Posts Tagged ‘Thailand’
February 20th, 2012
The trial of the web master of a
Thai news website
resumed last week after a long interruption.Chiranuch Premchaiporn, web master of Prachatai news website, faces a possible 20 year prison sentence for not removing certain user comments from her website quickly enough. The resumed case, which was delayed from October 2011 due to the severe flooding in Bangkok, heard five defence witnesses give evidence to the court on 14, 15 and 16 February. Chiranuch has said she was pleased that the defence witnesses were finally able to give their evidence.
December 12th, 2011
The United Nations have joined human rights groups in
calling for reform of
Thailand’s notoriously harsh Lèse Majesté laws. The calls urging the Thai authorities to reform the harsh laws relating to insulting the monarchy follow the recent imprisonment of 61-year old grandfather
Ampon Tangnoppakul.
Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights suggested that: “Guidelines should be issued to the police and public prosecutors to stop arresting and charging individuals under these vaguely worded laws.” Around 100 supporters of Tangnoppakulalso made a rare public protest outside the Criminal Court in Bangkok against the laws.
December 8th, 2011
A blogger has been jailed for
two and a half years after posting excerpts of a biography online deemed offensive to the
Thai monarchy. Joe Gordon, a Colorado resident who was born in Thailand, translated excerpts of a locally banned biography of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, and posted them on his US blog. Gordon pleaded guilty to disseminating information that insulted the monarchy.
In November, government minister’s warned that Thailand’s notoriously tough lese-majeste law could even affect “liking” a page on Facebook.
November 25th, 2011
A
Thai Government minister
has warned that Facebook users who ‘like’ or ‘share’ pages which denigrate the monarchy could face prosecution.
The warning from information technology minister, Anudith Nakornthap,
follows the sentencing of a 61 year old man to 20 years in prison for sending text messages deemed insulting to the country’s queen. Ampon Tangnoppakul was accused of sending four text messages deemed insulting to the monarchy in May 2010. The laws against
lèse-majesté (insulting a monarch) in Thailand are the most severe in the world – even repeating the details of an alleged offence is illegal.
November 7th, 2011
Anti-free speech legislation is used as a weapon in the ongoing political war between the Thaksin Shinawatra political machine and the Democrat Party. Voranai Vanijaka reports
(more…)
October 26th, 2011
Rachel Greenspan reports from the Silicon Valley Human Rights Conference, where industry and activists met to discuss free expression online
(more…)
August 8th, 2011
Norawase Yospiyasathien, a university graduate and blogger, was
detained on Friday while police investigate allegations of
lese majeste — offending the
Thai monarchy. According to online newspaper
Prachatai police are scrutinising his blog posts. The person who filed the charge was said to be a vice rector for students affairs at Kasetsart University, who reportedly said he was pressed to do so by the University Council in a bid to protect the school’s reputation. The student could be charged under both lese majeste law, which carries a maximum 15-year jail term, and the Computer Crimes Act, which has a punishment of up to five years in jail.
August 2nd, 2011
Somyot Prueksakasemsuk, a Thai political activist and former editor-in-chief of the Voice of Taksin and Red Power partisan news magazines, was last week
charged with two offences of
lese majeste for two separate articles deemed critical of the royal family published in his now-defunct Voice of Taksin magazine.
Lese majeste charges in Thailand carry up to 15-year jail terms and have been utilised for political purposes during the country’s protracted political conflict. If found guilty of both charges, Somyot, who has first arrested on 30April and held without bail in a Bangkok detention centre for 84 days (the maximum period allowed under Thai law), will face a possible 30 years in prison.
