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Insult This Man, Spend 15 Years in the Pokey

Posted Oct 16, 08 10:37 AM CDT in Crime & Courts,  World 

(Newser) – The crime of insulting a king sounds like a medieval holdover—but in Thailand, an unkind word about King Bhumibol Adulyadej can land you in prison for 15 years. The country's recent political upheaval has coincided with a spike in accusations of maligning the monarch, the Wall Street Journal reports—and everyone from opposition politicians to foreign journalists to unwitting moviegoers has been targeted.

The deeply revered monarch says he finds the law outdated and unnecessary, but pro- and anti-government forces routinely use the statute to attack each other. Slights can be trifling: a BBC correspondent faced investigation after the king's picture appeared below another politician's on a BBC website. One official facing jail for the crime called it “the ultimate weapon in Thai society.”

Source Wall Street Journal

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Anti-government demonstrators wave the national flag in front of a portrait of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit after breaking through police lines in Bangkok, Thailand, Aug. 29, 2008.   (AP Photo)
Riot police under a billboard of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok. Insulting the king is a crime in Thailand, and cases have spiked as the country's political upheaval has continued.   (AP Phtoo/David Longstreath)
An anti-government demonstrator raises a Thai flag and a portrait of Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Insulting the king is a crime in Thailand.   (AP Photo)
King Bhumibol Adulyadej in Bangkok. Insulting the king is a crime in Thailand, and cases have spiked as the country's political upheaval has continued.   (AP Photo)
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If you can accuse somebody of insulting the king, then you've gone a long way toward eliminating them. - Jakrapob Penkair, a former Thai minister facing jail for insulting the monarchy

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