The Criminal Court has acquitted Progressive Movement founder Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit of lese-majeste charges arising from comments he made criticising the government’s Covid-19 vaccine procurement, ruling that his remarks targeted the Prayut Chan-o-cha administration and not the monarchy.
The ruling was announced on Thursday morning in the case filed by prosecutors under Section 112 of the Criminal Code, the lese-majeste law. As is common with most lese-majeste cases, Mr Thanathorn was also charged under the Computer Crime Act.
The case arose from a Facebook livestream on Jan 18, 2021, in which Mr Thanathorn criticised the government’s handling of Covid-19 vaccine procurement.
Prosecutors argued that the broadcast contained misleading information that could cause public misunderstanding and implicated the monarchy in connection with Siam Bioscience and vaccine procurement
Siam Bioscience, a pharmaceutical firm founded by King Rama IX in 2009, received the right to produce the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in Thailand, under a technology-transfer agreement.
The Facebook Live session, titled “Royal Vaccine: Who Benefits and Who Doesn’t?”, urged the government and the company to publicly reveal the vaccine-production agreement to prove the procurement was being carried out in a transparent manner.
Mr Thanathorn, a co-founder of the Future Forward Party, the predecessor of the People’s Party, denied all charges and was released on bail while contesting the case.
He arrived at the court on Thursday morning to hear the ruling. “I’m in good spirits,” he told reporters before entering the courthouse. Supporters gathered outside to show their encouragement.
In its ruling, the court found that the Facebook Live broadcast referred to the Prayut government’s management of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout and was not intended as criticism or insult against the monarchy as prosecutors had alleged.
Anutin Charnvirakul, the current prime minister, was minister of public health at the time the comments were made. Public concern was running high because Siam Bioscience was behind schedule in deliveries of vaccine doses to Thailand and other Southeast Asian nations.
The court ruled that references made to Siam Bioscience by Mr Thanathorn were based on factual information and did not amount to defamation.
Regarding remarks questioning whether the prime minister could handle vaccine management, the court said the comments concerned public administration and the impact on citizens if mistakes were made.
The judges ruled that Mr Thanathorn’s actions did not constitute lese-majeste or violations of the Computer Crime Act and dismissed all charges.
