we will bring them to you live here from bangkok.s midnight here in london, and 8:00pm in washington, where more details have been released of the long—awaited mueller report into russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. a letter summarising the report has been handed to us congressional leaders. it says there's no evidence that president trump or his campaign team colluded with russia to influence the 2016 election. it also says the report did not draw a conclusion as to whether mr trump illegally obstructed justice. chris buckler is in washington. chris, give us more reaction to this, it is big news for donald trump. it certainly is, and i think this is a good day for the president. when you look at the report, it says clearly that the special council believes that russia did interfere in the 2016 us presidential election, but it is also clear in saying that as far as he is concerned he has found no evidence of a conspiracy or collusion involving the trump campaign. mrtrump will use collusion involving the trump camp

reporting from bangkok and reacting to the verdict of a coster from court. called it sad and depressing we stay in thailand where an unlikely set of symbols is making a splash in popular culture not the iconic. images are freely available. representative of a regime that six million jews during the second world war these become a designer dictator here in the markets of bangkok nazi symbols are in vogue and hitler is the rock star of fascist fashion. it's a trend that's creeping into pop culture like this swastika t. shirt worn by a member of the thai girl band b m k forty eight a recent fashion folk that when viral was the lot of the both of i was shocked i felt it's my fault i wasn't aware even though i should have known. this response from the israeli embassy presenting nazi symbols by the band singer hurt the feelings of millions around the world whose relatives were murdered by the nazis but this type of fan calls for forgiveness saying not everyone may know that nazi symbol please let her learn from the mistake. here at chulalongkorn university student

let's go back now to sharanjit in bangkok.fficial results from the first elections since the military coup. to make more sense of the situation with me now is michael vatikiotis. tell us a little bit about what kind of government we expect to form now that this paramilitary party has done better than expected. that this paramilitary party has done better than expectedlj that this paramilitary party has done better than expected. i think it isa done better than expected. i think it is a government that will involve politicians to a much greater degree than before. there will be a lot more bargaining over positions for the cabinet. many of the mps were brought into that military party in the run—up to the campaign. people previously with other parties will be asking for positions within the government. i also think the government. i also think the government will be a bit more accountable because there will be more argy—bargy in the parliament. it will be difficult for this parliament to pass a budget, and there will be more lik

is following the story in bangkok and explains why this ruling is important the verdict did not come as a surprise after all thai rak such odds is already the third party affiliated with ousted former prime minister taksin shinawatra that gets by thailand's constitutional court many party supporters view the ban as politically motivated they argue. had we now need to roll tide long ago and was there for eligible to run when the king voiced his dismay there was little room left for maneuver with today's sentence more than two hundred fifty m.p. candidates have moved from the race reducing chances of the tocsin camp to when less than three weeks before thailand's long awaited general elections the country's political future is up in the air. reporting from bangkok and reacting to the verdict of a coster from court type princess overall rock called it sad and depressing we stay in thailand where an unlikely set of symbols is making a splash in popular culture a nazi icon a graphic. images are freely available as five times representative of a regime that murdered some six million jews d

despite growing censorship bangkok recently held its first be a nalini. one of four big fish was sanctioned by the military government in the past year temples shopping is an old heritage buildings all became exhibition spices. but for a film director not is. the beard ali exhibitions lacks political punch i don't see any issue that creating a real dialogue and up them merely critical to the current situation and then the end of the day is the first or we become like a decoration. and. that's something the curator of the bin ali dr appy nine plus young on it rejects one he says he could address sensitive issues like ranger refugees migrant sex workers and southern thailand's insurgency because the expo is largely privately funded first war i must say that if this bill is fully. one said by the government. we would not have many continents like i mention for the insurgents or six my sensitive issues we would have to go through a lot of self-censorship some critics. big. payoffs for the military government what do you think about. critics i respect them as

all right let's bring in our panel in bangkok we have seen it tyler was a human rights watch in turkey michael months a son who is a senior fellow and coordinator of the thailand studies program at singapore's i.c.'s use of institute and also in bangkok we have been on an economist and professor of international business at the times business school welcome to you all and soon i if i could start with you human rights watch so first elections since the military takeover desists signal the beginning of the return to democracy i just came back from of the election and vote count atmosphere across bangkok is people showing into a. home against the odds repressive political environment where freedom of expression freedom for political activity have mean restricted they are acting against the odds by ass electro rules clearly the w.c.s. of type people after spoken out whether we would say that why you say it's being translated into transformation of thailand in to democratic civilian rule we will stuck with and not a form of dictatorship that the same k. take off their military uniforms put

