LESE MAJESTE ACCUSATIONS STIFLE DISCOURSE IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BANGKOK 001662 SIPDIS NSC FOR PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2018 TAGS: PGOV PHUM KPAO TH SUBJECT: LESE MAJESTE ACCUSATIONS STIFLE DISCOURSE IN THAILAND, PROMPT A CABINET RESIGNATION REF: A. BANGKOK 1612 (HOW HOT) ¶B. 07 BANGKOK 4091 (DAAD LEADERS ARRESTED) BANGKOK 00001662 001.2 OF 004 Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission James F. Entwistle, reason 1.4 ( b) and (d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Politicians and allies of the Palace, under the guise of protecting the King, often use lese majeste accusations to silence critical media or opponents. In the last six months, lese majeste complaints have been filed or threatened against a wide range of figures, including a cabinet minister, a former Royal Thai Police Chief, a BBC journalist, and an activist. These cases do not involve direct assaults on the monarchy; some involve slights as minor as skipping royal ceremonies or not standing for the royal anthem in a movie theater. Some subjects of recent accusations told us lese majeste complaints encourage self-censorship and can endanger the accused people. Lese majeste charges have been used by both pro- and anti-Thaksin politicians. The RTG is also moving more aggressively to block websites critical of the monarchy. A lack of clear guidance on the use of the law from the Palace or government means that the cycle of restrictions and resentment is likely to continue. Indeed, Jakrapob Penkair, Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office, stepped down May 30 after being charged with lese majeste in relation to public comments seen as critical of the monarchy. End summary. BACKGROUND ON LESE MAJESTE -------------- ¶2. (C) Thailand's criminal code allows for between three and 15 years' imprisonment for anyone who defames, insults, or threatens the King, Queen, royal heir-apparent, or Regent. Lese majeste charges can be brought by anyone, and some high profile cases have been initiated by ordinary citizens. The King publicly declared on his birthday in 2005 that he would pardon all persons convicted of lese majeste and said he did not believe he should be above criticism. However, police seem compelled to pursue lese majeste cases when complaints are brought. Once the initial complaint is filed, the police typically spend up to six months investigating the allegations before presenting their findings to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG). The police may not bring a case to the OAG more than 10 years after the initial complaint. According to Somchai Homlaor, a lawyer who has been involved in at least one lese majeste case, the police should handle the entire investigation, but in special circumstances they may consult with the office of the King's Principal Private Secretary. ¶3. (C) Lese majeste charges have been leveled against politicians and others in the past, but the issue has become particularly politically sensitive recently, in the wake of the 2006 coup. The 2006 coup leaders criticized the Thaksin administration for committing acts "bordering on lese majeste" when they sought publicly to justify their seizure of power. In 2007, however, the authorities determined they would not charge Thaksin with lese majeste. Press speculation claimed that palace figures had weighed in against such a charge. Similarly, late in 2007, press speculation claimed that palace figures had weighed in against an ultimately unsuccessful attempt by the National Legislative Assembly to expand lese majeste to cover members of the Privy Council. The lese majeste cases currently active show the many ways in which lese majeste charges can limit democratic space and be manipulated for political ends. "TO NOT STAND IS NOT A CRIME" -------------- ¶4. (C) Some members of the intellectual class have recently been alarmed by a lese majeste case involving Chotisak Onsoong, a social activist and dropout from prestigious Thammasat University. Chotisak was a leader of the September BANGKOK 00001662 002.2 OF 004 19 network against the military coup, and led a number of anti-coup demonstrations. He was formally charged with lese majeste after a dispute with a fellow movie-goer on September 20, 2007, when Chotisak -- who was wearing a t-shirt that said in English and Thai, "To Not Stand Is Not A Crime" -- refused to stand for the royal anthem at a Bangkok theater. After the dispute, Chotisak summoned the police, claiming his rights had been violated. Chotisak admitted that he was not physically hurt by the other movie patron (who had thrown a water bottle at him),but was instead "defamed by the man's abusive words." In response, the other man filed a lese majeste complaint against Chotisak. Six months later, the police summoned Chotisak to be fingerprinted, interrogated and formally charged with lese majeste. He was released without bail and the case is currently under police investigation, a process that his lawyers said may take another six months. ¶5. (C) On April 29 and 30, the radio station Metro Life 97 encouraged listeners to attack Chotisak when he was scheduled to appear at a May 1 