<p>9 December 2011 &ndash; The United Nations human rights office called on Thai authorities to reform laws that jail people convicted of insulting senior members of the country&rsquo;s royal family, saying they were having a chilling effect on freedom of expression.</p>

<p>Dual Thai-US citizen Joe Gordon was sentenced to two and a half years in prison yesterday under the lese-majeste law and the Computer Crimes Act for translating parts of a banned book about the King and posting them on the Internet while in the United States, prompting an immediate expression of concern from a locally based US official.</p>

<p>Reporters Without Borders is shocked by the two-and-a-half-year sentence imposed on American blogger Joe Gordon by a Bangkok court today for insulting the Thai royal family and deplores the increase in so-called l&egrave;se-majest&eacute; crimes in Thailand.</p>

<p>On 8 Dec, the Criminal Court sentenced <a href="http://www.prachatai.com/english/search/node/Joe%20Gordon">Joe Gordon</a>, a Thai-born American citizen, to 5 years in jail for l&egrave;se majest&eacute;, but reduced the jail term by half as he had pleaded guilty.</p>

<p>Suraphot Thaweesak, a university lecturer and Prachatai columnist, has received a summons to report to the police in Roi Et province in the Northeast as a result of a local yellow shirt&rsquo;s complaint against him for his comments on the Prachatai website.</p>

<p>Article 19, the international human rights organization on freedom of expression, has recently published a statement calling for the reversal of Thailand&rsquo;s latest l&egrave;se majest&eacute; conviction, 61-year-old grandfather Amphon, or the &ldquo;Ah Kong&rdquo; case.&nbsp; Amphon was sentenced 20 years for allegedly sending four vulgar SMS to the personal secretary of Abhisit Vejjajiva, then Prime Minister.</p>

<p>Singapore-based political scientist Pavin Chachavalpongpun, launched an on-line campaign on Wednesday to free Thailand's latest lese majeste law prisoner 61-year-old Amphon Tangnoppakul, aka Akong, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison last week for allegedly sending four SMS messages defamatory to the Queen and the monarchy to personal secretary of then Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. The campaign is catching on and Pravit Rojanaphruk asked Pavin through the internet as to why he is doing it and what's his expectation.</p>

<p><em>20-Year Prison Sentence for Four Text Messages</em></p> <p>(New York, December 3, 2011) &ndash; A Thai court&rsquo;s sentencing of a 61-year-old man to 20 years in prison for sending four text messages illustrates the misuse by successive Thai governments of laws intended to protect the monarchy, Human Rights Watch said today. Thailand&rsquo;s lese majeste laws should be amended to prevent unnecessary restrictions on freedom of expression.</p>

<p>On 1 Dec, the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology inaugurated the Cyber Security Operation Centre (CSOC) to suppress cyber crimes, including in particular offences against the monarchy.</p>

<p>In a way, Thai society should thank Mallika Boonmetrakul, deputy spokesperson of the Democrat Party, for speaking her mind last weekend. Mallika, a staunch royalist, said that if all attempts to block or ban online content deemed defamatory to the monarchy failed, then the government should adopt her &quot;final solution&quot; of blocking Facebook and YouTube completely.</p>

<p>On 25 Nov, programmer and Facebook user <a href="http://www.prachatai.com/english/search/node/suraphak">Suraphak</a> (family name withheld) was indicted by the public prosecutor for l&egrave;se majest&eacute;, according to lawyer Anon Nampha.</p>

<p>Confusion reigned yesterday over the verdict day for Joe Gordon, a dual Thai-US citizen charged under the lese majeste law and Computer Crimes Act, when US Embassy personnel and Gordon's lawyer appeared at the Criminal Court - only to be told the ruling on his prosecution would be handed down next Thursday, December 8.</p>