BANGKOK, Oct 16 — Rallying from behind bars in northern Thailand, Anon Numpa urged supporters today to keep fighting for democracy — still defiant months after his fiery speeches fuelled a movement calling for reforms to the ultra-powerful monarchy. Student leaders and activists have kept up...
Human rights lawyer Anon Numpa addresses a crowd of pro-democracy protesters during an anti-government rally next to Government House in Bangkok on October 14, 2020. — AFP pic
He wrote on Facebook he had been forcibly taken by helicopter to Chiang Mai, where his lawyer confirmed he had been refused bail.“My freedom is a very small issue compared to the entire struggle for democracy,” he wrote.Anon has spent his career defending those charged under Thailand’s draconian royal defamation laws, which can see people jailed for up to 15 years per charge.
“I had to come out and be on the frontlines,” Anon told AFP in an interview last month, knowing the decision would make him a prime target. The law shields the royal family from defamation and can be broadly interpreted to target criticism as well. Today’s youth-led movement is demanding the resignation of Premier Prayut Chan-o-cha, the former military chief who led the 2014 coup and held on to power after last year’s disputed elections.
But his influence permeates every aspect of society, buttressed by the arch-royalist military and kingdom’s billionaire clans.
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