BANGKOK: A Thai court on Friday (Sep 13) sentenced one of the kingdom’s leading pro-democracy activists to three years in prison for defaming the monarchy, a human rights lawyers’ group said.
Jatupat “Pai” Boonpattararaksa was found guilty of violating Thailand’s royal defamation law over an anti-monarchy speech he gave in his hometown in Chaiyaphum province in 2021, northeast of the capital Bangkok.
He faces three years in prison, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) group.
“He was initially sentenced to four years and six months, but thanks to useful testimony, he was commuted,” TLHR said on X.
Jatupat had served six months in pre-trial detention before he was granted bail in early 2022.
He was expected to face a further two royal defamation charges, a TLHR representative told AFP.
The 33-year-old activist was one of the key figures in huge 2020-2021 protests which saw tens of thousands of mostly young people take to the streets with calls to reform the monarchy.
Thailand’s monarchy is protected from any criticism by a lese majeste law, with each offence punishable by up to 15 years in jail.
Critics say the government has used the legislation to silence dissent. More than 270 people have been prosecuted for lese-majeste since 2020, according to TLHR.
In July, another democracy activist Parit Chiwarak was sentenced to two years in prison on a royal insult charge.
In May, rights activist Netiporn Sanae-sangkhom, who was in custody over lese majeste charges, died while on hunger strike.
