Preventative Measures Against On-Line Hate Speech: A Case Study of Thailand Political Conflict, 2005-2014
Wanpadej Hongthong · SSRN Electronic Journal · 2017
This qualitative research aimed to 1) investigate the public sector agencies’ measures against on-line political conflict hate speech, and 2) seek remedial approaches and preventative measures for public agencies against on-line political conflict hate speech. The study collected data through in-depth interviews from 24 informants selected from the Technology Crime Suppression Division, the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, and the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission. The findings suggest that the existing law enforcement against on-line political conflict hate speech faces dilemmas along with practical limitations, making it impracticable to prevent hate speech behavior. These include problems in accumulating information, officers’ seeking witnesses and evidence, attribution, retaliation and the absence of integration among various agencies thus reducing the efficiency of prevention and hate-speech behavioral controls. This research recommends modification of approaches to control and monitor the spreading of on-line hate speech by setting standard rules for on-line users, redirecting public political views, arranging the campaign for the legal use of on-line social media, imposing appropriate penalties and enforcing legal measures effectively and, lastly, enhancing personnel capabilities and encourage them to constantly keep IT knowledge updated.