gunmen dressed as traditional dons or hunters stormed august sagal a villager flan a cattle herders in bangkok central mali they also attacked whaling geir another felony village near by violence between frannie and rival communities has compounded an already daya security situation in mali as desert regions the prime minister announced the sacking of the military commanders after an emergency cabinet meeting adam again is a west africa analyst and former director of information for ecowas economic community of west african states he says there's a general feeling in money that the state is no longer there the project of being insured. it's a presence in the. east so. the congress in. general the world of good will probably. be the first battle to sell. because recruitment so. you don't want the user who people. who told you over learn. the first four. so it's. not political but government of. the government but also really little article last little bit of the real feel that this article when affected because of the little numbers of the most of. the type of the that looks like to us the form

let's get some perspective, mckenzie bangkok chairman.o this election for greater clarity where economic will go. and here we go with greater uncertainty before. >> yes, but i think in my view if the p.i.p.p. will form the government then the economy policy will be stable because they have the current government and by the current cabinet, they source policy and our nubla. so if they can form at least a 50-member, then i believe it will be stable for a while. and see how the landscape will be. pprp you talk about the junta. you need policys that take the economy forward in the last five years, thailand has left behind its pierce in southeast asia. 3.9% for the year versus 5.2% if the rest of the region. it's not conducive for growth. >> but you can see a lot of the infrastructure project has been laid down. it's not investors coming in yet. but the infrastructure of the project: i believe they can continue those policies. ,nd i hope that if that project infrastructure project are within this government, then i elieve that you can be good.

all right let's bring in our panel in bangkok we have seen it tyler was a human rights watch in tokyo via skype michael month the son of a senior fellow and coordinator of the thailand studies program at singapore's i.c.'s use of institute and also in bangkok we have been on an economist and professor of international business at the times business school welcome to you all and soon if i could start with you human rights watch so first elections since the military takeover desist signal the beginning of the return to democracy i just came back from of being the election and vote count atmosphere across bangkok is people showing into it and enthusiasm against the odds repressive political and for unmanned where freedom of expression freedom for political activity have mean restricted they are acting against the odds by ass electro rules clearly the w.c.s. of type people after spoken out whether we would say that why you say it's being translated into transformation of thailand in to democratic civilian rule we will stuck with and not a form of dictatorship that the same can't take off

the nominating process as their candidate for prime minister last february when he has more from bangkok. there was a somber mood among the leaders of the thai rocks a charge party as they arrived at the constitutional court in bangkok they knew these would probably be the final moments of the party's existence. they didn't have to wait long for confirmation. the nine judges took less than forty minutes to deliver a unanimous verdict. we considered the out to the party as untaken istic towards the constitutional monarchy the court has ordered that the party be dissolved the fourteen members of the party's executive committee were also banned from politics for ten years. to party executive members and i are deeply sad about that the solving of our party it is sure to have an impact on basic political rights the verdict came a month after thai rocks a chart announced that princess would be its candidate to become prime minister in the election hours later the palace said the move was inappropriate and unconstitutional from that moment it seemed unlikely the party would survive in a country

but there are fears the military has already stacked the political deck and the paper will cross to bangkok for an absence. terrifying moments at sea a cruise ship breaks down in dangerous waters off the norwegian coast we'll have an update on the rescue efforts four hundred stuck on board. identical welcome to the show. the people of thailand are voting and the country's first general election since a military coup five years ago prime minister and former army chief. is hoping to extend his hold on power as the country returns to civilian control he hopes to see off the challenge by the populist peo thai party which is allied to the ousted prime minister taksin chin out what. critics say that changes to the political system since the coup mean the electoral system is biased in favor of parties aligned with the military after casting his own vote the hometown backed prime minister appeared to encourage a large turnout that it would be my hope everyone will photo day to exercise their rights everyone wants democracy and that means everyone should have failed them selves of those rights in tr

