After being found guilty of dressing as Queen Suthida during a street protest that the court found ridiculed the royal family, a political activist in Thailand was sentenced to two years in prison on Monday, according to her lawyer.
Thailand has some of the strongest “lese majeste” laws in the world, making it illegal to disparage or insult the king, queen, heir, or regent. The penalty for such an offence is up to 15 years in jail.
According to her attorney Krisadang Nutcharat, Jatuporn “New” Saeoueng, 25, was found guilty of purposefully ridiculing the monarchy by her acts at a Bangkok street protest in 2020.
According to the legal aid organisation Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, which keeps track of such cases using police and court records, she is one of at least 210 activists who have been accused of royal insult in the last two years in connection with demonstrations calling for the reform of the powerful monarchy.
On Monday, attempts to contact the palace for comment were unsuccessful. The palace has previously failed to comment on the protests. When asked about the protests by Britain’s Channel 4 News in November 2020, the ruling monarch King Maha Vajiralongkorn responded, “We love them all the same.”
Jaturporn walked a red carpet at a protest in October 2020 while shaded by an attendant’s umbrella and wearing a traditional pink silk dress. Protesters sat on the ground as required by Thai tradition when in the presence of royalty.
Many saw her protest act as a portrayal of the queen, who was married by the three-times-divorced King Vajiralongkorn just days before his coronation in 2019.
Jatuporn has always refuted the allegations and claimed that she typically wears traditional Thai attire, according to Krisadang.
He continued, “But the court perceives it as ridicule and disrespectful towards the monarchy,” and added that his transgender client would appeal the decision. She was ordered to serve her time in a prison for women.
In addition, King Vajiralongkorn’s statements in the official Royal Gazette giving him direct control over the enormous wealth of the kingdom and at least two army units have drawn criticism from the demonstrators. These criticisms have received no response from the palace.
Featured Image: Wikimedia Commons
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