Darunee Charnchoensilpakul was sentenced to 18 years in jail on lese majest charges on 28 August 2009. The trial, conducted in a closed court, saw here received 6 years for each of three comments she made in a political rally. The case makes a mockery of Thailand’s judicial processes.
Commonly known as “Da Torpedo,” Darunee, a pro-Thaksin and self-proclaimed pro-democracy campaigner, was arrested on 22 July 2008 after delivering an exceptionally strong 30-minute speech denouncing the 2006 coup and the monarchy. Thai reports say that she is also accused of slandering General Saprang Kalayanamitr, an outspoken leader of the 2006 military coup.
Darunee is from Bangkok and had previously worked at the Phim Thai newspaper and the Thai Sky News cable network .
She was refused bail at least three times, supported by Chulalongkorn University’s Suthachai Yimprasert. The court found no grounds to grant bail. The Bangkok Post reported that “The court reasoned that the charges against Ms Daranee carried very heavy penalties, and that her alleged offences could tarnish the monarchy, therefore granting her bail could hurt the feelings of the King’s loyal subjects.” However, her lawyer pointed out that her case does not fall under the legal reasons for denying bail: “According to Article 108 of the Criminal Procedure Act, a suspect should be denied bail if he/she was likely to escape or repeat the offence he/she was accused of, or to meddle with witnesses and evidence, or if the bail guarantor was deemed to be unreliable.”
In February 2009, it was reported that Darunee was ill, thin and discouraged. A report says that “Her voice was hoarse and her words sounded fuzzy as she could hardly open her mouth to speak due to severe jaw dysfunction.” This is the medical condition that the court considered provided no grounds for granting bail. She feels alone and abandoned and she endures insults from fellow inmates and prison officials who castigate her for showing disrespect to the monarchy. However, this phase soon passed, and she continued to remain defiant.
To mark the first anniversary of Darunee’s jailing, activists called on the public to visit her on 30 July at Khlong Prem Prison, bringing flowers and banners in support. Their visit received some publicity.
On 28 August 2009, Darunee was sentenced to 18 years in jail. She received 6 years each for three comments she made in a political rally.
No-one can claim that this was a fair trial as the decision comes from a court that was closed.
Darunee remained defiant, vowing to fight on. In fact, PPT believes that her refusal to plead guilty is the reason why she has received such a harsh sentence. Ususally, it is expected that those on lese majeste charges will plead guilty in the belief that they will receive a lighter sentence in exchange for the case not having to go to court. This perspective is also expressed in a Financial Times (28 August 2009: “Thai activist jailed for 18 years”) article that states: “Few defendants in lèse majesté cases choose to fight the charges as Ms Daranee did: lawyers say the ill-defined laws are almost impossible to beat even in a case that is open to public scrutiny, and most choose to plead guilty and beg the king for mercy on conviction. Thai law stipulates that defendants who choose to admit the charges against them can receive more lenient sentences.”
Some 30-40 of her supporters were present for the reading of the verdict. See red shirt supporters here.
Following her sentencing, Darunee has been the subject of harassment by prison officials and was placed in solitary confinement for unspecified offenses. The prison has also created a special name tag for her, identifying her as convicted of lese majeste. It seems that 18 years is insufficient punishment for some authorities.
On 27 October Darunee’s lawyer Prawase Praphanukul lodged an appeal at the Criminal Court.
Darunee Charnchoensilpakul’s speech:
YouTube has 4 excerpts from one of her offending speeches, in Thai, with limited English titling: “Da Torpedo’s speech”
News on Darunee Charnchoensilpakul’s case and conviction:
Prachatai, 28 October 2009: “Da Torpedo appeals lèse majesté case” and 27 October 2009: ทนาย ‘ดา ตอร์ปิโด’ ยื่นอุทธรณ์คดีหมิ่น
Prachatai, 25 September 2009: “USA, Australia, EU and UN asked to intervene in Thailand’s jailing of political prisoners” and 24 September 2009: ทนาย ‘ดา ตอร์ปิโด’ ยื่นหนังสือสถานทูตอเมริกา-ออสเตรเลีย-อียู-ยูเอ็น เรียกร้องให้ยุติการกักขังนักโทษการเมือง
Prachatai, 14 September 2009: “Corrections Dept asked to explain Da Torpedo’s solitary confinement” and 12 September 2009: “ทนาย ‘ดา ตอร์ปิโด’ จี้ราชทัณฑ์แจงการกักเดี่ยว-เลือกปฏิบัติ”.
