Human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa arrested and charged
On 3 September 2020, the Criminal Court in Bangkok revoked bail granted to human rights defender Arnon Nampa.
On 9 August 2020, human rights defender and pro-democracy activist Arnon Nampa was granted conditional bail by the Bangkok Criminal Court.
On 7 August 2020, human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa was arrested from his home in Bangkok. The arrest was made following his participation in a peaceful gathering on 18 July 2020. The human rights defenderis being charged under eight different articles, including sedition and breaching the Emergency Decree. At the time of writing, Arnon Nampa remains in the custody of the Bangkok Criminal Court.
Arnon Nampa is a human rights lawyer and volunteers his legal expertise with the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR). TLHR was established in 2014 to provide legal assistance to alleged violators of lèse-majesté and human rights defenders targeted by the authorities following the military coup of 22 May 2014. TLHR received a human rights award from the French Embassy in Bangkok in December 2014 for its work. Arnon Nampa has defended numerous individuals,, including the cases of several imprisoned human rights defenders, accused of lèse-majesté under Article 112 of the Criminal Code which, in broad terms, prohibits insulting the monarchy.
On 3 September 2020, the Criminal Court in Bangkok revoked bail granted to human rights defender Arnon Nampa. The defender was granted a conditional bail on 9 August 2020, for charges including sedition arising from his participation in a series of demonstrations over the past several months. He is currently being held at the Bangkok Remand Prison.
On 9 August 2020, human rights defender and pro-democracy activist Arnon Nampa was granted conditional bail by the Bangkok Criminal Court. The defender was arrested on 7 August 2020 after his participation in a series of demonstrations demanding political reform and a new constitution.
On 7 August 2020, human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa was arrested from his home in Bangkok. The arrest was made following his participation in a peaceful gathering on 18 July 2020. The human rights defenderis being charged under eight different articles, including sedition and breaching the Emergency Decree. At the time of writing, Arnon Nampa remains in the custody of the Bangkok Criminal Court.
Arnon Nampa is a human rights lawyer and volunteers his legal expertise with the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR). TLHR was established in 2014 to provide legal assistance to alleged violators of lèse-majesté and human rights defenders targeted by the authorities following the military coup of 22 May 2014. TLHR received a human rights award from the French Embassy in Bangkok in December 2014 for its work. Arnon Nampa has defended numerous individuals,, including the cases of several imprisoned human rights defenders, accused of lèse-majesté under Article 112 of the Criminal Code which, in broad terms, prohibits insulting the monarchy.
On 7 August 2020, police arrested Arnon Nampa at his home in Bangkok. The defender is being charged with sedition under Article 116 of the Criminal code; assembly with the intent of committing an act of violence, and obstructing public way, under Articles 215 and 385 of the Penal code; offence against the regulations on assembly under the Emergency Decree; obstructing traffic, under Article 114 under the Land Traffic Act; use of an amplifier without permission, under Article 4 of the Control of the Use of Amplifier law; placing objects on the road, under Article 19 of the Maintenance of the Cleanliness and Orderliness Act; and participating in the acts that increase the risk for infection, under Article 34 of the Communicable Disease Act.
The arrest was made in response to a peaceful gathering that Arnon Nampa participated in on 18 July 2020, at the Democracy Monument in Phra Nakhon, Bangkok with the Free Youth Movement. The defender is one of the several accused named in the case, which has led human rights defenders in the region to believe that Arnon Nampa’s arrest forms part of a wider crackdown on pro-democracy activists, and so they fear further arrests in the coming days. Prior to his arrest, Arnon Nampa had announced that he would join a gathering in Chiang Mai on 9 August to deliver a speech entitled “The Invasive Power of the Monarchy against Democratic Principles”. He was also due to participate in a similar gathering the following day, on 10 August, at the Thammasat University Rangsit Campus.
Front Line Defenders condemns the arrest of Arnon Nampa and the charges against him, as it believes he is being targeted for his legitimate and peaceful work for the protection of human rights, specifically on democratisation in Thailand. Front Line Defenders further expresses grave concern about the escalation in judicial harassment and intimidation of human rights defenders advocating for democracy and human rights in the country.
