercrime in the New Normal”.
Intelligence of digital citizens during the New Normal
When the technology evolves rapidly, what follows is humans are struggling to catch up with the status quo, especially the dark side of technology. The rapid change brings up questions about morals and concerns about growing cybercrime that has become part of daily life. For instance, if genetic code can be completely cracked that it allows parents to choose gender, hair color or facial structure for their babies. Children may not be able to grow up because parents control them. Cybercrime can cause an economic downturn. Some jobs like call centers and banks will vanish, but at the same time, new job opportunities will be created, or existing jobs like psychiatrists are growing more important.
Ms. Supinya has urged people to embrace significant changes such as human microchip implant, digital identity, digital wearable devices, autonomous car and artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace. The digital transformation will make our lives far easier, but people should embrace and use it wisely, otherwise they will fall into the cybercrime trap.
There’re four elements of being an intelligent digital citizen which consist of
Brain: to have a comprehensive understanding and apply our knowledge wisely Heart: to integrate thinking into feeling and connect with yourself as well as others Soul : to be aware of emotion, common goals, trust and goodness that altogether lead to positive change and the creation of public benefits Body: to cultivate your own healthy lifestyle and those of people around you. For example, kids these days know how to use iPad. Gadget overuse have eventually changed human’s body structure. The spine of humans in the next decade will bent forward
Although technology has progressed this far, humanity still serves as a foundation for social unity even in the digital era.
Smart cyber criminals
Since a Covid-19 lockdown, the world sees a surge in scams on average, especially in Asia – Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, accounting for more than 60 percent of the world’s population. Types of computer crimes have also increased such as job frauds, fake charity and online gambling. The police are struggling to combat with rapidly increasing cybercrime and track down the so-called “Smart Thieves”. Meanwhile, law enforcement fails to keep up with cybercrime which is now skyrocketing. Working from home is also a factor that leads to a rise in internet banking scam.
Challenge for digital citizens during outbreak is that people feel their freedom to live is being threatened. This feeling occurs because the government tracks the people’s locations and activities as a way to process patients for medical service and bring COVID-19 under control.
Ms. Supinya Klangnarong, co-founder of COFACT-Thailand
Ms. Supinya stressed that a more balanced digital citizenship remains questionable, bringing up some cases that emerged during lockdown.
“More people worldwide are turning to the popular free porn website, with Thais ranking one of the website’s top countries in terms of traffic. If we choose to focus on the bright side, it helps decrease women’s risk of sexual assaults. But the video clips may contain content from sexually exploited women,” she explained.
Among the key speakers, Lieutenant Colonel Preab-phrom Mekiyanon (พันตำรวจโทหญิง เพรียบพร้อม เมฆิยานนท์) , Acting Inspector, the Thailand Internet Crimes Against Children (TICAC) Task Force under the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) has highlighted that the police can’t keep up with the rising cybercrime, especially the transboundary crimes online.
“During COVID-19, a large number of children are sexually abused. For example, children are being lured into recording a video of masturbating themselves. The price of each video ranges from 5,000 to 50,000 baht. There are cases in which foreigners fool retired people into entering a relationship and steal all hard-earned savings. With technology such as Google Translation, criminals can reach out to victims in a faster and easier way, making it the borderless crime. For instance, about 50,000 – 60,000 images of naked children are sold in Australia. For each case, it takes about one year to track down the criminal and advanced technology makes the hunt even more difficult,” Lieutenant Colonel Preab-phrom said.
Thus, being an intelligent digital citizen is a must choice in order to deal with threats which are no longer far-fetched. People can’t wait for the authorities to track down the cyber criminals because it is becoming more difficult. The best way is to protect our rights because no one is going to care for you for 24 hours, she added.
Build smart digital citizens
During a brainstorming session, many experts have discussed ways to build smart digital citizens. Among them is Dr. Napat Ruangnapakul, Deputy Dean at the Faculty of Information and Communication, Maejo University, who shed light on digital literacy among children at schools. She gave an example, saying in Australia, digital literacy has been integrated into the curriculum from kindergarten to secondary school in order to provide students with a better understanding of digital technologies. She believed Australia has set a good example that Thailand should follow.
