Andrew MacGregor Marshall@zenjournalist
Woman Is Sentenced to 43 Years for Criticizing Thai Monarchy
Lawyers said it was the longest sentence yet for violating Thailand’s notoriously harsh lèse-majesté law.
BANGKOK — The onetime civil servant’s crime was to share audio clips on social media that were deemed critical of Thailand’s monarchy. The sentence, handed down on Tuesday by a criminal court in Bangkok, was more than 43 years in prison.
It was the longest sentence yet for violating Thailand’s notoriously tough lèse-majesté law, which makes it a crime to defame senior members of the royal family, according to the group Thai Lawyers for Human Rights. The former civil servant, Anchan Preelert, was sentenced to 87 years, but her prison term was cut in half because she agreed to plead guilty.
“Today’s court verdict is shocking and sends a spine-chilling signal that not only criticisms of the monarchy won’t be tolerated but that they will also be severely punished,” said Sunai Phasuk, a senior researcher on Thailand for Human Rights Watch.
Thailand has seen a spike in lèse-majesté cases since late last year, after more than two years during which Section 112 of the criminal code, which applies to criticism of top royals, was not enforced, according to Thai legal groups. The three-year pause came at the behest of King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun, who wanted such prosecutions halted, according to Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.
87 years in jail for lese majeste sets new record
published : 19 Jan 2021 at 15:04
writer: Online Reporters
The Criminal Court has sentenced a woman to 87 years in jail for sharing clips deemed insulting to the monarchy, setting a new record for royal defamation prison terms.
Since she confessed during the trial, the court halved the sentence to 43 years and six months. Earlier, she had been detained for three years and nine months during the investigation before being allowed bail in 2018. That period would be deducted from the sentence when the case is closed.
Until now, the lese majeste case with the heaviest jail term was 70 years imposed by the military court on a man for posting messages and images on 10 occasions in 2015. He confessed and the sentence was halved.
Anchan (family name withheld) was arrested in 2015 for uploading clips on 26 occasions on YouTube and three times on Facebook during 2014-15. The clips were voice recordings of a man known as Banpodj (pseudonym), a hardcore critic of the monarchy who had been active on YouTube and file-sharing websites before and shortly after the 2014 military coup. She was also charged with violating the computer crime law.
Banpodj, who created the content, was tried in a military court in 2015. After he confessed, his 10-year sentence was halved.
Anchan, a former C-8 government official in her 60s, initially denied the charges but confessed during the trial after her case was transferred from the military court following the dissolution of the National Council for Peace and Order.
The court opined that by sharing the clips, Anchan enabled the public to view them.
She immediately appealed the sentence but the court said the Appeals Court would decide on her request. She had to be detained in the meantime.
Each charge of lese majeste under Section 112 — insults, threats or defamation of leading royals — carries 3-15 years in jail.
Following its application in a case in 2018, the law was suspended for almost two years.
It was revived in November last year.
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