Thai authorities have arrested and charged a U.S. citizen with insulting the country's revered monarchy, the latest of a growing number of people accused of breaching the world's toughest lese-majeste laws.
The Department of Special Investigation (DSI), Thailand's equivalent of the FBI, said 55-year-old Lerpong Wichaikhammat had translated an article deemed offensive to the monarchy and posted it on his blog. He was also accused of providing a web link to a controversial biography by an American author of 83-year-old King Bhumibiol Adulyadej, a book banned in Thailand.
Lese-majeste, or insulting the monarchy, is a very serious offense in Thailand, where many people regard King Bhumibol as almost divine. Each offense is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
Critics say the law is being abused to discredit opposition activists and politicians, who mostly deny pursuing a republican agenda. The number of complaints, especially those lodged by the military, has jumped ahead of a July 3 parliamentary election.
The law has been a regular feature of the charged political atmosphere in Thailand in the past five years. The generals who overthrew Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006 cited his alleged disrespect for the monarchy among other reasons.
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