Opposition MP cleared of royal defamation

Piyarat Chongthep, a People’s Party MP for Bangkok, has won a rare acquittal on charges of lese-majeste and computer crime, after a court in Kalasin said the evidence against him was weak.
The court said the accused deserved the benefit of the doubt as the evidence, including witness accounts presented by prosecutors, could not explicitly identify him as committing an offence.
Prosecutors said that Mr Piyarat, widely known by his nickname Toto, installed seven vinyl banners criticising the government’s Covid-19 vaccine procurement on Jan 23, 2021, which were later taken down by police. Siam Bioscience, owned by His Majesty the King, was producing AstraZeneca Covid vaccines at the time.
Mr Piyarat, who was a key figure in the We Volunteer (WeVo) political protest group, later posted a message on his Facebook account and a tweet on the WeVo account asking for the return of the missing banners.
Prosecutors in Kalasin targeted him on grounds that a truck used to transport the banners was owned by his mother, and the van following the truck belonged to him.
The court said witness accounts presented by prosecutors could not confirm that Mr Piyarat was at the scene or in his vehicle. Police also did not have evidence showing him posting the online messages, as Mr Piyarat was under detention at Special Remand Prison when the messages first appeared.
Mr Piyarat was detained for 33 days after bring charged, and on his release was ordered to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet for almost two months after his bail request was approved.
In 2023 Mr Piyarat decided to switch from being a protester to being a full-time politician. He ran under the Move Forward Party banner and won a seat in the Phra Khanong-Bang Na constituency in Bangkok.
Move Forward was dissolved earlier this year by the Constitutional Court on grounds that its proposal to amend the lese-majeste law threatened the constitutional monarchy. It was reborn as the People’s Party.
Another People’s Party MP, Rukchanok “Ice” Srinork, is currently appealing her conviction and sentence of six years, without suspension, for lese-majeste and computer crime.
She was released on bail of 500,000 baht following her conviction last November, on condition that she refrain from participating in activities similar to those with which she has been charged.
As a result, Rukchanok was able to continue serving as an MP.
The court convicted Rukchanok over posts she made about vaccine allocations, with pictures of His Majesty, on her Twitter account @nanaicez between July 18 and Aug 9, 2021. She denied all charges.
Rukchanok scored one of the most surprising victories in the 2023 general election, winning Bangkok Constituency 28 which includes Bang Bon, the stronghold of the Ubamrung family. She defeated Wan Ubamrung, the son of veteran politician Chalerm Ubamrung, by more than 20,000 votes.
According to data from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights to Aug 31 this year, 1,956 people have been prosecuted for political participation and expression since the beginning of the Free Youth protests in July 2020. At least 273 are facing lese-majeste charges under Section 112 and 152 have been charged with sedition under Section 116.