Thailand has been big news in recent weeks. With all the attention on Abhisit, Thaksin, Sondhi and all the rest it is all too easy to forget that Suwicha Thakor (สุวิชา ท่าค้อ) remains locked up for lese majeste. Political Prisoners in Thailand continues to update its file on his tragic case. He was, you may recall, sentenced to 10 years for his Internet thought crime. As I wrote earlier in the month:
Experience suggests that dogged media attention embarrasses the palace and the Thai political elite. It will be hard, no doubt, to keep foreign media outlets interested in Suwicha’s case but that is what he needs.
There are now the inevitable efforts to ensure that Suwicha is quietly forgotten. I don’t think that should be allowed to happen. His story would be of great interest to the many millions who have recently seen Thailand on their television screens and who are wondering where the deeper faultlines actually lie.
Unfortunately Thais are expected to know better and can’t expect such a quick pardon as foreigners convicted of LM. But you are right in saying that maintaining foreign interest in the case will improve his chances of a pardon.
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Portman,
You may be right. Nonetheless I only see Thais of a certain relatively vulnerable type doing any time for lese majeste. Those apparently best positioned to defend their charges, cause a fuss behind the scenes, or tie into foreign networks (people like Sulak, Sondhi, Thanapol, Surachai, etc) seem to have done OK (so far) at staying out of prison. Perhaps that will change and we will see some of these people locked up for lese majeste (I certainly hope not!).
But in the recent spate of charges I can’t think of anyone who isn’t utterly ordinary who has done time in prison.
The message gets sent but the stink of incarcerating, say, Ajarn Sulak or Khun Thanapol is avoided. Who knows how long this current thrust in the lese majeste campaign will last? In the meantime I reckon the prevailing efforts to take out easy targets are worth further reflection.
When few people know Suwicha’s name it is far easier for him to be forgotten.
Best wishes to all,
Nich
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Nich
Agreed. The tone of the cases seems to be set at the time bail is requested. No connections > no bail > no foot dragging by prosecutors > intense pressure to plead guilty > no lawyer willing to risk a vigorous defence > no acquittal. Although precedents are not very important in Thailand’s civil law system, there are old precedents of acquittals based on lack of intent in LM cases going back even to the early days of the law under absolute monarchy. Althought the trials are largely held in camera, lack of intent doesn’t seem to have been a viable defence in recent years. This defence might not have helped Suwicha but, if available, could help or have helped others in this predicament.
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There was another woman – not the famous Da Torpedo – who also got locked up but only for six years. For something she said at Sanam Luang. I forget her name. And I guess that’s the way it goes. I hope somebody can remember it. My recollection from what I read in the newspapers and the blogs at the time is that she was a fairly ordinary woman with an ordinary job who got inspired or carried away and made a fatal move to say some thing when people were saying some things. She’s paying for that now.
I hope somebody can remember her.
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Tom Hoy,
I expect the prisoner you remember is Boonyuen Prasertying (บุญยืน ประเสริฐยิ่ง) who received a 6 year term in late 2008. Some information on her case is available here, here and here.
Best wishes to all,
Nich
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tom boy and Nick mentioning of Boonyuen’s case reminds me of something sad, though not unexpected.
Let me add a bit of info first. I was told from reliable source that Khun Boonyuen was persuaded (either by her lawers, her family or some authorities I’m not sure) to confess and get the conviction, so that she could ask for royal pardon. This way, she had been told, she could be out of prison within a relatively short time, whereas if she fought the charge, the case could drag on for years and yeas during which time the chance of her being free on bail would be nil. So she confessed and got that six year term on 6 November 2008. It has been nearly six months now after that conviction.
Harry Nicolaides, a farang, got convicted on 19 January 2009. He received a royal pardon and was released on 21 February 2009, i.e., just a month after the sentencing.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m more than happy for Harry. In fact I don’t think any one should be put in jail for a single day for the LM charge. But it should be obvious what this difference in treatment means.
P.S. I was also told that, Khun Boonyuen had apparently been persuaded that, in order to increase her chance of freedom, she should stay away from the political circles she used to belong. So she actually cut off all contact with former friends and political activists (She was a ‘regular’ of the Sanam Luang protest rally, as was ‘Da Torpido’.)
Clearly, that doesn’t help her much, so far.
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Thanks Ajarn Somsak,
I had gleaned a similar impression from some of the Prachatai, etc, coverage and discussion of Boonyuen’s case. Thanks for confirming these elements.
