Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva has supported the principle of media self-regulation and says the state should not be allowed to interfere in the media.
Abhisit: Advocates media self-regulation
"In principle I still believe in media self-regulation. However, the media need the tools to make self-regulation possible while developing and fixing weaknesses so they gain the public's confidence," said Mr Abhisit.
He was speaking at a seminar on the role of the media in Thailand's transitional period towards democracy held by participants in King Prajadhipok's Institute's course on the media and democracy.
Thepchai Yong, president of the Thai Broadcast Journalists Association, said he disagrees with having laws which might punish the media as that could risk media interference from groups with vested interests.
However, he conceded the media must also improve its performance and it is the media's duty to examine themselves.
At the same time, the public should also play a role in keeping tabs on the media.
"The public must ask themselves to what extent they are ready to scrutinise the media. Those who still consume bad media must change. After all, the media fears no one more than its audience.
"If they don't follow and don't buy the media, that's the end [of them]," Mr Thepchai said.
Mr Abhisit said freedom of the press is still an issue in Thailand, where the limitations of such freedom have come in many forms over the past 20 years.
National security and order are important.
However, using the law to curb different opinions from the government's would be dangerous, he said.
The Thai Journalists Association (TJA) on Thursday urged the government to stop violating people's freedom of expression by invoking Section 116 of the Criminal Code to intimidate the media and the public.
It called on the government to refrain from threatening journalists and people with Section 116, which carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison for those found guilty of sedition or inciting people to commit wrongdoing.
The association said the government has exploited the law to silence those wanting to express differing opinions.
The call comes after several journalists and academics were recently charged with sedition under Section 116 and the Computer Crime Act.
Khaosod English's senior staff writer, Pravit Rojanaphruk, was charged with sedition for posting a message criticising the government and the National Council for Peace and Order on his Facebook page.
In July, Chayan Vaddhanaphuti, director of Chiang Mai University's Regional Centre for Social Science and Sustainable Development, and four other academics were also charged with holding a public gathering without permission after they hosted an International Conference on Thai Studies in Chiang Mai.
Earlier this month, the TJA urged police to drop charges against an Isra News Agency reporter accused of trespassing in an apartment believed to belong to former national police chief Pol Gen Patcharawat Wongsuwon, a younger brother of Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon.
In its remarks on Thursday, the TJA said the government claims the people charged intended to incite chaos despite the fact that their acts were in compliance with Section 34 of the constitution which certifies the right to freedom of expression.
The TJA also accused the government of abusing its authority by citing national security concerns to prevent the media and the public from voicing their opinions for its own benefit.
It also called on the government to stop taking actions which overstepped legal boundaries.
