Bangkok, Thailand: A well-known Thai pro-democracy activist was sentenced to two years in prison on Wednesday, July 31 on charges of insulting the country's monarchy. He had resorted to insult below an upside-down picture of King Maha Vajiralongkorn on social media, a human rights lawyers' group stated.
Parit Chiwarak alias "Penguin", was found guilty of contravening Thailand's stringent royal defamation, or lese-majeste, laws during youth-led pro-democracy protests in in 2020-21. As per the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) group, as many as 24 more royal defamation charges against him are on the cards.
The lese-majeste is a law that makes it illegal to defame, insult or threaten the monarchy, and carries penalties of up to 15 years in prison for each conviction.
The 26-year-old activist, who was not in court in Bangkok on July 31 was one of them who spearheaded the demonstrations that witnessed thousands of people take to the streets with a firm call to reform monarchy.
As opposed to democracy where the public has the right to express and voice his or her opinions, globally, some of the world's strictest Lese-Majeste laws protect the Thai King and his close family. Each perceived insult of Thailand's monarchy can be punishable by up to 15 years in prison under the draconian lese-majeste law.
Critics have often come down against the ruling government, alleging it of taking law in its hands for reaping personal benefits and silencing dissent in the country. More than 270 people have been prosecuted for lese-majeste since 2020, according to the TLHR.
Chiwarak is not the only one to bear the brunt of this law. On May 14, rights activist Netiporn Sanae-sangkhom (28), also detained on royal defamation charges, died in custody while on hunger strike. Netiporn had been held in pre-trial detention since January. She was charged over an incident that occurred during a royal motorcade protest in 2020.
In 2021, after 46 days of hunger strike following his pre-trial detention on charges of insulting the country's monarchy, Chiwarak had to be hospitalised considering his deteriorating health condition.
Chiwarak rose to prominence as a leader of the youth-led demonstrations against the regime of retired general Prayuth Chan-ocha, who overthrew an elected government in a coup in 2014 and continued to serve as prime minister following an election in 2019.
In February 2022, he was released on bail from the Bangkok Special Prison after spending more than six months in custody on royal defamation and other charges. He had been faced with 43 charges including sedition and Lese-Majeste.
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