Lawmaker from the People's Party receives prison sentence for defaming the monarchy

In a recent ruling, the Appeal Court has sentenced People's Party MP for Pathum Thani, Chonthicha Jangrew, to an additional two years and eight months in prison. This sentence is in relation to violations on her Facebook page, not her 2021 protest speech.

The court confirmed that Chonthicha owned the Facebook page and authored the defamatory posts, which allegedly criticised the monarchy and were found to be beyond the bounds of free speech. The violation occurred on Nov 8, 2020.

The prosecution against Chonthicha for lese-majeste was last filed by the police before she was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison by the Criminal Court for her 2021 protest speech. Chonthicha had denied the charges, claiming her actions were protected under the constitutional right to free expression.

Prosecutors argued that the posts insulted the monarchy, incited social conflict, and threatened national security. The court ruled that while constitutional freedoms must respect the rights of others, Chonthicha's posts did not meet this standard.

The additional sentence was announced after the court's consideration of the case. The court, however, made it clear that the Appeal Court's decision does not affect the ongoing appeal against the 2021 protest speech sentence.

Following the sentencing, Chonthicha was granted 300,000-baht conditional bail, pending an appeal against the lese-majeste conviction. It is important to note that this sentence does not affect her current imprisonment for her 2021 protest speech sentence.

This development in Chonthicha's case continues to draw attention to the ongoing debate about freedom of speech and the application of laws related to lese-majeste in Thailand.

Lawmaker from the People's Party receives prison sentence for defaming the monarchy