Thailand’s prisons have a COVID problem it doesn’t want to talk about Coconuts 2 hrs ago Chayanit Itthipongmaetee Activists dressed as prison inmates walk on a Bangkok skywalk to protest the Thai justice system. Photo: United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration / Facebook The COVID-19 infections of high-profile political activists behind bars is calling attention to what’s feared to be a brewing crisis in Thailand’s sizable prison population. Panusaya “Rung” Sithijirawattanakul today became the eighth activist known to have contracted the disease while jailed. With access to all prisons shut down in response to an outbreak, the official silence about what’s going on is fueling fears of a major health threat to the incarcerated.