It's against the law to criticize the monarchy in Thailand. And an increasing number of people are in trouble for just that, as The World's Jason Margolis reports.
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MARCO WERMAN: I'm Marco Werman. This is The World. Thailand has had a lot of political upheaval recently. There have been numerous Prime Ministers, protests, and even a military coup in 2006. But one thing that unites a majority of Thais is their King. Thai law explicitly says, “the king shall be enthroned in a position of revered worship,†and anyone who criticizes the King or members of his family can be thrown in jail. The World's Jason Margolis has more on Thailand's “lese majeste†law.
JASON MARGOLIS: Two years ago, Thai political scientist Giles Ji Ungpakorn wrote an academic book about the 2006 military coup. The book is called “A Coup for the Rich.â€
GILES JI UNGPAKORN: I criticized the way that democracy had been stolen from the Thai people. Now, because the coup makers claimed legitimacy from the King, it was necessary to ask the question about the relationship between the army and the monarchy.
MARGOLIS: Now today, Ungpakorn stands accused of lese majeste.
UNGPAKORN: I face 15 years in prison. I think it's totally unjust. It's an attack on the basic academic and democratic freedoms, freedom of speech, and I'm angry.
MARGOLIS: In the past two months, there's been an uptick in people charged with lese majeste in Thailand. The country is under a new government. The current ruling party has said protecting the monarchy is its number one priority. According to Thai police, there are up to 17 active cases of lese majeste right now. That's very worrying, says Kevin Hewison, Director of The Carolina Asia Center at the University of North Carolina.
KEVIN HEWISON: It includes people who have been blogging, it includes people who are political activists and who were arrested for things that they said on the political stage.
MARGOLIS: Thai authorities are also clamping down on people saying pretty much anything remotely negative about the monarchy. Last month, Australian novelist Harry Nicolaides was sentenced to three years in jail for writing a paragraph about the turbulent marriage of a fictional Thai prince. The self-published book had sold just seven copies. Kevin Hewison, who regularly visits Thailand, says it's a stark reminder that everybody has to be cautious.
HEWISON: You know, even in speaking to you, I'm trying to be careful, but there will be Thais who will listen to what I've said and be outraged. Discussing the monarchy in any way that's not totally positive, for some conservative Thais, is outrageous.
MARGOLIS: The King of Thailand has remained publicly silent about the recent enforcement of the lese majeste law. Many human rights groups have also kept quiet or have been cautious in their criticism. After all, they have to be careful about what they say, too. But Brad Adams, who is the Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, did say the lese majeste law is being used by some to protect the current government, not the monarchy.
BRAD ADAMS: It's an extremely worrying trend. Thailand had been the most liberal quasi or emerging democracy in Southeast Asia. It seemed to be on a fairly steady and, some people thought, irreversible track towards basic freedoms. And that is in jeopardy right now.
MARGOLIS: The Thai government says the recent spate of lese majeste charges isn't about politics. Damrong Kraikuran is the charge d'affaires at the Royal Thai Embassy in Washington. He says Thai police and authorities are just complying with the law.
DAMRONG KRAIKURAN: We have a long history of monarchy and monarchy is very important. And the Thai people would like to make sure that the monarchy is respected and continue to be the moral authority in Thai society.
MARGOLIS: As for Professor Ungpakorn, the Bangkok academic charged with offending the monarchy, he says he's worried, but also defiant.
UNGPAKORN: I will continue to try to be objective, to try to do my duty as a political scientist and criticize public figures that I believe have committed mistakes. I will criticize the government, yes.
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