Prachatai, 10 September 2009: “Da Torpedo’s life behind bars”
Awzar Thi, in the Jurist, 6 September 2009: “Thailand judiciary further discredits itself with harsh lese majesty sentence against protestor”
The Times, 29 August 2009: “Red Shirt activist jailed for 18 years for insulting Thai Royal Family”
Christian Science Monitor, 29 August 2009: “Crackdown on royal critics deepens in Thailand”
Khom Chat Luek, 28 August 2009: จำคุก”ดา ตอร์บิโด”18ปีฐานหมิ่นสถาบัน
Bloomberg,28 August 2009: “Thai Woman Gets 18 Years in Prison for Royal Insult”
Reuters, 28 August 2009: “Thai court jails Thaksin supporter for royal insult”
New York Times, 28 August 2009: “Activist Gets 18-Year Term for Insulting Thai King”
Southeast Asian Press Alliance, 28 August 2009: “Thai activist gets 18-year prison term for lese majeste”
Prachatai, 28 August 2009: “Da Torpedo sentenced to 18 years in jail for lèse majesté”
Sydney Morning Herald, 28 August 2009: “Torpedo gets 18 years for insulting king”
Financial Times, 28 August 2009: “Thai activist jailed for 18 years”
Bangkok Post, 28 August 2009: “18 years in jail for Da Torpedo”
Earth Times, 28 August 2009: “Thai court sentences woman to 18 years for lese majeste”
Reuters, 28 August 2009: “Thai court jails Thaksin supporter for royal insult”
Prachatai, 26 July 2009: “Activists call to Khlong Prem, to mark one year of Da Torpedo’s imprisonment”
Prachatai, 4 July 2007: “Da Torpedo in court for open trial”
Prachatai, 27 June 2009: “Amnesty urges Thailand to open lese-majeste trial”
The Nation, 25 June 2009: “Closed door lese majeste trial for Daranee makes lawyer despair”
New Mandala, 24 June 2009, “The injustice of a closed trial”
Straits Times, 23 June 2009, “Trial shut for security”
Reuters, 23 June 2009, “Thai lese-majeste trial shut “for national security”
Prachatai, 22 June 2009, “Talk with Da Torpedo’s lawyer” and in ไทย, “สัมภาษณ์ทนาย ‘ดา ตอร์ปิโด’ ก่อนขึ้นศาล: ชะตากรรมคนถูกขังยาว และคำถามถึง ‘คนเสื้อแดง’”
Prachatai, 1 March 2009: “Da Torpedo denied bail yet again”
Bangkok Post, 24 February 2009: “UDD jilts Da Torpedo. Ex-protester loses 15 kilos in jail”
Bangkok Post, 23 February 2009: “Lese majeste suspect’s bail rejected”
Prachatai, 9 January 2009, “Destinies of Two Female Lese Majeste Offenders”
Prachatai, 16 August 2008, “Bail still denied for lèse majesté detainee after 24 days”
Bangkok Post, 31 July 2008, “Police refuse to grant ‘Da Torpedo’ bail”
Prachatai, 25 July 2008: “Highest Institutional Problems”
The Nation, 24 July 2008: “Newsmaker”
The Nation, 23 July 2008, “‘Da Torpedo’ arrested over rally remarks”
The Nation, 22 July 2008, “‘Da Torpedo’ arrested on Lese Majeste charge”
28 Comments
February 23, 2009 at 5:31 pm
[...] suspect’s bail rejected” states that the Criminal Court threw out a bail request by Darunee Charnchoensilpakul (known as Da Torpedo), who is accused of Apparently, this was Darunee’s third attempt to [...]
February 25, 2009 at 2:14 am
[...] suspect’s bail rejected” states that the Criminal Court threw out a bail request by Darunee Charnchoensilpakul (known as Da Torpedo), who is accused of lèse majesté. A report in the Nation newspaper states [...]
March 18, 2009 at 12:12 pm
[...] in the official lexicon, although the police did use this claim when initially refusing bail for Darunee Charnchoensilpakul. That claim was dropped as she was refused bail a second and third [...]
March 19, 2009 at 11:21 am
[...] as can be seen by looking through the cases of persons currently held and denied bail including Darunee Charnchoensilpakul and Suwicha Thakor. Yet again the prime minister is loose with the truth when dealing with the [...]
March 20, 2009 at 11:24 am
[...] in the official lexicon, although the police did use this claim when initially refusing bail for Darunee Charnchoensilpakul. That claim was dropped as she was refused bail a second and third time. Possibly related posts: [...]
March 20, 2009 at 11:27 am
[...] as can be seen by looking through the cases of persons currently held and denied bail including Darunee Charnchoensilpakul and Suwicha Thakor. Yet again the prime minister is loose with the truth when dealing with the [...]
June 22, 2009 at 6:52 pm
[...] For background her Daranee’s case, please see PPT’s compilation of reports here. [...]
June 24, 2009 at 1:51 am
[...] Updated: Daranee Charncherngsilpakul’s trial closed to public Darunee Charnchoensilpakul, also known as ‘Da Torpedo,’ finally faced a court yesterday. Darren Scheuttler, [...]