“At present, 10 generic competences of digital literacy are being taught for students from kindergarten level onward. The subject gets more difficult as the grade rises. The topics also include cyberbullying to protect children from negative posts online. As of now, 13 schools focus on digital citizenship courses. Children are urged to change passwords regularly because hacking the passwords will be much easier in the near future. Digital intelligence and digital citizen will drive the economic and improves people’s well-being. ”
While Asst. Prof. Malee Boonsiripun, former dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication, Thammasart University has echoed the above sentiments about digital literacy for children, saying young populations should be prepared for the digital transformation as well as threats.
“We must prepare children since their school days, equipped them with digital intelligence and guide them to be a media literate. Curriculum should be designed appropriately for their ages, culture, opportunities and trust. I watched Social Media Dilemma on Netflix. It was wonderful. The documentary shows us that we tend to use more social networks because of algorithms and AI. When we search something on the internet, we use the same keywords which later lead to the one-sided information. This is dangerous because it can divide the society, devalue our thinking and change our behavior unconsciously. We have to talk about this at schools and make the kids realize what dangers that await. The ability to analyze and think critically should exist at schools, so they are aware of what they are absorbing, and which one is real. Memorizing texts doesn’t work anymore. Teachers around the word now act as coaches. Teachers must listen to students and guide them the ways,” said Asst. Prof. Malee.
Asst. Prof. Malee Boonsiripun, former dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication, Thammasart University
“I look forward to tangible recommendations to design the curriculum such as courses on media technology and media literacy. While the media must verify information before reporting. Although news is now being shared online, but people rely more on mainstream media than on social media. Roles of journalists are still important in raising awareness of the dark side of technology,” she suggested.
Another speaker, Ms. Saijai Liangpunsakul, director of Phandeeyar put more emphasis on self-communication during the digital era.
“Today, digital dependency is now threatening ourselves. People rely on technology too much and have lost ability to communicate with each other. People do not have enough time for self-care. Alone time is necessary, and it has the potential to trigger our creativity for innovation. We’ve started losing human connection, but it is the misuse of technology that threatens our society. Mobile technology, for example, is developed to help us contact our loved ones, but today we use it to break up with our partners.
“Let’s become a technology minimalist. For example, do not play with your phone while eating, look at someone in front of you, not your phone screen or focus more on work and stop being distracted by Facebook. If we’re intelligent digital citizens, we should know how to use technology wisely,” said Ms. Saijai.
The panel discussion shows the audience ways to become smarter digital citizens. Curriculum at schools should be designed in such a way that children can deal with accelerated digital changes. Younger generations and kids from kindergarten level onward should be more aware of a digital future, so they do not fall into the technology trap or fall victim to cybercriminals who are so hard to be caught. At the same time, let them be prepared for the next pandemic.
The COVID-19 came out of the blue and attacked the global hard. No single government was ready for it. Letting the government alone to deal with pandemics can’t suppress the virus that spreads so fast. The crisis demands cooperation. Digital citizens utilize their skills to address the problem and their actions could be served as lessons to develop new digital citizens in the future.
Dr. Panachit Kittipanya-Ngam, CEO-ZTRUS presented a paper titled: “Civic Technology and Pandemics” to academics and experts convened at the 14th Year-end Digital Thinkers Forum co-organized by COFACT and networks of civil society organizations on 26 November 2020.
Dr. Panachit shared experiences in applying technology to screen and transfer suspected COVID-19 patients as a way to ease the burden on doctors and nurses. The technology adoption also helps better patient transfers and brings the disease under control. As a result, nearly 300,000 patients were accommodated to the hospital during the first two months of the outbreak. The idea has been adopted from innovative startups that solves the root causes and adapts to cope with all new challenges. The action ultimately paves the way for a comprehensive system that can address flaws.
Dr. Panachit Kittipanya-Ngam, CEO-ZTRUS
Concept: Put the right person to the right thing
Dr. Panachit said initial screening system was developed from the concepts of startups that aims to solve the root causes with new tools, rather than mitigating consequences.