panel discussion on lese majeste at Thammasat University. Metro Life posted his personal information online, including his address, and then broadcast the information alongside the details for the panel. The district police convinced Chotisak not to attend for his personal safety. Metro Life 97 later issued an apology to Chotisak, and the radio program and its hosts have been suspended. (Metro Life 97 is a component of the Manager Media Group, founded by Sondhi Limthongkul -- who leads the People's Alliance for Democracy, the group behind 2005-6 anti-Thaksin protests and current demonstrations against the government. We contacted officials at Manager Media Group; they declined to meet with us to discuss the anti-Chotisak broadcasts.) ¶6. (C) A leading Thai figure from an international NGO told us that the authorities "want Chotisak's head on a stake." Our NGO contact said that Chotisak had been singled out since the 2006 coup as a leading figure of the radical left "who wants to destroy the monarchy like in Nepal." ¶7. (C) Poloff met on May 9 with Chotisak, who was accompanied by his girlfriend and a bodyguard. Chotisak told us his refusal to stand for the royal anthem reflected a principled stance he has held since 2003. The incident at the Bangkok movie theater marked the first time his personal protest elicited a negative reaction. Chotisak said that "some tell me that it's not the right time" to make bold political statements. That time, he said, would be when there is a transition in the monarchy (read: after the King dies). He remarked that his views would not be affected by the King's choice of royal heirs -- he simply favors a democratic environment that entails equality for all: "It's not about the Prince or Princess... but principles." ¶8. (C) Chotisak's bodyguard, a student at Ramkhamhaeng University, told us he, too, objected to standing for the royal anthem: "I will walk away if I hear it start." Chotisak's girlfriend, Songkran Pongbunjan (protect),a convert to Islam who was with Chotisak during the 2007 incident, said that she refuses to stand for the King, and said that many Thai Muslims avoid movies "and other such situations" altogether. She added that, "Muslim principles say we shouldn't go to entertainment places." (Comment: The girlfriend, who appears to hold a strict view of Islam's requirements, is not representative of Thai Muslims generally. End Comment.) Both Chotisak and Songkran have NGO support for their legal defense. The Law Society of Thailand has provided lawyers who will assert Chotisak has a right not to stand for the royal anthem. Muslims for Peace has provided lawyers for Songkran who will assert she was adhering to religious principle while remaining seated. ¶9. (C) Chotisak told us the police were aggressively investigating his case, and he suspected they were encouraged by unknown political figures. He anticipated that, if his case does not go to trial, the charges against him could be resurrected in the future. He said the authorities deliberately use lese majeste charges to discourage activism. BANGKOK 00001662 003.2 OF 004 (Police officials have so far rejected our requests to meet with them to discuss lese majeste, saying the cases were too sensitive and involve national security.) MINISTER, BBC JOURNALIST ACCUSED -------------- ¶10. (C) While Chotisak's case has received relatively little press attention, there has been prominent media coverage of recent lese majeste accusations against Jakrapob Penkair, a former diplomat forced out of his job as Minister Attached to the Prime Minister's Office on May 30. Jakrapob, as a leading member of the pro-Thaksin Democratic Alliance Against Dictatorship, was arrested in July 2007 after co-organizing an unruly demonstration outside Privy Council President Prem Tinsulanonda's residence (ref B). Jakrapob is facing accusations that he criticized the monarchy during an August 2007 panel discussion at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Thailand (FCCT) after his release from prison. The accusations are based primarily on his English statement about a clash between democracy and "the patronage system," which has been interpreted by some as referring to the patronage of the monarchy. ¶11. (C) Abhisit Vejjajiva, the Democrat Party leader (and formal leader of the parliamentary opposition),personally took up this issue, calling publicly for Jakrapob's resignation and saying Prime Minister Samak must take responsibility for any damage inflicted by Jakrapob's remarks. The Democrat Party filed a motion to impeach Jakrapob. Finally, under heavy fire, Jakrapob announced on May 30 that he would resign from the government. ¶12. (C) The Police major who filed the complaint against Jakrapob also filed a complaint against Jonathan Head, the BBC correspondent who moderated the FCCT panel discussion at which Jakrapob made his remarks. We met on May 15 with Head (strictly protect),who told us that he had received word from a figure associated with the Palace (NFI) that he would not be charged with lese majeste. However, Head later told us that, on May 27, police officers arrived at the FCCT and questioned board members about his and Jakrapob's case; they questioned