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Dictatorship, Monarchy, and Freedom of Expression in Thailand

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 December 2018

Tyrell Haberkorn
Tyrell Haberkorn*
Affiliation:
Tyrell Haberkorn ([email protected]) is Associate Professor in the Department of Asian Languages and Literatures at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
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Extract

On December 4, 2016, Jatupat Boonpattararaksa, known by his nickname “Pai,” then a law student at Khon Kaen University in northeastern Thailand, was arrested and accused of violating Article 112 of the Thai Criminal Code, or defaming, insulting, or threatening the king, queen, heir-apparent, or regent. Two days prior, he had shared to Facebook a biography of the new king, Maha Vajiralongkorn, or Rama X, who became king following the death of his father, Bhumipol Adulyadej, Rama IX, on October 13, 2016. The BBC Thai biography was candid and highlighted Vajiralongkorn's string of wives, his four abandoned sons, and his conferral of a military rank on his pet dog, as well as his recent bike rides for charity (BBC Thai 2016). Over 2,600 people shared the BBC Thai link, but Pai was the only person to be arrested in December 2016 and the only person to be prosecuted to date (TLHR 2017a). The complaint that led to Pai's arrest was filed by Lieutenant Colonel Phitakphon Chusri, a Khon Kaen–based soldier who has followed him closely.

Keywords

coupdictatorshipexpressionhuman rightslèse majestéNational Council for Peace and Orderpolitical prosecutionThailand
Type
JAS at AAS: The Market, the Media, and the State in Asia II
Information
The Journal of Asian Studies , Volume 77 , Issue 4 , November 2018 , pp. 935 - 943
Copyright
Copyright © The Association for Asian Studies, Inc. 2018 

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References

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