“During COVID-19’s initial outbreak, we witnessed widespread panic among Thai people and we feared the hospitals would be overwhelmed. Everyone was getting worried if he or she was infected. If we let everyone go to the hospitals, doctors can’t diagnose every patient. So, we developed a system to match a person suspected he might have been infected (demand) with a hospital (supply). We developed an initial screening system with digital tools to conduct active screening to search for people with high risk of infection,” said Dr. Panachit
“44 days have elapsed since 7 March 2020. We supported more than 100,000 patients. About 200,000 – 300,000 were covered by our system during the next two months. Just imagine, what would happen if these people who were worried sick went to the hospitals at the same time? It would be chaotic. So, we think our idea was the right solution and helped ease the burden of the hospitals. Among 200,000 – 300,000 people, about 20,000 of them deemed at risk of infection. They were later transferred to Chulalongkorn and Rajavithi Hospitals with 50 patients each day,” he added.
Comprehensive citizen volunteering
The big question about communicating with people during a crisis is to provide trusted and reliable information that requires close cooperation with the public sector.
“The first attempt is to create reliable information. We have to work closely with two key state agencies which are the Disease Control Department and Sure Kon Share Center (Sure and Share Center). During the initial stage of cooperation, we began a screening process by handing over questions prepared by the Department of Disease Control to confirm how many people tested positive for COVID-19. We’ve developed tools to cope with the COVID-19 and also offered teleconsulting services, which allow patients to talk with a doctor over the phone,” said Dr. Panachit.
Apart from an initial screening to ease the burden of hospitals, the next mission is to transfer patients with suspected COVID-19 to hospitals while mitigating the spread of virus.
“When we informed the patients that they were at risk of infection, we thought carefully about how they would travel if they didn’t have vehicles. We called the 1669 medical emergency hotline, but they couldn’t take patients with high risk of infection. If they used public transport, the risk would be greater. We had to hire a car and converted it into an ambulance to pick up at-risk-Covid patients and reduce transmission of the coronavirus,” he recalled.
However, problem that followed is the final diagnosis that took several days to confirm the infection. The solution available at that time was to convert hotels to make room for patients. Hotels had lost all revenue and remained empty ever since. Fundraising platform Taejai.com had stepped in and been raising funds to ease the financial burden of patients, reflecting cooperation between public and private sectors in a comprehensive way.
“I believe citizens can work with the state agencies,” Dr. Panachit expressed his opinion, adding that patient screening mission has extended to comprehensive care system that allows individuals to help the government manage the crisis.
Building trust between government and civic sector
People are concerned when the government is handling sensitive information because the state must protect personal data and privacy to ensure citizens’ security. Thus, data must be divided into two categories – disclosable and confidential.
“When we request non-personal data such as the number of hospital beds or locations of stores selling face masks, this information is never available. If we have enough key information in hand, we’ll be able to serve the demands by matching [the patients and hospitals] right away. Startups investors are hot-tempered, quick and very determined to solve problems, but the Thai government displays a reluctance to disclose information,” said Dr. Panachit.
“We have to find a balance between privacy and security. What we have been discussing with the Department of Disease Control is that disclosable information should be made public and most up-to-date. For example, the total number of available hospital beds, number and information about stores selling face masks, or information about available measures to fix the problems. In case of IT-related problems, we can help create better structure that build trust [between the public sector and people] and allow the two sectors to work together. Trust and shared goals should be core values, otherwise both public and private sectors will collapse.
Develop a digital citizen for society
Based on work experience with the public sector during the COVID-19, Dr. Panachit has highlighted three key challenges that the government needs to address before the next pandemic hits. The three challenges are illustrated below:
Organizing data as basic infrastructure to respond to a crisis
Enchaining the end-user experience that allows data exchange between the government and citizens in accordance with data protection rules
Integrating the application programming interface (API) as a new public service
In response, Dr. Jiraporn Wittayasakpan, honorable committee member from the Thai Health Promotion Foundation also opined that knowledge should be developed further into guidelines to boost cooperation on civic tech and solve the social problems. This will encourage people to not only use mobile phone for themselves, but for the sake of society.
Dr. Jiraporn Wittayasakpan, honorable committee member from the Thai Health Promotion Foundation
“I praised civil society for taking a step forward to address and ease the impact of COVID-19. On the other hand, the ultimate goal of adopting a business model is profit-making. Imagine if the public sector acts as data curator and service facilitators as policy maker. The question is how we can disclose information and make sure that information is in safe hands, not to be used for business purpose,” said Dr. Jiraporn.
