Thailand hands 50-year sentence for monarchy criticism
In Thailand, a political activist has received what is believed to be the longest sentence for the crime of disrespecting the royal family
In Thailand, a court of appeals has reportedly issued a record sentence for a political activist convicted of the criminal offense of insulting the monarchy. The 30-year-old activist, Mongkhon Thirakot was found guilty of 25 violations of the law.
Initially sentenced to 28 years in prison for 14 of 27 Facebook posts, the Northern Region court of appeals in Chiang Rai further convicted him in 11 of the 13 cases for which he had been previously acquitted. This led to an additional 22-year prison term, bringing his total sentence to 50 years. Although originally facing a 75-year term, his sentence was reduced by one-third due to his cooperation in legal proceedings.
The offense of insulting the monarchy, known as lese-majeste, carries a prison term of three to 15 years for each count, often referred to as Article 112 in Thailand’s Criminal Code. Critics argue that this law is frequently used to suppress political dissent. Since the 2020 pro-democracy protests, over 260 individuals have been charged with this offense.
The court of appeals overturned the lower court’s acquittals, stating that the law applies even when the current monarch or immediate family is not the subject. This marks a departure from the previous standard, which had been in place for many years. Thirakot’s defense team has expressed their intention to appeal the case to the Supreme Court, although his request for bail pending the appeal was denied.
The previous record for the longest prison term under this offense was held by a former civil servant named Anchan, who was sentenced to 87 years but had it reduced to half after pleading guilty. Additionally, prominent human rights lawyer and political activist Arnon Nampa was sentenced to four years in prison for three Facebook posts, in addition to a previous four-year term for a speech given in 2020.
Source: Newsroom