sharanjit leyl is in bangkok for us.n the electoral commission has a press conference in the afternoon local time, but at the moment indications are that the pro— army party has done much better than expected. they got a larger share of the vote than expected, because going into these elections they were seen to be not doing incredibly well, to be a third runner—up, in fact. it was a day that had been promised, and then repeatedly postponed. thais by and large participated keenly, despite an electoral system that tilts the odds heavily in the military government's favour. the man who deposed the last elected government in a coup and has run thailand ever since cast his vote early. general prayuth is bidding to keep hisjob as prime minister, but many younger voters, 7 million of them eligible to vote for the first time, looking for something different. i am happy there is a voting at last, we have been waiting for this election for some time and i hope it brings good things for the country. we need some younger or newer g

military regime critics accuse the military of having staff the political deck in its favor for life in bangkok for analysis it's also coming up. terrifying moments at sea of crew shift breaks down into dangerous waters off the norwegian coast will have an update on the rescue efforts for hundreds stuck on board. and is too recent made facing a revolt from within her own cabinet reports say the british prime minister could be pushed out and made dissatisfaction at her handling of. get the details from our correspondent but. i'm michael thanks for joining us early results from thailand's long delayed general election show the country's military party with a lead over its main challenger that's with election officials saying that ninety percent of ballots have now been counted. this man former army chief pride has led thailand since a military coup five years ago he wanted voters to keep him on as a prime minister promising stability to face the opposition. type party which raise questions about the fairness of the poll saying the rules say for the military. bringing in now our correspondent best

a village of cattle herders in bangkok's central mali they also attacked whaling gar another for money village near by violence between for money and rival communities has compounded an already daya security situation in mali's desert regions the prime minister announced the psyching of the military commanders after any measure cabinet meeting adam a gay is a west africa analyst and former director of information for ecowas economic community of west african states he says there's a general feeling in mali that the states is no longer there. to be intrusive. it's approved improves their lives over.

guard but there are fears the military has already stacked a political deck in its favor or live in bangkok for analysis. of the. terrifying moments at sea a cruise ship breaks down in dangerous waters off the norwegian coast we'll have an update on the rescue efforts for hundred stuck on large. plane. thanks for joining us. polls have just begun closing in thailand as the country wraps up its first general election since a military coup five years ago prime minister and former army chief is hoping to extend his hold on power as the country returns to civilian control to see off the challenge by the populous type party which is the ally to the ousted prime minister talks in shadow watch critics say that changes to the political system since the coup mean the electoral system is biased in favor of parties aligned with the military after casting his own both home to back prime minister appeared to encourage a large turnout there that it will be my hope everyone will vote today to exercise their rights everyone wants democracy and that means everyone should have a limb selves of those rights i

is sit for another unpredictable and potentially volatile political periods wayne hay al jazeera bangkok. the medical charity doctors without borders says a more humane response is needed to end the boehner epidemic in democratic republic of congo it says not enough has been done to gain the trust of local communities and even aid workers and increasing target for violence comes as the head of the world health organization is visiting the country to get an update on the outbreak and bron reports. wearing protective suits they wash down with chlorine making sure every particle of the highly contagious virus is destroyed but doctors without borders says efforts to contain it working and instead have led to his still iffy end violence against the people who are trying to help the existing atmosphere can only be described as toxic it shows how the response has failed to listen and act on the needs of those most affected the doctor who was in the democratic republic of congo last week went to treatment centers were burned down it forced the charity to suspend its operations at the a.p.c. into

but there are fears the military has already stacked the political deck and its favor are live in bangkok for analysis. welcome to the show. we begin and norway with a dramatic rescue mission crews have been racing to bring cruise ship passengers to safety after their boat was stranded and dangerous waters the ship broke down on saturday with over a thousand passengers on board most of the vessels engines have now been have restarted and it's hoped it can be towed to port but the ship stranding has already led to harrowing moments for passengers. passengers rushed to shield themselves from sliding furniture and falling ceiling panels as heaving waves tossed the cruise ship from side to side. some said waves had broken ship windows and said cold water rushing on to the floor. elsewhere on board the mostly british and american travelers could do nothing but sit and wait for their turn to be airlifted to safety. amid winds of eighty six kilometers per hour and waves over eight meters high the viking sky sent out a mayday call early on saturday afternoon it had suffered engine failure and was

