Font size: 
On June 30 Laksana Kornsilp, age 57, appeared at Lumpini police station and filed charges against thrice lèse majesté beleaguered Jonathan Head of the BBC’s Asia desk. In addition, she filed lèse majesté charges against the entire board of the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand of which Head is a member, and a group of thirteen individuals.
In her complaint she alleges that Head, the FCCT and others joined together in providing a platform for defaming the monarchy by hosting a speech that threatened the revered Thai king. Because the FCCT had recorded the 2007 panel discussion, transferred it to compact discs and distributed them, it was also cited in the complaint.
Kornsilp’s filing is the first time ever that the Bangkok-based Foreign Correspondents’ Club has been charged with lèse majesté – but this should not be considered much of a surprise.
Ever since former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra began “involving” members of Thailand’s Privy Council in accusations of political wheeling and dealing against him, reactionary elements have been busy behind the scenes and in public, blasting frank speech, shutting down or blocking thousands of “offensive” websites, and arranging for the arrest and imprisonment of dozens throughout the kingdom for allegedly insulting the monarchy and/or members of the royal family.
Like a train gaining downhill momentum, these reactionaries have gleefully watched as hapless people like Suwicha Thakhor went to prison for 10 years for lèse majesté, Da Torpedo found the carpet of justice under her feet suddenly withdrawn when the judge at her own lèse majesté trial determined that proceedings should be held in secret, and now watching the latest Laksana-led facade playing out against Head and the entire board of the FCCT.
Thailand has, through its dogged harassment of those with different opinions than those who demand preservation of the status quo, made it abundantly clear that it will not only fight against what it falsely maintains to be lèse majesté, but will also persecute and prosecute any and all. No one is immune, in Thailand or around the world.
An accompanying tragedy in all of these spurious lèse majesté charges is that those being charged are not fighting back with guns blazing. Thailand’s current civil and criminal law codes have multiple provisions for counter-suing individuals, the state and state officials for various wrongdoing, up to and including the same thing that they are conspiring to charge others with – that is, lèse majesté.
There are those who maintain that when the revered Thai king on Dec. 4, 2004, publicly declared that he “wanted to be criticized when it was warranted so he could improve himself, that he was not a super human but only a mortal, and further that he was bothered by lèse majesté cases,” meant that criticism was not only allowed but was in fact solicited by the king himself.
Some observers of the king’s speech then also feel that officials who act against this royal “hint” are themselves guilty of ignoring the king’s advice and personal wishes. World-famous Thai social critic, Buddhist scholar and academic Sulak Sivalak has openly advocated criticism of the king and members of the monarchy.
Sulak described the status of the country’s lèse majesté laws after Laksana’s filing against the FCCT as “messy.” He is known for being overly polite and very humble. If he were not, he would have described the situation in more precise terms.
Thailand’s lèse majesté cases are in a dangerous vacuum at the moment because they are always handled defensively and without the accused filing meaningful counter-charges against those who stir up lèse majesté sentiment.
Lawyers in Thailand are highly reluctant and even afraid to represent anti-lèse majesté law activists or “victims” of investigations, and there are few resources in Thailand for human rights groups to intercede and protect the legitimate rights of those accused.
The campaign in Thailand to protect the monarchy will probably become a unique case history for academics outside the kingdom to study how civil society can be cowed into silence, foreigners still be demonized, and how ancient prejudices can still be effectively used to ensure change, which is only an occasional whisper in the wind. That it became a murmur frightened powerful interests and they are now increasing pressure.
Laksana’s exact role is subject to some suspicion. That she is a translator, and that the translation of Head’s supposed crimes was an issue some time ago; that there is a select group in Thailand that seeks to use lèse majesté charges against agents of change – these things are no longer much of a secret.
Who prompted Laksana to file charges? And will the public ever know those people or groups? Will any of them ever face criminal or civil charges, as they seem absolutely oblivious of their own exposure?
--
(Frank G. Anderson is the Thailand representative of American Citizens Abroad. He was a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer to Thailand from 1965-67, working in community development. A freelance writer and founder of northeast Thailand's first local English language newspaper, the Korat Post – www.thekoratpost.com – he has spent over eight years in Thailand "embedded" with the local media. He has an MBA in information management and an associate degree in construction technology. ©Copyright Frank G. Anderson.)
No comments:
Post a Comment