Criticism of the Thai king

US blogger Joe Gordon was sentenced to two and a half years in a Thai prison for publishing links on his blog to an unauthorised biography of Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej. A case study by Maryam Omidi.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand's 82nd birthday (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Getty Images)

The case

In December 2011, US blogger Joe Gordon was sentenced to two and a half years in a Thai prison for publishing links on his blog to an unauthorised biography of Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Gordon, a Thai-born US citizen, was arrested during a visit to Thailand in May that year even though he had posted the links while in the US where he lived.

He was convicted both under the country’s Computer Crimes Act and its lese-majesty law, which bans criticism of the monarchy. Under the law, anyone can lodge a complaint against anyone else and all accusations must be investigated. The Thai authorities have defended the legislation, and their increased monitoring of the internet for breaches, as a way of protecting national security. Gordon was pardoned by King Bhumibol Adulyadej and released from prison in July 2012.

Author opinion

Thailand’s decision to sentence Gordon was clearly wrong and the country’s lese-majesty laws, incompatible with freedom of expression. As head of state, King Bhumibol must be willing to accept criticism, especially if it is in the public interest. The freedom to criticise government institutions and officials should be fiercely protected to ensure accountability and to foster political debate. As citizens, we can only make the right political choices if we have access to information.

- Maryam Omidi

Published on: February 6, 2012 with No Comments Print

Civility Defamation History Internet Law Lese majesty Reputation Southeast Asia Thailand

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Xx May 28, 2012 at 1:34 pm
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I agree with Maryam because Thailand had in my opinion no right to sentence Gordon because he is not a real citizen of Thailand and he just made use of his freedom of speech. I think nobody should be sentenced according to how they made use of their freedom of speech as long as it does not harm anyone. The Thai king should be able to accept criticism because every government and political person in the World has also to do it.