thank you that's the best in heartache in bangkok. the stricken cruise ship viking sky has safely reached shore after a harrowing night in stormy conditions off norway's west coast. this was the scene in the town of boulder a short time ago as the ship limped into port with about nine hundred ass injures and crew still on board townspeople lined the harbor front to welcome the ship to safety a happy end to an emergency that authorities say very nearly turned into disaster. passengers rushed to shield themselves from sliding furniture and falling ceiling panels as heaving waves tossed the cruise ship from side to side some said those waves had smashed chip windows and sent cold sea water gushing in. elsewhere on board the mostly british and american travelers could do nothing but sit and wait for their turn to be airlifted to safety. amid winds of nearly ninety kilometers per hour and waves over eight meters high the viking sky sent out a mayday call early on saturday afternoon it had suffered engine failure and was beginning to drift

guard but there are fears the military has already stacked the political deck in its favor live in bangkok for analysis also coming up. terrifying moments at sea of cruise ship breaks down in dangerous waters off the norwegian coast we'll have an update on the rescue efforts for hundreds stuck on board. and history some may facing a revolt from within her own cabinet reports say the british prime minister could be pushed out amid dissatisfaction at her handling of corrections we'll get the details from our correspondent. i'm michael thanks for joining us initial results are expected shortly in thailand's long delayed general election voter turnout was high estimated eighty percent this man former army chief. has led thailand since a military coup five years ago he wanted voters to keep him on as prime minister promising stability he faced the opposition type party which raised questions about the fairness of the poll saying the rules favored the military. let's bring in de w. correspondent bussin hartig he joins us live from bangkok boston what can you tell us about the initial voting resu

military regime critics accuse the military of having stacked the political deck in its favor from line bangkok for analysis also coming up. after terrifying hours and see the cruise ship that broke down off norway's coast is towed to shore hundreds of its passengers were airlifted to safety in an earlier rescue mission. and zimbabwe struggles to cope after cycling our correspondent to meet the people searching for answers about the fate of they have left over a week after the huge storm struck. i'm michael okwu thanks for joining us early results from thailand's long delayed general election show the country's pro-military party with a lead over its main challenger that's with election officials saying that ninety percent of ballots have now been counted. this man former army chief. has fled thailand since a military coup five years ago wanted voters to keep him on as prime minister promising stability to face the opposition pool. i party which raises questions about the fairness of the poll saying the rules save for the military. let's bring in correspondent bastien heartache he joins us live

from bangkok, jonathan head reports.n promised, and then repeatedly postponed. thais by and large participated keenly, despite an electoral system that tilts the odds heavily in the military government's favour. the man who deposed the last elected government in a coup and has run thailand ever since cast his vote early. general prayuth is bidding to keep hisjob as prime minister, but many younger voters, 7 million of them eligible to vote for the first time, looking for something different. i am happy there is a voting at last, we have been waiting for this election for some time and i hope it brings good things for the country. we need some younger or newer generations in the government to bring a more modern policy, less corruption, a cleaner government. that hunger for fresh faces has driven a groundswell of support for a brand—new and radical party, future forward, under the leadership of a telegenic young businessman. as the polls closed and voting began, many thais gathered around the polling stations, eager to en

despite growing censorship bangkok recently held its first be a nalini. one of four big fish was sanctioned by the military government in the past year temples shopping and old heritage buildings all became exhibition spices. but for a film director not is. the beer gnarly exhibitions lacks political punch i don't see any issue that clear the real dialogue and up them merely critical to the current situation and then the end of the day is the first or we become like a decoration. and. that's something the curator of the bin ali dr appy man posse are known rejects he says he could address sensitive issues like ranger refugees migrant sex workers and southern thailand's insurgency because the expo is largely privately funded first war i must say that if this bill is fully. one said by the government. we would not have many continents like i mention for the insurgents or six my sensitive issues we would have to go through a lot of self-censorship some critics. big. payoff for the military government what do you think about. critics i respect them as they dro

