Thailand: Tenth "lèse-majesté" conviction for human rights lawyer Anon Nampa

New information
THA 002 / 1025 / OBS 038.8
Sentencing /
Arbitrary detention /
Judicial harassment
Thailand
15 July 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), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Thailand.

New information:

The Observatory has been informed about the tenth and latest conviction and prison sentence of Mr Anon Nampa, a prominent pro-democracy activist and human rights lawyer who has been arbitrarily imprisoned since 26 September 2023.

On 9 July 2025, the Bangkok Criminal Court sentenced Anon Nampa to two years in prison under Article 112 (“lèse-majesté”)1 and four months under Article 116 (“sedition”) of the Criminal Code. These charges stemmed from a speech he delivered at a protest in front of Parliament in Bangkok on 17 November 2020. The protest, led by Khana Ratsadon 2020 - a student-led pro-democracy movement - coincided with a parliamentary session to consider draft amendments to the 2017 Constitution, including one submitted by the civil society organisation iLaw, which had received over 100,000 signatures. The protesters from Khana Ratsadon 2020 demanded that Parliament accept the draft Constitution proposed by iLaw. Instead, authorities responded by dispersing the demonstration using water cannons and tear gas. The court initially sentenced Anon Nampa to a total of three years and six months in prison but reduced the term to two years and four months because he provided "valuable testimony" during the trial.

All the other charges that Anon Nampa faced in connection with this protest under Article 215 (“illegal assembly”) of the Criminal Code, the Emergency Decree, the Communicable Disease Act, and the Public Assembly Act were dismissed. Anon Nampa’s latest conviction has brought his cumulative prison sentence to 29 years, one month, and 20 days.

Anon Nampa has been arbitrarily incarcerated at the Bangkok Remand Prison since his first lèse-majesté conviction on 26 September 2023. All convictions are currently under appeal while numerous bail applications have been consistently denied. Anon Nampa has continued to deny the lèse-majesté charges, maintaining that his speech and remarks constituted legitimate and constructive criticism, and were protected by his right to freedom of expression.

On 22 May 2025, in recognition of his unwavering commitment to advancing and safeguarding human rights despite facing significant threats and serious risks to his own personal safety, Anon Nampa was awarded the Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk for 2025.

The latest Bangkok Criminal Court’s verdict followed a series of previous convictions related to his public statements and his advocacy for human rights and democratic reforms in Thailand.

The Observatory notes with grave concern that this most recent ruling constitutes Anon Nampa’s tenth conviction and prison term under Articles 112 of the Criminal Code. All of his convictions and sentences were related to his criticism of the Thai monarchy, which constituted a legitimate exercise of his right to freedom of expression. In addition, in March 2025, Mr Anon was found guilty by the Thanyaburi Provincial Court in Pathumthani Province and sentenced to nine months in prison for violation of Article 116 in relation to a speech he delivered during a protest at Thammasat University (Rangsit Campus) in Pathumthani Province. In the same month, he was also convicted of contempt of court by the Bangkok Criminal Court over an incident that occurred on 27 November 2024, when he took off his shirt in the courtroom to protest the court’s unprecedented decision to hold his sixth lèse-majesté trial in secret.

