Grey area stumbling block for a "Clean Thai Web" on the Internet

Thailand's move to impose a ban and a ratings system for a "Clean Internet Web" has struck a problem, the censors do not agree which web sites should be banned.

The new Thai censor committee, a group of about 100 officials, child protection workers, computer specialists, students and Thai internet surfers met under the auspices of the Information and Communications Technology Ministry of Thailand.

But the committee could not agree on a definition of the "Grey Internet Area", to which only limited access would be allowed in Thailand.

Members of the committee were asked to rate 45 samples of content and pictures taken from various websites. All agreed that child pornography, info on terrorism and weapons, which could encourage violent behavior in children, and sites saying bad things about the Royal Thai Family or the Thai religion should all be banned. But participants were reluctant to have web sites banned offering lucky numbers and/or lottery predictions banned.

Sites selling tranquillizers and sexually stimulating drugs, websites promoting massage parlors, and aggressive and violent comments on popular web boards also provoked lengthy debate. Nor could the new committee agree where the line should be drawn to classify a web site as being pornographic.

It was finally agreed that sites with extreme pornography or violence should be off limits in Thailand and that access to all other inappropriate websites should be limited by use of passwords and pay-per-view.

Thailand's Minister Surapong Suebwonglee said that a committee would be set up to continue work on a rating system for the internet in Thailand, which would be similar to that of the rating system applied to movies _ X, R and PG (parental guidance).

Minister Surapong further said that the "Clean Internet Package", allowing internet access for 1 baht an hour would be an essential tool for parents to protect children from the pornography and other indecent material available on the Internet.

At the ministry's request, Thai internet service providers had already blocked more than 100 violent and pornographic sites, but the sites just changed their names and continued business as usual. Some of these sites were even accessible at schools using leased lines, which do not go through the normal screening of the Thai internet service providers.