Perhaps some of the Bangkok-based journalists reading the comments on this thread will be in a position to find out more about how both Khun Boonyuen and Khun Suwicha are now faring.
When Harry Nicolaides was arrested Andrew Walker used a mixed metaphor to sum up his situation: “a very small fish who’s been caught in the crossfire”. I’m afraid that these two Thais who have been convicted of lese majeste and given these heavy sentences are even smaller fish, with even fewer friends to offer support. It is tragic, and so easily ignored when so much else is going on.
Best wishes to all,
Nich
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Thanks Khun Nich.
Perhaps I should add that Khun Da is well aware of the ‘option’ her former colleague (Boonyuen) took, but she decide to fight the case anyway. This is really brave. She has also (I was told by someone who’s following her case and visitting her regularly) ‘come to terms’ with the prospect that, not only her case could drag on for years, when the conviction comes, it would, in all probability, not be in her favour. Of couse, the fact that both Khun Boonyuen, an ordinary woman without famous name or influencial friends, and Khun Suwicha who has a young family to take care of, took the ‘option’, is completely understandable. All these cases only show how cruel, degrading and babaric this law and the context in which it is enforced are.
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For those who are willing to support Mr. Suwicha Thakor and his family, you can transfer financial support directly to
Account No.: 408 – 0 – 31301 – 2
Account Name: Mrs. Amorn Thakor
Krung Thai Bank
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I agree, we should not let this thing die down, in fact, we should make it as loud as possible. Suvicha is not alone, his children and his parents have to count on him. By jailing Suvicha, they are slowly killing his whole family. If you look deeply into all these cases, you will find how cruelly these families were punished. I only hope that New Mandala would not stop digging and print us with these kind of articles.
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Thanks everyone for all the support for P Nui!
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Suwicha was released yesterday by royal pardon. Today he went to Sirirat Hospital to pay respect to HM and gave an interview, thanking HM for showing mercy and urging all Thai to be grateful to what HM has done to the country. Suwicha also called on all those who ‘did wrong’ [on LM issue], either ‘for lack of knowledge/understanding’ [รู้เท่าไม่ถึงการณ์] to change their behaviors.
I’ve made a video clip of news report from Channel 5 military TV (29 June, 20.00). NM readers can download it here.
http://www.mediafire.com/?zmjgmhkynnm
The clip contains the whole report of people going to Sirirat to pay respect to HM for today It’s a regular daily segment on all TV channels nowsaday (part of the ‘Royal Family News’ segment), but only Channel 5 seems to include news of Suwicha’s being there. Suwicha appears at the end of the clip beginning around minute 1.20
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That is a good news!
Is there any similar possibility for Da Torpedo and others e.g. Ji, Jakrapob, Suchart, etc. ? It certainly would help the reconciliation.
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Good news for Suwicha – enjoy your freedom.
Let’s hope anyone else still in jail on LM charges is pardoned ASAP, as only then would the reality get close to matching the myth.
(btw, I wonder if Suwicha is aware of King Juan Carlos of Spain?)
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Great news but not at the price of loving big Daddy
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Suwicha isn’t really “free” now is he?
He’s out of jail, and that’s great, but he still has to keep his thoughts to himself.
At least he has mobility now, and I am very happy for him and his family.
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I youtubed Somsak’s video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uM-8wtgA-q4
Let me know if something is wrong with it, audio is a bit out of sync but it’s mostly presenter speaking off camera.
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FYI: I’ve just learned (from a post at Fa Diew Kan webboard) some interesting info. It seems that from late last year, Suwicha’s family, particulary his elder sister, who earlier (after Suwicha’s arrest and sentenced) had campaigned on his behalf for his release, which included receiving donation from among Red Shirts sympathizers’ communities e.g. Fa Diew Kan, Prachatai, has apparently decided to come out strongly as royalist.
See this blog created probably by Suwicha’s sister
http://thakhorfamily.blogspot.com/2009/10/blog-post_19.html
The first post was dated 15 September 2009, announcing that the family no longer wanted to receive donation for Suwicha, stating that they didn’t want “to be used as others’ instrument in wrong ways” (ใช้เราไปเป็นเครื่องมือในทางมิชอบ). It also issued “warning to those who have “lost their way” (หลงผิด), “wrongly believed one-sided information” [regarding the monarchy - Somsak].
http://thakhorfamily.blogspot.com/2009_09_01_archive.html
A month later, another post stated the same thing, but this time under Suwicha’s own name (“Suwicha asks to convey message of warning to internet users”).
http://thakhorfamily.blogspot.com/2009/10/blog-post.html
The blog also displays links to websites on Royal Projects, and the like by government agencies.
