Ampol Tangnopakul was arrested by Crime Suppression Division police on 3 August 2010 for allegedly sending SMS messages considered offensive and threatening to the monarchy. They were allegedly sent to the private secretary of then Prime Minister Abhisith Vejjajiva. Ampol was charged with lese majeste.
Ampol was, at the time, a 60-year-old man who was arrested in Samut Prakan after police and officials of the Information and Communication Technology Ministry investigated and found that he had sent the offensive messages. Ampol denied the charges. He is alleged to have sent messages four times to Abhisit Vejjajiva’s personal secretary Somkiat Krongwattanasuk between 9-11 May, to other cabinet members, and also to yellow-shirt activist Tul Srisomwong. The case that proceeded in court was about the messages claimed to have been sent to Somkiat.
At the time, Ampol was said to have been blacklisted as a hard-core member of the red shirts of Samut Prakan province by the Internal Security Operations Command. Ampol denied this.
Kept in prison until his court appearance on 18 January 2011, Ampol was detained without bail after being indicted for lese majeste. Despite his poverty, after a day of consideration, the court dismissed a bail request, saying that the alleged crimes against the monarchy were severe and he might abscond.
Ampol had appeared in the Criminal Court to be “charged with violating Sections 14 (2) and (3) of the 2007 Computer Crimes Act, Section 112 of the Criminal Code (dealing with lèse majesté) and Decree 41 of the 1976 coup which changed the penalty for lèse majesté from a maximum of 7 years in prison to 3-15 years.”
By late January, Ampol had been denied bail three times and remained in jail.
On 21 March 2011, the Criminal Court again denied bail for Ampol. His case is scheduled for late September. He was detained without bail from 18 January 2011, and reportedly suffering from mouth cancer.
In late August 2011, his case was submitted to the U.N.’s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention by the Freedom of Expression Documentation Center, iLaw in Bangkok, with a detailed report on his case.
Ampol’s trial began on 23 September 2011. He was convicted in late November 2011 and sentenced to 20 years in jail for the 4 text messages the court says that he sent. To simplify, the court was unable to prove that Ampol sent the messages but convicted him on the basis that he could not prove that he didn’t send them. The court’s judgement (in Thai) is available as a PDF.
His lawyer’s appealed for bail during the time that the appeal case is being prepared and getting ready to be heard, and despite guarantees from 7 academics and 2 million in bail offered, the court rejected the application on 22 February 2012, unbelievably stating that it considered the poor, sick and old man a “flight risk.” Ampol’s lawyers appealed for bail eight times, and each appeal was refused.
As his appeal dragged on and on, by early April 2012, Ampol decided to withdraw it, plead guilty and seek a royal pardon, “citing his old age and health problems as the reason.”
He died on 8 May 2012, still waiting to see if there is any mercy for an old and sick man. The royal pardon never came. At the time of his sentence, PPT and others stated that Ampol had been effectively been given a death sentence. Sadly, that has proven correct.
Media reports on Ampol’s case:
Bangkok Post, 11 May 2012: “Ampon team of lawyers say their best not good enough“
PPT posted a page of international media links on Ampol’s death.
Bangkok Post, 9 May 2012: “Sadness, outrage after Uncle SMS dies“
The Nation, 9 May 2012: “Death of ‘Uncle SMS’ puts govt in focus“
Prachatai, 8 May 2012: “Lawyer: ‘If Ampon was granted bail, he would not have died’.”
Prachatai, 3 April 2012: “Amphon withdraws appeal and will seek royal pardon“
Prachatai, 24 February 2012: “Appeals Court denies bail for Amphon“
Bangkok Post, 22 January 2012: “Lawyer plans appeal in continued fight to release ‘Uncle SMS’ from prison“
Bangkok Post, 30 November 2011: “Ampon case spurs action“
A list of media reports on Ampol’s sentencing is here.
Bangkok Post, 27 November 2011: “The saga of Uncle SMS“
Asian Human Rights Commission, 24 November 2011: “THAILAND: Twenty years in prison for four SMS messages“
Prachatai, 24 September 2011: “Trial of alleged SMS sender begins“
Prachatai, 23 March 2011: “Bail again denied for man accused of sending offensive SMS”
Prachatai, 25 January 2011: “No bail for man accused of sending SMS”
Prachatai, 20 January 2011: “SMS sender arraigned for alleged lèse majesté and denied bail”
Bangkok Post, 3 August 2010: “Man arrested for lese majesty SMSs”
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