A Thai woman who received one of the kingdom’s longest royal insult sentences was freed from prison yesterday under a mass pardon marking the king’s birthday.
Anchan Preelert, 69, was jailed for 43 years in 2021 after sharing online audio clips on YouTube of an underground podcast host known as “DJ Banpodj,” a fierce critic of the monarchy.
She was initially sentenced to 87 years — three for each of the 29 counts of lese-majeste she faced — but the court halved it because she confessed.
Photo: AFP
Anchan, a former civil servant, was first arrested in 2015 under the military government ruling Thailand at the time.
After about eight years behind bars, Anchan walked free yesterday morning along with 84 other inmates granted clemency from the Central Women’s Correctional Institution in Bangkok.
Wearing a white T-shirt and a purple scarf, she bowed to supporters who gave her flowers and held signs reading “Welcome Home.”
“Eight years I was in there ... it’s a bitter feeling for me,” she told reporters.
Thailand’s lese-majeste law shields the king and his family from any criticism, with each offense punishable by up to 15 years in jail.
Thai Lawyers for Human Rights has said that more than 270 people have been charged with lese-majeste since early 2020, when there was a flurry of protests for reforms to Thailand’s monarchy.
Anchan posted the offending clips 29 times, and under the law each one was treated as a separate offence, so she was hit with 29 counts.
When it was handed down, Anchan’s sentence was the longest ever imposed for lese-majeste.
It was overtaken last year when Mongkol Thirakot, a 32-year-old online seller, was sentenced to at least 50 years over Facebook posts deemed insulting the monarchy.
Several rights groups including Amnesty International welcomed Anchan’s release as a rare reprieve for political prisoners in Thailand.
Last month, Thai lawmakers rejected an amnesty bill for royal insult convicts, a move condemned by rights groups as a setback.
Additional reporting by AP
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