FCCT President Nirmal Ghosh for three hours, and they threatened to seize FCCT computers and documents. Head told us that the police told his (Head's) staff that the police viewed his case as serious not just because of the panel discussion, but also because of articles about the Crown Prince Head had written for the BBC website. INTELLECTUALS ACCUSED -------------- ¶13. (C) Buddhist scholar and social critic Sulak Siwalak, in a 2005 article in left-wing Same Sky (Faa Deeow Gan) magazine, argued that the monarchy had been artificially built up as a sacred institution and that the monarchy and Privy Council should be subject to criticism. Sulak was then charged with lese majeste and had to post bail; in mid-2007, he received a call from a top police officer, informing him that the charges against him would be dropped. When Poloff recently met with Sulak, he said that the police had always acted kindly toward him, and his bail money had been returned. He told us he did not advocate abolishing the monarchy, comparing it favorably to a tree, albeit one that might be rotting. He lamented that Thais had been "conditioned to fear lese majeste since 1947." ¶14. (C) Thanapol Easakul, editor of Same Sky Magazine, was charged with two counts of lese majeste in April 2006; the first charge was based on the initial publication of Sulak's interview, and the second charge was based on his reprinting 6,000 copies of the edition containing that interview, which had been banned. He recently told Poloff that the Thaksin administration -- which many critics perceived as inclined toward authoritarianism -- had sought to silence him because Same Sky was seen as a generally subversive publication. Thanapol said he was confident his lese majeste charges would eventually be dropped. He said the most troublesome aspect of the charges was the requirement that he report to the OAG BANGKOK 00001662 004.3 OF 004 every six weeks. ¶15. (C) Thanapol said he simply wanted the royal family to be open to public criticism, like any other institution. He quipped that it would be interesting to see how lese majeste laws might be enforced if Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, who has been the subject of much scandalous gossip, becomes Thailand's next King, because "there are not enough prisons to hold all the people who will criticize him..." Thanapol said that he now self-censors discussion of royalty, the Privy Council, and religion in his publication. FORMER TOP COP ACCUSED -------------- ¶16. (C) The police, reportedly at the request of PM Samak, are also investigating lese majeste accusations against one of their own: former Royal Thai Police Chief Seripisut Temiyavet. Seripisut is alleged to have declined to postpone a police sporting event that was scheduled to take place during the official mourning period for Princess Galyani Vadhana, rejecting a subordinate's proposal to do so with the rude rhetorical question, "Are you a buffalo?" Seripisut was also criticized for not attending the Royal Guard parade to celebrate the King's 2007 birthday (instead, he reportedly presided over the opening of a massage parlor),and for having only once gone to visit the King during his weeks of hospitalization in late 2007. WEBSITES BLOCKED -------------- ¶17. (C) May 21 press reports quoted Supreme Commander General Boonsrang Niumpradit as saying the military monitors internet activity to detect anti-monarchy sentiment, but relies on the government to take appropriate action. Following complaints from the Ministry of Interior, and the Democrat Party as well, Minister for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Man Pattanotai recently blocked content critical of the monarchy from at least 14 websites, including the online version of Same Sky magazine and Prachatai, an online pro-democracy blog. By law, ICT must obtain court warrants to block websites. However, during a recent radio interview, Man justified his office's action by reference to the criminal code. Man also encouraged the public to help monitor and hack websites with anti-monarchy content. COMMENT -------------- ¶18. (C) Lese majeste charges are highly sensitive, often do not lead to prosecution, and often do not receive publicity. Therefore, it is difficult to know how many cases are pending, and whether accusations are being made more frequently now than in past decades. Clearly, lese majeste legal provisions are used by political actors on all sides. While most Thais revere the King, there are also some who would like to diminish the monarchy's power or even abolish it-- although they are constrained in their freedom to advocate this. Lese majeste provisions can protect the King by restricting open criticism of the monarchy, but they also can engender quiet resentment, particularly among segments of the intellectual class who resent having to engage in self-censorship. The King himself has demonstrated concern about the enforcement of lese majeste provisions, but a lack of clear guidelines from the Palace or government on the use of the law, or on what actually constitutes lese majeste, means the police, prosecutors, defendants, and complainants will continue the lengthy lese majeste cycle. JOHN