Facebook may sue Thai government after complying with demand to block group discussing monarchy

Facebook on Monday blocked access within Thailand to a group with 1 million members that discusses the country’s king, after the Thai government threatened legal action over failure to take down content deemed defamatory to the monarchy.

But on Tuesday, Facebook said it would legally challenge the government’s request to restrict access in Thailand to the group.

“After careful review, Facebook has determined that we are compelled to restrict access to content which the Thai government has deemed to be illegal,” a Facebook representative said in a statement.

However, the company said it had done so reluctantly. “Requests like this are severe, contravene international human rights law, and have a chilling effect on people’s ability to express themselves,” the statement from Facebook said. “We work to protect and defend the rights of all internet users and are preparing to legally challenge this request.”

The students are revolting – and Prayuth’s army-backed government isn’t sure what to do

There have been near daily youth-led protests against the government led by the former military junta chief and unprecedented calls for reforms of the monarchy.

The “Royalist Marketplace” group was created in April by Pavin Chachavalpongpun, a self-exiled academic and critic of the monarchy.

On Monday night, the group’s page brought up a message: “Access to this group has been restricted within Thailand pursuant to a legal request from the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society.”

Pavin, who lives in Japan, said Facebook had bowed to the military-dominated government’s pressure.

“Our group is part of a democratisation process, it is a space for freedom of expression,” Pavin said. “By doing this, Facebook is cooperating with the authoritarian regime to obstruct democracy and cultivating authoritarianism in Thailand.”

On Tuesday, more than half a million users joined a new Facebook group created by Pavin.

Thailand has strict lèse-majesté laws that forbid defaming the king, with penalties of up to 15 years in prison.

Earlier this month, Thailand’s digital minister accused Facebook of not complying with requests to restrict content, including insults to the monarchy.

On August 10, he gave Facebook 15 days to comply with court takedown orders or face charges under the local Computer Crime Act, which carries a fine of up to 200,000 baht (US$6,370) and an additional 5,000 baht per day until each order is observed.

“The deadline is almost up and Facebook understands the context of Thai society, so they cooperate,” ministry spokesman Putchapong Nodthaisong said.

The ministry last week filed a separate cybercrime complaint against Pavin for creating the group.

Anon Nampa and other Thai youth protesters hit with arrest warrants

Meanwhile, Thai police on Tuesday said they had arrested human rights lawyer Anon Nampa for a third time this month, to charge him for sedition over his role in a political rally where calls were made for reforms to the country’s powerful monarchy.

“The police brought Anon to the station to read him the charges for his protests on August 10, and will question him before bringing him to court to file for detention,” Police Lieutenant General Amphol Buarabporn said.

The rights lawyer, 36, will be held along with another political activist, Panupong Jadnok, who was arrested on Monday during a protest against Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who first seized power in a 2014 coup. Protesters vowed to move ahead with a planned demonstration on September 19, the anniversary of a previous coup in 2006.

Police said both Anon and Panupong face charges for violating article 116, which covers sedition, and for breaching coronavirus restrictions on public gatherings.

Anon has been at the forefront of a movement that has staged protests almost daily for the past month in the Southeast Asian country. He was the first to call openly for changes to King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s role, breaking a long-standing taboo. He has been arrested on similar charges twice before, and released on bail. Police have arrested student leaders, rappers and activists for taking part in demonstrations, but neither Anon or any of the other protesters have been charged under Thailand’s ‘lese-majesty’ law.

Additional reporting by DPA