Thai court clears influencer of royal insult over online ads

BANGKOK: A Thai court cleared a social media influencer on Wednesday (Oct 30) of royal defamation over online adverts for an e-commerce company, a human rights lawyers’ group said.
Thidaporn Chaokovieng was charged with lese-majeste over 2022 TikTok clips promoting Lazada – owned by China’s Alibaba Group – in which she was seen wearing a traditional Thai silk costume and sitting in a wheelchair.
The Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) group said the plaintiff had argued that the clips mocked King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s younger sister, Princess Chulabhorn.
A criminal court dismissed the case against the 30-year-old influencer on Wednesday because the princess was not the heir to the throne, TLHR said.
“The defendant’s actions were not a crime. The court ruled to dismiss,” TLHR said on X.
The Thai king, queen and heir apparent are protected by some of the world’s toughest royal insult laws, with each charge carrying a prison term of up to 15 years.
The king has not appointed an heir to the throne, but succession rules favour sons.
Anuwat Pratumklin, another influencer who was charged with lese majeste over the same adverts was also acquitted in 2023, TLHR said.
The court has issued an arrest warrant for Kittikhun Thamakitirat – who is currently seeking asylum abroad – a third influencer charged in the case.
Thailand’s lese-majeste laws have long been criticised by rights groups who say they are overly broad and misused to suppress political debate.
Acquittals are rare and prosecutions soared in the wake of anti-government street protests that made unprecedented criticism of the king in 2020 and 2021.
More than 270 people have been prosecuted for lese-majeste since 2020, according to TLHR.