Prominent US academic detained on Thai royal insult charge

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn (R) inspects a guard of honor accompanied by Thailand’s Queen Suthida (L) during the “Trooping the Colour” parade by the Thai Royal Guards and oath-giving ceremony to mark the 72nd birthday celebrations of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn at the Dusit Palace in Bangkok on December 3, 2024. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse

BANGKOK — A prominent American academic was detained on Tuesday and charged with insulting Thailand’s monarchy, his lawyer told AFP, in a rare case of a foreign national falling foul of the kingdom’s strict lese-majeste law.

Paul Chambers, who has spent more than a decade teaching Southeast Asia politics in Thailand, is in pre-trial detention awaiting a decision on his bail request, lawyer Wannaphat Jenroumjit said.

“He denied the charge,” Wannaphat told AFP.

READ: Thai palace official arrested for lese majeste charges

Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn and his close family are protected from criticism by the lese-majeste law, with each offence punishable by up to 15 years in jail.

The Thai military filed a complaint earlier this year against Chambers, a lecturer at Naresuan University in northern Thailand, over an article linked to an online discussion.

He was informed of the charge last week and told to report to a police station in the northern Phitsanulok province Tuesday to formally respond.

“We have to check all details, but the defendant said he didn’t do it and I believe the law will protect him,” Wannaphat said.

READ: Thai man jailed for insulting monarchy with sticker on king’s portrait

The US State Department said in a statement it was “alarmed” by the arrest and said it “takes its responsibility to assist U.S. citizens abroad seriously.”

“This case reinforces our longstanding concerns about the use of lese majeste laws in Thailand. We continue to urge Thai authorities to respect freedom of expression,” the statement added.

Chambers told AFP last week he felt “intimidated” by the situation, but was being supported by the US embassy and colleagues at his university.

Charges under Thailand’s royal defamation law have surged in recent years and critics say it is misused to stifle dissent.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) told AFP it is “rare” for a foreign national to face such charges.

International watchdogs have expressed concern over its increasing use against academics, activists, and even students.

One man in northern Thailand was jailed for at least 50 years for lese-majeste last year, while a woman got 43 years in 2021.

And in 2023 a man was jailed for two years for selling satirical calendars featuring rubber ducks that a court said defamed the king.