we will be live in bangkok as results come in.wing fears of sickness and disease in southern africa, as the death toll from cyclone idai passes 700. and soul searching in australia, as the mosque attacks in neighbouring new zealand put multiculturalism in the spotlight. a two—year investigation into russian interference in the 2016 us presidential election has concluded that there is no evidence of conspiracy with moscow by members of donald trump's campaign team. the details have been revealed in a summary of special counsel robert mueller‘s report. but the special counsel did not exonerate the president on a second allegation, that of whether donald trump interfered with other investigations into russia's role in the elections — in other words, obstruction of justice. but the attorney—general who summarised the report has decided not to prosecute. 0ur washington correspondent chris buckler reports. for almost two years, robert mueller scrutinised the actions of donald trump and his campaign to become president. the special couns

scott had the whole continue bringing the latest from bangkok thank you scott. a strain here is being hit by a second big storm in two days as i try and run across as the north west coast at port hedland it's moving slowly and the combination of high tides and strong winds could create heavy flooding well let's speak to others there is rob the bride who is in port hedland for us rob it's now been downgraded to a category three but it's still looking very windy there. absolutely people were warned well in advance of this is going to be putting street where the event is certainly lived up to its billing that's what people are dealing with here and we're a good hundred kilometers from where veronica has made landfall as you mentioned it's been downgraded to a category three but this section of the western australian coastline is really been bearing the brunt of these storm force winds the center of the ironic we've had winds of up to two hundred fifty kilometers per hour gusting to those kind of speeds here at the periphery we've been having with this well as exces

all right just got hired live reporting from bangkok thank you let's bring in florence louise she's joining us from chang by and you're in the part of thailand that's a real stronghold for attacks in china was the former prime minister with all the limits that have been placed on the electoral process florence what are their part of their prospects in this election. well that's going to be an uphill battle over time and parties linked to thompson but this is an area that has long been counted on to deliver votes for thompson and his allies they draw their support from the rural mainly rural and farming communities in the north and northeast and parts of the country now these communities have remained loyal to thompson even though he's been in exile because he was one of the first politicians to pay attention to them gave them access to cheaper health care agricultural subsidies and opinion polls suggest that the tide is in the lead they are unlikely though to be able to win enough seats to form a government on their own but that doesn't mean we should rule them out yet because as yo

these opposition parties against the military government and its party or i just got hired by the in bangkok scott thank you. now a three year al-jazeera investigation into the u.s. gun lobby has uncovered efforts by a political party in australia to secure twenty million dollars from pro-gun advocates in america the one nation party visited washington d.c. in september last year seeking funds from the national rifle association p to charlie fly investigative unit reports. al-jazeera is investigative unit filmed it covertly about pulling henson from one nation visited the u.s. to attend a series of meetings with gun lobby representatives. the one nation delegation was made up of the party's chief of staff james ashby and steve dixon the leader of the party in the astringent state of queensland they threw in two million dollars a week when i hate to say plush was safe for the senate they were hoping that cafferty donations from the gun lobby would help them secure the balance of power in a strenuous parliament in an upcoming federal election there we would we would be counting down. to see yo

highlight for us in bangkok thank you. but more ahead on al-jazeera including parts of kenya's northwest strawn the brink of starvation the government is accused of not doing enough to deal with the drought. the opposition cries foul and a chorus over a bitterly contested presidential election. hello there we've got a fair amount of mild weather across europe with plenty of sunshine but no fall of us you can see this speckled area of cloud that is making its way southwards working its way across scandinavia there and down through the central parts of europe this is an area of cloud and showers and it's really dragging down the temperatures so we'll see some snow after this over the high ground as well and that will gradually feet down towards the southeast corner as we head through into choose day so for bucharest instead of around twenty two for tuesday will be just fourteen lots of clouds and lots of gray weather around as well with a chance of quite a few showers behind it staying fairly cool with the top temperature in

al jazeera is way in hay in bangkok for us watching these developments thank you wayne. israel central elections committee has disqualified an alliance of palestinian israeli parties from running in next month's elections and follows a petition filed by the prime minister's likud party and two others they accuse the run by coalition of supporting violent palestinian resistance and backing hezbollah poll suggested it would win four seats in israel's parliament the supremes court will have the final say while the palestinian teenager has been killed by israeli fire along the gaza border overnight fighter jets later struck several sites belonging to hamas in southern gaza israel's army says it was in response to explosive devices being sent across the border fence a u.s. congressional committee has been told the white house needs to do more to end the war in yemen the warning comes from expert testimony gathered by members of the house of representatives it says the fighting could create long term instability and pose a future threat to the united states alan fischer report