“These days, many types of technology risks are inevitable. There is an increasing risk when mobile phones are used. How we can bring these ideas forward and apply them to bring happiness of the people. I want to see this type of model where digital skills are integrated to improve people’s quality of life and make civil society more effective and beautiful like the case of community radio that is owned by several communities and play a significant role in developing communities,” she added.
While Asst. Prof. Dr. ML Taya Kitiyakara, from the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University said the technology adoption is flexible, right to the point and comprehensive. In his view, the formation of the technology also strengthens community resilience by utilizing resources from diverse society to lift living standard of the poor and the underprivileged. Doctors, nurses and healthcare workers can’t cope with the COVID-19 pandemic without support from other sectors of the society.
“The hospitals manage patient flow, and we adjust the plan in line with problems that arise. I want to highlight efforts made by the project. It reflects good cooperation among different groups of startups. We should urge others to apply this model and take action, but the question remains about how we can encourage others to follow suit because cooperation between the public and private sectors require trust to some extent. So, procedure must be set up to allow a close collaboration [between the two sectors] to occur in the near future,” Dr. Taya explained.
Asst. Prof. Dr. ML Taya Kitiyakara, from the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital
The panel discussion made the audience become more aware of the importance of civil society in a digital era. When a crisis strikes, the government alone can’t address the problems from all sides. Thus, civil society plays a significant role in helping the country survive this crisis. In order to work with state agencies more effectively, civil society must disclose information that is necessary for crisis mitigation. Lessons shared by startups will be serves as a model for Thai society to develop digital citizens in the future.
COVID-19 ‘Missing (you) is missing’: Inequality in the Digital Era By COFACT Thailand
In light of COVID-19 crisis, access to internet connection becomes “the 5th basic needs” because everyone adheres to social distancing amid the new normal. Internet has become a shared space that connects every of us who stays home. It also serves as the government’s platform for citizens to register and receive financial aid. However, relief schemes remain an obstacle for those who “lack internet access”, especially vulnerable groups who are economically disadvantaged. The digital age, in fact, is leaving them more vulnerable to inequality.
Mr. Sunit Shrestha, Managing Director of the ChangeFusion Institute presented a paper titled: “COVID-19 ‘Missing (you) is missing’: Inequality in the Digital Era” to academics and experts convened at the 14th Year-end Digital Thinkers Forum co-organized by COFACT, Thai Health Promotion Foundation, Thailand Institute of Justice and Friedrich Naumann Foundation on 26 November 2020.
Mr. Sunit has summarized four dimensions of digital inequality which are shown below:
Dimension 1: inequality of internet access
Data about access to internet collected by state agencies are different. Lack of internet access can be assessed and according to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), at least 10 million Thai people still lack access to internet in 2019. Thailand’s population stands at 66.5 million, of whom 50.1 million have access to the internet. 16 million still lack internet access. The NBTC wrote on its webpage saying, the statistics doesn’t cover over 20 million people who are under the Pracharat Internet project (Government Nation-wide internet project). Meanwhile, according to statistics from the National Statistical Office (NSO) in 2018, the pool was conducted using a simple random sampling method on people aged over 6 who use digital tools, the survey found that 40% of them have never used the internet.
Lack of internet access has prevented vulnerable groups from receiving financial aid from the state. For example, Rao Mai Thing Kan (or “Nobody will be left behind” in Thai) that aims to allocate 5,000 baht per month for three months between April and June 2019. During the registration period, a large number of people had failed to register online.
Dimension 2: Lack of internet access put people’s lives at risk
During the first wave of COVID-19 swept across Thailand, lack of internet access put people’s lives at risk because they have no clue about preventive measures and the COVID-19 situation at different areas. A vast group of people don’t receive Covid-19 financial aid, vulnerable groups in particular.
If people can’t access website or Facebook Page of the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), they have to rely on news broadcast on mainstream media such as radio, television and newspaper that doesn’t come in real time. Mr. Sunit said, “Information about COVID-19 is constantly changing because this is an emerging infectious disease. We still don’t know a lot of things. We don’t even know symptoms. Information about the disease keeps changing, for instance, the World Health Organization (WHO) spoke about wearing or not wearing a mask. During a fresh round of Covid-19 infections, the WHO recommended the global population not to wear a mask because the virus wasn’t dangerous and didn’t spread easily, but later urged people to wear it due to a change in information.”
