hailand has declared imprisonment for a man on Friday for posting derogatory photos and videos targeting Thai monarchy. The man, who has been identified as Wichai, was held guilty of violating Thai’s strict le’se majeste’ regulations. Le’se majeste’ forbids criticism against the monarchy.
The accused is a 33-year-old man held on the charge of creating posts through a fraud account. The Thai court convicted him for sharing 10 posts. Wichai is sentenced to 35 years of imprisonment, half-down from the actual 70 years of jail. He initially declined all charges. But, later he confessed his guilt, resulting in his 35 years confinement. As noted, Wichai waited for more than a year in jail for the court proceedings before confessing his wrong.
Similar cases have been reported since the military seized control in the country. For its strict le’se majeste’ rules and other forbidding laws, Thailand has been criticized for being intolerant. The number of arrests went up to 100 in recent times the defamation of monarchy.
The issue highlights online censorship. Thai government recently ordered social networking sites to remove any content that is unacceptable to the monarchy. Facebook has already blocked number of posts. YouTube as well has deleted URLs that were considered illegal in the country.Such cases
Such cases reveal the unhealthy online networking platform in Thailand. Also, it clears the air why Thailand is the concern among online freedom groups. Reports have announced that Thailand’s internet and media are “not free.” UN has for this warned Thailand for its heavy use of controversial laws.
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