US ‘alarmed’ as American faces years in jail on charges of insulting Thai monarchy

By Helen Regan, CNN

(CNN) — Thailand’s arrest of a prominent American academic on charges of insulting the monarchy has “alarmed” the United States, the State Department said, in a rare case of a foreign national allegedly falling foul of the kingdom’s strict lese majeste law.

Paul Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in central Thailand who writes analysis on the kingdom’s military and politics, could face years in prison after he was formally charged and detained when he presented himself to police and appeared in court on Tuesday.

Thailand has some of the world’s strictest lese majeste laws, and criticizing the king, queen, or heir apparent can lead to a maximum 15-year prison sentence for each offense. Anyone can file a lese majeste complaint and sentences for those convicted can be decades long, with hundreds of people prosecuted in recent years.

Chambers’ lawyer, Wannaphat Jenroumjit, said a warrant for his arrest was issued last week after a complaint was filed by a regional army command. Alongside lese majeste, Chambers is also facing charges under the Computer Crimes Act.

“He was accused of publishing a blurb on (Singapore’s Institute of Southeast Asian Studies’) website in connection with an ISEAS webinar in October 2024 about military reshuffles,” said Akarachai Chaimaneekarakate, advocacy lead for Thai Lawyers for Human Rights and part of Chambers’ legal team.

“He denied all charges. He neither wrote nor published the blurb on the website,” Akarachai said.

Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s court appearance, Chambers told CNN he had been told little about why he was charged and feared he “could be imprisoned for 15 years.”

Chambers is being held in pre-trial detention after being denied bail. His lawyers will submit another bail request on Wednesday.

Chambers is a scholar, author and lecturer at Naresuan University’s Centre of ASEAN Community Studies, and frequently contributes insights to news articles on Southeast Asia, including to CNN.

Advocates say the charges pose “a grave threat to academic freedom in the country.”

“Unlike other lese majeste cases, this case involves an extremely well-established academic whose work focuses very deeply on the civil-military relations in Thailand and whose expertise is widely acknowledged within the academic community,” Akarachai said.

The US Department of State said on Tuesday it was “alarmed” by Chambers’ arrest and is providing consular assistance.

“We are in communication with Thai authorities regarding this case,” State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce in a statement. “As a treaty ally of Thailand, we will closely monitor this issue and advocate for the fair treatment of Paul Chambers… We have requested access to him to ensure his well-being and to provide any necessary support.”

Thailand’s conservative, military-backed establishment has ruled the country on and off for decades, and critics say it routinely uses laws like lese majeste, sedition, and the computer crimes act to silence criticism and opposition.

The military has long had an outsized influence over the country’s politics, despite Thais repeatedly voting overwhelmingly in support of the military’s political and progressive opponents. It has staged 13 successful coups since absolute monarchy ended in 1932, the latest in 2014 that ushered in just under a decade of military or military-backed rule.

Longest sentence: 50 years

Last year, a Thai appeal court extended a man’s prison sentence to a record 50 years for insulting the monarchy, in what is believed to be the toughest penalty ever imposed under the lese majeste law.

The charges against Chambers represent a “tightening chokehold on free speech and academic freedom in Thailand,” said Sunai Phasuk, senior Thailand researcher for Human Rights Watch.

“Paul is considered a major target by ultra-royalist groups, which have launched multiple attacks against him for years — ranging from online disinformation and hate campaigns to pressing authorities to revoke his visa and get him expulsed from the university,” Sunai told CNN.

It is rare for a foreign national to be targeted by lese majeste. In 2011, Thai-born American Joe W. Gordon was sentenced to 2 and a half years in prison for insulting the monarchy after posting a link to a biography of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, that he was involved in translating, which was banned in Thailand. He was later released after receiving a royal pardon.

For years, human rights organizations and free speech campaigners have said the law has been used as a political tool to silence critics of the Thai government.

And rights groups say the right to freedom of expression in Thailand has come under increased attack since 2020, when nationwide youth-led protests saw millions of young people take to the streets calling for constitutional and democratic reforms – for the first time openly criticizing the monarchy, and publicly questioning its power and wealth.

Those protests came four years after King Maha Vajiralongkorn succeeded his father King Bhumibol, who had reigned for seven decades.

Despite the change from a military-backed government to civilian leadership in 2023, surveillance and intimidation against activists and students continues, according to Thai Lawyers for Human Rights.

The legal advocacy group said that since the start of those protests in July 2020 and up until the end of January 2025, at least 1,960 people have been prosecuted or charged for their participation in political assemblies and for speaking out, with at least 277 prosecuted for lese majeste.

One of the most prominent of those is Arnon Nampa, a Thai activist with a cumulative sentence of 18 years in prison for a raft of lese majeste and other charges relating to his advocating for monarchy reform during the 2020 protests.

A much-anticipated bill that would offer amnesty for those prosecuted in politically motivated cases will be introduced to Thailand’s parliament on Wednesday. However, there is ongoing debate as to whether lese majeste will be included in the bill.

The high-profile nature of Chambers’ case could mean it backfires on the military and have wider impacts on Thai society, some analysts say.

“The cost to the Thai military is high because it will attract the kind of international attention and scrutiny the army wants to avoid,” said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist from Chulalongkorn University.

“This case tightens the lid on academic freedom, and will reinforce the closing of Thai minds and undermine the intellectual and research ecosystem necessary to foster ideas and innovation to propel the Thai economy forward.”

CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.

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