in bangkok. promilitary party seen in the lead and puts the former general in position to return as prime minister. of northwestern part australia is bracing for increasingly strong wind and torrential rain, this as cyclone veronica will slowly move toward the coast. this is the day after trevor hit the northern territory. they are approaching the commercially important region, bringing gusts of wind of up to 220 kilometers per hour. it had been expected sunday afternoon that slowed down while out at sea. global news, 24 hours a day and at @tictoc on twitter, powered by more than 2700 journalists and analysts in more than 120 countries. this is bloomberg. ♪ getting back to one of our top stories, president trump calling the mueller investigation and illegal takedown that failed, after they found no evidence of collusion with russia, and the attorney general said it is not enough evidence to charge him with obstruction of justice. >> there was no collusion with russia, there was no ,bstruction, no

it's no longer about the provinces versus pro business elite in bangkok.s time, thais are voting for the prime minister or a government more democratic and democracy style, according to what the constitution allows it to be. yousef: front and center of this vote is the new constitution. what kind of components are we looking at here that could really shape the future of time? -- future of thailand? haslinda: it is interesting when you talk about the constitution. thailand has had 20 constitutions. the last was put in place in 2017 by the government. several changes were made to that. this particular constitution stipulates thai's will only collect 500 members of the lower house of parliament, but comes to the senate with 250 seats. they will be put in much appointed by the june tell government, essentially even before the election, they have secured a third of power in parliament. essentially, when it comes to the election of the prime minister, the prime minister does not need to be elected. all he needs to get is a vote of 126 members of the lower house

is set for another unpredictable and potentially volatile political periods wayne hay al jazeera bangkok. to files our discourse karner barbara ann has offered his resignation after being found guilty of failing to report child sex abuse to authorities the cases highlighter the catholic church is declining influence in france and has more family on. from his diocese in the city of french cardinal philip announced his resignation. i have decided to go and see the holy father to tender my resignation he will receive me in a few days. it was an unexpected twist often already dramatic morning in court in his absence a judge found the cardinal guilty of failing to report child sex abuse to authorities giving him a six month suspended prison sentence babar had known the priest bernard painter had abused boys from the one nine hundred seventy s. to ninety's but he allowed him to work with children until his retirement in twenty fifteen the victim's lawyer said barber has resignation was sudden but welcome. symbolically make sense needed to respond to the verdict in some way because of a shown i

joins us in bangkok thailand as we heard is holding its first election after five years of military rule what can we expect. bowl a few months back at the beginning of the election campaign everyone thought it would be pretty much a walk in the park for the military junta which ones to stay in the driver's seat here through its political vehicle long trucks rather hard to see which is basically a group of former cabinet cabinet members but. the mood has has changed and i think that's something that the military underestimated their own a lot of people who are very much fed up with the military and want to see change now the reason why in the beginning everyone had expected this walk in the park for the military was that there was never a level playing field for the other parties the military regime had made sure that there are very strict election rules that make it very hard for the other parties to campaign but even with this unfair again it doesn't look like the military regime will pull really well so we'll have to wait and see for sunday what is really clear already is that there wo

put that decision on a political scientist an associate professor john a long gone university in bangkok suppose we are glad you could join us so is it a given that the ministry is going to form the next government given the of the have a two fifty seat advantage in parliament. it's highly likely that this is what we're going to see it's not so much directed at the military will form the government but the military has arranged for the constitution to be set up in favor of the military and it'll military parties will form a government and let's buy general but you have to seize power was the current prime minister so it looks like you'll be a military one town backed element coalition and with a former general and she thought that went as the next prime minister because the rules have been written that way just beating about those rules heading into this and they're going to want this at all affect contest in thailand between the prole horndog parties and the opposition parties. and i know it was not fair because the rules were written to in favor of the military to have long term superv

