Thailand's Minister of Digital Economy and Society Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn gestures after a family photo session with new cabinet ministers at the Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, on March 30, 2021.BANGKOK - A Thai minister on Friday sought to walk back remarks before parliament that authorities had used spyware to monitor individuals, U-turning on his admission just days earlier that surveillance software was actively being used.
But in an about-face on the final day of the debate, Chaiwut said his comments were general observations not specifically about Thailand. Thai authorities have come under pressure following a joint investigation by a Thai human rights group and two international tech firms that concluded Pegasus was used to hack phones of at least 30 Thai political activists and government critics, going back to 2014.