Thai arrest warrant issued for US academic under ban on insulting royalty
BANGKOK — A Thai court has issued an arrest warrant for an American academic under Thailand's lese-majeste law that forbids insulting the monarchy.
The army filed a complaint against Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in central Thailand, under lese-majeste and computer crime laws, according to his legal representation.
Chambers and his lawyer are due to report to police on Tuesday, where charges are expected to be filed.
Akarachai Chaimaneekarakate, advocacy lead for the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights Center representing Chambers, told the BBC he did not know the reason for the complaint.
If convicted, Chambers could face three to 15 years in prison for each lese-majeste count.
The BBC has contacted Royal Thai Police for comment.
It is rarer for the lese-majeste law to be used against foreigners, but it has happened before, Akarachai said.
The army filed the complaint against Chambers for "defamation, contempt or malice" towards the royal family, "importing false computer data" in a way "likely to damage national security or cause public panic", and disseminating computer data "that may affect national security", according to a letter from police received by the university's social sciences faculty on Friday, his legal representation said.
The court had already issued the arrest warrant on Monday, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights Centre added.
If charges are filed against Chambers next Tuesday, police could release him on bail or detain him, in which case his lawyer would apply for bail.
Police will then investigate and if they believe he did commit the offense, pass a case along to prosecutors, who will decide whether to indict him.
According to his LinkedIn page, Chambers first lived and worked in Thailand 30 years ago, and has spent years since then lecturing and researching in the country, including writing books on its military.
He has not received a subpoena before, his legal representation said.
Thailand's lese-majeste law has been in place since the creation of the country's first criminal code in 1908, although the penalty was toughened in 1976.
The government says the law is necessary to protect the monarchy. Critics say the law is used to clamp down on free speech.
Mr Akarachai told the BBC lese-majeste has been used more since student-led pro-democracy protests, which also targeted the monarchy, swept the country in 2020.
After months of protests, Thailand revived the lese-majeste law for the first time in more than two years.
Since late 2020, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights Centre has seen more than 300 cases of lese-majeste involving more than 270 people, including 20 children under the age of 18, Akarachai said.
"When people take to the streets to demand monarchy reforms, they face the risk of political prosecution. Now, when academics write or discuss about those issues in academic settings, it seems they also face the same risk of political prosecution," he said.
Last year, a reformist political party was dissolved by court order after the court ruled the party's campaign promise to change lese-majeste was unconstitutional.
The European Parliament called on Thailand last month to reform the law, which it said was "among the strictest in the world", and grant amnesty to those prosecuted and imprisoned under it.
On Wednesday, Thai parliament is set to discuss the issue of amnesty bills, Akarachai said. — BBC
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