[ad_1]
A Thai court on Tuesday jailed one of the leading figures in the kingdom’s youth-led pro-democracy protest movement for four years on royal insult charges.
Issued on:
2 min
Thailand has some of the world’s strictest royal defamation laws, which shield King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his close family from criticism and which critics say have been weaponised to silence dissent.
Anon Numpa, a 39-year-old human rights lawyer and activist, was convicted on Tuesday at Bangkok Criminal Court over a speech he made during the protests in 2020.
At their peak the demonstrations drew tens of thousands to the streets, with some making unprecedented calls for reforms to the monarchy, and for changes to the lese-majeste law, which carries a 15-year prison sentence.
Tuesday’s case was first of 14 lese-majeste charges against Anon.
“Loss of personal freedom is a sacrifice I’m willing to make,” Anon told reporters as he entered the court with his partner and their baby, ahead of the sentence.
He raised a three-finger salute as he walked in – a symbol adapted from the “Hunger Games” films that became synonymous with the demonstrations.
“We’ve come a long way and we’ve seen lots of changes in the Thai political scene since the movement back in 2020,” he said.
“If I get sentenced to prison today, it might be many years but it will be worth it.”
The court also fined him 20,000 baht ($550) for violating an emergency decree in effect at the time.
Following the verdict, his lawyer Krisadang Nutcharas described Anon as an “innocent man” and said they would probably appeal.
“The family and friends are trying to submit bail for a temporary release,” he told reporters outside court.
Anon is one of more than 150 activists who have been charged under lese-majeste laws, often referred to as “112” after the relevant section of the criminal code.
Ahead of the hearing, dozens of young…
[ad_2]
