Prominent Thai opposition politician Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit has been acquitted of royal insult and cybercrime charges stemming from a 2021 Facebook livestream. The Bangkok criminal court on Thursday cleared the 47-year-old founder of a progressive political movement, who had faced potentially severe penalties under Thailand's strict lese-majeste laws.
The charges arose from a January 2021 broadcast in which Mr Juangroongruangkit alleged that the government had mishandled its Covid-19 vaccine campaign and unfairly favoured Siam Bioscience, a company owned by King Maha Vajiralongkorn. He was accused of violating the Computer Crimes Act and insulting the monarchy during the stream.
Thailand enforces some of the world's most stringent lese-majeste statutes, with convictions carrying a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. Breaches of the computer crimes act are punishable by up to five years in prison, underscoring the gravity of the charges he faced.
Krisadang Nutcharat, Mr Juangroongruangkit's lawyer, confirmed that prosecutors have a 30-day window to appeal the court's decision. The Office of the Attorney General has not yet responded to requests for comment on the verdict.
The acquittal follows a previous setback for Mr Juangroongruangkit, who was banned from politics for 10 years by the Constitutional Court in 2020. That ruling concerned a loan he provided to the now-dissolved Future Forward Party, the predecessor to the current opposition People's Party.