This example reflects lack of internet access among people that later led to higher risk of infection. They also lack access to financial aid or donation because they don’t know types of aid and sources. Furthermore, vulnerable people tend to be at a higher risk of being tricked by the criminals like the case in which chao guay (grass jelly) seller (or shall we use street vendor?) had no idea about the amount of a crash handout and didn’t know how to withdraw money from an ATM. Some of his money were taken by the thief.
Mr. Sunit Shrestha, Managing Director of the ChangeFusion Institute
Dimension 3: Digital skills and fact-checking
Mr. Sunit stressed that lack of digital skills is reflected in fake news getting shared. Fortunately, no one in Thailand was dead because of coronavirus-related misinformation. Although digital tools are used in constructive ways, for example, running a page to promote local job vacancies or teach selling products online, it a causes higher possibility of sex trade and online gambling.
Dimension 4: Digital citizens and reduced inequality
Another inequality-related issue that increased during the COVID-19 outbreak during the past year is the government appears reluctant to share its information. For example, several inventors in Thailand developed mobile applications that are able to track the location of stores selling face masks, but due to lack of support from the government, the apps provided inaccurate information. Unlike Taiwan, the government fully supports the development of the application that can accurately track the stores’ locations and the amount of face masks available at each shop. Thus, having digital citizens in decision-making circle is necessary to help fix social problems and also allow public access to information as well as aids through different tools.
Ways to reduce inequality of the Thai government
Another speaker is Mr. Tippatrai Saelawong, researcher at Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI) who highlighted responses from Thai people to the coronavirus has been remarkably divisive.
“The yarning gaps of the so-called “Digital Divide”, which sill left unaddressed, has led to lack of educational and job opportunities. The divisiveness was amplified by the pandemic. For instance, when nationwide lockdown measures were enforced, a large number of people were left unemployed because they couldn’t work from home,” said Mr. Tippatrai.
Mr. Tippatrai Saelawong, researcher at Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI)
“The government hasn’t paid much attention to e-government reforms. For example, policies that aim to help the poor fail to reach out to the target group because the government can’t find out all poor people. However, in every crisis there is opportunity, when the central government showed limits to the pandemic crisis, the local government officials had a chance to show their capacity through roles of village health volunteers and an installation of the “Pantries of Happiness”, known as tu pan sook. The roadside cupboards are seen as new innovation that helps people make ends meet during the pandemic crisis, the government can organize vast database of poor people more systemically. Good governance and database connection will bear fruit for the country.” Problems behind the three causes of inequality include out-of-date regulations, wealth inequality generated by the government itself, for example, power has been given to local authorities, but administration hasn’t really been decentralized. Also, the government ignores safety nets and often hands over financial aid, rather than making Thailand a “welfare state”. Good governance of digital government According to Prof. Surichai Wun’gaeo, professor at the Chulalongkorn University Social Research Institute (CUSRI), problems regarding inequality and good governance of digital government intensified amid doubts over whether information are stored for whom. Meanwhile, the government can’t yet find out which departments failed to do their jobs since each department kept saying they were facing budget constraints. Over the past years, Prof. Surichai said Thailand has been a highly centralized state. During the pandemic, the state controlled the suspected cases [of Covid-19] with the emergency decree. The country, however, witnessed a change that caused by the strength of civic groups. “The debate scope of digital citizenship must be extended beyond its pros and cons, or its true and false news. Rather than going against it, studies should be conducted on roles of emerging digital citizens. Civil society should be able to keep an eye out for public administration, good governance, treatment of the underprivileged, and other matters that don’t come from the central government’s press conference. Questions remain about how we can make reform of the government and other state agencies, whether by themselves or through cooperation, a national agenda,” he explained. The panel discussion highlighted that public access to information “seem” boundless in digital age, but in fact vulnerable groups of people can’t have internet access “equally”. Inequality manifested itself even before the COVID-19 but was unseen in a digital world. Thus, the only way to reduce inequality among Thai citizens and reach out to them to alleviate their hardship is to think though the inequality in a digital world.