let's bring in t w correspondent bustin hati he joins us from bangkok. exit polls indicate a victory of the opposition party where does that leave a country. well it depends on the call if they get enough seats to form a coalition to elect the prime minister and that seems rather unlikely at the moment. as you can see behind me the votes are being counted right now in these minutes and we expect preliminary results within the next few hours we have these exit polls now we have to be careful with that because we don't really know how reliable they are the electoral system is extremely complicated in thailand and so that all of these preliminary are not preliminary results but exit polls of course are subject to change but if they turn out to be true and if the party is the strongest force in the new parliament but they don't have the majority to elect the next prime minister that would mean there could be a political gridlock because. the words being voted for right now is the lower house of parliament that has five hundred seats now what people don't get

government what does this mean for a country following final years of military rule we'll go live to bangkok for analysis. terrifying moments at sea a cruise ship breaks down in dangerous waters off the norwegian coast will have an update on the rescue efforts for hundreds stuck on board. i'm looking for thanks for joining us. exit polls and thailand's first general election since a coup and two thousand and fourteen indicate the populist opposition type party has taken the most seats but prime minister and former army chief. is still hoping to extend his hold on power as the country returns to civilian control exit polls signaled his party took ninety six seats while one hundred and sixty three seats appeared to have gone to the poirot thai party and has links to oust the prime minister talks in. let's bring in d w correspondent he joins us from bangkok bust the exit polls indicate a victory of the opposition party where does that leave the country. well it depends on the call if they get enough seats to form a coalition to elect the prime minister and that seems rather unlikely at the mome

rule away very young artists are finding new ways to push the boundaries to ambrose reports from bangkok. made headaches tensile a street artist who uses spray cans to satirize thailand's ruling army since the twenty forty military coup he's led a movement of political artists who are farming ways to avoid the country's strick censorship rules. a pro army party of former generals is heavily to do with response general election but headache hopes his message will shake up the establishment where you are without one man or current government has stayed longer than normal i've seen many military supporters are now unwilling to support them and i think this is a turning point. the public is starting to listen thanks to bands like rap against dictatorship. their anthem condemning corruption politically impunity and the growing social divide went viral with close to sixty million views but. the rap troupe believe their songs popularity is the only reason they are gyal. full and went on a little discussion is good and should be free no one should fear being arrested or getting thrown into jail

despite growing censorship bangkok recently held its first be a nalini. one of four big fish sanctioned by the military government in the past year temples shopping malls and old heritage buildings all became exhibition spices. but for a film director not is. the beer gnarly exhibitions lacks political punch i don't see any issue that cleared up the real dialogue and up them merely critical to the current situation and then the end of the day is the first of it become like a decoration. and. that's something the curator of the bin ali dr appy nine posse are known rejects he says he could address sensitive issues like ranger refugees moderate sex workers and southern thailand's insurgency because the expo is largely privately funded first war i must say that if this bill is fully. one said by the government. we would not have many continents like i mention for the insurgents or six my sensitive issues we would have to go through a lot of self-censorship some critics. big. payoffs for the military government what do you think about. critics i respect them a

finally get to cast their ballots many wonder if the process will be truly democratic highbury for some bangkok. you know from rubber plantations in the south to the opposition heartland in the northeast candidates are on their last push before the nearly fifty two million thais head to the polls on sunday. while they'll be playing their role in the democratic process there's a widespread belief that with a constitution crafted by the military any new government will be far from democratic the two hundred fifty member senate will be appointed by the military government ensuring it has a strong grip on parliament sunday's polling is for the five hundred seats in the lower house. and there's also a pro-military party running. don't need. with coup leader. as their candidate for prime minister as much as we try to celebrate the upcoming election i don't think i think that it's legal for us to celebrate we know that we get bigger conditions within the const within the constitution and that conason eat still and the democratic. and the military has used the courts to curb competition among others it

man it owns an art house cinema in the capital bangkok but he can't screen his own film shakespeare must die. band in two thousand and twelve the film retells macbeth in a modern tie context and refers to the thomas a massacre. now man it's appealing that ban in the supreme court and will use rap against dictatorships portrayal of the massacre to bolster his case is so all we have that this isn't justice it is. the rapper. and can't. can't can't show what it will cost. despite the massacre of students at thomas at university and he continued the tradition of anti establishment activism. at the main campus theatre comedians are ridiculing a deputy police chief who tory is for making inflammatory comments as well as prime minister cryo general jack the general who led the could. go. with the bullet hole. in the ordinance and someone who knows what it means to suffer for your os pointed man kong was jailed in twenty fourteen for acting in apply about a fictional monarchy at this university all trades. very adventurous far for them because we told them. something that they don't want people