………………
I respect Suwicha and his family’s decision to declare his repentence, as well as his new-found loyalty to the monarchy. As I understand it, when one is in Suwicha’s situations (being jailed and sentenced for LM), one basically has two choices. Either one chooses to fight the charge, and, after being sentenced, to appeal in higher courts, insisting on one’s innocence and the rights to freedom of expression, or even to be critical of the monarchy,with full realization that it probably means a very long stay in jail. Or, one chooses to confess one’s guilt, repents, and expresses remorse for what one has done, and asks for royal pardon right away. I don’t think anyone who is not in the same situations, should pass judgement on the choice of those who are, in each individual case.
The only thing I can say is LM law is fundamentally a law about ‘thought crime’, a crime for thinking differently from Stae ideology. It’s degrading, inhumane, and dehumanizing.
Re: Suzie Wong #13
From what I heard last, Da Torpido has decided to appeal her sentence, and is prepared to fight her case all the way to the Supreme Court. In other words, it’s the first choice above for her, which means she probably will remain behind bars for quite many years to come.
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Suwicha is not the first victim, there were many other like him, Veera Musikapong is another example, I’m disgusted with this regime.
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Thanks to Somsak for his work in posting on Suwicha’s case and providing background. Very useful and enlightening indeed.
I, too, sympathize with Suwicha and his family. He got 20 years, halved for “cooperating” – that essentially means pleading guilty – and then had to await a pardon. Obviously there has been some well-placed advice on what needed to be done. Once you fawn enough, you have a chance of a pardon.
This is deliberately aimed at making the “criminal” lose a tremendous amount of face. It is a public humiliation.
That’s the nature of the “system” and those at the top.
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When he was arrested and then sentenced Suwicha was defiant, it was a couple of months after conviction that his lawyers dropped the appeals which paved the way for the pardon request.
Judging from the blog timeline, it was still a few months more before the moment when he could have actually started “waiting for pardon” which probably meant “waiting to apply for pardon”, a phase that lasted probably half a year itself.
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Don’t know what StanG is on about here; isn’t clear to me. Maybe this from PPT (still blocked in Thailand) helps:
“On 28 April 2009, Reporters Without Borders wrote to Thailand’s king asking him to pardon Suwicha .Talking from prison, Suwicha told RWB: “I posted a video of the king on the Internet…. The police should have told me what I was doing was wrong. It is not right to be sentenced to 10 years in prison for this. I am not a problem for the country or its security. I am in prison for nothing.”
When the prosecution decided to appeal the sentence, seeking a heavier penalty, this meant that Suwicha’s family could not seek a royal pardon.
After a month, in early June 2009, the public prosecutor decided not to appeal Suwicha’s sentence meaning he could begin the process of requesting a royal pardon. Nothing has been heard of the pardon since then.”
It seems that once you get a chance to request a pardon you then have to fawn and so does your family, recant and prostrate in order to get a pardon.
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Hi everyone, I would like to express the good news that Suwicha Thakor has been pardoned recently. He is doing well.
Thank you all for your support.
Regards….
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Suwicha released !!!
from the most humble – Thank you, your Majesty King Bumiphol.
Bumiphol – a truly great King – has himself argued, in both words and actions, against the LM laws.
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chris beale – 24
I think Da Torpido should get the same treatment right??
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Chris Beale: Does anyone get released without having to grovel?
I’ll believe your portrayal when people like Giles, Jakrapob & Darunee don’t even get charged (because you know all it would take is a word from above by the great one for all this nonsense to stop).
Can I respectfully request you read this for an alternative assessment http://timeupthailand.blogspot.com/2010/06/why-i-dont-love-king.html
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Chris Beale: If HMK really wanted to show himself clearly against the LM law, he would pardon people the moment they are arrested and charged. Not let them languish in prison for months.
Don’t respond that he has to wait until a conviction and a pardon request. He has unconditional power to pardon. Nothing prevents a pardon being granted even before a charge has been made.
