By David Young-
A Thai court sentenced a political activist to two years in prison on Monday for insulting the monarchy, her lawyer said, after the activist was judged to have dressed as Queen Suthida during a street protest the court ruled mocked the royal family.
Bangkok’s Criminal Court initially sentenced Jatuporn Sae-ung, 25 to three years’ imprisonment for violating the lese majeste law, which makes defaming the monarch or his immediate family punishable by a prison term of three to 15 years per offense under the Public Safety Act. She was also fined 1,000 baht ($27.50). The sentence was immediately reduced to two years.
Jatuporn “New” Saeoueng, 25, was found guilty of intentionally mocking the monarchy by her actions during a Bangkok street protest in 2020, according to her lawyer, Krisadang Nutcharat.
Jatuporn was sent to the Central Women’s Correctional Institution pending another court’s ruling on her request to be freed on bail. The protest was one in a series in 2020-2021 that originally demanded political changes, including new elections and a more democratic constitution, but expanded to call for reform of the monarchy.
Sae-Ung paraded through one of the main avenues of Bangkok dressed in a pink silk suit and a small gold bag, during one of the demonstrations organized by young university students who demand democratic and monarchical reform in the country.
Her clothes and style when walking, followed by a retinue that protects her under an umbrella, is similar to the acts of reception to the representatives of the Thai monarchy.
The sentence is one of a series of others dished out to offending protesters in Thailland who have insulted the monarchy.
A growing movement of protesters challenging the Thai establishment the country has become a worry for the Thai authorities. Frequent demonstrations demanding the resignation of Prayut – who seized power in a military coup in 2014 – as well as the dissolution of Parliament and changes to the constitution that they say entrenches the military’s power. Protesters say King Vajiralongkorn wields to much power, and wants him subjected to accountability over his finances.
In January, Anchan Preelert, 65, pleaded guilty to sharing audio clips on YouTube and Facebook between 2014 and 2015 that were deemed critical of the kingdom’s royal family, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights. She was convicted of 29 counts, with three years for each.
The criminal court in Bangkok handed an initial sentence of 87 years but halved it because of Anchan’s guilty plea.
“The sentence is the highest ever handed down by Thai court from violating Section 112,” said her lawyer Pawinee Chumsri, referring to the lese majeste law.
Pawinee said they would appeal the verdict and were working to secure bail from the Court of Appeal. “There are two more courts we can try on her legal case,” she said.
Thailand has a culture that respects the king. In 2020, political protests against military meddling in government morphed into criticism of King Vajiralongkorn, 70, who took the throne after the 2016 death of his widely respected father, who reigned for 70 years.
The protesters contended that the military had justified repeated seizures of power – including army coups in 2006 and 2014 – as necessary to defend the monarchy. The government and military have denied that accusation.
The protesters also have criticized new powers King Vajiralongkorn assumed after he took the throne, including announcements in the official Royal Gazette giving him direct control of the vast wealth of the crown and at least two army units. The palace has not responded to those criticisms.
Protesters charged that King Vajiralongkorn wields an inordinate amount of power in what is nominally a democracy