Thailand drops royal insult case against American academic
[BANGKOK] A royal insult prosecution against an American scholar in Thailand that raised concerns in the US government has been dropped, his lawyer said on Thursday(May 29), as authorities confirmed the academic had left the country.
Paul Chambers, 58, a political science lecturer, had been in legal limbo since his arrest last month on a lese-majeste charge, which led to the loss of his job, his work visa and the seizure of his passport.
Thailand has one of the world's harshest lese-majeste laws, setting jail terms of up to 15 years for anyone convicted of defaming, insulting or threatening King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his close family. The prosecutor earlier this month dropped the case against Chambers but police appealed that decision. The attorney-general overruled the appeal earlier this week, said Chambers' lawyer, Wannaphat Jenroumjit.
'The case is now concluded,' she said, adding the legal team was appealing the revocation of his work visa.
The US State Department had expressed alarm at the arrest of Chambers, saying the case 'reinforces our longstanding concerns about the use of lese-majeste laws in Thailand'.
The charges against him, which came after a complaint by the royalist army, had stemmed from a blurb for an online academic seminar at which he was a speaker, according to his lawyers. The blurb was posted last year on the website of a research institute based outside of Thailand.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 8.30 am Asean Business
Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies.
Sign Up
Sign Up
Chambers could not be contacted for comment on Thursday.
Thailand's constitution enshrines the king in a position of 'revered worship' and royalists regard the palace as sacrosanct. A party that won the 2023 election was dissolved last year over its campaign to amend the lese-majeste law, under which more than 280 people have been charged since 2020, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights legal aid group, which also represented Chambers.
Thai immigration police confirmed Chambers' passport had been returned to him and that he had left the country earlier on Thursday.
'The case is closed as the attorney-general decided to drop it,' said Police Major General Sarawut Khonyai, a commander of immigration police in northern Thailand. Reuters
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
5 hours ago
- Straits Times
US, Chinese officials exchange barbs at Shanghai event over trade
Eric Zhang, President of American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham Shanghai), speaks during AmCham Shanghai annual gala in Shanghai, China June 6, 2025. REUTERS/Go Nakamura Scott Walker, U.S. Consul General in Shanghai, speaks during American Camber of Commerce Shanghai (AmCham Shanghai) annual gala in Shanghai, China June 6, 2025. REUTERS/Go Nakamura SHANGHAI - U.S. and Chinese officials traded barbs at a celebration held by a U.S. business chamber in Shanghai on Friday, as the chamber appealed to both countries to provide more certainty to American businesses operating in China. Scott Walker, consul general of U.S. consulate in Shanghai, told a gathering of U.S. businesses aimed at celebrating the 110th anniversary of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Shanghai that the U.S.-China economic relationship had been unbalanced and non-reciprocal "for far too long." "We want an end to discriminatory actions and retaliation against U.S. companies in China," he said. In a speech that directly followed Walker's, Chen Jing, a Shanghai Communist Party official who is also the president of the Shanghai People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, countered Walker's view. "I believe the consul general's view is prejudiced, ungrounded and not aligning with the phone call of our heads of states last night," he said. The interaction reflects the continued strained relationship between both countries as the trade war continues to simmer. U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke over a long anticipated call on Thursday, confronting weeks of brewing trade tensions and a battle over critical minerals. Trump later said they agreed to further talks. It came in the middle of a dispute between Washington and Beijing in recent weeks over "rare earths" minerals that threatened to tear up a fragile truce in the trade war between the two biggest economies. The countries struck a 90-day deal on May 12 to roll back some of the triple-digit, tit-for-tat tariffs they had placed on each other since Trump's January inauguration but the deal has not addressed broader concerns that strain the relationship and Trump has accused China of violating the agreement. Eric Zheng, president of AmCham Shanghai which counts over 1,000 companies among its membership, told reporters on the sidelines of the event that many companies had put their decision-making on pause due to the uncertainty. "People are looking for some more definitive, durable statements on both sides that enable businesses to feel more secure," he said. "Our number one ask from the two governments is to give us some certainty so that we can plan accordingly." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Straits Times
Europe can sustain Ukraine's war effort without U.S., German general says
Ukrainian servicemen of the 30th Prince Kostiantyn Ostrozkyi Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces prepare to fire a BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launch system towards Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 3, 2025. REUTERS/Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy/ File Photo BERLIN - Europe is capable of sustaining Ukraine's resistance against Russia, even if the United States were to decide to completely halt its military support to Kyiv, the senior military official in charge of coordinating Germany's arms supplies told Reuters. Major General Christian Freuding said NATO's European members plus Canada had already exceeded the estimated $20 billion worth of U.S. military aid provided last year to Kyiv. They accounted for around 60% of the total costs borne by the Western allies, he said. "The war against Ukraine is raging on our continent, it is also being waged against the European security order. If the political will is there, then the means