Thai lawyer and political activist Anon Numpa speaks to the media before entering the Criminal Court in Bangkok on September 26, 2023. A Bangkok court will on September 26 rule on charges against a Thai protester who made unprecedented calls for reform to the kingdom’s harsh royal defamation laws. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
Bangkok, Thailand — A Thai court on Tuesday jailed one of the leading figures in the kingdom’s youth-led pro-democracy protest movement for four years on royal insult charges.
Anon Numpa was convicted under Thailand’s tough lese-majeste laws over a speech he made in Bangkok in 2020 at the height of the street demonstrations.
Anon was one of a number of protesters who made unprecedented calls for reform to the legislation, which protects King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his close family from criticism.
Bangkok’s Criminal Court ruled Tuesday that Anon’s speech at Democracy Monument amounted to lese-majeste, sentencing him to four years in prison.
He was also fined 20,000 baht ($550) for violating an emergency decree in effect at the time.