Thai Lawmaker Jailed for 2 Years Over Royal Insult

A judge sentences a lawmaker to two years in prison for disparaging Thailand's monarchy.

Chonthicha Jaengraew, a politician, activist, and musician, was given a two-year jail sentence by a Thai court for disparaging the monarchy.

A Thanyaburi Court, north of Bangkok, convicted the MP for the Move Forward Party (MFP) guilty of breaking the country's stringent lease-majesty rules regarding a protest speech she gave in 2021 that was critical of the government.

One of the harshest laws of its sort, it aims to shield Thailand's monarchy from criticism by imposing a 15-year prison sentence for any alleged insult.

According to her counsel, Chonthicha, who was accused of setting fire to the king's painting, was sentenced to two years in prison rather than three because she complied.

The MP was freed on a 150,000 baht ($4,000) bail awaiting an appeal, the lawyer continued.

The MFP, which won the majority of the parliamentary seats in the previous election, is currently embroiled in court disputes over an earlier proposal to change the royal insult statute, which provides the royal family with protection from criticism.

Since 2020, more than 272 persons have been accused of insulting the monarchy; 17 of them are now being held in pre-trial detention.

As MFP's Rukchanok Srinork was also sentenced to six years in prison last year for social media remarks that criticized the monarchy, recent upsurges have shown that the royal defamation laws are being abused to restrict genuine political debate.