BANGKOK: A Thai comedian and prominent “Red Shirt” political activist lost an appeal yesterday against a two-year prison term under the kingdom’s strict royal defamation law. The Court of Appeals upheld the sentence handed to Yosawaris Chuklom, who goes by the stage name Jeng Dokchik, last year in connection with a speech delivered during mass protests against the previous government in 2010.
While he did not explicitly mention the royal family, “the court said my speech led people to understand that I was talking about the monarchy,” he said from the court.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 86, is revered by many Thais and protected by harsh royal defamation laws. Under the lese majeste rules, anyone convicted of defaming the king, queen, heir or regent faces up to 15 years prison term.
Critics say the legislation has been politicised, noting that many of those charged are linked to the Red Shirts, who are broadly supportive of fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Royalists have recently urged heightened vigilance against remarks deemed critical of the monarchy. The call comes against a backdrop of a six-month deadly political crisis that has shaken the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. AFP
