lese majeste
- Thailand Protest News
2 activists could face life in prison for alleged violations against a royal motorcade
2 pro-democracy activists could face life in prison for alleged intention to harm HM the Queen’s liberty during Wednesday afternoon’s rally in Bangkok, which happened to coincide with the same time and same route as a royal motorcade. The Criminal Court issued the arrest warrants yesterday. Violence against the Queen or her liberty, in Section 110 of Thailand’s Criminal Code,…
- Thailand News
Twitter takes down 926 accounts linked to the Royal Thai Army
Twitter suspended 926 accounts that are linked to the Royal Thai Army for violating the social media company’s “platform manipulation” policies. They say the accounts were “amplifying pro-government propaganda” and engaging in behaviour that targeted political opposition figures. Altogether, Twitter permanently suspended 1,594 accounts from state-linked operations in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, Thailand and Russia, the company announced yesterday. Thailand…
- Thailand News
982 lèse majesté social media posts cited in police complaint
Nearly 1,000 so called lèse majesté posts on social media have been cited in a police complaint for allegedly violating Thailand’s Computer Crime Act, some allegedly criticising and insulting the Thai Monarchy. The complaints were filed by Digital Economy and Society Minister Buddhipongse Punnakanta. The police report says the social media posts were shared during the pro-democracy protest over the…
- Thailand News
New army chief declares he’ll protect Thailand’s monarchy and restore peace
At a time of mass pro-democracy protests, with some activists facing charges for criticising the role of the Thai head of state, the new army chief says he pledges to restore peace and protect the country’s monarchy. In a ceremony formerly saying farewell to retiring generals, incoming army chief Narongphan Jitkaewtae said he would restore peace and be loyal to the Thai Monarchy.…
- Thailand Protest News
Protest leaders face charges for violating Thailand’s lèse majesté law and for installing the plaque
Leaders of the weekend’s pro-democracy protest in Bangkok are facing charges for violating Thailand’s lèse majesté laws and installing a symbolic plaque at a “registered historical site”. Police filed complaints against 10 to possibly more than 16 protesters. It’s unclear how many protesters will be charged, but the Royal Thai Police spokesperson Piya Uthayo says charges will be pressed against…
- Crime News
Student activist arrested on charges from protesting
Police arrested a student while he protesting outside a market PM Prayut Chan-o-cha was visiting. The student Panupong Jadnok, known as Mike Rayong, was holding up a sign saying “1,000 rai sea reclamation. What will Rayong people get?” Apparently Mike’s land reclamation protest didn’t have much to do with his arrest. He had an arrest warrant for his role in…
- Bangkok News
Harry Potter-themed protest openly questions monarchy’s role
Thai protesters strayed into more sensitive territory Monday night as they added the prickly, and largely taboo, topic of the Thai monarchy to the list of issues to include in their demonstrations. At a Harry Potter-themed rally, dubbed “Harry Potter versus You-Know-Who or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named”, anti-government demonstrators at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument demanded changes to Thailand’s revered monarchy and called for curbs…
- Northern Thailand News
Khon Kaen police deny charges pressed against hospitalised activist
The chief of police in Khon Kaen province is denying any charges have been laid against an activist sent to a psychiatric hospital there in connection with a possible lèse-majesté crime earlier this month. Prachatai’s website reports that 47 year old activist Tiwagorn Withiton, who posted pictures of himself wearing a T-shirt with a message relating to the monarchy, is…
- Crime News
Thai man faces 8 charges for Tweets criticising the monarchy
A Twitter user is facing multiple criminal charges for this posts criticising the monarchy along with a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison. The 20 year old man, going by the name “Niranam” which is Thai for anonymous, runs the Twitter account @ssji_2475 where he has made posts critical of the Thai royal family, violating Thailand’s tough lése majeste…
- Crime News
Monarchy satire Facebook group under government scrutiny
Police are investigating a popular Facebook group that posts satirical commentary about the Thai royal family. One man was even detained and questioned about his posts on the satire group page, Thai media reports. There was also talk about a few other members questioned, but that has not been confirmed. The group dubbed “Royalist Marketplace” (in Thai) is run by Pavin…
- Thailand News
Junta goes for lighter touch on lese majeste laws
with Kai Chanwanpen – The Nation iLaw experts say they see changes for the better and courts given more leeway in Thailand’s lese majeste cases. Thailand saw the most aggressive enforcement of the lese majeste law after the junta came to power in 2014, but current trends point to an unprecedented relaxation, according to iLaw. “There was a time, after…
