Editor gets 10 years in jail for royal insult

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 23 January 2013

Somyot Pruksakasemsuk, a Thai activist and editor, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for publishing articles deemed defamatory to the monarchy. Rights groups have condemned the verdict as a violation of free speech in Thailand.

Summary

BANGKOK: A prominent Thai activist and magazine editor was sentenced to a decade in prison Wednesday for defaming Thailand's monarchy, a verdict rights groups condemned as the latest affront to freedom of expression in the Southeast Asian country.

Somyot Pruksakasemsuk was convicted of publishing two articles in an anti-establishment magazine that made negative references to the crown.

The verdict came despite repeated calls by rights groups to free Somyot, who has been jailed since 2011. It also underscored the harsh nature of Thailand's lese majeste laws, which critics say have frequently been used by politicians to silence rivals.

The articles in question were published under a pseudonym in Somyot's now-defunct Voice of Taksin magazine, which he launched in 2009 to compile political news and anti-establishment articles from writers and contributors.

Judges found both pieces contained content that defamed the royal family and argued that Somyot, as a veteran editor, knew that and chose to print them anyway. The court announced two five-year jail terms — one for each story.- AP

KEY POINTS:

• Somyot Pruksakasemsuk sentenced to 10 years for royal defamation
• Conviction relates to articles in anti-establishment magazine
• Critics argue the verdict reinforces harsh lese majeste laws
• Somyot has been imprisoned since 2011
• Rights groups have consistently called for his release.