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Here is the link to a report at Prachatai (in Thai) on another ex-LM prisoner, just released last month too: Boonyuen Prasertying.
http://www.prachatai3.info/journal/2010/07/30249
Boonyuen was arrested in the same case as Da Torpido, from their group’s political activities at Sanam Luang. (Da was arrested on 22 July 2008, Boonyuen was arrested three weeks later on 15 August. See report at the time of her arrest on Manager here: http://www.manager.co.th/Crime/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9510000096572 ) But she chose to act differently from Da (option II I mentioned above #18 http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/newmandala/2009/04/28/suwicha-thakor-still-locked-up/#comment-698053 ), namely to ‘confess’ her ‘wrongdoing’ on LM, was sentenced right away, then appealed for royal pardon. In the meantime, she also decided to ‘cut off’ contact with her former activists including Da in prison. (see further below.)
Included in the report at Prachatai is a 3-part interview with her on YouTube. (Direct links here:
Part I: Life as prisoner
Par II: Real-life study of ‘Thai Law 101′
Part III: On Politics
Although in the interview, Boonyuen appears in the current royalist shirt color (Pink, not yellow), it’s clear from the content that she doesn’t change her political views. (She explains why she took part in the political activities: because Thaksin had done a lot for her family’s economic well being, etc.) Of course she ‘admits’ (in passing) her ‘mistake’ (ผิดพลาด ไม่เหมาะสม) on her LM speech, but insists that it’s not right to put her into jail. She suggests the [LM] law be changed to lesser punishment, such as warning or fine. (See Par III at minute 7.50)
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I would say that LM laws answer the needs of ordinary Thais who don’t want to see the institution smeared rather than interests of the royal family itself.
From that point of view, the King would be giving out unconditional pardons without any care for the offended party – those sensitive people, for the lack of a better word, who are the actual victims of LM crimes.
In the meantime, in the land of free speech…
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2010/07/2010784132514853.html
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“that LM laws answer the needs of ordinary Thais” >> Now we know–the Red-Shirt and many independently thinking Thais are not “ordinary Thais,” but some kind of aliens who got stranded on Thai soil. Kick them all out!
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Don’t turn it around, Srithanonchai – people who get offended when Thai King is ill spoken of are as ordinary Thais as they come.
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StanG: What about those ordinary Thai’s who are offended by the way illegal military coups are endorsed, and how the perpetrators are exonerated, sometimes even rewarded?
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StanG: I wonder if those ordinary Thai’s (the ones whose feelings you care so much about
would be quite so offended if they were able to see all the facts?
Under the current system, they are only fed a diet of glorifying comments, as anything negative gets blocked out by your LM laws. After being fed such a diet, it’s little wonder that their feelings might get hurt on the odd occasion anything less than fawning (no matter how truthful) might accidently slip through the LM net.
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StanG – 31
I’m also an ordinary Thai, I dont get offended, what about my right??
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“I would say that LM laws answer the needs of ordinary Thais who don’t want to see the institution smeared rather than interests of the royal family itself.”
Are you mad? Do you really think that the utterly extraordinary effort which is put into the ideological indoctrination of Thai citizens – and of which LM forms one of the discipling tools – is there to answer their needs? Does that seem likely? Really, does that sound like an even remotely intelligent thing to say? Are the endlessly repeated mantras of devotion and subordination really some natural outgrowth of the spontaneous love Thais – pretty much uniquely – feel for their royal family? Or does it seem rather more likely that, as with most societies, the dominant ideologies serve those who are in a position to benefit from their promotion?
And what the hell is the relevance of the link to the CNN story?
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Bkk Lawyer I don’t think HMK can pardon before the target has been convicted. However, the mechanism used in the case of a Frenchman who allegedly committed LM on a THAI flight transiting in Bkk on which the CP’s former wife was also travelling in the 90s was for charges to be dropped after he sent a letter of apology to the palace. That way the prosecutor was presumably justified in not pursuing the case after a nod from the palace that the apology was acceptable. The Frenchman’s punishment was limited to missing his business trip to Australia and spending about 3 weeks in prison which happened to be over Christmas and the New Year – bad enough for some one who didn’t even intend to enter Thailand but much better than the treatment meted out to recent Thai offenders, Harry Nikolaides or the drunken Austrian who defaced HMK’s pictures in Chiang Mai. Although I can’t think of any cases where this methodology has been employed in favour of alleged Thai transgressors, the case showed that it is possible for the palace to defect LM charges this way.
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