Thailand: Ongoing judicial harrasment against Pimsiri Petchnamrob

THA 003 / 0625 / OBS 035
Judicial harassment /
Restriction to freedom of movement/
Restriction to freedom of expression/
Restriction to peaceful assembly
Thailand
16 June 2025

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Thailand.

Description of the situation:

The Observatory has been informed about the ongoing legal proceedings against Ms Pimsiri Petchnamrob, a prominent pro-democracy activist from Bangkok, who is being prosecuted and tried for “lèse-majesté”. She has been working as an advocate for human rights and equality and served as the Thailand Program Officer for ARTICLE 19, an international non-governmental organisation that works on freedom of expression and information.

The first hearings in Pimsiri Petchnamrob’s case were held from 4 to 6 June 2025 at the Bangkok Criminal Court and are scheduled to continue from 17 to 20 June and on 24 and 25 June 2025. Pimsiri Petchnamrob has been charged under Articles 112 (“lèse-majesté”), 116 (“sedition”), and 215–216 (“failure to disperse illegal assembly”) of the Criminal Code as well as under the Emergency Decree and the Public Assembly Act of 2015. All these charges are related to a speech she gave on 29 November 2020 in front of the Thai Army’s 11th Infantry Regiment King’s Guard in Bangkok during a peaceful pro-democracy demonstration, in which she cited a statement made in 2017 by the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression criticising the ‘‘lèse-majesté’’ provision of the Criminal Code.

Pimsiri Petchnamrob denies all charges, maintaining that she did not advocate for monarchy reform or make personal remarks about members of the Thai royal family, but only quoted the UN Special Rapporteur’s critique of Thailand’s ‘‘lèse-majesté’’, which he deemed to be incompatible with democratic principles.

In 2023 and 2024, Thai courts denied multiple requests by Pimsiri Petchnamrob to travel abroad for international advocacy meetings, providing no clear justifications for these decisions. Appeals to higher courts were either rejected or dismissed. These restrictions are part of the conditions imposed following Pimsiri Petchnamrob’s indictment on 25 November 2021 under the above-referenced charges. The same day of the indictment, she was granted temporary bail on condition that she refrains from defaming the Thai monarchy and from traveling abroad without the court’s approval.

The Observatory notes with concern that, according to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR), between 19 November 2020 and 13 June 2025 at least 280 persons, including many human rights defenders and 20 minors, were charged under Article 112 of the Criminal Code. 17 of them are currently detained pending trial or appeal, and 14 more are serving prison sentences. On 28 May 2025, lawyer and pro-democracy activist Anon Nampa was convicted for the eighth time under “lèse-majesté,” and is serving now a total prison term of over 24 years. On 14 May 2024, youth activist “Bung” Thaluwang, arbitrarily held in pre-trial detention under “lèse-majesté”, died in custody after a prolonged hunger strike that ended in April 2024.

The Observatory strongly condemns these acts of judicial harassment including prosecution, conviction, sentencing, and continued arbitrary detention and imprisonment of human rights defenders in Thailand. The ongoing prosecution against Pimsiri Petchnamrob appears to be solely related to her legitimate human rights activities and the exercise of her rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly.

The Observatory urges Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally put an end to all forms of judicial harassment against Pimsiri Petchnamrob and all other human rights defenders, notably under “lèse-majesté” charges, and to release all those arbitrarily detained in the country.

Actions requested:

Please write to the authorities of Thailand asking them to:

1. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Pimsiri Petchnamrob and all other human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists in Thailand;
2. Drop all charges against Pimsiri Petchnamrob and cease all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against her and all other human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists in Thailand;
3. Refrain from using Article 112 of the Criminal Code to target human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, as enshrined in international human rights law, and particularly in Articles 19 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Thailand is a state party;
5. Ensure that human rights defenders in Thailand are able to carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance and fear of reprisals.

Addresses:

• Ms. Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand, Email: spmwebsite@thaigov.go.th
• Mr. Maris Sangiampongsa, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand, Email: minister@mfa.go.th
• Mr. Tawee Sodsong, Minister of Justice of Thailand, Email: complainingcenter@moj.go.th
• General Pana Klaewplodthuk, Commander in Chief of the Army, Email: webadmin@rta.mi.th
• Pol Gen Kitrat Panphet, Commissioner-General of the Police, Email: info@royalthaipolice.go.th
• Ms. Pornprapai Ganjanarinte, National Human Rights Commissioner of Thailand, Email: help@nhrc.or.th, info@nhrc.co.th
• H.E. Ms. Usana Berananda, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Thailand to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Email: thaimission.GVA@mfa.mail.go.th
• H.E. Mrs. Kanchana Patarachoke, Ambassador-designate, Embassy of Thailand to Belgium and Luxembourg, and Head of Mission of Thailand to the European Union, Belgium, Email: thaiembassy.brs@mfa.go.th

Please also write to the diplomatic representatives of Thailand in your respective countries.

***

Paris-Geneva, 16 June 2025

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The objective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:

• E-mail: alert@observatoryfordefenders.org
• Tel FIDH: +33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18
• Tel OMCT: +41 (0) 22 809 49 39