Pictured above: Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn. Image courtesy of WikiMedia Commons.
By Madhavi Rao ’24
Staff Writer
Anchan Preelert, a 63-year-old Thai woman, was sentenced to 43 years in prison for alleged defamation against the monarchy of Thailand on Jan. 19, 2020. The former government official was first arrested in 2015 under the lese-majeste law for posting defamatory content on social media sites, according to The Guardian. The use of this anti-defamation law and the timing of the sentencing draws attention to the government’s reaction against the protests that have been sweeping the country.
Preelert was first convicted in 2015 under Section 112 of the Thai Penal Code more commonly known as the lese-majeste law. This law protects the Thai royal family against defamation, insults and threats, and breaking the law is punishable by 3 to 15 years of imprisonment. Preelert was found guilty of 29 counts of violating the law, including the lese-majeste and the Computer Crime Act, after posting audio files to Facebook and YouTube which allegedly critiqued the monarchy.
As reported by The Guardian, Preelert said to local media, “I thought it was nothing. There were so many people who shared this content and listened to it. … I didn’t really think this through and was too confident and not being careful enough to realize at the time that it wasn’t appropriate.” As Helen Roane, Mount Holyoke international relations major, commented,“Anchan said that she was simply posting content that she had already seen online, with the original poster having no issues.”
Her initial sentence for 87 years was cut down to 43 years due to her guilty plea, resulting in the longest sentence for breaking the defamation law yet. Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director Yamini Mishra remarked on the issue, “The manner of [Preelert’s] sentencing is … chilling. The way authorities have evidently sought to maximize the punishments by multiplying criminal charges sends a clear message of deterrence to Thailand’s 50 million internet users.”
According to The New York Times, convictions under the lese-majeste law increased dramatically in the two years after the military coup of 2014. These arrests were stopped by the order of Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn when he inherited his father’s throne in 2016. In 2020, the Thai public began protesting the monarchy and demanding more accountability for its fiscal and political actions. Roane further commented that, “It seems pretty clear to me that the majeste law was invoked by the government because they were realizing how powerful group protests are, and they were afraid of that power.”
Bria Carlson ’22, an international relations major, commented, “These protesters are looking to make a democratic change in their country. With this change would come an extreme loss of power. I believe the monarchy is scared that without power, citizens will question whether they really need a monarchy at all.”
The most recent public protests led to a new surge of arrests under Section 112 of the Penal Code. According to Time magazine, around 50 people have been convicted since November.
Mishra said of these arrests, “The fast-rising number of individuals facing charges and being detained under the lèse majesté law demonstrates the Thai authorities’ relentless drive to silence dissent. Today’s extreme sentence is a case in point, and shows why this law is inconsistent with international human rights law.”
Carlson echoed Mishra’s concern, saying, “We need free speech to hold those in power accountable, allow the oppressed an opportunity to be heard and call attention to problems in our government. Without free speech, only those in charge can make change, and more often than not, it is for personal gain.”