US scholar in Thailand jailed pending trial on charges of insulting the monarchy
BANGKOK — A U.S. political science scholar accused by the Thai Army of insulting the Southeast Asian nation’s monarchy, an offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison, was jailed on Tuesday pending trial.
Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in the northern province of Phitsanulok, last week was summoned by police to hear the charges against him, including violating the Computer Crime Act, which covers online activity.
Chambers has specialized in studying the power and influence of the military in Thailand. The army plays a major role in politics and has staged 13 successful coups since Thailand became a constitutional monarchy in 1932, most recently just 11 years ago.
He reported himself to the police Tuesday to formally acknowledge the charges and then was taken to Phitsanulok Provincial Court for a pretrial detention hearing, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, a legal advocacy group.
It said the court approved the police request for pretrial detention and denied Chambers’ initial application for release on bail, as well as a second later request. The legal aid group said another request to allow bail would be filed to an appeals court on Wednesday. No trial date has been set.
The officer who answered the phone at the police station handling the case said he could not comment, and referred the matter to his chief, who did not answer a call to his phone.
It is not unusual for Thai courts to deny bail in cases involving the offense of insulting the monarchy, which is also called lese majeste, and popularly known as “112” after its article number in the criminal code.
The U.S.-based academic freedom project Scholars at Risk said in a statement that Chambers in late 2024 made comments in a webinar about a restructuring of the military believed to be the cause of the complaint made against him by the 3rd Army Area, covering Thailand’s northern region.
“State authorities should refrain from criminal investigations and other coercive legal action intended to restrict or retaliate against such conduct,” said the statement.
The lese majeste law calls for three to 15 years imprisonment for anyone who defames, insults or threatens the king, the queen, the heir apparent or the regent. Critics say it is among the harshest such laws anywhere and has been used to punish critics of the government and institutions such as the military.
The monarchy has long been considered a pillar of Thai society and criticism of it used to be strictly taboo. Conservative Thais, especially in the military and courts, still consider it untouchable.
However, public debate on the topic has in the past decade grown louder, particularly among young people, and student-led pro-democracy protests starting in 2020, began openly criticizing the institution. That led to vigorous prosecutions under the previously little-used law.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights has said that since early 2020, more than 270 people — many of them student activists — have been charged with violating the lese majeste law.
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BANGKOK — A U.S. political science scholar accused by the Thai Army of insulting the Southeast Asian nation’s monarchy, an offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison, was jailed on Tuesday pending trial.
Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in the northern province of Phitsanulok, last week was summoned by police to hear the charges against him, including violating the Computer Crime Act, which covers online activity.
Chambers has specialized in studying the power and influence of the military in Thailand. The army plays a major role in politics and has staged 13 successful coups since Thailand became a constitutional monarchy in 1932, most recently just 11 years ago.
He reported himself to the police Tuesday to formally acknowledge the charges and then was taken to Phitsanulok Provincial Court for a pretrial detention hearing, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, a legal advocacy group.
It said the court approved the police request for pretrial detention and denied Chambers’ initial application for release on bail, as well as a second later request. The legal aid group said another request to allow bail would be filed to an appeals court on Wednesday. No trial date has been set.
The officer who answered the phone at the police station handling the case said he could not comment, and referred the matter to his chief, who did not answer a call to his phone.
It is not unusual for Thai courts to deny bail in cases involving the offense of insulting the monarchy, which is also called lese majeste, and popularly known as “112” after its article number in the criminal code.
The U.S.-based academic freedom project Scholars at Risk said in a statement that Chambers in late 2024 made comments in a webinar about a restructuring of the military believed to be the cause of the complaint made against him by the 3rd Army Area, covering Thailand’s northern region.
“State authorities should refrain from criminal investigations and other coercive legal action intended to restrict or retaliate against such conduct,” said the statement.
The lese majeste law calls for three to 15 years imprisonment for anyone who defames, insults or threatens the king, the queen, the heir apparent or the regent. Critics say it is among the harshest such laws anywhere and has been used to punish critics of the government and institutions such as the military.
The monarchy has long been considered a pillar of Thai society and criticism of it used to be strictly taboo. Conservative Thais, especially in the military and courts, still consider it untouchable.
However, public debate on the topic has in the past decade grown louder, particularly among young people, and student-led pro-democracy protests starting in 2020, began openly criticizing the institution. That led to vigorous prosecutions under the previously little-used law.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights has said that since early 2020, more than 270 people — many of them student activists — have been charged with violating the lese majeste law.
