‘Sex pest’ teacher nabbed
SURIN: Police have detained a primary school teacher on suspicion of sexually harassing at least 16 girls in his class since last year.
Pol Maj Gen Chanchai Pongpichitkul, commander of Surin Provincial Police, yesterday said the 39-year-old teacher, identified as Sailab Oontan, was apprehended at a house in Phanom Dong Rak district on Wednesday morning, before being taken for questioning at the district police office.
Afterwards, Mr Sailab was remanded in custody at Surin Provincial Court for further legal proceedings pending his bail request.
The arrest came after the victims’ parents lodged complaints with Phanom Dong Rak police against the Prathom 3 (grade 3) teacher who allegedly made indecent advances and sexually harassed the girls who attended his class.
The suspected harassment began when the students were in Prathom 2 (grade 2), according to police.
According to police investigators, at least 16 school girls, between the ages of eight and nine, suffered harassment. Each student was harassed at different times and places in the school.
The young victims and their parents have been summoned by police to give statements in a session to be joined by the prosecutors, psychologists and social workers.
Police said they have gathered sufficient evidence and will ask the court to issue a warrant for Mr Sailab’s arrest should he be granted bail.
The arrest warrant will be sought jointly by Surin Provincial Police and Phanom Dong Rak police following an order to seek the warrant made by Pol Lt Gen Panurat Lakboon, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 3.
The arrest warrant was being secured urgently because Phanom Dong Rak district is located near the Thai-Cambodian border, making it easy for the accused to try and flee the charge if he gets bail, according to Pol Maj Gen Chanchai.
CANBERRA: The Australian parliament yesterday passed a new law designed to force Alphabet Inc’s Google and Facebook Inc to pay media companies for content used on their platforms in reforms that could be replicated in other countries.
Australia will be the first country where a government arbitrator will decide the price to be paid by the tech giants if commercial negotiations with local news outlets fail.
The legislation was watered down, however, at the last minute after a standoff between the government and Facebook culminated in the social media company blocking all news for Australian users.
Subsequent amendments to the bill included giving the government the discretion to release Facebook or Google from the arbitration process if they prove they have made a “significant contribution” to the Australian news industry.
Some lawmakers and publishers have warned that could unfairly leave smaller media companies out in the cold, but both the government and Facebook have claimed the revised legislation as a win.
“The code will ensure that news media businesses are fairly remunerated for the content they generate, helping to sustain public-interest journalism in Australia,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said in a joint statement yesterday.
The progress of the legislation has been closely watched around the world as countries including Canada and Britain consider similar steps to rein in the dominant tech platforms.
The revised code, which also includes a longer period for the tech companies to strike deals with media companies before the state intervenes, will be reviewed within one year of its commencement, the statement said. It did not provide a start date.
The legislation does not specifically name Facebook or Google. Mr Frydenberg said earlier this week he will wait for the tech giants to strike commercial deals with media companies before deciding whether to compel both to do so under the new law.
Google has struck a series of deals with publishers, including a global content arrangement with News Corp, after earlier threatening to withdraw its search engine from Australia over the laws.
Several media companies, including Seven West Media, Nine Entertainment and the Australian Broadcasting Corp have said they are in talks with Facebook. Representatives for Google and Facebook did not immediately respond to requests for comment.