The Observatory recalls that on 25 June 2025, Anon Nampa, was sentenced for the ninth time to two years and eight months in prison by the Bangkok Criminal Court under Article 112 of the Criminal Code in connection a speech he delivered during a peaceful demonstration at Bangkok’s Latphrao intersection on 2 December 2020. On 26 September 2023, the Bangkok Criminal Court sentenced Anon Nampa to four years in prison on one count of lèse-majesté and imposed a fine of 20,000 baht (approximately 525 Euros) for violation of the Emergency Decree. On 17 January 2024, the Bangkok Criminal Court found Anon Nampa guilty of one count of lèse-majesté and Article 14(3) of the Computer Crimes Act2, and sentenced him to four years in prison. On 29 April 2024, the Bangkok South Criminal Court found Mr Anon guilty under one count of lèse-majesté and the Emergency Decree, and sentenced him to two years and 20 days in prison, for each count respectively. On 25 July 2024, the Bangkok Criminal Court found Anon Nampa guilty under Article 112 of the Criminal Code and Article 14 of the Computer Crimes Act, and sentenced him to four years in prison. On 3 December 2024, the Bangkok Criminal Court found Anon Nampa guilty under Article 112 of the Criminal Code and Article 14 of the Computer Crimes Act and sentenced him to two years in prison, reduced from three years because the court deemed Mr Anon's testimony useful to the trial. On 19 December 2024, the Bangkok Criminal Court found Mr Anon guilty of lèse-majesté and Article 116 of the Criminal Code, and sentenced him to two years and eight months in prison, reduced from four years because the court deemed Mr Anon's testimony useful to the trial. On 27 March 2025, Anon Nampa was sentenced by the Chiang Mai Provincial Court to two years in prison for lèse-majesté, in connection with a speech he delivered in November 2020 in Chiang Mai Province. On 28 May 2025, the same court found Anon Nampa guilty under Article 112 the Criminal Code and sentenced him to two years in prison. This sentence was linked to a speech he gave on 21 December 2020 at Bang Khen Police Station in Bangkok.

The Observatory further recalls that Anon Nampa is currently facing legal action in four additional cases of lèse-majesté. Prior to his first lèse-majesté conviction, Mr Anon was arbitrarily detained twice. From 9 February to 1 June 2021, he was detained for 113 days on charges of lèse-majesté and sedition. These charges were related to a speech concerning the Thai monarchy that he delivered during a peaceful pro-democracy protest at Bangkok’s Sanam Luang on 19 September 2020. The second detention spanned 202 days, from 11 August 2021 to 28 February 2022, in relation to 12 additional lèse-majesté cases. His temporary release requests were denied numerous times.

The Observatory recalls that on 30 August 2024, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) found Anon Nampa’s detention to be “arbitrary” and urged the Thai government to release him “immediately” and “accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations”, in response to a petition filed jointly by the Observatory and Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) on 5 March 2024.

The Observatory notes with concern that between 19 November 2020 and 24 June 2025, 281 people, including many human rights defenders and 20 minors, were charged under Article 112 of the Criminal Code. Sixteen of them are currently detained pending trial or appeal, and 15 more are serving prison sentences. On 14 May 2024, youth activist Netiporn “Bung” Sanesangkhom, who was arbitrarily held in pre-trial detention under “lèse-majesté” charges, died in custody after a prolonged hunger strike that had ended in April 2024.

The Observatory strongly condemns the recent conviction, sentencing, and continued arbitrary imprisonment of Anon Nampa, along with the ongoing judicial harassment against him. These actions appear to be solely aimed at punishing him for his legitimate human rights activities and the exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and of peaceful assembly.

The Observatory calls on the Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Mr Anon and all other arbitrarily detained human rights defenders in the country and to put an end to all forms of judicial harassment against them.

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 Anon Nampa and all other human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists in Thailand;
2. Immediately and unconditionally release Anon Nampa and all other detained human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists, whose detention appears to be solely aimed at punishing them for their legitimate human rights activities;
3. Quash the convictions against Anon Nampa, cease all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against him and all other human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists in the country, and ensure that they are able to carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance and fear of reprisals;
4. Guarantee in all circumstances the rights to freedom of expression and of 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. Refrain from using Articles 112 and 116 of the Criminal Code to target human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists.

Addresses:

• Mr. Phumtham Wechayachai, Acting 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, 15 July 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

[1] Article 112 of the Thai Criminal Code prescribes jail terms of three to 15 years for those found guilty of defaming, insulting, or threatening the King, the Queen, the Heir to the throne, or the Regent.

[2] Article 14 of the Computer Crimes Act prescribes imprisonment of up to five years or a fine of up to one hundred thousand baht or both for those guilty of importing into a computer system any computer data related with an offence against the Kingdom’s security under the Criminal Code.