June 25, 2009 at 1:09 am
[...] Pravit on Darunee Darunee Charnchoensilpakul, also known as Da Torpedo, is the subject of a story in The Nation by Pravit Rojanaphruk (25 June [...]
June 27, 2009 at 4:43 am
[...] will not get a fair trial PPT has reported on the lèse majesté charges brought against Darunee Charnchoensilpakul or Da Torpedo since this blog was established. As regular readers will know from our earlier post, [...]
June 27, 2009 at 7:29 pm
[...] ซึ่งคุ้มค่ากับการอ่าน และ โพลิติคอลพรีซั่นเนอร์ ในประเทศไทยก็เช่นเดียวกัน [...]
July 21, 2009 at 10:12 pm
[...] is also well worth a read. Political Prisoners in Thailand is, of course, following developments closely and there are other important elements of Daranee’s story available in Thai at LM Watch and at [...]
July 21, 2009 at 10:25 pm
[...] has reported on the lèse majesté charges brought against Darunee Charnchoensilpakul or Da Torpedo since this blog was established. As regular readers will know from our earlier post, [...]
July 28, 2009 at 3:54 pm
[...] (28 July 2009) it is reported, with a photo, that on Tuesday the Criminal Court has acquitted Darunee Charnchoensilpakul of charges of instigating unrest in the country. However she was fined Bt50,000 on defamation [...]
August 7, 2009 at 1:15 pm
[...] on Aug 28”) has a short report stating that the final evidence was heard on 5 August and that Darunee Charnchoensilpakul’s lese majeste verdict will be delivered on 28 August. Recall that the whole trial has been conducted [...]
August 10, 2009 at 2:28 pm
[...] visited by activists As we noted here a group of activists planned to visit Darunee “Da Torpedo” Charnchoensilpakul at the prison where she has been incarcerated for a year awaiting trial on lese majeste [...]
August 12, 2009 at 1:17 pm
[...] (9 August 2009: “Tough on the inside too”) has published an interview with “Da Torpedo,” Darunee Charnchoensilpakul, who is being tried in closed court for lese [...]
August 28, 2009 at 11:27 am
[...] is no surprise to see that “Da Torpedo,” Darunee Charnchoensilpakul, a former journalist, pro-Thaksin and democracy campaigner, who was arrested on 22 July 2008 on [...]
September 1, 2009 at 9:04 am
[...] New: Pravit on Darunee’s case At Prachatai (1 September 2009), Pravit Rojanaphruk has this article “There She Was: Daranee Charnchoengsilpakul on The New York Times” about reaction to the harsh sentencing of Darunee Charnchoensilpakul. [...]
September 10, 2009 at 1:42 am
[...] (10 September 2009: “Da Torpedo’s life behind bars”) has a detailed story on Darunee Charnchoensilpakul in prison. We won’t detail the report, but highlight a coupple of [...]
September 14, 2009 at 10:34 am
[...] Torpedo in solitary confinement In an earlier and updated post, PPT briefly noted rumors that Darunee Charnchoensilpak had been put in solitary confinement. This is now confirmed in a Prachatai article (14 September [...]
September 16, 2009 at 11:26 am
[...] “Da Torpedo fined Bt50,000 for defaming coup leaders, former PM, Prem”) states that Darunee Charnchoensilpakul has been convicted in the Criminal Court and fined Bt50,000 for defaming 2006 coup leader General [...]
September 21, 2009 at 11:02 pm
[...] majeste in Thailand. As far as PPT is aware, the most that AI has done publicly is to complain that Darunee Charnchoensilpakul’s closed trial was a problem. If there have been any other public comments on the law and its [...]
September 25, 2009 at 10:53 am
[...] of protesters who rallied in front of the U.S., Australian, U.N. and E.U. missions in Bangkok for Darunee Charnchoensilpakul and against Article 112 of the criminal code that enforces lese [...]
September 28, 2009 at 2:11 pm
[...] may have been one or two cases which somehow went off the radar…” just days before Darunee Charnchoensilpakul was sentenced to 18 years’ jail. This is not the first time Abhisit has been less than [...]
October 6, 2009 at 9:21 pm
[...] its advantages. Sondhi’s case relates to comments he made to a PAD rally on last year, about Darunee Charnchoensilpakul’s case, and at about the time she made the statement that landed in jail, without bail, facing trial in a [...]
November 10, 2009 at 12:46 pm
[...] ‘ดา’” project. See here, here and here for our previous coverage of letters to Darunee Charnchoensilpakul, convicted in a closed court of lese [...]
December 8, 2009 at 2:41 pm
[...] a signficant amount of information and analysis about lèse majesté, and particularly the case of Darunee Charnchoengsikpakul, also known as “Da Torpedo.” The text of the court decision is printed, along with a [...]
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