On January 23, 2013, New York Times published an article about Somyot Pruksakasemsuk, a labor activist and former magazine editor in Bangkok, Thailand, being sentenced 10 years for insulting the king. The problematic articles were fictional stories that actually didn’t mention the king but was referring to the loyal family. Mr. Somyot was not the writer but as the editor of the magazine, he was responsible for their contents. Similar cases occurred before this but it stood out because Mr. Somyot directly challenged the nation’s strict lèse-majesté law-punishment and imprisonment for insulting or threatening the King, Queen, the Heir-apparent or the Regent- at his trial saying it violates the right on freedom of expression. However, Thailand’s constitutional court gave 10 years sentence saying the king deserves “special protection” because he is the “center of the nation.” They also added that his claim and act is considered neglecting the feeling of other Thais who respect and worship the king and the monarchy.
Immediately, the international groups criticized the verdict. Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, European Union, and United Nations all agreed that the decision was extremely harsh and regressive and said, “Somyot has been found guilty simply for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression.”
It can be hard for most of us to understand a culture with such strict expectations of respect for the king. Many countries are led by the voted president and perhaps threatening but insulting is not considered a crime. In fact, it’s not hard to find comedies and parodies of President Obama made on YouTube or anywhere else. However, Thai people show great respect and loyalty for their king and they expect foreign visitors to do so too. In Thai culture, those who are insulting the king are automatically considered violator of the criminal law. To other countries, the court’s decision is perceived as an act of limitation to freedom of expression but to Thailand, it could have been a way to prevent furthermore social problems like this which threatens their values and cultures.
1/25/2013, 4:01PM
source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/world/asia/thai-court-gives-10-year-sentence-for-insult-to-king.html?ref=asia&_r=1&
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