it could also make it difficult for the government to run the country it's got harder al-jazeera bangkok before and slowly filed this report from the northern part of the country where tax and should know what is from. we're in the district center of sun campaign that's the hometown of former prime minister tops in china what ballot papers from polling stations across the district have been taken here for a final announcement tally and preliminary results taken from the election commission's website showing how long the military backed party in the lead overall this is an unexpected result especially as opinion polls taken just days before voting started had suggested that. the party talks would be in the lead analysts some analysts had said that even if i didn't win enough to form the next government it would have a chance to form a coalition the voters here say they are shocked they are surprised some remain optimistic because they say these are still preliminary results in the north and northeast and parts of its punditry have long to live with election victories to thompson and his a

or for more now let's cross over to bangkok and talk to further explore he's with the german business daily humblest but frederick we don't have the final results yet but it seems that a pro-military party in this election is doing unexpectedly well how do they manage to to do that. yeah indeed many observers many thais by surprise one explanation is of course that they simply convinced a lot of types with their policies and especially they seem to be better than expected in the rule area and they put a lot of money into those areas in the recent years they strengthened the social policy and of course that helped promise and maybe that convinced them to vote them it was a technique that was used by the text in government and it worked quite well they're kind of copied that tactic but i don't think that's the only reason and also there's a reason that one of the another reason is that their opposition was simply put under a lot of pressure so you couldn't criticise too loud you were risking getting punished for this. and one main opposition party has even been banned so i wouldn't thin

but look to say repression only lead to move rebellion and rhymes drew ambrose al-jazeera bangkok or you can watch stuff full documentary thailand's rebel artists on one a whiny twenty to thirty g.m.t. on thursday right here on al-jazeera. the headlines on al-jazeera this hour a chinese telecom giant weiwei is suing the u.s. government is accusing washington of hacking its servers and stealing e-mails the u.s. considers why was products a security threat and says beijing can use its equipment to spy on federal agencies the company denies the allegations the u.s. government had branded its right it has hacked into servers and this story and e-mails and songs quote these tragedies the u.s. government has never provided and every day supposed accusation that i we posies sample securities direct. the u.s. government is very no effort to a company and it's probably a bot. british and american weapons have been used to kill hundreds of civilians in yemen that's according to a report by yemen based human rights group findings were based on more than two dozen attacks by the saudi and u.a.e.

in taksim chynna wants hometown of chiang mai lives to speak the first is called hyde leahy's in bangkok and so skull first of all that start with how's that looking. to me it's looking quite good quite honestly you know it's still early hours it's only been voting has only been going on for just over two hours now but we had early voting last week and those numbers were very very big and we're also anticipating based on that and other opinion polls that there were going to be a lot of people coming out to vote and one thing to note you know we're at a polling station here the prime minister prime cast his ballot box just over my shoulder it's a little bit thin here now there's by about i say maybe dozen people here but you need to know there are over six thousand voting positions throughout bangkok so there are a lot of places lot of different places if you go and vote but overall we're expecting a very good turnout as you alluded to say i mean that's because this is a very critical vote for the people of thailand do people feel that the new electoral system that was given the policies

which is the problem with having government they didn't do it they concentrated on the south and bangkok which are the richer area now this government did some kind of social policy to the rule areas however this would have been the legal measures but there are some reports that it also might have been some vote buying and of course this wasn't a completely free and fair democratic election. they put a lot of pressure to some candidate they were threatening candidness some people some candidates even believe in candidates parties are facing bans because they were criticizing the you know to directly and too harshly didn't tolerate that so the race wasn't really fair i would say. the ruling military junta revise the electoral system ahead a vis vote what impact did those changes those revisions have on the selection. well the military government they change the constitution before the election and this enable them to form a government even though they don't win in the parliament this is because they completely select the senate and the. prime minister is elected by the senate and the parl