Student faces two lese majeste charges in 24 hours
published : 14 Jan 2021 at 19:10
55 Sirichai “New” Natueng (in black), a Thammasat University student, shows a three-fingered salute at the Thanyaburi Court in Pathum Thani province on Thursday. (Photo by Pongpat Wongyala)
A Thammasat University freshman has been granted bail after facing two separate lese majeste charges in the span of fewer than 24 hours.
His case was also the first in which a court approved an arrest warrant for a political demonstrator since the strict enforcement of all laws was announced by the prime minister on Nov 19 last year to maintain order.
In the first case, Sirichai “New” Natueng, a student at the Puey Ungphakorn School of Development Studies, was charged with insulting the king (Section 112 of the Criminal Code) and vandalising properties (Section 358).
Culture
3 months, 1 week
If you re familiar with Thailand s King Maha Vajiralongkorn (aka Rama X), you ll know that he spent the majority of 2020 in scenic Bavaria, Germany.
That s where he s spent most of his time since taking the throne in 2016. And now, he ll be free to return to Germany whenever he wants, without a visa.
And because of intensified protests back in October 2020, the King returned to Thailand.
Protesting for a reform in democracy, as well as the Thai monarchy itself, thousands of Thai people have been flooding the streets of Bangkok, demanding for tangible change.
But considering the fact that questioning the integrity or actions of the monarchy can land you in jail for 15 years or more, these outward protests have signaled enough is enough among the common people.
[AFP]
Updated at 5:33 p.m. ET on 2020-12-22
Thailand is considering imposing a strict lockdown, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha announced Tuesday, after hundreds of new coronavirus cases were confirmed among a migrant-worker cluster in one province for a third straight day, with alarming secondary transmissions detected elsewhere.
In a nationally televised speech, Prayuth blamed migrants, who had entered the country illegally via the kingdom’s shuttered borders and evaded a mandatory 14-day quarantine, for the biggest surge in COVID-19 cases since the first infection was detected in Thailand in January.
“This latest flare up of infections in Samut Sakhon is primarily due to such illegal immigrants and they have brought much grief to the country,” Prayuth said, referring to a province south and west of the greater Bangkok limits.
Reuters
Updated at 8:22 p.m. ET on 2020-12-18
The United Nations expressed deep concern Friday about Thailand’s move in recent weeks to charge pro-democracy activists – including a 16-year-old – over alleged violations of a strict law against royal defamation, and urged the government to amend it.
A day after authorities in Bangkok charged a teenage schoolboy and several other people for alleged violations of the so-called Lese-Majeste law stemming from anti-government protests, the U.N. office for human rights in Geneva spoke out against a resumption in such cases after a two-year pause.
“We are deeply troubled by the move by Thai authorities to charge at least 35 protesters in recent weeks, including a 16-year old student protester, under Article 112 – the [Lese-Majeste] provision of Thailand’s criminal code,” Ravina Shamdasani, spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a statement.
Reuters
Updated at 9:15 p.m. ET on 2020-12-17
A 16-year-old boy and a fellow activist were charged Thursday in Bangkok for allegedly violating Thailand’s strict royal defamation law by performing in a satirical street show that poked fun at the monarchy during a pro-democracy protest in October, their attorneys said.
Noppasilp – a schoolboy whose last name was withheld by his attorney for privacy reasons – and Jatuporn Sae Ung reported to the Yannawa police station in Bangkok after being summoned there, said Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), a legal aid group that has been assisting anti-government protesters.
“This is the first royal defamation case against a youth since last year,” Kumklao Songsomboon, a lawyer for TLHR, told the media. “In just a month’s time, the royal defamation law was not only used against the protester leaders, but a youth, who just exercised his freedom of expression.”