will also be there to largely compensate for the American support," Freuding said in an interview. Ukraine continues to receive weapons deliveries approved by former U.S. President Joe Biden. It is unclear, however, whether his successor Donald Trump will sign off on any new supplies - or allow third countries to purchase U.S. weapons for Kyiv. Asked how long the Biden-approved deliveries will sustain Kyiv, Freuding said this depended on logistical processes as well as the speed at which Ukraine burns through arms and ammunition, but that the summer seemed a realistic estimate. "How the American government handles further requests for military support for Ukraine is unclear at the moment. We can't say anything about that," he added. "In general, the U.S. has a great interest in boosting its own defence industry. I make the cautious assumption that at least purchasing U.S. defence goods, and delivering them to Ukraine, will be possible." RUSSIAN REARMAMENT Addressing the potential threat that Russia might pose beyond Ukraine, Freuding said Moscow had a clear plan to reconstitute and grow its military, and was expected to succeed in efforts to double its land forces to 1.5 million by 2026. "They are recruiting significantly more personnel than they need as replacements for the war in Ukraine. They are producing surplus stocks of ammunition, in particular, which they are 'putting on store'". Freuding said Russia was also ramping up its military infrastructure, especially in its western military district bordering new NATO member Finland. Any ceasefire in Ukraine could allow Russia to accelerate its rearmament efforts ahead of a possible large-scale attack on NATO territory, he said. The alliance currently believes this could occur from 2029. "Of course, a ceasefire could change the threat situation," Freuding said. Russia denies planning to attack NATO and says it is waging a "special military operation" in Ukraine to protect its own security against what it casts as an aggressive, hostile West. Germany has provided a total of 38 billion euros ($43 billion) in military aid to Ukraine, including funds earmarked for the coming years, making it the second largest donor after the United States, the defence ministry in Berlin says. Freuding said he was not aware of the Trump administration having endorsed any U.S. arms deliveries to Kyiv paid for by third countries. Still, making up for certain crucial parts of U.S. military support to Ukraine would pose significant challenges to Europe. Listing capabilities that would be hard for Europeans to replace, Freuding cited U.S. intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) data, air defence systems like Patriot and spare parts for U.S. weapons. "If we are capable of replacing specific (ISR) capabilities to a sufficient extent - we need to look into this when we definitely know the Americans won't provide this data anymore." Ukraine uses U.S. intelligence data to help its air defence, and analysts say also for targeting. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Straits Times
Actor Haley Joel Osment ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous after ski resort arrest
LOS ANGELES - A judge has ordered American actor Haley Joel Osment to attend Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings and therapy sessions for the next six months as part of a deal to dispose of charges of public intoxication and cocaine possession after he insulted the police. The 37-year-old, who rose to fame as the child star of horror film The Sixth Sense (1999), was arrested in April at a ski resort in Mono County, California. Police footage of the arrest showed Osment refusing to answer questions from officers. He also asserted that he was being tortured and kidnapped by a Nazi and used an anti-Semitic slur while addressing an officer. Later, he apologised for his words and said he had experienced a blackout. At a court appearance on June 2, a judge granted Osment's request for a one-year diversion from prosecution, saying he would dismiss the charges if over the next six months the actor obeys all laws, attends three AA meetings a week and meets with his therapist twice a week. Diversion is an alternative procedure in criminal cases in many states that allows certain defendants to avoid prosecution and a criminal record by agreeing to complete a rehabilitation programme and a period of probation. David Anderson, the Mono County district attorney, said in a statement that his office disagreed with the judge's decision, adding: 'Based on Mr Osment's prior Driving Under the Influence (DUI) conviction, as well as his slurs toward the arresting officer, my office did not believe diversion was appropriate.' Osment is scheduled to reappear in court in January, when the court will review his compliance with the orders. If he does not complete the diversion programme, criminal proceedings will be restarted. Osment, who will play a serial killer in the upcoming second season of the hit Netflix series Wednesday (2022 to present) that premieres on Aug 6, was charged with disorderly conduct and cocaine possession – both misdemeanours – after local officers confronted him in a parking area at the Mammoth Mountain Ski Area in eastern California, according to the Mono County District Attorney's Office. Police bodycam videos show Osment, who appears intoxicated, going limp when the officers tried to arrest him. 'You'll wish you treated me nicer,' he is heard saying in the video. In a statement after the arrest, Osment said that he was horrified by his own behaviour. 'Had I known I used this disgraceful language in the throes of a blackout, I would have spoken up sooner,' he said, according to The New York Post. Osment, who lost his home in the devastating wildfires that swept through Los Angeles in January, added that his recent troubles were no excuse for using 'disgusting' language. 'From the bottom of my heart, I apologise to absolutely everyone that this hurts,' he said. 'What came out of my mouth was nonsensical garbage - I've let the Jewish community down and it devastates me.' Osment was previously arrested in 2006 and pleaded no contest to one count of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of possession of marijuana, according to People. He was sentenced to 60 hours of probation and to attend AA meetings. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
